Springtime is upon us in the great Midwest. Last week brought us high winds and tornado’s, even snow showers! Storm tracker forecasts capture the attention of many, and we should pay close attention to the weather, especially this time of year. There is something however that is a bit more concerning as we cast a glance toward the middle east. One can easily recognize that there seems to be a storm brewing. What’s worse, this week in the streets of Dearborn Michigan, the words “death to Israel” could be heard chanted by a large crowd, followed by the enthusiastic chants of “death the America!”
Tom Basile the host of “America Right Now” on Newsmax TV and a Washington Times columnist rightly observed, “Times like these should not only breed an unbreakable solidarity between Christians and Jews but also between Americans and Israelis. Israel as a state is a representation of biblical truth. It is by its very existence an acknowledgment that the God of Moses and Abraham exists.
Erasing Jews from the face of the earth through force, as the jihadis attempt to do, or through cultural, political or academic derision, as the Marxists attempt to do, is not just an attack on one religion. It is an attack on the foundations of all Western civilization, especially the United States. The weakening of Israel is linked to the designs of those tearing at American society today. Its existence and stability as a liberal democracy is therefore critical to buttressing our own values as a Judeo- Christian country.”
He continues, “The amoral and atheist proclivities of Marxism or “wokeism” as a political movement and socialism or communism as government structures cannot be underscored enough here as central to shifts in tone toward Israel. The secularists and militant atheists in the Democratic Party know that Jews and Israel are the genesis of and connection to a biblical history that is transcendent. It connects Moses and the Ten Commandments with King David, laying the groundwork for the teachings of Christ, the Apostles and the saints of the universal church. If you eliminate Judaism, weaken Israel or associate either with abhorrent behavior like genocide, then you also begin to eviscerate the underpinnings of Christianity as well.”
Thousands of years ago, a shepherd boy named David sees that Israel is shaking in their sandals against this Goliath, and something boils up and over in his soul. He asks what will be done for the man who takes this giant out forever. Now David is stirring up the people with this kind of talk and his older brother Eliab gets on to him. In 1 Samuel 17:28, “Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”
And then David responds, in 1 Samuel 17:29, “What have I now done? Is there not a cause?” In other words, is there not a time to take a stand? Is there not a truth worth living for; indeed, worth dying for if necessary? Where is Israel’s conviction? His noble heart pulsing with divine patriotism, David volunteered to fight the evil giant. David’s words reveal to us...What he understood about the hearts of the men, and what he knew must be done. It also reminds us that David knew the Promises his God!
You and I, we are called to pray for Israel standing on the same promises as David in the valley of Elah. As a nation we are called to stand with and defend Israel. The Psalmist inspires us… “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord… Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the Lord our God I will seek thy good.”
Historical Biblical landmarks serve as a reminder of not only the sheer determination of the courageous men and women of Israel who labored, fought, defended and are still defending their homeland to this very day! Placed prominently in the foyer of the museum one finds the words of Amos 9:14, “I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them.” It occurs to me that what has happened Israel is reflective of not only the history of Israel, but of our own nation’s Godly heritage as well. As my friend Dr. Everett Piper observed recently, “What happens in Israel does not stay in Israel.” A truth we must never forget!
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