THE FAST OF ESTHER

...the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Revelation 5:8

Saturday 27th February
This time last week we were shivering in the snow and this week we are sweltering in an unseasonable sharav. The temperature hit 28 degrees C in Tel Aviv on Friday, necessitating the stopping of the Tel Aviv marathon early, as several runners had to be treated for severe heat stroke. Others flocked to the beaches - and all this in February which is normally our coldest winter month. Although such 20 degrees swings in temperature are not unusual in spring, it is bizarre at this time of year. Today (Saturday) it is cooler but still very spring-like and I am enjoying the sunshine on my balcony as I write.




On a Tel Aviv beach Friday
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4631621,00.html

Tuesday 3rd March
In just two hours our Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu will make his controversial address to the US Congress on the matter of Iran's nuclear program. The Obama administration is reported to be 'furious' that Netanyahu was invited to address Congress by the Republican Speaker, John Boehner, without either party informing the White House. Netanyahu has been criticized both in the USA and at home for accepting this invitation, just two weeks ahead of our elections. However until then he is still our Prime Minister and world events do not stop even for our elections. 

On the eve of his departure for the US, Netanya said this, "Israel and the United States agree that Iran shouldn't have nuclear weapons. But we disagree on the best way to prevent them from developing those weapons." http://news.yahoo.com/israel-pm-netanyahu-takes-off-historic-us-mission-132110917.html  Netanyahu is of the opinion that the deal likely to be brokered with Iran at the end of this month is extremely dangerous for Israel, and his speech is intended to sway US opinion away from signing it. Without knowing the terms of the proposed deal, it is hard to know if he is right or not, or whether this affront to the Obama administration might not backfire to our detriment. Opinion here is divided, but we do all agree that Iran must not be allowed to develop nuclear arms and must be stopped. We also believe that Iran's word is not to be trusted, and that they have not stopped threatening to destroy Israel and the whole western world. How can you negotiate with a nation like that?


It is interesting to note that Netanyahu's speech will be given just a few hours before the beginning of Ta'anit Ester, the Fast of Esther, which commemorates the 3 day fast of Esther before she confronted the Emperor of Persia, Ahasuerus, in her attempt to save the people of Israel from destruction at his hands. The Ancient Empire of Persia was centered geographically and politically on the region we now know as Iran.



http://ancientweb.org/images/explore/Persia_Map_Empire.jpg





https://www.google.co.il/webhp?authuser=0&ei=IopiU9-bE6XFsQSno4LwCw&ved=0CAQQqS4oAQ#authuser=0&q=iran+map





 

We can read the whole story in the book of Esther, which is read in its entirety in all Jewish synagogues at this time of the Feast of Purim. King Ahasuerus decreed that every Jewish person should be killed because they refused to bow down to his image, which would have constituted idolatry, forbidden by their LORD. 

In the name of King Ahasuerus it was written, and sealed with the king’s signet ring.  And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar, and to plunder their possessions.  Esther 3:12-13

 When he heard of this, Esther's uncle Mordecai, came to her and said,

"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 4:14 

On that occasion Israel was saved by a courageous woman, Esther, who interceded on behalf of her people. Are you willing to be an 'Esther' today and pray to our God for the rescue of Israel from all the many enemies bent on our destruction?

Netanyahu prays at the Western Wall before his departure to the US.
http://thedemocrate.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/112.jpg

THE TREASURY OF SNOW

20 February 2015
 

God thunders marvelously with His voice;
He does great things which we cannot comprehend.
For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth’...

Stand still and consider the wondrous works of God...

then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said:

... Have you entered the treasury of snow...

 

Job 37: 5-6,14, 38:1,22



The Temple Mount in the snow today (20 Feb 2015)

Here in Jerusalem today, and indeed in much of the country, we awoke this morning to a white world. As I write the thunder is rolling around the hills, and flashes of lightning are illuminating the heavy snow that is falling.  We have about 30 cm on the ground in Jerusalem, and all the city has ground to a stop. Most roads are impassable, buses and trains are not running, schools are closed and very few shops are open. A hush has fallen as we contemplate the majesty of God, his power and our puny impotence in the face of a snow storm. There is an air of celebration and wonder. Who cannot be moved by the beauty of snow? The whole city is like a scene from a Christmas card. Here are some photos:

 

My cat investigates that cold stuff on the balcony



The view from my balcony

In the yard of our building



 

My street this morning

In the passage quoted above it mentions the 'treasury of snow'. Why a treasury? How is snow a treasure? If you live in the US you might not be seeing snow as a blessing right now, but here in Israel every drop of precipitation, be it snow, or rain or even dew, is seen as a blessing and a gift from the Lord. Snow is especially precious as it melts slowly feeding water into the soil and refilling the underground aquifers. This year we have had plentiful rain and snow with most parts of the country exceeding the annual average rainfall already. Coming after last year in which we had less than 1/3 the annual average here in Jerusalem, we are rejoicing in every drop of rain or snow.

