At the inauguration of the service of the Tabernacle of Moses, God demonstrated his acceptance of the offerings which foreshadowed Christ by consuming the sacrifices by fire from His Holy presence(Leviticus 9:22-24).

This fire which consumed the sacrifices came from the presence of God from within the Holy of Holies. This demonstration of God’s glory was repeated at the dedication of the Temple which Solomon built, except this time the fire came down from Heaven (2 Chronicles 7:1).

When God consumed the sacrifices at the dedication of the Tabernacle under Moses, there was lit upon the altar – a divine fire. This was the fire of which God had instructed Moses saying, “it shall not be put out” and “it shall never be put out” (Leviticus 6:9-13).

This is significant because of the important role which the brazen altar of sacrifice had in connection to the golden altar of incense within the Holy Place.

In scripture, the incense from the golden altar is associated prayer (Revelation 8:3). The burning of the incense upon the golden altar was evidently from the divine fire taken from the brazen altar.

In Leviticus 10, not long after God had consumed the sacrifices with divine fire from His presence, Aaron’s two sons (Nadab and Abihu) took it upon themselves to offer incense with “strange fire.” When they did this, divine fire once again came from the presence of the Lord, but this time, it devoured the two sons of Aaron.

This all foreshadowed Christ, who is man’s only approach to God, All other ways lead to God’s judgment. Through Christ alone we are enabled to approach and stand in the presence of a Holy God. Jesus gave Himself for us as a sweet smelling savor to God (Ephesians 5:2) and it is through him alone that the divine presence of God burns within our hearts. Through Him alone we have access with confidence, and in Him our prayers becomes as sweet incense.

Anything else would be strange fire.

Throughout the scriptures, Israel is referred to as God’s people because of the covenant God made with them through Moses.

The term “MY PEOPLE” doesn’t always mean God’s true people in the sense of being faithful to Him. For example, in Isaiah 1:3 God says, “the ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, MY PEOPLE doth not consider.”

In the very next verse, God says, “Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward (v.4).

A few verses later, Isaiah says, “Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah” (v.9).

When God judged ancient Israel God said to Jeremiah, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, I wouldn’t help them. Away with them! Get them out of my sight!” (Jeremiah 15:1).

God also said to Ezekiel regarding the expulsion the people from the land of Israel, “Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord God”…”Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord God, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate” (Ezekiel 14:14,16).

The distinction between the rebellious within the nation of Israel and the faithful remnant among them is detailed often throughout the scriptures.

In the Old Testament God did not destroy the nation of Israel completely even though they were often times a very rebellious nation and contrary to God. God remained faithful to them for the remnant’s sake – those who were His true servants within Israel.

I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name. I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; A people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face; that sacrificeth in gardens, and burneth incense upon altars of brick; Which remain among the graves, and lodge in the monuments, which eat swine’s flesh, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels; Which say, Stand by thyself, come not near to me; for I am holier than thou. These are a smoke in my nose, a fire that burneth all the day. Behold, it is written before me: I will not keep silence, but will recompense, even recompense into their bosom, Your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the Lord, which have burned incense upon the mountains, and blasphemed me upon the hills: therefore will I measure their former work into their bosom. Thus saith the Lord, AS THE NEW WINE IS FOUND IN THE CLUSTER, AND ONE SAITH, DESTROY IT NOT; FOR A BLESSING IS IN IT: SO WILL I DO FOR MY SERVANTS’ SAKES, THAT I MAY NOT DESTROY THEM ALL. And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there (Isaiah 65:1-9).

As a nation, they were God’s people because of the Mosaic Covenant, as individuals they were not all His people because they did not all serve Him from the heart. This is a foundation truth and the precedence for Paul’s statement in the New Testament; Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, The Lord knows them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity (2 Timothy 2:19).

In ancient Israel there was King Saul and there was his successor, King David. Saul was as much an Israelite as David was, but there was a big difference in the two. Saul did not have a heart to please God, and David was a man after God’s own heart. In the end, God rejected Saul from being King and He chose David and blessed him as the King of Israel.

