The Old Testament Witness to Christ and His Kingdom, Mentor's Guide, MG09

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T H E O L D T E S T A M E N T W I T N E S S T O C H R I S T A N D H I S K I N G D O M

Isa. 60.3 - And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Isa. 65.1 - I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here am I, here am I,” to a nation that was not called by my name. Isa. 49.6 - . . . he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” These and many other OT texts highlights the prophetic witness that God would in fact become the Savior and Redeemer of the entire world. What is significant in this lesson is both the remarkable accuracy and certainty of the OT’s prophetic witness to the coming of the Lord’s anointed, the Messiah, as well as the unveiling of the divine mystery that God’s redemptive plan actually included the redemption of Gentiles in this redemption . The objectives of this lesson hone in on this dual focus of OT Messianic prophecy, the coming of the Messiah himself, and the unveiling of the deepest meaning of the Abrahamic covenant to include the salvation of all peoples. As usual, your responsibility as Mentor is to emphasize these concepts throughout the lesson, especially during the discussions and interaction with the students. The more you can highlight the objectives throughout the class period, the better the chances are that they will understand and grasp the magnitude of these objectives. This devotion focuses on the prophetic message of Gentile inclusion in the salvation purposes of God. The words variously translated or rendered “Gentiles” in the King James Version represent some 30 passages, but much more frequently are referred to as “heathen” or “nation.” The referent to these words usually mean any non Jewish or non-Israelite people or nation. In the NT times the Gentiles were far more differentiated from Jews than in the OT, as was seen both in terms of social connection and spiritual status. There is no evidence in the Bible, as some have

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