Marc Drake, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church Sun Lakes
“What proof exists that the Bible is true?” King Frederick II of Prussia reportedly once asked his chaplain. The chaplain responded by simply pointing to one of the king’s advisors across the room, a man who was a Jew. The chaplain was making an excellent point without having to say a word. The survival of the Jews over the centuries is nothing short of a miracle of God. They have been hated, slandered, hunted, expelled, executed and driven from their land. Yet, again and again, God has preserved and delivered them (often in unexpected ways).
I’m told that in the hills of Samaria, you can climb a knoll that was taken in battle by Joshua, and again by David, and again by Judas Maccabaeus, and again by Moshe Dayan! That is but one example of how God has preserved the Jewish nation over the centuries. The fact is that no attempt to destroy the Jewish people has succeeded (and none ever will) because of the covenant relationship God established with them. In fact, it has been said that Israel is the only nation on earth that inhabits the same land, bears the same name, speaks the same language and worships the same God as it did 3,000 years ago.
Still, there are countries today, like Moab and Ammon of old, that have uttered words similar to Psalm 83:4, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!” Of course, today there are no Moabites or Ammonites, but the Jewish people are back in their homeland. In fact, this year marks the 70th anniversary of the modern state of Israel being reestablished in its land.
Even though the Jews are a fraction of the world’s population, the tiny nation continues to dominate the geopolitical headlines of the world. We must keep our eyes on developments in Israel and the Middle East, and we must also pray regularly for the Jewish people and their leadership – especially in light of the vehement opposition they experience. The Bible is clear about our responsibility: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:6).
How can one think about this unique area of the world without being reminded that it is the very land to which God sent the Messiah to be born? A pastor visiting Israel in the early 1900s wrote: “He is the Savior who gave His life for those who did not understand Him though they loved Him, and for those who did not love Him because they did not understand Him.”
Furthermore, the Bible clearly shows that the First and Second Comings of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, are both connected with the nation of Israel. And we say with the apostle John in the next to the last verse of the Bible, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” v