It has been 25 years since those battle-begrimed young paratroopers stood looking up at the Western Wall, the last artifact of the Herodian Temple. Their faces graphically mirrored the awe engendered in the heart…
Jerusalem! The very name commands a fascination. No other city in the world has been both adorned and devastated so many times by so many different peoples over so many centuries.
The ancient rabbis said, “Ten measures of beauty descended to the world. Nine were taken by Jerusalem and one by the rest of the world.”
The future of the city of Jerusalem is of vital concern to the three main monotheistic religions of the world—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Each has an historical claim to and a compelling interest in this city.
Opposition to Paul and his ministry was vicious. Judaizers had sown seeds of contention throughout Galatia. They had questioned Paul’s commission as an apostle, compromised the gospel by mixing law and grace, and corrupted local…
In the last article in this series, we saw that Abraham desperately wanted the heir God had promised to him. He realized that Eliezer of Damascus was not the one (Gen. 15:2).
The passing of Menachem Begin, Israel’s sixth Prime Minister, on March 9th, marked the end of a singular period in the history of the modern State of Israel.
Anyone who has stood on the Mount of Olives, just east of Jerusalem, and overlooked the city of Jerusalem will never forget the sight. This is especially true if it is seen as the early…
Likud USA mourns the passing of one of Israel’s Founding Fathers, Menachem Begin. Begin was one of the “Gedolei HaDor,” or giants of his generation. He was one of the greatest Jewish leaders…
In Isaiah 11:6 it is written, “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid.” One day recently I prayed before leaving my home to go out…
Momentous events are often captured in a phrase or some symbolic gesture that, in itself, seems relatively insignificant. Such was the case in the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
An old Yiddish saying translated into English, says, “As a high temperature does not denote serious illness, neither is Purim a festival.” Its meaning reflects the impression among some that the Feast of Purim…
Praised be Thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who has sanctified us with Thy commandments, and enjoined upon us the mitzvah of kindling the Festival lights …
Of all the feasts of Israel, none exemplifies the holy standard of living to which God calls us more than the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Instituted by God and given to the nation of Israel…
All of the festivals of Israel give great insight into the New Testament. Shavuot, or Pentecost, as most Christians know it, is no exception. Understanding the background and practice of this festival gives rich insight…
In December 1942 The Friends of Israel gave birth to a quarterly periodical, affectionately named Israel My Glory. The name was taken from Isaiah 46:13: “I will place salvation in Zion for ISRAEL, MY GLORY.”
Passing a milestone is often a noteworthy experience—it can be downright exhilarating. When the children of Israel crossed the Jordan on the way back to their homeland, they lived out one of the great highs…
On May 2, 1922—half a century ago—an 18-year old Jewish lad made his confession of faith in Jesus as Messiah and Savior in a small chapel in Warsaw, Poland, in the presence of an assembly…
Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from their birth, who are carried from the womb;
The very mention of the name Abraham causes multitudes of people to perk up their ears. Muslims, Jews, and Christians alike look to this patriarch as the founder of their religion.
In the Scriptures, the expression the Day of the Lord (together with other synonymous expressions, such as that day and the day of God) is strongly related to God’s rule of the earth and therefore…
The heads of a visiting Odessa delegation last week warned their Israeli hosts of the dangers inherent in nuclear weapons falling into the hands of Soviet Moslem republics about to declare their independence.
Judaizers had infiltrated the churches of Galatia and were sowing seeds of dissension. They had tried to discredit Paul’s apostleship by claiming he was a man pleaser—teaching circumcision when with the Jews (1 Cor. 9:20)…
Leviticus 25:8–17 provides for one of the more interesting statutes in Israel’s history. Beyond the rest that the land and the people were to receive every seven years, when the seventh seven came along…
We recently experienced something we have not seen in Israel for many years—a storm that produced 16 inches of snow! The children were delighted that they had a few days off from school and could…
No portion of the Word of God speaks to contemporary churches with more clarity than the messages Jesus Christ gave to the seven churches of Revelation 2 and 3. Comfort, advice, exhortation, warning and threatening…
The church of Ephesus was the first to be seen entering a crisis condition. Although commended for a number of things, this church had left its “first love.”
