As I was praying for you this morning, my beloved partner, the Lord spoke to me from Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

That’s the word God gave Jeremiah. I’m sure Jeremiah didn’t feel that way when he was beaten and put in stocks and sunk in mud and his scrolls were burned because of the word of the Lord.

Jerusalem’s Mayor Teddy Kollek knew I liked Jeremiah.  Years ago, he told me he wanted to show me Jeremiah’s grotto, his cave. We went to it together. I was totally astonished because the name of that spot is now called Golgotha, the place where heaven and earth met.

Since the age of 11, I’ve learned to put all my faith in God. I’ve also learned to celebrate suffering and sacrifice and that nothing comes without a price. The Apostle Paul says, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).

The price of admission to change the world is high.  Jesus Himself faced unspeakable evil and betrayal.  The Lord told me that when trouble comes, don’t play the victim. He asked me two questions. First, are the things you’re living for worth Christ dying for?  Second, are you living your life in the light of eternity?

I have come to realize that it was in the quiet crucible of my personal suffering that my noblest dreams were born. God’s greatest gifts are given in compensation for what I’ve been through. That goes for you, too.  God has a plan and purpose for your life that is more wonderful and bigger than you can imagine.

I’m sharing this with you today to encourage you because as part of the Jerusalem Prayer Team, you’re doing something truly great for God. You are part of a 100-year plan. Yes, that’s what God told me. Friends of Zion would be a 100-year plan. It is your legacy. It will shine and impact the nation of Israel decades after you’ve gone to heaven.

Daniel 12:3 says, “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.” That is your promise. You are one of those stars that will shine in Jerusalem.  The echo of what you are doing will shine over the holy city of Jerusalem and throughout eternity.

Truly, you are living your life in the light of eternity, and the things you’re living for are worth Christ dying for. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generous Holy Spirit-led offering today. Jesus brought His offerings up to Jerusalem. Just like Jesus, you are bringing yours.

The vital work of the Jerusalem Prayer Team is only possible because of friends like you.  The needs are enormous. People are suffering because of the wars in Israel and Ukraine, and we are literally saving lives because of you. Please be as generous as you can. God bless you.

In the book of Daniel, we find the great prophet and man of faith praying and fasting and seeking answers from God about the visions he had been given regarding the future.  After three weeks, Daniel was visited by an angel who brought him the answer to his prayer.  But the angel also revealed to Daniel a spiritual battle that had been taken place in the unseen realm.

The angel said that the answer had been sent immediately, but it had been delayed because a demonic power that he referred to as the “prince of Persia” had blocked it from being delivered.  It was not until the archangel Michael, who is seen in Scripture as a great fighter for God’s people, arrived and helped win the battle that the angel with Daniel’s answer was able to come to the prophet and deliver it to him.

The Bible teaches that there are different levels of authority in the spirit realm.  Paul wrote, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

One of the most important truths I have ever learned is that no battle can be won in the physical realm unless it has first been fought and won in the spiritual realm.  If Daniel had not been faithful to continue praying even though his answer was delayed, I do not believe that the spiritual battle would have been won.  We are not observers in spiritual warfare; we are on the front lines of the battle.  Our prayers matter a great deal, and they are powerful.  The great hymn writer William Cowper said, “Satan trembles when he sees, the weakest saint upon his knees.”

We have a responsibility to be active participants in spiritual warfare.  We must take this seriously, because these spiritual powers—both demonic and angelic—are actively at work in our world today.  This is one of the vital lessons of this story from the book of Daniel.  Each of us is facing battles against differing levels or layers of authority in the spiritual realm.

This is not just true on an individual basis; it is true on a national level as well.  The demonic being referred to as “prince of Persia” had power and authority over one of the greatest empires of history.  And this is not an isolated or special case.  Other nations have demonic powers assigned to them.  After talking with Daniel, the angel revealed that there was another evil spirit involved.  “Then he said, ‘Do you know why I have come to you? And now I must return to fight with the prince of Persia; and when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come’” (Daniel 10:20).

This tells us that just as Persia had a demonic power working in authority over its empire, there was a “prince of Greece” as well.  And it was only after the demonic power behind the kingdom of Persia had been defeated by the archangel Michael that the Greeks, under Alexander the Great were able to defeat them on the field of battle.  Previous to that time, the Greeks and Persians had fought a series of battles, but there was no decisive victory until the demonic power dynamic was first changed.

This matters a great deal to us today because Persia—modern-day Iran—is once again involved heavily in potential conflict with the nation of Israel.  We do not know whether the same “prince of Persia” that was active in Daniel’s day is the same one behind the rulers of Iran today, but there is no doubt that there is a demonic power behind the throne.  Satan has hated God’s Chosen People throughout all of human history, and his demonic powers have turned many governments against them.  From Pharaoh in Egypt to Hitler in Germany to Iran today, the same evil forces are at work to try to destroy the Jewish people.

