Letters Letter From the Editor Letter From the Editor Welcome to the May issue of MORNING STAR. The Lord continues to bless this magazine as it crosses the globe by way of electronic bulletin boards. Our most recent letter to the editor came from a neighbor in Ontario Canada. MORNING STAR has reached at least sixteen countries to date, possible more by the time you finish reading this issue! Speaking of this issue, we hope you enjoy reading it. The theme this month is Israel. With all the (distorted) negative media publicity that country gets, the stories in this magazine should prove a breath of fresh air. This May marks the 44th anniversary of the current nation of Israel and we will be sending copies of this magazine to friends currently living in the Jewish state. We continue to receive good reports from all across America that articles from this magazine are being used in evangelizing, teaching and preaching. Praise God for that! MORNING STAR, in its entirety, may be copied and distributed freely by anyone. There is no need to write us for permission. However, copyrighted articles which we were given the right to reprint in MORNING STAR, may not be reprinted and distributed by themselves. All such articles are so noted. As I've mentioned in the past, the entire staff of this magazine works on a volunteer basis and all hold down full time jobs. We don't ask for monetary contributions, but if any of you were wondering if you can help out in some way ... the answer is a mighty YES! Although we do reprint articles from other Christian publications, our goal is to provide as much original material as possible in each issue of MORNING STAR. Unfortunately, our staff is small and our editors do all too much writing, researching, interviewing, proofreading etc., which is causing us to fall behind a little bit each month. (This issue was released almost two weeks after the original deadline.) 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In service to Jesus the Messiah, Toby Trudel MORNING STAR accepts literary contributions from believers wherever they may live. It is our policy to publish testimonies as they are originally submitted with minimal alteration of the text. Opinions stated in these testimonies do not necessarily reflect those of the MORNING STAR staff. The content of MORNING STAR does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of any computer network. Your Letters Your Letters "I was delighted to download from Canada Remote Systems in Mississauga, your online Christian magazine ... These magazines are jam-packed with terrific information and helps for growing Christians and I just love them ..." Jeannine Robinson Mississauga, Ontario, Canada "I thought the magazine Morning Star was great. I didn't know that such a thing could be done. It is wonderful that the gospel can be proclaimed by way of a computer. Keep up the good work!" Bill Simon Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania "I like Morning Star very much and gave it favorable mention in 'Christian News', an independent Lutheran newspaper I free lance write for." David M. Becker Reston, Virginia "... thanks a million for uploading the latest stack of Morning Star to the Religion & Ethics library. I hope more people start looking at it because it's a nicely-done and interesting publication." Chet Day Los Angeles, California "I really appreciate Morningstar Magazine. What great possibilities you have for communicating the gospel. I just finished reading the DEC 1991 issue, with the personal testimonies of those who have been redeemed from homosexuality ..." Mike McNary Atlanta, Georgia Commentary Commentary Our Commentary column this month was written by Zola Levitt and is from the March 1992 LEVITT LETTER. We thank Zola Levitt Ministries for granting us permission to reprint this article. ------------------------------------------------------------------ THANK GOD FOR THOSE 44 YEARS! By Zola Levitt "About three years ago during a visit to Israel, I was contacted by Yehuda Levi, the President and Publisher of the Jerusalem Post, Israel's widely respected English-language newspaper. I was asked to write an article appropriate to the National Religious Broadcasters Convention held each January in Washington, D.C. I was honored, of course. I wrote this piece, which turned out to be a history - spiritual and political - of Israel since the first century. Under the present difficult political circumstances we thought it would be appropriate to repeat these thoughts and we are glad to share them with you now." There was probably a kind of "National Religious Broadcaster's Convention" back in A.D. 67 when the Romans besieged Jerusalem in one of those seemingly endless Holy Land holy wars. The organization was probably called something more like the "The Empire-Wide Spiritual News Broadcasters' Association," and the location was probably on a comfortable Greek island. The "broadcasting" was largely in writing and largely by ship and by runner, but the job was the same in principle: cover the religious world of the day in light of Scripture, history, various sectarian points of view, etc.. And interestingly, the major news issue of the day was probably very similar to one of our major issues: Do the Jews really own all of Israel, or should the country be partitioned, or should they clear out altogether? The same factions were divided over the matter in the same ways as they are today. The biblical group practicing the brand new Judeo-Christian ethic must have argued, "God gave the land to Abraham and his seed forever. He said the covenant was 'everlasting'" (Gen. 12:3). A secular contingent who did not view the Scriptures with favor probably pointed out that "the Jews haven't been in control in Israel for centuries. Let the Romans administrate the place. They can let everybody come and go as they please. Jerusalem will be an 'international city.'" And then there were probably myriad non-biblical religious sects saying everything from, "My ancestors were here since the time of Ishtar and Moloch," to, "The Jews took my grandfather's farm." Naturally the fate of Israel wasn't up to the members of the media, but, then as now, their views were influential. Some probably tried to "broadcast" evenhandedly, as some do today, and some probably broadcast partisan views and propaganda, as some do today. In any case, with hindsight we can see the results of what happened with Israel at that critical time and for the following nineteen centuries. The Roman siege came to a bloody ending at Jerusalem, the rest of Israel and Masada, and the empire administrated the Holy Land with an iron fist. If people could come and go freely, they surely weren't Jews, whose members were thinned with Holocaust-like precision. By the time the lunatic emperor Hadrian consummated his personal final solution to the Jewish problem, the Israeli nation virtually went out of existence. Israel was Palestine, Jerusalem was Aelia Capitalina, and the Jewish people, with Roman blessing, became a pesky footnote in history. A small number persisted with their Yom Kippur wailing at their indestructible Western Wall, but God's covenant with His friend Abraham was effectively null and void. The land itself didn't do very well under Roman rule. It declined and fell with the decline and fall of Rome until a newly minted religion took it over entirely. The Moslems with their long swords and short supply line came to stay. They resanctified Jerusalem in the 7th century, making it significant in the career of Mohammed, who, they claimed, traced his lineage back to father Abraham. This strange rereading of the ancient patent prevails today. Thus the world had a long look at one of the three original alternatives for the fate of the Holy Land - giving it to the secular forces of Rome. Broadcasters who originally held to that view would have wanted to change their position with hindsight. The place never prospered because its original owners, the children of Israel, had been run off. No one else treated it with much love. The ensuing centuries of Moslem rule were a story of almost nonstop bloodshed. The Arab tradition of settling disputes with the teeth rather than the tongue dominated Middle Eastern affairs. The land was contested constantly, and as a result, it suffered. Relatively brief appearances of the self-styled Christian armies of Europe brought no improvement. Lessons in love from the Crusaders were lost on those they massacred. When the Turks rode in, reforestation received a new meaning. These crude conquerors replaced the precious trees of the Holy Land with saltwater swamps. In the absence of its true owners, Israel was desecrated. Not until the arson of today's intifada was the Holy Land so purposefully reduced in beauty, value and comfort. God's country became barren and very nearly uninhabitable. Israel in pagan religious hands proved no better than Israel in Roman hands. This solution was not workable either. The rest of the sad story of Israel under occupying regimes is within modern recollection. The armies of two world wars used the Promised Land as a battlefield when convenient. The British made every possible effort to keep the true owners out, valiantly postponing the moment of recovery that would finally ensue when Abraham's rightful descendants returned. But finally, in spite of the Romans, the Moslems, the Crusaders, the Turks and the British, the children of Israel did return, in an amazing fulfillment of voluminous biblical prophecy. And at last the land at they loved received a little overdue care. The real solution to the dilemma of who ought to have Israel was finally obvious. The land truly received some healing when the Jewish people took it back in 1948. Trees were planted by the hundreds of millions. Swamps were drained, and one of mankind's deadliest foes, malaria, was eliminated from Israel. Irrigation was utilized wholesale to reclaim fertile territories from the wilderness, and soon the most magnificent visions of the prophets could be seen in the Promised Land; truly, "the desert blossomed as a rose." The local populations prospered. Arabs who had lived in the land for centuries suddenly had the modern world delivered to their doorsteps or, in some case, to their tents. Water became plentiful and clean; doctors appeared within reach of every village, inoculating children and treating their parents. Schools were constructed throughout the land. Life spans increased dramatically. The Jews, wanderers for almost two millennia, brought the 20th century back with them to their land. Thus the world has seen some 600 years of Roman rule, about 1300 years of on-and-off Moslem rule and 44 years of Jewish rule in the land of Israel. Thank God for those last 44 years! Nobody loves a land like its rightful owner. If we are the new generation of religious broadcasters and if we again have the talc of opinionating about the land of Israel, the let us learn from history. The secular forces who have controlled this ancient land merely exploited it. The alien religious forces abused the land and failed to keep up with the times. Only the chosen people of the Bible, to whom the land was given scripturally, have really cared for it. Biblically, a great new kingdom is coming, and it will be headquartered in Israel. After millennia of strife, the land really does need this 1000 years of peace. If our religious-broadcasting brethren of the first century were divided over who should control this important land, we should not be. As Israel is prepared for its greatest role, the earthly home of the Kingdom of Peace, let us give it to those whom God gave it at the beginning. The children of Abraham will care for His land. And as the Psalmist admonished: "Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem. They shall prosper who love thee!" (Ps.122:6). Staff List Morning Star Staff List Morning Star Staff : MORNING STAR STAFF LIST EDITOR IN CHIEF Toby Trudel - Nashua, NH SENIOR EDITOR - Biblical Department Geoffrey Kragen - Roseville, CA SENIOR EDITOR - Christian Life Department Teresa Giordanengo - Canonsburg, PA SENIOR LITERARY EDITOR Al Murillo III - El Paso, TX ASSOCIATE EDITORS Jerry Johnson - Modesto, CA Clark Stephens - Huntington Beach, CA Dale Strand - Dublin, CA J.C. Trudel - Naples Park, FL Mike Wilkinson - Citrus Heights, CA Dr. Charles Wootten - Matoaca, VA SENIOR PUBLISHER - DOS and WINDOWS Editions Steve Paulovich - Derry, NH NETWORK DISTRIBUTION AMERICA ONLINE Network: Jerry White - Germantown, MD COMPUSERVE Network: Kay Hall - Cocoa Beach, FL GENIE Network: Mike Wilkinson - Citrus Heights, CA DELPHI Network: Derrick Shipman - Greenville, SC DIRECTOR OF BBS DISTRIBUTION - USA Walter H. Bauer Jr. - Sugar Land, TX MSDOOR PROGRAM DISTRIBUTION Alan Graff - Wheelersburg, Ohio INTERNATIONAL DISTRIBUTION Sharon Sanders - Jerusalem, Israel Lars Storstrand - Minde, Norway Peter Cunliffe - Noisiel, France Roger J. Obe - Iloilo City, Philippines Scott Walters - Punchbowl, NSW, Australia David Faris - Yaounde, Cameroun OFFICE SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN Patrick Auriemma - Nashua, N.H. Features Thoughts After Visiting Israel (Part 1) Thoughts After Visiting Israel (Part 1) by Dr. M. Stan Sholar THOUGHTS AFTER VISITING ISRAEL AND THE HOLY LAND By Dr. M. Stan Sholar Huntington Beach, CA Flight to Tel Aviv In flying to Tel Aviv I took Delta Airlines to Munich and transferred to Israel's El Al Airlines. The check-in at Munich was my first experience with the detailed security procedures exercised by the Israelis. We left the main terminal in Munich and proceeded to a gate that was the entrance into the El Al terminal. There were several guards with machine guns drawn. The first step in the process was for each passenger to be interrogated individually for 15 to 30 minutes. The Israelis doing this were well schooled in these procedures. Of particular concern to them was the fact that I was going to Tel Aviv from Los Angeles, California, via Munich. The reason I did was that I joined up with some friends in Atlanta. Otherwise I could have taken El Al from Los Angeles to Tel Aviv via Boston or New York. Munich must be a particularly troublesome entry point. I was asked repeatedly if I had spent the night in Munich even though my tickets contradicted this. There were a lot of questions regarding my baggage concerning the possibility that someone else could have planted a bomb in them. After passing through this stage of investigation I proceeded to another room where my bags were thoroughly searched, even after all of the interrogation. This included taking a picture of the wall with my camera. Then came a rather complete physical search. After passing through all this into the waiting room, I felt very comfortable and secure in the knowledge that all of the fellow passengers had undergone the same process. Now I know a little better why many say that El Al is the safest of airlines in the middle east. El Al is run well with excellent service. The only Israeli newspaper that I read on board was in German and described the 2 feet of snowfall in Jerusalem the previous day. It was the worst snowstorm there in 40 years, leaving roads closed, trees down, schools closed, and power outages. The airplane food was good. This was my first introduction to Houmous, a popular Israeli snack that is a tasty dip made of Garbanzo beans and spices eaten with Pita bread. The flight took us to the north of Yugoslavia to avoid the ongoing conflicts. This provided a marvelous opportunity to view the snow capped Austrian