Smyrna was a major commercial center in the first century, giving it fame as the pride of all Asia. Although it was a free city, it gave total allegiance to the Roman Empire as supreme.
Pergamum was noted for its pagan religions and many heathen temples. Among others, they worshiped Dionysus, the god of vegetation, and Aesculapius, the god of healing. A medical school was attached to this pagan cult…
Church discipline is almost unknown in our day. If and when a church does decide to exercise discipline over backsliding members, the individuals involved often leave the church and go to another one nearby.
We have all attended funeral services at one time or another. In many cases, beautiful flowers are banked along an entire wall or occasionally cover all the walls of the room.
Jesus’ message to the church in Philadelphia, located in the province of Asia Minor, has always been my favorite among those found in Revelation 2 and 3 for three reasons: (1) Philadelphia was the ancient…
Christ addressed His final letter to the church of Laodicea, which was located in the Lycus Valley of southern Phrygia, midway between Philadelphia and Colosse. It was a significant commercial and banking center and was…
Transitions can be very difficult, but most of us are called upon to make them from time to time. One of the most difficult transitions to make is a change of vocations.
More than 100 Christian leaders, representing more than 20 million “Bible-believing” Americans, visited Israel recently with the Memphis-based Religious Roundtable. They came, along with a small group of Jews, to express their support…
No single event in the history of Medieval Europe stirs the imagination more than the expulsion of Spanish Jewry in 1492. It was the most infamous of all expulsions, striking an entire population of hundreds…
For years a perception prevailed that cast the liberal wing of mainstream Christianity as the true friends of Jewry, whose dialoguing with Jews was earmarked by no mention of Christ, and who actively promoted…
Since suffering a heart attack several years ago, I must go to the doctor every four months for a checkup. There are usually many people waiting in the doctor’s office, and it often takes several…
We have written in this space a number of times about neo-Nazis and their fellow travelers who dispense hatred for the Jewish people with a passion reminiscent of their mustachioed champion, Adolf Hitler.
Comfort is the operative word Paul gave to the suffering saints at Thessalonica. As was often true for first-century Christians, this church was born in affliction and immediately immersed in the caldron of persecution.
Paul had presented the gospel on three consecutive Sabbaths in the synagogue at Thessalonica. The Spirit of God had convicted the congregants, resulting in many Jews and a great multitude of Gentiles coming to faith…
Paul had a continual burden for the churches he started. Although he had moved on to other areas of ministry, either by the direct leading of the Lord or by being forced…
The New Testament epistles do not teach systematic theology. That statement may appear shocking to some readers, but a little reflection will clarify what is meant. A systematic theology textbook gathers all that the Bible…
The major subject of 1 Thessalonians 5:1–11 is the future Day of the Lord, which refers to God’s future intervention into world events to accomplish His purpose in history—to glorify Himself by demonstrating the fact…
More than half the Soviet people want all Jews to leave the country, according to a poll released … at the international conference on antisemitism held in the Soviet Union.
My first glimpse of the Sea of Galilee came as the early-morning winter sun kissed the surface in a brilliant, shimmering display. We were coming down from Upper Galilee on a north-south course parallel…
These headlines pose quite a contrast. It is important to note that these two groups are the extremes statistically. Only a small percentage of Jews hold either view.* But they do reflect just how difficult…
My wife suffers from rheumatism, and recently her doctor prescribed a visit to the Dead Sea. Many people from the Middle East, Europe, and other parts of the world come to the Dead Sea…
“American Jewry is in the midst of a spiritual holocaust, one it has unleashed upon itself,” says syndicated columnist Sheldon Engelmayer. Engelmayer’s sentiment is being echoed by the Jewish religious community on many fronts these days.
What did the Jewish people of Jesus’ day believe about the Messiah? What Messianic preconceptions greeted Jesus’ claim to be the Son of God and the Messiah of Israel?
Many questions have been asked recently about the Jewish people in Ethiopia and their immigration to Israel. These Ethiopian Jews are sometimes referred to as the Falashas. Who are they? How did they become Jewish?
