Transcript of Pastor Hagee’s Speech at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference

 

Good evening dear friends of Israel; thank you for the privilege and pleasure of speaking to this distinguished AIPAC gathering. May I begin by thanking Melvin Dow for his friendship and wisdom that have been a guiding light for me personally and in all out endeavors on behalf of Israel over the years. I also want to thank AIPAC and each of you for being Israels defender in the halls of the US Congress. You are the finest and most efficient advocacy organization in Washington, DC.

On September 10, 1981, we conducted our First Night to Honor Israel in San Antonio and there are two people with me tonight that made that First Night to Honor Israel possible - my wife Diana, the love of my life and Rabbi Aryeh Sheinberg without whose courage there would never have been the First Night to Honor Israel nor the birth of Christians United for Israel. There to my left, would you please stand; Id like you to be welcomed by this great group of people.

We meet tonight at dangerous and difficult time in world history. To anyone with eyes to see and ears that hear, it is clear that Israel is in the gravest danger she has faced since six Arab armies tried to strangle the Jewish state in the birth canal in 1948. I know that during difficult days such as this when it seems that the whole world is against Israel many in the Jewish community nervously scan the globe searching for friends. You look toward the United Nations which Dore Gold calls The Tower of Babble. You look at Europe where the ghost of Hitler is again walking across the stage of history. You open your newspapers and read about American universities where Israel is being viciously vilified by students taught by professors whose Middle Eastern chairs are sponsored by Saudi Arabia. You look to Americas mainline churches and their initiatives to divest from Israel. You go to the bookstore and see slanderous titles by the former President of the United States and you feel very much alone.

I came here tonight to speak about Christians United for Israel and millions of evangelicals in America who have a deep-seated faith-based belief to love Israel, to speak up for Israel, to standup for Israel, to pray for Israel and to financially support Israel until Israel achieves a just and lasting peace.

I came here tonight to deliver a message to you from those millions of evangelicals in America and I want to say this as clearly and plainly as I can possibly say it Israel you are not alone.

There are millions of evangelical Christians across America who consider the Jewish people the apple of Gods eye, who see you as the chosen people, a cherished people and a covenant people with an eternal covenant that will stand forever. Ladies and gentlemen of AIPAC its a new day in America. The sleeping giant of Christian Zionism has awakened; there are 50 million Christians standing up and applauding the State of Israel.

If a line has to be drawn, draw the line around both Christians and Jews; we are united; we are indivisible; we are bound together by the Torah the roots of Christianity are Jewish. We are spiritual brothers and what we have in common is far greater than the things weve allowed to separate us over the years.

As you know, Iran poses a threat to the State of Israel that promises nothing less than a nuclear holocaust. I have been saying on national television, in churches and auditoriums across America it is 1938; Iran is Germany and Ahmadinejad is the new Hitler. Ladies and gentlemen we must stop Irans nuclear threat and stop it now and stand boldly with Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East. The only way to win a nuclear war is to make certain it never starts. Irans President has not limited his maniacal threats to Israel. He has also asked his fellow Iranians to imagine a world without America. This is a clear threat to destroy the United States of America. I have something to something to say to Irans President or Iran; Mr. Ahmadinejad, dont threaten America.

Do not threaten Israel by saying they will pass away in a sudden storm. In the Bible when Pharaoh threatened the Jewish people of Egypt he became fish food in the Red Sea. When Haman threatened the Jews in Persia in modern-day Iran he and his sons hung from the gallows that he built for the Jews. Mr. Ahmadinejads threats against Israel have a way of becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy; you may be well speaking about your own demise when you talk about passing away with a sudden storm, but you are not talking about Israels future.

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is watching you. King David wrote that thou that keepeth Israel neither slumber nor sleeps. The Christians of America are not going to sit by in silence this time and watch you plod and plan a nuclear holocaust. There will never be another Holocaust - not on our watch and never again.

Beyond that threat from Iran, theres another more subtle threat that concerns me. I am concerned that in the coming months yet another attempt will be made to parcel out parts of Israel in a futile effort to appease Israels enemies in the Middle East. I believe that misguided souls in Europe, I believe that the misguided souls in the political brothel that is now the United Nations and sadly - and sadly even our own State Department will try once again to turn Israel into crocodile food. Winston Churchill said "an appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile in the futile hope that it will eat him last." In 1938, Czechoslovakias Sudetenland land was turned into crocodile food for Nazi Germany. The Nazi beast smelled the weakness in the appeasers, ate the food and marched and devoured most of Europe and systematically slaughtered 6,000,000 Jewish people.