 

Snow is mentioned many times in the Bible and clearly it is an image that was familiar to the people during the Biblical period. Snow is a reminder of the power and bounty of God's provision, and also that every word He has spoken will certainly come to pass.







For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,
 So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

 

Isaiah 55: 10-11

 

Last night as I was watching a news report about the snow, one of the commentators said that we are all glad of the snow as it allows us to escape from thinking about all the threats that so concern us, at least for a little while. I think there was some truth in what he said.

 

A temporary escape is sometimes healthy and necessary, but the continued denial of reality can be dangerous. I just heard President Obama say, " The notion that we are at war with Islam is an ugly lie". What a shocking statement. I am sure if you asked the Islamic State fighters they would have no hesitation in saying that they are at war with the West in the name of Islam, and Iran has repeatedly and openly stated that it intends first to destroy the 'little Satan' (Israel) and then the 'big Satan' the USA and the Western World, and again all in the name of Islam.  It seems to me that Obama is taking political correctness to a dangerous level in an effort to appease the Islamic world. One must ask why? Although it is true that not all of the Islamic world nor that all Muslims support the actions of the Islamic State or Iran, and many oppose them, nevertheless the actions of the Islamic State and Iran are based on the Koranic injunction for Jihad, that is, the conquest of the world for Islam and in the name of Allah.

 

Just this last week we saw 21 Egyptian citizens being beheaded in Libya by Islamic State fighters, simply because they were Christians who refused to denounce their faith. If this is not a religious war, what is? 

 

http://i0.wp.com/the-american-journal.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/ISIS_Butcher_Coptic_Christians_Libya.png?resize=940%2C474
 

The Islamic State released a video entitled "A Message Signed in Blood to the Nation of the Cross" and then showed the beheading of these men, some of whom were seen mouthing the words "Lord Jesus Christ" moments before they were murdered.

 http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/21/coptic_church_recognizes_martyrdom_of_21_coptic_christians_/1124824

 

I would challenge Obama to look in the faces of the wives and children of these Coptic Christian martyrs, and say this is not a religious war.

Although I normally steer clear of getting involved in politics, it seems irresponsible at this point in time to not speak out against the policies of the Obama administration, which is exhibiting what, from our perspective, seems at best incredibly naïve, or at worst, knowing complicity with the sworn enemies of Israel, the USA and the Western World.

This latter possibility is explored in some depth in an opinion article in the Jerusalem Post which raises the question thus:

Why does US President Barack Hussein Obama so desperately want a deal with Iran? Why is he so fixated on a grand bargain with the Islamic Republic, the world’s biggest killer of Americans? What explains the president’s passion to embrace the radical mullahs of Tehran, despite the fact that all America’s traditional allies in the region are calling for him to check Iran’s advances? Why the deferential approach that seeks Iran’s partnership, instead of its isolation? The question becomes even sharper when you consider the fact that Iran is patently not seeking integration in the Middle East or reconciliation with the West, but rather obviously domination of the region and apocalyptic victory over the West."  http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Know-comment-What-explains-Obamas-zeal-for-a-deal-with-Iran-391602

It well worth taking the time to read this whole article. It comes to the conclusion that Obama's excessive political correctness does not come so much from the recognition that the USA has overstepped its moral prerogative in interfering in world affairs, particularly in the Middle East, as has been suggested by some commentators, but rather that " Obama’s fervor for Iran lies somewhere much more fundamental: In a deep-seated ideological belief that Islam has a rightful leadership place in the world". In other words, it puts forward the suggestion that Obama is, deep in his heart,  in agreement with the Islamic goal of Jihad. I don't know if this is so, but it would explain his otherwise inexplicable stance, and also his deep anger with the upcoming speech of Netanyahu to the Congress on the 3rd of March.

 

Against the background of Obama's policies in the Middle East, and particularly those regarding a deal with Iran, which are seen in Israel as endangering our very existence, I feel that Netanyahu's speech is crucial and essential at this juncture. The reality of the situation in the Middle East must be exposed or we all stand at terrible risk, not just Israel but the entire Western World. Netanyahu put it this way:

"I am going to the United States not because I seek a confrontation with the President, but because I must fulfill my obligation to speak up on a matter that affects the very survival of my country,” http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/26028/Default.aspx?article=popular_posts

Please lift up Netanyahu as he prepares his speech as it may be one of the most pivotal speeches in all human history. Pray that he will speak truth, and only truth, and that his words will be guided by the LORD God.

 

Please also pray for the outcome of our elections, just over 3 weeks away, that the Lord will overrule, and the right man or woman, will be raised up as our Prime Minister and the right people sit in the Knesset. I think most Israelis are fed up with all the political mudslinging and corruption in our government, and long for leaders of moral  integrity and who have the best interests of the Israeli people foremost in their hearts. However only God knows who is for the best, and we need to cry out for his mercy and favor in the elections, as in all other things.

