Why do most Christians never ask the question?
Yes, I know that there are many, many Christians who love the Land of Israel and her people. It's wonderful to see. But, few seem to step back and ask why.
Now, you aren't a bad Christian if you don't ask such questions, but there is a depth of meaning here that many of us forget, as we go about our lives seeking to serve God.
So, let's ask the question:
Why Israel?
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My love for the Land of Israel and her people is about as complex as you can get. As a very young Christian, I learned about the Children of Jacob and the promises of God to them from a very young age. I suspect that most Christians can identify with that.
At the same time, as many other young boys, I grew captivated by the art of war, especially World War II. It began with the personal stories of pilots and infantry commanders, and it progressed to the tactics required to win individual battles.
My brother and I played round after round of Panzerblitz - the board game from Avalon Hill about armored conflict between Nazi Germany and the USSR. Dave went on to join the US Army, eventually commanding an infantry company on the Korean DMZ and then retiring as Major. Too many head injuries kept him from making it to Lt. Colonel. He's even taller than I am, so head injuries are definitely a thing.
I'm still fascinated by war. How you fight them. How you win. Why you lose. Why they start. What it takes to survive.
I'm also completely and utterly horrified by the fact the we are willing to kill each other for political reasons, or even for barely any reason at all. Most do not understand the terrible horror of war unless they've been there. But, I'm afraid that war is coming for all of us.
So, how does that connect with my fascination with Israel?
As a teenager, I tried to expand my interest in war towards something more modern and ran right into the Arab-Israeli wars. The strategies and tactics that kept Israel alive against the fantastic odds against her were captivating. And, at the same time I began to see the personal stories that played such an important role in Israel's success.
At the same time, my parents had their own growing interest in what was going on in Israel. When Mom shared a book that she had been reading - Raquela, A Woman Of Israel - a whole new dimension of this story opened up for me. Several years later, I would sit across a desk with Raquela's daughter, Sarah, discussing the future of her film school, but that's a story for another time.
All of this led me to consume book after book that delved into the history, politics, geography and even the science of Israel. The stories of key people that were at the right place at the right time. The stories of spies that changed the course of history. How Israel went from waste howling desert to fruitful farm and forest. It was all amazing.
I even got to meet some of the people who played key roles in that history. Some of their stories are tragic. Some, amazing beyond anything that you our I could imagine.
I then went on to university, hoping to one day get a PhD in Physics and do research. God said "absolutely not", and I wound up in a class taught by one of the last Americans to be air-lifted out of Lebanon as their civil war broke out.
Dr. Winslow's experience with the Arab side of the conflict was fascinating, as were his insights into how nations go to war. I was captivated, and wound up with a political science degree from Indiana University at IUPUI.
I spent a few years in IT as I was getting my MBA, when Mom and Dad said, "Hey, how would you like it if we all went to Israel?"
Here I was, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed with a fantastic career ahead of me. And all it took was that one question for me to give it all up and run off to the most difficult piece of real estate on the planet. I loved God. I loved Israel. And, I wanted to be a part of whatever God was doing there. I was also clueless.
You know that famous quote by Alexander Pope, "Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread?"
Yup. That's me. If a little is good, a lot is better. Why test the waters, when you can just jump in? And decades later, I'm still rushing off to tilt at windmills. And, I am an expert at making bad predictions.
Here's an example. At the ripe old age of 40, back in the US, I told a close friend that I had resigned myself to never finding someone crazy enough to marry me. Six months later, the most fantastic woman that I had ever met lost her mind and married me, sending me off on an unimaginable trajectory that eventually allowed me to do evangelism in Taipei.
So like I said. Predictions. I'm terrible.
So, as I sit here and ponder the significance of that tiny patch of land no bigger than the island on which I live, Israel has played a central role in everything that has happened to me since I gave my life to Christ 50 years ago. Yet, with all of that personal history, the question remains:
Why Israel?
From a geopolitical point of view, it is literally the worst possible place to put people that you care about. It's the 50 yard line of history (in American football). It's the most fought over, torn up strip of real estate in human history. When one empire wanted to attack another, they would march through Israel to get there - trashing everything they passed by.
