Even at the Doors blog

(January 10, 2011)  There are elements of the Christian Church that seem to constantly criticize the nation of Israel while supporting the cause of the Palestinians. For some reason they think they are doing God’s work by condemning Israel for returning to the land which God gave them. They also condemn Christians such as myself who support Israel’s biblical right to the land. I have debated this subject on the liberal Sojourners website as I pointed out in an article I wrote: Does the land of Israel belong to the Jews?.   Most of the blog articles on the Sojourners site incline favorably to the Palestinians at the expense of the Israelis. Another article I wrote deals with Knox Theological Seminary’s Open Letter signed by hundreds of Protestant leaders declaring that the Jews have no biblical right to the land of Israel: An Open Response to Knox Theological Seminary, Liberal Theologians, and other parties opposed to the Jews’ Right to the Land of Israel.  In that article I illustrate point by point biblically showing that God’s word does indeed grant the land to the Jews. On this blog I responded to an email that Pastor Rich Nathan of Vineyard wrote to his congregation a  few years ago where he states that Christians must reject a “false interpretation of the ancient promises made by God to Abraham”: Pastor Rich Nathan of Vineyard vs Christian Zionism. This past fall, a gathering of Catholic bishops in Vatican City laid much of the blame for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Israel: Catholic Bishops Demand Israel End Occupation Of Palestinian Land.   The Presbyterian Church has taken sides against Israel in some of its recent conferences including a 2004 recommendation that the Church remove its investments from Israel:  Presbyterian Church Still One-Sided On Israel.    Some of these groups use liberal Jews who condemn Israel for their self-preservation efforts to justify their constant opposition to Israel’s policies. These Christian organizations and individuals get defensive about being labeled as anti-Semites because of their opposition to Israel and its policies. I don’t think they are necessarily antisemitic but I do think they are anti-Israel. I get the impression that most of these groups and individuals wish that Israel had never come back into existence and thereby peace would reign in the Mideast. Whether that is true or not there is someone who does indeed which Israel would go away and will do everything in his power to make it happen. 

“1 Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. 2 Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. 4 His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. 5 She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. 6 Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days. 7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, 8 but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. 9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time. 13 Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15 So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”  (Revelation 12:1-17)

God was revealing His plans to John in the Book of Revelation. John sees a woman clothed with the sun, the moon and twelve stars. This is almost the exact description of Joseph’s dream when he saw the eleven stars (his own star was excluded) and knew they represented his brothers whose progeny became the twelve tribes of Israel (Genesis 37-9-10) This is confirmed when John sees the woman or Israel give birth to the son who would rule the earth with a rod of iron which is a reference to Jesus the Messiah. John then sees a spiritual battle take place between the holy angels of God and the demonic forces of the Great Red Dragon: Satan.  Satan loses and is cast down to earth and his first act is to try to destroy the Woman: Israel. Of course he has tried to destroy the Jews and Israel in the past and in doing so thwart God’s plans. He inspired Pharaoh to kill the Jewish deliverer Moses, or caused David to order a census which led to severe consequences for the Jewish people, or tried to annihilate the Jews in the Book of Esther, or inspired Herod to try to kill Jesus as a baby, or more recently tried to use Hitler to exterminate the Jews before God could restore the nation of Israel. That Satan would be involved in each of these events is clear by his existence as the opposition and accuser of all things of God (II Thessalonians 2:1-4; Daniel 8:23-25; Matthew 16:21-23).

Currently, it is Islam, or at the very least a radical form of Islam, that would like to see Israel destroyed. Many liberal Christians reject the idea that Israel has a right to the land because they say that the promises God made to Abraham concerning the land are no longer in effect under the New Covenant. There are also Christians who subscribe to the doctrine of Replacement Theology which states that the Christian Church has replaced the nation of Israel. They use these beliefs to support the Palestinians at the expense of the Israelis.  They couldn’t be more wrong. The following is from chapter 17 of my book “Even at the Doors: Jesus, Israel, and the End-Times”:

Another tenet of Replacement Theology is that in the age of grace through Jesus Christ, God shows no favor to anyone apart from their acceptance of His Son as the Savior and Messiah. Thus, God will not give the land of Israel to the Jews because to do so would be showing them favor because of their ethnicity. Since the majority of the Jews reject Jesus as the Messiah, supporters of Replacement Theology contend that they are no longer under God’s heavenly blessing, which is true of anyone who rejects Jesus Christ as their Savior. However, Replacement Theologians also say that the Jews are no longer under God’s earthly blessing. Thus, the covenant whereby God promised to give the land of Israel to the Jewish descendants of Abraham is null and void in the age of grace.

