JUMPING TO CONCLUSIONS!

News outlets worldwide are attempting to make sense of the disappearance of Malaysian Airline Flight 370. Like the constant drumbeat of a pouring rain, reports continue to pour out, each one inching us toward a heretofore, undetermined conclusion. So I will step out onto thin ice and make a prediction; the most likely answer to what happened to this flight filled with innocent passengers is that it is somehow related to Islamic terrorism. I know I am jumping far ahead of what is publicly known, but the likelihood that it is connected to some form of terrorism is greater than the improbability.

Why would I so quickly go there? Because, like it or not, believe it or not, the world is currently in a war declared and executed by Islamic radicals around the globe.

Years of engagement with the people of the State of Israel has been very instructive for me. The Islamists have made no secret of their objectives. First, the “Saturday people” must be eliminated, then, the “Sunday people.” To grasp the seriousness of their plan one only needs to read the Jerusalem Post. Take a look at the headlines over just two days this week:

“Rocket fired at Israel from Gaza Friday evening despite cease-fire” JERUSALEM POST 3/14/2014

“IDF (Israeli Defense Force) patrol hits explosive device on Lebanese border, fires back” JERUSALEM POST 3/14/2014

“Morocco says breaks up militant cell sending fighters abroad”

REUTERS 3/14/2014

“Rocket from Gaza lands in open area in Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council” JERUSALEM POST 3/14/2014

“IAF strikes targets in Gaza Strip in response to continued rocket fire”

JERUSALEM POST 3/13/2014

“Rocket falls in Eshkol, open field, no injuries”

JERUSALEM POST 3/13/2014

“One injured after car explosion in Netanya”

JERUSALEM POST 3/13/2014

So there. This week, every week in Israel is the same. Yes, I am jumping, leaping and bounding toward unproven, speculative presumption about the missing airliner. I want to be wrong. I hope that I am. But even if I am in this instance, the evidence is clear; there is a sustained, determined battle being waged.

As Christians we are commanded to love and pray for our enemies; and I do. My prayer is that genuine peace; everlasting peace would come and that God’s promises would be fulfilled. I wish no harm on those who hate both Jews and Christians, but their intents must be exposed, their deeds opposed.

So I pray for the peace of Jerusalem. I pray that her enemies would be turned aside and that God’s people would flourish in the land declared holy.

PEOPLE OF THE BOOK

A horrible event this week in the Sinai Region of Egypt took me back to a day I will never forget. On September 11, 2001 it seemed like time stood still. As the tragedies in Manhattan, Pennsylvania and Washington D.C. unfolded over the airwaves I moved from prayer to hushed conversations to television screens, only to repeat this sequence again and again.

The news outlets were doing their best to keep up with an unfolding tragedy of biblical proportions, all the while, attempting to put the crisis in some sort of understandable geopolitical perspective. Little attention had been given by the general public to the up rise of Islamic Terrorism that had already carried out attacks throughout the world. Words like “Jihad” and “Al Qaeda” had little meaning to the average American. On that day we learned a lot.

I remember a particular video clip being shown over and over again on every news channel. This poorly filmed training video for Islamist Terrorists, begins with two terrorists dressed in black, faces covered, AK 47’s in hand, standing to each side of a door opening. They both step into a room spraying bullets everywhere. As the camera follows them in, painted on the bullet-pocked wall as obvious targets were two religious symbols: a Cross next to a Star of David. They were being trained to kill Christians and Jews.

The Qur’an asserts that both Jews and Christians are “People of the Book” and as such, tolerance and autonomy is accorded to them in societies governed by Sharia (Islamic Law). However, the special treatment they receive today by radical Islamists is special hatred and specific targeting for death.

This recent event in Egypt tells it all. On February 17^th Mitch Ginsberg wrote in the Times of Israel: “Sunday, Feb 16, 2014. An explosion ripped through a tourist bus Sunday near the border crossing between Egypt and Israel, killing at least three South Koreans and an Egyptian driver in an attack that stoked fears Sinai militants have resumed a bloody campaign against tourists. The targeting of foreign tourists was the first in the area in nearly a decade.”

While the focus of this article points to the message this bombing sends to the Egyptian Government and to Israel, there is another, deeper message being sent to Jews and Christians.

The bombing happened just yards from the Israeli border as tourists crossed over to visit religious sites in Egypt. And who were these tourists? They were Christians from South Korea on pilgrimage to the Holy Land who wanted to also visit sites in Egypt.

It can hardly be missed that this is a case of Islamist Militants fulfilling their mission, killing “People of the Book.” For these Islamists this attack is merely another skirmish in their war against People of the Book. No one should be fooled, the reason this bombing took place so near the Israeli border was to send a clear message, both to Jews and Christians around the world.