The reality of spiritual warfare is that Israel cannot be defended just with tanks and planes and soldiers and intelligence services or any other weapons.  The Jewish state must first and most importantly be defended in prayer.  That is why the Jerusalem Prayer Team exists…to gather Believers from around the world together to fight and win the most important spiritual battle of our lifetime.

As Daniel did, we must be faithful to pray until the victory is won.  Only when the “prince of Persia” is defeated in the heavenlies will Israel have victory over the great threat posed against her today by Iran.  And that victory will not happen unless and until we do our part to win it. 

Prophetic Messages
For Our Day

The seven major feasts set forth by Jehovah in the Old Testament book of Leviticus give a cadence, a pattern to the lives of the Jewish people. These holy days reassure the celebrants of God’s divine order, piety, and supreme worthiness. Jehovah cares for and watches over His people. The feasts have provided a thread of continuity for the Israelites from the moment of their escape from Egypt, as well as offering comfort, hope, and encouragement in times of trouble. The purpose of the seven observances is to turn the focus of the people to salvation and redemption through the Messiah.

The seven feasts God gave to Israel provide a picture of the past, present, and future. The first four feasts—Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Pentecost—outline events that were fulfilled by Christ during and immediately after His time on earth. Some Bible scholars believe the Church today is living in the three-month period between Pentecost and Rosh Hashanah, the Feast of Trumpets. When we look at the feasts, especially the three that happen in the fall, we are looking at a picture of God’s plan for the future.  These feasts are not just historical events, but prophetic depictions of the things yet to come.

Rosh Hashanah:
Feast of Trumpets

This year the observance of Rosh Hashanah begins
on Wednesday, October 2^nd, at sundown

The first of the autumn feasts was the Feast of Trumpets, or Zikhron Teruah, and now called Rosh Hashanah. It falls on the first day of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, and was introduced to the Israelites in Leviticus 23:23–25: “The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts.  Do no regular work, but present a food offering to the Lord.’”

The usage of the term Rosh Hashanah, “the head (or beginning) of the year,” was introduced in the second century AD after the Temple and Jerusalem were razed by the Romans.  Mention of the celebration of the Feast of Trumpets can be found in the Old Testament and is recorded in the companion books of Ezra (3:1–6) and Nehemiah (7:73–8:13). The Israelites had returned from captivity in Babylon, and the temple altar had been rebuilt.

On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra stood before the assembled people and read from the book of the law. He concluded his reading of the Torah with “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength” (Nehemiah 8:9b–10).

Rosh Hashanah is set aside as a day of rest and is celebrated by intermittent trumpet blasts, followed by ten days of repentance before the High Holy Day of Yom Kippur.  The writers of Rose Guide to the Tabernacle indicate: “Jewish tradition says that God writes every person’s words, deeds, and thoughts in the book of life, which he opens on Rosh Hashanah. If good deeds outnumber sinful ones for the year, the person’s name will be inscribed in the book of life for another year on Yom Kippur. During Rosh Hashanah and the Ten Days of Repentance, people can repent of their sins and do good deeds to increase their chances of being inscribed in the book of life.”

The sounds heard during the Feast of Trumpets are an important ingredient in the Old and New Testaments. It is a public acknowledgment of Jehovah as King of Kings.  The first day of the feast is to be a day of rest.  Although it ushers in a new year, it is not a frivolous holiday as is the world’s current New Year’s celebrations; instead, it is the beginning of a time of reflection and repentance.  During the Feast of Trumpets, there are specific guidelines for the way the shofar is to be blown.  There is a specific sequence for blasts on the instrument:

• The first sound heard is the Tekiah, or a long blast;
• Second is the Shevarim, or three short blasts said to mimic the playing of a trumpet. Some have said this sound resembles the cries of a man yearning to reconnect with Jehovah and believe it is the cry of a “broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart” (Psalm 51:17).
• The third sound is the Teruah. The writers on AISH.com define the call as: “The Teruah sound—
  9 quick blasts in short succession—resembles an alarm clock, arousing us from our spiritual slumber. The shofar brings clarity, alertness, and focus.”

Jewish conference speaker and writer Sam Nadler gives us insight into the observance during Rosh Hashanah: “The synagogue service during Rosh Hashanah included three fundamental sections. The first section is called Malkiyot (Kingship) emphasizing the fact of God’s sovereignty. The second section is called Zikhronot (Remembrance) which testifies to the fact that our God does remember His covenants and promises to Israel. The third section is the Shofarot section when the shofar is blown. Traditionally, the shofar brings to memory God’s provision of the ram that Abraham sacrificed in place of his only son, Isaac.”

Daniel foresaw the resurrection and rapture of the body of Christ. The call on the shofar was the signal to gather the children of God to meet Him in the air. Jesus reminded His disciples of the words of Daniel, and in 1 Corinthians 15:50–55, Paul interwove the two prophecies:
“Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’ O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”

The sound of the trumpet will also signal a much more devastating event: the beginning of what Jeremiah the prophet identified as “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (see Jeremiah 30:7). It is the time to which Jesus referred in Matthew 24:21–22: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.”  Just as the observers of Rosh Hashanah are called upon to examine their lives, so must believers in Jesus Christ reassess their commitment to Him, to His work, and to His Word.

