by Jamie Pantastico | May 11, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
God’s Plan Through Israel and the Church – Part 5
For Your Edification and Encouragement
Two thousand years after Adam, and just two centuries after Babel, mankind has once again fallen into idolatry and spiritual darkness. The world is pagan, the nations are scattered, and no one seeks after God.
So God does something brand new (but already preordained before time began): He calls out one man, Abram (later called Abraham), from the line of Shem, to create a nation for Himself.
“Now the Lord had said to Abram:
‘Get out of your country,
From your family
And from your father’s house,
To a land that I will show you.’”
— Genesis 12:1
The Covenant Promises (Genesis 12:1–3)
God makes seven promises to Abraham:
- I will make you a great nation.
- I will bless you.
- I will make your name great.
- You shall be a blessing.
- I will bless those who bless you.
- I will curse those who curse you.
- In you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
This is the beginning of the Abrahamic Covenant, which is later expanded to include:
- A land grant (Genesis 15:18–21)
- A physical lineage and people (Genesis 17)
- An everlasting covenant with Abraham’s seed
And Paul tells us in Galatians 3:16:
“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made… and to your Seed, who is Christ.”
A New Race of People
From Abraham will come the Jewish people, the nation of Israel—a people set apart by God, through whom:
- The Scriptures would come
- The Law would come
- The Messiah would come
God calls Abraham out of the mainstream of humanity and separates his descendants as His own inheritance (Exodus 19:5; Deuteronomy 7:6–8).
Why This Matters
- The Abrahamic Covenant is unconditional, eternal, and foundational.
- The rest of the Bible builds upon this covenant.
- If you don’t understand this covenant, you can’t understand the prophetic plan of God.
- These promises were made to Israel, not to the Church.
Believers, members of the body of Christ which is His church, are partakers of these promises by believing the gospel.
God’s redemptive plan moves forward—not through all mankind—but through Israel, the nation God Himself created from Abraham. Even in this Church Age, Gentiles are partakers of the promises God made to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David.
by Jamie Pantastico | May 10, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
God’s Plan Through Israel and the Church – Part 4
For Your Edification and Encouragement
After the flood, God gave Noah and his sons a simple command:
“Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.”
— Genesis 9:1
But mankind, still carrying the Adamic nature, rebelled again. Instead of spreading out, they gathered together under a man named Nimrod (Genesis 10:8–10), in the land of Shinar (modern-day Iraq), and began building a tower that would reach to heaven.
The Tower: A Symbol of Defiance
“Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves…”
— Genesis 11:4
This was more than architecture. It was rebellion—a centralized, humanistic religion. Babel was the birthplace of organized paganism and spiritual defiance. Rather than glorify God, they wanted to exalt themselves.
God Intervenes
“But the Lord came down…”
— Genesis 11:5
God confounded their language and scattered the people across the face of the earth. The united rebellion was broken, and the nations were born.
Deuteronomy 32:8–9 gives a crucial insight:
“When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations,
When He separated the sons of Adam,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the children of Israel.
For the Lord’s portion is His people;
Jacob is the place of His inheritance.”
God moves from dealing directly with all mankind and to calling out one man through whom He would form race of people for Himself, His own nation—Israel.
by Jamie Pantastico | May 8, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
God’s Plan Through Israel and the Church – Part 3
For Your Edification and Encouragement
After the fall, mankind’s rebellion didn’t improve—it intensified. The Adamic nature spread like wildfire through the human race. Just six chapters into Genesis, God’s assessment of the world was devastating:
“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”
— Genesis 6:5
The earth was filled with violence, and creation was corrupted. But one man stood out—Noah.
Noah Found Grace
“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”
— Genesis 6:8
God didn’t save Noah because he was perfect. He saved Noah because Noah believed God. In a world filled with wickedness, Noah walked by faith. And because of his faith, God used him to preserve the line of the promised Seed from Genesis 3:15.
