Arrows 8_27_2024 We must Prioritize Teaching Romans 11:28

Raising an alarm

Understanding Romans 11:28 
Can keep many Christians from becoming antisemitic

We must prioritize teaching Romans 11:28
by Donna Diorio

For many years I have kept something in my heart that I sensed would eventually become a huge problem for Christians all over the world. Now with anti-Semitism on the rise worldwide and because of another high profile Christian spouting virulently Jewish conspiracy theories, I believe the time is now to speak frankly about what I sense. Indeed, at times in years past I have had to grapple with my own ill feelings toward unsaved American Jews – especially in their political choices. Why was their alignment not with the godly paths? I am being transparent with you about this because I saw other Christians speaking against the Jewish involvement in causes that actually broke down the paths of righteousness in America. Sometimes groups like the Anti-Defamation League were so actively involved in persecuting the righteous, presenting false narratives & statistics, warring against conservatives – their political enemies, it was difficult for me to keep on top of my anger to keep in mind they are UNSAVED & will not act saved until they are saved!  

     It was stretching my taking to heart what Paul told the Roman Christians in the beginning. It is an even more urgent message to Christians today. In every way, we have to spiritually understand the unsaved Jewish people as Paul laid it out in Romans 11:26-29 — And so (in this way) all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come from Zion; He will remove godlessness from Jacob. And this is My covenant with them when I take away their sins.” Regarding the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes; but regarding election, they are loved on account of the patriarchs.

     Now unsaved Jews are often on the wrong side of godliness. That is just a fact. But God has them tagged for salvation by faith. Not one of us is on the side of godliness unless the Spirit of the Lord is in us to make it so. So when Jesus told his Jewish disciples in Matthew 5: 44-45 “I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven, He was saying this also to Christians in the 2,000 years ahead regarding the Jews. But what did we do? We lost spiritual perspective, not realizing God’s plan for setting aside the Jews “for your sakes” – for the sake of including the Gentiles into a salvation that had only been been widely extended to Jews up to that point. 

     What did we do about the Jews? We persecuted Jews throughout the 2 millennia since Yeshua’s sacrifice as the Passover Lamb. Now as part of the “Never Again” resolve that came out of the Holocaust, they persecute us at the first sign what they perceive as trouble. Their perception can mean that if we support Messianic Jews then they see it as a form of persecuting them by trying to “covert” them to Christianity. Even when Israeli Jews come to faith in Yeshua, to many Jews they have ceased to be Jews and are now traitors to their own people, no longer Jews. For many of the pro-Israel Christians Israelis have cultivated relationship with over decades – accepting only those who would keep strictly away from sharing our faith – many of those Christians have been convinced that 20,000 or so Israeli Jews who believe in Yeshua/Jesus are cults! It is crazy that Christians fall for that line of thinking!  To shun Israeli Messianic Jews in order to embrace unsaved traditional Jews is NOT God! 

     Many pro-Israel Christians seeking to bless the unsaved traditional Jewish rabbinic projects while turning a blind eye to Israel’s Messianic body laboring in the spiritual harvest, have not taken it to heart that we have a narrow path to walk with unsaved Jews who are “enemies of the Gospel” yet beloved by God for Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and the other patriarch’s sakes. Understanding that can NEVER mean turning our backs on the Israeli Messianic believers.  

     The other side of that coin is American Christians are puzzled and angry that the majority of American Jews are politically opposed to government policies that make for the godliness of the nation – even failing to support US policies that benefit Israel!  It is grieving if we don’t keep a Heavenly perspective about unsaved Jews. God promised He would remove “godlessness from Jacob” and He is the only One that can do that for any us.

     I don’t want this to get too long so I address the reason I was prompted to write about how we must teach Christians how to get a godly perspective about unsaved Jews. A Christian political commentator, Candace Owens came out spouting Jewish conspiracy theories that were truly horrible and Jews began to denounce her immediately. Even her father-in-law in Britain, Lord Michael Farmer, an ardent Israel supporter, distanced himself from what she said.