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
For wisdom and might are His.
 And He changes the times and the seasons;
He removes kings and raises up kings;

Daniel 2: 20-21 

 

THE CAIN PRINCIPLE

 

After a couple of weeks of warm, spring-like weather, winter returned to Israel this week with a vengeance. On Wednesday the whole country was blanketed in a very dense cloud of dust, courtesy of the Sahara. Late in the afternoon it began to rain lightly here,  coating everything in a thick layer of sticky mud. Only the car wash people were rejoicing! That night and over the next couple of days heavy snow fell in the Golan and northern Galilee, but none here in Jerusalem. Along the coast heavy rain and hail brought flooding in some areas. Again here in Jerusalem, not a drop in spite of the bitter cold and heavy cloud cover. Last night there may have been a shower here. I hope so, as the trees badly needed their leaves washed before summer sets in.

Sunset in the dust storm on the Sharon coast
 

 

 





North Golan Heights (Photo: Avihu Shapira)
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4625804,00.html












Alonei Habashan (Photo: Yaske Dekel)
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4625804,00.html

In spite of this week's wintery spell there are many signs of spring around. I am sitting on my balcony and in the yard below I can see the birds sipping the nectar of the blossoms on our almond tree. Last weekend I joined thousands of Israelis on our annual 'pilgrimage' to the countryside to see the beautiful displays of wildflowers.  

 

 



Anenomes at Gal Ed

Don't think you are 'getting away from it all"! Note the cars.



Cyclamen at Rakefet Mountain

 













 



THE CAIN PRINCIPLE

In my last blog I spoke about how  Israel is more and more being accused of being the root of the problem in the Middle East, the cause of all the violence. This is a Lie being spread by the Enemy and one that needs to be countered and rejected, especially by those who believe the Word of God, as revealed in the Scriptures.

The State of Israel is not the 'problem'; the problem is man's rebellion against God and His plans for redemption. Indeed, far from being the 'problem', the people and nation of Israel is very much a core part of the solution. It is through the people and nation of Israel, and the Messiah born of that nation, that God is working the ultimate redemption of the whole world.

The hatred and violence of her neighbors against Israel goes far back in history, and we can see its roots in the account about Cain and his brother Abel (though one could argue it goes back even further, to the rebellion of Adam and Eve). In the story of Cain and Abel however we can see a fundamental principle revealed - the one I call the Cain Principle. Below is an excerpt from a book I am currently writing about this very subject.

After Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, Eve gave birth to two sons, Cain the elder and his brother Abel. Abel grew up and became a keeper of sheep and Cain was a farmer, a tiller of the ground. In due course, they brought offerings to the LORD. Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground and Abel brought of the first-born of his flock, and we are told that God respected the offering of Abel, but not that of Cain. Understandably perhaps, Cain felt rejected and angry, but God came to him saying, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it” (Genesis 4: 6-7).

 

In these words lies a fundamental principle, which underlies all God’s dealings with man and which underpins all of human history. Cain brought an unacceptable offering to the Lord. He had not done well, and his offering had been rejected by God. At first glance it seems that Cain had been treated unfairly by God. How was Cain to know what would constitute an acceptable offering? It is not totally clear in the Scripture, but some say that Cain should have known. In Genesis 3:21 we read that after Adam and Eve had sinned and become aware of their nakedness, God had killed some animals and made them tunics of skin. This is the first time that we see in Scripture the necessity of the shedding of blood for the covering of sin. This happened before Cain was born but he would surely have known about it. Perhaps therefore he should have understood that the shedding of blood was required. Be that as it may, there can be no argument that Cain chose to do things ‘his way’ and not God’s way, whether knowingly or not.

 

From the passage quoted above it seems to me that Cain’s incorrect sacrifice was not counted as sin at that point, and God gave him an opportunity to correct his mistake. Cain still had the choice whether or not to let sin enter into his life. He could have simply brought to God the correct sacrifice and found full acceptance. However he chose otherwise. He allowed jealousy and anger to rule over him, and this ultimately led to the murder of his innocent brother.

 

Even after this terrible act, God gave Cain one last chance to repent, when He spoke with him saying, “Where is your brother Abel?”, but Cain refused to take responsibility for what he had done and lied to God (Genesis 4:9-10) thereby increasing the trespass even more. Consequently God cursed him saying, “So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand”. The word, ארור, here translated as ‘cursed’ implies that the very nature of something has changed. It also carries a sense of finality. There will be no more chances. Now Cain has so hardened his heart against God he will no longer listen to Him, nor even to his own conscience. Interestingly enough, if we continue reading in Genesis 4 we see that one of Cain’s descendants, Lamech, was also a murderer and even presumed to claim the ‘mark of Cain’ to protect him from vengeance ‘seventy seventy-fold’ (Genesis 4:23-24). If we harden our hearts against God there is a tendency to slide ever deeper into sin and this tendency is very often passed on down the generations.