As far as climate goes, half of it is unlivable. And, the part that you can live in, only gets rain in the winter. The most fertile farmland is full of malaria swamps, and the choking heat of those areas in the summer is shocking.
Satellite View Of Israel
(You can only live in the brown areas with lots of technology.)
And her capital, Jerusalem?
It's literally in the most difficult place to get to. The ONLY reason why ANYONE would put a capital there is if God said so. It's not on ANY trade route. The hills that you have to go up and down to get there are maddening. You can't farm much of anything except olive trees and goats. And in the winter, flash floods in the valleys often kill those who aren't paying attention to the weather.
Then there's the people. Israel is the most fractured society on earth. Every foolish idea has at least some tiny group hell-bent on making it happen. But if you ever run into trouble, you can have no greater friend than an Israeli. 'To save a life' is the most fundamental principle of that society. And, I've seen that in action a lot.
Frankly, only a miracle can explain why Israel exists and can function the way that she does. Even non-religious Israelis recognize this. My problem is that many Christians don't.
So, the number one answer to 'Why Israel?' will always be one word:
Miracles.
We forget that the only reason why we have hope for eternity is the miracle of Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross. Our salvation is a complete miracle. The history of our survival in the face of persecution, genocide and catastrophe is a complete miracle. My whole life has been a miracle - yours too, if you have accepted Christ as your Lord and Savior.
There are a number of places where God could have taken His friend Abraham, to lands where Israel could have grown to be a billion people. The fertile plains of China, protected by desert, tundra, ocean and impassable jungle would have been perfect. Southern India with ocean barriers and mountains to the north would have been excellent. Even North or South America would have been perfect for a nation to thrive. But, none of that was what God wanted.
In the following picture, notice all the green areas where God could have put Israel - where rich, green farmland gave ethnic populations a chance to grew into the billions:
Israel Compared To Asia
(Click here for larger image)
Here's an even more personal comparison:
(Click here for a larger image)
God wanted the Land of Israel, and He gave it to His friend Abraham for a very specific reason.
Why?
Well, God said that He put His name there. That's ultimately the number one reason. But, we also have some additional reasons that also make a lot of sense.
If you want to communicate the message of God to the rest of the world, there is no better place on earth than that war-torn strip of land. All major trade routes go through there, or are nearby. Only with the advent of modern shipping have some trade routes shifted away from areas going through the Middle East. But even then, there is no place on earth that doesn't know about Israel.
And you know what else?
There's no place on earth that doesn't know about the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
That's not a coincidence. And the geopolitical analyst in me says that this is precisely because God chose the center of the earth to be where the miracle of salvation would be born. And He also chose it to be the weakest place, for the weakest people, that they - in their weakness - could only depend upon God for their survival.
It is in our weakness that Satan is defeated. Not our intelligence. Not our knowledge or education. Not our prosperity. Not our numbers. Not the force of our will or determination. It is only by the gospel of Jesus Christ and our willingness to give our lives. Only then do we have victory over the Devil.
How is it that we overcome Satan?
And they overcame [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.
- Revelation 12:11 (NKJV)
With all of my abilities, God has made sure that none of those skills mean anything without Him giving the victory. Our weakness as sheep will destroy the strength of Satan, once and for all. And a torn up land called Israel will be the center of that dragon's defeat.
This is part of why Israel is so important, and why we must never toss that land and her people onto the ash heap of our man-made eschatology. It's time to look again at Israel and see God's purpose there. To do otherwise is to disobey the words of God.
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My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you... Hosea 4:6
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Keep this ministry alive with a donation.
Subscribe for free to Revelation Six and receive my articles in your inbox:
Share
And, read my two books:
https://whengogcomes.com/
https://ezekielsfire.com/
I created Android Apps that will help you read through the Bible in a Year. You can find them here:
https://revelationsix.com/android-apps/
If you miss my rantings about geopolitics, idiocy, resource collapse and incompetent globalism, follow me on Twitter.
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