FOR JUST SUCH A TIME AS THIS

https://sites.google.com/site/
biblewomentruehollywoodstory/queen-esther

This past week all Israel celebrated the festival of Purim, which commemorates the events recorded in the Book of Esther. Some 2500 years ago the Persian King Xerxes 1, identified in the English Bible as Ahasuerus, decreed the extermination of the Jews in all his Empire, which stretched from India to Ethiopia, after one of his close advisors, Haman the Agagite, plotted against them. The Jews were saved by the exposure of the plot by Queen Esther (Hadassah), herself a Jew, the niece of the Benjaminite, Mordecai. Unable to revoke his decree, Ahasuerus made another decree allowing the Jews to take up arms to defend themselves, and thus they were saved. Haman on the other hand was hung on the gallows he had prepared for Mordecai the Jew.  

It had been very risky for Ester to speak to the King about Haman's plot. It could have cost her her life but her uncle, Mordecai, spoke to her saying:

Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews.  For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

    Esther 4: 13-14.  

Esther was in the right place at the right time. Imagine her position. She was a young Jewish exile in Babylon, orphaned at an early age and brought up by her Uncle Mordecai, and then she had been taken away from him to a harem where she was forced to become a concubine, and later the wife, of the King. She must have sometimes wondered what she a mere, Jewish exile was doing in the royal palace. She may well have been very lonely and unhappy there. However it would appear that God had brought her there 'for just such a time as this' and would use her to rescue the entire Jewish nation from certain extermination, thus thwarting the Enemy's plan to derail God's planned redemption of the world through the Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus). 

 There have been many such times throughout history that Satan has attempted to destroy and annihilate the ancient Israelite lineage in order to block God's plans. Each time he has failed- Hallelujah. Today we stand yet again at another such crucial point in history. Satan once more is trying to destroy Israel and, interestingly, he is using the Persian Empire (modern Iran) and its leader (Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameni) to do so. Hardly a day passes that Khameni or the Prime Minister, Rouhani, do not promise to totally destroy Israel. At the same time, he is moving his forces closer and closer to our borders, arming and training the Syrians and Hezbollah, financing Hamas in Gaza, and other terror organizations, all determined to annihilate the 'Jewish entity', Israel. War is imminent and Israel faces a terrifying enemy. It could break out any day. 

 We here have been concerned about the Iranian threat for many years but that threat has never been more immediate nor menacing than it is today. Although there is no direct evidence that Teheran is about to launch a war against Israel in the near future, it is clear that it is making preparations to be able to do so. Backed by Russia and China, Iran already has a massive military presence in Syria, just a stone's throw from our borders. It is estimated that there are some 20,000 Iranian military personnel in Syria and these have been joined by Iraqi, Hezbollah and Lebanese militias and mercenaries from Pakistan and Afghanistan (1).This week the New York Times published a map of long-term Iranian military bases and positions in Syria today (see below). It does not show the many temporary installations. One of the questions being raised in Israel at this time is whether we should wait until they build up their forces and arsenal to the point they attack Israel or should we attack pre-emptively.  Either option would lead to a massive regional war and great loss of life on all sides, but especially here in Israel. Please pray for great wisdom for our leaders. 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/19/world/middleeast/iran-syria-israel.html

As tensions rise on our northern border so they are also rising on our southern border with Gaza. About two weeks ago four Israeli soldiers were wounded, two seriously and two moderately, when an explosive device detonated near the border fence. The IDF retaliated by bombing Hamas targets in Gaza. Hamas returned fire and a rocket landed on the roof of a family home in a town near the border. The family was home but no one was hurt because the rocket failed to detonate (hallelujah) (2).

I don't know where you are who read this, but wherever you are, God has brought you to that place, just as he did to Esther, for just such a time as this. We are living in momentous times and we all have a role to play. Perhaps we feel small and insignificant. What can we do? We can all fast and pray for the 'relief and deliverance' of Israel, and when opportunity arises we can open our mouths to expose the plot of the Enemy to destroy Israel and block God's redemption plan. None of us knows the eternal significance of our actions - who knows, my prayer or yours may just turn the tide in the spiritual battle. We should never underestimate the power of prayer. 

Before she ventured to approach the King, Esther called for all the Jews in the capital, Shushan, to fast and pray with her and her maids for three days and nights. Today observant Jews fast for the day before the Festival of Purim. On the first night of Purim the entire book of Esther is read in the Synagogues, with the children shouting and making noises every time the evil name of Haman is read. 