 

Incidentally, we are told that Cain went out from the presence of the Lord (Genesis 4:16). This passage does not say that God cast him out from His presence. God had merely told Cain that he would be cursed from the ground, which would no longer yield its strength to him and he would become a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth. Yet Cain exaggerated the situation, and added his own interpretation, saying “I shall be hidden from your Face… and it will happen to me that anyone who finds me will kill me”. His anger and his sense of rejection caused him to perceive his punishment as being worse than God intended, and this just fueled his indignation and intensified his anger. It was this that drove him out from the presence of God. Thus it was Cain who rejected God, not the other way around.

 

Cain went out from the presence of the LORD and dwelt in the land of Nod to the east of Eden (Genesis 4:16). Where was the land of Nod?  We are told it was east of Eden and some believe it to have been the Arabian Peninsula. The land of Nod may not have been an actual place since this phrase could also be translated as the land of wandering, an allusion to the type of life Cain and his descendants would experience as fugitives and vagabonds.

 

As we continue to read through the historical books of the Old Testament we see this pattern, repeated again and again. Every individual and every nation faces exactly the same choice, then as it is today. Will we do it God’s way, or rebel and go our own way? Will we choose obedience or rebellion, love or murder? Will we accept God or reject him? Will we cooperate with him towards redemption or will we fight against him?

 

This is what I have called the Cain Principle and it underlies all of human history, from the time of the Fall until now. We can see it at work on many levels, but especially we can see it as it relates to the chosen line of the Messiah. The Enemy, Satan, works through mankind trying to bring to naught God’s redemption plan. If he, Satan, can arouse our jealousy and anger towards God’s chosen, he can lead us to murder. This is the root of the ancient enmity, towards God’s chosen, both Israel and the saints in Yeshua (Jesus).

 

Satan, by causing Cain to murder his brother and to go out from the presence of God, tried to break the line of descent that would lead to the Messiah. God however raised up a third brother, Seth (Genesis 4:25), to replace Cain and Abel.  Seth was the beginning of a line of descent through which the promises of God for redemption would be carried until it gave rise to the Messiah, Yeshua (Genesis 5, Luke 3:23-38). At various points of history, Satan tried to break that line in an effort to derail God’s plan. After the Fall in Eden, the next major attack came during the days of Noah....

This is why we are exhorted to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, for in Jerusalem and in God's chosen people, Israel, lies all the hope of the world. The people of Israel are as sinful as any other nation, but they are still the chosen of our God. That has never changed in spite of what the preachers of replacement theology claim.

The Apostle Paul addressed this issue very clearly:

I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.  God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew....

 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.  Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!For I speak to you Gentiles; inasmuch as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry,  if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh and save some of them.  For if their being cast away is the reconciling of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?

 For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.  And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:

“The Deliverer will come out of Zion,
And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
 For this is My covenant with them,
When I take away their sins.”

 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

  Romans 11: 1-2, 11-15, 25-27, 29 

 We need to pray for Israel, that they may be saved, for as Paul says, their acceptance into the by God into the Kingdom will bring forth life from the dead, the final resurrection and the redemption of the world. Herein lies our only hope.

Sunrise over the mountains of Edom from my balcony

THE SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS



Sunrise from my balcony this week

“For behold, the day is coming,
Burning like an oven,
And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble.
And the day which is coming shall burn them up,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“That will leave them neither root nor branch.
² But to you who fear My name
The Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
³ You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,”
Says the Lord of hosts

 

Malachi 4: 1-3

The balcony of my apartment faces southeast directly towards Basra, once the capital of Edom, and from whence will come Yeshua on the Day He judges the enemies of Israel (Isaiah 63:1). I have always felt it significant that the Lord has placed me here, watching and praying for the coming of the Lord. I do not know when that will be, but the signs are that it could be soon, very soon.

The tide of darkness around us is gathering strength. The enemies of Israel are preparing a monstrous arsenal of weapons for the coming war and boasting of Israel's imminent destruction. To the east the forces of the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) this week reached a new level of depravity and barbarism when they released on the social media footage of the burning to death of the captured Jordanian pilot, Moaz al-Kasasbeh

Moaz al-Kassasbeh in the cage in which he was burned to death

As if that wasn't monstrous enough, they then executed by firing squad two Imams, and beheaded in public four Syrian civilians who dared to condemn the immolation of the Jordanian pilot. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2940990/ISIS-beheads-four-Syrians-took-Facebook-condemn-burning-Jordanian-pilot-death-two-Muslim-clerics-criticised-murder-shot-firing-squad.html

To the south, the "State of Sinai", a jihadist group linked to the Islamic State and previously named Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis, targeted 10 Egyptian military installations in three different cities, El Arish, Rafah and Sheikh Zuweid, at the same time, leaving more than  35 military personnel dead and 70 others wounded.
http://globalvoicesonline.org/2015/02/04/violence-escalates-in-sinai-as-isis-linked-group-attacks-kill-dozens/

 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/02/egypt-sinai-wilaya-attacks-army.html##ixzz3QxBdXqfT

Meanwhile also in the south, Hamas is preparing for the next round of aggression against Israel. Last week some  10,000 youngsters, aged 15 -21,  graduated from a week-long military camp run by the al Kassam Brigade, the Gaza based military wing of Hamas. These youths underwent intensive military training, including the use of sniper rifles, simulated tunnel attacks, physical combat training and naval commando operations. The minds of the next generation have already been poisoned with hatred and violence.


