ISRAEL-A HATED NATION

(Article was cut off in the 110323 Edition. Below is the full article.)

Two weeks ago, I wrote an article about a nation living in fear, yet without fear. If you read that article, it was about America living in fear of many things yet living with no fear of God. This week I would like to look at a nation that literally lives in fear every day. It is a fear that we in America do not face. About two weeks ago this fear was realized when a terrorist group known as Hamas crossed the border from Gaza into Israel and killed men, women, boys, and girls. It didn’t matter if they were old or young, they slaughtered them unmercifully. This has sparked protests around the world and brought out preachers galore speaking about the end times and how we may be at the very brink of eternity. I have watched video after video on prophecies concerning Israel and the end times. While all these videos are interesting to watch, the main focus of the invasion and all the protests is about who has the right to the land in dispute. I am not an expert on that region of the world, but I know that it all boils down to two points of view.

One view is that the land belongs to the Palestinians and Israel is illegally occupying the land. This started when Britian designated land for the state of Israel in 1948 at the bequest of the United Nations, as I understand it. Muslims adhere to this view and thanks to liberal teaching in our universities thousands of college students believe it also. That is view one in a nutshell. The second view depends on your view of the bible. If you believe the bible is truthful you understand that God gave this land to Israel when He promised the land to Abraham in the book of Genesis. I would like to look at this view a little deeper hopefully to convince you that it is the right view.

When God told Moses to lead Israel to a land of milk and honey, he gave them the names of the people in that land and Israel was to drive them out. Exodus 3:7-8 (NKJV) And the LORD said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites.” If you notice, there is not a mention of Palestinians being in the land. The closest people to a Palestinian would be the Philistines living in the area of Gaza described as Philistia, Exodus 23:27-31 (NKJV) “I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you. I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field become too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land. And I will set your bounds from the Red Sea to the sea, Philistia, and from the desert to the River. For I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you.” Now the Philistines were not native to this area. According to a video provided by Inspiring Histories the Philistines came to the Gaza region in three waves. One was by sea from it is believed to be Crete or beyond. Another wave came by land from Caphtor. Amos 9:7 (NKJV) “Are you not like the people of Ethiopia to Me, O children of Israel?” says the LORD. “Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt, The Philistines from Caphtor, And the Syrians from Kir?” If you notice God said that He brought them to this land from where they were. They did not come on their own whim. This video said that the Philistines originated in the land of Casluhim and I have no idea where that is. If what I read or watched in a video is correct the use of the name Philistia had ceased to exist before the time of Rome. The area was named Israel after Rome expelled the Jews and during the time of the Ottoman empire there was no Palestine. Britian revived the name when Israel was granted land for their nation. The other nations mentioned in the land promised to Israel can be traced back to Abraham. If you get to the core of the matter this whole dispute is a family affair that goes back to Isaac and Ishmael, the first two sons of Abraham. Isaac was the promised son from God and Ismael was Abraham and Sarah’s attempt to do God’s work for Him. Isaac was the father of Jacob and he was the father of the twelve tribes of Israel that we know as the Jews. Ishmael was the son of Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid and here is what God told her about her son. Genesis 16:11-12 (NKJV) “And the Angel of the LORD said to her: “Behold, you are with child, And you shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael because the LORD has heard your affliction. He shall be a wild man; His hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him. And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.” Arabs can be traced back to Ismael and Muslim Arabs proudly trace their roots back to Him. This prophecy has surely been fulfilled.

As soon as Israel was given land for their nation the Arab world declared war on them. One example of this is the 6-day war of 1967. Another example is the Yon Kippur war of 1973. Arab nations attacked Israel and Israel credits God with the victory. They only had three tanks and the invaders had hundreds of tanks. As they advanced on Israel it seemed defeat was unavoidable. Suddenly Angelic beings appeared in the clouds and the Arab tanks stopped and then retreated. Later, one of the Arab commanders confirmed the angelic appearance in the clouds. Whether these were actual angels or just cloud formations does not matter. It stopped the advance of the enemy tanks. There are other stories I found but time doesn’t allow. According to a Ben Shapiro video I watched, due to pressure from outside sources, there has been five times Israel has agreed to give up land for peace and immediately been attacked and had to defend itself. Now, full disclosure Shapiro is Jewish and a staunch defender of Israel. But there is one fact that cannot be disputed. Since 1948 Israel has never attacked or declared war on any Arab nation to gain more land or drive them from their land. They have only responded when attacked. God chose Israel to be His chosen people, Ezekiel 20:5 (NKJV) “Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “On the day when I chose Israel and raised My hand in an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob, and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt, I raised My hand in an oath to them, saying, ‘I am the LORD your God.’”

Regardless of what anyone thinks God will not allow Israel to be completely erased from existence and He will deliver them from all her enemies in the end.

How you look at this terrible war is decided by your opinion of God and the Bible. The Bible presents one view and the secular world presents the other view. Israel had to make a big decision thousands of years ago and it is the same decision people must make today. Joshua 24:14-15 (NKJV) “Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” I believe God and every word He has given us in His word, the Bible and if God is on Israel’s side, I will take the side of Israel. I love to be on the winning team, CAN I GET AN AMEN!!!