This tenet is as false as it is unbiblical. The apostle Paul, in the same letter to the Romans that I mentioned above, states the exact opposite of what the supporters of Replacement Theology say concerning God not showing the Jews any divine favor while they are in unbelief:

“25 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. 26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. 28 As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the father’s sakes. 29 For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” (Romans 11:25-29) 

Paul says that indeed the Jews are spiritually blind when it comes to accepting Jesus as their Messiah. However, he declares that although the Jews are the enemies of the gospel of Jesus Christ, they are “beloved” by God because of the fathers or patriarchs of the Jews. Even though they are outside the Christian faith, they still have God’s divine favor of love upon them. Paul further states here that the gifts of God are irrevocable. Therefore, this means His promise to give the land of Israel to the Jews, even while they are in unbelief, is absolutely still in effect.

To drive home this point, Paul declares that another covenant God made with the Jews was to save them from their sins. He says however, the fulfillment of this covenant will not happen until the Gentiles have had enough time to turn to God and then all Israel “shall be saved”. From the time that Paul wrote this unto the present day, this covenant has still not been fulfilled. Yet according to Replacement Theology, this covenant too should be voided since the Jews are currently in unbelief. Thankfully, God will not void it because His gifts and callings are irrevocable. For the same reason, He will not void the covenant that He made with the Jews to give the land of Israel to them.

The term Paul uses here, “Israel”, cannot refer to the Church. First, born-again Christians who make up the Church are already saved. Second, earlier in this chapter in Romans Paul makes a distinction between the Jews and the believing Gentiles:

“1 I say then, Has God cast away His people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not cast away His people which He foreknew. know ye not what the scripture saith of Elijah? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel saying, 3 Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life. 4 But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to Myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. 5 Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. 6 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work. 7 What then? Israel has not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election has obtained it, and the rest were blinded. 8 (According as it is written, God has given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day. 9 And David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them: 10 Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see, and bow down their back alway. 11 I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. 12 Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness? 13 For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office: 14 If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. 15 For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? 16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches. 17 And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partake of the root and fatness of the olive tree; 18 Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. 19 Thou will say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. 20 Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: 21 For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. 22 Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in His goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. 23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again. 24 For if thou were cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and were grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree? 25 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. 26 And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: 27 For this is My covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” (Romans 11:1-26) 

The apostle states: Yes, spiritual blindness has come upon the Jews when it comes to Jesus being the Messiah. Therefore, God turned to the Gentiles who willingly believed that Jesus is God’s Son and Savior. However, God has plans for the Jews whereby they will accept Jesus as the Messiah and then “all Israel shall be saved!” As I mentioned in Chapter 11 of this book, this salvation of the Jews will take place at Jesus’ second coming when as the prophet Zechariah declared, “[God] will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced.”  (Zechariah 12:10)

In Chapter 15, I discussed the covenant that God made with Abraham where He promised to give the land of Israel to Abraham’s Jewish descendants. God confirmed this covenant by causing a deep sleep to fall on Abraham and then He, in the likeness of a flaming torch, moved between the halves of animals that Abraham had sacrificed. God placed absolutely no conditions on Abraham’s part in order for this covenant to be fulfilled. Abraham was asleep and therefore could not agree to any conditions that God might have required. God did not tell Abraham that he or his descendants had to remain faithful to Him in order to receive this land. God, the Creator of Israel, would bestow a gift of the land upon the Jewish people. And as the apostle Paul wrote, “the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.”     [End of my Book quotation]

It is inconceivable to me that Christians cannot see the hand of God in the rebirth of the nation of Israel. In 135 A.D. the Jews were dispersed throughout the world and should have assimilated  into every culture they found themselves and diasppeared as a people. Yet they maintained their Jewish identity and survived for 1,800 years without a land. Then in 1948, their land was restored to them. In the Old Testament God declared that He would remove the Jews from the land and that He would decide when they could live in the land. How could a Christian believe that the Jews just accidentally ended up back in Israel without the God of the Bible causing it. They say, “But the Israelis are displacing the indigenous Arabs.” From a non-biblical perspective  the Romans displaced the Jews eighteen centuries ago and Islam displaced the native people when they invaded Israel hundreds of years later. From a biblical perspective God ordained the Jews to displace the native people when he told them to conquer the land because He was punishing the pagan inhabitants at the same time He was fulfilling His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The are plenty of Christians and organizations that do support Israel’s right to the land such as Christians United for Israel, Catholics for Israel, former Muslim Walid Shoebat, and many other Evangelical Bible-believing churches and individuals. If you do not support Israel’s right to the land you might want to rethink your position from a biblical point of view. As I stated at the beginning of this article, there is one being in the universe who wants to see Israel destroyed more than anyone else. I will paraphrase Gamaliel in Acts ch.5, “And now I say to you, if the Jews’ return to the land of Israel is a work of men, it will come to nothing;  but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.”