The 19th century witnessed thousands of European Jews pouring through Ellis Island to their new home in America. They were greeted by words penned by a Jewess, Emma Lazarus, and mounted in bronze…
At the southern end of the Huleh Valley and the northern tip of the Jordan Valley lies one of the most amazing geographical features in Israel. It is the Sea of Galilee.
The history of a people is like a river that flows between two banks. Even when it twists and winds through different lands, it is still the same river.
Most Christians are aware that Jewish people do not accept the gospel. Some have learned that the methods of evangelism they use with Gentiles do not work when they talk to their Jewish friends about…
Western Europe’s Economic Community enthusiastically endorsed the Palestine Liberation Organization as the representative of the Palestinian people, condemned Israel for “violation of human rights,” and lectured about understanding “that peace doesn’t come from armed violence.”
The two previous articles in this five-article series focused on several problems related to the Reconstructionist views of history and eschatology, Matthew 24, the Book of the Revelation, the 70 weeks of Daniel 9…
I recently noticed several posters in my neighborhood announcing that a famous rabbi would be speaking at our community center. I remembered this rabbi from many years ago when he was a popular television entertainer…
Israel’s great fall feasts were celebrations that witnessed a pendulum swing of national emotions sweeping from trepidation to exhilaration. These spectacular festivals, around which all national life revolved, were seasons of intense personal interaction…
Over the centuries, Israel’s national life has revolved around her great feasts. In the days of the Tabernacle and, later, The Temple, Abraham’s sons heeded the Lord’s call to assemble “before the Lᴏʀᴅ thy God…
It is the most awesome day of the Jewish year. Yom Kippur is the Hebrew phrase for the Day of Atonement. For more than 3,000 years, Jewish people have observed this annual day of solemn…
The Temple of God had been completed. More than 150,000 men had labored for seven years in the building of what became known as Solomon’s Temple. The finest wood, the purest gold and silver…
One of the happiest of all Jewish holidays is Simchat Torah (Rejoicing over the Law). Second only to Purim in hilarity, this delightful holiday has but one word to describe it—joy.
Aircraft from Ethiopian Airlines, El Al and the Israeli Charter Co. began lifting off from Addis Ababa Airport about 1:30 p.m. yesterday for the 1/2-hour flight to Tel Aviv.
Blessing—what does the word mean? We use it so freely: “Bless you, my brother,” “Bless you, my sister,” and, when someone sneezes, “God bless you!” It is not uncommon to use phrases…
The previous article in this series focused on several problems related to the Reconstructionist view of history and eschatology. The present article examines problems related to other areas of Reconstructionism.
The chilling revelation of neo-Nazi video games that have become popular among young people in Germany and Austria threw yet another shock wave across a world that, to many, just doesn’t make sense anymore.
In the past 30 years there has been a proliferation of “new gospels” in the United States. Some are rooted in eastern philosophical religions, such as Hinduism. Others are based on pop-psychologies, which promise health…
One of my favorite expressions to describe Israel is Land of Contrasts. Just below the region of Dan, which was covered in the previous issue, is a valley that typifies this expression very well.
We are approaching the two greatest holy days on the Jewish calendar, Rosh Hashana (New Year) and Yom Kippur, which is the most solemn day of the year.
Revelation 19–21 moves history into its glorious Hallelujah phase. In the first six verses of chapter 19, four resounding Hallelujahs (praise the Lord) are raised—the only place in the New Testament where this word…
We don’t hear much about Heaven these days. The reason is quite simple. For a generation now, we have been occupied with being well-adjusted people in the here and now and enjoying our affluence…
Where will the Church be during the 70th week of Daniel 9 (the last seven years prior to the Second Coming of Christ, which has been popularly called the Tribulation period)?