http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4619982,00.html

In the north, Iran backed Hezbollah forces in Lebanon are busy amassing rockets and missiles, including long-range missiles capable of hitting any target in Israel. Last week two Israeli soldiers, Captain Yohai Kalangel and Sergeant Dor Nini, were killed and 7 injured when Hezbollah fired a rocket at their unarmoured vehicle on Mt Dov in the Golan. This attack was in revenge for an earlier attack, attributed to Israel, on a convoy bringing missiles from Iran to Hezbollah killing 12, including Jihad Mughniyeh, Hezbollah's commander of the Syrian Golan sector and the son of master terrorist Imad Mughniyeh, Imad Mughniyeh Mohammed Issa, the head of Hezbollah's operation in Syria and Iraq, along with five other Hezbollah fighters and six Iranian military personnel - including Iranian General Mohammed Ali Allah Dadi of Iran's Revolutionary Guard (see my previous blog page). 

The commander of Iran's Basij force, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Reza Naqdi, has been quoted as saying that Israel should await a crushing response from Iran and that "they [the Zionists] should remain fully alerted until complete annihilation of the Zionist regime.”
This week an Iranian website, Shia Online, this week published an article calling for the assassination of the sons of Benyamin Netanyahu, Yair and Avner, and also the sons of former Prime Ministers, Ehud Olmert and Ariel Sharon.

http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Iranian-website-threatens-top-Israeli-officials-posts-family-pic-of-PM-389204
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2931549/Iran-encourages-terror-groups-assassinate-children-Benjamin-Netanyahu-following-Israeli-airstrike-killed-key-Hezbollah-leaders.html


On the stage of the world's press Israel is more and more being scapegoated as the cause of the turmoil in the Middle East. Israel is being blamed for everything from the 9/11 attacks in the USA, the recent attacks in Paris and even the Ebola outbreak in Africa!   Iran's Press TV reported the  Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in a meeting this Monday with Jordan’s new ambassador to Tehran, Abdullah Sulaiman Abdullah Abu Romman, saying  that the Israeli “occupation” of Palestinian territories is the root cause of problems in the Middle East.http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Iranian-website-threatens-top-Israeli-officials-posts-family-pic-of-PM-389204.  This Lie is gaining strength everywhere and hardly a day passes where it is not expressed in the Press somewhere.  Sadly even in the Church worldwide many are buying into this Lie.  

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a local and relatively minor component of the wider unrest in the Middle East. Historically the conflict with Israel is not based so much on the geo-political  Palestinian issue but on a much deeper clash between Islam and the Judeo/Christian world view.

Although some Muslim clerics, notably Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hussaini, claim that the Koran legitimizes Israel's rights to the Holy Land, the mainstream Islamic view is that it rightly belongs to the Muslim Waqf, an inalienable religious endowment,  and therefore no non-Muslim can be permitted to buy or otherwise usurp that land from the hegemony of Islam. That is the crux of the issue. According to Islam, the purchase of land by Jews from Muslims is anathema. The very existence of the Jewish State is anathema. The Muslim world as a whole does not really care about the plight, tragic as it is, of the Palestinian people themselves.  One could ask why the Palestinian refugees of 1948, and their descendants, are still living in refugee camps in spite of the billions of dollars of aid that has been donated to better their lives. It suits the cause of Jihad to use the Palestinians cynically as a publicity tool and a justification for attacking Israel.

Apart from that, much of the current turmoil is being generated within the different factions of Islam itself, especially between the so-called moderate mainstream and the radical, fundamentalist jihadis. In addition there remains the age-old violent enmity between the Sunni and the Shiite streams of Islam. One could also argue that the so-called Arab Spring, the overthrow by popular uprisings of the regimes set up after WWII , such as that which occurred in Egypt, is the result of misrule and corruption by the leaders of those countries and the consequent poverty of a large discontented underclass - nothing to do with Israel at all.

The Middle East is an incredibly complex region with a long history of violence and warfare going back far into history, and beyond. To try and blame Israel for the current violence is simplistic and not based on any historical or current reality, much less a Biblical perspective. It is rather a resurgence of the type of anti-Semitism that lead to World War II and the Holocaust. Many of the Nazi leaders fled to the Middle East after the fall of the Third Reich and their influence can be seen in much of the rhetoric coming out of the Muslim world. Even the cartoons are adapted from typical Nazi propaganda.

We, who are followers of Yeshua, need to have His perspective on events. To get that we need to study the Bible and ask Him to interpret it to us through the Holy Spirit. We need to be lovers of the Truth and actively pursue Truth. We need to test everything we are taught by man (including every word I write in my blogs), or read or hear, to see if it is truly of the Truth and measure it up against Scripture, for if we do not love the Truth, we may be caught up in the Lie. Yeshua himself spoke of a falling away in the end times, because 'they believed the lie':

Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you,  not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.  Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition,   who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things?  

