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America,
Christianity & Israel, Pt.1
It's Time to Get a
Few Things Straight
by Pastor John Hamel
“…O Israel, Fear not:
for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine. When thou passest through the waters,
I will be with thee; … when thou walkest through
the fire, thou shalt not be burned … For I am
the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior … I have loved thee
… Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east …
from the west; I will say to the north, Give up; to the south, Keep not
back: bring My sons from far, and My daughters from the ends of the earth;
… for I have created him for My glory, I have formed him; I have made him.”
(Isaiah 43:1-7)
The Scripture says much about the Almighty’s
love for Israel. He formed them, redeemed them
and named them. He promises to stay with them through all adversity
and will never allow them to be destroyed. He has entered into
Covenant with Israel
and will defend them in preference to anyone. He will eventually
force all enemies off the land He gave to them, as well. (Isaiah
49:17,18)
He is now in the process of gathering the
Jewish people back to the land
of Palestine
from all over the world as promised. (Isaiah 11:10-13; Jeremiah 30:1–31:40;
Matthew 24:31) He is even using non-Jews to do this, also as promised.
(Isaiah 49:22)
Every world power that has ceased to be a
world power did so by messing with Israel
directly or indirectly. Ancient Egypt, the Philistines, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks,
Syrians, Romans, Turks, Byzantines, Spaniards, Crusaders, French, Germans,
Soviets, British, etc., all
suffered fatal blows by harming or allowing others to bring harm to Israel.
America
will not be the exception to this rule.
God promises to “give a
whipping” to every foe of Israel.
"I
have found David My servant; with My holy oil have I anointed him: with whom
My hand shall be established: Mine arm shall also strengthen him. The enemy
shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him. And I will
beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him. But My
faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him: and in My Name shall his power
be exalted." (Psalm 89:20-24)
This is one equation that only the most foolish of
fools would ever want to find themselves on the wrong side of.
It simply does not pay to mess with little Israel.
Never has. Never will. Anyone who comes against Israel
is a cooked goose.
"And
I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name
great; and thou shalt be a blessing; and I will bless them that bless thee,
and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all the families of the
Earth be blessed." (Genesis
12:2-3)
It’s not possible to remain “neutral” concerning Israel,
either. To attempt to do so is to cooperate with her enemies and to
find oneself on a collision course with the Almighty.
Top
America's
Personal Debt to Israel
Every American owes a personal debt to Israel.
I will explain.
I was born in Cambridge,
Massachusetts,
in the very same neighborhood where General George Washington took command
of the Continental Army at the time of the Revolutionary War. I came along a few years later, granted,
but it was the same neighborhood nonetheless. I then grew up in the
area of Lexington
and Concord,
Massachusetts.
From the time I was a child I was literally surrounded by Revolutionary War
history, architecture, artifacts, etc. I have always been fascinated
with the events of that time in human history.
However, no Revolutionary War fact has ever
captured my attention like the following. When Revolutionary troops
were holed up at Valley Forge
under General George Washington, they were freezing and starving to
death. There was no money in the national budget to help them or any
of the other American soldiers. A Jewish banker named Haym Solomon gathered American and European Jews to
invest in supplies for the troops at Valley
Forge and elsewhere, personally
backing and guaranteeing their investments.
During that time, Solomon went to France
and personally raised 3.5 million British pounds from the Sassoon and
Rothschild banking houses and families. He used this money to
literally finance the American Revolution. Had Haym
Solomon remained "neutral", America
would not be “America”
today. Some reputable Historians are convinced that Haym Solomon actually wrote the original draft of The
Constitution of The United States, as well. Of course you don't hear
this because at that time "Jews" and "non-Christians"
weren't allowed to be involved in that particular process.
Haym
Solomon lent the young United
States
government about $600,000 out of his own pocket and at his death about $400,000
of this amount had not been repaid. This was irrespective of what he had
personally lent to statesman and others while performing public duties and
trusts. He died penniless as a result of his generosity and belief that he
was investing in a future World Power. God Almighty personally sent Haym Solomon to America
from his native Prussia/Poland to both finance and to win the American
Revolution.
When
General Washington became President, he rightfully memorialized what Haym Solomon and those Jewish bankers did on the back
of the one-dollar bill. By looking at the back of it you will discover
a circle within a circle to the right side. The inner circle contains
many small stars all forming a Star of David. Flip it upside down and
there is a Menorah at the base of David’s Star. The Shining Glory of the God of Israel’s Power
surrounds the entire circular scene. President Washington recognized the
debt America
owes to Israel
and we must, too, especially Christians.
In
1893 a bill was presented before the 52nd United States Congress ordering a
gold medal struck in recognition of Solomon's contributions to the United
States.