Believers await the sound of the trumpet as a climax of world events for those who have had the doorposts of their lives covered with the blood of the sacrificial Lamb. It is God’s will and purpose to write our names in the Lamb’s Book of Life—not just for a year but for all eternity. The prophet Ezekiel describes what Jehovah God wishes to offer us: “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them” (Ezekiel 36:25–27). 

Not only must we listen for the sound of the trumpet, we must take time daily to reevaluate our relationship with our Lord, before the trumpet sounds. Ask Him, through the Ruach HaKodesh—the Holy Spirit—to reveal any sin in your life, and ask for help to live the life God has called us to live in Him. His grace is sufficient in every situation and circumstance of your life.

Yom Kippur:
Day of Atonement

This year the observance of Yom Kippur begins at
sundown on Friday, October 11^th

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the most sacred of all the High Holy Days celebrated by the Jews. It is a day for sober personal assessment; the only sacred assembly that requires mourning. The observance of Yom Kippur was established as a means for Jehovah to temporarily reconcile the sin problem and its devastating effects on mankind, and to restore the relationship between Jehovah and His Chosen People.

The word atonement appears multiple times in just one chapter of Leviticus—chapter 16. Leviticus 16:1 states, “The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the Lord and died.” Aaron was chosen by God to serve as high priest, and the two oldest of his four sons served as priests in the tabernacle. Nadab and Abihu were standing alongside Moses at the base of Mount Sinai; the brothers experienced firsthand the power, presence, and glory of Jehovah.  Yet they died for their sin.  What could Nadab and Abihu possibly have done to elicit such a strong reaction? The two men broke the laws God had established for service in the tabernacle:

• The men took on a role that was not assigned to them. Only the high priest was to offer incense in the Holy of Holies.
• They made the offering in vessels that had not been anointed with oil and set apart for service.
• Nadab and Abihu acted without the authority of either Moses or Aaron, and certainly without the blessing of Jehovah.
• Their actions were driven by pride, egoism, arrogance, and self-aggrandizement. They lacked respect for authority and, more importantly, for the holiness of God.
• Leviticus 10:9–10 indicates that the two brothers might have been under the influence of strong drink.
• Incense was only to be offered annually on the Day of Atonement, and under very specific guidelines.

Following ten days of repentance after Rosh Hashanah, the Israelites were instructed to observe the Day of Atonement. The high priest was to be the earthly mediator between the Israelites and Jehovah. It was a position of the loftiest honor and his duties were sacred. On the Day of Atonement, he was to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people and make intercession before the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies. 

On Yom Kippur, the high priest donned garments that would have consisted of

• a tunic of white linen woven in one piece (Note: Could the seamlessly woven robe worn by Jesus at His crucifixion indicate His position as High Priest? Hebrews 4:14, says, “Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.”)
• a robe of dark blue, the hem decorated with purple, scarlet, and blue pomegranates
• an apron or ephod woven from threads of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet
• a golden girdle tied around the waist
• pouches containing twelve onyx stones engraved with the names of the tribes of Israel
• a breastplate made of threads of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet linen containing four rows of three jewels. Each jewel in a gold setting was engraved with the name of one of the tribes. It was held in place with rings of gold attached to the shoulder of the ephod. A pocket made into the breast-plate contained the Urim and Thummim (objects used to determine God’s will)
• a golden crown on which was written “Holy to the Lord.”

On the Day of Atonement, the high priest was charged predominately with ministering before Jehovah in the Holy of Holies. It was the most sacred of all his obligations, for the threefold cleansing of the children of Israel rested upon his shoulders. Perhaps he knew that he was the type, the shadow, of the Messiah who was to come to redeem mankind from the burden of sin. As Jehovah had prescribed in Leviticus 16:32–33, the offering on Yom Kippur was made to bring purification—not only for the people but for the priest and his own family, as well as the temple in which the ceremony was held. [The word atonement is found four times in these two verses.] Moses was instructed that the high priest “is to put on the sacred linen garments and make atonement for the Most Holy Place.” (Jesus, our High Priest, had a crown of thorns placed upon His head—a crown of suffering, a crown of rejection. Now He sits on the right hand of God crowned with glory and honor.)

Yom Kippur is the day dedicated to the contemplation of one’s past sins. The people were to consider from what they had been delivered—the bondage of the Egyptians. On that day, the high priest was to make the designated sacrifices—two goats and a ram for the Israelites and a bull and ram for himself and his household. The animals were to be without spot or blemish according to the Mosaic law in Leviticus 4.The high priest was the only individual allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, and only once each year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The curtain divided the priests who performed the daily activities in the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. It was a barrier so that man would not casually, rashly, or disrespectfully enter into the presence of El Hakkadosh—the Holy God—who could not tolerate sin. Habakkuk 1:13 says of Jehovah, “Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong-doing.”

