Jesus and the US Flag

 

Why We Must Bless Israel

By  Andre McKenzie

1 Now the Lord had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you.
2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

Gen 12:1-3 (NKJV)

    Abram who God later renamed Abraham (father of a multitude) was the patriarch of the nation of Israel. God made a covenant with Abraham to restore the blessing to mankind that was lost by Adam in the Garden of Eden. God was to prosper and protect Abraham and Abraham in turn was to worship and obey God's mandate to replenish the earth.

1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.
2 And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly."
3 Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:
4 "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.
5 No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.
6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.
7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God."
9 And God said to Abraham: "As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.

Gen 17:1-9 (NKJV)

Abraham and His Seed Empowered to Prosper

  •  God blessed Abraham with cattle and silver and gold-Genesis 13:2
  • Abraham's son Isaac sowed during a famine and received a hundredfold return and gained more land, cattle and servants -Genesis 26
  • Isaac's son, "the trickster" Jacob became rich working for the "slickster" Laban -Genesis 30-31
  • Jacob's son Joseph was sold into slavery by the Midianites who in turn sold him to Ishmaelites  and was brought into Egypt. He worked for Potiphar the chief executioner who made Joseph head of his household. Potiphar's wife lied on Joseph and had him thrown into prison. But later Joseph interpreted a dream for Pharaoh concerning a approaching famine and was promoted to second in command in all Egypt.- Genesis 40.
  • Joseph stored more than enough grain for a 7 year famine that not only preserved Egypt but his brothers came and he supplied them with more than enough grain also.- Genesis:41-43.
  • When Moses led the children of Israel from Egypt, God fed them, kept them warm at night, cool in the day. protected them, even though they murmured and complained. But before they left, God moved upon the hearts of the Egyptians. He told them through Moses to borrow jewels of silver and jewels of gold and raiment and to leave Egypt. Later the Egyptians pursued the Israelites and God parted the Red Sea so that His people went to the other side on dry land. He then caused the waters to come upon Pharaoh's chariot's and horsemen and wiped out the entire host of the Egyptian army.- Exodus 12-14.

These examples were just in the beginning generations of the nation of Israel, that God through His covenant blessed the Jewish people.

God's Promise to Restore Israel's Land

     After being scattered over the face of the earth for nearly 2000 years God brought His covenant people back to their land once again. The land was unfit for living but God had decreed that his people and His land would flourish once again upon their return.

24 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land.
25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.
26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh

Ezek 36:24-26 (NKJV)

28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.
29 I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you.
30 And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations.35 So they will say, 'This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the wasted, desolate, and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.' 

Ezek 36:28-30,35 (NKJV)

The Everlasting Hatred

    For the last 60 years Israel has been at war with her neighbors the mostly Arab and Islamic nations. This tiny little nation about the size of the state of New Jersey has been in constant strife with their Muslim neighbors. The Arab people are descendants of Ishmael and Esau also known as Edom. Ishmael was the son of Abraham who was  bore by Hagar the Egyptian handmaiden. Esau was Jacob's twin brother, Esau married one of Ishmael's daughter's. The very nature of these two tells you of the character of the people. Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field, God spoke this of Ishmael:

12 He shall be a wild man; His hand shall be against every man, And every man's hand against him. And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren."

Gen 16:12 (NKJV)

     We must understand that the Koran is the Bible of Islam. Their founder was the Prophet Mohammed who lived in the 7th century. Mohammed was rejected by the Jews because they refused to recognize his god Allah. He stirred up a perpetual negative image of the Jewish people in the writings of the Koran. This in turn taught a natural hatred of the Jews to any body who became a follower of his religion Islam which means -"submission". Islam has always lived by the sword through the centuries killing, pillaging and conquering in the name of Allah. It's no wonder that the Muslims have an almost eternal hatred of the Jewish people because it's the main focus of the teachings in the Koran. This is not an exhaustive history of this topic but a general explanation to give readers a basis for understanding.

    Because of God's promise, the Lord will bless  any nation that blesses the nation of Israel, the Church also has the blessing being the spiritual seed of Abraham. The United States have always been a friend and supporter of Israel and have through the years sold military arms and weapons technology to the Israeli 's. For this, in spite of our sinful ways have  enjoyed being the No.1 World Super Power, strong and prosperous. But in recent years our nation has been backing a land for peace deal that is suppose to bring about peace between the Israeli's and the Palestinian people. The Israeli people have made land concessions to the Palestinian authority in the hopes that it would bring an end to the aggression that has been aimed at the Jewish people but it hasn't. It's all a sham that anyone with wisdom and knowledge of the situation can see through. The Israeli's give up territory and the Palestinian's renounce violence against the Jews, it has always been a one-sided deal. The backing of such agreements are against the Word of God and places the United States under judgment. 

1 "For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem,
2 I will also gather all nations, And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; And I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, Whom they have scattered among the nations; They have also divided up My land.

Joel 3:1-2 (NKJV)

     In 2006 the Palestinian people elected "Hamas" a terrorist organization that has pledged the destruction of Israel. Hamas is responsible for the suicide bombings that have killed hundreds and injured thousands of Israeli citizens during the start of the decade until a recent security fence was constructed to keep terrorists out that were coming from Gaza. They currently are launching kassam rockets from Gaza and they are raining down on Israeli towns in the Western Negev area placing the citizens on high alert. Can you imagine not knowing if a rocket will land on your house, school, family members or yourself at anytime. Well the Israeli's have always lived under state of war conditions, they have faced one crisis after another.

    The Palestinian schools teach the children at an early age to hate Jews and Christians and to kill them. The kids are influenced to become suicide bombers, to kill as many Jews as possible all of this is for the glory of Allah. The Muslim people want to wipe out the Jews and possess the land. This land belongs to God and His chosen people Israel and no one may violate that decree without dreadful circumstances.

     It's a grim fact that those who continue to fight, harass and vex the Jewish nation will be judged harshly because it is written:

2 "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem.
3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
4 In that day," says the Lord,

Zech 12:2-4 (NKJV)

    This scripture is pointing to the time when a federation of Russia ,Iran, Libya and Ethiopia will attack Israel and God will defeat them. There are many Christians here in the United States that support the nation of Israel in word and deed. It's a command and a privilege to pray for, fellowship with and support the people through whom are Lord and Savior came by the flesh. He was the seed of Abraham and through Jesus the Gentiles were given an opportunity to be saved and be blessed.

1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.

Romans 10:1 (NKJV)

    

13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" ),
14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Gal 3:13-14 (NKJV)

The Seed of Abraham

   The nation of Israel didn't as a whole, recognize or accepted Jesus as the Messiah the Anointed One, the Savior of the whole world. But the Gentiles: those outside of the Jewish nation were grafted into the same promises of blessing that God gave to the seed of Abraham. We've become to spiritual seed of Abraham. The Apostle Paul gives us the explanation in the 11th Chapter of the book of Romans. God will continue to look out for the nation of Israel but He desires that they turn back to Him. During the Tribulation period they will be given another chance as a nation to come back to Him. But for the present time we the Church must continue to bless them to stand in support of them because the promise still stands:

I will bless those who bless you.

Gen 12:3 (NKJV)

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! Shalom! - BTTIZ -Blow the Trumpet in Zion!

.