Christian Persecution May/Jun 2020
The global persecution of Christians has reached unprecedented levels: “260 million Christians experience…
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Open Doors for FOI
Larry is a lover of Israel and the Jewish people. He is also a longtime friend. I met him and his wife, Lori, many years ago when we moved to Chicago…
Israel’s Precarious Situation
On the night of October 24, 2019, all of Israel’s television news programs led with the same foreboding report: Israel’s…
The Coming Invasions of Israel
Jewish people have faced annihilation ever since Moses led them out of slavery in Egypt more than 3,400 years ago…
Relentless
“I felt so alone,” my Israeli friend said with tears in her eyes. We had just finished a delicious Shabbat meal in her home with her family when…
The Great Deliverance
At a “Thank God for Israel” event on an American university campus a few years ago, a young Jewish rabbi accosted me after I spoke…
Q: Are the 10 Tribes of Israel Lost?
One of the most asked questions concerns the status of the 10 northern tribes of Israel. These tribes of the…
The Reason for Our Hope
John was the lead pastor of a medium-sized church for 10 years. Things had been running relatively smoothly until the news broke…
The Lamp of the Lord
The menorah was an important component of the Tabernacle. It had two purposes: to furnish light and to remind all Israel that God is light…
Introduction to the Second Epistle of Timothy
The final words of someone facing death usually hold great significance…
The Giants
Relevant preaching. Authentic worship music. A community atmosphere. Many American churches today use those phrases to advertise the uniqueness of their…
Jewish World Update May/Jun 2020
Israel’s Ministry of Tourism and Land Authority recently announced the winners of two tenders for the construction of four…
Apples of Gold May/Jun 2020
A few days ago here in Israel, there was a big celebration and demonstration for equal rights for women. Even men from the Orthodox community participated…
From the Editor Mar/Apr 2020
Do you believe in miracles? It’s a simple question, but the answer has far-reaching implications. Two people groups we’d expect to believe in miracles are…
Inside View Mar/Apr 2020
Is the church becoming ignorant or arrogant when it comes to Israel? A LifeWay Research survey of evangelical Christians found that 76 percent of those…
Unifying Israel
Israel Railways recently christened the King David Line, a new fast rail connecting the country’s two metropolitan cities: Tel Aviv and Jerusalem…
The Tightening Turkey-Hamas Connection
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan recently invited Hamas leader Ismail…
Christian Persecution Mar/Apr 2020
CHINA—As more government officials in China are empowered to close churches and a “social credit” system threatens to…
Frame, Reframe: The Battle for Truth
I witnessed an attempt to reframe theology during our Canadian Friends of Israel Prophecy Conference…
Elisha: God’s Miracle Man
Elijah and Elisha were among Israel’s most important prophets. Some people confuse them, but they were extremely different men…
Important Events & Miracles
God performed 28 miracles through Elisha that affected people, prophecy, and politics and are recorded in the book of 2 Kings…
Q: Why Did Elisha Curse Youths for Mocking Him?
After performing a miracle in Jericho, the prophet Elisha went to Bethel…
A Great Woman, A Great Miracle
Some people spend a lifetime trying to acquire a great name or leave a great legacy. There is a special woman in the Bible…
Portrait of Grace
She was merely a little Jewish girl. Yet God in His sovereignty positioned her where her faith and grace would touch the highest echelons of military power…
Chariots of Fire
WAR. The very word conjures up horrific images of mass destruction, fleeing innocents, pain, and suffering. But another dimension of warfare exists…
He Is Risen, Indeed!
The apostle Paul believed in the resurrection, not because he was a Christian, but because he was a Jew. Faith in the reality of revival from the dead was part of his training…
God’s Home on Earth
When God exiled man from the Garden of Eden, humanity no longer had access to God’s presence. This access was not restored until the Lord prepared a…
Disciplining the Disorderly
A church is like a family. All members need love, and sometimes someone needs discipline. This fact was especially…
Significant Moments
A young pastor and his wife thought they were the last people to leave church following the evening service. The parking lot appeared empty and dark…
Jewish World Update Mar/Apr 2020
Orthodox Jewish communities in New York and New Jersey are reeling from two deadly attacks in December…
Apples of Gold Mar/Apr 2020
Most countries are against Israel. I am sure that if any other country had as many enemies as Israel does, it would not exist anymore…
The Beginning and Distinctiveness of The Church
In light of the fact that Covenant Theology and Dispensational Theology disagree concerning when the Church began in history, the previous article examined four lines of evidence to the effect that the Church began on the Day of Pentecost of Acts 2.