Although specially chosen to minister in the Holy of Holies, there were exact steps that had to be undertaken by the high priest before he could safely step through the veil into the overwhelming presence of God. Once inside the veil, the high priest stood before the only item in the chamber: the ark of the covenant.  The lid of the ark was known as the “atonement cover,” or the mercy seat. It was guarded by two cherubim, one at each end, fashioned from pure gold, wings outspread and meeting at the center of the cover. It symbolized God’s seat of authority and His presence in the tabernacle. It was Jehovah’s meeting place with the high priest as stated in Exodus 25:22: “There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.” 

Sukkot:
Feast of Tabernacles

This year the observance of Sukkot begins at
sundown on Wednesday, October 16th

The final of the seven feasts of the year is Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, or Booths. It is a celebration of the fall harvest, which even today lasts an entire week. The Israelites built temporary dwellings as a reminder of their forty-year trek through the wilderness. Jews today quickly construct a small hut where meals are eaten during the festival. Leviticus 23:40 detailed the materials to be used: “On the first day you are to take branches from luxuriant trees—from palms, willows and other leafy trees—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days.”

The branches used to build the booths were symbolic of victory (palm), peace (olive), and (willow) blessings. The sukkah, or shelter, must have at least three walls with a roof of branches to allow rain to fall inside. It is usually decorated with flowers and fruit, and one must also be able to view the stars. The feast is commemorated for eight days in the land of Israel, and nine days wherever Jews are scattered world-wide. On the first day of the observance and the final day, no manual labor is permitted. During the interim, a period called Chol Ha-Mo’ed, work is allowed.

The Feast of Tabernacles is a feast of expectation; an ancient reminder that one day the children of Israel would be firmly planted in their own land looking forward with anticipation to the arrival of the Messiah. It is also a time to remember Jehovah’s blessings. It is a time of restored communion with God, and a reminder that this sojourn on earth is only temporary. In ancient days, the Feast of Tabernacles was so festive that it was often referred to simply as “The Feast.”

From a sacred viewpoint, the feast is a celebration of the joy of knowing that for another year one’s sins will be forgiven. From a prophetic outlook, it is a look forward to the coming of Yeshua after which, according to Zechariah 14:16, “Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles.”

Sukkot is a time of great happiness, of parties, of praise, of hospitality. The Shabbat that occurs during the feast is a time to read the Torah, especially the book of Ecclesiastes (symbolic of the reality that life is fleeting). On the evening at the beginning of the feast, candles are lit just before the sun sets and blessings are recited. After sundown, a prayer of thanksgiving is offered. Before the evening meal, Kiddush (a blessing recited over wine or grape juice) is recited, or perhaps only a shortened version of the blessing of the wine. This is followed by the Sukkah blessing and then the blessing of the bread. The lulav is waved. It is a closed frond from the date palm, and is a part of “the Four Species used during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The other [three] are the hadass (myrtle), aravah (willow), and etrog (citron). 

Songs of praise are sung, usually taken from Psalm 136: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”  The family and friends then move into the Sukkah to pray together, eat, enjoy music, and generally unwind.  In Old Testament times, it was also a time of sacrifice. In his book Thus Shalt Thou Serve: The Feasts and Offerings of Ancient Israel, author and Bible teacher C. W. Slemming wrote: “Numbers 29 lists the number of animals to be used in the sacrifices of that week. The young bulls, diminishing in number from day to day for eight days, were 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 1. It has been suggested that the decrease to the one foretells…how the many sacrifices of the law would, in the fullness of time, be reduced to the One Sacrifice that would be made once in the end of the age. On the last day of the feast there were special celebrations and joy.”

In John 7:37, we read that Jesus went up to Jerusalem during this particular feast. While there, He declared, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.” Of this declaration, Slemming wrote: “Thus the Lord was turning the thoughts of the people away from the shadow to the substance, away from ritual to reality.”  The feasts were times when all physically able Jewish males were charged with going up to Jerusalem to appear before the Lord in the temple, the place that was symbolic of His presence. There they called to remembrance what Jehovah had done in bringing them out of Egypt into the Promised Land. They praised God for His provision and offered up sacrifices that would postpone their sins for another year.  “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4–5).

Sukkot And Prophecy

There are several prophetic dimensions associated with Sukkot. As we saw in Zechariah 16, it is an image of the time when the world will worship the Messiah in Jerusalem. Just as it was a remembrance of the time that God sheltered the Israelites in a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, it is a vision of the time when Israel will no longer be oppressed by ungodly nations. Ezekiel 37:26–27 gives us a preview of Israel’s future: “Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

There were two ceremonies observed on the last day of the feast in Bible times. In the first, water was carried by a priest from the Pool of Siloam to the temple. It was symbolic of the coming of the Messiah when, according to Isaiah 11:9, “For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.”  The people also marched around the temple carrying torches evocative of the Messiah who would be the light of the world.

