When Philip Church writes, “There is simply no evidence in the New Testament that Jesus ... envisioned the establishment of the State of Israel before Jesus returns,” I am astounded (NZ Baptist, April 2012 Letters to the Editor).

Have we not learned from church history what happens when we assign unbelieving Jews to the dustbin and find no place for the nation of Israel in eschatology: anti-Semitism, pogroms and concentration camps, perpetrated often by Christians who thought they were doing God a service.

Philip Church, I assure you Jesus is not surprised by the establishment of modern Israel. In fact he wrote about it in many places in the Old and New Testaments. For example, read Matthew 24:14-22. Jesus talks about the last days before his coming, spoken of by Jeremiah 30:9 as the time of Jacob’s trouble. Jesus says after the gospel has been preached in the entire world, there will be a Judea where there is a holy place desecrated (as described in Daniel 9:27) and a Sabbath. He is talking about the miracle of modern Israel.

The covenant of God with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, “I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you,” still stands. The evidence of what happens to the enemies of Israel (even when Israel is apostate) is throughout the Bible, and clearly to be seen today. I suggest we side with God and bless Israel and the Jewish people even when they are turned away from God.

 God has not finished with Israel (apostate or not), just read the book of Revelation. To cast them off as irrelevant is the slippery slope that will play right into the hands of God’s enemies, when Jerusalem will be compassed about with armies at Armageddon (Luke 21:20) as the whole world is gathered against Israel. These things must happen, but church, make sure you are on the Lord’s side!

– Chris Ward
Doubtless Bay