What does the fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11:25 refer to?
The fullness of the Gentiles refers to the completion of the Body of Christ — when the last Gentile is saved, God takes the Church out, and then He turns again to the nation of Israel, resuming His dealings with them under the Law as the Tribulation begins.
Les explains that Romans 11:25 says the same thing the Revelation passage does: when the fullness of the Gentiles is brought in, God turns again to the nation of Israel. In his understanding, the fullness of the Gentiles means the Body of Christ is complete — the last Gentile is saved — and then God takes the Church out and picks up where He left off with Israel. He ties this to his premise that Law and Grace cannot be mixed, from the front end or the tail end. So when the Tribulation begins, Israel will be back under the Law, and in order for God to deal with Israel under the Law, the Church has to get out of the way. He calls this probably his best argument that the Church will not go into the Tribulation. The same truth appears again in Revelation 19, where heaven opens and the real Christ rides the white horse — the true one, in contrast to the counterfeit white horse of chapter 6, which was the Antichrist.
For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
More Questions
What does it mean in Romans 11:25 that the fullness of the Gentiles must be brought in?
Romans 11:25 says that when the fullness of the Gentiles is brought in, God turns again to Israel; this means that once the Body of Christ is complete and the last Gentile is saved, God takes the Church out and resumes His dealings with Israel.
What is the difference between the fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11 and the Gentiles in Luke 21?
The 'fullness of the Gentiles' in Romans 11 refers to Church Age believers, whereas the Gentiles spoken of in Luke 21 are a different group — the unbelieving, unsaved world of Gentiledom.
How is the fullness of the Gentiles different from the times of the Gentiles?
The teaching about the fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11:25 is in the exact opposite setting from the times of the Gentiles and counteracts that earlier situation.
What is the 'until' in Romans 11:25 referring to?
Once the Body of Christ is complete, God will deliver it from its confines here on earth and the Church will be raptured out, and that rapture is the 'until' of Romans 11:25.