Jesus was in Jerusalem with His disciples on the last day of the feast. The New Testament gives us a glimpse into Jesus’ last observance of those two practices:  On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37–38).  Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life” (John 8:12).

Today, the Jewish people await the coming of Mashiach, the anointed one; the Church awaits the return of Lord Yeshua who will come to tabernacle with His people. John, the Revelator, wrote: I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them” (Revelation 21:3).  When that day appears, we will not only tabernacle with Him, we will know Him and abide with Him throughout all eternity. Our greatest joy is yet to come.

David reminded us in Psalm 30:5 that “joy comes in the morning.” Jesus is coming soon for His bride. Our Lord warned in Matthew 24:44, “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”  “And I [John] heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God him-self will be with them as their God’” (Revelation 21:3). 

Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.  Psalm 33:12

What will be required for God to bless America before our Lord returns? Jesus said: “Some of you won’t taste death until you see My kingdom come” (Mark 9:1). What did He mean? Everyone who heard Him say that died physically. But many of them did see His kingdom come. They experienced the fullness of His present-day ministry.

Peter saw Christ’s kingdom come, and people were healed just by his shadow falling on them. Paul saw Christ’s kingdom come, and people were healed when pieces of his clothing were placed on them. John saw Christ’s kingdom come in the midst of a prison island, surrounded by the worst elements of society, when he was caught up in a vision of the end-times seeing Jesus in all His royal, heavenly power.

These “God wrestlers” saw Christ’s kingdom come in all its glory. They saw Christ’s ministry fulfilled on this earth. This is the kind of power needed for the Church to throw down the gauntlet in the face of the Enemy who has come to steal our country, kill its citizens, and destroy the lives of God’s people.

Western culture has softened us, cause us to settle for a comfortable what’s-in-it-for-me style of Christianity, rather than sacrificing in order to have God’s power and presence. I was once in the office of a presidential candidate who had publicly proclaimed his faith in Christ. I asked him what his political stance would be on what were once considered the hot issues in Christianity, like abortion.

“The way you win elections is to avoid those black-and-white issues,” he responded. “Abortion is really a non-issue.”

“But why?” I asked in consternation. He replied, “Because our polls show that as many Christians have abortions as non-Christians. In fact, there is little difference in the polls between people in the Church and those outside it.”  How sad. The Church doesn’t vote its conscience because its conscience is guilty! So politicians stay neutral, and morality is nullified.

Twenty-eight civilizations have risen and fallen. Ministries and visions have come and gone. No matter how powerful each was, they are now no more! Will that be the fate of our nation, our generation?  Let’s get onboard with what God is doing, so that we are not left behind. If we as Believers do what we’ve done in this decade, then we’ll have what we had in the last decade: very little.

We must pray for Christ’s mission to be accomplished. Joshua said: “Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord, and tomorrow God will do amazing things among you” (Joshua 3:5). We need a pure understanding of what it means to have Christ in us, and the effectiveness of prayer to complete His mission.

If we are truly the salt and the light of the earth, why have the worldly taken over the Church? Have you been vaccinated with a mild case of Christianity so as to protect you from the real thing?  Those who have tried salvation without dying to the flesh will soon fall away. In Matthew 13:3-7, Jesus related the parable of the sower:

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.”

The ground of our hearts determines the results of our prayers.  Stony hearts do not produce powerful and fruitful prayer lives.  We must first look inside ourselves rather than toward others when we ask God for His forgiveness, cleansing, power, and blessing.  A Believer walking with God is a powerful blessing to any nation.

The 2024 Presidential Election

And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked?  Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it?  Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”  So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” —Genesis 18:23-26

Though it is true that the solution to America’s problems lies in the church house rather than the White House, it is also true that it matters a great deal who leads this nation.  As citizens in a republic, we have the privilege and responsibility of helping to choose our leaders.  There are two vital responsibilities every Believer has in the upcoming election.

First, we need to be part of the righteous remnant that can defer God’s wrath against a sinful nation.  There is no doubt that America, like Sodom, has turned its back on God’s declared law.  We have leaders boasting of defying morality and decency.  We have a culture wallowing in sin and rejoicing to do evil.  And yet we see from the story of God’s conversation with Abraham that as wicked as Sodom was, if there had been enough righteous people there, the city would have been spared.  The Bible teaches that one of the judgments God places on nations is to give them poor and unqualified leaders (see Isaiah 3:4). America needs good leadership and that depends on the righteous remnant.

Second, we need to pray diligently for the outcome of the election, and for whoever is elected as the next president. The prayers of God’s people for their leaders are a vital part of His plan.  If we are going to tell Satan that he can’t have our country, we must do it on our knees!   