In
1975 the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative stamp honoring
Haym Solomon for his
contributions to the cause of the American Revolution. This stamp was
uniquely printed on the front and the back. On the glue side of the stamp,
the following words were printed in pale, green ink: "Financial Hero -
Businessman and broker Haym Solomon was
responsible for raising most of the money needed to finance the American
Revolution and later to save the new nation from collapse."
Without
the Nation of Israel we would have no America,
no Bible, no Salvation, no Covenant, no Father Abraham, no Savior and no
Power! (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:16,17; Romans 1:3, 8:15,
15:8; Ephesians 2:12; Galatians 3:13,14,29)
Israel
does not need America
or Christianity to define her heritage. America
and Christianity need Israel
to define theirs. Always remember this!
It
does not matter what OPEC, the United Nations, the former Soviet
Union, the Vatican
or anyone else wants. What matters is what God wants.
We have
an historical and Biblical obligation to help Israel
to occupy their Promised Land. To oppose them is to incur a curse!
(Genesis 12:1-3)
God will NEVER break Covenant with Israel.
(Psalm 89; 105:8) He will bless us when we help Israel.
(Psalm 122)
Top
Israel:
A Sovereign Free Democracy Not a Terrorist State
Israel
is not a State.
Israel
is a Democracy similar to the United
States of America.
Israel
became an Independent Sovereign Nation on May 15, 1948.
All other occupants of her land are either guests or trespassers.
(Leviticus 25:23)
Israel
is NOT an aggressive nation or a terrorist state. She has a right to defend herself against all terrorists even as
America does.
No other Democracy in the world suffers
persecution for defending themselves as Israel
does. This should not be so.
Al-Queda, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Muslim
Brotherhood and the Islamic State of Iran and Syria do not “need
to be understood” any more than Nazi Germany needed to be understood. They need to be
resisted, disassembled and destroyed.
Yes, of course we must pray for the salvation of all who are involved
with these terrorist groups. (Psalm 2:8) They are Hell bound on a greased pole and this does not please the
Most High God. (Psalm 9:16,17)
However, He will NOT tolerate any plans for the destruction of Israel.
American
Christians and all Christians worldwide must STOP referring to Israel’s
self-defense against these terrorist organizations as “aggression"
and "terrorism" when it is "defensive" and
"retaliatory." To do so is anti-Semitic.
When America
defends herself against aggressive nations and terrorist organizations no one in their right mind
calls us "terrorists."
True Americans, true American
Christians will not tolerate anyone calling Israel's
defense of herself "terrorism," either.
Pray
for Israel.
(Psalm 122:6-9) Help the Jewish people in even the most practical ways and receive
great blessings from Almighty God,
compliments of the Nation of Israel!
"Now
the Lord said to Abraham (Israel) ... I will bless them that bless thee, and
curse them that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the Earth be
blessed." (Genesis 12:1-3)
Excerpt from our soon to be published book,
"The Person of Almighty God: 65 Study Outlines."
A
One-Minute Daily Prayer for National Repentance
Be
blessed ... John and Barbara
How
to Be Born Again (Receive Christ as Your Savior)
How
to Receive The Holy Spirit & Power
Top
America,
Christianity & Israel, Pt.2
Are
Christians to Celebrate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals?
by
Pastor John Hamel
New
Update: September 13, 2015
The following is written in response to questions received by JHM, one
of which was, "What are the Christian's responsibilities in
honoring Jewish Holy Days, Feasts and Festivals?"
Dear
Sister in the Lord,
I
agree with you that the dates & events you've mentioned are
indeed significant & surely connected to certain Jewish Holy
Days. But I do not believe we should get hung up on that or
distracted from the job at hand - preaching repentance, Christ &
Him crucified.
Again,
I agree with you when you said, "Prayer & fasting should be
the order of the day" for us as Christians. Only I'd like to
add to that. Prayer, fasting
& repentance should be the order of the day for us as
Christians. (2 Chronicles 7:14)
In
this present Dispensation
of Grace God is calling Christian America to repentance
not to the legalistic practicing of Jewish Holy Days, Feasts &
Festivals.
You
asked what are the Christian's responsibilities in honoring Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals? I will get to that in a moment
but first I want to say you are correct again when you asked,
"We are under grace & not under Law, correct?" (Romans
6:14; Galatians 5:18)
You
are also correct in asking, "We have a better Covenant,
correct?" (Hebrews 8:6)
And
finally you are also correct in your statement, "We are not to
return to Jewish practices under the Law." (Romans 7:1)
Although
it is commendable in the Lord's eyes that anyone would want to honor
the Feasts & Festivals of His chosen people, it is not
Biblically binding upon Christians to do so.
Barbara
and I love & appreciate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts &
Festivals. We have a link on the Home Page
of our website with wonderful teachings concerning all of them.
