Jesus Christ
The Passion
Gentiles Receive The New Covenant
by Rhawn Joseph, Ph.D.
"For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." -Luke 2.
According to scripture and prophecy, the Messiah was to be King of the Jews, and his mission was to offer redmention and salvation, first to the children of Israel--Israel, meaning "God's strength." Only after delivering God's message of the New Convenant to the Jews, and their acceptance of it, and his crowning as the King of the Jews, would an Era of Righteousness follow in which all people and all the nations of the world would live in harmony and without war or sin. Universal justice would prevail and the ideal of the Brotherhood of Man would become a reality for Jews and non-Jews alike. The Messiah would seal God's second convenant and would rule the entire world and Gentiles and Jews would receive God's blessing. War, poverity, and injustice, would be no more.
"With righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist." -Isaiah 11.
"He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. -Isaiah 2:4, -Micah 4:3
Thus salvation and redemption, and God's promise of the New Convenant, was to be offered at first, and exclusively, to the Jews, the children of Israel. Salvation for non-Jews, for Gentiles, would follow.
"These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give." -Matthew 10.
Jesus, and his disciples, believed in this principle so strongly that when Gentiles first sought his message or his assistance, they were turned away as unworthy.
"And, behold, a woman of Canaan came and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. Have mercy on me, O Lord" she cried. "But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour." -Matthew 15.
The time had come for the Gentiles, Jesus realized, to hear his message and to receive the blessings of the New Covenant.
Thus, Jesus decided he would send out 70 disciples, the "70" representing one of the known nations of the Earth--the gentiles too were to be saved.
"After these things the LORD appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come." -Luke 10.
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