This message is a continuation, building upon the previous post titled ‘Highway of Holiness.’  It is a little longer than usual because a foundation must be laid to show from where we have come, to better understand the direction the Lord is pointing us toward…

As I slept during the night of August 16,^th 2023, the Lord began speaking.  He was speaking scripture after scripture, imparting the fullness of their meaning, and how they would be fulfilled.  He woke me up at 1:30 am to write down what was shown. 

He began with John 12:32, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto Me.” 

Next, He began reminding of Galatians 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  This verse was spoken repeatedly between other scriptures and what He was showing.

These verses are prophetic, as a mystery is being played out.  Paul said it is the mystery of His will, “That in the dispensation of the fulness of times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him” (Ephesians 1:9-10).

The Lord then showed the division and lack of knowledge among various Christian camps.  Many believe in Replacement Theology (which comes in many forms), in essence thinking the Church replaced Israel; some look upon Israel as inferior, despising them for not receiving Jesus Christ.  These ideas and mindsets against Israel show a total lack of Biblical understanding. 

From Genesis to Revelation is the story of a people called Israel, through which the Messiah would come.   It is about God calling out a people for Himself; to finally have a people who would obey His voice and keep His covenant; a people who would be a special treasure to Him above all people, and become to Him a kingdom of priests, a holy nation (Exodus 19:5-6; 1 Peter 2:5,9).  

Abraham was told in Genesis 22:18, “I will make your seed as numerous as the stars of heaven, and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.”  Why?  Because by faith Abraham obeyed God and the Messiah would come through his seed!  The promises were passed on to Isaac, and then to Jacob, whose name God changed to ISRAEL.  Israel had 12 sons – the 12 tribes of Israel.  And we all know the story of God delivering the Israelites out of Egypt, eventually leading them into the promised land.

God made promises to Israel, with many yet to be fulfilled.   Because of their rebellion, God scattered them among the nations.  Ezek. 36:19 says, “And I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the countries.”  This happened first to the northern House of Israel, then to the southern House of Judah.  The northern 10 tribes never returned to the land of Israel, and only a portion of the southern tribes returned.  Israel is still scattered among the nations.

Many scriptures, including Jeremiah 30, give the promise of the house of Israel returning to their land, and it will be during the time of Jacob’s Trouble as it says in verse 7, and their return will continue into the millennium.  Israel was scattered among the nations, and for the most part lost their identity, not knowing they are descendants of Israel.   Many of you reading this are in fact Israelites!

Moses prophesied about what would happen to Israel,

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto you go over Jordan to possess it; you shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.  And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, …But if from there you shall seek the LORD your God, you shall find Him, if you seek Him with your whole heart and with all your soul.  When you are in tribulation, and all these things are come upon you, even in the latter days, if you turn to the LORD your God, and shall be OBEDIENT TO His voice: He will not forsake you, neither destroy you, or forget the COVENANT OF YOUR Fathers which He swore unto them” (Deuteronomy 4:26-27, 29-31).

No, the Lord will never forget Israel – she is His wife.  “For your Maker is your husband; The LORD of hosts is His name; and your Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall He be called” (Isaiah 54:5; Jeremiah 3:14; 31:32).  This is clearly speaking of Jesus as her husband.

Because of Israel’s continual whoredoms, He gave her a Bill of Divorce – He divorced Israel (Jeremiah 3:8-10).  And according to the law, if a man divorced his wife, and she went off and became defiled with other lovers, he could not take her back.  That is why a lot of people think Israel has been written off for good.    

But God beckoned her to come back to Him three times in the book of Jeremiah!  The book of Hosea is the prophetic story of Israel being purchased back (redeemed) by her husband.  Not only does the Lord beckon her to come back, but He paid the purchase price with His blood to cleanse her of her whoredoms, redeeming her back to Himself.  Israel will return to her husband!  But when?

As Jesus said, the plan of salvation through His death on the cross and the shedding of His blood, was to draw all men unto Himself (John 12:32). As Paul said, the gospel message was intended for ALL people, but it was first to be presented to the Jew, then the Gentiles (Rom 1:16).  Romans 11:25, “For I would not, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.”   Please make note of what is said here, because it is part of the mystery! 

Remember, “Jesus came to His own, and His own received Him not” (John 1:11).  After being rejected by the Jews, God basically shut that door, putting Israel on ice (so-to-speak), blinding them in part until the “latter days.”  The gospel message was then sent around the world so gentiles might have their turn to receive salvation through Jesus Christ.  Israel’s “blindness” was to be until the fulness of the Gentiles come in.  This appears near completion, and we are now entering another season within the plan of God:

The fulfillment of all things is at hand.  

“Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and His goodness in the latter days” (Hosea 3:5).  We are definitely in the latter days! The first half of Moses’ prophecy which foretold Israel’s rebellion and being scattered among the nations came to pass.  The second half of the prophecy – the return of Israel to seek the LORD – has begun.  But most have not a clue as to what is happening…

Because Abraham believed God, it was counted to him for righteousness.  The promises God made to Abraham included: making his seed as the stars of heaven in number; all the land of Canaan; and all the nations of the earth would be blessed through his seed.  Those promises were unconditional – God said He would do it, and the promises were passed on through Isaac and then to Jacob (Israel).  But the Covenant He made with the nation of Israel was different.

The covenant He made with the nation of Israel was conditional; it was contingent upon both parties performing their respective oaths (Exodus 19:8, 24:3; Deuteronomy 4:26-31).   “The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.  The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day” (Deut. 5:2-3). 

Because of Israel’s fear of death, they opted to have Moses go to God, hear what He had to say, and relay the message back to them They feared personal intimacy with God, saying, “…why should we die? For this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, then we shall die” (Deut. 5:25-27).  In essence, Israel told the LORD, “Tell us what You want and we will do it!”  But Israel did not perform their oath, instead rebelling grievously against the LORD, leading to their removal from the land. 

Not only was the unfaithfulness of Israel foretold through Moses, but also what God would do about it.  “I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put MY words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him” (Deut. 18:17-18).  God provided a way back for them. 

Jesus came as the perfect Passover sacrifice to cover Israel’s sin with His blood – to purchase them back.  Israel needs only to repent, accept their true Messiah, and fulfill their part of the covenant.  They agreed to serve the LORD their God, to keep His commandments, statutes, and judgments. 

Fast forwarding to our time – the latter days, we see the second half of Moses’ prophecy unfolding.  “But “if” from there you shall seek the LORD your God, you shall find Him, “if” you seek Him with your whole heart and with all your soul.  When you are in tribulation, and all these things are come upon you, even in the latter days, “if” you turn to the LORD your God, and shall be OBEDIENT TO His voice: He will not forsake you, neither destroy you, or forget the COVENANT OF YOUR FATHERS which He swore unto them.”  Please make note: for Israel to seek, turn to, and obey the LORD – to finally perform their covenant oath – is still an outstanding contingency to receive what God says He will do for them.

There is a group that meets the above criteria.  They are descendants of Israel scattered among the nations who are now seeking the Lord with their whole heart and soul in these latter days.  As previously mentioned, there are promises God made to Israel yet to be fulfilled. 

One is the rights of the firstborn:

There is something very important God says about Israel in Exodus 4:22, when God tells Moses what to say when he goes in to Pharoah to tell him to let God’s people go. “And you shall say to Pharoah, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Israel is My son, even my firstborn.”

God’s Word is very clear about the identity of every Christian.  Romans 8:16 say, “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.”  If you become a Christian, you are placed into the vine – the vine being Jesus Christ (John 15:5).  But Paul explains further in Romans 11:15-16.  Notice again, Israel is called the firstfruit.  And he says, if the casting away of Israel was for reconciling the world, then what shall the receiving of Israel back into the vine be – but life from the dead.

Jesus is the firstborn from the dead (Colossians 1:18).  “…which the prophets said would come: that Christ should suffer, and that He should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should show light unto the Jewish people, and the Gentiles” (Acts 27:22-23).  “For as in Adam all die, even so In Christ shall all be made alive.  But every man in his own order:  Christ, the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming” (1 Corinthians 1522-23).  There are no commas in the original Greek, and some translations have the comma after “Christ,” which scripture shows more appropriate. 

Christ is THE FIRSTFRUIT, with another group spoken of as firstfruits (plural) unto God (the Father) and the Lamb:

When describing the identity of the 144,000 in Revelation 14:1-5, it says they are the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb (see ‘Who Are the 144,000 and the Innumerable Multitude?’).  As we have already read, God says Israel is His son, Israel is His firstborn, Israel is His firstfruit.

Months ago, I was meditating on some things the Holy Spirit has been revealing. The magnitude of everything was getting bigger and bigger in my spirit.  I started to ask the Lord why I was not seeing more gentile Christians being led to walk on the same path in this hour, like observing His commandments, His festival days, and such; “Lord, what about the gentiles?”  But before I could even finish verbalizing the question, He said,

“You are NOT a Gentile!”

