Confronting any conflict is difficult, but understanding the Middle East or the Israeli-Arab conflict involves many twists and turns politically, morally, and, most importantly, spiritually. In this article, I will focus on the spiritual element of this conflict. However, I have discovered that separating the spiritual from political and moral issues surrounding Israel is impossible.
God’s unalterable Word
Not long after we began the work of HaYovel, I was confronted by an Orthodox Jew who asked if Christians believed God created the universe in six days. My answer, of course, was “yes, for the most part.” “So,” he said, “Why?” I said, “Because God spoke it, and it happened. Most Christians believe God’s Word is unchangeable.”
The question was a set-up for his next question, “If Christians believe God spoke a physical universe into existence, why don’t they believe God spoke a future Israel into existence through a covenant (promise)? In Genesis 12, God says to Abraham, ‘This is the (physical) land I will give your descendants.’”
The conflict between Jews and Christians begins here. The revelation of the identity of Israel and who it belongs to has become apparent. At least, it should be apparent. Christianity’s foundation began with the hope of Israel’s physical Kingdom restoration (Luke 1:33; 1:55, 1:68-73; 2:25; 2:38; Acts 1:6; Eph 2:11-13). Every Jewish writer of the Christian Bible expressed this hope. Once Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed, Christianity assimilated into the nations and lost its Jewish influence – completely. With the Jewish people went the hope of Israel and the Covenant which God had spoken through His prophets.
Every Christian must receive the reproof Jesus gave to the woman at the well, “You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.” The unprecedented return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel is evidence of the irrefutable unchanging Word of God.
The Nations Response and Consequence
Once we understand the importance of not blurring the line between Israel and the nation’s identity, we can better understand the prophetic story unfolding in this generation. The prophet Jeremiah declares in chapter 23, verses 7-8, “Days are coming when we will no longer recognize the greatness of the LORD for bringing the children of Israel out of Egypt, but we will recognize the greatness of the LORD for leading the children of Israel from every nation where they were scattered to dwell in their own Land (Israel),” (my paraphrase for clarity).
Almost every prophet speaks about this future exodus from the nations to the land of Israel. I ask every pastor I meet this question: “Are we seeing the greater exodus the prophets spoke about right now?” Their answer is always “Yes.”
If the answer is yes, then what is the appropriate response from the church? Is there a blessing or curse given as a result of our response?
Bread and Water
A few months ago, I read this passage in Deuteronomy 23:3,4, “An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the LORD; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the LORD forever, because they did not meet you with bread and water on the road when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.”
As I unpacked these verses, I understood there was an expectation of God for the nations when Israel began its move toward its Promised Land. The punishment given to Ammonites and Moabites was that they were not allowed to enter the “Assembly of the LORD.” Christians may find it difficult to read this from our denominational/replacement position. When we think of the Assembly of the LORD or Assembly of God, we think about the building we worship in every week. The Assembly of the LORD in the Bible was the gathering place for all the children of Israel or all the children of the God of Israel. The Assembly of the LORD is what many of the Psalmists wrote about. For example, “One day in your courts (the Assembly of the LORD) is better than a thousand outside.” (Psalms 84:10)
But why were they punished? Because they did not give bread and water or sustenance when the children of Israel were on the journey to the Promised Land. Wait, didn’t God provide bread and water to the Israelites in the desert? Why would God ask the nations to provide something He is already providing? The question should be, which would have been the bigger miracle, provision coming from the nations or complete provision by the hand of God? I submit that provision to Israel from the nations is the greater miracle.
The last part of verse 4 mentions the curse of Balaam. The curse Balaam advised to practice against Israel was to lure them into assimilation by sexually seducing the Israelite men. Today Christians still attempt to lure Jewish people away from their God-given identity through proselytizing or assimilation. They work to convince them that if they accept Jesus as Messiah it is no longer necessary to hold onto their Jewish identity given by God through the Law of Moses.
Tommy Waller is the Founder of HaYovel (www.ServeIsrael.com).
Orthodox Jews believe the redemption of the world can only happen after their Third Temple is built. The Temple Institute in Israel has created all of the ritual vessels necessary for the function of this Temple and is training priests for this future work. They have even constructed a unique portable altar for burnt offerings.
It would be great if the Jews only knew the exact location of their Temple site. They think that it is on the “Temple Mount”, but that is just the ruins of the old Roman Fortress of Antonia. The Jews “Wailing Wall” is not the remnant of the Second Temple either. It is merely one side wall of that old Roman fortress. The true site of the Temple is six hundred feet south of the old Roman Fortress of Antonia, overtop of the Gihon Spring. Its waters were used for purification rituals and exited out from under the base of the original Temple. The Romans destroyed Jerusalem after they had conquered it in 70 AD. They did not leave “one stone upon another“ it was all “thrown down.” Their Roman Fortress of Antonia was the only structure that they left intact.
Check out this website: https://beginningandend.com/secret-of-the-lost-temple-the-real-location-of-solomons-temple-revealed/
Christians are wrong to try to get Jewish people to give up their Jewish identity which is very precious both to the Jews and to the Lord Himself.
Unfortunately it seems too many Christians fail to read, never mind study, the Bible which is why there is such ignorance within some churches about the wonder of God’s people returning to their promised land and such lack of understanding of what the conflict is about with the Arab nations. There is a terrible lack of commitment to growing in the faith of Abraham, even with some clergy apparently, which is very disappointing.
Making! Now I understand.
Iam a Christain by choice but have a Jewish grandmother so I have always felt drawn to Isreal.
I have visited Isreal three times now & love the people, food & beauty of the Gallalean sea.
Olā
i still believe ‘God” was invented tô explain nature and tô
Dominate the people.
However I keep wondering what or who caused the big bang and produced the universe or universes.a existência de todo.
God works in mysterious ways, his wonders to perform.
I think the land of Israel belongs to the Jews, because God gave it to them, so it is originally theirs. From time immemorial! I can’t understand the Arabs, they have North Africa, isn’t the Arabian Peninsula enough? The Jewish people, who have suffered a lot, deserve to live in peace in their ancient homeland.
The basic problem is that, despite his fulfilment of every scriptural prophecy, Jeshua is stubbornly rejected by his own people who insist on clinging to the past; as he himself told them and was killed for saying so. Moderrn Christians are no better with their ritualism either. John’s Gospel. chapter 3 makes it quite clear that the only way forward is being born again. Ritualistic practices, whether they be animal sacrifice or the flummery of the ‘Mass’ are no substitue for spiritual rebirth.
God does not reside in temples but in the heart and Jeshua’s condensation of the Law into two rules encapsulates the whole of the Law.
It is important for Christians as we recover from 2000 years of replacement theology to read and understand scripture the way every New Testament believer understood it. The Berean would never follow any person or doctrine unless they or it could be validated by the Tanach or what some call the Old Testament scriptures which were the only scriptures available at the time. God’s Word cannot to mocked by the Christian doctrine.
These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
(Act 17:11)
Every Word spoken by God is good and powerful. It was Jesus who quoted Deut 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” When we believe Jesus or the New Testament can, in any way, annul God’s Word we have crossed a line.
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “YOU SHALL NOT COVET.” But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.
(Rom 7:7-13)
The Israel guys have videos out proving the temples stood on the Temple Mount. I had heard as well what you are saying above, that it was the fortress on top of the mount. It would be nice if people could agree on something for a change. Pam