We are again hearing calls to appease the enemies of Israel. Once again, those who would appease seek to do so at the expense of Israel. They tell us that if we want the Sunnis and the Shiites to stop massacring each other in Iraq then Israel must give up land. They tell us that if we want the Syrians to stop murdering the leaders in Lebanon, then Israel must give up land. They tell us if we want the Saudis to permit women to drive and to vote, Israel must give up land. If we want the sun to rise it the east and set in the west, Israel must give up land.

Let me be clear; Israel is not the problem here.

Scapegoating Israel will not solve the problem; the problem is the Arab rejection of Israels right to exist. The problem is that Israel has no partner for peace; the problem is radical Islams bloodthirsty embrace of a theocratic dictatorship that believes they have a mandate from God to kill Christians and Jews. The problem is the failure of the moderates in the Arab and Muslim world to stand up and rein in these Islamic extremists.

If the moderate Arabs believe that murdering Christians and Jews is wrong then standup and say so - this is America. We welcome your participation in free speech but your silence is deadly.

Appeasement is not the answer my friends. To quote the great evangelical abolitionist William Wilberforce, “appeasement is nothing more than surrender on the installment plan.” America should not pressure Israel to give up land and America must never pressure Israel to divide the City of Jerusalem.

Dore Gold in his latest book, The Fight for Jerusalem, said “turning part or all of Jerusalem to the Palestinians would be tantamount to turning it over to the Taliban.” I agree. Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish people now and forever. Jerusalem is united under Jewish control and must always remain under Jewish control.

Why do Christians support Israel? Truth is not what I say it is. Truth is not what you think it is. Truth is what the Torah says it is; theres the Torah way and the wrong way. Genesis 12 and 3 says I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. We believe those blessings are very real and those judgments are very real.

Where are the nations that have persecuted the Jewish people? Where is Pharaoh and his army? Where are the Babylonians? Where are the Greeks? Where is the Ottoman Empire? Where are the Romans? Where is that goose-stepping lunatic Adolf Hitler and his Nazi hoards? All are historic footnotes in the bone yard of human history. Where is Israel? Where are the Jewish people? Theyre alive and well; theyre thriving; theyre prospering; theyre growing - even on a day of adversity theyre still going forward.

Where is Israel? Where are those who are scattered throughout the Diaspora? The mighty right hand of God has gathered them from the nations of the world and Israel was miraculously born May 15, 1948. Israel lives! Shout it from the housetop - Israel lives! Let every Islamic terrorist group hear it - Israel lives! Let every tinhorn dictator in the Middle East hear it - Israel lives! Let it be heard in the halls of the UN - Israel lives! Let it echo down the marble halls of the Presidential Palace in Iran Israel lives! Let it ring in the terrorist camps of Osama Bin Laden - Israel lives! Israel lives! Israel lives!

Jews have suffered programs and persecution; they have outlasted Pharaohs slavery and Hitlers final solution, and I have no doubt that long after Hamas and Hezbollah have been buried in the bone yard of human history, long after the crisis with Iran has been resolved, the Flag of Israel will still be flying over the ancient walls of the sacred city and Jerusalem and Israel will be the praise of all the earth.

Why do Christians support Israel - because Christians deeply believe we owe a debt of gratitude to the Jewish people; you gave us the word of God, you gave us the patriarchs - Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; you gave us the Prophets, Ezekiel, Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zachariah, Amos, Josiah, Joel not a Baptist in the bunch. The first family of Christianity Mary, Joseph, and Jesus, the Apostles, John the fourth chapter says salvation is of the Jews; thats a New Testament verse. You dont hear it many sermons that preached on that but thats a real verse. Salvation is of the Jews; the point is if you take away the Jewish contribution to Christianity there would be no Christianity. Judaism does not need Christianity to explain its existence, but Christianity cannot explain its existence without Judaism.

Therefore, I have been saying for 26 years over national television its time for Christians to stop praising the dead Jews of the past - Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob while avoiding the Jews who live across the street. Thats anti-Semitism and anti-Semitism is sin and as sin it damns the soul. As Christians tonight on this historic occasion, we ask Gods forgiveness and yours for every act of anti-Semitism in our past. The crusades, the inquisition, Martin Luthers Concerning the Jews and Their Lies; the final solution of Adolf Hitler carried out by baptized Christians in good-standing with their church; the fact that the Roman Church was silent during these atrocities and did not share - we did not share their theology. They did not share our appreciation for the great contribution the Jewish people have given to humanity and to Christianity. Tonight I humbly ask forgiveness of the Jewish people for every act of anti-Semitism and the deafening silence of Christianity in your greatest hour of need during the Holocaust. We were not there; we cannot change the past but together we can shape the future. Think of our potential future together; 50,000,000 evangelicals joining in common cause with 5,000,000 Jewish people in America on behalf of Israel is a match made in heaven.

