I MUST CONFESS

I must confess that, as a Jewish man, I still hurt because of the horrific and indiscriminate attack on innocent Israelis perpetrated over a week ago by the terrorist group, Hamas.

I wasn’t alive during the Holocaust, but now I think I have glimpsed how painful it must have been for Jews around the world to see their friends and families butchered and annihilated by the millions under the Nazi regime.

But I’m also a Jewish believer in Jesus (Yeshua) the Messiah, the JEWISH MESSIAH. And as such, I’m also disappointed by some – not all – followers of Jesus who have assumed the position of judge and jury of the events that took place earlier this month.

Although most Christians and Jewish believers in Jesus are supportive of Israel at this time, some – not all – are saying that WHAT HAPPENED WAS GOD’S JUDGEMENT AND WRATH DUE TO THEIR DISOBEDIENCE.

Really? Who are we to know definitively God’s heart and will in this matter? Couldn’t Satan, the enemy of believers and the hater of Israel, be behind all this instead? After all, he’s been around since the fall of man (Genesis 3). And since he knows that the Messiah would come from within Israel through the seed of the woman, he’s been trying to destroy Israel ever since. Of course, Satan can’t destroy the Jewish people because God has kept, keeps and will continue to keep His promise to protect Israel and the Jewish people. God is a covenant-keeping God! Yes, Israel has been disobedient many times but, as Paul says in Romans 11:29, “the calling of God to Israel is IRREVOCABLE”

The Bible also teaches that not all suffering is a consequence of sin or disobedience in our lives.  Job is a great example; Jesus healing the man born blind is another (John 9). Sometimes God allows suffering for purposes we only learn about later in time.

This is not the time to try to figure out why this inhuman attack took place. Instead, it’s a time to:

* Denounce this atrocity,

* Denounce the evil Hamas terrorist organization and those supporting them,

* Be compassionate toward the innocent victims and their families,

* Pray for the wellbeing and immediate release of innocent hostages (including children and the elderly)

* Support Israel in her right to defend herself against her enemies,

* Call for the total dismantling of terrorist organizations like Hamas, Hezbollah and others,

* Pray for innocent Palestinians who are kept hostage under Hamas rule,

* And pray for the salvation of Jews, Arabs, Palestinians and each person in the world who is willing to put his or her trust in Jesus the Messiah!

I encourage you to go to the Word of God, the Bible, for answers and then trust God even when you don’t understand. He has the final word. He is the judge in this and all other matters.