However,
although it has become increasingly popular because of wrong
teaching on Christian television to celebrate them, we personally do
not do so.
We
honor & respect Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals as they
contain tremendous Biblical & prophetic significance, warnings,
guidance & revelation.
Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals are types & shadows pointing
towards things which were to come & are yet to come. Their
significance is supernatural & undeniable.
However,
celebrating them is not binding upon either Jewish or Gentile
Christians. To bind Christians to them would be legalistic.
But
I must say again, all Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals do
have wonderful, even supernatural significance to the New Testament
Believer.
The
Feast of Passover parallels Yeshua's substitutionary death. (1
Corinthians 5:7-8)
The
Feast of Unleavened Bread parallels with our sinless Savior whose
Body was broken for us. (Luke 22:13-20; John 6:51)
The
Feast of Firstfruits parallels His & our resurrections. (1
Corinthians 15:20)
The
Feast of Weeks parallels Pentecost & the giving of the Holy
Spirit. (Acts 2:1-4)
The
Feast of Trumpets parallels the Lord's return. (1 Corinthians 15:52;
1 Thessalonians 4:16)
The
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) parallels Israel's final cleansing
& redemption. (Zechariah 13:1-6)
The
Feast of Tabernacles parallels the final ingathering of the nations
of the world. (Zechariah 14:16-19; Revelation 7:9)
Putting
these Feasts & Festivals together we see how Jesus died during
Passover. Jesus
was buried during Unleavened Bread. Jesus
rose from the dead during First Fruits. Jesus
sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us seven Weeks later. Jesus
will gather us together with a Trumpet blast, separating those of us
who have chosen to be saved by His Atonement. Jesus
will Tabernacle with us forever during an Eternal Sabbath from the
Curse of Adam's Fall and the Curse of the Law. Such
a wonderful picture is portrayed by linking all these Feasts &
Festivals together.
Learning
about & celebrating Biblical Holy Days are good ways to teach
Jewish & Gentile Believers about God's Plan of Redemption.
It's
also a wonderful way to remember the Jewish roots of our
Christianity. Without Father Abraham & Israel we would have no
Savior.
However,
many Christians today, because of improper emphasis on Christian
television in particular, are wrongly trying to find completeness
& prosperity in
celebrating Jewish Holy Days & Feasts.
I
do not need to tell you that the Bible says our completeness &
prosperity is found in Christ alone.
"For
in Christ dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye
are complete in Him Who is the Head of all principalities &
powers." (Colossians 2:9-10)
Many
popular Christian Ministries today are wrongly emphasizing Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals in order to increase their income
with "Passover offerings," "Firstfruits
offerings," "Trumpet offerings," "Atonement
offerings," etc.
If
you don't get your offerings in during the exact days of the Feasts,
you stand to lose out.
However,
if you get them in on time or even early, there is supposedly a
great blessing in it for you. That is unbiblical, superstitious
& Last Days' doctrines of demons. (1 Timothy 4:1)
Christian
Ministries who teach on Jewish Holy Days & Feasts & make
financial promises God is not obligated to keep will ultimately
come to regret their unbiblical teachings.
They
are misleading many & getting them caught up in the practice of
legalistically celebrating Feasts that are not binding upon either
Jewish or Gentile Christians.
The
Church of Jesus Christ is not commanded to celebrate these Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals anywhere in the New
Testament. As a matter of fact, Apostle Paul, the consummate
Jewish Christian & author of 3/4 of the New Testament, warned
Christians to not do so.
"But
now after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how
turn ye again to the weak & beggarly elements, whereunto ye
desire again to be in bondage? Ye observe days, and months, and
times, and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you
labor in vain." (Galatians 4:9-10)
Here
Paul clearly rebukes & corrects those who legalistically
celebrate days, months, times & years, referring to Holy Days,
Feasts & Festivals. Not that it is wrong to recognize &
honor them, but it is wrong to place our faith in them when faith
should be placed in Christ alone.
"Let
no man therefore judge you in meat or in drink, or in respect of an
holy day, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath days: which are a
shadow of things to come; but the Body is of Christ."
(Colossians 2:16-17)
Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals were & are shadows of
realities which have come or are yet to come. However, they are not
to be religiously celebrated by Jewish or Gentile Christians.
The
Apostle Paul often celebrated Jewish Holy Days, Feasts &
Festivals in order to not offend the Jews while preaching Christ to
them. (Acts 18:21; 20:1-6,16) He even performed a head-shaving
ritual of purification along with four other Jewish men in order to
reach the Jews for Christ. (Acts 21:22-24)
However,
nowhere in the New Testament did he instruct the Body of Christ to
celebrate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals. The only time
Paul instructed the Body of Christ to celebrate in this manner was
when he told us to celebrate "Christ the Passover Lamb."
