Salvation for the Gentile and Jew

Isaiah 56:1-12 

1 Thus says the LORD:
"Keep justice, and do righteousness,
For My salvation is about to come,
And My righteousness to be revealed.

2 Blessed is the man who does this,
And the son of man who lays hold on it;
Who keeps from defiling the Sabbath,
And keeps his hand from doing any evil."

3 Do not let the son of the foreigner
Who has joined himself to the LORD
Speak, saying,
"The LORD has utterly separated me from His people";
Nor let the eunuch say,
"Here I am, a dry tree."

4 For thus says the LORD:
"To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths,
And choose what pleases Me,
And hold fast My covenant,
5 Even to them I will give in My house
And within My walls a place and a name
Better than that of sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
That shall not be cut off.

6 "Also the sons of the foreigner
Who join themselves to the LORD, to serve Him,
And to love the name of the LORD, to be His servants—
Everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath,
And holds fast My covenant—

7 Even them I will bring to My holy mountain,
And make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
Will be accepted on My altar;
For My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations."

8 The Lord GOD, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, says,
"Yet I will gather to him
Others besides those who are gathered to him."

9 All you beasts of the field, come to devour,
All you beasts in the forest.

10 His watchmen are blind,
They are all ignorant;
They are all dumb dogs,
They cannot bark;
Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.

11 Yes, they are greedy dogs
Which never have enough.
And they are shepherds
Who cannot understand;
They all look to their own way,
Every one for his own gain,
From his own territory.

12 "Come," one says, "I will bring wine,
And we will fill ourselves with intoxicating drink;
Tomorrow will be as today,
And much more abundant."

The righteous in Christ should do righteousness as Israel was commanded to trust and obey the LORD as reminded through Isaiah.  That same word calls us to repentance and to put on Christ as Romans 13:11-14 and Matthew 3:2 command us in the same vein.  Our imputed righteousness should drive us with the desire to do righteousness and not evil in our living by grace.  We who are not Jews according to the flesh (but rightly so in the spirit according to Romans 2:28-29) are called as well to live in holiness, but not to earn our salvation by our own righteousness because we have none apart from Christ’s according to His word of grace.  Yes, we have been given an everlasting name in Him as the eunuchs spoken of here and a home in eternity which moves us to live in a manner pleasing to our Lord (2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Hebrews 13:20-21) according to His working in us (Philippians 2:12-13).  We who have come to Him out of the nations to serve in response to our reconciliation of grace now hold that New Covenant of grace in holiness and willingness of obedience to His word as Israel failed to do by their own failing works in trying to establish their own righteousness for salvation (Romans 10:3, Philippians 3:9).  Galatians 3:26 calls us all children of God who are in Christ and further in Galatians 3:28-29 affirms our standing alongside Israel as the seed of faithful Abraham in our trust of God by taking Him at His word of the promise of reconciliation and salvation from His wrath on our sin in Him.  God had promised to gather a remnant from Israel and many others out of the nations together to Himself and our prayers of worship should be mingled together as that one people in the Messiah who is Christ Jesus.  Yes, many of Israel had gone astray and had fallen asleep, stopped shepherding God’s people, and had sought their own way and personal gain instead of God’s will and glory, enabling us to be brought into the fold (Ephesians 2:12-13, Romans 11:7, 11-12, 15, 25) of His people.  Their faltering has opened a way for those called and chosen from outside Israel to join them as His, giving salvation to the Gentiles and Jew alike in Christ.  Our righteousness is in Him alone!  His salvation has come as His righteousness was revealed in the work of Jesus Christ the righteous (1 John 2:1).  May we worship and pray together as one people in Christ, Jew and Gentile, male and female, slave and free.  Salvation is for the Gentile and Jew alike in Jesus the Christ according to His calling of righteousness and grace.  Amen!