     It originally began months ago when she said “Christ is King” and Ben Shapiro and others went ballistic about it. Eventually the breach between Candace and Ben became so acute that Shapiro kicked her off his political commentary platform. Then the Jewish community condemned her as an anti-Semite. No doubt real anti-Semities came running to show her support and fill her with Jewish conspiracy theories. It is essentially the same thing that happened to Kanye. I think both of them were uninformed Christians but they both lost so much attacked so strongly as being anti-Semites, the fell into great bitterness.  

     This is an old tactic by the enemy.  I saw it first in my first year of my faith only it was the story of the #1 leader of the Ku Klux Klan who got saved one morning in our church service. My husband was anxious to get to know him and we became friends with him pretty quickly. His hatred of blacks was an offense of what he experienced at being kidnapped by a black criminal. It drove him into the hands of the KKK.  He was in great fear when he was car jacked, tied up in the back seat and driven to Oklahoma, fearing for his life all the way. When Tommy was released, a fellow employee secretly in the KKK filled Tommy's wounded soul with a hatred of all Blacks. The man invited him and he joined the KKK and rose through the ranks all the way to the top. Years later he had a nervous breakdown, so filled with terrors he had to be hospitalized. That's when the angels came to him and led him all night long through the scriptures to show him where he had left the path of living for God. All that time he thought he was doing “God’s work.” After renouncing his KKK robes in a church service, he came to understand that the terrors he experienced in the hospital were a result of what he had sown among Black people. 

     What happened to Candace Owens and Kanye West should be a warning to us about what can happen when Christians do not know what God’s plan for the salvation of the Jewish people is and what part we play in it. Personally I believe it is key for all Christians to deeply understand “Regarding the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes. Paul explains it in depth – how the Jews were set aside for a season “so they too have now disobeyed, in order that they too may now receive mercy through the mercy shown to you. For God has consigned everyone to disobedience so that He may have mercy on everyone.” Romans 11:31-32

     Probably half or more Christians in the world don't know that and are just as vulnerable as Candace and Kanye to become offended and bitter. Their careers and lives were thrown into total chaos by an assault of accusations of antisemitism from the Jewish community. When a Christian even unknowingly crosses a line, the "Never Again" tour de force comes out until that person is destroyed. We have to guard our hearts over these offenses. Politically in America this is already a stacked deck with the vast majority of Jews who vote with the Democrats no matter how ungodly the agendas of Democrats become. My thinking has been that this may be the thing that kicks the Aliyah from the United States to Israel into high gear. We who know what God’s plan is – to make of Jew and Gentile “one new man” in Messiah are not helpless in this matter. We must know and teach what we know of the way to walk with unsaved Jewish people…knowing the great things God is going to do for them in the days ahead.

Arrows from Zion
Summarized from the Weekly Summary of Prayer Requests Israeli Ministries

Some of Cookie Schwaeber-Issan’s commentaries from AllIsraelNew.com and Jerusalem Post: Antisemitism can’t be rebranded as a difference of opinion | "Jew hatred is not diversity of opinion. It is an insidious prejudice which seeks to represent an entire ethnicity as unworthy, unsavory and a collective body of individuals who must be shunned, rejected and excoriated. But it doesn’t end with those intolerant opinions. From there, it further develops into the need to disenfranchise Jews from fully taking part in society. It doesn’t even stop there, because once the shaming has been accomplished, there must be a plan to rid the world of these undesirables."
     Australian Parliamentarian wants to accept Gazan refugees | Israel's struggle: Balancing self-defense and global perception | Why would anyone trust the agreement of savage terrorists? | Will Israel’s Darkest Hours Cause a Genuine Return to God?