Let the word go forth from Washington, DC tonight. There is a new beginning in America between Christians and Jews. We pledge to God and to the Jewish people to fulfill the words of the Prophet Isaiah; for Zions sake we will not hold our peace and for Jerusalems sake we will not rest. You who make mention of the Lord do not keep silent and give the Lord no rest until he makes Jerusalem the praise of all the earth. We have organized Christians United for Israel. We have 13 Regional Directors; we have 40 State Directors; we have 80 City Directors and theyre growing. Were organizing Congressional District by Congressional District, so that as body we can standup and speak up for Israel every year in Washington, DC and Congress will know that the matter of Israel is no longer just a Jewish issue; it is a Christian Jewish issue from this day forward.

In closing, I believe 2007 is the year of destiny. America and Israel are at war with a common enemy. It is a war of good versus evil. It is a war of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness versus the culture of death. I close with the words of Winston Churchill, who is my favorite statesman of all time. Spoken during the dark days of World War II when Hitler seemed unbeatable and victory seemed impossible, Churchill said, "you ask what is our aim; I can answer in one word - it is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of the terror, victory however long and hard the road may be for without victory there is no survival." Ladies and gentlemen, as Christians and Jews, our aim is victory - victory for Israel and victory in our time. May God bless Israel; God bless America; and God bless each of you.

 

TOP

 

The Apple of HIS eye... Why Christians Should Support Israel

or this is what the Lord Almighty says: "After He has honored me and has sent me against the nations that have plundered you - for whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye - I will surely raise my hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me. Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion...

Everything Christians do should be based upon the Biblical text. Here are seven solid Biblereasons why Christians should support Israel.

1. Genesis 12:3 "And I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all nations of the earth be blessed." Point: God has promised to bless the man or nation that blesses the Chosen People. History has proven beyond reasonable doubt that the nations that have blessed the Jewish people have had the blessing of God; the nations that have cursed the Jewish people have experienced the curse of God.
2. St. Paul recorded in Romans 15:27 "For if the Gentiles have shared in their (the Jews) spiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in material things."
   
   Christians owe a debt of eternal gratitude to the Jewish people for their contributions that gave birth to the Christian faith. Jesus Christ, a prominent Rabbi from Nazareth said, "Salvation is of the Jews!" (St. John 4:22) consider what the Jewish people have given to Christianity:

a) The Sacred Scripture
b) The Prophets
c) The Patriarchs
d) Mary, Joseph, and Jesus Christ of Nazareth
e) The Twelve Disciples
f) The Apostles
It is not possible to say, "I am a Christian" and not love the Jewish people. The Bible teaches that love is not what you say, but what you do. (1 John 3:18) "A bell is not a bell until you ring it, a song is not a song until you sing it, love is not love until you share it."

1. While some Christians try to deny the connection between Jesus of Nazareth and the Jews of the world, Jesus never denied his Jewishness. He was born Jewish, He was circumcised on the eighth day in keeping with Jewish tradition, He had his Bar Mitzvah on his 13th birthday, He kept the law of Moses, He wore the Prayer Shawl Moses commanded all Jewish men to wear, He died on a cross with an inscription over His head, "King of the Jews!"
   
   Jesus considered the Jewish people His family. Jesus said (Matthew 25:40) "Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren (the Jewish people… Gentiles were never called His brethren), ye have done it unto me."
2. "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, they shall prosper that love thee." (Psalm 122:6) the scriptural principle of prosperity is tied to blessing Israel and the city of Jerusalem.
3. Why did Jesus Christ go to the house of Cornelius in Capernaum and heal his servant, which was ready to die? What logic did the Jewish elders use with Jesus to convince Him to come into the house of a Gentile and perform a miracle?
   
   The logic they used is recorded in Luke 7:5; "For He loveth our nation, and He hath built us a synagogue." The message? This Gentile deserves the blessing of God because he loves our nation and has done something practical to bless the Jewish people.
4. Why did God the Father select the house of Cornelius in Caesarea (Acts Chapter 10) to be the first Gentile house in Israel to receive the Gospel? The answer is given repeatedly in Acts 10.
   
   Acts 10:2 "a devout man, (Cornelius) and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God always." Who were the people to whom Cornelius gave these alms? They were the Jews!
   