Alps, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania. Then out into the sea, the islands of Greece and the south coast of Turkey were outstanding in the afternoon sun. The Mediterranean was beautiful in its placid blue appearance. We passed directly over Crete and headed for the east shore and Israel. The plane begins descending well out over the sea in preparation for landing at Ben Gurion airport. There is a magnificent view of Tel Aviv as you pass over the tall hotels near the shore, the rest of the city, and on to Ben Gurion, 10 kilometers east. There was evidence of flooding of agricultural lands from the recent storms that produced much rainfall in the milder climate of the coast. Landing at Ben Gurion provides a view of a substantial number of military planes, some new and some quite old. There were even DC-3s in camouflage paint, at least 50 years old. The flights do not maintain a rigid schedule, perhaps for security reasons. Also they do not park at the terminal but on the apron in a remote area, where buses carry passengers to the terminal. Security and passport control were straightforward. We changed some money into the New Israeli Shekel (NIS), about 2.3 per US$ and hailed a cab for the Dan Panorama Hotel in downtown Tel Aviv. Israeli drivers are world class when it comes to aggressiveness. They could hold their own in Boston, at the Arch of Triumph, in Rome, or anywhere. The trick in not being left behind is to avoid eye contact. Once you have made eye contact you are stopped dead in the water, never to find a person to let you back into the flow of traffic. But put your head down and step on the gas, and miraculously you are not struck. The Dan Panorama Hotel is on the southern part of the coast, just north of the ancient town of Jaffa. There is a chain of Dan hotels, I suppose named for the nearby area where the tribe of Dan lived. It is a very modern hotel with lots of amenities for the business traveler. All I needed was a bed, however, as I had left Los Angeles one morning and arrived in Tel Aviv the next evening with little sleep. Trip to Jerusalem The next day was the Sabbath or Shabbat. The Israeli workweek begins on Sunday and continues through Friday up until the beginning of Shabbat near sundown. The plan was to take a van and visit Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The driver reported that the road to Jerusalem was closed with snow and accidents. However, our tour guide exhibited a bit of Israeli philosophy that I came to recognize consistently during the visit. It was simply that the trouble on the road was only alleged to be a problem. One has to drive up to see if this is so. The guide advised us to venture on and if it were indeed true, we would simply return. Only if we see the closed road with our own eyes can we know that it is truly the case. Another theme was that things change quickly and that the blockage could be cleared up by the time we arrived at Jerusalem. This turned out to be the case. We drove the 38 miles to Jerusalem, through the Jerusalem corridor, over roads of melting snow, in about one hour. A more circuitous route was required before the six day war in 1967. Some of the rusting tanks from the earlier war of independence have been left along the wayside as monuments to the capturing of this strategic artery from the Arabs. Now the surrounding territory with Judea to the south and Samaria to the north is known variously as the occupied territory, Palestine, or the west bank. The main highway is modern and easy to drive up the climb to Jerusalem. In ancient times we would have been leaving the plains of the Philistines and moving into the foothills that were the stronghold of the Israelites. I must have been very close to Samson's home and the battleground of David and Goliath. There were orange groves on both sides whose trees were loaded with the famous Jaffa oranges. We passed the Ben Gurion airport. Climbing the hills leads to the strategically important crossroads and valleys of many wars. This area relates to the Maccabees, which I learned is pronounced with the accent on the second, not the first, syllable. Also warring there were the Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, and the British in World War I. The Jordanians were driven out in the War of Independence. I was taken in by the very idea of travelling through the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. He didn't have much land for his tribe was small. This conjured up remembrances of Sunday School flannel board lessons. I couldn't believe I was seeing the real thing. As soon as I had about as much awe as I could handle, some new site would be pointed out such as Emmaus. This is the place where Jesus was first seen after the Resurrection. There are ruins here of Byzantine and Crusader churches. As we neared the crest I could see through the Cyprus trees along the road a hint of a beautiful white city sprawling over several hills. It soon appeared in all of its glory, the capital of civilization, the capital of the modern State of Israel, and the site of the coalescence of three religions. There are many common denominators here like Abraham and Solomon, but history has seen the divergence into the Christian, Jewish, and Moslem paths, all with roots in this one place. Of course most Jews do not recognize the Messiah of Christianity, and the Moslem's most sacred place is Mecca. But the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem is the second most sacred place for the Arabs. It is advisable to make a thorough review of the history of Jerusalem before touring its many interwoven paths. I was glad to have spent some time doing this before the trip, but it was not nearly enough. I now have a reading list as long as my arm for preparation for the next trip, the Bible being number one. We circled the Old City, with separate Arab and Jewish sectors, readily noted the encircling 16th century Turkish wall, and headed past Mount Scopus for the Mount of Olives. This must be a favorite first stop for tourists because of the commanding view of the Old City to the west and the Jordan River to the east. Jerusalem, being about 5000 years old, has been layered by a long succession of wars that leveled parts of the city, each being rebuilt on top of the rubble of the previous destruction. Many of the interesting sites are 20 to 40 meters below the current ground level. There is much excavation in the areas of the Temple, and the sites of the Crucifixion and Resurrection. Still there is so much labor involved with archeology; there will be places to explore for many generations to come. Driving to and standing on the Mount of Olives produced a surge of mixed emotions. First, it is a small place that was reached by a very narrow and ordinary road, not a grand and glorious boulevard. Being a tourist spot and in the Arab side of town, there were many Arab souvenir vendors aggressively hawking postcards, carvings and camel rides. There were some physical scufflings and our guide had to get firm with some of them. This was a daunting distraction to me while trying to soak in the profound significance of the locale. For example, not far up the hill behind me was the Church of the Ascension, perhaps on the spot where Jesus ascended into Heaven. As I looked out over the city, it occurred to me that this is the spot where Jewish tradition believes that the Messiah will come and call the living and the dead. Immediately below the Mount of Olives as you look toward the city are a large number of graves that Jews have chosen, so as to be among the first resurrected. Just beyond that is the Kidron Valley and the Garden of Gethsemane and beyond that the near wall of the Old City. It is an exercise to study the changing map of the Old City throughout time. The Temple to the Lord was built by Solomon the Wise around 1000 B.C. and was there for Isaiah and Jeremiah. In 587 B.C. it was razed by the Babylonians. It was rebuilt 50 years afterward and later expanded and used by Herod at the time of Christ. It was destroyed again, along with the entire city, in 70 A.D. as Jesus had told. The city fell into Muslim hands for the Middle Ages and was devoid of its past glory until captured by Allenby in 1917. What an enigma that the city whose very name means City of Peace and the home of the Prince of Peace has had to endure over 30 conquests. One of the current sources of threat to continued peace can be seen from the Mount of Olives. All one has to do is look away from the city and view the Jordan Valley to the east as it descends to the Jordan River, with Jordan being on the opposite side. The term "west bank" that is used to describe the occupied territory refers to the land to the west of the Jordan River but east of the narrow strip of Israel as it existed before the 6 days war. There is a collection of kibutzes (kibutzim in Hebrew) along the fertile banks of the Jordan from the Sea of Galilee down to the Dead Sea. I was able to see into Jordan from atop the mount and also see the Dead Sea. The Sea of Galilee is to the north. That is the mother country of many of the Arabs, born in Palestine, whose birthplace is now disconnected from Jordan. The proliferation of kibutzim is a major issue amongst participants in the current peace talks. The fertile lands of the west bank have been farmed by the Arabs for many years. The Jews only occupy lands that were government, not private. These lands are not very desirable because they are mostly stoney desert with little or no irrigation. Nevertheless, what has evolved is a total geographical intertwining of these two incompatible cultures. The Jews appear willing to continue a coexistence. The Arabs want total control of their homeland restored to them. I don't believe that the U.S. will be able to resolve this standoff. The Bible has a lot to say about this unfolding of history. We descended to the Jaffa gate, one of 8 city gates, and came first upon the western or wailing wall. Being Shabbat, there were many Jews praying. I quickly took a picture only to find out that it was forbidden to photograph the wailing wall on Shabbat. It took some doing to keep my film. The western wall is the closest that Jews can come to the site of the Temple without entering and being in danger of walking on holy ground. Therefore, they are not praying to the wall but through it to the suspected site of the Second Temple. The wall is part of the large box like structure of retaining walls that Herod had built around Mount Moriah in the expansion project of the Second Temple, built much earlier around 500 B.C. by the Jews returning from exile. The stones in this wall built by Herod the Great go back to the year 1 B.C. Entering through the Jaffa gate we proceeded past a small Mosque and came upon the Dome of the Rock. Leaving the Temple area we proceeded to the series of pathways and streets known as the Way of the Cross, and also Via Dolorosa. This is the path that Jesus followed when he carried his cross from the location of the trial to the place where he was crucified and buried, Calvary or Golgotha. Some segments are narrow and wind through dense collections of Arab bazaar type shops on both sides. There were many interesting food items. Also much in the way of souvenirs of religious motifs, including the absurd plaques inscribed "Shalom, Y'all." It was difficult for me to concentrate on the spiritual significances for having to avoid the peddlers, keep hands on wallet, keep head down to maintain footing on the snowy cobblestones, and keep up with the group. This walk culminates at the Holy Sepulcher. Opposite the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is a stone slab, the Stone of Unction, where, the Body of Jesus was cleansed and prepared for burial. There is a site nearby that is recognized by some Christians as the tomb because it fits the descriptions as we know them. This is known as the Garden Tomb and is in the Jewish Quarter. Bethlehem Bethlehem is the birthplace of Jesus. I had not realized that it was just 4 miles south of Jerusalem. We got on the road to Hebron and had a view of the plains in Jordan to the left. I could not help but remember from Luke, "And there were in the same fields, shepherds keeping watch over their flocks by night." These were those fields, and in this sky were the star and the angel. However, Bethlehem, being in the occupied territory, is strongly Arab inhabited. This is their home and the meaning of their birthplace to Christians is perhaps mostly appreciated by non-Christian Arabs only in terms of the tourism that it brings. Manger square is the site of the Church of the Nativity. I wanted to see something entirely different from what I saw. I wanted to see love and adoration, but I saw hatred and commercialism. There was the Church of the Nativity, familiar from Christmas Eve broadcasts around the world. And in the lower level, a series of shrines from different denominations commemorating the birth site and manger. Watching Christmas Eve services from this Church on TV will not be the same. Tel Aviv Tel Aviv is certainly a modern city with high rises, hotel and shopping districts, museums, theaters, concert halls and tourism. As in many U.S. cities, there is overcrowding, traffic and parking problems, multi-cultural interweaving, and an apparent total lack of planning. The Jews left Jaffa in 1909 and began their city of Tel Aviv. Actually, Jaffa (or Yafo) is a part of Tel Aviv whose official name is Tel Aviv-Yafo. The Dan Panorama Hotel is conveniently located at the seashore between Tel Aviv and Jaffa. I took some late night and morning walks near the hotel. I understand that this is much safer than in many large U.S. cities. One eventful night was spent going to a Yemenite restaurant downtown which was like another world. I tried Yemenite bean soup which seemed to be made from what we would call Great Northern beans, and flavored with chili powder. Very acceptable to anyone with western U.S. tastes. I saw pita bread being made in the window to this restaurant facing the street. I always wondered how there was such a nice clean cut throughout the middle of the round, separating it into two crusts, with no apparent external intervention. The secret I saw before my eyes when the large rounds of dough on the griddle puffed up into big pillow cushion looking affairs. At this point they are swept off of the griddle and quickly collapse into the configuration with which I am accustomed. We had various types of vegetables and yogurt dips for the pita. Also several types of kabobs that were all excellent. A day at the hotel began with the traditional Israeli breakfast, included with the room. This was a large buffet affair that would take a long time to describe completely. For someone who seldom eats breakfast, I made a pretty good effort. The coffee and croissants were excellent. But then there were large platters of fruits, cheeses, fish of many types, and olives and more olives. There were many complex dishes with cream or yogurt bases but embellished with different vegetables or flavorings. They all appeared very similar in the bowls so I had to make a comprehensive study of the entire array one morning. There were none of them that I could describe being short of excellent. However, one of our party was a good old boy from the farm who was about to starve for home cooking after the second day. There was not an opportunity to get an Alabama type breakfast. Some of the outstanding fruits were the persimmons that, unlike the wild ones in the south that can turn your mouth inside