A PRAYER FOR AMERICA

(from Nehemiah 1:5-11):

I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You and observe Your commandments, please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded of Your servant Moses. Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.’ Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name…

Hezbollah

Creature of Iran

Since the early 1980s, Hezbollah has been one of the most powerful and prominent terrorist groups in the world.  According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, “Hezbollah quickly established its strength and prominence through a string of major terrorist attacks in the region, including the suicide truck bombings of the U.S. embassy and Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983, the 1984 car bombing of the U.S. embassy annex in Beirut, and the hijacking of TWA Flight 847 in 1985. Hezbollah, often working with Iran, also launched terrorist attacks on France and U.S. Arab allies.”

Hezbollah also played a key role in the kidnapping of more than 100 American and Western European hostages between 1982 and 1992.  Among the more than two dozen American hostages taken were CIA Bureau Chief William Buckley and Marine Colonel William Higgins, who were both killed.  This led to the arms for hostages program where the Reagan Administration provided weapons to Iran through Israel, in exchange for which three of the American hostages were released.

Following the conclusion of the Israel-Lebanon War in 1985, Hezbollah played a key role in the Lebanese Civil War.  They partnered with the Assad dictatorship in Syria to gain effective control over the country.  They branched out from paramilitary and terrorist activities into politics, becoming one of the most powerful parties in the Lebanese government.  Despite only holding ten percent of the seats in Parliament, Hezbollah has used their influence to prevent the replacement of Lebanon’s president whose term expired in 2022.  Their ally Najib Mikati has been acting as president ever since.

The terrorist roots of Hezbollah cannot be denied.  The CSIS noted, “Hezbollah is a radical Shia organization, embracing the teachings of Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Since its founding, Hezbollah has subscribed to the doctrine of wilayat al-faqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists), which advocates a guardianship-based political system centered on one qualified Islamic jurist, the supreme leader of Iran.”

The BBC described Hezbollah as “one of the most heavily-armed, non-state military forces in the world.”  It is funded and equipped by Iran.  Its leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah has claimed that Hezbollah has 100,000 fighters.  Estimates of the stockpiles of missiles and rockets provided by Iran for use against Israel vary widely, but it is believed that they have at least 150,000 hidden and ready to fire at a moment’s notice.  Iran has invested heavily in setting up manufacturing operations in both Lebanon and Syria to provide even more weapons for the war against Israel.

The weapons Iran has provided Hezbollah are far more sophisticated than those possessed by Hamas.  Iran’s proximity to Lebanon and its partnership with Syria make it far easier for them to supply advanced missiles to Hezbollah.  Despite Israel’s best efforts to halt these shipments, Hezbollah’s rocket stockpiles continue to grow.

It is estimated that they have fired more than 1,500 rockets and missiles into Israel since the Hamas invasion in October of last year.  Most of these have been fairly short range, unguided weapons.  But they have much more deadly weapons in their arsenal.  Virtually the entire country of Israel is in range of Hezbollah rocket attacks.

And Hezbollah is not just a threat to Israel.   In testimony before Congress in 2023, FBI Director Christopher Wray stated, “FBI arrests in recent years also indicate that Hezbollah has tried to seed operatives, establish infrastructure, and engage in spying here domestically—raising our concern that they may be contingency planning for future operations in the United States.”  A 2024 Treasury Department report said that Hezbollah “members and sympathizers have long been involved in an array of large-scale criminal schemes, including sophisticated money laundering, smuggling, and trafficking networks that have involved the U.S. financial system.” 

Lebanon

Nation of Sorrows

There was a time when Lebanon, and especially Beirut were renowned for their beauty and culture.  Lebanon’s capital was often referred to as the “Paris of the Middle East.”  The nation had come under French control following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.  The victorious British and French governments divided much of the region and took responsibility for the establishment of new governments in the nations they oversaw.

Because the population of Lebanon was divided among Christians, Sunni Muslims, and Shia Muslims, a power-sharing agreement was put into place whereby the president of the country would be a Christian, the prime minister would be Sunni, and the speaker of parliament would be Shi’ite.  This arrangement worked relatively well until the influx of Palestinians in the 1960s and 1970s following their expulsion from Jordan after a failed attempt to overthrow the government there.

The Palestinians under Yasser Arafat allied with radical elements trying to overthrow the Lebanese government and seize power.  In 1975, a civil war began that would devastate the nation.  For the next 15 years, rival groups fought a bitter and brutal war that saw at least 150,000 killed and more than a million people flee the country.

In addition to rival religious groups, there were also a number of secular militias with allegiance to different foreign countries.  Rather than a war fought between armies on a battlefield, the Lebanese Civil War was waged from town to town and street to street.  Simply living in the wrong place became a death sentence for many.

In 1976, thousands of Syrian troops crossed the border to intervene in the war on behalf of their favored groups.  Eventually Syria would have 40,000 soldiers in Lebanon, giving them effective control over most of the country.  Fighting continued in Beirut along the “Green Line,” which divided the Muslim and PLO controlled western part of the city from the Christian controlled east. 