   Again is Acts 10:4 "… thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God."
   
   Again in Acts 10:31 "… and thine alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God."
   The point is made three times in the same chapter. A godly Gentile who expressed his unconditional love for the Jewish people in a practical manner was divinely selected by heaven to be the first Gentile house to receive the Gospel and the first to receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
   
   These combined Scriptures verify that PROSPERITY (Genesis 12:3 and Psalm 122:6), HEALING (Luke 7:1-5) and the OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT came first to Gentiles that blessed the Jewish people and the nation of Israel in a practical manner.
5. We support Israel because all other nations were created by an act of men, but Israel was created by an act of God! The Royal Land Grant that was given to Abraham and his seed through Isaac and Jacob with an everlasting and unconditional covenant. (Genesis 12:1-3, 13:14-18, 15:1-21, 17:4-8, 22:15-18, 26:1-5 and Psalm 89:28-37.)

    

   TOP

    

Overview of "Jerusalem Countdown"

 

My new book “Jerusalem Countdown” has just been released and the war of words between Jerusalem and Iran are boiling!

Many have asked me “why” did I write this book? I have been going to Israel regularly since 1978 and over the years have developed a network of confidential sources that have a very clear and certain focus on strategic geo-political developments in Israel and the Middle East. I was given information by these sources who are predicting a military pre-emptive strike that would possibly occur in Israel between April and October of 2006. I personally believe that it will be sooner than later unless Iran suddenly yields to international and diplomatic pressure. This military strike is absolutely necessary on Israel’s part. I believe that if this conflict occurs, it could be the birthing of the war of Ezekiel 38:39

What does this mean to America? How does this affect you? If Iran’s nuclear facilities are attacked, you can be reasonably sure that Iran will counterattack either with nuclear missiles they have available or a series of dirty bombs sold to Al Qaeda sleeper cells in America waiting for the signal to attack.

If 9/11 proved anything... it proved that America is not immune from attack from our enemies. September 11th also proved, beyond any reasonable doubt, that our enemies are willing to use whatever weapons they have to kill as many Americans as possible. The highest honor in Islam is to die a martyr killing Christians and Jews.

The U.N. will send their nuclear teams to Iran and look the other way as long as possible. Why? Because the U.N. deeply resents the U.S. for not bowing to its global agenda. The U.N. is livid with the Bush Administration for going to war in Iraq when the United Nations disapproved of that war. America’s invasion of Iraq exposed the corruption in the U.N. with the “food for oil” scam involving the upper echelon of U.N. leadership.

The U.N. has labeled “Zionism” as “Racism” which means this international brothel has a long-standing documented hatred for Israel.

If Israel attacks, there will doubtless be a vast pan-Arabic Islamic army assembled to attack Israel and attempt to drive the Jews into the Dead Sea. Once again, Jerusalem becomes the target! A casual glance at the geo-political crisis of the Middle East with rogue terrorist states in possession of nuclear weapons... we are standing on the brink of a nuclear Armageddon.
The Past is prologue. The final battle for Jerusalem is about to begin. You are watching everyday in the media the gathering storm over the State of Israel. The winds of war are once again about to sweep through the sacred city of Jerusalem. The world is about to discover the power of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Keeper of Israel “who never slumbers nor sleeps” (Psalms 121:4) and His righteous fury in the defense of Israel.

Before you can know and understand Israel’s future, you must know and understand their past. Before you can share in Israel's joy at the coming of Messiah, you must understand to some degree the pain and suffering of the Jewish people for the past two thousand years.
I want to take you on a journey through the pages of world history and sacred Scripture to personally experience Israel's past before you can grasp the magnificent future God has planned for Israel and the Jewish people.

First, I want to introduce to you what Jerusalem means to God Himself. The Bible says, “I (God) have chosen Jerusalem, that my name may be there forever; and mine eyes and heart shall be there perpetually... in Jerusalem, which I have chosen... will I put my name forever.” (2 Chronicles 6:6, 7:16 and 33:7)

Then walk with me to the battle scene where King David battled the Jebusites and the forces of witchcraft to conquer the City of Jerusalem 3000 years ago, making Jerusalem the eternal and undivided capitol of the Jewish State.

Next, stand on the ancient walls of the sacred city and see the vast Assyrian Army under the vicious leadership of Sennacherib who intends to massacre the Chosen People. God's dramatic rescue of the Jewish people is only a fore-shadowing of what God plans for the enemies of Israel in the 21st century.