I had been shown many years ago I was an Israelite, but until some years ago did not understand the connection with the 144,000.  In Revelation 7:1-8 and chapter 14:1-5, notice the following:

The 144,000 are servants of God – followers of Jesus Christ – they are Christians.

The 144,000 are from all the tribes of the sons of Israel.  It does NOT say they are males, but from the tribes of the 12 sons of Israel.

The 144,000 are not defiled with women, but are virgins.  Again, it is not implying they are male; the term “woman” often refers to a church (religion).  They are not defiled with the whore (of Babylon) or her daughters.  Jesus spoke of the 10 virgins who were awaiting His return in Matthew 25.  He was NOT speaking of physical, but spiritual virgins.

The 144,000 were redeemed from the earth and follow Jesus where ever He goes.

The 144,000 are FIRSTFRUITS unto God (the Father) and to the Lamb.

The right to hear and receive the gospel was first presented to Israel – then the Gentiles.  Now, the right to be firstfruits unto God the Father and Jesus, and  redeemed from the earth is also first presented to Israel – then the Gentiles (innumerable multitude Rev 7).  Please note the following:

The 144,000 are an extremely small group who are not only Christians, but are of Israelite descent. Although they may have gentiles in their bloodline, just as Jesus did (think of Ruth, Rahab, etc.), they are still Israelites.    But we do need to understand something; most Christians who have Israelite ancestry are NOT part of the 144,000.  How are the 144K different?

The 144,000 are totally sold out and on fire for Jesus (not lukewarm) and follow Him wherever He leads!  They are firstfruits unto God, in that they are Israelites who have repented, received Jesus as their Messiah, and understand it was by His shed blood they were purchased/redeemed back to their Husband.  This group of Israelites are born again, Spirit-led Saints, who know their identity in Jesus Christ.  They have responded to the beckoning of the LORD to return to Him, to honor, serve, and obey Him. 

These firstfruits / forerunners are called upon to honor the covenant their forefathers made with the LORD, which was contingent upon both parties performing their respective oaths.  As such, they walk in His statutes and commandments, calling the law holy, just, and good. Jesus said something most do not believe today, in Matthew 5:17-19,

“Think not that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets:  I have not come to destroy, but to fulfil.  For verily I say to you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” 

Heaven and earth HAS NOT PASSED YET, and His commandments and instructions are still in effect for His people.  Unlike their forefathers, these firstfruits know there is absolutely nothing they can do to earn salvation!  They know it is only by His grace they are saved – not by their works – but by the perfect work of Jesus Christ! 

Summary:

As mentioned earlier; from Genesis to Revelation is the story of a people called Israel, through which the Messiah would come.   It is about God calling out a people for Himself; to finally have a people who would obey His voice and keep His covenant.

The 144,000 are firstfruits to the Father and Jesus; first to be redeemed from the earth.  The innumerable multitude consisting of all nations, tribes, and tongues are redeemed later (Rev. 7).

The 144,000 firstfuits, grafted back into the vine, are forerunners to lead the way for the rest who will come later as the “ransomed of the LORD” to travel the Highway of Holiness (Isaiah 35).  The Word of God shows gentiles will follow during the millennium, as they yearn to be taught the ways of the God of Israel, saying, 

 “Come and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob (Israel); and He will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in His paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the Law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.”  (Isaiah 2:2-3)

Romans 11:15-16.  Notice again, Israel is called the firstfruit.  And he says, if the casting away of Israel was for reconciling the world, then what shall the receiving of Israel back into the vine be – but life from the dead.  

The 144,000 meet the outstanding contingency for Israel of performing the oath of their forefathers to obey His voice and keep His covenant, and are used as Instruments of His Righteousness, and will do great exploits in the days just ahead as God begins to pour forth His judgments; 2 Corinthians says, she will be ready to punish all disobedience when her obedience is fulfilled. She will be used as a tool in His hand pointing all towards Jesus Christ – Israel AND the Gentiles.  

As all who receive Jesus are finally placed into the vine, that vine being Jesus Christ, this scripture is fulfilled:

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  

Oh, what an amazing God we serve!  Our Lord said, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw ALL men unto Me.” 

All we can do is PRAISE HIM! 

Personal Note:

This post only scratches the surface regarding the assignment of the 144,000 firstfruits.   God willing, a continuation will be forthcoming soon.  Please take everything contained herein before the Lord for confirmation in how it may apply to you. 

(emphasis mine)

 

Related Posts:

‘The Highway of Holiness’

‘You Will Be My Instruments of Righteousness’

‘Who Are the 144,000 and Innumerable Multitude?’