Along with their fighting in Lebanon, the PLO continued attacks against Israel, leading to the creation of a security zone along the border by Israeli forces.  IDF soldiers crossed the border in force in 1982 as part of Operation Peace for Galilee.  They were not fighting the Lebanese army, but the PLO.  

In 1982, the Islamic Republic of Iran established a base in the Syrian-controlled Bekaa Valley in Lebanon. Marine Col. Timothy Geraghty in his book Peacekeepers at War recalled that from that base, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) “founded, financed, trained and equipped Hezbollah to operate as a proxy army” for Iran.  Hezbollah quickly became the iron fist of the Islamic regime, carrying out the war against Israel and the West. 

In the mid-1980s I was rushing through an airport in Rome with a friend of mine who was a television producer.  Suddenly, I spotted at the opposite end of the tunnel a short, stooped woman wearing a familiar robe.

“Paul,” I called to my friend, “Watch our stuff.”  I threw my bags at his feet and ran to her.  “My name is Mike Evans,” I said as I approached, offering my hand to shake hers. Mother Teresa’s dark eyes twinkled as she grasped my outstretched hand and said, “Mr. Evans, it is very nice to meet you.”

All the love of the universe seemed to drain from the atmosphere at that moment. It was as if that love was concentrated within her tiny frame and radiated through her. My flight and my friend no longer existed. Like a schoolboy, I stammered a few words about my current mission to Israel, then collected myself and asked about her recent trip to the United States. I thought I would sympathize with her for returning to the suffering in India after enjoying the comforts of the States for a short time.

“No, no,” she said with a sad smile. “It is in the United States that I am sad. I believe it is the poorest country on earth.”  “But why?” I asked, stumbling in my attempt at small talk with this giant of faith.  “Ah,” she said, “the United States is poor in spirit, and that is the worst kind of poverty.”

I have meditated on Mother Teresa’s profound statement in the years since that encounter and have come to understand it more each day. In a land of wealth and opulence, with every opportunity afforded us—from time-saving gadgets to life-enhancing luxuries—our nation as a whole seems devoid of true fulfillment and lasting contentment. Even with all our computer-age technology, state-of-the-art communications satellites, multi-million dollar universities, and Internet-ready cell phones, we still don’t seem able to rise to a level of greatness equal to our level of wealth. Like a good dream that doesn’t last until morning, personal peace is fleeting and achieving a fulfilling purpose for living eludes us. We seem to be a nation of people who, while struggling to know our divine destiny, settle instead for complacency, missing God’s power and purpose in our lives.

The great failure of God’s people in our days is that we do not come into His presence through prayer as we should.  When we live our lives spending time with God to get to know Him and His purposes, opening ourselves to consider and be part of manifesting His kingdom on the earth, then we should have constant joy within, welling up and spilling out. It should be an infectious joy that makes others want to partake. It should be in us as it was in Jesus and should attract people to us as it did to Him. Just as people should know we are Christians by our love, so should they know we are different because of our joy. If we are truly walking with Jesus, allowing Him to guide our steps, then we should be constantly experiencing the benefits of His Holy Spirit. Just as those who were healed when Peter’s shadow fell across them, we should be more fully experiencing the benefits of the Holy Spirit as we follow closely behind Jesus.

God’s presence changes things, so if He is truly in us and we are abiding in Him, then His life-changing power should shine through us. Yet, instead, we are often indistinguishable from the rest of the world. Some might call themselves undercover Christians, but the truth is we’re not under cover; we’re unchanged!

Nothing can blind us to that more than ego or self-deception.  Sometimes it appears that those who seem to be doing the most for God are the most deceived. In the past three decades, scandals have rocked the Church on an international scale with every vice from greed to adultery to child molestation. Then, as if that were not enough, on the other side have been those of us who stand in judgment over these people, erring on the side of stiff religiosity and driving more away from God because of our unforgiveness and self righteous demeanor. Believe me, I know what I am talking about here; I have experienced this fleshly pride first-hand.

During the scandal surrounding the demise of the PTL television network in the mid-80s, I was invited on television news programs—Crossfire, CNN, Nightline, and so forth—to debate the various attorneys involved. Charles Gibson on “Good Morning, America” continued one such show through two extra segments because we were having such an insightful discussion. I thought I was doing a service to the Body of Christ. But instead I was engaging in what Evangelist Doug Stringer called the “Spiritual Immune Deficiency Disease”—cells eating other cells within the Body.

Consider all the energy I’ve wasted over the years seeking the approval of others, becoming intoxicated by someone else’s power, working as an unofficial arbitrator in big-name church cases, engaging in media fist-fights all over the nation. I thought I had arrived and was finally really doing something to help Jesus. But Jesus doesn’t need such help—He needs my humble obedience. I wasn’t carrying out His ministry on the earth—I was blindly exalting Self! I was seeking validation and justification for my flesh. I was allowing it to fight other flesh—and all under the Christian banner!  That realization drove me to my knees.