Following God’s dramatic rescue from Sennacherib and the Assyrians, we will sit together on the Mount of Olives and watch King Nebuchad- nezzar and the Babylonians capture thousands of Jews and take them into Babylon as servants of the state for seventy years. Why did God allow this? The answer is found in God’s love for the land of Israel and His judgment for those who violate His sacred commandments concerning the Promised Land.

After the battle with the Babylon- ians, we continue to sit on the crest of the Mount of Olives and watch the appearance of a Jewish Rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth, and Rome’s Calvary Conspiracy to execute him. Are the Jews the Christ killers? We will watch the poison fountains of anti-Semitism flow out of the mouths of the early Roman Church fathers that planted the seeds of hatred that produced a demonic harvest in Hitler’s holocaust.

Next comes the two Roman invasions: Titus in 70 A.D. and Hadrian in 130 A.D. in which the Temple was destroyed and 1.1 million Jews died defending the sacred name of Jehovah God from Roman paganism.

As the river of Jewish blood dries in the sands of the streets in Jerusalem, we next behold the marching armies of seven major Crusades marching from Europe to Jerusalem under the blessing of the Pope murdering, raping and robbing the Jews en route. When the first Crusade invaded the Holy City, they immediately begin to slaughter the Jews, burning more than 900 men, women and children under the sign of the cross as they sang, “Christ, We Adore Thee.”

Then we leap from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century and the greatest prophetic miracle of that era... the rebirth of the State of Israel, May 14, 1948 at 4:32 p.m. Isaiah 66:8 records it this way, “Shall a nation be born in a day?”

History continues to unfold with the Six-Day War of 1967 in which Jerusalem was reunited under Jewish leadership for the first time in 2000 years. The Bible says, “...and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:24.) If you listen closely you can hear the footsteps of Messiah walking toward Israel.

This electrifying book shows the future of Israel revealed in prophecy by asking the provoking question, “Are we the terminal generation?” The answer is “yes” and I'll tell you why I think so.
What is God's prophetic future for Israel and the Jewish people? We are swiftly approaching the day and the hour when God will fulfill the prophecy of Zachariah 12:10, which says, “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplica-tions...”
What is the “road map to peace?” It has three phases.
1.) Israel to give up the Gaza Strip (DONE!)
2.) Israel to give up Judea & Samaria- this is called the West Bank
3.) Israel to give up a portion of Jerusalem as a capitol for a Palestinian State.
Are the Jews and the Evangelicals of the world ready to give up control of Jerusalem for any reason?
It doesn’t take a Phi Beta Kappa to understand God’s position on this. Joel 3:2, “I will gather all nations (this includes America)… and I will enter into judgment with them on account of my people, my heritage Israel… whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also DIVIDED UP MY LAND!”

Jerusalem is the City of God! Psalms 132:13 “…the Lord has chosen Zion: He hath desired it for His habitation.” 2 Chronicles “…I God have chosen Jerusalem that my name might be there…”

There remains only one unchanging and sufficient reason for nations to align themselves with Israel; God has revealed clearly in his word that he intends to restore Israel and that he requires all other nations to cooperate with His purpose. Any nation that rejects this revelation of God's word, has in effect, rejected God himself, and therefore, must suffer the consequences.

At this point in America’s history, we are plainly rejecting the Word of God because, according to Joel 3, we are helping to divide the land of Israel. We, through billions in foreign aid, are pressuring Israel to abandon the covenant land that God has given to the Jewish people forever. America is in the valley of decision and we are making the wrong decision. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem and pray for the security of America.

If America lifts her hand of protection from Israel, God will lift His hand of protection from America. He has the power to crush our economy, to allow our enemies to bathe our streets in our own blood and to make a Super Power a prophetic footnote in the world tomorrow. If there was ever a time to pray for the peace of Jerusalem... it’s now! Our world could change dramatically and permanently in 2006.

 

TOP

 

Our Jewish Roots

 

In June of 1978, I Went to Israel as a tourist and came home a Zionist! I have traveled the world but as I walked the cobblestone streets of the Holy City, I knew I was home! My roots were there! I felt a very special presence in that sacred city that changed my life forever!

As I stood praying at the Western Wall, I noticed an elderly Orthodox Jewish man praying with all his might, rocking back and forth, reciting Scripture and thought to myself “Here we are at the same holy place, praying to the same God, quoting the same Scripture… yet I know nothing about this man or his faith.”

In the days that followed, my heart was charged with a commission from the Holy Spirit to do all that I could possibly do to bring Christians and Jews together in an atmosphere of mutual esteem and unconditional love.