out, were very crisp and crunchy, yet sweet. I have seen these on occasion in the States and in Japan. They had a type of grapefruit that was similar to our Texas Ruby Reds, only better. There were magnificent oranges plus exotic fruits like kiwis and kumquats. I only tried the hotel fare at dinner one night. It was fair but expensive, not unlike so many hotels. There were gift shops, hairdresser, bars and lounges, and dramatic little corners where you could get a snack or drink. There was a large and somewhat sophisticated lounge that featured a different pianist every night. On our last night, and with some coaxing from companions, I was allowed to replace the house pianist for the last set. He was an interesting Argentinian who taught me some new tango pieces on the piano. Before he left we entertained each other by playing some impromptu duets that went well. As we settled down for the evening into all sorts of requests, one in the group asked for the hymn entitled "The Old Rugged Cross." I did not know what kind of a reaction this would get in a Tel Aviv hotel but I did it. There was a certain feeling of adventure as I played the familiar hymn to what must have been a rather cosmopolitan audience including many Jews. Maybe they didn't know what I was playing but at any rate I was neither stoned nor booed. Thoughts After Visiting Israel (Part 2) Thoughts After Visiting Israel (Part 2) by Dr. M. Stan Sholar Old Jaffa Because we were so close to Jaffa, I was able to go there for dinner one evening and also for a quick tour of the port and archaeological sites shortly before leaving for the airport. This is definitely a must for the return trip. The Bible describes this as the site from which Jonah set sail. In the restored area there is a large excavation where you can see remnants from many different centuries. Egyptian walls and gates from the 13th century B.C. A Jewish city built in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, and traces from the days of the Roman occupation. Old Jaffa is somewhat touristy. The Israelis have done a good job of cleaning up this part of the city, recovering it from a period of infestation by drug dealers and other bad elements. However, in other parts of Jaffa, things are not so shiny and new looking. There is a flea market and lots of opportunities to discover antiques. One of the results of the heavy migration of Soviet Jews is the appearance in these markets of many family heirlooms taken by these families as they fled Russia. This includes hard to get items from Russia such as Samovars and Icons. We went to the port, the oldest seaport in the world, one night for dinner. As expected, most of the restaurants in the port feature seafood. We had our pick of several and selected one that was not too crowded but looked interesting. We tried a seafood stew that must have been somewhat like an Israeli Bouillabaisse. This was excellent with plenty of fish and crustaceans from the Mediterranean. For entree, I had to try the infamous St. Peter's fish, indigenous to the Sea of Galilee. This was served whole, unfileted, and deep fried. For a rather large fish, there was very little meat on the bones. It looked nice until you peeled the skin back and came immediately to the bones. Had to have the experience but now I know. The coffee was also worth noting. I am used to people with steadfast idiosyncrasies when it comes to their coffee habits. My Dad would only drink instant, I never touch instant, and it would take paragraphs to describe my sister's ritual. However, in this setting there was an urn of hot water and a cannister of the darkest, most pungent coffee you could imagine. This was Turkish coffee. You spread it out over a cup of hot water and hope that most of the grounds sink to the bottom by the time you just have to have some kind of coffee. Then as you near the bottom there is the challenge of how much of this sludge you dare try before tossing the rest. I resisted at first, became desperate, suffered through early sips, became resigned, and now that I think of it a cup would go pretty well right now. By far the best meal of the trip was an elaborate feast of many courses and impeccable service. Particularly notable was the appetizer of very large shrimp. Now shrimp is not Kosher and I did not see very much cheating going on so there has to be an explanation. Well these are known as Jewish Shrimp and are made in the style advanced by the Japanese where fish is grated and compressed and colored into imitations of crab legs, shrimp or even lobster. This is not viewed in Japan as a cheap imitation but acceptable in its own right. I believe the Israelis look at this the same way. At any rate these looked every bit like very large prawns and were prepared in a nice Italian scampi style. There is no scarcity of olive oil in Israel and recent findings tend to put that into the 'good fat' category. Summary Every Christian should see the Holy Land. Some preparation would alleviate shock and calibrate expectations. The Israelis are a remarkable people, living with unsolvable problems. In spite of this they have devotion, love of life, dedication to their State, and a frank openness about almost any subject. I look forward to going back after much study. I am uncomfortable with the Arab intifada, dedicated to violence in attempting to force the return of their homeland. I am sad, happy and excited to see the unfolding of history in consonance with prophesy. A Trip to Israel A Trip to Israel by R. Wayne Fritzsche A TRIP TO ISRAEL... Lessons in a different way of Life. By R. Wayne Fritzsche Bernardsville, New Jersey The first thing you notice when you get to Israel is that the atmosphere, albeit on the surface, is more relaxed than you had imagined. My thoughts were that people would have a very high anxiety/tension level. I didn't see that in the general populace, moreover, I didn't see it in the business community. I work in medical consulting, and venture capital. My clients and companies I invest in are all medically oriented. One of the things that Israelis do well is medicine. You might guess that since there are many Jewish doctors there, and lots of "investors" along the way. However, the traditional stereotype we North Easterners have of the indigenous Jew, is quite different from the reality of an Israeli. We normally think of the Jew in New York, where they are not typically a scientist, but rather entrepreneurs and businessmen. That is not the case in Israel. I'm not certain if it is because of the compulsory military training and service or if they just have a more pragmatic view of life. The Israeli is nothing if he is not the consummate "survivor". He has little time for sophisticated and relatively irrelevant games that we on Wall Street love so dearly. His key interest is getting a product on the market (and defending his homeland). One of the interesting things you will note in the Israeli, is that they almost always talk about their "unit", i.e. in the service. I speak with doctors and accountants, and scientists, and the thing about their service activities crosses all boundaries. It is a unifying force in the country. It is not something the women talk of much, but rather something the men are "in tune" with daily. The assignment I was on took me into the Negev; the desert. I was in Beer Sheva, which is right near the desert. I had to have military clearance for the visit (one of about 10 I would make to Israel), since I was working in the area of high energy physics, namely, medical lasers. The Israelis pioneered this work. They were and are creative scientifically. They developed new "wave guides" for specific delivery systems and different lasers that had important and new medical applications. The ironic thing is that they had no concept on how to market their lasers in the United States. I came to Israel with a very German name. In fact, my sir name was the same as Hans Fritzsche. He was the fellow who would make nightly broadcasts over German radio on the status of the war (the big one that is, World War II ... in the parlance of Archie Bunker) and the Jews. He was tried at Neurenburg and acquitted. He reported to Geobells so he had a high ranking position. Nonetheless, no one said anything to me about it, and they knew my name before they asked me over. I spent time with these lovely people at their homes. I flew into Tel Aviv, and then went to Jerusalem. I stayed at the King David Hotel. I have made other trips to other parts of the country, but this part, Jerusalem, had the most significance to me. I went to the Holy Sepulcher, and walked on the Via Dolorosa. I was not a really strong christian then. I'm sure I would have been moved to tears, today, walking the same course our Lord walked in that Holy City, to His death. I went to the Wailing Wall, and was moved by the size of it, and the reverence people conferred to it. My hosts were spectacular. Several military men, of very high rank, ate with us at each other's houses and at restaurants in the area. They would ask, "How will you (me) bring us money into the country to help sell our lasers?" It was as if they brought me onto their team, even though I was just looking at this as a job. I had been accepted, and well received. They were truly amazing. I met an Arab in Jerusalem and like most underprivileged nations, there are those who look at Americans as wealthy and desirous of learning. He "offered" or better said "inflicted" himself on me. He gave me a personal tour of the city. It was a wonderful walking tour, and he took me to see his uncle, and we met with friends he had in the bazaar. I felt a little like I was in a scene from "Raiders of the Lost Arc." I wanted a brown felt hat!!! The Pandemonium in the Bazaar bartering, arguing, "kevetching", and pushing were the norm. It reminded me of Mexico! Nonetheless, the people seemed friendly. I got to see the mount where Mohammed was to have ascended, and virtually all the things we read about in the Bible. I was in Haifa, when I could hear artillery being fired ... no more of that, thank you very much. As a businessman, I enjoyed doing business with the Israelis. They are hard working and industrious. They are good solid people who are desirous of putting their best into a product, and believe that they are helping others when they do this. They have asked me to take a more active role in some of their projects, and I have done so. I have managed some of their efforts here in the states. You see, they even trust someone with a name like Fritzsche. We can do no less. Wedding in Cana Wedding in Cana by Teresa Giordanengo WEDDING IN CANA By Teresa Giordanengo Canonsburg, Pennsylvania In May of 1983 a tour was arranged by Rev. David Mainse and his wife Norma Jean for 100 Huntley Street. It is the name and address of the Christian TV station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where multi-lingual programs are produced. Rev. David Mainse is the President, and hosts the Christian program depicting 100 percent living in Christ Jesus. The reason for this tour was to see the Holy Land, bring the Bible to life, and as a very special highlight, to attend the wedding of their daughter Ellen to Nizar Shaheen, a Christian Arab. They met and fell in love while attending the Institute of Holy Land Studies in Jerusalem. I had entertained thoughts of visiting Israel but I never believed my dreams would come true. My son was a college student and my dad, who was 87 years young, was living with me at that time. I hated to leave my dad for the two weeks, but I could not pass up this chance to visit the Holy Land. Besides, I had to leave since my friends had a Bon Voyage party for me. I had never been on a tour before, but everything was arranged perfectly from flights and hotels to baggage. Also I had opted to have a roommate and was very fortunate to have Shirley Croft from Brechin, Ontario. We enjoyed each other's company and have remained good friends. I left the airport in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. and traveled to Toronto, then on to Dorval Airport in Montreal where the tourist agent met and introduced me to a few of the members of our tour group. I was one of only two tourists from the states. Would you believe it, I was already homesick and called home from this airport. Two ladies in our group noticed that I had made a phone call and seemed rather glum. They immediately came over to me and introduced themselves and said that they had called home and knew the feeling. They were from Nova Scotia. They asked me if I would like to have dinner with them later in the evening. Needless to say we were good friends throughout the tour. I boarded a bus with the others and was taken to Mirabel Airport in Montreal to board Israel's El Al Airlines. The love of the Lord permeated this group because we were like one big happy family from the onset of the tour. We met Norma Mainse, the bride's mother, and volunteered to keep an eye on the wedding gown while Norma ate dinner at the airport. Everyone was questioned for security purposes but of particular concern to them was the fact that I had traveled to Montreal to get to Israel. The reason was that I wanted to travel with the group that was going to the wedding in Cana of Galilee. I was asked why I was going to Israel and whether anyone else had packed my bags. They asked if I had received any packages, or if I had left my purse unattended at any time. Then I was told that the reason I was asked all those questions is that it would be terrible if they had to come out to the middle of the ocean to rescue me. I really did not mind the interrogation because I knew it was for my safety as well as the others. It was a non-stop flight and the food and service was excellent. It was snowing in Montreal when we left, but by the time we flew over Rome, Italy, we were told that the temperature on the ground was 99 degrees. There were at least 350 guests on tour plus the bride's family and 100 Huntley Street Staff and TV cameramen. Announcements on the plane were given in Hebrew as well as English. Therefore, I had my first lessons in Hebrew. I was so excited and could hardly wait to get to Israel. I was introduced to my roommate, Shirley, just before landing. After we disembarked at the Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, I felt like I wanted to hug a tree or kiss the ground. But I hugged Shirley instead. We traveled by Volvo buses to Jerusalem. The licensed guide on our bus #4 was Ya'ir, a super guide. The bus driver was Amnon, who took us around the hairpin curves with the greatest of ease, and could park the bus on a dime. Before we entered the City of Jerusalem, Guide Ya'ir led us in singing the hymn "We're marching to Zion." Then he gave us all a piece of bread from a large loaf and a drink of wine. We were permitted to step off the bus for a few minutes. Shirley and I dipped our fingers in the soil in a flower bed on the wall. It was something we wanted to do, to feel a part of Israel. We wanted to - eat of His Word, drink of His goodness, and rest assured that if anything was to happen, what better place for it to occur than the Holy Land! The accommodations at each of the hotels was excellent. Each day before we reached our hotel we sang the following song in Hebrew: (We Bring You Peace) Hevenu Shalom Aleichem, Hevenu Shalom Aleichem, Hevenu Shalom Aleichem, Hevenu Shalom, Shalom, Shalom Aleichem. We were taught that the Hebrew language does not have the letter "J". Therefore the City of Jerusalem should be spelled Yerushalyim. I often