The LORD is a Man of War: Yehovah is His Name

 WAR FOOTING
The lord  יְהֹוָה  Yᵉhôvâh
   is a man of war:
Yᵉhôvâh is his name.
exodus 15:3

On War Footing
by Donna Diorio

There are two sides to war. One is the physical warfare and the other side is spiritual warfare. As God’s people we sometimes must fight in a physical war, but also as God’s people we cannot afford to fight physically without spiritual warfare to undergird the physical battles. Spiritual warfare is more than just praying or praising God before we go into physical battle. Real spiritual warfare, I believe, requires that we know God’s heart and seek Him for what He wants to accomplish. It is one thing for His enemies and another thing for those within them who are being called into His Kingdom.

     In every nation there are people who love God and, like us, are called according to His purposes. He has a plan for them as well as for us. When we are in war with a nation whose leaders are in full opposition to God, as ALL those nations who war against Israel, we cannot be naïve about the need to fight physical warfare. In John 2:18, the apostle wrote, “…as you have heard, "Antichrist is coming," even now many antichrists have come. We know from this that it is the last hour.”

     Some individuals in terrorist organizations and citizens of terror-sponsoring nations can have their spiritual eyes opened, but praying that the Holy Spirit sweep through and the entire Hamas camp, or IsIs camp, or Ayatollah’s government so that they all get saved and quit trying to annhilate Israel – that is not going to happen. The Satan has his souls and God has His. This is the battle that will be fought to the finish – the finish of satanic power, not the finish of Israel upon whom God has placed His Name.

     In the days that the children of Israel were entering into the Promised Land, God told them they were to remove ALL of the Canaanite tribes, not to spare any. The reason is God knew they hated righteousness and truth, loving evil  – they were the worst of the worst of humanity. God assessed them as un-redeemable. It was not that God was more “vengeful” in ancient times like some ridiculously think! God has not changed and does not change. What is different in our day, is that God is not calling on us to wipe out every living person in a nation making war on us. He has good reason and that is because He knows there are many citizens embedded in evil nations who are redeemed or will be redeemed before the end  His Word says that every tribe, tongue and nation will stand before His throne praising Him and before the Lamb. We must still meet the warfare of evil-led nations, but not indiscriminately destroying a nation in much the way Russia has been destroying all of Ukraine. Evil fights to destroy everything.

     Even though most Israelis are not yet saved, Israel does not return warfare of its enemies  attempting to annhilate Israel.  Israel wages war against these enemies with greater moral and ethical character than any warring force on the earth. This is a fact, even though much noise has been made about the massive destruction of Gaza. The reality is that much destruction has more to do with how Hamas operates using civilians as a shields. They purposely install terrorist weapons and leaders in civilian places like hospitals, schools, UN facilities – the places that if Israel hits the source of rocket fire or terrorist order being issued from they can make the Israel look bad to hitting. Because that is enough for most people who have been fed a steady stream or false narratives about who the real evil party is in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Somehow, for all the explaining Israel and we who know better do, people are content to believe the terrorist lies about Israel. It defies rational logic, because it’s spiritual.

     When the time comes that Israel must take out a civilian-use space because Hamas terrorists are using it for cover,  or even most of a city as it now is in wartime,  Israel makes every attempt to warn non-combatant civilians to get out to a designated safe place. In Gaza, where Hamas has indoctrinated the people so thoroughly on the Islamist fundamentalist hatred of Israel and Jews, The Palestinian Center for Policy Survey and Research reports "Almost three in four Palestinians believe the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel was correct, and the ensuing Gaza war has lifted support for the Islamist group both there and in the West Bank." Only 22% said they “believed the Hamas decision to launch the cross-border rampage in southern Israel” was “incorrect.”

     If Israel does not destroy weapons arsenals or target terrorist leaders for assassination, it just means more innocent Israelis will die in the future for their failure to do so. There comes a time that evil must be put down…but not without as much compassion as possible towards the 22% of Gaza civilians who just want to live in peace, as Israelis do. As for how Israel strategically targets terrorist leadership, and strategic targeting of Iran’s nuclear warhead capacities, some people cry out about “assassination!” but it is a far more compassionate targeting of evil than indiscriminate bombing of civilians. Israel has warned that if Iran indiscrimantly targets civilians they will have crossed a line Israel will not abide. They will let loose with all they have. This is the same reason that the October 7^th brutal attack on civilians in southern Israel had to be answered  with a determined purpose to end Hamas rule in Gaza.

     It is the same for nations like Iran, ruled by Islamist visions of granduer for a return to Islam’s former world conquering domination glory days. Even so, the civilian population increasingly are citizens who would love overthrow their oppressive leaders world-conquering dreams.  Many are already Christians in Iran as one report from Sally Shiff provides below. The same is true throughout the Middle East where the Gospel is changing lives. This is God’s doing and the Israeli Messianic Ministries featured here recognize that. Not only recognize it, but support the Gospel going forth throughout the Middle East.

     That is what I what you to notice about the prayer points of the Israeli ministries.

     While they recognize Israel is fighting is just and necessary war for Israel’s survival, there is also an acute understanding that God is moving by His Spirit among the enemy nations, bringing people to Israel’s Messiah Yeshua. They know God’s heart is for those who will enter the Salvation of His Son, even as they know they must fight that nation’s governing powers. But even Israelis who do not know Yeshua are not in favor of indiscriminate carpet bombing of Iranian cities. This is where the strategic prayer points from Israeli Ministries becomes of such great value to Christians throughout the world. They have wrestled with God to find His heart for their people Israel, and also Iran, Lebanon, and all the nations of the Middle East. It is what we are called to as “one new man” people.

     In the past, many international Christians have discounted pro-Israel Christians because pro-Israel Christians did not carry God’s heart for the salvation of other Middle Eastern tribes. (They also barely had an understanding that “all Israel” shall be saved BY FAITH in Yeshua/Jesus!)  There was a hard-heartedness toward Arabs that could not see God intends to save people from ever nation and tribe.

     Personally I believe Israeli Messianic believers are the ones who have had the greatest impact on expressing to international Christians what God’s heart on that matter about all that really is. There is no reason we should not acknowledge with them that are walking the narrow path of warring against the enemies of Israel, but welcoming every person in those nations who are spiritual brothers in the LORD who are sharing the Gospel among their people. It is the heart of God that we war against evil but also that we seek mutual blessing and brotherhood with all who come in the name of the LORD. Baruch Haba B’Shem Adonai.