Never in history has it been so clearly defined, Jews and Christians must stand together against Radical Islam. Support for the State of Israel is not an option; it is an absolute necessity.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

SURPRISE, SURPRISE SURPRISE

SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE

I grew up watching Gomer Pyle USMC. It was very funny, filled with many “Gomerisms,” none more popular than “Surprise, surprise, surprise.” The audience understood it was a comedy sitcom and not intended to be the best example of the United States Marine Corp. We knew better than to take its content seriously.

I wish the same could be said of the current negotiations initiated by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry with Palestinian and Israeli leaders and simultaneously, the United Nations negotiations with Syrian rebel factions and the Syrian Government. Unfortunately, if worldwide media reports are to be believed, the audience has been taking all these negotiations seriously. What is even more disturbing is that either Secretary Kerry takes them seriously or these negotiations were nothing but a charade from the start. Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!

Secretary Kerry is ostensibly trying to make peace in the Middle East. That is an admirable cause, but these renewed efforts seem to ignore the insincerity of the Islamic radicals pulling the strings from behind.

In meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Kerry laid out his framework for a peace deal that would establish an independent Palestinian state and end a conflict dating to Israel’s 1948 creation as a nation.

On Tuesday, the New York Daily News stated: “Talks set to begin Tuesday were already beset by problems, including the United Nations reneging on an invitation to Iran, new evidence Bashar Assad systematically tortured thousands, embarrassing flight delays in Greece and a suicide bomber attack in Iran.”

Meanwhile, over the time period of these most recent negotiations rockets are being fired into Gaza, sniper fire has killed Israeli border workers and just yesterday, an al Qaeda influenced plot was foiled in Israel. On Wednesday, Israeli officials said it arrested three Palestinians that it alleged were part of al Qaeda-linked group plotting a suicide bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, along with a simultaneous bombing of the principle Convention Center in Jerusalem.

Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal reported: “The plot marks the most ambitious attack an al Qaeda-inspired group has planned against Israel since the early 2000s, said a former head of the Israeli military-intelligence unit that tracks al Qaeda, and underscores concern here that jihadist groups who have gathered in Syria during the civil war could sow instability in Israel as well.”

Those of us who follow more closely the situation in the Middle East are not surprised. Follow the dots: Iran-Syria, Iran-Beirut, Iran-Gaza, Iran-al Qaeda (though their connection has been rocky at times, there is growing evidence of recent cooperation on various levels), al Qaeda-Tel Aviv/Jerusalem.

So don’t be surprised. Stay informed, pay attention and pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

IRAN GIVEN SIX MORE MONTHS TO PREPARE FOR NUCLEAR WAR!

The "deal" reached in Geneva by well-intentioned but catastrophically stupid negotiators has made the potential for nuclear war far more likely.

Israel's government denounced the agreement reached by world powers and Iran as a "bad deal" to which Israel would not be bound.

Prime Minister of Israel Benyamin Netanyahu stated: '"What was agreed last night in Geneva is not a historic agreement, it is a historic mistake," he said. "Today the world has become much more dangerous because the most dangerous regime in the world took a significant step toward getting the most dangerous weapon in the world."

During the negotiations in Geneva Iran was airing on Iranian State Television a program showing an animated nuclear missile attack on Israel. Its targets? Israel’s primary Jewish population centers such as Tel Aviv, Haifa and Elat. When your enemy threatens to kill you and then points out exactly how and where it will do it, it must be taken seriously!

Just last week I was in Washington, D.C. hearing from many U.S. Senators and Congressmen as they denounced this so-called “deal.”

Bottom line? Iran gets to continue enriching uranium AND gets $4.2 billion in sanctions relief! This is no deal, this is a unmitigated travesty.

Please pray for our leaders to come to their senses. Pray for the leaders and people of Israel as they consider their options. Pray for the people of Iran, that their hate-filled leaders will not plunge them into a war they will not win.

And above all, pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

THE EMPEROR HAS NO CLOTHES

"The Emperor's New Clothes" is a universally popular story by Hans Christian Andersen. It is tale about two swindlers who promise to weave an emperor a new suit of clothes that is “invisible to those unfit for their positions, stupid, or incompetent.”  The swindlers pretend to dress the Emperor, and though no one can actually see the clothing, everyone including the Emperor pretends that they can.  No one, it seems, was willing to be “unfit for their positions, stupid or incompetent.” When the Emperor marched in procession before his subjects in his new clothes, only a child had the honesty to cry out, "But he isn't wearing anything at all!"

The modern world now needs the clarity and honesty of such a child in dealing with the Nation of Israel.

The constant mantra from world leaders, the media and primary world institutions is that “The West Bank” must be given to the Palestinian Authority for the formation of a Palestinian State. It is said so often and with such matter of fact tone that it seems a foregone conclusion. Anyone who questions this smug determination is simply considered unfit for their positions, stupid, or incompetent.