 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time.   For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.   The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,  and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.   And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,   that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

    2 Thessalonians 2: 1- 12

THE BOY NEXT DOOR .....

Hamza Muhammed Hassan Matrouk
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4617622,00.html
 

... OR A BLOOD CRAZED MURDERER?

On Wednesday this week Hamza Muhammed Hassan Matrouk, aged 23,  woke early in his home in Tulkarem,  and decided that he would go into Tel Aviv, board a bus and kill as many Jews as he could. In the middle of the morning rush hour, when buses are packed with people going to work and children going to school, Hamza Matrouk boarded a number 40 bus on Begin Boulevard, close to the old bus station, and started stabbing its passengers with a knife. The first person he attacked was the bus driver, Herzl Biton, 55, who while trying to fight off the attacker, managed to open the bus doors to allow some of the passengers to escape. Biton sustained life-threatening stab wounds to his chest and 11 others were also stabbed by Matrouk, three critically (all those injured are in recovery).  CCTV  footage shows Matrouk running off down the street and stabbing a woman pedestrian as he passed. A group of prison guards who were travelling in a car near the scene of the attack pursued Matrouk and shot him in the leg before arresting him.

What motivates a young man, like Matrouk, to commit such a heinous act? He said it was because of Operation Protective Edge (Israel's 50 day war with Hamas in Gaza this past summer), the events on the Temple Mount and the promise of receiving 70 virgins in Paradise.  How tragic and sad is that?  Jesus said we should pray for our enemies. Pray for this young man, who will be spending many years in an Israeli prison, alongside other terrorists, who will continue to feed him lies and incite him to further violence. Pray that the Lord will somehow be able to reach him and show him a better way, a way of love, forgiveness, healing and hope.

The real villians behind these kinds of acts are not so much the young men and women like Matrouk, but those who feed them the lies. Israeli leaders were quick to lay the blame at the feet of those Palestinian leaders who condone and incite violence, and feed their people lies. Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu said that this terror attack was the " direct result of the Palestinian Authority's venomous incitement against the Jews and their state. The same terror tries to hurt us in Paris, Brussels and everywhere." He added " Hamas, Abbas's partners in unity government, hurried to welcome this act - the same Hamas that announced it will sue Israel in the ICC "(for supposed war crimes during the Gaza War).



Within minutes Palestinian cartoonists had posted cartoons celebrating the attack on the social media, Facebook and Twitter. The first, drawn by cartoonist Bahaa Yaseen, shows a smiling terrorist holding a bloody knife, a bus with blood pouring out of it,  and the number 10, which was the number of people believed to have been injured in the attack at the time. The second cartoon, also drawn by Yaseen, and posted by the Palestinian Shehab Agency, shows blood dripping off a smiling knife with the colors of the Palestinian flag on it, and lying on the ground behind, a blood covered Israeli flag. Both these cartoons have since been removed from Facebook and Twitter.
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Palestinian-cartoons-praise-Tel-Aviv-stabbing-attack-388440

Hamas, the Islamic militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, and forms the unity government with the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, did not claim responsibility for the attack, but praised it as 'brave and heroic'. What is so brave and heroic about attacking defenseless women and children? It is nothing but a cowardly and despicable act.

Not long ago the world watched in horror as Islamist militant 'lone-wolves' carried out terror attacks in Sydney and in Paris. This brought home to the inhabitants of those cities the reality of this new (to them) kind of terror, when anyone on the street can pull out a knife, a gun or activate a bomb and kill innocent people just going about their daily lives. This is the kind of terror that we here in Israel have been living with for years. As we set off for work, climb on a bus, drive down the road, go to a movie, we never know if the person next to us, who looks just like any other, might not be a terrorist about to kill us. The tragedy is this state of affairs has become 'normal' to us. It hardly raises an eyebrow these days.

Even more disturbing is the rise of a Jewish backlash. When any Arab could be a terrorist every Arab becomes a threat. Fear breeds violence. On Thursday, the day after the Tel Aviv attack, a group of about 10 Jewish young men, wearing kipas (skullcaps),  attacked a young Druse man, Tommy Hasson (21) in central Jerusalem, reportedly because they heard him speaking Arabic. Hasson was hospitalized for head wounds sustained in the attack, when the youths broke a bottle over him. What these Jewish louts did not know that only 3 months ago, Tommy Hasson, finished his national service in the Israeli Army where he served in a combat unit and later protecting the President's residence. Hasson had recently moved to Jerusalem to study music. President Rivlin, who knows Hasson from when he guarded his home,  called Hasson's father, Ramzi,  to express his support, and in the course of their conversation Ramzi had this to say, 

"On a personal level I believed up until now that this is one nation – I never saw a difference between a Jew and a Druze. I believed and I will continue to believe in the future that this is the land of the Jewish nation – it has a right to live here. There was never doubt about this. I blame myself (and) I blame my Jewish friends for not doing enough to educate. To speak Arabic is not shameful – it does not make you a potential terrorist" .