It is interesting to note the Haman was the son of Hammedatha the Agagite (Esther 3:1) and Agag was a descendant of Amalek one of the sons of Esau. From the womb Esau struggled against his brother, Jacob, from whom were descended the people of Israel. Esau's descendants have continued to stand against Israel ever since. During the time of the Exodus of Israel from Egypt the Amalekites ambushed the Israelites from the rear: 

Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you were coming out of Egypt, how he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, all the stragglers at your rear, when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God. Therefore it shall be, when the Lord your God has given you rest from your enemies all around, in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, that you will blot out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. You shall not forget.

Deuteronomy 25: 17-19

So it was that God commanded King Saul to kill all the Amalekites for what they had done to Israel during the Exodus, but Saul spared the life of Agag in disobedience to God's command. For this reason God rejected Saul from being King over the Israel. The prophet Samuel therefore killed Agag, king of the Amalekites. However it would appear that at least some of Agag's descendants survived and one of those was the evil enemy of the Jews, Haman.  Just like we do not know the consequences of our prayers, we also do not know the long-term consequences of our sin or disobedience. 

Now for some good news. Recently the English  language newspaper "The Jerusalem Post" published an article which ran the headline: 

EVANGELICALS AND ISRAEL

with the byline: "Perhaps the government of Israel should start viewing Messianic Jews as diplomatic assets rather than a religious threat."

It went on to say:

The support of the Evangelical Christian community has always been helpful to Israel. During the intifada years, when tourism was at its lowest, the Evangelical tour buses kept Israel’s tourism economy alive. They have literally donated billions of dollars over the past decade to social and humanitarian projects, through organizations such as the International Christian Embassy and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. There is no question that the socioeconomic resilience of the State of Israel would be quite weaker without its faithful Christian friends...

 Not surprisingly, the strongest allies and best friends of Evangelical Christians in Israel are Israel’s Messianic Jews – Jews who, contrary to popular opinion, insist that one can believe in Jesus and still remain Jewish. In fact, these two communities are virtually inseparable. It would be quite challenging to find any significant business or NGO in Israel that is funded by Christians, which does not have local Messianic Jews in its executive leadership. This would include Christian television networks such as TBN, CBN and GodTV, which broadcast content from Israel every day to billions of viewers worldwide. Go to any large gathering of Evangelical tourists in Israel, and you are likely to find Israeli Messianic Jews both on stage and in the crowd...

It would behoove the Israeli government to recognize that the small Messianic Jewish community in Israel, which apparently numbers less than 20,000 people, has become, since the election of Donald Trump, disproportionately influential and important to Israel’s security and diplomatic standing. Unfortunately, it appears that neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, nor anyone in his Cabinet, fully understands this new reality...

In view of the deep relationship between Evangelical Christians and the Messianic community, perhaps the government of Israel should start viewing Messianic Jews as diplomatic assets rather than a religious threat.(3)

 Since I first arrived in Israel, in 1979, I have seen a slow but undeniable increase in the acceptance of Messianic Jews as a legitimate part of the State of Israel, as we have served the nation we live in, established families and businesses, and become an integral part of society. Many have excelled in military service, risking their lives for the survival of the nation. We have in every way proven ourselves  loyal citizens. We still have a long way to go to find full acceptance, but one day when Jerusalem is ready to bless those who come in Yeshua's name, then Messiah will return as Yeshua himself prophesied: 

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!  See! Your house is left to you desolate;  for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’

Matthew 23: 37-39

Now to finish with some photos of the Purim Celebrations in my town, the 70th since the founding of the State,

A 70th birthday cake for Israel

Snow white and the seven dwarfs

A dance school

Almost the whole town came to watch the parade

Dancing the hora

Its the only way to travel

References:

(1) https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5122994,00.html
(2) https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5118625,00.html
(3) http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Evangelicals-and-Israel-542875

THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF?

 

Netanyahu addressing Congress 3 March 2015
http://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/daily/intelligencer/2015/03/03/03-netanyahu-speech3.w529.h352.2x.jpg

 

Netanyahu has given his speech to the Congress and now only history will determine if it will have any effect on the fate of Israel or the world as a whole. We have never had any doubt about Netanyahu’s ability as an orator. He delivered his speech with clear and deliberate confidence and received much support from his Congressional audience, Republican and Democrat alike. President Obama made a point of not watching the speech but we can be sure he heard or read every word. But, will Netanyahu’s speech make any difference? Only time will tell.