Sally Shiff, HaMaayan congregation updates on the recovery of remains of 6 hostages from Gaza last week. She writes, “Contrast this with what is happening in Chicago right now. HUNDREDS of thousands are outside the DNC demonstrating FOR antisemitism. Chanting their celebration for Hamas and what they did Oct 7 and "from the river to the sea."  I am shocked how blatant, how out in the open on campuses and cities "death to the Jews" has become the new norm. How delusional the world has become in such a short time. The major countries pressing Israel to acquiesce to demands from Hamas to stay in power so they can in time and with deep vengeance to "again and again" attack us using no moral compass.”
     She also wrote updating the IDF strike on a school compound in Gaza that has been distorted by news media: “the IDF and ISA intelligence, the IAF conducted a precise strike on terrorists who were operating within a Hamas command and control center. The command and control center was embedded and hidden by the Hamas terrorist organization inside the “Mustafa Khaft” School compound in Gaza City. Hamas terrorists used the command and control center to plan and execute attacks against IDF troops and the State of Israel. Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance and additional intelligence. The Hamas terrorist organization systematically violates international law and operates from within civilian infrastructure and shelters in the Gaza Strip, brutally exploiting the Gazan civilian population for its terrorist activities. The IDF will continue to operate against the Hamas terrorist organization in defense of the citizens of Israel.”
     And “Last night a bomb was detonated in Tel Aviv. Thankfully, there were no causalities except for the suicide bomber. It was ruled a terrorist activity.” Later it was determined he was head to blow himself up at a soccer game, instead on he was killed when he detonated prematurely. (God’s mercies)

Donna: As I compile the Weekly Summary this week comes news from the Times of Israel that 50 rockets from Hezballah targeted the Golan Heights community of Katzrin. You may recognize that as where the Fields of Wheat has a ministry house. As far as we know, no one was currently at the house because of the youth camp going on in the Negev. I reached out to Eitan Shishkoff who heads Fields of Wheat to learn more, and he wrote:  “Ministry house unhit. But 200 meters from the congregational meeting place where Joel & Ruby fellowship a rocket caused a serious fire. Thanks for continual prayers!” Also
one of my Facebook followers in Israel emailed me to say: "The war is getting bad again here in the North today.  PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR SAFETY, all the people of Israel and especially the military folks NEED your prayers now! Your Israeli friend, Daniel B" 

In a Tikkun Global Broadcast on 8/21, Asher Intrater asked Harvest of Asher pastor Guy Cohen of Acco, to give a prayer needs up for northern Israel  because, as they agreed, by the time they could get it written up and sent out, there would a whole new slew of events that needed prayer. Listen in to learn the growing peril in northern Israel and how the “new normal” is with the constant stress of attacks.
     Tikkun Global sent this 8/22 video teaching from Asher Intrater The Indwelling Presence of the Holy Spirit. DD: At the very start of this teaching, Asher shares that he is upset about a dream he had of some trying to kill him. He said his wife Betty warned him of it, and he shrugged it off as nothing. Then he went to the pool at the hotel they were staying in and a group of men encircled him and began coming toward him. Then he felt under the water as something invisible like fishing line began to wrap around his legs – he could not see the lines that were being wrapped around him because they were invisible under water. That’s when he woke up. Then Asher prayed breaking every curse, every attempt.
     We must be alert for the undercurrents around us – those things that are spiritually hidden in the undercurrent and invisible to us!  I am including this because it is very unusual for Asher to share something like this, and also because Tuesday night I also had dreams of someone trying to kill me. I shook the dream off as soon as I woke up, as it was a restless night of many fears or threat-oriented themes.  I believe it is good to pray against any curses of any of us who are laboring in what God has set us to do. There is no doubt that the spiritual enemy wants to kill us off and the closer we come to the return of the Messiah, the greater will be the spiritual intent to do us in. LISTEN TO THE PRAYER IN THE BEGINNING OF THIS VIDEO AND JOIN YOUR PRAYER IN FOR ASHER, YOURSELF AND ALL WHO ARE LABORING IN THE LORD’S HARVEST. I take this very seriously.
     8/15  the video teaching by Asher on authority and governments in A.S.P.I.R.E. | BOOK: A King is Coming by Paul Wilbur | Wilbur brings a unique perspective on how the world is changing and why it increasingly disregards and abhors biblical teachings…order here