From the Editor Jan/Feb 2020
Two things I feel like I’ve known about since the day I was born are the Holocaust and the State of Israel. Some people feel these entities are unrelated…
Inside View Jan/Feb 2020
The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry is an evangelical organization. We share the gospel with everyone willing to listen. The word evangelical comes from the Greek…
Prioritize Your Heavenly Citizenship
It’s presidential-election year in America; and before you know it, you’ll be casting your ballot for the next commander-in-chief…
EU’s Bias Shines Brightly
The appointment of Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell as high representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs…
Christian Persecution Jan/Feb 2020
Muslim Fulani herdsmen kidnapped and killed a pastor’s wife in Nigeria three days after killing a Baptist pastor…
How to Relieve Stress in 3 Steps
Unless you’ve lived in a cave for the last four years, you probably know 2020 is an important presidential election year…
History in a Minor Key
The air was cool, a hint of dampness pervading it. I stood huddled with my Jewish friends. In front of us lay a massive mound of gray ash…
Nightmare and Blessing
I recently had a horrible dream. I was lost, very far from home, and nothing looked familiar. I felt anxious, afraid…
Judaism 2.0
On a radio call-in show some years ago, a listener asserted the world “would be better off without Jews.” Another listener called in…
Q: What Does Romans 8:28 Mean?
Many Christians are confused about the apostle Paul’s statement, “And we know that all things work together for good…
The Reason Why
Surrounded by 10 million busy South Koreans in a city teeming with skyscrapers and Forbes Global 2000 companies sits a humble house used by the Chabad of Korea…
A Place Called Home
The suggestion provoked a small eruption. I made it some years ago at a family gathering of my grown children and their families…
Important Events in Diaspora History
Following is a brief synopsis of what Jewish people endured as they wandered from country to country, trying to find rest…
All That Glitters Is Not God
The incident of the golden calf looms large in Israel’s history. Moses’ long stay on Mt. Sinai convinced some Israelites that…
Paul’s Emphasis on Prayer
Charles Haddon Spurgeon, often called the prince of preachers, had much to say about his prayer life…
Tomorrow’s Unknown Twins
Tomorrow is unpredictable. No one knows what it will bring. The ups, downs, twists, and turns of life…
Jewish World Update Jan/Feb 2020
Two Jewish students have been taken out of school after being the targets of anti-Semitic bullying in two separate incidents…
Apples of Gold Jan/Feb 2020
Psalm 115:2 says, “Why should the Gentiles say, ‘So where is their God?’” It is our obligation before God to tell others about Him…
From the Editor Nov/Dec 2019
Those of you who’ve read my book, The Search, know how much I loved and respected my late mother-in-law. Miss Thelma, as we called her…
Inside View Nov/Dec 2019
We often refer to the Jewish people as God’s uniquely chosen nation. That’s because Israel is unlike any other nation. God raised it up for His particular purpose…
Meaningless?
A favorite site on any Holy Land tour is Caesarea Maritima. The views alone from this ancient port city are breathtaking. Situated on the Mediterranean Sea…
Dispute Over Temple Mount Intensifies
Israeli Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan recently called for changing the status quo on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount…
Christian Persecution Nov/Dec 2019
AKWANGA, Nigeria — As a Baptist church member tried to fight off an armed Muslim Fulani herdsman…
A Jewish View of Christmas
“Where were you on Christmas?” The unexpected question from U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) to Elena Kagan…
Yes, Zuzu, There Is a Heaven
Each December my family and I look forward to the beautiful decorations, wonderful Christmas carols, and the many…
Q: What is the meaning of Revelation 1:7?
The apostle John wrote, “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him…
Life After This Life
Few subjects pique our interest more than the afterlife. What happens to us when we die? Many people speculate they’ll have a more fulfilling existence beyond…
Home to Eden
When you arrive in heaven, Saint Peter will greet you at the pearly gates with your eternal itinerary. You’ll receive your wings and a halo, take a seat on your white fluffy cloud…
The Gift of ‘No More…’
When my twin brother, a minister of the gospel, was dying from cancer last year, we were all praying God would somehow push back the awful disease…
The Greatest Family Gathering of All
I grew up the eldest of three sons. One month before I was born, my parents buried my older brother…
How to Get to Heaven
The climax to the popular animated Christmas movie The Polar Express is the song “Believe” sung by Josh Groban, in which he repeats the phrase…
Archaeology and the Ark
The Ark of the Covenant was largely introduced to people outside biblical circles through the Hollywood movie…
Standing Secure in Christ
False teaching had shaken the Thessalonians’ faith. It had persuaded them they were living in the Day of the Lord…
Herod the ‘Believer’
The learned magi in the strange caravan were asking dangerous questions when they arrived in Jerusalem. Their quest had taken them on a long journey…
Jewish World Update Nov/Dec 2019
Extreme pressure by various groups has forced the California State Board of Education to reject a proposed…
Apples of Gold Nov/Dec 2019
This week we received a phone call that a friend of our family was very sick in the hospital, so my wife and I went to visit her. Visiting a hospital is different from…
From the Editor Sep/Oct 2019
Over the years I’ve had many people tell me doctrine isn’t important. What matters, they say, is that you love Jesus. I’ll never dispute the importance of loving Jesus. But the apostle Paul spent…
Inside View Sep/Oct 2019
As long as we believe Jesus is the Savior of the world, does it really matter what else we believe? After all, didn’t Jesus come to save mankind from its sins, and isn’t that fact the basic essence of the Bible?…
The Ultra-Orthodox Dilemma
Teens in the Western World usually have the luxury of choosing to attend a college or university, join the workforce, or enter military service after graduating from high school…
Innovative Companies Love Israel
More than 500 multinational corporations (MNCs) representing 35 countries are now active in Israel, according to a landmark study of multinational activity…
Christian Persecution Sep/Oct 2019
Widespread evidence shows that “today, Christians constitute by far the most widely persecuted religion,” according to an interim report…
Where Was God When…?
