|
Word from Yerushalaim |
1998 TIME FOR THE BODY TO GOVERN ISRAEL
In 1897 Theodore Herzl a Jew living in Basle Switzerland prophesied that the nation of Israel would be born in fifty years. And in 1947 the UN voted to create the state of Israel. Then on May 14 1948 Ben Gurion declared the independence of the state of Israel. Which began the first fifty years of Israel's existence and government in the natural by men and women in the first Knesset located in Tel Aviv in the old Histadrut union building. Attached is an article written by Asher Intrater here in Israel. I am posting this article because a lot of it agrees with what our home fellowship meeting was praying about. We were looking at and reviewing a prophetic word that Arni Klien received back in 1997 ("Israel can no longer be governed by its secular government, it is time for the body to take its place and rule in the heavenly realms"). In which the Lord spoke to him saying that the Fig Tree only bears fruit for fifty years, the fig tree is a type of natural Israel in scripture. Also interesting to know is that the Olive tree lives for over two thousand years.
Arni felt the Lord was saying that 1998 was not only natural Israel's fiftieth birthday and Jubilee, but was the beginning of a new season when the government of Israel was to be transferred to the body of Messiah, to rule in the heavenly realm, in Him. Which is an expression of the Olive tree (Israel in the spirit) (Romans 11). To confirm this word the Lord in such a miraculous way provided the funds (in the multiple millions of dollars) through believing people in 1997. They also live in Basle Switzerland where Herzl's first Zionist Congress convened in 1897. That is exactly one hundred years from the time of Herzl's prophetic word. Then came the favor to buy and take position of the old Histadrut union building, which was the first (Knesset) house of government in Israel. As a result in 1998 (fifty years after Israel's natural rebirth) this building which was the first Knesset of Israel came into the hands of the Messianic community, and what was once the room of the first natural government (Knesset) assembly in Israel was transformed into a tabernacle of worship unto the one true God of Israel. Thus establishing a place where the Lord could come and rule through His redeemed people, in Israel.
We feel that this is definitely a step requiring ongoing prayer. Not that we are talking about "kingdom now theology" for that is reserved for Yeshua, but that we take our place in the spirit to do the will of God the Father. It appears the body has failed to take up this call in the spirit and as a result since 1998 Israel's natural government has very much gone astray, embracing ideas and plans to divide Israel in order to create yet another Islamic terror state. The Lord has spoken His will and plan that needs to be taken back to Him in prayer. Please do seek the Lord on behalf of His plan for the body of Messiah here in Israel. That by His spirit He would anoint and unite a redeemed people to pray and invite His government. We are not sure how this would be made manifest, but that certainly through worship and prayer the Lord would come and take up His throne in our hearts.
_______________________________________________________________________
The Destiny of the Nations
by Asher Intrater
Every nation has two groups of people in it: the general population, which is seen by God as being in rebellion to His authority (Psalm 2); and the remnant, which is the group of true born-again followers of Jesus (Yeshua). The spiritual destiny of a nation is carried by the remnant of believers within that nation. We cannot understand God’s purpose and destiny for a nation by the unbelievers— even though the unbelievers are usually the majority population within the nation.
When God looks at a nation, He looks at it like a piece of fruit—like a banana with a peel, or like a nut with a shell surrounding it. The unbelievers in the nation are like the outer shell, but you—the believing remnant within the nation—are the part that God is looking at as the bearers of the national destiny! God’s purpose and the destiny for your nation is not in the hard outer shell of the unbelievers; it is in the core fruit of the believing remnant of your nation!
Let me give you a couple of examples. We cannot understand the spiritual destiny of China by looking at the communist regime of Mao Tse-Tung. That is only the carnal exterior of China—the chaff! The “wheat” of China is the approximately 100 million believers found in it's underground church. When God looks at China He sees both the wheat and the chaff.
If we do not have much spiritual discernment, we will only see the chaff, because that is what is visible to the natural eye. That is, we would only be able to see communist China and not the fruit of God within the underground Chinese church. It takes spiritual sight to see the hidden remnant within China, but it is only the believing remnant that carries the purpose and destiny of God for China.
In the end, God will separate the two. Remember that God takes the chaff and burns it up (Matthew 3:12)! The communist regime is not even going to be in the kingdom of God, but the underground Chinese church will be. We understand why God made the Chinese nation, when we see its underground Church. Consider the suffering and courage of that community of faith. What would the kingdom of God be without them?
