A taster article from the May 2008 edition of Faith Alive!:
Israel turns sixty
Many, if not all, of the readers of Faith Alive! have never known a world without a nation of Israel. It’s easy to take it for granted that they are in the centre of the Middle East. There they are – seemingly always at the centre of the problems, not only of that region but of the world; always in the news, always in the headlines.
The Jews – a challenge
It becomes easy to forget that the Bible says that the continuing existence of the Jews remains one of the biggest challenges to those who question the existence of God. In spite of their continued unbelief Jews continue to exist, as God said they would:
“If those ordinances [of sun, moon and stars] depart from before me … then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation …” (Jeremiah 31:35-37).
The modern State of Israel was born out of dreadful adversity. Centuries of persecution culminated in the Nazis’ “Final Solution to the Jewish Question”, to remove Jews forever. Yet God would not allow it. The Jews are a witness to God:
“Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, that I am God” (Isaiah 43:12).
They are still a nation destined to be central to the purpose of God. This is something Jesus made clear, saying: “Salvation is of the Jews” (John 4:22). The Jews as a nation will be brought in time to realise, by events yet to unfold, that their God still looks for them to acknowledge Him. God is involved in the nation of Israel.
A nation of Jews – excited?
It’s too easy to forget that the very existence of a modern nation of Israel is, from a Bible point of view, cause for huge excitement. Bible students have been excited for years about the prospect of the Jews returning to the land of promise. Bible prophecy has always indicated that this expectation was right. And here we are, not only Jews in the land of Israel but a nation in its own right, there for the past 60 years. The return of the Jews to Israel is a sign of the nearness of Jesus’ return from heaven – something about which we can be genuinely excited.
A fig tree and us
Jesus told a simple parable about a fig tree. When the fig tree starts to “shoot forth” know that summer is nearly on you. The fig tree is Israel – well and truly shooting forth. The summer talked of is the kingdom of God – a kingdom which will fill the earth with the glory of God. The nation of Israel turns 60 in 2008. “So what?” you may say. When we understand that God’s purpose is centred in the Jews, every news bulletin, every event in Israel can be a constant reminder for us that God is at work to bring about His kingdom. It is witnessed to by the very existence and struggles of the nation of Israel. We can see it, be excited by it and be affected by it every day!