President Bush has coined the phrase a new world order. It is being used to describe the abrupt changes taking place internationally brought about, in part, by perestroika in the Soviet Union and the new…
Revelation 20 is one of the great chapters of the Bible. It presents the tremendous events that relate to the reign of Christ on earth. Before we begin our examination of the chapter…
Have you ever taken an extended trip? While you may have enjoyed every moment of your adventure, it eventually became tiring. The food was not to your liking, the monotonous miles took their toll physically…
When the children of Israel first settled the Promised Land, the tribal allotment for Dan was along the coastal plain. But, by nature, the openness of the coastal plain created problems for the tribe…
Tisha be-Av, or the Ninth of Av (Av is the fifth month in the Jewish calendar, corresponding to July/August), not only commemorates specific tragedies in Jewish history; it also symbolizes all that has been dismal…
Israel’s first group of exchange students to the People’s Republic of China has gotten a close-up look at Chinese rural life. The first Israelis … have just finished their first semester at an out-of-the-way teacher’s…
In the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War, there is no longer a gloomy spirit here in Israel. Many people are walking along the streets of Jerusalem singing Israeli folk songs…
When the first SCUD missiles broke the night skies over Tel Aviv, Israelis raced for gas masks and the world braced for what Israel would do in retaliation to the attacks.
The face of our world is changing at an incredible rate. Armies moved through the Middle East packing a military punch never before witnessed on the face of the planet.
The time was 4:00 p.m. The date was Friday, May 14, 1948. A black sedan pulled up to the front of the Tel Aviv Museum. Out of the back seat emerged a short, white-haired man…
Just one short year ago, hope ran high that the decade of the 1990s would usher in world peace. The buzz words of the day were “Peace in our time.”…
The European Community, in a major turnabout, has decided to negotiate an enhanced role for Israel in the economically integrated Europe of 1992. The Brussels-based European Community Commission has informally jettisoned its policy of linking…
“The fifth Gospel”—that’s what one professor of biblical geography called the land of Israel. His point was that the Gospel writers, when presenting the life of Christ, assumed that their readers would know exactly what..
One of the most debated questions of our day is whether or not present-day Israel is the Israel of the Bible. Menachem Begin, when he was Prime Minister of Israel, ran his government…
Christian Reconstructionism (the teaching of which has been examined in survey fashion in two previous articles) has some commendable features. For example, it has done excellent work in evaluating the devastating effects of secular humanism…
In the last year, 200,000 new immigrants came to Israel, most of them from the Soviet Union. In one week during December 1990, 12,000 new immigrants arrived, more than in all of 1988!
In Deuteronomy 20:1 it is written, “be not afraid … for the Lᴏʀᴅ thy God is with thee.” Here in Israel, we are living in the light of this promise day by day…
With His talk of crucifixion at Jerusalem, Jesus’ disciples were struck dumb with consternation. Their anticipation and preparation had been geared for the coming Kingdom—a literal, one-thousand-year era during which the Messiah/King Himself would take…
Although it has sometimes been overlooked, a straightforward reading of the Book of Acts reveals that Christianity began as a sect within the Jewish community. Jesus was born of a Jewish mother, was reared…
Perhaps no city on earth is more loved than Jerusalem. The psalmist has well written, “Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion … the city of the great King”…
Yuppies have finally had it! Bad marriages, barren lifestyles, and children adrift in a culture devoid of coherent values have caused many from the affluence-is-everything generation to go looking for a better way.
Our previous article noted that the heart of Christian Reconstructionism (also known as Dominion Theology and Theonomy) is a postmillennial view of history. According to this view, at the time of creation God gave man…
Following a foiled attempt to infiltrate Israel by three Jordanian police officers and one civilian, Israel is looking closely at the stability of King Hussein’s regime in Jordan. Israeli military leaders have continually expressed concern…
A promise is only as good as the one who makes it. We have all had promises made to us that we knew would never be fulfilled. Conversely, other promises have been made…
I recently visited the ultra-orthodox section of Jerusalem, and whenever I go there I always begin the conversation by talking about anything and everything because this is the way to gain their attention and friendship.
Whether he understood the proper context of his words or not, the 12th-century hymn writer captured the mood of a remnant of Jewry who were longing for the appearance of the Christ.
Abraham was a man who couldn’t wait! The result of his impatience has been a conflict that has spanned the millennia and, even at the present moment of history, is far from being resolved.