UNITED, YET DIVIDED
16
Sabbath, which typified the seventh thousand-year-day (`The rest that remaineth'), there were feasts at different
seasons of the year.
The Passover has been fulfilled; Christ is our Passover. The sheaf of the first-fruits has been fulfilled. Christ the
First-fruits. Pentecost has been partially fulfilled; Peter refers to the prophet Joel, and shows that Pentecost was a
fulfilment of the promise there given. The prophecy is divided into two parts:
(1) The outpouring of the spirit in miraculous gifts.
(2) The signs and wonders in heaven and earth.
The first part was fulfilled, but Israel repented not; the complete fulfilment awaits the day of the Lord (see Joel),
which is described in the book of the Revelation.
Peter's first miracle was one of healing; Paul's one of judgment. Peter healed a Jew; Paul blinded a Jew. Peter
showed that his miracle typified the healing and restoration of Israel (chapters 3 and 4). Acts 28:26,27 shows that
Paul's miracle of judgment typified the setting aside of Israel, and the turning to the Gentiles; Sergius Paulus
believed, and Acts 28 concludes with Paul's ministry of the Mystery. Paul's ministry grows in ever-widening
circles until at length Rome is reached. He alone was the apostle to the Gentiles. His ministry in the Acts and his
teaching in the epistles is therefore of peculiar interest to us.
Let us now turn back to Matthew. We find that both Matthew and Acts are divided into two sections, each
having something peculiar to them. We find:
Matthew 1 to 16:20
A ministry exclusively to Israel. A woman of Canaan just obtained the crumbs. Christ is preached as King, and
in the capacity of Son of David. He is rejected, and the Gentiles are mentioned towards the close.
Acts 1 to 12
A ministry exclusively to Israel. A Roman proselyte is preached to only after a vision has been given for the
purpose. David's throne is emphasized, but since Christ has died, Abraham's blessings are continued. Israel,
however, does not repent. Saul of Tarsus is converted, and the ministry to the Gentiles is foreshadowed.
Matthew 16:21 to 28
A preparatory ministry wherein the apostles do little, but are trained for service, the Lord's death and
resurrection being the next events. The Lord rejects Israel and their house. Parables hint at Israel's failure and the
Gentile blessing as a result. After the Lord's resurrection comes the commission to make disciples of all nations.
Acts 13 to 28
Paul links the Gentile with the Jew in Abraham. He is finally separated from Jerusalem by shipwreck, and
contemplates a new phase of ministry as a prisoner. At the close of the Acts, Paul says, `For the hope of Israel I am
bound with this chain' (28:20). When blindness settles upon Israel, he then announces that `The salvation of God is
sent unto the Gentiles' (28:28).
Chapter 15
MAIN FEATURES OF EPISTLES OF THE ACTS PERIOD
Outstanding features
To attempt a real analysis of Paul's epistles is totally beyond the scope of this booklet; we must concentrate
rather upon a few outstanding features, which will reveal the essential differences between the two sets of epistles.
(In passing we would say that the glorious doctrine of justification by faith is practically exclusive to Paul's gospel;