STAND FIRM: On the Ground in Israel - Why I Went

      It turned out that my trip to Israel was very safe. The most dangerous part was searching for the true Chicago-style pizza in Chicago on a layover, but as you can imagine, my family and I debated for a while about me going. We had told our immediate family and connection group, but we kept a lid on the trip. I started posting pictures on Facebook a few days into the trip. My wife and I would leave videos for each other on the Marco Polo app each day since our wake times didn’t match up well. After posting the first picture of Israel on Facebook, my wife left a video saying she had received several messages about how stupid it was for me to go. She said, “Jake, I know you’re going to be excited to share images from your trip, but just know most people just think you’re stupid for going and we’re stupid for letting you.”

      Again, it was an incredibly safe and smooth trip, but the idea of going to Israel at this time does sound crazy. In case you’re thinking the same, I thought I’d share why I went:

         • You go where the Lord leads — period. This should be all that has to be said for us as followers of Jesus. We go where He leads. Along those lines, according to the examples in Scripture, those leadings aren’t always going to make logical sense. We all need a list of questionable life steps in which we follow the direction of the Holy Spirit. With this trip, I didn’t necessarily have an acuteword from the Lord to go. I’m stealing the language of “acute” and “chronic” from medical terminology. Acute pain is a pain that comes up suddenly, and it may be a one-time thing. The opposite of that is chronic pain, which continually exists and persists. We’ve likely all experienced an acute prompting from the Lord, whether that be as small as to say hello to someone or to go on a particular mission trip. The leading of the Lord on this trip was from a chronic leading.

      When we were in Israel in July, we felt led that one of our family missions was to support Israel. We had spent a lot of time searching and praying about how we could do that. After Oct. 7, we saw we could help by sharing the truth on Israel. So, when I got an email asking if I’d come to see the truth in Israel and come back and share the truth, it seemed like there was already an existing calling on the table for that one. Still, we prayed over it, and all felt like the Lord was leading.

      This reason should be enough, but there are also a couple of passages in the Bible that drive me to continue sharing the truth about Israel.

         • The Prophet Joel’s Warning — That is the reason for this article. The prophet Joel relayed from God that, “In those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land. They cast lots for my people and traded boys for prostitutes; they sold girls for wine to drink” (Joel 3:1-3 NIV). God warned through the prophet Joel that, at the end of this age, He would judge the nations or Gentiles (non-Jews) according to how they dealt with the people and land of Israel. There is coming a judgment based on how we deal with Israel.

      This isn’t just an Old Testament idea, but one that Jesus returns to in Matt. 25. Jesus quoted Joel 3 as He talked about the judgment of the sheep and goats: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats… Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world… Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’” (Matt. 25:31-40).

      We’re familiar with this passage in Matthew 25 but tend to think about it concerning anyone. It may, but it is referring to the same judgment of the nations and/or Gentiles as found in Joel 3. There will be judgment according to how we deal with Israel and, in particular, how we deal with Israel at the end of the age. Unfortunately, we already have a template for what it looks like when the world turns against Israel and how a few who are righteous in their dealings with Israel stand out. Today, Israel celebrates a group of people called the righteous among the nations. These were non-Jews who rose to the occasion to help Israel during the Holocaust. Those few are the example of how we should deal with Israel in the times to come.

      I don’t know how this judgment regarding Israel relates to the other judgments, such as the Great White Throne of Judgment, which is whether we have been saved or not. Then the Judgment Seat of Christ is where believers are judged according to their faithfulness. Again, I don’t know how this works together, but I do know this judgment on our dealings with Israel reveals God’s heart.

      I want to make sure I’m on the right side of God’s heart and faithfulness to His Word. Because of that, I sought to do what I could to deal rightly with Israel, and I hope to help relay that to other believers.

         — Jake is a state missionary and would love to share about the work in Northwest Arkansas and encourage your church to stand firm. (standfirmministries.com)