There are many examples in scripture of both unrighteous Jews who did evil in the sight of God and righteous Jews who did well in the sight of God. There were those who were rejected and judged by God and those who were accepted and pleasing to Him.

In Matthew 13:17 Jesus said to his disciples, “many prophets and RIGHTEOUS men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them”.

On the other hand, we read in Matthew 23 how Jesus confronted the UNRIGHTEOUS Scribes and Pharisees with declarations of God’s judgment against them.

The Scribes and Pharisees were just as much “Jews in the flesh” as those righteous men whom Jesus referred to in Matthew 13, but there was a difference. Those mentioned in chapter 13 were righteous and those in chapter 23 were unrighteous and God made a distinction between them.

In John 1, Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him and Jesus said, “Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile”! The Amplified Bible says, “Here is an Israelite indeed [a true descendant of Jacob], in whom there is no guile nor deceit nor falsehood nor duplicity” !

Yet in John 8 Jesus said to some Jews opposing Him, “you are of your father the devil” and in John 10 Jesus told some Jews “you are not My sheep” and “you are not of God”. Those Jews in John 8 and 10 were as much “Jews in the flesh” as Nathanael was, yet they were not praised as “true Jews” as Nathaniel was. Nathaniel was pure in heart and followed Jesus, those Jews in John 8 and 10 had hearts against Jesus.

Jesus made a distinction between Nathanael and them.

Clearly, if we would take into account the Biblical narrative, we would see examples like these over and over again. There were righteous Jews and unrighteous Jews and God always separated between the two and it was always those who were righteous and whose hearts were after God who were His true servants, His true people, and the true Israel in His sight.

In the Bible, Israel was not a race, they were a nation.

They were a nation which grew out of the descendants of Abraham which had Gentiles added to them. They were a physical type of the New Testament church which began with Jews and extents to the Gentiles. The difference between Old Testament Israel and New Testament Israel is one was a physical nation, the other is a spiritual nation.

In scripture, Gentiles were not “non Jews” as in not the physical descendants of Abraham. Instead, Gentiles were “non Jews” as in not a member of the “nation of Israel”. When Gentiles became citizens of the nation of Israel, they were said to have become Jews.

And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king’s commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. AND MANY OF THE PEOPLE OF THE LAND BECAME JEWS; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them (Esther 8:17).

Have you ever stopped to consider how many people infiltrated the nation of Israel from the descendants of these Gentiles who became Jews in Esther 8:17? There are other examples of Gentiles who became Jews, even our Savior had Gentile ancestresses – Rahab and Ruth. Think how many others – literally thousands, maybe more – who were in the ancestral tree of Christ because of Rahab and Ruth, their Gentile ancestresses.

There are other examples but hopefully you get the point. Israel’s tree was rooted in Abraham but others who did not have Abraham’s DNA were grafted in with them.

Why is this important?

It is important because in modern Zionist theology, modern Israel is not a nation in the way that Israel in scripture was a nation. Israel in scripture was a nation consisting of Jews by descent and Jews by choice. Modern Zionism focuses on DNA or a race of people, rather than a nation of people.

It is to be regretted that many sincere people either don’t know this or they haven’t taken the time to think it through.

I read this quote from someone commenting about Israel: ”There is only a small part of the entire planet that the God of Israel refers to as “my land” and that is precisely where the State of Israel is situated.”

On the contrary, here is what the Bible says:

The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. ~ Psalm 24:1

Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord’s thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. ~ Deuteronomy 10:14 

For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof. ~ Psalm 50:10-12

The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fullness thereof, thou hast founded them. ~ Psalm 89:11

And the list goes on…

Now, with regards to the references in the Old Testament in which God refers to the land of Israel as “My land” (example Joel 3:3) there is a Biblical context.

