Fullness Of The Gentiles.     

Please bear with me for 25 minutes. I will now read 1 scripture and then quickly summerize that scripture.

-Here begineth the reading of God's holy word.
Romans 11:25-26.
-For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
-And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
Here end-eth the reading of God's holy word.

In this scripture, what is ment by the phrase, "until the fullness of the Gentiles" have come in. I do not know everything. I may not know what a thing is. Yet, I do know that part of the spectrim of knowledge is knowing what a thing, is not. A fish at the bottom of the ocean may not know, what, wet is. Yet, when he sticks his head out of the water for the first time, he knows that what he is experiencing is not wet. Likewise, I may not know what, "until the fullness of the Gentiles" means. Yet, I do know what it does not mean. Some suggest that we are currently living in the age of the gentiles. They suggest that the age of the gentiles began when the Jews turned away from God. That at that time only a remnent of the Jews were getting fully saved because they did not really know who Jesus was. Therefore, Paul said that blindness in part is happened to Israel. That blindness would continue until the end times. That era, of blindness defines the age of the gentiles. When the Jews wake up and realize who Jesus is, that blindness will be over for them. When they realize that the biological Jesus is the same kind of a thing as his father is, as a result of the Holy Spirit impregnating Mary. That is because a son is necessarily the same kind of a thing as his father is, without exception. Thus Jesus is fully God and fully man. He is the only one who is that kind of a thing, God's only begotton son. Nature itself reveals that to us. If you cannot see God in nature, you are without excuse. As long as that blindness continues, that defines the age of the gentiles. When that blindness ends, then the fullness of the gentiles ends. With that I am 100 % in agreement with. During the age of the gentiles only a remnant part of the Jews are getting fully saved. Therefore, the age of the gentiles is defined by the fact that only a small percentage of the Jews know who Jesus really is. Currently, Jesus is the stumbling block of the Jews. When that percentage makes a significant change, then we are in a different age.

Here is the part that I passionately disagree with. Some Christians teach that when the fullness of the gentiles is reached, the door to salvation will be closed to the gentiles. That is what the fullness of the gentiles mean. No! They teach that it will only be open to the Jews. Or to say the least when the Jews begin getting saved in large numbers, the door will be closed to the gentiles, because only a small percentage of those saved will be none Jews or gentiles. Just like we are led to believe that after the Holy Spirit is taken away of the rapture, the Holy Spirit will not show back up until after one thousand years of human history; where human beings still exist without their new bodies. No! That is not what the Bible says nor implies.

Here is what the bible says. After the rapture, human history will continue for another one thousand years without some humans having new bodies. Most likely people will still be having children, until God reaches the number of people saved, that he is looking for.

Most if not all of those people will be Jews and none Jews, who were not part of the rapture, but overwellmingly none Jews or gentiles. After all the world only consists of Jews and non Jews. At this point we are not talking about Jews by grace. In that case there would be no value to the phrase, "that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until.

The devil will be locked up for one thousand years, and Jesus will be teaching with no deception from the devil. If the door to salvation of the gentiles is closed for that one thousand year period of human history, then Jesus's preaching would be in vain, because the world would consist largely of, as it does now, unsaved gentiles or people. Furthermore, if the Holy Spirit was taken away during the last three and one half years of the devil’s rein, the Holy Spirit would be back during the last one thousand years of human history. No one can get saved, unless the Holy Spirit leads him, Jews nor gentiles. Particularly not large numbers of people, like 90 percent of the Jews, or all of Israel. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit is not a respecter of persons. It is only by way of the Holy Spirit that John could turn another way and see a number greater than any man could count, all getting saved. That is in addition to the 144,000. Let us not forget that during the 2nd half of the great tribulation one third of the population died. In addition to those that died, any number of people were caught up by the rapture. All of that subtracts from the number of people that are left for John to see still on the earth availble to that number too large to count. Thus we would have to conclude that there was a popuulation explosion. In addition Jesus ruled with an iron hand, and people were not getting abortions. Furthermore, like in the days of the Old Testament Isreal-ite babies were probably driping like flies. That is why Isreal grew faster than other Egyptians.

The devil will be locked up, and Jesus will be teaching with no deception from the devil. If the door to salvation of the gentiles is closed for that one thousand year period, then Jesus's preaching would be in vain, because the world would consist largely of, as it does now, unsaved gentiles or people. Nevertheless, the percentage of the Jews getting saved may be as high as 90 percent. Yet the percentage of non Jews getting saved may be as high as 30 percent, which is a lot more than a few. We know that all, the 155,000, and the number that no man can number, all came out of the great tribulation.