The Aliyah Return Center writes on 8/16 Even in the Valley of the Shadow of Death | Did we just experience a miracle? | This is traditional for the Ninth of Av, as many religious people fast and pray for God’s mercy. This date is the anniversary of many of Israel’s tragedies, including the destruction of the first and second Temples. This year, the date became amplified in this war season and with an “imminent” attack potentially underway…. We went to bed that night, not knowing what would transpire at 2:00 AM. When we woke up in the morning, there were no sirens or anything. It turned out to be a peaceful night, and we discovered that there had been an earthquake that shook Lebanon, Syria, and the northern parts of Israel!.... God protected us from an “imminent” threat. We know that there are so many terror tunnels in southern Lebanon, some of them, crossing into Israel, who knows what miracles God has in store, to maybe collapse them in a future earthquake? As of now they continue to showcase their Southern Lebanon, command control centers, tunnels of terror, and as we know some of them have even cross into Israeli territory… You will see some of those in Chaim’s videos.
     ….“You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with a shout, lift it up, do not be afraid; say to the towns of Judah, ‘Here is your God!’” Isaiah 40:9 |  Our hope for the future of Israel is in the God of Israel! And yes, we believe that we did experience a miracle! Praise be to God! Now is the time to stand together, Shabbat Shalom from the land of promise. Help us build the Lighthouse |Emergency Aid & Give Here | Watch Chaim's daily videos here

Howard Bass of Nachalat Yeshua (Yeshua’s Inheritance) writes how “To be "normal" now is to be "weird" or "far right extremists."  Those who label us as such are condemning themselves, because they are acknowledging that there is good and there is evil, without mixture; there is right and there is wrong, without compromise…. All the devil can do is bounce off of what YHVH has created, and what He has spoken and has had written down… Satan cannot create a thing but can only defile and contradict what his Creator has done and said.
     …. Israel as a nation is still in a state of uncertainty and confused about where things are going. Ever since the assassinations of the two key Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, Iran and Hezbollah have said that they are preparing to wreak destruction and death on the Jewish state. I do believe that they mean it and I also believe that the God of Israel's hand is restraining them until a time that He has determined. He is bringing many Gentiles and many nations to take stock of their own positions regarding supporting the Islamic enemies of the Jews, of Christians, of all that represents the one true living God. YHVH is using the small nation of Israel as a proof of His existence and also as a proof that He does keep His promises and covenants…. The world powers are constantly keeping Israel from acting in its best interests ….Praise the Lord that in the end it will all be done in accord with HIS best interests, which will be the best for everyone who is in agreement with Him about that….Here is an encouraging, I hope, article that I wrote to give us the patience, hope, and comfort that we all want and need. The Kingdom of God Streaming through History. | Also The 9th of Av….. I do believe that too many believers have misunderstood what it means for us, the 9th of Av, the fifth month on the Hebrew calendar.  Here is an article that I wrote some years ago:  God's Temple in Messiah: A Day of Joy
    …. Yeshua's Inheritance Cong is looking to the future regarding a transition to future leadership.  It's being spoken about openly, but we do not know the Lord's timing, nor precisely who He may have in mind to carry and lead and serve His flock towards full maturity in light of His relatively soon return. The last two services I have spoken of church leadership with this in mind. (Most, but not all, of what is posted on Streams in the Negev website Church Leadership Part 1 & 2 also appears in All Israel News.

From evangelistic-pastor Israel Pochtar of Beit Hallel congregation/Voice of Judah Ministries Overcoming Fear through the Power of Yeshua! According to the Word of God, fear is more than just an emotion—it’s a spirit, a demonic force that seeks to undermine our faith and destroy us from the inside out.| PODCAST:  In the Valley of Decision: A In-Depth Look at Israel's Current Situation | Read Oleg’s Testimony: A Touching Story of How a Father and Son Found Their Messiah in Israel | Discover our Jerusalem Outreach with Pastor Israel Pochtar! | God is doing something amazing in Israel, leading toward a powerful revival that will sweep across the nation. Watch Now | Discipling Israel’s Youth: Preparing the Next Generation of Israeli Believers | PODCAST: From Ethiopia, to Israel, to Jesus: Pastor Tess’ Amazing Journey of Faith  | Powerful Testimony from our New Youth Prayer Meetings.