The Ark: A Shadow of Christ
God commanded Noah to build an ark—not only to save his family but to preserve the Messianic line and ensure the coming Redeemer. The ark is a beautiful picture of salvation:
- There was only one door (Genesis 6:16). Jesus said, “I am the door” (John 10:9).
- The ark was covered inside and out with pitch (a picture of atonement).
- Once inside, God Himself shut the door (Genesis 7:16).
- Everyone inside the ark was safe. Everyone outside perished.
A New Beginning
The flood was global. Every living thing outside the ark died. When the waters receded, God made a covenant with Noah and promised never again to destroy the earth with water.
Noah’s three sons—Shem, Ham, and Japheth—would repopulate the earth. And it’s through the line of Shem that God would soon call a man named Abram—setting the next stage in motion.
Why This Matters
The flood reveals two things:
- God judges sin. He is holy, and He will not ignore wickedness forever.
- God preserves His promises. Even in judgment, His mercy shines. He made a way of escape through faith.
by Jamie Pantastico | May 6, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
Justified by Faith Alone: What It Really Means to Be Declared Righteous
For your edification and encouragement
The Doctrine of Justification is not just a theological concept—it’s the heart of our salvation. At its core, it means that God declares a believing sinner righteous—not because of anything they’ve done, but because of what Christ has done on their behalf.
This happens the moment God sees a sinner believe by faith alone in the gospel of Jesus Christ—His death for our sins, His burial, and His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1–4). At that moment, God no longer sees our sin; He sees the righteousness of His Son.
Righteousness: Not Earned, But Given
Under the law, righteousness had to be earned. But in this age of grace, righteousness is a gift—freely given the moment we believe Paul’s gospel.
“Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
—Romans 3:24
“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.”
—Romans 3:28
What Is Justification?
Justification is more than forgiveness—it’s Christ’s righteousness imputed (credited) to our account.
“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
—2 Corinthians 5:21
This is a divine exchange: Christ took our sin, and we receive His righteousness. It is a judicial act—a legal declaration by God—that the believing sinner is now justified. That means no matter what sins we’ve committed in the past—or may commit in the future—we are still declared righteous in God’s sight.
Justification Is by Faith Alone
We are not justified by works, rituals, repentance, baptism, or by keeping the law. Paul is emphatic:
“…a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ… because by works of the law no one will be justified.”
—Galatians 2:16
Justification is a one-time, immediate, irreversible act of God’s grace. The very moment you believe, His righteousness is yours.
Peace Through Justification
“Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
—Romans 5:1
Justification brings peace, not confusion or fear. It assures us that we are no longer under condemnation, no longer slaves to sin, and no longer at enmity with God.
Why Every Believer Should Know This
Justification isn’t just for seminarians or scholars. It’s for every believer who wants to stand firm in the faith and walk in the freedom of grace. The more we understand what it means to be justified, the more we will rest in God’s peace, live boldly in His grace, and praise Him for His unchanging love.
Final Thoughts
Let us thank and praise God for the incredible truth of the Doctrine of Justification—a truth that reminds us we are fully accepted, fully forgiven, and fully righteous in Christ Jesus.
📖 Key Bible Verses on Justification
- Romans 3:24 — Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
- Romans 3:28 — Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.
- Galatians 2:16 — A person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.
- Romans 5:1 — Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
- 2 Corinthians 5:21 — For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
by Jamie Pantastico | May 6, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
God’s Plan Through Israel and the Church – Part 2
For Your Edification and Encouragement
To understand God’s plan through Israel, we must start at the beginning—Genesis 1–11. These foundational chapters cover the first 2,000 years of human history and are essential to understanding why God called Abraham and formed a nation for Himself.
Before the law, before Israel, before Babel—God dealt directly with mankind. There was only one race of people, one language, no written law, no priesthood, no temple—only the conscience and a knowledge of right and wrong. When someone sinned, they were to bring a blood sacrifice in faith, trusting God’s word. It was simple, yet it didn’t take long for mankind to rebel.
The Fall of Man and the Curse of Sin
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.”