Revelation 7:1-14 says;
- And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
-And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. He said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

If the time period of the great tribulation started, three and one half years after a particular event, then the time period under discussion, that is they that came out of the great tribulation, must have ended one thousand three hundred and one half years, after the great tribulation started. Otherwise, there would have been a population explosion during the three and one half years after the great tribulation started? That is because all of these people came out of the great tribulation.

Now part of the problem is our undersanding of what happens when one age ends and another age begins. An age is defined by what increases at the transitional point. It is not defined by what decreases. The Age of the Gentiles is defined by the increase of the salvation of the gentiles. It was not defined by the decrease of anything. Likewise, the end of the age is defined by the increase of the salvation of the Jews. Weathe the salvation of the Gentiles stays the same, also goes up, or goes down, it is still a transition of the age. Likewise, a transition from the industrial age to the age of enlightment is defined by the increase in enlightment. It does not matter weather industry goes up, down, or remains the same. Some imply that a transition from the age of the gentiles to a differnet age, means that the salvation of the gentiles has to go down. This is an error in thinking. It is not correctly discerning the Word of God.

Clarity of thought, and precision of expression. Praise yee the name of the Lord.

In Romans 11 Paul makes a compelling observation, an affirmation he refers to as a mystery, that a partial hardening has happened until “the fullness of the Gentiles has come in”, (Romans 11:25). The context helps us understand the meaning of the partial hardening, and what is the fullness of the Gentiles.

According to the bible, the age of the gentiles, or, the times of the gentiles, refers to the period in which Gentiles (non-Jews) have dominion over the world. This is between the reign of Nebuchadnezzar and Jesus’s second coming. It is also a time when God is calling people from all nations to faith in Christ. The phrase the fullness of the Gentiles, means the completion of God’s work among the Gentiles before He restores Israel.

I hope this helps you understand the meaning of the phrase.

In the first eleven chapters of Romans, Paul catalogs the mercies of God in God’s provision of righteousness through the gospel. First, in Romans 1:1 to 3:20, Paul considers the universal human need for God’s righteousness, as all, are unrighteous and separated from God. Then in Romans 3:21 to 4:25 Paul lays out how God applied righteousness through faith to all who believe in Jesus, outlining three different and significant types of descendants of Abraham: 1) ethnic Israel (Romans 4:1), 2) believing Gentiles (Romans 4:11), and 3) believing Jews (Romans 4:12). These three sets of descendants of Abraham are especially important for understanding the partial hardening and the fullness of the Gentiles that Paul talks about in Romans 11.

Romans 5 through 8 discusses the implications of that righteousness applied in freeing believers from the penalty and bondage of sin, and assuring them of a present and future of reconciliation and peace with God. At the end of Romans 8 is a powerful affirmation of the believer’s eternal security. God will keep His promises to those who have believed in Jesus Christ, and they will never be separated from the love of Christ (Romans 8:35).

While discussing these mercies of God, Paul seems to anticipate that his readers might wonder why, if God is so faithful to restore those who believe in Jesus, God’s promises of restoration to Israel do not seem to be fulfilled yet. Simply put, if God is faithful, and if His promises to believers are trustworthy, then why is He not keeping His promises to Israel? It is to answer this concern that Paul writes Romans 9 to11, as he introduces the ideas of a partial hardening of Israel and the fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11:25.

In Romans 9, Paul expresses his love for his Jewish brethren, and recognizes that the covenant are to be fulfilled to a specific group of Abraham’s descendants. Paul shows the distinct groups by highlighting God’s choosing of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and affirms that God’s blessing would be for those descendants who believe in the Messiah. Salvation would not only be for believing Jews, though, as Gentiles could also call upon the name of the Lord for salvation. While there are believing Jews and Gentiles, Paul explains that the nation of Israel as a whole has not yet received her Messiah, but they will one day be saved through believing in their Messiah.

In the meantime, Paul explains that there is a partial hardening of the nation. That many will refuse the Messiah, until the fullness of the Gentiles occurs. Israel’s hardening will continue until the divinely set number of Gentiles are saved: “Some of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ”.

