It is amazing to me to think that only a year ago, I was in Israel, meeting new friends and visiting places that I had only read about in the Bible. As I have closely followed the news of the war since the early hours of October 7, 2023, my heart aches for the people I know there; indeed, for the entire country. My trip to Israel was far more than a mere tour of historical landmarks in another foreign nation; rather, it was a profound spiritual experience.
And now, the people who are part of God’s enduring covenant find themselves once more fully engaged in war.
The nation of Israel is under siege on three sides. In the northeast, mortar shells are fired across the border from Syria, a hotbed of activity by Iranian-supported proxy militias. In the north, from Lebanon, Hezbollah is sending commando raids into Israel and firing rockets over the border. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as well as from Iranian proxy militias like Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, are in Lebanon orchestrating terrorist actions. But the primary front is in Gaza to the south where Hamas and the Islamic Jihad have a stronghold. As the horrors of Hamas continue to be reported—like the beheading of infants and rape of women and children—I struggle to wrap my mind around the brutality.
I can’t—because, my friend, we were created in the image of our good God—not to imagine such atrocities.
But I cannot just go about my day as if this doesn’t matter as long as it isn’t interfering with my happy little life.
Israel matters to God and—it should VERY MUCH matter to me.
Israel is a national miracle. In fact, it is because of God’s promises that Israel exists today. In the Book of Amos God said:
“On that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, and repair its damages; I will raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old; that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the Gentiles who are called by My name.” Says the Lord who does this thing.
“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “When the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; the mountains shall drip with sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.”
“I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; they shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them.”
“I will plant them in their land, and no longer shall they be pulled up from the land I have given them,” says the Lord your God.
Amos 9:11-15 NKJV
Isn’t this what we are seeing now? Through the worst times, God has continued to watch over Israel–even when the nation wasn’t identifiable. Why? Well, God’s Word explains:
“He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”
Psalms 121:4 NIV
The watch-care of God is the ONLY reason for the existence of Israel as a nation today!
Think about the facts. It is purely a miracle that the ancient Israelites of the Biblical times have a remnant of people who have lasted throughout the centuries. All other ancient peoples including the Assyrians, Babylonians, and the Canaanites are extinct, but the Jewish people have survived for over 3,500 years. No other nation has survived such scattering and then been reunited as a nation. Other nations have assimilated into different nations with eventually all traces of the original civilization gone. Despite the fact that the Jews, a minuscule 0.2% of the entire global population, have been singled out for intense hatred and extermination for centuries—the Crusades, the Inquisition, Muslim oppression, and the Holocaust—yet they have not only survived, they have thrived. How is it then that the Jewish people who were scattered to the four corners of the earth still remain a known people group?
The nation of Israel is a miracle of our omnipotent God.
God has a magnificent plan for Israel.
Thus says the Lord, Who gives the sun for a light by day, The ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, Who disturbs the sea, And its waves roar (The Lord of hosts is His name):
If those ordinances depart From before Me, says the Lord, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.
If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, says the Lord.
Jeremiah 31:35-37 NKJV
Don’t you want to grab the great opportunity to be part of God’s plan for Israel? I sure do! Prayer engages the power of God to partake of the promises of God. We can share in ushering in the promises of God for Israel. The PROMISE of Jesus is:
“And whatever you ask in My name, THAT I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” (John 14:13-14)
The CONFIDENCE we can have in prayer is:
“If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” (1 John 5:14-15)
God’s promises to Israel are being fulfilled right before our eyes. Isn’t it exciting that we can be part of His eternal plan—through prayer? Tomorrow’s devotional includes some very specific prayers for Israel.
We are on Gods side. Let’s go win!
We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.
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