In the Old Testament, God refers to the land of Israel as “My land” because it was sanctified by God as his dwelling place among men under the first covenant. The people of Israel were God’s covenant people (a nation of Jews with Gentiles who joined them). The land was given to them as their inheritance under that covenant. Jerusalem in Israel was appointed to be the holy city, the Temple in Jerusalem was to be the holy site within the holy city and the place where the God of Israel was worshipped.

This all changed with the announcement of the gospel for God’s people are no longer a physical nation in a small portion of land with a man-made Temple. God’s people are now living in every nation and God’s Spirit lives in their hearts by faith and they are His Temple (individually and corporately).

Abraham, the father of our faith was made the heir of the world (Romans 4:13) and the father of many nations (Genesis 12:3; 17:4; Galatians 3:8-9). Yet, he never inherited the land of Israel for himself (Acts 7:4-5). Neither did his descendants Isaac, and Jacob. Yet Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did live  as travelers in the land of promise.

Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Hebrews 11:9-10

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob weren’t looking for a physical land, but a heavenly one and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth (Hebrews 11:14). The land of Israel was the physical inheritance for the physical nation of Israel under a physical covenant that has been replaced by a New and better Covenant.

Jesus is the seed of Abraham through whom the promises made to Abraham have come to fruition. Jesus died and rose again so that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles (the nations of the world) so that all who believe in Jesus Christ may be justified by faith even as their father Abraham was justified by faith. Those who belong to Christ are Abraham’s seed (Galatians 3:29) and have their citizenship in Heaven. (Philippians 3:20)

The message of the Gospel isn’t “go back to the land of Israel.” It is “go into all the World!”

I find it very disheartening that literally millions of Christians have embraced a narrative about Israel that is contrary to the Gospel. Israel was chosen by God to be the nation through whom the Messiah, the Savior of the world, would come, and they will be held accountable to the Gospel.

Israel has been a rebellious nation against God throughout her history, yet any nation whom God would have chosen would have done the same because of sin. Through Israel, God exposed the sins of humanity, for in Adam “all humanity” – including Israel – is dead in sin and in need of redemption.

Paul tells us in Romans that whatsoever things the Law says it says to them that are under the Law (a reference to Israel under Moses) so that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God ~ Romans 3:19

Israel under the Law was representative of humanity under sin. Israel’s story was a microcosm of the whole world and in the same way that only a remnant of Israel will ever be saved, so it is with the rest of humanity throughout history. The path to destruction is wide but the gate that leads to life is narrow and this applies to everyone, not the Jews only.

Through Jesus Christ, the Kingdom of God has broken in on humanity, and all who repent and trust in Him will be saved! The Gospel is not simply “justification by faith,” though it includes justification by faith. The Gospel is more, for it is the announcement and demonstration of the Kingdom of God through Jesus Christ, and it was this gospel which was preached to Israel first. The Gospel of according to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, along with Acts bring this to full light.

In His wisdom, God brought about the salvation of the world through Israel’s rejection of the Messiah, but in His faithfulness God saw to it that the Gospel was first preached to the people of Israel and then to the Gentiles.

Paul tells us in Romans that the Gospel is “their sound” for the Gospel was testified of by Moses in their Law, and by their prophets. Throughout the Old Testament, the Spirit of the Lord was giving witness to Christ and the Kingdom through Christ, who was yet to come.

God gave to the people of Israel Moses, the prophets, John the Baptist, Jesus in the flesh, the Apostles, and now the salvation of the Gentiles.

The Gospel is their testimony, their witness, their message, and if they reject the Gospel there is no other alternative. God does not have another narrative for Israel outside of or beyond the Gospel.

For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? As it is written (in their scriptures), How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. But I say, have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. But I say, did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you. But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. But to Israel he saith, all day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. ~ Romans 10:11-21

In Galatians 5 the apostle Paul says, And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

Circumcision here is a reference to Jewish supremacy. The Judaizers were attempting to undermine the gospel which Paul had ministered to the Galatians and were attempting to make Jewish converts of them.