David’s Tent: Avner’s latest: Peace, Insanity and the Same Results.  Click to read in full online. 
     Would you like to help and encourage us in our outreach? | Messiah Yeshua has opened some wonderful opportunities to us for ministry. These avenues of favor come with financial challenges as well. If you have been blessed or encouraged by the spiritual teaching and geopolitical context presented in our biblically grounded newsletters and books, by our faithfully Jewish worship music, and by our outreach and equipping efforts in Israel and around the world, we want to briefly share with you some current and ongoing projects. These labors are in need of increased support from those who believe in what we are doing. We would be honored and encouraged if you take a few moments to ask the God of Jacob if He would have you strengthen our hands and lift up our arms as we press forward in our contributing to the expansion of the Kingdom of God.  Email Avner for a copy of this detail on the various ways they are doing outreach in Israel and on behalf of Israel.

 Dov Bikas writes about their work on the streets of Tel Aviv where addicts from all over the country gravitate toward as their former lives and relationship become overtaken by addiction. It is there also that volunteers from Messianic congregations all over Israel come to help the Aviv Ministry in feeding the street people natural and spiritual food. Dov writes about the vision to expand into a similar outreach ministry for the Israeli Arab community: “Please pray that we find a suitable house to rent for the rehabilitation center for Israeli Arabs. It turned out to be a complicated task, since the house needs to have a good location (not too close to other private homes, not in certain parts of Ramleh, etc.).” He writes “| We thank God for each of you and for your support, thanks to which we can keep operating and developing our ministry projects!” And “We praise the Lord for everything he is doing through our volunteer teams in south Tel Aviv. When they serve in Aviv Center, they always invite its visitors to leave the streets and go with them to a rehab, and usually it takes a while before someone decides to go. But sometimes the situation is totally different!” He then shares a recent testimony on that and also of the work they are doing in Ashkelon in supporting new immigrants with Humanitarian Aid also for the needy. “For more information about our ministry and for donations please visit our website”

HOPE-Nazareth’s Rania Sayegh wrote at the beginning of August about the upcoming Arab Deborahs Arising Conference 13-14 September 2024. This prophetic-intercessor Christian Arab woman is very much a “one new man” minister and she is ministering to other Arab Christian women, pastor’s wives and others, in the understanding of God’s plan for believer Jews and Gentiles to be reconciled to each other in the Messiah. This is very important work Rania is doing with the help of international Christian women leaders as well as the Israeli Messianic Messianic women leaders. Rania writes, “We are aiming at inviting between 110-140 Arab women leaders from across the land to participate. Please, prayerfully consider partnering with us by sponsoring an Arab woman participant in the conference. The cost for sponsoring a woman would be $150. Furthermore, we would need $13,000 to cover the conference expenses. You may give to this strategic gathering in the link here. Designate where to apply the funds in the pull-down menu:  "ADA - Sponsoring Arab women". Thank you so much for blessing our people! |
     “Bless the House of Prayer and Exploits (HOPE) and sow a seed into Nazareth | Please prayerfully consider giving a donation through "Fire For The Nations" in the USA, by clicking the following link, Donate (paypal.com), and choosing "HOPE Building Operations" from the list, or through our Israeli non-profit organization with the following PayPal link, or through our website. Designate where to apply the funds in the pull-down menu”

Evan Levine who directs The Hatikva (The Hope) Project which is set up to help both the Israeli Messianic believers in need as well as an outreach to not-yet-believers in need in Israel has sent an update on their 3 areas of blessing. Click on each to read examples of how they helping to provide hope in these days.     HaTikva Aid | HaTikva Dental | HaTikva Families | Join Comforters of Zion

Kobi & Shani Ferguson of Maoz Ministries Israel write, “Have you ever sat around waiting for impending doom? The kind that might not—but could still happen? That’s what it’s been like in Israel for the past couple of weeks. We could be bombed any minute…or not. In the meantime, we get up and go to work like nothing’s happening. In reality, talk of being bombed by Iran has been around since… well, since talk about being bombed from Iraq subsided once Saddam Hussein was executed. After all, we’re Israel. There’s always someone looking to remove us and our God from the equation. . . . In the meantime, we’re going about the work of the Kingdom of Heaven…. If you want a quick picture of what that looks like you can take a look at our 2023 Year End Report that encompasses both the work Maoz has been doing for almost 50 years as well as some of our war efforts.
     Here also is a recent American Family Radio interview in the US with Kobi Ferguson. They titled the session “Bringing Yeshua to a War Torn Israel”