Paul recognized that Israel’s failure to accept the Messiah when He came offering the kingdom represented blessing for the Gentiles because, instead of setting up that kingdom on earth at that time, Christ died to pay for the sins of all. In so doing, Christ fulfilled the promise God made to Abraham that in Abraham’s seed, all the peoples of the earth will be blessed. That partial hardening of Israel also represented a shift in focus to the announcement of salvation to the Gentiles. Paul acknowledged himself as an apostle to the Gentiles, and sought that many Gentiles would come to know Christ, so those promises could be fulfilled and then the Jewish people might return to their Messiah. Paul alluded to this in 2 Timothy 4:17 when he expressed gratitude for God’s sustaining him so that Paul might fulfill his ministry and that all the Gentiles might hear.

Even though God’s promises to save the nation of Israel are not presently being fulfilled, Paul recognizes that God will keep those promises after the fullness of the Gentiles. Paul seems to be building on the foundation of Daniel 9, in which is revealed in a 490-year prophetic timeline after which God will accomplish His covenant blessings for Israel. After the first 483 years of the timeline, the Messiah was cut off (Daniel 9:26), signaling a shift in the focus away from Israel as Gentiles would dominate, and there would be wars and desolation. But one day in the future, the ruler who would be known as the Antichrist would make a seven-year agreement with Israel. That last seven years of the timeline would begin to return the focus back to Israel and would conclude the times of the Gentiles of which Jesus spoke in Luke 21:24.

The fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11:25 reminds us of God’s global focus (with the universal proclamation of the gospel of salvation), and aligning (with the times of the Gentiles not yet complete). One day, the fullness of the Gentiles will be complete, and God will deliver the nation of Israel. Anyone who might have doubts about God’s faithfulness in keeping His promises can consider these passages as important reminders that God has a detailed plan that He is fulfilling patiently and carefully.

Given the truthfullness of the afore-mentioned, it is a logical error to conclude that after the fullness of the gentiles begins, God will nolonger be saving gentiles, because the salvation of the gentiles will be filled. Therefore, if you are a gentile you should hurryup and get saved, because soon the door to salvation will be closed to you. That is a false gospel, that has its foundation in fear. It is more biblical to say you should hurry up and get saved because you might be dead tommorrow. Yet it may very well be that even unsaved Jews have a convinction that is greater than unsaved gentile's conviction. Therefore, unsaved Jews will be getting saved in larger numbers than unsaved Jews, because of the conviction that is in them, which is not, in unsaved gentiles. The reason is not because the door is now closed to the gentiles. Does thou understandeth what thou readest? We are all called to have a discerning spirit?

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” The explanation that I am about to give is like adding color to a black-and-white picture.

Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to explain to a mechanic an intermittent problem you are having if you have no training or understanding of the dynamics of the automobile.

Yet, if you approach the same problem after having taken a class in automotive repair, while perhaps not capable of understanding every potential problem you are having, based upon the symptoms your car is displaying, it is easier to communicate with the mechanic because you have a common vocabulary concerning the subject matter.

I guess what I’m attempting to say is that life is, not simple, it is by nature complicated. And while attempting to simplify matters is what teachers attempt to do by use of figures of speech, such as analogies or metaphors; there must be at least a common language that can be utilized before the student can comprehend the complexity of any subject.

The human nature, at least my nature is to make it is easy as possible. I enjoy the comfortable lifestyle. In spite of the fact that if someone was to evaluate me according to my words and writings, they might come to the conclusion that I am a perfectionist, or at least complicated in the way I perceive life. This does not take into account how I am by nature.

It is an examination of the attributes or behaviors that I display, yet does not take into consideration who I am in my essence.

I, like us all prefer it simple, easy, and comfortable. However, life is complicated and demands that if we are to tackle any question we must commit ourselves to address the complexity of that subject matter.

I guess what I’m saying is, as much as I do enjoy the simplicity of spontaneous conversation; it is getting back to the rigors of getting into more complicated presentations that as a teacher I am required in my accountability to the work at hand in general, and to God in particular.

If what I’m saying is not correct, then explain to me why we need 66 books, thousands of pages; for God to communicate His message to man, because it’s complicated.

And what I found in my experience is that those that would seek to stay within a greater simplicity, at least as far as they’re concerned; to confine their teachings to the New Testament, they miss so much because the New Testament is based upon the premises and teachings of the Old Testament.

When we try to simplify God’s message too much, we discredit it due to a lack of clarity and comprehension that God wishes to present.

What we need to do is speak to a baby in terms that it would understand, talk to an adolescent in a manner they can comprehend, communicate a teenager in a way that they can apply application, and we need to teach adults according to their ability to fully understand and to see the whole picture; not just small pieces or parts. It is in seeing the whole that faith, based upon God’s Word truly grows.

It is always attempting to aid the person in growing, in stretching, in extending their grasp; that a teacher is called.