(1 Corinthians 5:7-8)
The
early Apostolic Church was celebrating the Feast of Weeks in
Jerusalem when the Day of Pentecost came and the Holy Spirit was
poured out. But never did any of the Apostles of the Lamb
instruct the Body of Christ to celebrate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts
& Festivals. (Acts 1:12-14; 2:1-47)
Even
Jesus Christ Himself, Who kept the Passover & the Days of
Unleavened Bread, did not instruct New Testament Believers to
maintain Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals. (Luke 22:14-20)
As
we have already seen, the Apostle Paul instructed the Church of all
ages through his Letters to the Galatians & the Colossians that
it was not necessary for us to celebrate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts
& Festivals. (Galatians 4:9-10; Colossians 2:16-17)
Something
else of interest that must be acknowledged is how in the Book of
Acts, the Early Church fathers corrected those Jewish Believers who
were wrongly teaching that all male Gentiles who come to Christ must
be circumcised according to the Law of Moses. The Early Church
fathers rejected that notion & wrote a letter to all the
Churches which included the following.
"For
it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us, to lay upon you no
greater burden than these necessary things; That ye abstain from
meats offered to idols, and from blood and from things strangled,
and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do
well. Fare ye well." (Acts 15:28-29)
If
the New Testament Church was obligated to celebrate Jewish Holy
Days, Feasts & Festivals, this would have been the perfect time
& place for the Early Church fathers to clearly say so. Yet,
they did not.
Not
only that, but again, at the risk of being redundant, we see where
the Apostle Paul later instructed Believers of all generations to
not do so through his Letters to the Galatians & the Colossians.
In
this present Dispensation of Grace it is far more important that
Jewish & Gentile Christians spend much time learning Paul's
Letters as opposed to learning the Law of Moses, Jewish Holy Days,
Feasts & Festivals. It is far more important for Christian
Ministers to emphasize repentance, forgiveness,
salvation in Christ alone, the Holy
Spirit Baptism, faith, healing
& deliverance.
If
the Lord puts it on one's heart to become acquainted with or to even
celebrate Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals, then they should
do it. But they must not do it at the expense of learning Paul's
Letters and teaching Major Bible Doctrines & the Foundational
Doctrines of Christ.
However,
one must never attempt to force or deceive others into doing so,
particularly for the sake of financial gain, such as many Ministers
& Christian television executives do.
If
God does not specifically put it on one's heart to celebrate Jewish
Holy Days, Feasts or Festivals then one simply must not do so.
Our
completeness as Christians is not in celebrating Jewish Holy Days,
Feasts & Festivals as some wrongly teach.
Our
completeness as Jewish or Gentile Christians is in Jesus Christ
alone.
"Therefore
if any man be in Christ he is a new creature: old things are passed
away; Behold all things are become new ... For He hath made Him to
be sin for us, Who knew no sin that we might be made the
righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:17, 21)
I
would like to also share that I personally (my opinion) believe in
Heaven all of the Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals will be
celebrated through Eternity - only for a different reason than they
were once celebrated on Earth.
On
Earth Jewish Holy Days, Feasts & Festivals were celebrated as
types & shadows pointing forward to things to come.
In
Heaven they will be celebrated as Memorials pointing back to God's
great Plan of Redemption in Christ.
A
careful reading of Ezekiel chapters 40 through 48 reveals that the
Temple will be rebuilt in Heavenly Jerusalem & that the priestly
system of animal blood offerings will resume & continue
throughout Eternity. Only, unlike in the Old Testament where the
priestly system of animal blood offerings pointed forward to Christ
coming to shed His Blood, in Heaven it will point back as an eternal
Memorial to the fact Christ did indeed shed His Blood as the
ultimate act of Redemption.
This
is why it is also my personal belief that every Hebrew Holy Day,
Feast & Festival will be resumed & celebrated throughout
Eternity as Memorials to God's loving Redemption through Christ.
So,
according to what I see in Scripture, although Jewish Holy Days,
Feasts & Festivals are significant, prophetic, supernatural,
even offering warning, guidance & revelation, celebrating them
is not binding on New Testament Christians. However, God does
indeed honor those of us who believe in their purpose & have
great respect for them.
In
closing, I'm sure you can agree with me when I say, Christians
should be more concerned with praying for the peace of Israel &
Jerusalem than they oftentimes are with giving superstitious
offerings during the times of Jewish Feasts & Festivals for the
self-indulgent purpose of financial gain.
Praying
for Israel & Jerusalem is something God will indeed bless.
(Psalm 122:6-9)
I
trust we have Biblically & adequately answered your reasonable
questions, dear Sister.
Praise
God for Jesus. Our completeness is in Him alone.
Be
blessed in Jesus' Strong Name.
 Pastor
John
and Barbara Hamel
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