I told my wife Diana, what the Lord had placed within my heart. On the plane home, I sat down and recaptured my feelings and thoughts on paper. I had no idea how to bring Christians and Jews together without starting a riot.

Some months later, Israel bombed the nuclear reactor in Iraq. The media in San Antonio devoured Israel for this attack. I personally felt that Israel had done the peace-loving world a favor in stopping the construction of this nuclear reactor that most assuredly would have been used for production of nuclear bombs in the Middle East. It had been done with surgical precision without the loss of one life, against a nation that had a standing declaration of war against Israel since 1948.

As the television commentators devoured Israel, I said to Diana, “I don’t believe that at all. How can we express our support for Israel publicly that will make the press want to cover the event?”

Within minutes the idea came!

“We’ll rent the municipal auditorium, call a press conference, and have an event called ‘A Night To Honor Israel!’”

Diana asked a very important question, “Don’t you think you should ask the Jewish community if they want to do something like this?”

“How do we get in touch with the official Jewish community?” I knew there were Rabbis and after a few phone calls, I discovered something called the Jewish Federation where everything kosher starts and stops.

I went to the Federation the next day and asked to meet the Executive Director. I told him that I wanted to have an event called “A Night To Honor Israel.”

“You want to do what?” he gasped!

In the finest Jewish tradition, he called a committee meeting. That committee meeting developed into another committee meeting, which developed into a third committee meeting, which lasted until midnight. The Orthodox Rabbi, Arnold Scheinberg, pressed the Jewish community into taking a chance and extending its hand in mutual friendship. (It’s important that the Christian community realize that the Jews have suffered enormous persecution at the hands of Christians for almost 2000 years and their trust of Christians is somewhere between little and none).

The Jewish community agreed to join us in what was intended to be the first and only “Night to Honor Israel!”

We called a press conference and the story made banner headlines. Within an hour after the newspaper hit the street, I received a death threat stating that I would be shot before the event happened.

September 10, 1981, the first Night to Honor Israel was presented at the Theatre of Performing Arts in San Antonio, Texas. The house was packed! The Jews were asking, “So what’s this Gentile up to?” The Christians were asking, “Why are we doing this?” There was enough tension there to give a doorknob a headache. The 120-voice choir and 40-piece orchestra of the Cornerstone Church took their positions.

As tension melted away to the sounds of Hebrew music, I gave a speech stating why Christians should support Israel and we gave Hadassah Hospital more than $10,000.00 cash on the spot. As Rabbi Scheinberg was giving the benediction, the Director of Security came to me and said the San Antonio Light Newspaper had just called and said there was a bomb threat on the building. The building was supposed to blow up exactly at 9:30 p.m.
I looked at my watch. It was 9:25 p.m.

I listened to the Rabbi praying and said a prayer of my own, “Lord, don’t let him pray like Moses right now. Have him pray like a Presbyterian late for lunch!”

There was no bomb… but there was an explosion in our hearts. We knew that we had something that was near the heart of God the Father. As we walked off the stage, I said to Diana, “We need to do this in Houston!”

We did! Then “A Night To Honor Israel” went to Fort Worth, Austin, Dallas, Corpus Christi, Houston four more times; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Phoenix, Arizona, and to all parts of Israel. It’s an event that has a proven track record of bringing Christians and Jews together in a non-threatening environment that promotes genuine brotherly love.

If Christianity cannot demonstrate unconditional love, we are nothing more than another cult! Jesus Christ taught the Law of Love with, “Love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matthew 19:19); “For if you love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?” (Matthew 5:44); “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another; as I have loved you” (John 13:34) “He that you loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1 John 4:8).
How did Jesus love the Gentiles? The Biblical text says He loved us “while we were yet sinners” meaning, He loved us when we didn’t deserve to be loved! It’s time for Christians everywhere to return the love of our Lord to His family, the Jewish people.

WHAT IS A “NIGHT TO HONOR ISRAEL”?

A “Night To Honor Israel” is a non-conversionary salute to the nation of Israel and the Jewish people of the world. Its purpose is to promote esteem and understanding between Christians and Jews, to emphasize the things that we hold in common, not dramatize our religious differences.

 TOP

 

Christians Have a Biblical Duty to Support Israel in Time of Need, The Jewish Telegraphic Agency, July, 18, 2006

This week, more than 3,000 Christians representing all 50 states gathered in Washington for a truly historic event. Without the traditional rally on the Capitol steps or demonstrations that bring Washington traffic to a halt, Christians United for Israel held a banquet saluting the State of Israel and met with members of Congress to urge greater support for the Jewish state.