Romans 5:12
The Fall happened when Adam disobeyed God’s one command. With that disobedience came sin, death, and the curse. More than that, it introduced what Scripture calls the old man, or what we often refer to as the Adamic nature—a spiritual condition of rebellion that is passed on to every person born into the world. We are not sinners because we break God’s law—we sin because we are all born son’s and daughters of Adam.
So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
Genesis 3:6
The result?
- Spiritual death: separation from God.
- Physical death: decay and mortality.
- Universal guilt: all are under sin (Romans 3:23).
The First Prophetic Promise: Genesis 3:15
In the midst of judgment, God makes a promise:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
— Genesis 3:15
This is the first prophecy in Scripture—the promise of a Redeemer who would come through the “Seed of the woman” to crush the head of the serpent (Satan). Paul tells us this “Seed” is Christ (Galatians 3:16).
This verse becomes the foundation of the redemptive storyline. The rest of the Bible traces this promised Seed through specific people, families, and eventually, one nation—Israel.
From Bad to Worse
- Cain kills Abel, showing how quickly sin corrupts.
- Genesis 6 describes a world filled with violence and evil.
- The flood (Genesis 7–9) is God’s judgment, but also His mercy, preserving the Messianic line through Noah.
- The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11) is a unified rebellion where mankind refuses to scatter, so God divides them by language.
- The nations are formed, and God disinherits them (Deuteronomy 32:8–9).
Then something changes dramatically: God stops dealing with all of humanity directly and instead calls out one man—Abram—to form a new nation, a covenant people for Himself.
Why This Matters
Understanding the Adamic nature (sin) and the global decline of humanity helps us understand why God created Israel in the first place. God had already tried dealing with mankind as a whole, and they rejected Him every step of the way.
So, in His sovereignty, God did something new: He would create a nation from one man—a nation that would be separated from the rest of the world and through whom the Redeemer would come.
by Jamie Pantastico | Apr 29, 2025 | Daily Encouragement |
Romans 11:17–18; Genesis 12:1–3; Ephesians 3:6
Today, many Christians don’t realize that everything we enjoy in Christ — salvation, justification, the indwelling Spirit — flows from promises God first made to Israel.
In Romans 11, the apostle Paul, God’s chosen apostle to the Gentiles, gives a powerful warning:
“And if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive tree, were grafted in among them, and with them became a partaker of the root and fatness of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. But if you do boast, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you.”
— Romans 11:17–18
Paul says we Gentiles have been grafted in — not to replace Israel — but to partake of the blessings that flow from the root.
And what is the root?
The root is God’s covenant promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and later confirmed through David.
When God promised Abraham that “in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3), He was setting the foundation for both Israel’s role in world redemption and for the future salvation of Gentiles.
The Church, the Body of Christ, is not a new tree — it is grafted into the blessings God initiated with Israel.
Paul also reminds us in Ephesians 3:6 that Gentiles are:
“fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel.”
Notice that word again — partakers — not replacers.
Why This Matters
If we lose sight of this truth:
- We become arrogant and boastful toward Israel — exactly what Paul warned against.
- We distort God’s faithfulness by imagining He broke His promises to Israel — which He absolutely did not (Romans 11:29).
- We fail to appreciate the amazing grace we stand in today — grace that came through Israel’s Messiah, Jesus Christ.
And tragically, the Church’s failure to heed Paul’s warning has already borne terrible fruit.
The false teaching known as Replacement Theology — the idea that the Church has permanently replaced Israel in God’s plan — has been used as a tool of Satan to justify centuries of hatred, persecution, and even mass murder of the Jewish people.
It was Christendom, not the world at large, that branded the Jews as “Christ killers,” fueling horrifying lies like the blood libels and ultimately contributing to atrocities like the Holocaust.
The historical record is undeniable:
When the Church forgets that it is a guest at Israel’s table, it becomes an agent of cruelty instead of a minister of grace.
In Closing
As Gentile believers, we should approach our salvation with humility, gratitude, and a deep respect for God’s covenant faithfulness to Israel.
The root supports us — not the other way around. And God’s promises will never fail.
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”
— Romans 11:29