Teachers, by the virtue of their vocation are meant to tackle the complicated aspects of their subject matter in order that what is misunderstood or unknown becomes profitable by becoming comprehensible.

And many times the subject matter, at least according to the title or heading may appear to hold no value to the reader.

However, it is when we come to understand that there is a reason to continue on, that we end up unearthing a treasure; which at least concerning God’s Word, according to the blessing of the Holy Spirit, becomes a faith producing insight.

Part of the problem of attempting to keep things simple regarding God’s Word is that many times something appears inconsistent when compared to other things in God’s Word.

The following presentation is a good example of how we often misunderstand the scripture. Often times causing many problems for the last 2000 years; side tracking major doctrines, while even creating division within the Body of Christ.

Times of the Gentiles vs Time of the Gentiles
We get this term “times of the Gentiles,” from Jesus. He is the only one that refers to this time by this particular terminology which is found in Luke 21:24, which says:

“And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”

It is obvious from the context that Jesus is speaking about the destruction of Jerusalem which would occur 38 years later under Roman general Titus, and that Jerusalem would continue to be trodden underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles was fulfilled.

From Jesus reference, we know that this times of the Gentiles had already started, as Jerusalem had been under the rule at that time of the Romans, and before that the Parthians, and before that yet Romans again, and prior to that the Greeks, and prior to that the Persians, and prior to that there original captors were the Babylonians.

Therefore, since Jesus was speaking about the time period when Jerusalem would be controlled by other nations, (“nations” is synonymous with Gentile), and we know that this has been the case since their bondage under Nebuchadnezzar; we understand that when ever this time is fulfilled, it is yet future.

This term has to do with their slavery, so obviously this is a negative situation.

This is a reference to a time clock which according to Daniel 2:29-49, started with the Babylonian captivity were the Jews were conquered, and will be completed when Jesus comes back to rescue the remnant of Israel. It is a political term which refers to the dominance of the Gentiles over Israel.

According to Dr. Kenneth Wuest:

The ‘times of the Gentiles’ began with the captivity of Judah under Nebuchadnezzar 2 Chronicles 36:1-21, since which time Jerusalem has been under Gentile overlordship.”

The fullness of the Gentiles, Romans 11:11-25, should be distinguished from the times of the Gentiles mentioned by Christ in Luke 21:24.

The “times” of the Gentiles is political in nature and refers to that period from the Babylonian captivity until the end of the Tribulation. (See Deuteronomy 28: 28-68; II Chronicles 36:1-21; Daniel 9::24-27.).

Fullness of the GentilesThe Fullness of the Gentiles

The term of “the fullness of the Gentiles,” as is used by Paul in Romans 11:25, which states:

“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that hardening in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.”

This is a reference to the church of Jesus Christ; it is connected with Ephesians 3:4-8, which states:

“And by referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me according to the working of His power. To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ.“

This term, “The fullness of the Gentiles,” addresses the idea that salvation, which God extended to the Jews, via the blessings of Abraham their father, that would be yet extended to the Gentiles5 as well. The word for fullness here is a Greek word that is mathematical and nature.

What we do not see in the English but is an apparent in the Greek is that when it speaks of the “fullness of the Gentiles” it means the last number of the Gentiles. We understand that this text indicates when the last individual enters the church is what this refers to.

Our vernacular would be when the last person that is predestination to be saved is saved and that number is hit, then we have entered the completeness of all those Gentiles which make up the church of Jesus Christ. It is a term that is used in harmony with our idea of the rapture. And while English word “rapture,” which is not in our English translation of the Bible, because this word comes from the Latin Vulgate translation. We find this word used in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, which states:

“Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

The literal English translation of the word phrase “caught up” is the “Snatching away,” which is what Paul uses concerning this end-time event. We must understand that as the church (salvation to Jews and Gentiles alike, combined) was a secret completely hidden in the Old Testament, and therefore its inception (Acts 2) must be a secret as well, this would mandate that it’s retraction would be a secret as well.

Therefore, the “Fullness of the Gentiles”, that last person to be saved that trips the number counter that God has determined will make up the church, trips what we’ve referred to as the rapture or snatching away.

The fact that these two terms sound so closely alike in the English adds to the confusion. However, the Greek as found in the New Testament concerning Luke 21:24, Romans 11:25; are clear that the phrases are very different, and hopefully these references will be able to help you to see with greater clarity what God has revealed to us, His children through His Word.

This is how the “Fullness of the Gentiles” and the “Time of the Gentiles” interact within the stage of history.