wonder why that spelling was changed. After all, when an Israeli comes to America, we expect him to spell Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, or any other place the way we do. This tour was unique because Rev. Mainse personally planned this entire trip for us. We visited all of the places that most tourists do, but I will tell you of only a few of them. We went to the Mt. of Olives where Jesus will return someday and the Garden of Gethsemane where Jesus prayed. I was surprised to see the huge ancient olive trees still alive in the garden. One of the most memorable times was celebrating Holy Communion at the Garden Tomb where Rev. Mainse conducted the service. Each received a chalice of olive wood from which the wine was taken. Another inspiring afternoon was spent at the Jordan River where there is a special site for baptism. Two hundred or more tourists were baptized or reconfirmed their baptism, as I did. A short service was held beforehand and other crowds gathered to watch. Of course I brought some water home from the River Jordan. Every evening there was a seminar or service. One evening we saw the film "Apples of God," a 100 Huntley Street originated film telling of the persecution of the Jews. It was excellent. The producer Jay Rawlings showed the film himself, and his wife Meridel, author of "Fishers and Hunters" was also present to autograph her book. We happened to be in Jerusalem on the anniversary of the independence of Israel, and the crowds were intense. After almost being pushed along the Via Dolorosa, we toured "The Dome of the Rock," a Muslim Shrine on the Temple Mount. Pressing our prayer requests into a crevice in the Wailing Wall, we watched a dedicated old woman in black shoo a man away from the women's side of the wall. It was exciting to pass almost every gate enroute to some other place of Old Jerusalem; the Jaffa Gate, Damascus Gate, the Dung Gate, and the Golden Gate where Jesus passed into the city after his triumphal entry on Palm Sunday. This gate was completely sealed in 1530 by the Turks and it is believed that when Christ returns He will open this gate. The Israelis were celebrating the "Feast of Firstfruits" while we were there. We were seated around the pool of the hotel while the children, dressed in colorful outfits with hats, walked on the platform carrying baskets of fruit, vegetables and flowers. The children recited poems in Hebrew and danced. After the program instructors taught volunteers the Israeli dances. We walked through the business district in the old city and were the recipients of many items at a discounted price because we were the early shoppers. The merchants were very accommodating and treated us so well. They were kind and helpful and walked us to the street and asked us to come back again. I had my first taste of Turkish coffee and learned to like it. Shirley and I walked over to the Christian sector of the city to a gift shop near the National Hotel. A friend of mine knew the owner of the shop and wanted me to deliver a message. Only with a brief description given and no name of the place, except for the vicinity, I was amazed to have found the shop so quickly. We bought many beautiful gifts and were grateful for a ride back to the hotel. We introduced the owner to others in our group and they bought gifts as well. One evening I attended an Israeli Folklore consisting of musicians, comedians, and male and female dancers. I purchased a few records because I thoroughly enjoyed their music. After the show we were invited to the platform to take part in the Israeli dances and to take pictures. It was a lot of fun! We ate dinner at a Kibbutz one evening, and had the privilege of touring the complex. Everyone works at some type of job in a Kibbutz, but do not get paid in money for their work. They live rent free and the medical expenses are taken care of with hospitals nearby if needed. A percentage of what is considered their pay is kept in a savings account. If anyone decides to leave someday, funds have been allocated to help them get started. The apartments were very nice and I was told that in lieu of working there, one could pay an equivalent amount in rent and still live at the Kibbutz. I asked if I could put a piano in the apartment. The answer was, "yes," as long as there is room for it. We visited the school and the children were delightful. To show their appreciation of our visit, they picked kumquats and flowers for us. There is no welfare program in Israel. If a family is in need of food, they are welcome to harvest any amount of crops from the government fields. Our guide Ya'ir asked if we had seen Adam and Eve's first suit of clothing. We gave him a very puzzled look. Smiling, he reached for a huge fig leaf. We visited Massada and rode the cable car and then climbed 200 steps to the top. From here I had an impressive view of the Judean wilderness and the Dead Sea. Our guide explained something that seems quite feasible. The Judean Wilderness is lined with hills and caves and the other side of the Dead Sea is lined with mountains. This at one time was one mountain and a rift occurred in the middle which produced the Dead Sea - which supposedly covers what once was Sodom and Gomorrah. The Dead Sea is quite beautiful. It is named as such not only because it has no outlet - for it has nothing living in or around it. When I visit this area again, I want to smear the black mud all over me as many of the tourists did. This is supposed to be very good for the skin and healthful. While visiting Jericho I hugged a couple of children. Then I was admiring the blossoms on a tree when the mother of the two children reached up and snapped a branch off and handed it to me. I pressed it in a book and still have it. We traveled to Mt. Hermon, a beautiful place with crystal clear water, and to the Lebanese border to a spot called "The Good Fence." The ground between the two countries is called "No Man's Land." Soldiers on both sides stood guard even though a peace treaty had been signed. While in Tiberias we boarded three boats and sailed halfway across the Sea of Galilee. I was thinking about the time the disciples drew in the net full of great fish while Jesus prepared their breakfast and asked them to come and dine (John 21:11 and 12). The boats were anchored and tied together while we had a short inspirational service on board. Then we sang "Put your hand in the hand of the Man who stilled the waters." Afterwards we proceeded to Capernaum and ate St. Peter's fish for lunch. We visited the strikingly designed Shrine of the Book where the priceless dead sea scrolls are housed. We went through the Yad VaShem erected in memory of the Jews who were victims of The Holocaust. I felt very depressed after leaving this place. It made me wonder how anyone could be so cruel to another human being. We passed the Knesset, seat of Israel's parliament - the modern wailing wall as a large percent of an Israeli's income tax goes for defense. You see, Israel is such a small country, about the size of New Jersey, U.S.A. They must keep their defense planes in flight constantly. If they were attacked and their planes were on the ground, Israel would have no time to get them off the ground to protect herself. I must tell about the highlight of our tour, the wedding of Ellen and Nizar. Both were students of the Bible who had dedicated their lives to serving the Lord. Their wedding was held in Cana of Galilee. The evening before the wedding, it was customary for the men to carry the father of the bride through the town on their shoulders. Nizar's father was deceased. The mothers of the bride and groom are seated in chairs and carried on the men's shoulders too. There were other traditional customs that I am not well acquainted with. On the wedding day, the people came early and lined the streets and stood on porches and roof tops to view the bride and groom. I never saw so many people crowded together in a little town as this before. I think the entire village and surrounding villages attended this wedding. The wedding took place in the church yard where only the guests on tour and the family and close friends of the bride and groom were seated. The church was not large enough to seat this number of people. The entire wedding was televised via the 100 Huntley Street TV network. The bride's uncle was the soloist and two of the hymns he sang were "How Great Thou Art" and "The Lord's Prayer." It was a gorgeous warm, sunny day with a slight breeze. I remember looking out over the hills, as Glen Rutledge sang, and thought about how his lovely voice and those wonderful words resounded out into the crowded streets and hillside. This was an unforgettable experience. The wedding ceremony was conducted in Arabic. The bride responded by quoting Ruth 1:16 and 17 in Arabic to her groom - which is, "For whither thou goest I will go, and where thou lodgest I will lodge. Thy people shall be my people and thy God my God." After the wedding ceremony, one of the older ladies in the crowd began shouting blessings to the bride and groom. This is customary. Rev. Mainse repeated the blessings assisted by an interpreter. In this culture, both the bride and groom give presents to the guests. The bride gave new testaments with white covers trimmed in gold to the English speaking crowd and to the others she gave new testaments with black covers, written in Arabic. The groom gave all the guests a hand made vase filled with candy coated jordan almonds. The reception was held at the hotel where the entire outdoor pool area was reserved for the reception. What a magnificent view! Brilliant flowers floated on the pool, luscious fruit was arranged in pyramid fashion on the table, and appetizing salads were everywhere. We had shish-ka-bob for dinner made without pork. I never ate anything so tasty. I especially liked the eggplant and pimento salad. The huge wedding cake was iced with what seemed like a mocha icing and was scrumptious. Everything was super, I couldn't have improved on a thing. After dinner, while we drank the Turkish coffee, the bride's mother and uncles entertained us with special music. Lastly, the bride and groom were roasted and toasted while slides of their early years were shown on a screen. Everyone was so joyful. It was a glorious day and I wouldn't have missed this for the world. It made me think of what our reunion in Heaven will be like! I found that the Israelis were friendly and did their best to make us feel at home. I felt very safe there, and had a fabulous time. I want to go back because I can truthfully say that I love Israel and her people with all my heart. Most of us hated to bid our guide Ya'ir goodbye. When we hugged and kissed, as they do in the mideast, we promised, "L'Shana Haba'ah B'Yerushalyim" (Next Year in Jerusalem). We have all heard the old adage that woman is fickle and we all know the song "I left my heart in San Francisco." I am not sure where I left my heart, whether it was in Jerusalem, or Tiberias or Tel Aviv. But one thing I know for sure, I left my heart in Israel! Getting to Know Israel Getting to Know Israel - The Sea of Galilee by K. Keith Megilligan GETTING TO KNOW ISRAEL - THE SEA OF GALILEE By K. Keith Megilligan (From ISRAEL MY GLORY magazine) At the southern end of the Huleh Valley and the northern tip of the Jordan Valley lies one of the most amazing geographical features in Israel. It is the Sea of Galilee. But don't be deceived by its name. It is the largest body of fresh water in the Middle East, and certainly in Israel. It is a harp-shaped lake, approximately ten miles long and five to six miles wide. It sits in a bowl-like depression surrounded by the hills of Upper and Lower Galilee to the west and the Trans-Jordan plateau to the east. Its surface is about 600 feet below sea level. Its shape and location are probably due to the fact that it is the mouth of an ancient and long since extinct volcano. This is further established by the fact that most of its shoreline and the surrounding hillsides are composed of basalt, a very hard, black, volcanic rock that erodes to produce very fertile soil. But enough of its statistics - what about its personality? This beautiful lake has been known by various names down through the years. In Hebrew it is known as Yam Kinneret (Sea of Kinneret), probably named after the little city of Kinneret that once stood on the lake's northwestern shore. During the period of the Gospels (New Testament), it was known as the Sea of Genessaret, for a city on its southern shore. It was also known then as the Sea of Galilee, and later as the Sea of Tiberias. The word Kinneret comes from either the Hebrew word "kinar" (meaning fruit) or "kinor" (meaning harp), the latter being the more popular name, probably taken from the lake's harp-like shape. Although the Sea of Galilee is not mentioned in the Old Testament (with the possible exception of Isaiah 9:1), it has numerous references in the New Testament. In fact, a modern-day "Kinneret scholar," Mendel Nun, believes that the Gospels are probably the best source for the history of the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee). Without question, the Gospel writers portrayed everything from fishing and net mending to social life and taxes around the Sea of Galilee. And although only a few fishing villages are mentioned in the Scriptures (i.e., Capernaum, Magdala, and Beit-Saida), archaeology indicates that many more existed that are not mentioned. My first glimpse of the Sea of Galilee came as the early-morning, winter sun kissed the surface in a brilliant, shimmering display. Coming down from Upper Galilee on a north-south course parallel to the sea's western shore. Our elevation and distance were such that I could cover the visible surface with the palm of my hand. It shone like a brilliant sapphire against the dark shadow of the Trans-Jordan plateau. I strained my neck to keep it in view as long as possible while the bus wound its way through the undulating countryside. It was a magnificent sight! That was 15 years ago, but that view of the Sea of Galilee has had a lasting impact. As mentioned before, the Sea of Galilee sits in a geological bowl surrounded by hills and mountains almost all the way around. Its major source of water is the Jordan River flowing into it from the north. Its outlet is at the southern tip, reestablishing the flow of the Jordan River as it continues its winding path south to the Dead Sea. On the western side of the sea is a natural east/west depression that divides the hills of Upper and Lower Galilee. On the eastern side is the western edge of the Golan Heights, spilling softly into the Sea of Galilee. The valleys and depression that surround and empty into the Sea create some breathtaking scenes, but they are also the topographical cause of its stormy weather. The New Testament tells of several incidents when Jesus and His disciples were caught up in storms on the sea. There are two primary reasons why these storms occur. First, since the Sea of Galilee sits in a bowl-like configuration, it is dramatically affected by the sudden changes in wind and atmospheric conditions. Because the surface of the lake is below sea level the water and air at its surface are warm year-round. Further, when this warm, humid air is impacted by the cooler dry air that comes rushing down the valleys from either side (especially from Trans-Jordan), it produces virtually instant turmoil on the sea's surface. Second, Israel experiences two basic weather patterns during the year: hot and dry (summer) and cool and wet (winter). These weather patterns are basically stable; that is, not much in the nature of storms accompanies them. However, these stable weather patterns are linked by some very unstable transitional weather patterns (fall and spring) that can produce significant storms, which can be particularly violent on and around the Sea of Galilee. In fact, in a matter of 30 minutes, a calm sea can give way to wind-driven waves six to ten feet high! Therefore, the next time you read about the disciples and our Lord venturing out upon the stormy waters of Galilee, you will realize at least two things. First, the storm probably took place during either the fall or spring season. Second, if the storm was bad enough to frighten those seasoned fishermen, who were accustomed to such weather patterns, it must have been quite a storm! Yet, it was against the background of this amazing geographical setting that Jesus taught His disciples some of the greatest lessons about faith and His creative sovereignty (Mt. 14:22-33; Mk. 6:45-52; Lk. 8:22-25). K. Keith Megilligan serves on the faculty of the Institute of Biblical Studies in Deptford, New Jersey, which is affiliated with the FRIENDS OF ISRAEL GOSPEL MINISTRY Inc. in Deptford, New Jersey. This is Jerusalem This is Jerusalem by Lance Lambert THIS IS JERUSALEM By Lance Lambert. (An excerpt from the book THE UNIQUENESS OF ISRAEL) Some cities have an outward beauty, plastic and cosmetic. It is real but superficial and consists of those tangible things which make an immediate impact upon our senses. Jerusalem's beauty is not of that order. It is true that she has her own physical beauty. That kind of beauty can be seen, for instance, in her setting; located amongst mountains, she presents a breathtaking view. It can be seen at sunset when the color of her stone glows with ethereal light, or when the first rays of the rising sun transform her stones into the proverbial 'Golden City'. It can also be seen in her ancient buildings, lanes and souks which breathe the atmosphere of an historic past. Yet Jerusalem's essential beauty does not consist of these things. There are other cities which far exceed Jerusalem in that kind of beauty, cities which are more elegant and sophisticated, more commercially attractive and wealth-inducing, more grand in their planning concepts and design. Paris with its elegance and sophistication, Rome with its history and ingrained atmosphere of religion, New York with its incredible air of excitement and business, cannot be compared with Jerusalem. London may be a world center of finance and power, with a sense of enduring solidity, but it cannot be compared with Jerusalem. Jerusalem is unique amongst the cities of the world, for her beauty is the beauty of a spiritual ideal, a thought out of the mind of God, crystallized in stone and history. Jerusalem today is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, built on four thousand years of history. At some places within her walls the bed-rock lies ninety feet below the present surface, and today's buildings and lanes rest on the destruction of the past. Layer upon layer of history lie beneath her, reaching back into the mists of antiquity. On every level one finds the evidence of her long story - Jebusite, Jewish, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Crusader, Turkish. Even above the surface, it is there for those who have eyes to see - great Herodian blocks of stone, Byzantine arches, Hellenic pillars, Arab motifs, Crusader vaults, Jebusite stones, Turkish walls. Jerusalem is first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 14:18, where she is called 'Salem', which means 'Peace': "Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was priest of God Most High." (RV) This would have been about the 19th century B.C. She is also mentioned in Egyptian execration texts of the 19th-18th century B.C. From the way she is mentioned in certain Scriptures, such as Joshua 15:63 or Judges 1:21, we know that in the 14th century B.C. she was a Jebusite city. We find confirmation for this in the Tel el Amarna letters of that period. She was still a Jebusite city when King David captured her in the 10th century B.C. (2 Samuel 5:6-9). David made her the capital of a united Israel, and from that day she became the spiritual center of the children of Israel and of the Jewish people. It was David who became the inspiration under God for the building of the Temple on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem, though it was Solomon, his son, who translated the vision into practical reality and built it there. From that time Jerusalem was not only the political capital but the focal point of a spiritual and eternal reality. Jerusalem has known more devastation than most other cities, both from wars and from earthquakes. In the 2,565 years between 587 B.C. and A.D. 1978 she was conquered more than twenty times. Yet today Jerusalem still stands more or less where she has ever stood. Her center has moved a little northwards, but her present boundaries include the entire area of the ancient city at every phase of her history. The city of Jerusalem is unique because of the way she was selected to be the capital of the nation. Most capital cities of the world have become capitals because of their situation. They are on important trade routes or mayor cross roads, possess large natural harbors, or are beside navigable rivers. They have been chosen because they are commercially viable and attractive centers, naturally drawing trade to themselves and providing a good venue for business. Jerusalem never had any of these natural advantages. She was not situated on any mayor crossroads, or indeed on any important trade-routes . The major highways and trade routes of antiquity ran either to her east or to her west. To her east, the King's Highway linked Arabia with Damascus; to her west, the Way of the Sea connected Egypt with Damascus, Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. Jerusalem had no natural harbor; she was situated neither on the coast, nor on any river, navigable or otherwise. Indeed Jerusalem had no major water supply other than the Gihon Spring, and that was originally outside the city walls. It was King Hezekiah who recognized the serious threat which this represented to Jerusalem's security and survival, and took action which has amazed engineers ever since. He had a tunnel 1,777 feet long hewn out of the solid rock which brought the waters of Gihon within the city, to the Pool of Siloam (2 Kings 20:20). This matter of its water supply must surely make Jerusalem unique. One may well ask whether there has ever been another capital city with so precarious a water supply as Jerusalem had! Jerusalem became the capital of the nation because God chose her. In Deuteronomy 12:5, 13-14, God had said: "But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come ... Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offerings in every place that thou sees: but in the place which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings, and there thou shalt do all that I command thee." (RV) This place which the Lord chose was Jerusalem. As the Psalmist says: The Lord hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my resting place forever; here will I dwell; for I have desired it. (Psalm 132:13-14, RV.) Jerusalem is therefore unique among the cities of the world. She was not chosen for natural advantages, for she had none; she was chosen for spiritual reasons alone. The divine choice of Jerusalem not only makes her a unique city, but has also made her the focal point of enduring and violent conflict. For she was not chosen by God merely to be the physical capital of any earthly nation, but to embody and represent a spiritual ideal. She has not, therefore, been merely the bone of contention between nation, the flashpoint of clashing national and religious interests. Behind all the fighting, devastation and sorrow lie spiritual forces bent on destroying even the earthly symbol of God's eternal purpose and calling. The history of Jerusalem has been the history of battles. Her story is the story of triumph and achievement, of suffering and sorrow. It is a chronicle of great saintliness and of deep sinfulness; of enduring loyalty and of dark treachery; of triumphant faith and devastating defeat. Her history is aptly summed up in an ancient Jewish saying: "Ten measures of suffering were sent by God upon the world, and nine of them fell upon Jerusalem." The story of Jerusalem is the evidence that the narrow way of God is fraught with suffering and tribulation. She is a microcosm of every believer's life, an illustration of the truth that we enter the kingdom of God through much tribulation; she is a cameo in which we see depicted the great affliction and battle involved in the building up of that spiritual Zion which is the church. The list of the nations and peoples who have fought for Jerusalem is almost endless: Assyrians, Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Persians, Arabs, Crusaders, Tartars, Mamelukes, Turks, Britons, Jordanians. Nor is the story finished. The word of God predicts that there will be many more battles over Jerusalem. In Zechariah 12:2-3 the Lord says: "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about, and upon Judah also shall I be I the siege of Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples; all that burden themselves with it shall be sore wounded; and all the nations of the earth shall be gathered together against it;" (RV) And in verse 9 he says: "It shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem;" (RV) And again in Zechariah 14:2 "I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle." (RV) Zechariah's words are relevant to this generation: 'A cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about', that is, a drugged cup impairing normal faculties; and 'a burdensome stone for all the peoples', that is, a heavy stone rupturing those who lift it. It I precisely what she has become and is becoming. Everyone who meddles and interferers with Jerusalem's destiny will be 'sore wounded'. It does not matter whether it is the great superpowers, the United Nations, or any particular nation, all will come to grief if they 'burden themselves' with Jerusalem. Zechariah 12:6 is also remarkable. In the prediction of future battles over Jerusalem, the Lord says: " ... and Jerusalem shall yet again dwell in her own place, even in Jerusalem." (RV) In Monsignor Knox's translation, it reads: "Jerusalem shall stand, when all is over, where Jerusalem stood." It is a fact that, in spite of all the conflict and its many destructions, Jerusalem stands today where Jerusalem has ever stood through the years. Nineveh and Ur and Babylon have come and gone, Thebes and Raamses have come and gone, but Jerusalem remains. One day Washington will fall, as will Moscow, Peking and London. All the great cities of the world will pass away, except Jerusalem. This Jerusalem is age abiding, if not eternal. Even in the last great battle, we are told that when the city is taken, and half her population taken into captivity, "... then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east." (Zechariah 14:3 4, RV.) If nothing else makes Jerusalem unique, this does. She will be the first city of the world to receive the Messiah, for God has stated that his blessed and pierced feet will stand again within her walls. The Lord Jesus loved Jerusalem deeply. It was not only the material city, but what she represented and embodied of his Father's purpose and design. He referred to her as 'Jerusalem ... the city of the great King' (Matthew 5:35). She was his city, the earthly city as well as the heavenly Jerusalem. A week before his death, as he came over the brow of the Mount of Olives from Bethany and saw the whole city lying before him, he wept over her: "If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they'll not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation." (Luke 19:42-44. NASB.) We hear the heartbreak in his voice when, a few days later, after one of the most solemn denunciations he had ever uttered, he said: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling." (Matthew 23:37, NASB.) This was the city in which Jesus was crucified and buried; the city in which he arose from the dead and from which he ascended to his Father, there to reign forever. And it is to this city that he will return with glory and great power. Then the prophecy of Isaiah will be fulfilled: "And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall ill unto it. And many peoples shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge between the nations, and shall reprove many peoples: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." (Isaiah 2:2-4, RV.) Then, and only then, will the long travail of Jerusalem be over, and God's purpose concerning her be fulfilled. There is no other city in the world to be compared with Jerusalem. She began as the choice of God; she has been preserved through his grace; and she will end in his glory. Jerusalem is unique. Operation Solomon Operation Solomon by Will Varner OPERATION SOLOMON By Will Varner (From ISRAEL MY GLORY magazine) Many questions have been asked recently about the Jewish people in Ethiopia and their immigration to Israel. These Ethiopian Jews are sometimes referred to as the Falashas. Who are they? How did they become Jewish? Are they the lost tribes? In 1984 and 1985, there was a massive airlift of Ethiopian Jews to the land of Israel. Over a period of a few months, approximately 8,500 were taken to Israel in Operation Moses. But Operation Moses ceased when information about it was leaked to the press. The Ethiopian Jewish community in Israel has been very interesting. I've met and talked with some of them, and they are loyal to the State of Israel and very religious. In May 1991 another operation was undertaken- Operation Solomon. It was, in some ways, even more amazing than Operation Moses. Within a time span of 24 hours, there was a massive airlift of 14,400 Ethiopian Jews to Israel. Many El Al jumbo jets were used. A world record was set when one 747 ferried over a thousand Ethiopian Jews to Israel. They have joined their relatives and friends, and now the Ethiopian community in Israel numbers about 35,000. There are still almost 2,000 Ethiopian Jews behind rebel lines in Ethiopia, but there is hope that someday they will be able to join their brothers in Israel. Who are these people? Some have suggested that they may be one of the so-called "lost tribes." You will remember that the ten northern tribes of Israel were taken into captivity in 622 B.C. As the rabbis have speculated about who these Ethiopian Jews are, some have said that they are the lost tribe of Dan. There is very little to substantiate this view. As a matter of fact, no historical evidence exists for this idea at all. The northern tribes of Israel were deported into Assyria (northern Iraq). Ethiopia is more than a thousand miles south of Israel! On the other hand, the Ethiopian Jews' belief about themselves, about their own community, is very fascinating, because they connect themselves to a biblical event. First Kings 10 tells of the visit of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon. She came, saw the wonders of his kingdom, and declared, "the half was not told me" (1 Ki. 10:7). She gave Solomon gold and then returned to her own land. The land of Sheba is either in Ethiopia or across the Red Sea in the southern part of Arabia, but scholars agree that the Queen of Sheba ruled