Let me give you another example: the believing remnant of Palestinians in Israel. One of the joys we Messianic Jews have in Israel is our relationship with Palestinian Christians. I’m talking about born again, Spirit-filled, evangelizing believers who are Arab by birth! We have organized conferences from time to time, in which we enjoy precious worship and communion together.
As Jews we are enriched by our fellowship with Arab Christians, because they carry with them some of the culture of our forefather Abraham. Our people—the Jewish people—have been scattered in exile for the past two thousand years, and so we have come back somewhat as strangers to our own land. We have actually discovered some of our own roots through our Arab Christian friends!
Our ministry in Israel is in partnership with a group of Palestinian evangelists who are preaching the gospel to Muslims in the West Bank. They are in danger of their lives from day to day. Yet Muslims are being saved through them! Like the underground church of China, they also suffer for their faith. As a Jewish believer, I cannot imagine the kingdom of God without the remnant of true Arab Christians!
God has a spiritual purpose and destiny for every tribe, tongue, people and nation - if only we will have spiritual eyes to see it. The same holds true for Israel. If you want to understand the purpose for our nation, you cannot look at the unbelievers. You have to look at the hidden believing remnant within Israel.
Romans 11:2-5
"God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel…? But what does the divine response say to him? 'I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.' Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace."
Perhaps you did not even know that there is a believing remnant in Israel. Today - similar as in Elijah's days - there are more than 7,000 people who are Israeli citizens, Jewish by physical birth, and born again by the Spirit of Yeshua. I am blessed to count myself as one of those.
As it was in the example of the Chinese Church and the Palestinian Christians, so it is with the Messianic Remnant of Israel The destiny of our nation is found within the believing community, not in the unbelieving majority. If you want to understand what God is doing in Israel, the primary place you will be able to see it is within the Messianic Remnant.
Some of you have become confused in trying to understand God's destiny for Israel by looking at our unbelieving politicians—right wing or left wing, or by our unbelieving rabbis—Orthodox or Reform. That is not where you are going to see God's purpose for Israel! Why are you willing to have spiritual discernment when you look at every other nation of the world except for our nation?!
I want to challenge you as Christian intercessors. If you want to understand the purpose of Israel you must look past the outer shell of our unbelieving politicians and rabbis, and you must look to the core remnant of true believers within our nation.
If you continue to try to see the spiritual destiny and purpose of Israel by looking only at the unbelievers, you will only get confused either on one side or the other. Either you might become an "Israel-worshipper"; in which case you might start believing that a right-wing politician or religious rabbi is saved just because he can quote some things from the Bible
On the other hand, you might end up in "Replacement Theology", rejecting God's plan for Israel altogether because you say, ‘These people are not spiritual and not believers in Yeshua. Therefore they can't be Israel; and God has no special destiny for this nation.’ That is also a grave mistake. Both Israel idolatry and Replacement theology are errors. Both come from the mistake of missing the role of the Messianic remnant within the nation. The Messianic Remnant provides the correction for both Israel idolatry and Replacement theology.
As in every other nation, to understand the destiny and purpose of God for Israel we must look with spiritual discernment at the believing remnant within the nation. This remnant of evangelizing believers is how the kingdom of God is increasing. That reality is no less true in Israel than it is in every other nation on the face of the earth.
We must have God’s vision for the nations which is expressed and carried only in the believing remnant of that nation. There are two possible destinies for the peoples in every nation. There is the good destiny that comes from God and a perversion of that destiny which comes from the devil.
We can see this in Zechariah 14 where the phrase “all nations” is used twice in the chapter. At the beginning of the chapter (verses 2-3) it says, “For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle” and they will be destroyed by Yeshua at His second coming. (NAS)
Then toward the end of the same chapter in (vs..16) it also says that “…every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem” (or, you could say, the remnant of every nation) shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” KJV
You see that “all the nations” have both a positive divine destiny and a negative demonic destiny. The struggle between those two destinies is what spiritual warfare is all about. You are the representative within your nation that carries the destiny that God sees for your nation. You contain within you a vision for the salvation of your nation.
You are not going to be the part of the unbelievers from “all nations” that come up to Jerusalem to be destroyed! You represent the kernel of wheat within your nation and not the chaff. You carry God’s vision for the nations regarding Israel. You are called to partner with the remnant of believers in Israel through intercession and support of God’s purposes within Israel.
Your future is to be among those from all the nations who will gather each year to worship King Yeshua in Jerusalem. This is The Destiny of the Nations that is carried within the remnant of every tribe and tongue and people and nation…including Israel and including your nation.
Dan 12:3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.
Heb 12:28-29 ...since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire."
CHAPTER TWO