The full text of Netanyahu's speech is worthy of our close attention and can be seen on http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4633143,00.html.

Netanyahu began his speech warning that,

“Iran's regime is not merely a Jewish problem, any more than the Nazi regime was merely a Jewish problem. The 6 million Jews murdered by the Nazis were but a fraction of the 60 million people killed in World War II. So, too, Iran's regime poses a grave threat, not only to Israel, but also the peace of the entire world. To understand just how dangerous Iran would be with nuclear weapons, we must fully understand the nature of the regime”.

He went on to point out that we must not think that Iran is in any way an ally just because it is also fighting the Islamic State (IS or ISIS).

Don't be fooled. The battle between Iran and ISIS doesn't turn Iran into a friend of America.Iran and ISIS are competing for the crown of militant Islam. One calls itself the Islamic Republic. The other calls itself the Islamic State. Both want to impose a militant Islamic empire first on the region and then on the entire world. They just disagree among themselves who will be the ruler of that empire.

In 1979 Iran was ‘hijacked by religious zealots’ who imposed a dictatorship on the people based on a strict and brutal new constitution based on Shariya Law, and the ideological imperative of Jihad. Backed by Iran, Hezbollah controls Damascus, President Assad of Syria slaughters his own people, and the Houthis, who last September took control of Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, which controls the strategic entrance to the Red Sea through which most of the world’s oil must pass. Even as the USA and Iran are negotiating the current deal, Iran carried out a military exercise blowing up a mock US aircraft carrier. Given Teheran’s aggressive and threatening position, one must ask, why is the USA so determined to negotiate with this regime, which has clearly and repeatedly threatened to destroy the ‘little Satan’ (Israel) and then the ‘big Satan’ the USA? Netanyahu put it this way;

In the Middle East, Iran now dominates four Arab capitals, Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut and Sanaa. And if Iran's aggression is left unchecked, more will surely follow.

Beyond the Middle East, Iran attacks America and its allies through its global terror network. It blew up the Jewish community center and the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires. It helped Al Qaida bomb US embassies in Africa. It even attempted to assassinate the Saudi ambassador, right here in Washington, DC…

So when it comes to Iran and ISIS, the enemy of your enemy is your enemy.

The difference is that ISIS is armed with butcher knives, captured weapons and YouTube, whereas Iran could soon be armed with intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear bombs. We must always remember - I'll say it one more time - the greatest dangers facing our world is the marriage of militant Islam with nuclear weapons. To defeat ISIS and let Iran get nuclear weapons would be to win the battle, but lose the war. We can't let that happen.

Prime Minister Netanyahu then went on to expose the flaws in the current proposed deal, due to be signed at the end of this month. First the deal does not require Iran to destroy its nuclear facilities. He said that,

According to the deal, not a single nuclear facility would be demolished. Thousands of centrifuges used to enrich uranium would be left spinning. Thousands more would be temporarily disconnected, but not destroyed.

Iran currently has 19,000 centrifuges spinning busily away enriching uranium and plans to build 10 times that number. Enriched uranium is not needed for peaceful nuclear purposes such as power generation or medical use. If Iran is not intending to develop military nuclear capability, as it claims, then why is it enriching uranium at all? 

Under the proposed deal, Iran’s nuclear program would be under the watchful eye of international inspectors, but as Netanyahu said, “… inspectors document violations; they don't stop them”. What is more, Iran has proven in the past that it is well able to conceal its activities.  Netanyahu put it this way:

…but Iran not only defies inspectors, it also plays a pretty good game of hide-and-cheat with them.

The UN's nuclear watchdog agency, the IAEA, said again yesterday that Iran still refuses to come clean about its military nuclear program. Iran was also caught - caught twice, not once, twice - operating secret nuclear facilities in Natanz and Qom, facilities that inspectors didn't even know existed.

Right now, Iran could be hiding nuclear facilities that we don't know about, the US and Israel. As the former head of inspections for the IAEA said in 2013, he said, "If there's no undeclared installation today in Iran, it will be the first time in 20 years that it doesn't have one." Iran has proven time and again that it cannot be trusted

A second concern is the fact that the restrictions on Iran under the proposed deal would automatically expire after 10 years. John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, confirmed last week that Iran could possess massive centrifuge capacity by the time the deal expires. This means they could be producing nuclear weapons within a very short time, less than a year according to US estimates, but possibly even much, much faster.