Youval Yanay of Revive Israel sends this video No Fear "In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge.” Proverbs 14:26 And an update about how the Revive team members are ministering in the Israeli Messianic body in addition to their own services & programs. Examples teaching “a preparation program for young adults before their military service” | Collaborating with a factory next to their center to produce organic tomato paste from the tomatoes in our fields to be sold in their Friday markets | renovations and preparations of our worship and music room | we continue to work diligently on planning the upcoming discipleship program.
     Read more of The Key to True Leadership by Raphael Almedia 

Michael and Dina Beener of the City of Life congregation in Sderot share about their Back To School Project writing, “We are aware of the significant challenges young families face, especially in this border region with Hamas’ Islamic terrorism, where economic conditions have deteriorated. Education costs, from school clothes to books and backpacks, are a burden many families cannot afford. That's why we believe that providing quality backpacks protects school supplies and supports the children's health and well-being throughout the year. Learn more here and  here you can Watch how we prepare for this project.
     “Here is how you can help us purchase and distribute Emergency Kits to those in need.
     “Subscribe here to our YouTube channel to keep up with all the work we are doing in our area of Sderot & surrounding communities. “

We told you about the Hezballah rocket barrage in Katzrin where the ministry house of Fields of Wheat is located in the Golan Heights – now here is why there was no one there at the time of the bombings: they were in the Negev conducting the Katzir (Harvest) Youth Camp. Eitan Shishkoff writes, “I’ve just come from an extraordinary youth gathering. Our Israeli teenagers responded to Yeshua’s call in Matthew 11:28 to “Come to me all who are weighed down with burdens too heavy to carry” (my paraphrase). Looking at their faces, I couldn’t help weeping with the tangible sense of God’s pure love for these boys and girls.
     The young people were visibly moved, taken to a new level of comprehending and experiencing the love of God in Yeshua….(they were encountering God’s heart for them personally on a whole new level.) They sometimes act as if they’re tough, cool, and handling life OK. But they are tender and vulnerable. Israel’s unwanted warfare, already 11 months of continuous combat on multiple fronts, is taking a toll on them and the entire nation. One of our most experienced young adult leaders observed, “They look worn out. They need refreshing even to begin responding to God’s grace.”
    “….Almost all these young people come from believing families. They’ve heard the messages. They’ve memorized verses. They’ve gone to numerous camps and conferences. What they need is a LIVING RELATIONSHIP. Of course, that relationship will only season and take deep root through knowing and applying the word of God. And we are making sure that there is plenty of biblical content…. Your prayers have already impacted young lives. PLEASE CONTINUE PRAYING” for the young Israeli believers to become solid in their grasp of God’s love for them. Truly that are spiritual leaders among their own generation of Israelis.  

 I have backtracked to pick up the excellent prayer perspective that Reuven Doron wrote earlier in August. I would like to republish it all here, which I can’t, but I can give you the link where you can read it in full. Reuven begins writing, “Soon, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest serving Prime Minister and her most effective, though controversial, persona on the global stage, will face a moment that could be his redemption. If missed, this moment will seal his legacy as the Prime Minister under whose leadership the nation of Israel has suffered its greatest loss since its emergence in 1948. Please pray for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
     “Netanyahu carries the heavy burden of multiple criminal charges currently litigated in Israel’s High Court, some of which carry severe judgments and jail sentences if he is found guilty. All of them spell scandal and shame. At 74 years of age and not in the best of health, Netanyahu’s mind and body are working overtime to handle the relentless pace and constant stress facing him and his government daily.
     “He is leading a fractured, explosive, and dysfunctional coalition of political parties that is held together by a web of promises, deals, favors, and secrets. …” Read in full here, it is worth the effort.  
     (You can also read at that link where he continues in a spiritual perspective of recent news:  
“The Enemy is Confused | The Iranian built alliance of the “Resistance Front” that includes Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Jihadi militias all throughout the Middle East is not as cohesive as they pride themselves to be. . . . The enemy never imagined in its worst nightmares that Israel would respond to the October 7 massacre as it did by invading Gaza and bringing Hamas to its knees.”