over the area known today as Ethiopia. So the Ethiopian Jews' belief about their own origin is that when the Queen of Sheba returned, she took back Jewish teachers and scribes who taught the knowledge of the one true God to the Ethiopians, and many of them became followers of or proselytes to the God of Israel. This tradition seems to be a more likely explanation for the origin of the Ethiopian Jews-that they are the children of proselytes. They are devoted to the God of Israel, very faithful and very religious. We know that their origin predates the New Testament for several reasons. First, the Jewish practices of the Ethiopian Jews are not affected by any of the rabbinic practices that developed in New Testament times and beyond. They have no knowledge of some of the rabbinic laws that were enacted after the end of the Old Testament period. They know only Old Testament Judaism. Therefore, their origins can be dated before the coming of Christ. A second reason why we know that their origins are ancient is a fact that also connects them to the New Testament. In Acts 8 we read the account of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. The eunuch was an official in the queen's palace in Ethiopia, and he had been up to Jerusalem to worship. Why had he been up to Jerusalem to worship? Because he was Jewish. He had gone up to one of the pilgrim festivals in Jerusalem, and, on his way back, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. He was probably thinking about some of the things he had seen and heard in Jerusalem, and the Scripture indicates that Philip came, preached the gospel to him, and led him to the Messiah. So here is an Ethiopian Jew in the pages of the New Testament. The Ethiopian Jews are sometimes referred to as Falashas, but that name probably should not be applied to them. It is a derisive term by which other Ethiopians referred to them in the Middle Ages. It means outcast or stranger. They call themselves the Beta Israel (house of Israel). It is better, therefore, not to refer to them as Falashas, which is a name of derision, but simply as Ethiopian Jews. They are truly a fascinating group. Although more primitive than modern Jews because of having lived in the mountains and undergone persecution for a long time, they are very religious and deeply committed to the God of Israel. They are also faithful and loyal Israelis and are fitting into Israeli society very well. In fact, many of them serve in the Israeli military. Some of the rabbis have a problem with their background and want them to go through a special ritual cleansing ceremony of immersion because of the uncleanness they think is attached to them. Of course, the Ethiopians resent this practice, particularly when they have been much more loyal to the teachings of the Word of God than most Israelis. But everyone in Israel accepts their Jewishness and welcomes them home. Can you imagine the tactical challenge of incorporating 14,400 people into a country in the space of 24 hours? But Israel is committed to the "ingathering of the exiles" and has spared no expense to bring them home. As William Safire has remarked, "Thousands of black people were brought to a country not in chains but in dignity, not as slaves but as citizens." The Bible speaks about Ethiopia. One such passage is a reference to a return of Jews from Ethiopia and may very well refer to the Beta Israel- Ethiopian Jewry: "From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my Suppliant, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering. In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, in which thou has transgressed against me; for then I will take away out of the midst of thee those who rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty in my holy mountain" (Zeph. 3:10-11). Only time will tell if the remaining 2,000 Jews still in Ethiopia will be able to return to their ancient homeland. But we can thrill at their preservation through the years, at their connection to both the Old and New Testaments, and at the heroic way in which Israel has responded to the need of Jews all over the world. Keep in mind that people are Jews, in the modern Jewish sense of the term, not because of racial identification with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but because they belong to a people. Many, many years ago these Ethiopians joined the people of Israel, and they worship the same God as the Jewish people. Although they are sons of converts (proselytes), they are fully accepted as Jews, in every sense of the term, in the land of Israel. Will Varner is the Academic Dean of the Institute of Biblical Studies which is affiliated with the FRIENDS OF ISRAEL GOSPEL MINISTRY Inc. in Deptford, New Jersey. Biblical Department New In Christ New In Christ "New in Christ" is a regular MORNING STAR column written primarily for people who wish to learn more about the basic teachings of Biblical Christianity. The editorial staff at MORNING STAR encourages all readers to freely use this information to help new Christians grow in their walk with the Lord. This is part 1 of a 2 part article. THE GOD OF THIS WORLD Don't let the title of the article fool you. The god of this world is not God the Father, Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit. Sorry, no points for any of those answers. It's one of the many interesting names found in the Bible for the Devil himself. (2nd Corinthians 4:4) He's also called the "prince of this world." (John 12:31) It's a sad truth that although the majority of people in this country believe that a god exists, the idea of there being a real "devil" is often scoffed at, even by professed Christians. This disbelief, as with all errors in spiritual matters, comes from people being ignorant of God's word. The devil, whose most common name is Satan, (meaning "adversary"), is a real person, like God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Note that the term "person", does not always mean flesh and blood. There are different types of bodies in the heavens and on earth. (1st Corinthians 15:39,40) The devil is mentioned throughout the Bible in detail from the first book, Genesis, to the last, Revelation. There's no doubt that God says he exists. He is the greatest enemy of God and all Christians. His goal for people is simple: Satan hates all of God's creations, especially men and women. As a result he wants to lead as many people as possible from the Lord. A study of his origin requires a trip through several Old Testament books. This would require too much space to go into here. Therefore, to summarize, the Bible says that originally he was created a good angel with a free will. For some reason, apparently pride, he decided to rebel against God. He led many other evil angels against God. He was defeated and cast out of heaven. However, he was not cast into hell. Many people incorrectly think the devil is safely locked up in hell right now, just waiting around for some of us to be sent to him. Satan and his angels, also called demons, have free access to the earth and its surrounding atmosphere. For this reason another one of his names is "the prince of the power of the air." (Ephesians 2:2) Satan is still allowed access to heaven to converse with God. (Job 1:6,7) He spends his time visiting God to accuse Christians of wrong doing. That's why he's also known as "the accuser of the brethren." (Revelation 12:10) The good news for us is there are restrictions to his abilities. He is not all powerful. He can only do what God allows him to do. He can only be in one place at a given time. (Watch out for his demons however.) He can do nothing to change God's future program as described in His Word, the Bible. It's crucial that all Christians are aware of how powerful Satan is. They need to understand his tactics are against both believers and non-believers. Remember that Satan's desire is to prevent people from being saved. It is Satan that blinds people to the truth of the Gospel, encouraging them to reject it. (2nd Corinthians 4:3,4) Because non-believers don't understand the Gospel, they can't comprehend that many of their seemingly harmless actions are in fact doing Satan's will by opposing God's plan for them. Satan has millions of people in his "back pocket" and they haven't a clue about it. When Christians have to deal with being persecuted or ridiculed by a person or organization for what they believe, they're really not struggling against human beings. The battle is against the powers of Satan whose spirit causes people to do his will. (Ephesians 2:2, 6:12) That's why Christians aren't to hate any person, only the wrong they do. An awful and important truth provided by the Lord is there is nothing that a non-Christian can do to stop Satan from controlling his life. Except of course, becoming born again. Satan can toy with anyone who isn't born again, at his will. (2nd Timothy 2:25,26) He has no control over Spirit-filled Christians lives. Satan can however, make circumstances difficult for believers by causing them problems. Even the apostles, with their tremendous faith, had their travels to spread the Gospel hindered by Satan. (1st Thessalonians 2:18) Why are people misled by Satan and his followers? Why can't they recognize him and the evil he represents? This has to do with the clever tactics he uses to trick both believers and nonbelievers. The real Satan isn't a silly looking devil with a pitchfork and horns who scares people, as he is portrayed in the movies and on television. The Bible tells us that he was created God's most beautiful angel. His greatest tactic, aside from getting people to deny his existence, is imitation. The people who do his will may appear good and kind, even religious. They are often intellectually appealing. God says the devil's followers can appear as "angels of light" and "ministers of righteousness." They can even pretend to be apostles of Christ, to deceive people. (2nd Corinthians 11:14,15) It's easy for Satan to fool those who don't have the Spirit of Christ in them. He can mislead those who don't know their Bible well. This last point is of importance because Satan knows how to quote scripture and misuse it. It's easy to see how his earthly ministers can do the same. An amazing example of his deceitfulness is illustrated when he tried to tempt Jesus. Satan took Old Testament verses out of context and perverting their meaning. (Matthew 4:5,6) His power to tempt and deceive will continue to grow. It will peak in the last days before Christ returns to the Earth to set up His eternal kingdom. Besides influencing people to do his will, Satan himself has enormous supernatural power. These powers are limited by God. He is even able to cause physical ailments in people. Here are three examples of handicaps he caused people during the days of Jesus on this planet. (Jesus cured all three) He caused a man to be a mute. (Matthew 9:32,33 & Luke 11:14) He caused severe mental illness in a boy. (Matthew 17:14-18) He caused a woman to be badly crippled for 18 years. (Luke 13:16) There are other demonstrations of his immense power in the New Testament. He brought Christ up to a high mountain and presented the Lord with a view of his kingdoms. (Matthew 4:8,9) Since, he is the god of this world these kingdoms were his to give. But, if Christ had accepted the world this way, we would have not have had His sacrifice for our sin. This was allowed by God, as are all of his activities, so Jesus could demonstrate His sinless perfection. And, by doing so He serves as an example for us. Satan gave a man the power to perform small miracles through sorcery so the local people would think this man was a god. (Acts 8:9-11) He gave a young girl the ability to give accurate fortunes thereby making money for her masters. (Acts 16:16) (This clarifies the apparent power of some psychics and astrologers of today.) A couple of interesting verses show that Satan and his demons know the prophecies of the Bible well. They are aware of what God's plan holds for them in the future. Next month, in part 2 of this article, we will discuss what believers have been given by the God of the Universe, to combat the attacks we face from the god of this world. Bible Study Bible Study - Who Owns the Land ? by Derek Prince In this month's Bible Study column, we depart from our usual format to bring you this special article on what the Bible has to say about ownership of the land of Israel. WHO OWNS THE LAND? (Should It Be Open for Negotiation?) By Derek Prince Christian Friends of Israel There has been a tremendous amount of misunderstanding amongst sincere Christians concerning God's dealing with Israel. I don't believe that this misunderstanding is entirely natural. I think there is a spiritual force behind it. Satan is very busy to keep God's people in ignorance of what His purpose for Israel is because we have a part to play in that purpose. Consequently Satan resists our coming into an understanding and thus becoming qualified to play our part in what God is doing. I want to deal with two common purposes that are often raised in connection with God's purposes for Israel. The first one is - To whom does the land belong? You will hear a lot of sincere Christians suggest that there is injustice involved in Israel being restored to the land. Certainly, I would have to acknowledge that there has been a considerable measure of suffering on the parts of many different people. I think I can appreciate that, because my first wife and I and our adoptive daughters were living in Jerusalem during the period when the State of Israel came into being. Twice in a few months, with the whole of our family, we had to leave our house in the middle of the night and flee, taking nothing more with us than what we could carry in our hands, because our lives were being threatened. The first time, the Arab Legion which was the official armed force of Jordan and theoretically one of the security forces in Jerusalem at that time, had a plan to attack our home and probably slaughter our Jewish girls about midnight. We walked out at 9:OO pm and that was the last we saw of that home. So there has been suffering involved in the re-establishment of Israel, this I would freely acknowledge, but that God is capable of injustice, I will not acknowledge. God is far more just than we are. The real issue, I believe, is the sovereignty of God. Does God have a right to allot certain areas of the earth's surface to certain groups of people? For the answer I do not want to offer you some theory of my own. I want to look at Scripture. Let's see what God has to say about the ownership of the land. First, let's see what Scripture says about the whole earth: "The earth is the Lord's and everything in it, the world and all who live in it." (Psalm 24:1) God says a good many times that Israel is His land. He calls it specifically "My Land". Above all other pieces of territory in the earth God has laid a special claim, for His sovereign purposes, to that little strip of territory which is Israel. In Ezekiel He warns the northern invader: "In days to come, O Gog, I will bring you against My land so that the nations may know Me when I show Myself holy through you before their eyes." (Ezekiel 38:16) Again in Joel God declares: "I will gather all nations and bring them down to the valley of Jehoshaphat (which means 'the Lord judges'); then I will enter into judgement against them concerning My inheritance, My people Israel, for they scattered My people among the nations and divided up My land." (Joel 3:2). God has not forgotten that the