"'On the first day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. It is a day for you to sound the trumpets" (Numbers 29:1).
Yesterday was Yom T'ruah (the Feast of Trumpets--aka Rosh Hashanah). Did you even notice?
What is Yom T'ruah? Well, as we discussed last week, it is a time of PREPARATION--preparation, that is, for followers of Yeshua to enter into our priestly role. After all, the sound of the shofar (or "trumpet") is an awakening sound--awakening its hearers to the onset of an event of much importance!
The Hebrew word translated as "to sound" or "to blow" is t'ruah. Another translation for T'ruah is "to shout." We see this in Joshua's command to "give a loud shout" after marching around Jericho's walls the seventh time (Joshua 6:5). We see this in the rebuilding of the Temple, when the people "gave a great shout of praise" (Ezra 3:11). We see it in the declaration of Psalm 47:1: "God has ascended amid shouts of joy".
Interesting, isn't it, that the Apostle Paul prophesied that Yeshua will return (or descend) to earth with a shout and a trumpet call (1 Thessalonians 4:16)! Any ideas now of THE great event that this holiday points to???
Yeshua's return spells judgement to the anti-God systems of this world (Psalm 9:8). The nations who do not honor His covenant with His chosen land will perish (Psalm 60:12).
So how are things lining up now?
Hitler's chief propagandist, Joseph Goebbels, famously declared that "if you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it." For years we have heard the mantra repeated in the Western media of "two states (Israel and "Palestine") living side-by-side in peace and security. This, like all other media propaganda, is designed to do what Goebbels predicted: lull the people into believing a lie.
Consider these facts about the current state of affairs between Israel and the "peaceful" Palestinians:
1. In 1993, Israel agreed to withdraw its troops from the West Bank and Gaza, and give the Palestinians a chance at self-government. The result? The first wave of suicide bombings.
2. In 2000, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak agreed to give the Palestinians permanent statehood in 90% of the West Bank and half of Jerusalem. The result? 4 years of Israeli blood shed at the hands of Palestinian terrorists, approved of by "President Arafat."
3. In 2005, Israel uprooted all her citizens living in Gaza. The result? 6-8000 rockets launched from Gaza into Israel, prompting the 2008 Gaza War.
Throw into the mix the Biblical reality:
1. God owns this Land--and decides who lives in it (Leviticus 25:23).
2. God has deeded this land to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 26:3-5).
3. The "West Bank" is really biblical Judea and Samaria.
Add in a dash of recent history:
1. Israel's gaining control of Judea and Samaria in 1967 was nothing short of miraculous.
2. Israel gained control of the land after being threatened by the Arabs--not the other way around.
3. The Arab states have consistently refused to take in the Palestinians, preferring instead to keep them in poverty so they can become radicalized human missiles against "the Zionist entity."
Toss in a pinch of Western fear of Arab wrath (resulting in the West caving in to the Arabs' demands and exerting pressure on Israel to divide up her land), and you have the perfect recipe for the wrath of God against the West.
Is it any wonder that the gospel is fastest-growing faith on the earth--except in the West? Could it be that we in the West have already entered into judgement and don't even know it?
This is no longer a time to be considered an American first and a follower of Jesus second. You either know Him--or you don't. You either will stand firmly in His covenant--and yes, that includes His land covenant with His people--or you don't.
This is, however, a time to pray fervently for your neighbors and loved ones. They may not get a chance! More on that next week.
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