I WILL BUILD MY. . .
The root of the great conflict in Israel, or more specifically, Jerusalem, is it ethnic or religious? Jews (sons of Isaac) verses Arabs (sons of Ishmael)? Judaism/Christianity verses Islam? Is it merely a greed for land?
One place to start in understanding the conflict is in some prophetic verses out of the Old Testament’s book of Zechariah written around 520 B.C. "Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. And it will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it." These verses have been an ongoing fulfillment of reality for centuries in the world of politics. Kings and governors the world over have tossed this hot potato back and forth, yet it never seems to cool off. Israel has historically been judged by foreign nations every time they lowered the divine standard of their religion. It is recorded in their scriptures yet many rabbis refuse to acknowledge it. Knowing both the scripture and this history Jesus wept over Jerusalem and foretold of judgments yet to come, "If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation."
To many, Judaism has become nothing more than an ethnic political movement they call Zionism. To those who study scripture, Israel is a picture of God’s prophetic time clock. Jesus said that the Jews would fall by the edge of the sword, and would be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem would be trampled under foot by Gentiles (non-Jews) until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. After the Roman invasion in 70 A.D., further fulfillment of this prophecy has been carried out through the Muslims who built their third most holy mosque, the Dome of the Rock, over the foundation of the ancient Jewish temple site, making that small piece of real estate in Jerusalem the most explosive powder keg in the world. Some in the West naively think that the debate is all about oil. Oil was not even discovered in Saudi Arabia until 1938 at Dammam. While oil plays a part in our modern economy since the development of the internal combustion engine, this issue dates back to the time when the tar pits of the middle east were nothing more than a blight on the desert landscape which fed the fires of Zoroastrian and other pagan religious festivals.
While Muslims throw rocks down on the Jews praying at the western wall of the temple mount, the Jews secretly plan the rebuilding of the ancient temple. Meanwhile, Muslims talk of construction of a larger mosque on the same site. Can any sane person not believe that without Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, there will continue to be wars and rumors of wars as He predicted?
The root of the great conflict in Israel, or more specifically, Jerusalem, is it ethnic or religious? Jews (sons of Isaac) verses Arabs (sons of Ishmael)? Judaism/Christianity verses Islam? Is it merely a greed for land?
One place to start in understanding the conflict is in some prophetic verses out of the Old Testament’s book of Zechariah written around 520 B.C. "Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. And it will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it." These verses have been an ongoing fulfillment of reality for centuries in the world of politics. Kings and governors the world over have tossed this hot potato back and forth, yet it never seems to cool off. Israel has historically been judged by foreign nations every time they lowered the divine standard of their religion. It is recorded in their scriptures yet many rabbis refuse to acknowledge it. Knowing both the scripture and this history Jesus wept over Jerusalem and foretold of judgments yet to come, "If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. For the days shall come upon you when your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation."
To many, Judaism has become nothing more than an ethnic political movement they call Zionism. To those who study scripture, Israel is a picture of God’s prophetic time clock. Jesus said that the Jews would fall by the edge of the sword, and would be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem would be trampled under foot by Gentiles (non-Jews) until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. After the Roman invasion in 70 A.D., further fulfillment of this prophecy has been carried out through the Muslims who built their third most holy mosque, the Dome of the Rock, over the foundation of the ancient Jewish temple site, making that small piece of real estate in Jerusalem the most explosive powder keg in the world. Some in the West naively think that the debate is all about oil. Oil was not even discovered in Saudi Arabia until 1938 at Dammam. While oil plays a part in our modern economy since the development of the internal combustion engine, this issue dates back to the time when the tar pits of the middle east were nothing more than a blight on the desert landscape which fed the fires of Zoroastrian and other pagan religious festivals.
While Muslims throw rocks down on the Jews praying at the western wall of the temple mount, the Jews secretly plan the rebuilding of the ancient temple. Meanwhile, Muslims talk of construction of a larger mosque on the same site. Can any sane person not believe that without Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, there will continue to be wars and rumors of wars as He predicted?
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