Netanyahu thus expressed his concern that this deal would not prevent Iran from making nuclear weapons, but rather would ensure that it did. He said,

Now I want you to think about that. The foremost sponsor of global terrorism could be weeks away from having enough enriched uranium for an entire arsenal of nuclear weapons and this with full international legitimacy.

And by the way, if Iran's Intercontinental Ballistic Missile program is not part of the deal, and so far, Iran refuses to even put it on the negotiating table. Well, Iran could have the means to deliver that nuclear arsenal to the far-reach corners of the earth, including to every part of the United States.

So one must ask, why is the USA so determined to sign this deal with Iran? It seems to me that it is predicated on the belief that by the time the 10 years have passed Iran’s regime will have been replaced by a more moderate one. However that seems to be something of a pipe dream. The regime has stood for 36 years now and is stronger than ever. The only time any cracks appeared were some demonstrations during the time when strict economic sanctions were being applied, but those sanctions have been eroded, and under the proposed deal will be eased considerably, and the opposition quashed.

Iran on the other hand is willing to sign the deal only so that the sanctions will be eased, making it possible to fund its nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile program, its support of terrorist groups around the world, and its expansionist policies.

Netanyahu’s speech has prompted an fairly predictable outburst of criticism both at home and abroad. One of the criticisms is that he did not say anything new. And that is true. He has been saying the same thing over and over and over for years, but the shocking thing is the apathy of the free world and its dogged refusal to listen. It seems we are suffering from “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” syndrome.  However if you remember the story, the people grew so tired of hearing the boy crying ‘wolf’ that they stopped listening and even stopped believing in the wolf. However the wolf was still there and one day he came and ate all the people. I hope we will not suffer the same fate!

Others, President Obama included, criticized his speech claiming that he did not make any valid or workable alternative proposal. This is simply not true. Netanyahu declared  that no deal is a better option than a bad deal, and he also put forward a suggestion for a better deal:

Now we're being told that the only alternative to this bad deal is war. That's just not true.

The alternative to this bad deal is a much better deal.

We can insist that restrictions on Iran's nuclear program not be lifted for as long as Iran continues its aggression in the region and in the world.

Before lifting those restrictions, the world should demand that Iran do three things:

First, stop its aggression against its neighbors in the Middle East.

Second, stop supporting terrorism around the world.

And third, stop threatening to annihilate my country, Israel, the one and only Jewish state.

If Iran changes its behavior, the restrictions would be lifted. If Iran doesn't change its behavior, the restrictions should not be lifted…

Netanyahu summed up his position by saying,

Ladies and gentlemen, history has placed us at a fateful crossroads. We must now choose between two paths. One path leads to a bad deal that will at best curtail Iran's nuclear ambitions for a while, but it will inexorably lead to a nuclear-armed Iran whose unbridled aggression will inevitably lead to war.

The second path, however difficult, could lead to a much better deal, that would prevent a nuclear-armed Iran, a nuclearized Middle East and the horrific consequences of both to all of humanity.

It is interesting to note that this speech was delivered to Congress on the eve of the Fast of Esther which precedes the Feast of Purim, in which Jews have for centuries remembered another occasion when a ruler in Persia (modern day Iran) sought to annihilate the Jews (see the Book of Esther). All over Israel and in every Jewish synagogue throughout the world, the book of Ester was read aloud. Children and adults alike celebrated by dressing in costumes, and by giving gifts to each other and to the poor. It is a happy occasion and a reminder than one person and their words can make a difference. The courageous words of Esther saved the Jews throughout the Persian Empire from annihilation. Esther’s uncle, Mordecai, said this to her:

Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

Esther 4: 13-14.

 

Celebrating Purim in Netanya
http://www.timesofisrael.com/nation-plays-dress-up-to-celebrate-purim-holiday/

 

Time and time again, throughout history, enemies have risen up with the intention of destroying Israel. But they have never succeeded! And here we stand: a tiny nation in a vast sea of enemies. In spite of all the threats against us, we are confident in our God, who has promised to keep and restore us in this land. His word is true and will stand. He who is with us is greater than any enemy.

But what is our part? Is it to remain silent or is it to speak out? We must each search our hearts and see what we must do in these perilous days, and be careful to be found working with God to bring about his redemption and not against Him, and his chosen people.