This same thing had happened at Antioch in Acts 15. There were certain men who came down from Judaea and taught the brethren that unless they were circumcised after the manner of Moses, they could not be saved. Paul and Barnabas vehemently withstood them. Later the Apostles and elders along the church at Jerusalem held a meeting to resolve the issue. They came to the conclusion that the Gentiles were not obligated to be circumcised and come under the Law of Moses.

The issue of circumcision in the first century church wasn’t merely about “legalistic works” as we in the church today would refer to legalism. It was much more than that. It literally meant being converted to Judaism and becoming a Jew. It was for this purpose that the Apostle Paul was being persecuted by those who preached circumcision. Paul preached that the cross alone could save and being circumcised or not being circumcised no longer had any meaning with regards to covenant with God.

To put it another way, being a Jew or not being a Jew no longer had any bearing on who was God’s people and who wasn’t. God had abolished the separating wall between Jews and Gentiles in the death and resurrection of Jesus. God’s people are no longer of one ethic group in the flesh, but rather are people of every nationality united in one new man, in one body of believers, in Christ Jesus. What matters now is being a new creature in Christ Jesus.

The scriptures tells us that the gospel is to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

The words, to the Jew first, is not a reference to importance but rather of sequence, as Paul declares in Acts 13:46, “It was necessary that the Word of God should FIRST have been spoken to you…”

In Acts 28 we read the following:

²³ And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.

²⁴ And SOME BELIEVED the things which were spoken, and SOME BELIEVED NOT.

²⁵ And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers,

²⁶ Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive:

27 For THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE IS WAXED GROSS, and THEIR EARS ARE DULL OF HEARING, and THEIR EYES THEY HAVE CLOSED; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

²⁸ Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that THEY WILL HEAR IT.

Paul is quoting from Isaiah 6:9-10, a passage which Jesus also quoted as the reason why he spoke in parables.

¹³ Therefore speak I to them in parables: BECAUSE THEY SEEING SEE NOT; AND HEARING THEY HEAR NOT, neither do they understand.

¹⁴ And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

¹⁵ For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. ~ Matthew 13:13-15

In John 9:35-41 Jesus heard that the man born blind, whom he had healed, had been cast out of the synagogue by the religious leaders.

When Jesus found him he said unto him: “Dost thou believe on the Son of God”? The man answered and said, “Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him”? Then Jesus said unto him, “You have both seen him, and it is He that talks with you.” The man then said: “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped Jesus.

Then Jesus said, For JUDGMENT I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.

Some of the Pharisees which heard these words asked, “Are we blind also?”

Jesus then said to them, “If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, ‘WE SEE;’ therefore YOUR SIN REMAINETH.”

Notice, in this text above, Jesus says, for judgment, I have come into the world and specifically that judgment includes blinding those who claim to see yet cling to their sin.

John tells us the following in chapter 12:

³⁷ But though he had done so many miracles before them, YET THEY BELIEVED NOT ON HIM:

³⁸ That the saying of Esaias the prophet MIGHT BE FULFILLED, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and TO WHOM hath the arm of the Lord been revealed?

39 THEREFORE THEY COULD NOT BELIEVE, because that Esaias said again,

⁴⁰ HE HATH BLINDED THEIR EYES, AND HARDENED THEIR HEART; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

⁴¹ These things said Esaias,  WHEN HE SAW HIS GLORY, AND SPAKE OF HIM. ~ John 12:37-41

Through Jesus, God blinded them, hardening them in their disobedience by their refusal to believe in the Son of God. This fulfilled the words of Isaiah and Paul quotes this also in Romans 10 showing how they rejected the gospel which God set before them.

¹⁶ But they have not all OBEYED THE GOSPEL. For Esaias saith, LORD, WHO HATH BELIEVED OUR REPORT? 

¹⁷ So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

¹⁸ But I say, HAVE THEY NOT HEARD? Yes verily, THEIR SOUND went into all the earth, and THEIR WORDS unto the ends of the world.

