God ' s Plan was a
Spiritual People
One Man in Christ Spiritual Israel
Abraham had two sons and similarly , God has two peoples , one He has accepted the other He rejected
You may have heard the phrase ‘ First the natural then the spiritual ’ and not understand where it was from or what it was about . It is however , a very important principle in understanding the plan of God . He has been communicating this key truth to us from the very beginning of time but not many seem to be getting it .
The indicators began flashing from as early as the story of Cain and Abel , two sons from among the very first children ever born of a woman . It hinted to us the conflict that would ensue between two peoples , those of the flesh or carnal vs those of the Spirit . Cain did not give sacrificially as an act of worship , so his sacrifice was rejected by God . This caused Cain to become resentful of his brother which led Cain to kill his own brother .
Cain represents the unbelieving Jews whose sacrifice God rejected . God said through Amos , “ I hate , I despise your feast days , And I do not savor your sacred assemblies . Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings , I will not accept them , Nor will
I regard your fattened peace offerings . Take away from Me the noise of your songs …” Amos 5:21-23 ( NKJV ) These Jews rebelled against God and made themselves His very enemies . As Cain murdered Abel so their children later murdered Jesus . “ Those Jews killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets , and they even chased us away . God doesn ’ t like what they do …” 1 Thessalonians 2:15
Abel gave sacrificially as an act of worship and was accepted by God . He represents Jesus who gave himself as a sacrifice and those whom He will sanctify . This symbolism was also clearly demonstrated in the story of Isaac and Ishmael . In summary , God promised Abraham a son but his wife Sarah was barren . Sarah therefore , presented a good idea to Abraham . To help God fulfil His promise they decided that Abraham should go with the servant girl , and it did work . She became pregnant and had a son . A further problem developed however , as it became apparent that they did not get the desired result . Their plan was to get an Isaac but they ended up with an Ishmael instead . Isaac
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