Why doesn’t God always intervene to prevent terrible tragedies? If you’ve ever found yourself asking, “Where were You, Lord?” you’re in good company…
God & Creation
We believe God is one being in three coequal, coeternal persons. This short statement expresses the Christian definition of the Trinity, or the triunity of the Godhead…
Q: What Does ‘The Apple of God’s Eye’ Mean?
People often use the phrase the apple of my eye to express how precious a loved one is in their sight…
Good Works & Salvation
We believe all human beings are sinners (Rom. 3:23), possessing active sin natures that result in our physical and spiritual deaths…
Jesus & the Word
We believe Jesus was conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit and was born to a virgin. The virgin birth is a crucial doctrine of the Christian faith…
Israel & the Church
We believe the unconditional covenant God made with Abraham is still in force today, and God will not cancel it. God made the unconditional covenant with Abram (Abraham), recorded in Genesis 15…
Things to Come
We believe everyone who ever lived, including unbelievers, will be bodily resurrected from the dead and receive a new, immortal body. However, not everyone will spend eternity enjoying immortality…
The Big Ten
Many people are familiar with Cecil B. DeMille’s film The Ten Commandments. In a famous scene, Moses receives the Ten Commandments on stone tablets…
A Misled Generation
It’s encouraging to know that before the Antichrist even appears on the world scene, his ultimate demise and destiny in the Lake of Fire are certain. When Christ returns to Earth, He will destroy this man of sin…
Leave the Light On for Me
For more than 30 years, a motel chain in the United States has offered a warm welcome to its customers by telling them, “We’ll leave the light on for you”…
Jewish World Update Sep/Oct 2019
The vast majority of media coverage of anything involving Israel includes false accusations, distortion or omission of facts, or some combination thereof…
Apples of Gold Sep/Oct 2019
In Ezekiel 33:11 it is written, “Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways…
From the Editor Jul/Aug 2019
Every now and then, the Lord brings someone into your life who changes everything for you. I met Rennie and Ellie Showers 33 years ago when I was a student at Word of Life Bible Institute…
Inside View Jul/Aug 2019
I awoke in Jerusalem on April 5 to learn my uncle, Dr. Renald E. Showers, was called home to glory. As I reflected on Rennie’s life and the family stories I heard growing up…
Is Israel’s ‘Left’ Dead?
When Benjamin Netanyahu squeaked out his fifth victory in April, making him the longest-serving prime minister in Israel’s history, eclipsing even legendary leader David Ben-Gurion…
Understanding the Powerful IRGC
The Trump administration’s recent designation of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a “foreign terrorist organization” is part of a…
Christian Persecution Jul/Aug 2019
HYDERABAD, India—Christian persecution has grown much more severe in India, and tribal villagers are being taught that Christianity is anti-Indian…
Remembering Rennie Showers (1935–2019)
News of the passing of renowned theologian Dr. Renald (Rennie) Showers in April generated a massive outpouring of condolences…
How God Turned the Foolish Into Fantastic
As a frequent traveler to Israel, I know enough to go to a specially designated area for taxis located outside the terminal at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv…
What Heathenism Wrought
Without any announcement, the prophet Elijah appeared in Israel and boldly confronted his generation with a strong warning from God…
Q: Should Christians Always Obey Civil Government?
God instituted civil government in the Noahic Covenant after the universal flood (Gen. 9:6, 8–17) to protect human life and…
Israel’s Evil Kings
The northern kingdom was plagued with evil kings, beginning with Jeroboam (931–910 BC), who intentionally caused Israel to sin by erecting golden calves…
Confrontation on Carmel
The scorching sun beat down on Obadiah as he walked the arid path, each step sending a swirl of dust upward…
Passing the Mantle
It’s so important to teach the younger generation. Elijah mentored Elisha for almost eight years. Then Elisha made an unusual request…
‘I Will Send You Elijah’
Elijah has always been a bit of a puzzle. An iconic figure among the Old Testament prophets, he appears center stage, bigger than life—and then disappears…
A ‘Taste of Heaven’ Sabbath Song
The prophet Elijah is perhaps the most beloved prophet in the Bible. He is the forerunner of the Messiah and the…
Did Moses Write the Torah?
The Bible says explicitly Moses wrote the Torah. Exodus 24:4 states, “Moses wrote all the words of the LORD”…