land o Israel has been partitioned by Gentile rulers and kingdoms. God uses the word "My" in two connections "My people Israel" and "My land". In each case He, in a particular way, identifies Himself with them. Having seen that it is God's land we need to acknowledge that God has clearly and irrevocably given that land to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants forever. In Genesis He says to Abraham: "I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you and I will be their God." (Genesis 17:7-8) God promises to give the whole land to Abraham and his descendants for an everlasting possession. This is established by a covenant of God and God declares in Psalm 89:34 His covenant He will never break. Later on, He says to Isaac: "Stay in this land (the land of Israel) for a while and I will be with you and bless you for to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give them all these lands through your offspring all nations on earth shall be blessed." (Genesis 26:3-4) Later on, God extends the same promise to Jacob: "The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you and I will give this land to your descendants after you." (Genesis 35:12) Notice that the promise runs through a certain, specific line from Abraham to Isaac to Jacob and on to their descendants. In Psalm 105 the psalmist uses the following terms to describe the extent of God's commitment to this purpose: covenant, word, command, oath, decree and everlasting covenant. There is no language used in the Bible that could give stronger emphasis to God's commitment. "He is the Lord our God His judgements are in all the earth. He remembers His covenant forever, the Word He commanded to a thousand generations. The covenant He made with Abraham, the oath He swore to Isaac, He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree to Israel as an everlasting covenant. To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit." (Psalm 105:7-11) If we believe the Bible to be the Word of God there can remain no doubt as to God's purpose for the land. Furthermore, nothing has changed in God's purpose from the time that it was spoken until this time of restoration which was predicted by Jeremiah: "Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you. The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will bring My people, Israel and Judah, back from captivity and restore them to the land I gave their forefathers to possess, says the Lord." (Jeremiah 30:2-3) I simply cannot understand how any question could exist as to the meaning of those words. There is only one place on earth that could answer to that description, "the land gave to their forefathers to possess". It is the land which today is again called "Israel". God alone has the right to determine to whom the land belongs and His determination remains unchanged by all the fluctuating events of history. This is clearly established by the words of Ezekiel: "Son of Man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land they defiled it by their conduct and their actions - I dispersed them among the nations and they were scattered through the countries. For I will take you out of the nations and I will gather you from all the countries and I will bring you back into your own land." (Ezekiel 36:16,24) It was their own land when they defiled it and when God brings them back He says it is into their own land. The Divinely appointed ownership of the land has not changed in all centuries. Exactly the same language is used in Amos: "I will bring back my exiled people Israel. They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine, they will make gardens and eat their fruit. I will plant Israel in their own land never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them". (Amos 9:14-15) God goes out of His way to exclude any possibility of doubt as to whom He considers to be the Scriptural owners of the land. This decision as to the ultimate ownership of the land goes back to the origins of humanity. "When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel." (Deuteronomy 32:8) When God allotted to all nations the areas where they were to live, the countries they were to inhabit, He based their boundaries on the number of the children of Israel and the location which He had appointed for them. In other words, the location of all other nations in a certain sense depends on and is related to the location of Israel. In Acts 17, Paul explains this to the people of Athens: "From one man, He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live." (Acts 17:26) God has left nothing in that area to human decision. He has determined where every nation should live in accord with the location He had appointed for Israel. In other words, all other nations, in a certain sense, find their location with reference to Israel. Of course, that doesn't always suit the other nations. When Israel is not in her home, all other nations are somewhat out of place. It is for the ultimate good of all nations that Israel should be in her place. God has so arranged things that no other nation can truly find its full destiny until Israel finds her destiny. This is why it is important for you and me who are not Israelites that Israel should obtain their inheritance. Ultimately, the inheritance of all other nations will be determined by Israel being in her right place. This is one reason why we should all pray for the peace of Jerusalem, because not until Jerusalem enjoys peace will the rest of the earth ever know peace. We owe our entire spiritual inheritance to one small nation: Israel. This is an indisputable fact. If there had been no Israel there would have been no patriarchs, no prophets, no apostles, no Bible and most of all, no Saviour. How much spiritual inheritance would any of the rest of the nations have without them? Exactly nothing! We are all debtors to the Jewish people. God says that there are ways we will have to pay the debt back. My personal conviction is that God will never withdraw the Church from the earth until it has at least recognized its debt to the Jewish people and taken some token steps to repay her. Some Christians assert that the Church has taken over the identity of Israel and therefore that God's promises to Israel now apply to the Church, and not to Israel. But this theory does not agree with the way the New Testament consistently uses the name "Israel". The word "Israel" or "Israelites" occurs about 75 times in the New Testament. In at least 70 of these occurrences the name Israel is used in precisely the same way as it was in the Old Testament. This includes nine distinct quotations of Old Testament Scriptures. In every one of these New Testament quotations, the meaning of the name Israel is exactly the same as it was in the Old Testament. In perhaps four instances in the New Testament, the apostle Paul uses "Israel" in a special, restricted sense to denote only those Israelites who have continued in the faith of their forefather Abraham and for this reason have acknowledged Jesus as their Messiah (see Romans 9:6-8), but never once in the New Testament is Israel applied to believers who are not of Israelite descent. It is never used as a synonym for the Church as a whole. In Romans 11:25-26 Paul sums up his analysis of the relationship between Israel and the Gentiles in one comprehensive statement: "Hardening in part has happened to Israel until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved". This is the divinely appointed climax to which all believers, Jewish and Gentile alike, should be praying and working together. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Footnote from Christian Friends of Israel: For the nations to debate in negotiations over a certain piece of land at the center of the world, allotted to Israel by the Almighty Himself, is dangerously wrong. Open negotiations could lead to a compromise of what God has ordained to be Israel's from His Word. The enemies of Israel, influenced by the powers of darkness, seek to disclaim God's Word of authority. God is the only authority in the case of who owns the land of Israel. We need to stay on God's side and we will be on the right side. If it is stated in His Word, we must stand on it as it is also our authority for what we believe. Please feel free to make copies of this message by Derek Prince, reproduced by CFI for the Body of Christ, so that more people will be scripturally knowledgeable and not ignorant of God's Word in regard to the world's international question of "Who owns the land?". Christian Friends of Israel, PO Box 1813, Jerusalem, 91015 Israel. Tel: 972-2-894172/187. Fax: 972-2-894955. For more information on the ministry of Derek Prince, write to: Derek Prince Ministries Int. PO Box 300 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33302, U.S.A. Special Studies Will the Ten Lost Tribes Ever Be Found ? by Will Varner WILL THE TEN LOST TRIBES EVER BE FOUND? By Will Varner From the book JACOB'S DOZEN In December, 1984, astounding news leaked to the world press. For over a year, the Israeli government had been secretly flying over ten thousand Ethiopian Jews out of their refugee camps in the Sudan to their new homes in the modern state of Israel. The Beta Israel as they call themselves (Falashas in the Ethiopian language), claim that their Judaic faith originated after the Queen of Sheba returned from her famous visit to King Solomon, bringing with her the knowledge of the one true God. Rabbis in Israel however, had another explanation these Ethiopian Jews were descendants of the tribe of Dan, one of the mysterious lost tribes of Israel. In a recent edition of a Jewish newspaper, an article appeared describing the Jewish customs of the Pashtuan Islamic tribe in Afghanistan. They circumcise their sons on the eighth day, wear four-cornered garments perform levirate marriages and don traditional sidelocks and beards. These customs have convinced some researchers that the Pashtu tribe is a remnant of the ten lost tribes of Israel In a far different vein, a prominent American radio and TV "evangelist" proclaimed for years that the ten lost tribes were not lost but had reappeared as the British and American peoples, whom, he claimed, were the inheritors of the promises to ancient Israel! These various ideas appearing in the twentieth century have again raised some important questions in the minds of many: What did happen to the ten tribes? Have some of them survived until today? Can we identify these tribes with any of the many ethnic groups living on planet earth today? This chapter will attempt to answer these and other questions about the lost tribes by sifting through the myths and ideas of men to ascertain the scriptural and historical truth about the so-called lost tribes. The Meaning Of The Phrase Ten Lost Tribes In 930 B.C., soon after the death of Solomon, the united kingdom of Israel was ruptured into two separate kingdoms, generally referred to in Scripture as the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. Both of these kingdoms failed in their stand against idolatry, were eventually conquered by foreign powers and ceased to be independent kingdoms. The northern kingdom, consisting of ten tribal allotments, succumbed to the Assyrians around 721 B.C. "For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them, Until the LORD removed Israel out of his sight, as he had said by all his servants, the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day" (2 Ki. 17:22-23). Their southern brethren, the kingdom of Judah, consisting primarily of the tribal allotments of Judah and Benjamin, were conquered by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Some of these exiles returned under Zerubabbel and reestablished their existence in 536 B.C. Since, however, there never was a formal return of the northern tribes to reestablish their kingdom, they have been popularly referred to as the ten lost tribes. Ideas About The Identity Of The Ten Lost Tribes The television series "In Search of ..." is an indication of how fascinated people are about the unanswered questions surrounding the mysterious, the unknown and the unexplained. The subsequent history of the remnants of the northern kingdom has fueled the imagination of many travelers, writers, romanticists and cultists. There are three basic ideas that have emerged about their identity. First, one traditional Jewish explanation is that the ten tribes are forever lost, assimilated among their Assyrian captors, and never again will be found. The great second century rabbi Akiba expressed this opinion strongly: "The ten tribes shall not return again, they have completely disappeared" (Mishna Sanhedrin 10:3). This, however, seems to be a minority opinion among the rabbis in the Talmud. Second, another Jewish tradition is that the tribes continued to exist beyond the mysterious river Sambatyon whose rapidly flowing waters prevented their crossing it. The Jewish historian Josephus stated at the end of the first century, "The ten tribes are beyond the Euphrates till now, and are an immense multitude and not to be estimated in numbers" (Antiquities 11:133). Throughout the Middle Ages, various pseudo-messiahs, such as David Reubeni, appeared in Europe and claimed to be from a Jewish kingdom composed of the ten lost tribes. Legends circulated that fired the hope of their soon discovery, but no tangible evidence of their existence was ever produced. It was this tradition that motivated Israel's rabbis to declare that the Jews of Ethiopia belong to the lost tribe of Dan. Third, theories abound which identify various ethnic groups today as being the descendants of the ten lost tribes. The Encyclopedia Judaica states, "There is hardly a people, from the Japanese to the British, and from the Red Indians to the Afghans, who have not been suggested, and hardly a place, among them Africa, India, China, Persia, Kurdistan, Caucasia, the United States, and Great Britain" (Vol. 15, p. 1006). The theory attempting to explain the subsequent history of the ten lost tribes that has gained the greatest following is the view known as British-Israelism. First propounded in nineteenth-century England, the basic premise of British-Israelism is that the ten tribes captured by the Assyrians are, in reality, the Saxae, or Scythians, who surged westward through Northern Europe and eventually became the ancestors of the Saxons who invaded England. The theory maintains that the Anglo-Saxons are thus the Israel of the Bible. Therefore, according to this view, the present-day Jews are from the tribe of Judah, are under a divine curse, and are not to be identified with Israel at all. Furthermore, the Anglo-saxon peoples, including the British (i.e., Ephraim) and Americans (i.e., Manasseh) are the inheritors of the covenants and promises of the Old Testament. In addition to some misunderstood scriptural arguments based on the birthright of Joseph (Gen. 49:26) and the promises to his sons Ephraim and Manasseh (Gen. 48:20), British-Israelism maintains that the lost tribes left landmarks on their trek across Europe. Thus, the Dan and Danube Rivers, as well as the city of Danzig and country of Denmark are clear indications to them of the tribe of Dan! The term "Saxons" is supposedly a contraction of "Isaac's Sons," while the term "British" is actually derived from two Hebrew words for "covenant" and "man"! These linguistic arguments have been rejected by every reputable Hebrew scholar as absolutely groundless. The original proponents of British-Israelism were evangelical and orthodox in the rest of their