Everyone who knows me knows that I’m a jewelry nut, and an antique nut also. Over the years I’ve accumulated a stash of charming vintage necklaces and some antique rings. There was a time when I changed off frequently in order to wear them all, but not anymore. In today’s world the above pieces, along with my wedding ring and diamond, are an essential part of every day’s décor–yet far more than “decoration”.
Like the wedding ring and diamond, the “religious jewelry” makes a blatant statement to all who behold—a statement both spiritual and political. On occasion I may add a pretty Victorian cameo ensconced in teeny pearls. But the Cross and the Star of David, the rings my husband gave me, plus a pair of dangling Star of David earrings (not shown in the above photo) are constant visuals standing for everything I value and hold precious—both in Heaven and on Earth!
What was once the Christian Church in the USA is presently in tatters. Churches may be divided along many terms: faithful and fundamental vs. emergent and seeker friendly; doctrinally sound vs. apostate; uplifting and life-changing vs. stagnant and ritualistic. The list of contrasts could go on. But there is one huge distinguishing watershed: How does your church view Israel?
A local church that treasures God’s literal Word, upholds the nation of Israel, and passionately loves God’s chosen people the Jews is less apt to lose its moorings than today’s mainstream no-longer-Christian institution—which has departed from God’s truth, blasphemed His righteousness, and mocked His life-affirming values.
How anyone could ever consider the church to be “a new Israel” is confusing beyond the beyond. I really wonder what these churches use for Bibles. Certainly not the Bible I know and love, albeit King James, New King James, or NIV. How can the nearly 1/3 of Scripture which reveals historically-proven events as well as the yet-to-be-fulfilled End Times scenario, be sloughed off as if it were never written—or nefariously twisted into volumes of fallen human interpretation in symbolic language with no exegetical basis whatsoever?
Of course the answer is obvious: the Great Falling Away has been prophesied!
The current world wide groundswell of anti-Semitism is thoroughly sickening, perhaps especially to those of us who vividly remember what happened in the 1930s and 40s—as well as to anyone who has an understanding of the Bible and world history! In Genesis 12:2-3, God promised Abraham: “And I will make of thee a great nation and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”
Thus we can be sure that a nation which has recently pledged $400 million to “rebuild Gaza” will not last much longer. With our millions, plus other UN contributions amounting to a total of 5.4 billion, Hamas will undoubtedly build many more rockets, plant them in their hospitals and schools since they do not begin to value human life, and aim those rockets at the only civilized nation in the Middle East—indeed, one of the few truly humane and decent nations left on earth.
With the accrued billions, can’t you just visualize a tangle of new tunnels providing entry from Gaza into Israel? “Hi-ho, hi-ho, it’s off to work we go.” But unfortunately, Hamas and others of its ilk are not the Seven Dwarfs!
Prophecy assures us of that glorious culmination when the Lord Jesus Christ returns to earth to reign in His Holy City, Jerusalem. Romans 11:26 promises, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, ‘There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer . . . .’ ”
Passage after passage, book after book of the Old Testament project this promise along with the heartbreaking and utter devastation which will preempt the Lord’s return to earth—that devastation which the true, Bible believing Church will be spared, per I Thessalonians 4:13-17.
My Bible is perfectly clear, and I hope yours is as well! How does your church view Israel?
Margaret L. Been, © October 2014
NOTE: Here is a list of views over the last 30 days. WordPress makes it easy to see what is going on in one’s blog. They list “Views and Visitors”. Visitors are the number of people who land on a blog–either from knowing what they are looking for, or accidentally due to a tag word or category. “Views” are the entries actually read. My views always exceed the number of visitors, and an average is given showing the number per visitor, of articles which are actually read.
This is very satisfying as it tells me that my visitors are not “hit and run”, but rather they are individuals who linger and read more than one piece—individuals from all over the world.
The stats are fascinating. For instance, why on a recent day did one of my 5 blogs receive 20 readers from Turkey and only 1 from the US and several other countries? Enough to keep the imagination alive!
(Incidentally, my 2 blogs which always feature church and spiritual issues are consistently getting more attention than the other 3 sites. People want answers, in this crazy world!)
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