Our Land-Minded God

Jesus, The Lord God is unequivocally concerned, not only with saving people from eternal damnation, but also with geography. He created Earth with a finite geography, and created mankind with the reproductive potential to fill it FULL. Though it might appear so, this does not necessarily mean He set the stage for eventual scarcity as a result of over-population. Scarcity is a clear product of the endless forms of death that came upon the world and us as a result of our sin.

Here are some key ways that demonstrate His ‘land-mindedness’:

1.  Eden, A Land Garden: After creation, Eden signaled His interest in, and concern about geography. Eden was both a significant geographical and spiritual matter to The Lord, and man’s ability to enjoy Eden was conditioned on his obedience. The deal was simply, obey – enjoy the garden/land; or disobey – be exiled from the garden/land. It should, therefore, be no surprise that this principle carried-over to His ‘chosen people’ and His preferred/chosen land. He promised, throughout their history as a people, the Jews’ relationship (not covenant) with Him would be based on their obedience, and that the state of this relationship would be illustrated/connected in some way to their being in or out of ‘the promised land.’ Obey – enjoy life in the land; disobey – be exiled from (‘vomited out of’) the land.

2.  Land Personified: The Lord’s concern for land is further underscored in the terms of endearment in referring to, and the many promises He makes to the Earth, in general, and in particular to that portion demarcated as ‘the promised land.’ While we refer to the promised land and/or the Earth as ‘it’, He often refers to them as ‘her’, recognizing it as a living organism, sensitive to, and able to respond to both our righteousness (being easily resourceful and flourishing in peace), and to our wickedness (vomiting/spewing out peoples, quaking/shaking, experiencing droughts, etc.). Concerned about the cumulative toll and weight of sin’s effect on the Earth, He promises a total renewal or re-creation, and return to a ‘flat Earth’ (not a disc, but still a sphere, possibly with only ONE mountain or and possibly no oceans since they require huge valleys). This is the incredible image one gets when reading the Earth-reshaping events from the trumpets and bowls judgments shockingly described in chapters 8 - 16 of The Book of Revelation. (See: Revelation - Seven Trumpets Sound (Series) and Revelation - Seven Bowls Poured (Series))

3.  Earth Divided: I have long believed the oceans and seas of today are the waters of the flood in Noah’s day. Here is an article that suggests, if the heights of the Earth’s mountains were leveled to fill the oceans, seas, lakes and rivers, the Earth's surface would be ‘flat’, and, unless it was all evaporated or blown into space, water would again ‘cover the Earth’. (Where Did the Flood Waters Go?) Earth arth was created out from covering waters, above and below a firmament. The waters below were gathered in places on the Earth. Genesis 1 makes no further mention of waters above the heavens, but Genesis 7 says both sets of waters flooded the Earth. Did Earth's land mass separate into continents during the flood, thereby providing places for post-flood waters to flee? I find it insightful that there are 7 continents separating the floodwaters. Biblically, the number, 7, is significant from several perspectives.

4.  The Lord’s Land Demarcated and Divided: The Bible affirms repeatedly The Lord’s affinity for a specific track of land that He ‘desires’, in which He promises to ‘dwell forever’:

For The Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling place:
“This is My resting place forever;
Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
There I will make the horn of David grow;
I will prepare a lamp for My Anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
But upon Himself His crown shall flourish.”

(Psalm 132: 13-18)

This may well be the exact same track of land The Lord promised to give to Abraham and his faithful descendants through the line of Jacob, estimated to be ~600,000 square miles, or about 70 times (another Biblically significant number!) the current geographic area of the current state of Israel today (~8,630 sq. miles, of which 8,367 sq. miles is land area) (Israel, The Land: Geography and Climate). For centuries, this promised land has been divided, and it currently includes major swaths of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria and Egypt, a sliver of Kuwait, and all of Jordan and Lebanon – 7 countries (a Biblically significant number!). This is significant from at least three perspectives, and possibly more. 

a)   First, America's 'far-right Christians' concerned about ‘dividing and sharing God’s land with non-Jews’ should relax and recognize The Lord’s punishment upon nations that have ‘divided up’ His land, goes well beyond the modern day state of Israel, and the current-day so-called ‘two states’ issue weighing heavily upon the world:

I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land. (Joel 3:2)

Ponder this: Who/what actually did the scattering -- The Lord, sinful Jews, invading nations, or the sins Jews committed in the land?? In various parts of The Bible, each of these are blamed for the scatterings! Interesting.