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4618430,00.html

TENSION IN THE NORTH

"Someone threw a match into a powder keg and is now waiting to see whether it will explode or not" 

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4616568,00.html

Last Sunday, in the Syrian Golan border region, a helicopter and two missiles attacked a convoy of Hezbollah and Iranian military personnel  transferring missiles from Iran to Hezbollah. In the attack, twelve were killed, including Jihad Mughniyeh, Hezbollah's commander of the Syrian Golan sector and the son of master terrorist Imad Mughniyeh, Imad Mughniyeh Mohammed Issa, the head of Hezbollah's operation in Syria and Iraq, along with five other Hezbollah fighters and six Iranian military personnel - including Iranian General Mohammed Ali Allah Dadi of Iran's Revolutionary Guard. 
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4617222,00.html
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Quneitra-Rashomon-388657

Jihad Mughniyeh meets with Ayatollah Khamenei
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4617222,00.html

Although the Israel has not admitted responsibility for the attack, the Arab world clearly blames Israel. The Fars News Agency reported that the commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said "These martyrdoms proved the need to stick with jihad. The Zionists must await ruinous thunderbolts" .
http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Report-Iranian-general-was-killed-in-Israeli-strike-because-he-didnt-turn-off-his-phone-388779
 
All of Israel is now waiting  to see what those 'ruinous thunderbolts' might be. Residents in the north are going about their business as normal but some farmers have been told to stay out of their fields along the border and some border roads have been closed. That Hezbollah, backed by Iran, has the capability of serving Israel with 'ruinous thunderbolts' is beyond doubt. They boast of having 500,000 missiles, including many long range missiles, capable of striking any target within Israel. Will they launch a massive attack at this time? This is open to debate. IDF analysts believe they will not, for they will want to save them for the day that Israel attacks the nuclear facilities in Iran. Whether they are right or not, only time will tell. It does seem likely however that they will carry out some sort of attack either on Israel itself, or on Israeli or Jewish targets abroad, in the near future. They will want some kind of revenge. Anticipating this the IDF has been moving military equipment and personnel, including Iron Dome anti-missile batteries into the northern border region.


THE ALMONDS IN BLOOM

Yesterday was a glorious, warm sunny day and I decided to take myself off to the coast and take a walk on the beach. On my way I was astounded to see that the almond trees in the hills around Jerusalem are already beginning to blossom. Almonds are the first of the trees to bloom and they begin to bloom even in the depths of winter, when all is still cold and dark, and periodic storms thrash the land. I see this as deeply symbolic.



An almond in blossom in the snow in Jerusalem, January 2014
 

Israel is under threat as never before. Our enemies surround us with bigger and better weapons than we have ever faced before, and the support of our friends seems to be waning. Internally the gap between the rich and poor is threatening to erupt into internal strife, and we are facing early elections and a time of political uncertainty and change. All seems very dark. But even in the depths of this 'winter' there are signs of spring approaching. Small signs but significant. One such is the greater freedom young Israel believers are feeling towards proclaiming their faith in Yeshua. For example a group of Israeli believers have published a Hebrew-language website, under the banner "We are Israel",  which is aimed at making the point that " a Jew who believes in Yeshua is a Jew, period.” You can see their video presentation on YouTube - in Hebrew with English subtitles:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?x-yt-cl=84503534&x-yt-ts=1421914688&v=Jz9rVpwVxXA#t=70.

One young Israeli believer, Shai Sol, is participating in a popular TV competition called " Kochav Haba", which means 'The Next Star". Prior to her initial audition Shai openly proclaimed her faith in Yeshua on National TV. This prompted Israel's leading media group, Keshet, to publish a weekend article in its online portal, Mako, in which it asked readers to take a closer look at Israel’s 15,000 Messianic Jews and to be more welcoming toward those who believe in Yeshua (Jesus). Significantly the article used Jesus' real name, Yeshua, rather than the acronym 'Yeshu' usually used in Israel which actually means ' may his name and memory be erased'. The fact that a mainstream news group ran such a positive article about Israel's Messianic Jews is a sign that Israeli society in general is becoming more open to our existence, and even openly curious about what we believe.

Shai Sol
http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/25724/Default.aspx

Another sign that a spiritual 'spring' may be drawing near is the recent initiative, called project 929 which aims to get all Israelis to read the Tenach (Old Testament). Project 929 (the number of chapters in the Tenach) was  initiated by Deputy Education Minister Avi Wortzman and Rabbi Benny Lau, the cousin of Chief Askenazi Rabbi, David Lau. A survey conducted prior to the launching of the project found that 93% of Israelis have a Bible in their home but very few ever read it. This initiative aims to create the largest Bible study community in the world by means of a cycle of daily Bible readings that will finish in three years and seven months, on the day of Israel's 70th Anniversary. In spite of the fact that some Israeli rabbis have recently come out against some of the interpretations of Scripture put forward, my hope is that many Israeli's will participate, read the Bible for themselves, and call upon God for His interpretation as quickened by the Holy Spirit.

