“GOD’S HEART FOR ISRAEL”
BY PHILLIP K. ISRAELSON, MINISTER, AUTHOR, INTERNATIONAL TEACHER, SPEAKER
Over the ages Israel has come and gone in the eyes of the world. Throughout the Old Testament we see the Lord helping Israel, then because of disobedience to God’s commands, Israel was removed from the Land. As we observe the people of Israel from the time of Jacob to modern-day Israel, we find that they have experienced both blessing and cursing: blessing when obedient to God’s laws and cursing when disobedient. Yet their God has never destroyed them completely.
When Moses went up on the mountain to hear the rest of the Lord’s commandments, God revealed His heart by saying, “Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all my commandments…” (Deuteronomy 5:29 NKJV) These commandments separated the people of God from all other nations — when they were obeyed. The God of Israel would reveal Himself to the rest of the world by displaying His glory, His power, and protection for His chosen people. The rest of the nations would see and recognize the greatness of the God of Israel.
The Bible defines the word “command” (tsavah) as a mandate — an order given by authority; or a charge to require obedience.
Centuries have passed since the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple because of the Jewish people’s rejection of God’s only Son, Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus, the Messiah), as their Savior and Redeemer. Those were the waning days of the Old Covenant with all its commands. Through the prophets, the Lord said He would do a new thing.
Ezekiel 36:23 says, “And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord,” says the Lord God, “when I am hallowed in you before their eyes.” (NKJV)
Here we find God’s purpose being to sanctify His Name. God is going to sanctify His Name, or make His Name known again amongst the nations, when His Name is hallowed in the Jewish people.
He continues: For I will take you from among the nations,
gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 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. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. (Ezekiel 36:24-27 NKJV)
Today we witness the nations watching Israel fight on several fronts for its survival as a Jewish nation state. It is the Lord who is putting it in the heart of the Jewish people to return to the Land of their forefathers. Obedience is the key to this call of the God of Israel.
It is important to clarify the difference between the state of Israel and biblical Israel. Biblical Israel is the Jewish people. The God of Israel made the Mosaic covenant with a people, not with a land. His promises are to a people, not to a land. Therefore, the promise to gather Israel out of all the nations and bring them back into their own Land is currently being fulfilled. As the Jewish people obey and are willing to be gathered, God will supernaturally make ways for them to be restored to the land — the modern nation state of Israel. Once there, then He will completely fulfill the promise of Ezekiel 36.
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR ALL BELIEVERS
It has been forty years since I was part of a four-man team to enter the USSR to pray for the release of the Soviet Jews to go home to Israel. Not all of those who came out obeyed in going to the state of Israel, but nearly one million did! One of the first to go was Natan Sharansky, a longtime refusenik. Amongst our team we agreed that he was a first fruit of our prayers for the Jewish people to be gathered to Israel.
God will soon gather His people from the West. Far be it from us that we should fail to pray for them and the fulfillment of God’s promises which will result in the continuation of Israel—the state and the people — and their ultimate salvation. Let’s have God’s merciful heart for Israel. Let’s intercede and obey whatever the Lord commands us in bringing His people home.
The Revised Edition of The Smallest Step of Obedience Opens the Biggest Door by Phillip Israelson is an invaluable resource for Christians seeking a deeper walk with the LORD. It is both inspiring and personal, sharing the author’s story of how God used life experiences to shape and grow his faith. The book is filled with powerful lessons on obedience—key principles for living an abundant life in Christ.
Amazon Link: https://a.co/d/0h6fwJG
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