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Doing the will of God in the kingdom of God under the government of God issues in the church as the Israel of God—Gal. 6:10, 15-16:
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God's New Testament economy is not only to make us sons of God but also to make us the Israel of God; the real Israel, the spiritual Israel, is the church— Eph. 1:5; Heb. 2:10; Rom. 8:14, 19; Gal. 3:26; 4:6-7; 6:16; Matt. 16:18.
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We need to become such an Israel, a prince, to execute God's government on earth—6:9-10.
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The apostle Paul considered the many believers in Christ—who are the household of the faith, the new creation—collectively the Israel of God—Gal. 6:10, 15-16; 3:7, 29.
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In God's New Testament economy we have been made both the sons of God and the Israel of God—v. 26; 6:16:
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We are sons of God, members of God's family, for His expression—v. 10.
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We are kings-to-be, those destined to be kings; kingship is related to the Israel of God—Rev. 5:10.
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Our destiny is to be sons of God expressing God and also kings reigning in the kingdom of God—21:7; 22:5b; 12:5a.
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As the Israel of God, we represent God, exercise His authority, and carry out His administration on earth for the fulfillment of His purpose—Gen. 1:26, 28; Luke 10:19; Rev. 12:5, 7-11:
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God wants His creature man to deal with His creature Satan in order to bring the earth back to God—Psa. 149:7-9.
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God needs man to do the work of God—to reign over His creation, to proclaim His triumph, and to cause Satan to suffer loss—Gen. 1:26.
Morning Nourishment
Gal. 6:15-16 For neither is circumcision anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creation is what matters. And as many as walk by this rule, peace be upon them and mercy, even upon the Israel of God.If we live a new creation, we shall be the real Israel of God. According to the book of Genesis, Jacob, a heel-holder, a supplanter, was transformed into Israel, a prince of God and a victor. As a prince and a victor, he could overcome all negative things. Today we need to be such an Israel, a prince to execute God’s government on earth. If we have…an orderly walk according to God’s eternal purpose, we shall become a new creation in a very practical way, and we shall also be the Israel of God, representing God, exercising His authority, and carrying out His administration on earth for the fulfillment of His purpose. Ultimately, this Israel of God will become the New Jerusalem. The new Israel of God must be a new creation. For this we need God Himself to be wrought into us, to saturate us, and to make us one with Him. Then we need to live such a mingled life. By living the mingled life of the new creation, we shall be the Israel of God on earth today, His princes and victors executing His authority and representing His government. Today’s Israel of God is a miniature of the coming New Jerusalem, which will be the ultimate consummation of the new creation and of the Israel of God. May we all see this and walk according to it! (Life-study of Galatians, pp. 377-378)
Today’s Reading
As sons of God, we are His folks, members of His household. But God’s New Testament economy is not only to make us His sons, but also to make us the Israel of God [Gal. 3:26; 6:16].Perhaps we can understand the difference between the sons of God and the Israel of God if we consider as an illustration how a son in a royal family is trained to be king. On the one hand, such a son grows up as a member of the royal family, the son of the king and queen. On the other hand, he must be trained in order to become king in the future. Thus, he must have two kinds of living: the first, as a son in the royal family; the second, as a king-to-be. If he has the first kind of living without the second, he will not become equipped or qualified to be king. A boy is not trained to be a king overnight. Nor does he become qualified to be a king simply by developing certain virtues. If he is joyful, loving, meek, faithful, and self-controlled, he will be a very good boy. But these virtues in themselves do not qualify him to be a king. As a king-to-be, he must be trained to live and act in a kingly way. The way he sits in a chair or converses with others must be kingly. As one with a dual status—that of a son in the royal family and that of a king-to-be—he must have two kinds of living…. May our eyes be opened to see that we are kings in the royal family! Our destiny is not only to be sons of God; it is to be kings reigning in the kingdom of God.
If you live in [a kingly] way, you will be kingly even when you laugh. If we see that Paul’s word about the Israel of God implies that we need a kingly walk, the aspiration to live in a kingly way will be stirred up within us. We may even want to pray, “Lord, cause me to live and walk in a kingly way so that I may be qualified to be part of today’s Israel of God.”
In a sense, the nation of Israel is the Israel of God and a testimony of God, even though many Israelites are rebellious and very sinful. However, the real Israel, the spiritual Israel, is the church. But because both the nation of Israel and the church are in a low condition, there is the need for the Lord to recover the real Israel of God. For such a recovery, we need two kinds of living, two kinds of walk. In the first walk we shall have such virtues as love, joy, peace, meekness, and long-suffering, all of which are the expression of the Christ who lives in us. We also need the second kind of walk so that we may be the Israel of God bearing God’s kingship, representing Him with His authority, and executing His governmental administration. (Life-study of Galatians, pp. 380-382)
Further Reading: Life-study of Galatians, msgs. 30, 34-40, 42-43, 46