b)   Second, The Lord’s promise to re-gather the Jews back to the land has been unfolding formally since circa May 1948. Since then, a significant percentage of Jews worldwide have migrated to the state of Israel, including many who cannot prove their Jewishness. The majority of those who are outside the land reside comfortably North America and Europe. Ponder this: If all or a significant majority of the world’s Jews outside of Israel were indeed to migrate to Israel immediately, where on Earth (in the land) would they reside? Zechariah 10:10 answers this question! As you take note of world events over the coming years, it is worth pondering this: What on Earth could possibly trigger such a significant migration to, and geographic expansion of Israel? (See: Booty, Pre/Post Millennial Reign (Series) to perceive a possible exciting reason for this regathering.

c)   Third, and potentially most controversial, (i) when and how might The Lord achieve the promised 70-fold increase in Israel’s geographic area (land and seas), and (ii) how might current day terrorist actions to reshape well-established borders in the Middle East possibly facilitate His plan? The Lord has a rich history, so to speak, of using foreign armies to reshape geographic borders.  Consider:

1)  The newly established Israel, fresh out of Egypt, tasked with reshaping borders across the lands of the Amorites (the collective name given to all peoples residing in Canaan) – a foreign army invasion ordained by The Lord.

2)  The Assyria invasion of the 10 northern tribes of Israel – a foreign army invasion ordained by The Lord.

3)  The Chaldean/Babylonian invasion of the 2 southern tribes of Judah -- a foreign army invasion ordained by The Lord.

4)  Rome’s (Titus’) invasion of Jerusalem – a foreign army invasion ordained by The Lord (and forewarned when He was the man, Jesus).

5)  Many, many other cases across human history in which foreign armies (irrespective of their faith/beliefs!) were used by The Lord to punish sin, reshape borders and destroy nations.

6)  Zechariah 14 paints an extremely vivid picture of a foreign/alien invasion of Earth by The Lord Jesus and His entourage of then immortal, resurrected saints from across the ages of human history. Matthew 24:29-31 states His angels will also accompany Him. This invading army of aliens will establish it’s headquarters in the substantially reshaped and highly raised Jerusalem, and will totally reshape not only Israel’s borders, but the entirety of Earth’s geography!!! How’s that for being ‘land-minded’?! 

Irrespective of whether Israel’s borders may be substantially expanded on this side of the Millennial Reign of Jesus on Earth, or just prior to, or during His reign, they will eventually be expanded. Until they are, it is definitely worth pondering considering all world events, especially in the Middle East, in the light of God’s promises and plan.

5.  God’s Land, Bigger Still! The Lord promised establishment of a New Jerusalem, whose dimensions are given as a perfect cube of ~1,363 miles on each side. This outlines a land area of ~1,857,769 or ~1.9 million sq. miles, which is over 3 times (over 300 percent) the estimated size of the track of land promised to Abraham and his faithful descendants! This New Jerusalem will not be on the current version of Earth, but on a BRAND NEW Earth The Lord promised Isaiah He would create. (Isaiah 65 and 66). I suspect this new Earth had long been created prior to the first phase of 'The First Resurrection, to eternal life', hinted in Matthew 27:51-53. It is very likely the abode of all 1st and 2nd age saints who were resurrected and raptured when Jesus was raised from the dead! (See: For You, Which Resurrection? (Poem))

Ponder this: Scientists and mathematicians conclude a cubed city of the size of the New Jerusalem could never fit on the current Earth!!! Since Revelation 22 states this city will be on a HIGH (the highest, or only) mountain on the new Earth, just imagine the implications for the sheer SIZE of that new planet, in a brand new universe!!!!!!! Mind blown??  Mine is.

Conclusion: Yep, The Lord is very much a ‘land-minded’ God. Land is very much on His mind, and land issues within His particular region of concern have been very much like an explosive land mine in human history.  Unfortunately, much more blood and treasure will be spilled and destroyed over and around this land before His ordained eternal peace rests upon the land, in particular, and the Earth, in general.  So brace yourselves, things are about to get rougher.  Nevertheless, there will be a brief 3-½ year period of peace somewhere in the mix (the first half of the 4th age of history (the tribulation age), before the predicted Great Tribulation apocalypse nations of the Earth will have well earned. This time, the ‘foreign army’ will be literally from out of this world! ;o)