Christians United for Israel, or CUFI, is not a lobbying group; we are a national Christian organization that urges stronger U.S. support for Israel, especially in light of growing international tensions. Delegates came to Washington at their own expense to exercise their right to meet with members of Congress.



Pastor John C. Hagee is the founder and senior pastor at the Cornerstone Church of San Antonio; president and CEO of John Hagee Ministries; and founder and national chairman of Christians United For Israel.

Click Here to read the entire article.

 TOP

Israel If Replaced, Why Reborn?

For 1,800 years, the church fathers ranted that the church is the new Israel. To prove that God had turned His back on the Jews, they pointed to the wandering, tormented Jews of the Diaspora, saying, "If God is with them, why has this homeless befallen them?"

They forget that for the most part european Jews were living in states controlled by the Church of rome. They were existing without rights, without property, without legal redress, and without human dignity. The medieval church created its own self-fulfilling prophecy. Replacement theologians ignore a fundamental fact in the biblical text. When God removes or destroys something, you never hear from it again. like sodom and gomorrah, which were so thoroughly destroyed that archaeologists can’t even find the ashes of those cities, it is twice dead, plucked by the roots and cast over the wall to be turned and forever forgotten.

If the church fathers were correct and israel were indeed replaced, she should have vanished like snow in the desert sun. By all rights, she should have disappeared. But she didn’t. on May 5, 1948, a theological earthquake leveled replacement theology when the state of israel was reborn after 2,000 years of wandering. From the four corners of the earth, the seed of abraham returned to the land of their fathers. They arose from their gentile "graves" (ezek.37:12) speaking sixty different languages, and they founded a nation that has become a superpower in forty years. Far from passing away, the state of israel is building, growing, inventing, and developing. The desert is indeed blooming like a rose, just as isaiah the prophet promised (35:1).

You can’t avoid the central issue. If God was finished with the Jews and israel, if they were really a cast-offrelic of the past without divine purpose or destiny, why did He allow the state to be miraculously renewed?

If replaced, why reborn? The resurrection of God’s chosen people is living prophetic proof that israel has not been replaced. They were reborn in a day (isa.66:8) to form the state of israel that shall endure until the coming of the Messiah.

If israel as a nation had not been reborn, if the Jews had not returned to the land, if the cities of israel had not been rebuilt, if Judea and samaria (the West Bank) had not been occupied, if the trees the Turks cut down had not been replanted, if the agricultural accomplishments of israel had not been miraculous, there would be a valid reason to doubt that the Word of God is true.

However, in the light of the above-mentioned miracles, none can doubt the absolute accuracy of the prophetic scriptures concerning the rebirth and restoration of the Jewish state.

Read God’s Word as His prophets declare His intention for the Jews to inhabit israel - isaiah wrote:
35:10; 61:4; 44:26. ezekiel speaks: 20:33-34, 40-42; 34:28-30; 11:17-19. Jeremiah speaks: 31:10-12; 30:3, 10-11; David speaks in the Psalms: 126:1-2; 107:1-3; 1:14-17.

The old Testament prophets are clear and united in their opinions replacement theology is completely wrong, misguided, ill conceived, and incorrect. The Jews have not been replaced, for they will return to Jerusalem, the city of God, and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be their God.

Jesus did not support replacement theology
Jesus was the greatest teacher of the ages. He gave
us thee chapters (Matt.24, Mark 13, and luke 21) that are prophetic and present the chronological events of the future from His time until His second coming. In Matthew 24:3, His disciples asked
Jesus three questions:

1. When shall these things be? This question referred to the destruction of the temple. Jesus answered in luke 21:20, "When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you know that its desolation is near." This prediction was fulfilled in A.D.70 when the Roman general Titus destroyed Jerusalem.

2. And what will be the sign of Your coming?

3. and of the end of the age? in spite of the "kingdom now" theology (whose adherents believe the church will be so victorious that we will usher in the millennial age), this world is coming to an end. in galatians 1:4, Paul wrote that Christ "gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father" (italics mine).

There is not a single hint in one of these passages supporting replacement theology. Paul did not mention the demise of the Jewish nation, nor did Jesus.

Let’s look at Matthew 24:15-18, where Jesus described the great period of tribulation that will come upon the earth. This verse assumes that israel is living in its homeland and in control of the city of Jerusalem. "Therefore," said Jesus, "when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place…then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes."

The "holy place" Jesus mentioned is the temple in Jerusalem. The Jews are in control of the temple at this time right before the Tribulation. How could they control the temple without being in control of Jerusalem? How could they be in control of Jerusalem if they were replaced?

"Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains," Jesus said. Judea is what the media now call the West Bank. Jesus’ statement assumes that in the last days the Jews would be living on the West Bank. in the next several verses, Jesus describes a general evacuation of the population in and around Jerusalem because of a pending military attack.

When this military attack comes, warned Jesus, don’t go to Jerusalem for safety. You will have only a few minutes to save your life. Flee to the mountains outside Jerusalem as a matter of civil defense. Jesus continues, "let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. and let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes."

The rooftops in Jerusalem, both now and in Jesus’ time, are flat. There is usually an outside stairway leading to the ground. When this attack comes, Jesus warned, don’t worry about saving anything in the house, just run for your life. And if you are in the fields, laboring in your work clothes, don’t run back to the house to change.

Jesus continues," But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the sabbath. 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" (Matt. 24:19-21).

Why woe to those who are pregnant and with nursing babies? Why pray that your escape would be not in winter or on the sabbath? Because an escape would be much more difficult. This verse again indicates that the religious Jews are in control of an israeli government where the laws of the sabbath are being strictly enforced.

I don’t know if you’ve had the opportunity to travel in Israel on the Sabbath, but i can assure you that everything shuts down on saturday. There is no transportation. even the elevators in the hotels and high-rise apartments stop on every floor automatically.

If an Arab missile with a nuclear warhead or poison gas struck Jerusalem on the sabbath, the attack would result in mass destruction.

Jesus confirms that the Jews are back in Israel in Matthew 24:22 when He says, "and unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened."

"The elect" are the Jewish people. if Jesus and the prophets were convinced that Israel would return to the land, and if they were certain Israel had not been cast aside or replaced in the economy of God, how is it that America’s replacement theologians have come up with a different idea? Did it spring from narcissism? Anti-Semitism?

Replacement Theology is Idoltary
Replacement theology violates the Ten Commandments. First Samuel 15:23 tells us, "For rebellion is a sin of witchcraft, and tubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry."

This verse says two things: (1) rebellion equals witchcraft and (2) stubbornness equals idolatry. Who is a stubborn person? People who refuse to change their ideas even when they are in direct conflict with God’s Word are the worst kind of stubborn. These people idolize their opinions and are soon in open rebellion against the will and Word of God.

Christians would never dream of allowing their pastor to preach with a statue of Buddha draped around his neck - that’s open idolatry. But they think nothing of permitting their pastor, whose stubborn personal opinions about israel are exactly opposite the Word of God, to lead them into dangerous deception.

Has the church replaced Israel? Not in the opinion of Jesus and the prophets of Israel. The canon of scripture and modern history are witnesses to the fact that Israel has been reborn and will endure forever.

From the dark days of Jewish persecution in Germany, a legend has survived. according to the story, a pastor, acting out Nazi orders, looked upon his congregation and told them, "all of you who had Jewish fathers will leave and not return."

A few worshippers rose and slipped out of the sanctuary. The pastor then said, "all of you who had Jewish mothers must go and not return." Again, a few worshippers arose and departed. Suddenly those who remained in their pews turned pale and began to tremble with fear. The figure of Christ on the cross above the altar loosed itself and left the church.

Think about it. if Jesus Christ came to your church this sunday morning, would the ushers let Him enter the front door? He would appear small and slender, with penetrating dark eyes, a swarthy complexion, and prominent semitic features. He would have earlocks, hair uncut at the corners, and full beard. His shoulders would be draped with a talit, or prayer shawl.

If Jesus identified Himself to your congregation as a rabbi who befriended prostitutes and socialized with tax collectors and people with aiDs, would He be welcomed? if He confessed that He was hated by the government and traveled with twelve unemployed men with full beards and shoulder-length hair, could they find a seat in your pews?

If your deacons asked Him about His doctrinal position and He responded, "i believe in baptism by immersion, casting out demons, and healing the sick," would they let Him stand behind your pulpit? If He commanded your wealthiest church members to sell all they had to give to the poor, if He entered your beautiful church gym and turned over the bingo tables shouting, "My house shall be called a house of prayer," would you call the police?

The simple truth is this: after 2,000 years of antisemitic teaching and preaching, we have lost sight of the Jewishness of our Hebrew savior. But He was born to Jewish parents, His ancestors were Jewish, He was raised in the Jewish tradition, He lived and worshiped as a Jew, He died as a Jew, and He will return as a Jew. When you kneel tonight to pray, the one who hears you is a rabbi named Jesus of Nazareth.

 

TOP