¹⁹ But I say, DID NOT ISRAEL KNOW ? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.

²⁰ But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.

²¹ But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto A DISOBEDIENT AND GAINSAYING PEOPLE. 

The Gospel is their own message: their words and their sound, as Paul says above in Romans 10, but they were disobedient and rejected it.

It is through this gospel that Israel – not the remnant – but, the rest, as Paul says in Romans 11, were hardened. They only way they will be saved is if they no longer abide in unbelief and obey the gospel.

In Acts 3:24 Peter told them: Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of THESE DAYS. 

In Acts 13:40 – 41, Paul preached to the Jews and said: Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work IN YOUR DAYS, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you.

Jesus is the stone which the builders rejected, as foretold in their scripture. He is a rock of offence and a stone of stumbling to those who are disobedient to God’s Word of God.

⁶ Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

⁷ Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be DISOBEDIENT, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,

⁸ And STONE OF STUMBLING, and A ROCK OF OFFENCE, even to them which STUMBLE AT THE WORD, BEING DISOBEDIENT: WHERE UNTO ALSO THEY WERE APPOINTED. ~ 1 Peter 2:6-8

The Gospel is not only salvation to the obedient and believing, it is judgment to the disobedient and unbelieving.

Jesus was revealed to Israel in the writings of Moses and by the prophets. He was revealed to Israel by John the Baptist. He was revealed to Israel by the things Jesus said and by the works which God did through Him. He was revealed to Israel by the witness of His followers and the preaching of the apostles. Lastly He is revealed to Israel by the mercy that God has bestowed on the Gentiles.

The Gospel is freely offered to every Jew. Today is the day of salvation and any Jew who believes will be saved. God has no favorites and He will not treat those Jews who reject the Gospel of His Son, with any preferential treatment. There is no other “alternative” for the Jew apart from the Gospel. Those who reject Jesus Christ will be held accountable by the Gospel!

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY MOSES:

How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: THERE IS ONE THAT ACCUSES YOU, even MOSES, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me (John 5:44-46).

For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people (Acts 3:22-23).

This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear (Acts 7:37).

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE PROPHETS WHOM GOD SENT TO THEM:

But those things, which God before had shewed BY THE MOUTH OF ALL HIS PROPHETS, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. REPENT YE THEREFORE, AND BE CONVERTED, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by THE MOUTH OF ALL HIS HOLY PROPHETS since the world began For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Yea, and ALL THE PROPHETS from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. Ye are the children of THE PROPHETS, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities (Acts 3:18-26).

Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is spoken of in THE PROPHETS; Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you (Acts 13:40-41).

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE MINISTRY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST:

This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not: but that he should be made MANIFEST TO ISRAEL, therefore am I come baptizing with water. And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and BARE RECORD THAT THIS IS THE SON OF GOD (John 1:30-34).

Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, WE HAVE ABRAHAM TO OUR FATHER: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire (Matthew 3:8-10).

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE WORDS AND WORKS OF JESUS:

He that REJECTS ME, and receives not MY WORDS, hath one that judges him: the word that I HAVE SPOKEN, the same shall judge him IN THE LAST DAY (John 12:48).

Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the WORKS of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe THE WORKS: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him (John 10: 36-38).

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE TESTIMONY OF THE APOSTLES:

Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But IN EVERY NATION he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him. THE WORD WHICH GOD SENT TO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all):THAT WORD, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached; How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. And WE ARE WITNESSES of all things which he did both IN THE LAND OF THE JEWS, AND IN JERUSALEM; whom they slew and hanged on a tree: Him God raised up the third day, and shewed him openly; Not to all the people, but unto WITNESSES chosen before God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins (Acts 10:34-43).

THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE BY THE SALVATION OF THE GENTILES:

As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God. Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved. For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth. And as Esaias said before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha. What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith. But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumblingstone; As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed (Romans 9:25-33).

But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you. But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me. But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.
(Romans 10:18-21).

I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy (Romans 11:11).