When great saints pray, a flame of the Spirit is stirred up from within. Instead of praying, “God, send revival,” they all discover the same thing: The Person of Jesus Christ revealed by the Holy Spirit is revival. We need to stand up at His command and declare His presence. Declare God’s Glory! It’s all about Jesus! When we ultimately become acquainted with Jesus, we are drawn into the presence of the Father which leads us to His glory!

I was at a church outside New Orleans many years ago when, before I preached, Jesus softly instructed, “Stand up and declare a spirit of salvation.” I thought, How odd. But I obeyed.  When you say what Jesus says, you will see what Jesus sees and you will do what Jesus does.  When I spoke Christ’s words, instantly the power of God fell on that congregation. The large chandelier began to shake; then the building shook. I was told later that the pastor’s wife called the police to ask if there had been an earthquake. There had not been, but 62 people who did not know Christ, rushed from their seats to the altar for salvation.

The visitation of God’s glory is a heaven-sent revival, the Holy Spirit power within us manifesting the present-day ministry of Jesus Christ. All we need are hearts hungry enough to believe His Word and act upon it in His wisdom.  The Church in the Book of Acts caused demons to tremble.

Christians preached the Word with fire and glory; there was nothing they wouldn’t do for God. There were no territorial rights, no spirit of competition, no power plays, no arrogance and no big egos.

The great teacher E. M. Bounds said, “Programs, techniques, cam-paigns are utterly useless unless people are under the control of the Holy Spirit. Men are God’s methods. While men look for better methods, God looks for better men.” You and I can be among those for whom God is looking!

At the age of 31, I faced one of the greatest crises of my life. I had been working 18 hours a day, seven days a week, striving to be the best I could be. I had no comprehension that I was competing for acceptance among my peers. I was addicted to work in the same way an alcoholic is addicted to alcohol, or a drug addict is addicted to drugs.  That addiction began to break my health.

An undiagnosed neurological disease began to manifest itself.  It caused all the muscles in my neck to spasm. I began to experience panic attacks and tachycardia. My heart rate would jump from 80 to 200 beats in a matter of seconds.  In the midst of the darkness, I became depressed, discouraged, and physically drained. I cried out to God from the midst of that cardiology ward, “Lord, I’ve never wanted to know You in the fellowship of your suffering, but I do now.” As I said that the Lord said, “Then you shall know Me in the power of My resurrection. Because you are willing to admit what you are not, I will empower you with what I am.  Where those two points meet, destiny will be manifested in your life.”

Little did I know that several months later, the soft, gentle voice of the Holy Spirit would speak to me to read the following: “Remember not the former things, neither consider the things of old, behold I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth. Shall ye not know it; I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:18-19).  Through this Scripture, it was as though a drop of water had fallen on my parched spirit. Next the Holy Spirit instructed me to go home, send a fax to Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, and ask if he would meet with me. I argued, “No Lord, there’s no way. He doesn’t even like me, so why would he want to see me?”

Eventually, I obeyed His voice and sent the fax telling Prime Minister Begin I’d be in a Jerusalem hotel for six days and desired to meet with him. I flew there, checked in, and began to pray.

On the second day, I found myself in the Prime Minister’s office. I approached him with “Hello, how are you?” He then talked for almost 30 minutes, which was good because I had nothing to say.

Finally, he asked, “Why did you come?”  “I don’t know why I came.”  “You don’t know?” he said with astonishment. “What do you know?”  “God sent me,” I said.  “God sent you but didn’t tell you why?” he asked, becoming amused at the situation.  “No, He didn’t tell me why,” I said, somewhat embarrassed.  He called for his secretary to come into his office.  “Eight thousand miles, Kadashai, to meet with me, and he says nothing except God sent him. Kadashai, shake his hand. We have finally found an honest man!”

Then he turned to me and said, “When God tells you why, will you come back and tell me?”   After leaving the Prime Minister’s office I still didn’t know why I’d gone, so I prayed and waited for an answer. Finally, Jesus softly spoke one word to me, “Bridge.” Once I had that, I called the prime minister’s office and we met again.  As before, after our greeting, he asked, “Why did you come?”  I only had the one word, so I said, “To build a bridge.”

“A bridge? Like the Brooklyn Bridge?” the Prime Minister asked.  “What kind of bridge?”  I had no idea what to answer, but as I opened my mouth, out popped, “A bridge of love.” Immediately, Jesus’ soft voice became clear on the inside of me as to what He intended for my life through this meeting.  “A bridge of love,” he mused. “For whom?”  “Between Christians in America and Jews in Israel,” I answered.  “I like that,” Begin said again. “I will help you.”

That was the start of more than four decades of a Jesus-blessed ministry to the nation of Israel. It revolutionized my life and helped develop the bridge Jesus wanted to build.  By my not caring about my reputation, God was able to use me.  Somehow I fit into His plan, allowing my imperfections to draw me closer to Him.