So, just what is the West Bank? The West Bank contains roughly all of biblical Samaria and Judea. It covers most of the land associated with the Bible for Jews and Christians alike. Samaria and Judea combined is the heartland of Judaism and early Christianity.

The term “Jew” originates in the Hebrew word Yehudi which means: “from the Tribe of Judah.” Judah of course is one of the sons of Jacob (Israel) and became the name of one of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Yehudi occurs 74 times in the Hebrew Bible. Examples would include 2 Kings 16:6 and 2 Chronicles 32:18 in which the plural, Yehudim, appears. In Jeremiah 34:9 the singular usage of the word Yehudi, (“Jew”) is used. There can be no legitimate dispute that there is a biblical and historic record of the connection between Jews and Judea.

Is it any wonder that the Palestinians, the Arab World, the United Nations and the Worldwide Media continually refer to Samaria and Judea as “The West Bank.” This is a blatant, poorly veiled attempt to ignore reality by separating the connections between Jews, Israel and Judea.

To describe territory as “occupied” by the very people from which the territory received its name is patently ridiculous, but such is the circumstance of the Jews today.

In the modern “pretend world” of international arbitrators and swindlers there is also a new “pretend language”. The Holy City of Jerusalem becomes “West Jerusalem” and “East Jerusalem” and Judea and Samaria become “The West Bank.” The world goes on pretending that separating Judea from Israel, the national Jewish Homeland makes sense,

Now more than ever it is time for those who see the truth to be as bold that little lad in Hans Christian Anderson’s classic tale and declare “Judea is Israel, now and forever.”

Pray for the nearly 400,00 so-called Jewish settlers living in communities in Samaria and Judea. Pray that the falsehoods regarding these territories will be fully exposed.

And especially, pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

SAY WHAT??

SAY WHAT??

Kudos to Ann Curry of NBC for conducting an interview with Iran's new President Hassan Rouhani. I watched with great interest, especially when it came to questions that pertain to Israel.

Curry later stated: "It was less bombastic, more conciliatory and it was also clear that President Rouhani and his team see that his trip to the United Nations in New York next week will be a major opportunity for improving relations with the west." 

Perhaps so, but Mr. Rouhani’s answers were clearly intended to put a better face on the Iranian Regime before his speech at the United Nations next week. Instead, they gave us another fresh peek behind the Iranian diplomatic mask.

For instance, when asked about whether he believed that the Holocaust actually happened, he ignored the question and went back to his purpose for the interview; to influence the West with a softer, gentler voice of reason prior to coming negotiations regarding its nuclear program.

In answer to Curry’s straightforward question about pushing “Israel into the sea” (stated by Rouhani’s predecessor), again he simply obfuscated his own view by going back to the “new face.” He never answered her question.

A recent statement of the Supreme Leader of Iran, the true power behind the Iranian regime, is very telling: “A wrestler sometimes shows flexibility for technical reasons, but he does not forget about his opponent nor about his main objective.”  

Who are his opponents? What is their main objective? The Iranian regime has a very long history of hatred for America, Israel and the West in general. This interview with Ms. Curry changes nothing of substance.

Earlier this week White House Spokesman Jay Carney said the Obama administration continues to “hope that this new Iranian government will engage substantively to achieve a diplomatic solution” and that the United States “remains ready to engage with the Rouhani government on the basis of mutual respect to achieve a peaceful resolution.” Does that “mutual respect” include the need for truth? Can deniers of the Holocaust be capable of mutual respect?

The Jerusalem Post reports: Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu responded Tuesday to what Jerusalem views as Iran’s “charm offensive” by laying down four stiff criteria for determining whether Tehran has indeed abandoned its nuclear program. “The way to stop Iran’s nuclear program requires four steps: Halting all uranium enrichment; removing all enriched uranium; closing [the uranium enrichment facility at] Qom; and stopping the plutonium track,” Netanyahu told the cabinet. “Only a combination of these four steps will constitute an actual stopping of the nuclear program, and until all four of these measures are achieved, the pressure on Iran must be increased and not relaxed, and certainly not eased”’ he added.

The world must heed the clarity and wisdom of Israel’s Prime Minister on this matter.

This new face given Iran by its figurehead president is merely a second face of a two-faced regime. Can they change? Yes, it is possible. We should move forward with great caution. President Reagan’s words still ring clear: “Trust, but verify.”

In a few days I will again be on the only soil on earth declared “Holy.” I will join with our Israel Allies Foundation (IAF) team, Knesset Members and Parliamentarians from many nations.

Pray for me, for our IAF staff and for the Parliamentarians, that in this time of such tension in the Middle East, Israel and its neighbors may have enduring peace.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.