“…waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of glory of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Titus 2:13
Our study in Romans 11 takes us out into the future. Events that are yet to come, but nevertheless foreknown by our Sovereign Father.

In Acts 1 the apostles asked Jesus a question: “Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Obviously, this indicates an expectation on their part that Jesus was going to restore the Davidic throne and kingdom as had often been foretold in the Old Testament prophets.Jesus did not correct their question by telling them- “no, you got it all wrong. The prophesies about Israel in the Old Covenant are now going to be spiritually fulfilled by my new Covenant people- the church.” Rather He simply said: “It is not for you to know the times and seasons that the Father holds in His hand.”
This reply indicates that the premise of their question was correct: He will restore the Kingdom to Israel. He simply says, the timing is none of your concern- just go and be my witnesses after the Holy Spirit has come upon you.

So when will Jesus restore the Kingdom to Israel? Well, the time is not ours to know. But this we do know: preceding His glorious appearing Israel will “look upon Him whom they have pierced and they will mourn because of Him.”
This mourning will translate into faith as multitudes of ethnic Israelites receive Jesus as their Messiah.

Accompanying this great outpouring of God’s Spirit upon the nation of Israel, a great harvest will sweep through the nations. Parallel to this great revival Satan will be sowing rebellion and hatred toward Jesus.
War will break out, Christ will win, the Kingdom will come.

Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus!

Because of grace,
Tim

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Go to the ant, you slacker! Observe its ways and become wise.
Without leader, administrator, or ruler, it prepares its provisions in summer; it gathers its food during harvest.
~Proverbs 6:6-8

To anyone with half a brain it is becoming fairly obvious we are moving into some tough economic times. The buying power of our dollars is slipping and inflationary trends are fast outpacing earnings.Excessive printing of money and government handouts are going to shortly catch up with us all. Our Treasury Secretary Janet Yellin and Fed Chair Jerome Powell might like to rename it “supply chain shortages and bottlenecks” or “transitory price pressures” but such terms are just playing dodge-ball with what this really is.

Just go to the gas station. Two days ago I filled up two tractors for a whopping $150. A year ago it cost me $80. Go to Home depot and buy some wood for a new deck. Better plan to lay out an additional 40% at minimum to what you would have paid a year ago. Stay in a hotel, rent a car, go out to eat, buy some food.
Everywhere you go you and I are spending markedly more money for the same product we would have bought just a year ago.
Whether or not you personally liked him, Donald Trump should buy a billboard with a picture of himself standing by a gas pump with the simple question: “Miss me now?”

So what am I getting at? The ant gets ready in summer for the long winter ahead. God warned Joseph to store grain in advance of 7 years of famine.
Are you stocking up? Do you have enough food in the pantry to go more than a week without going to the store? Do you have an emergency fund? Are you financing everything in your life? Are you living within your means?
If you’re on a fixed income it might get a little dicey up ahead. If you’re servicing huge amounts of debt you might not have enough to keep up with housing prices. Are you getting yourself into a situation that is setting you up for success or failure? Prepare now.

On another level. We will continue to live well within our means as a church. We are grateful for the good financial situation the church is in. However, we won’t take it for granted.
We will live frugally and trust the Lord to sustain and meet the needs as we go ahead. He has always done so and I am confident He will continue to do so in the future. Come what may.

Because of grace,
Tim

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