theology, and some still exist today, not as a separate denomination, but as a small movement which is found in many different churches. What should cause real concern, however, is the way in which this view has been adopted into the teachings of two groups which are clearly out of line with the main tenets of biblical Christianity. The first of these is known as the Worldwide Church of God, founded by the late Herbert W. Armstrong. Armstrong made British-Israelism a vital part of his doctrinal system, which also denies the deity of the Holy Spirit and the reality of everlasting punishment. Armstrong's theology further imposes the Old Testament laws on the believer as a means of salvation. Another group which has adopted British-Israelism is the "Identity" movement of white supremacy. A number of groups, affirming the Satanic character of Zionism and the so-called worldwide Jewish conspiracy, have adopted British Israelism to prove the superiority of the white race over Jews, Asiatics and Negroes. These groups have often led demonstrations-against the supposed Jewish control of money and the media, as well as engaging in violent actions against so called Jewish "enemies." What Is The Scriptural History Of The Ten Lost Tribes? A detailed refutation of the many explanations of the history of Israel's northern tribes is impossible within the scope of this chapter. The great Hebrew-Christian scholar, David Baron, in his work The History of the Ten "Lost" Tribes has provided the most detailed and accurate answer to the question. The following is a summary of his main points with a few additional observations of the author. The fallacy inherent in all of the theories about the lost tribes is simply this: they were never lost, but continued as part of the main body of the Jewish people. To illustrate the truthfulness of this statement, consider the following five points: 1. At the time of the disruption of the united kingdom in 930 B.C., faithful Israelites from all the northern tribes joined their brethren in the south and continued their identity as part of the kingdom of Judah. Two books in Scripture that are strangely ignored by British-Israelites are 1 and 2 Chronicles. These books make it clear that the tribes in the north continued their existence as part of Judah after 930 B.C. Consider 2 Chronicles 11:14,16: "For the Levites left their suburban lands and their possession, and came to Judah and Jerusalem; for Jeroboam and his sons had cast them off from executing the priest's office unto the LORD; . . . And after them, out of all the tribes of Israel, such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the LORD God of their fathers." These verses provide irrefutable proof that many godly individuals out of "all the tribes of Israel" rejected Jeroboam's idolatry and joined the southern kingdom. During the reign of Asa, others followed from Ephraim and Manasseh (2 Chr. 15:9). Thus, it is evident that the kingdom of Judah absorbed many from the northern kingdom through the years. 2. Although it is often assured that all of the northern kingdom went into the Assyrian captivity, Scripture teaches that Israelites continued to live there after the captivity of 721 B.C. Again, Chronicles helps us in this regard. At Hezekiah's invitation, many from the north settled in Judah after the destruction of the northern kingdom (2 Chr. 30). Even later, in 622 B.C., more godly Israelites came to Jerusalem to help repair the Temple (2 Chr. 34:9), and later to celebrate the Passover (2 Chr. 35:17-18). If the northern tribes had become lost, how could these representatives have joined in worship in Jerusalem one hundred years after the Assyrian destruction? A reading of the chronicler's account forces one to the conclusion that not all of the northern tribes went into captivity in 721 B.C Archaeology has confirmed this fact which is so clearly taught in Chronicles. Excavations have revealed that the population of Judah rapidly increased after the fall of the northern kingdom as a result of the many refugees mentioned in 2 Chronicles 11:14-16. Furthermore, archaeologists have uncovered the annals of the Assyrian Sargon in which he tells that he carried away only 27,290 people and 50 chariots (Biblical Archaeologist, VI, 1943, p. 58). Since estimates of the population of the northern kingdom at that time range from 400,000 to 500,000, clearly less then one-twentieth of the population was deported, primarily the leaders from the area around Samaria. The ten tribes, therefore, were never lost because they were never deported! Their kingdom was destroyed and ceased to exist, but most of them stayed, with some around Samaria intermingling with new immigrants to form the Samaritans (2 Ki. 17:24-41). 3. When the Jews returned from their Babylonian captivity in 536 B.C. and the following years, the chronicler viewed the restored community, as the remnant of all Israel, both north and south, and not just the tribe of Judah: "Now the first inhabitants who dwelt in their possessions in their cities were the Israelites, the priests, Levites, and the Nethinim. And in Jerusalem dwelt of the children of Judah, and of the children of Benjamin, and of the children of Ephraim and Manasseh" (1 Chr. 9:2-3). According to these verses, we should look to find Ephraim and Manasseh, not in England and America, but in Jerusalem following the return from Babylon. Furthermore, the people at that time viewed themselves as part of all Israel for they offered "twelve he-goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel" (Ezra 6:17). Although British-Israelism confidently asserts that Judah and Israel are always separate and distinct, a concordance shows that in the Book of Ezra the restored community is called "Jews" only eight times and "Israel" fifty times. The writer evidently viewed the terms as interchangeable, both applying to the same people after the captivity. 4. The New Testament clearly indicates that there were individuals in the first century who still maintained their tribal identities some of whom were members of those supposedly lost tribes. Consider, for example, the aged Anna who beheld the baby Jesus in the Temple. Luke 2:36 states that she was of the "tribe of Asher." When Paul spoke of his Jewish brethren, he spoke of a common promise and a common hope: "Unto which promise our twelve tribes earnestly serving God day and night, hope to come" (Acts 26:7). James addressed his epistle "to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad" (Jas. 1:1). He made no distinction between Judah and the ten tribes. All Jews were part of a common body, the only difference being that some were in the land of Israel and some in the Diaspora. Evidently, members of all the tribes existed both inside and outside the Promised Land. The New Testament uses the term "Jew" one hundred seventy four times and the term "Israel" seventy-five times, clearly applying them to the same body of people. It is also striking that the Apostle Paul referred to himself as both a "Jew" (Acts 22:3) and an "Israelite" (Rom. 11:1), and there is never a time when he distinguishes between Jews and Israel, as modern British-Israelism does. If the so-called lost tribes indeed resurfaced as the British people, and if Jeremiah eventually traveled to Britain to establish David's throne there, one would expect some trace of these matters to be mentioned in the New Testament The silence of the New Testament writers in this regard, however, is deafening. The New Testament refers to only one group of people who descended from Jacob: "Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen" (Rom. 9:4-5). 5. Biblical prophecy concerning the end times also indicates continuing tribal distinctions. Although Jews today do not know from which tribe they are descended (with the possible exception of the Levites), Scripture affirms that God knows. Such passages as Revelation 7:4-8 and Ezekiel 48 declare that representatives of restored Israel will be present in the Tribulation and also in the Millennial Kingdom. More complete consideration of these and other prophetic passages about the tribes will be given in the next chapter. SUMMARY To summarize, it can be said, on the basis of Scripture, history and archaeology, that there is no such thing as the ten lost tribes. What was lost was the separate existence of the kingdom of Israel in the north. The tribes, however, continued to exist in the body of the southern kingdom with the terms "Jews" and "Israel" applied to all of the covenant people after captivity. Furthermore, any claim that some ethnic group descended from the ten tribes rests on shaky biblical and historical foundations. British-Israelism, in addition to distorting the Scriptures through its preconceived bias, fosters national pride and is helping to fuel the white supremacist, anti-semitic groups that are spreading their poisonous propaganda today. Satan's attempts to destroy the Jewish people have taken various forms in history, from the days of Antiochus Epiphanes to the murderous plan of Hitler. Now the evil one is promoting the lie that the Jews are not truly the Jews, thus robbing Israel of its promises and covenants and transferring them to the Anglo-Saxon race! Let us continue to be confident in the plain promises of Scripture and not be led astray by the misinterpretations and fanciful imaginings of man! Used with permission from Will Varner and Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry Inc. Messianic Studies Messianic Studies - A Lack of Identity by Chana Cohn The Messianic Studies column explores the world of the Messianic Believer. Like the church at large, Messianic Judaism contains much diversity. It is made up of numerous views as to what it means to be a Messianic Jew, who we are, what we call ourselves and what we believe. This column will be used to explore this variety, giving the reader a broader perspective of Messianic Judaism than found elsewhere, exposing those of us who are Messianic Believers to the wide spectrum of practice found within the movement. Hopefully we will succeed in helping our Jewish brothers and sisters to understand why we follow Yeshua as our savior. We also hope that what is provided here will give our gentile readers both a better understanding of their Jewish brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as the Jewish roots of their own faith. ________________________________________________________________ A LACK OF IDENTITY By Chana Cohn From the LEVITT LETTER, February 1992 Recently, a coworker spotted my necklace, a star with a cross at its center, and exclaimed, "You're a Messianic Jew!" I was almost as shocked as he was. During the weeks since I had started working at Texas Instruments, I had been explaining to bewildered coworkers that I am a Jewish believer in the Messiah Jesus. They would nod slowly, stare at the necklace, pause and then change the subject. One time at a Christian gathering, after I had explained my identity as a Jewish believer, a man clapped me on the back and asked, "Aren't you glad to be liberated from the bondage of the law?" He then went on to criticize the Judaism of the Old Testament, congratulating me on my release from tyranny as though my Jewishness were something I needed to escape in order to appreciate the grace of God. Somehow I gathered the impression that he did not have a thorough understanding of the Old Testament. But an even more painful misunderstanding often occurs when I explain to another Jewish person that I believe the Messiah has come and that He is Jesus. Frequently, the response is, "Then you're not really Jewish." Other times: "When did you convert?" or "What made you give up Judaism?" Always there is an underlying assumption that I cannot be Jewish and believe in Jesus at the same time. In these different situations the same basic need emerges: the need for a sense of identity. Among both Gentiles and Jews the misconception frequently surfaces that Christianity and Judaism are completely separate and mutually exclusive. With such ideas reinforced in both Gentile and Jewish cultures, it is no wonder that many Jewish believers struggle to find a suitable expression of their identity as the remnant of Israel, even though Christianity began as a splinter of Judaism. Many Gentile Christians do not recognize the Jewish context of the New Testament. As a result much teaching lacks the depth that key symbols and phrases draw upon and the resonance of a Jewish conception of a powerful, unsearchable and glorious God who redeems His people and honors His covenants. And while the church sometimes lacks the richness it could have in its teaching, it also lacks an important component in its congregations - Jewish people. The church has shrugged its shoulders at its unsaved Jewish neighbors and turned its back on the people through whom the Messiah came. While laboring (and rightly so) toward the evangelization of far-away people crippled by disease and poverty, the church often ignores its Jewish neighbors at home, blinded for want of Jesus' true light and starving in their souls for lack of bread from heaven. But not only because of a cultural and moral obligation should the church reach out to the Jewish people, but if nothing else because Paul wrote, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." (Roman 1:17) Paul's mission did not end with his death, and neither should his burden for Jewish evangelism. Paul believed that a Jewish audience should have priority in the proclamation of the Gospel. Today many Jews never hear the Gospel proclaimed at all. If, as some Christians have claimed, "first for the Jews" means that the opportunity for Jewish acceptance of the Messiah ended when the nation of Israel rejected Jesus, then there would be no reason for Jewish people to exist today. Why would God go to the trouble of preserving the Jewish nation through two thousand years of tumultuous history if He has already sealed off their access to salvation through the Gospel? Such a decision would mean that God has rejected His covenant with Israel and yet still allowed generations to be born without hope of a return to communion with God, possible only through being a part of the body of Christ. Yet even the continued existence of the Jewish people witnesses to that very covenant which God made with Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3) and renewed through Moses (Deuteronomy 29:12-13). God has not allowed His people to die out because the Jewish nation has not yet achieved its fullest identity through the worship of His Son. This is not to say that Jewish people are unified in their own definition of what Jewish identity means. In the great debate of "What is a Jew?" many voices clamor to be heard, to proclaim once and for all what makes a person Jewish. In the Jewish population at large, personal criteria range: one believes that all Jews should live in Israel, another that every rabbinic ordinance should be rigorously obeyed, and yet another that Jewishness is fulfilled through commitment to the Jewish community. Some Jews do not even believe in God. It seems that the only point at which Jewish voices unite is to proclaim that Jews do not believe in Jesus. This is hardly a positive affirmation of identity. The Jewish community does not become more defined through its denial of Jesus' Lordship any more than a caterpillar becomes more of a caterpillar by refusing to be a butterfly. In fact it becomes less so. A caterpillar is born to be a butterfly, and even if it could refuse to do so, it would not develop into the