President Reuvin Rivlin and his wife, Nechama, regularly host a Bible circle, as have done his predecessors. Rivlin is participating in Project 929 and  according to Ynetnews, he said that he was excited at the prospect http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4608007,00.html . We can pray that God will reveal himself in truth with power to Rivlin and all others who are participating in this project.

This project could well be a significant step towards national repentance. Perhaps the veil over the eyes of the Jewish people is beginning to lift. The New Testament teaches us that when a Jew turns to Yeshua the veil is removed. When Jews  begin to open their hearts to Yeshua, God will reveal the truth about his nature and identity.

But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.  But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.   Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.

2 Corinthians 3: 14 - 16

Today I read the following verses in Psalm 102:

Hear my prayer, O Lord,
And let my cry come to You.
² Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble;
Incline Your ear to me;
In the day that I call, answer me speedily...

 

My enemies reproach me all day long;
Those who deride me swear an oath against me...

 

But You, O Lord, shall endure forever,
And the remembrance of Your name to all generations.
¹³ You will arise and have mercy on Zion;
For the time to favor her,
Yes, the set time, has come.
¹⁴ For Your servants take pleasure in her stones,
And show favor to her dust.
¹⁵ So the nations shall fear the name of the Lord,
And all the kings of the earth Your glory.
¹⁶ For the Lord shall build up Zion;
He shall appear in His glory.
¹⁷ He shall regard the prayer of the destitute,
And shall not despise their prayer...

 

For He looked down from the height of His sanctuary;
From heaven the Lord viewed the earth,
²⁰ To hear the groaning of the prisoner,
To release those appointed to death,
²¹ To declare the name of the Lord in Zion,
And His praise in Jerusalem,
²² When the peoples are gathered together,
And the kingdoms, to serve the Lord

 

Let us, who are known by your name, o lord, take pleasure in the very stones and dust of zion, and call out fervently for her salvation.

 

 

 

 

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Messianic Jews

Israel’s leading media group, Keshet, has taken a keen interest in the nation’s Messianic Jewish community after one of its flagship television shows, the popular singing competition Kochav Haba (“The Next Star”), featured a Messianic Jewish contestant.
Keshet’s online news and entertainment portal, Mako, published a weekend story asking readers to take a closer look at Israel’s 15,000 Messianic Jews and to be more welcoming toward those who believe in Yeshua (Jesus).
The article opened by highlighting some of the hostile comments made after openly-Messianic songstress Shai Sol scored a spot in Kochav Haba’s second round following a mesmerizing audition performance.
The negative responses by some to Shai’s appearance were, as the article noted, characteristic of the typical mainstream attitude toward Messianic Jews. But the fact that Mako ran such a sympathetic piece is further evidence that much of Israeli society is not only increasingly tolerant of Messianic Jews, but is also growing more curious about what they believe, and why.
First, it should be noted that the Mako article used the name “Yeshua,” rather than the derogatory “Yeshu,” an acronym used by most Orthodox Jews meaning “may his name and memory be erased.”
Shai was asked by Mako to explain in greater depth what it means to be a Messianic Jew, a subject she briefly touched on in her Kochav Haba pre-audition interview.
“It is a stream of Judaism… We light Shabbat candles and worship God, read the Scriptures and learn the Bible,” replied Shai, noting that the one major difference with mainstream Judaism is that “we believe in both the Tanakh and the New Testament.”
Asked if that means Messianic Jews celebrate Christmas, Shai stated, “Absolutely not. We celebrate only the Jewish festivals. This is not Christianity, this is Messianic Judaism. After all, Yeshua was a Jew.”
The conversation inevitably turned toward “conversion” and “missionary activity.” The interviewer said that for her and many Jews, “when I hear ‘Messianic Jew’ I immediately think of Jehovah’s Witnesses.”
Shai said there was no connection. “The title ‘Messianic Jew’ always brings up negative connotations of Christians, of a cult, of missionaries. We are not missionaries walking around trying to compel people.”
The young singer explained that if someone like her interviewer was interested, “I would tell you about Yeshua and show you some [supporting] scriptures. I would invite you to a meeting at a [Messianic] congregation.”
Shai further clarified that Messianic faith is first and foremost “humanitarian” in nature, and that one cannot be compelled to accept Yeshua, who “after all [taught us] to spread love. He healed the sick and did many other social works.”
Shai said that many in the Messianic community had expressed support and satisfaction over the fact that a fellow believer had taken the national stage and in so doing had been boldly open about her faith.
“I have received a lot of messages from Messianic youth who are usually afraid to speak about [their faith],” said Shai. “They see in my ‘coming out’ an act of bravery, but I see it as natural.”
The interviewer noted that Shai has a great desire to be “a pioneer for the community, [part of] a Messianic vanguard that builds the bridge between Israeli society and Messianic Judaism.”
Shai will certainly have an opportunity to do that as she has started work on her first CD, and is scheduled to appear again soon on Kochav Haba, where critics rate her among the top contestants.


http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/25724/Default.aspx