CHAPLAIN’S PAGE
‘VALIANT FOR THE TRUTH’
WE live in a world of confusion, a time of information explosion. It comes from every direction until our heads are spinning. Even the ‘experts’ change their minds every five minutes. One day we are informed that a glass of red wine is good for us, and a few days later, it is supposed be bad for the heart! Who are we to
believe? However, there is a more serious side to all this ‘misinformation’ and it concerns our spiritual wellbeing. Today, there is more confusion than ever before. Paul expressed a great truth
“For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace.” – (1 Corinthians 14:33)
Theologians and free thinkers are having a field day, for they have abandoned the Scriptures. Any serious debate leads off from the wrong starting point.
Spiritual ignorance which abounds stems from the fact that most Christians accept what they are told by their Pastors and Ministers. This is much easier than wading through chapter after chapter of the Scriptures. If we are not rock solid on the fundamentals of our faith, it is no more than shifting sands, for it is based upon the traditions of men. This, incidentally, is nothing new, for Jesus was challenged by the Scribes and Pharisees on this very issue.
“Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?” – (Matthew 15:2-3)
Because Theologians have not believed the Scriptures, they have had to invent schools of thought in order to try to make sense of what the Word of God teaches. The Futurist and Replacement schools are prime examples. They have only come about because of their arrogance in believing that they know better than what the Word actually says. Those who do believe are labelled ‘fundamentalists’ and sneered upon by Academia.
One of the greatest churchmen of recent times was, without doubt, J.C. Ryle, Bishop of Liverpool. That man was truly a prophet, and almost all that he predicted concerning the Established Church has come to pass. When it came to taking the Scriptures in a literal sense, he never failed to speak out. Needless to say, he had enemies, for in the mid 1800’s the Oxford Movement had a strong following. Fundamentalists such as Ryle were considered beyond the pale. The following quote is a fine example of his teaching.
‘I warn you, that unless you interpret the prophetical portions of the Old Testament in the simple, literal meaning of its words, you will find it no easy matter to carry on an argument with an unconverted Jew. Will you dare tell him that Zion, Jerusalem, Jacob, Judah, Ephraim and Israel, do not mean what they seem to mean, but mean the Church of Christ? Oh, reader! If you are a man of this mind, take care what you are doing! I say again, take care! I think we should remember that we must reject Protestant traditions which are not according to the Bible, as much as the traditions of Rome.Where, in the whole New Testament, shall we find any plain authority for applying the word Israel to anyone but the Nation of Israel, I can find none’.
Here was this man, Bishop of Liverpool, clearly teaching the basic fact that the Bible means what it says, and says what it means. Oh that we had men of his calibre in the church of God today! But there are none, and even if there were, they would no more be listened to than was Bishop Ryle. Almost from the beginning of her nationhood, God has sent His prophets to Israel to warn of impending disaster. Not that they heeded, but God is not mocked, so where do we stand today? As usual, He has a controversy with the people.
” Hear ye, O mountains, the Lord’s controversy, and ye strong foundations of the earth: for the Lord hath a controversy with his people, and he will plead with Israel. O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me. For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab consulted, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim unto Gilgal; that ye may know the righteousness of the Lord”. – (Micah 6:2-5)
Oh the pathos, that we are wearied by the Lord’s loving overtures! Deuteronomy chapter 28 lays down the hard facts that there is no escape. What we are presently enduring is, without doubt, a further fulfilment of the cursings in that chapter. It should be noted however, that not all the cursings apply to this time period. A number of them passed into fulfilment, some whilst the nation was on the move and before she settled in her abode in the isles. What we are currently experiencing is revealed in verses 43-44.
“The stranger that is within thee shall get up above thee very high; and thou shalt come down very low. He shall lend to thee, and thou shalt not lend to him: he shall be the head, and thou shalt be the tail”
If our identity had been recognised by the economists years ago, we wouldn’t have been caught up in the Babylonian financial system, and now suffering this global maelstrom. Truly, all our problems and suffering are of our making. Today, our land has been taken over by strangers who have become very high, and we have become very low. All this has come to pass because we are still asleep, apathy has played a major part in our downfall. A constant diet of bread and circuses has ensured that the nation’s attention is focused on carnal activities. This is only half the story, because those whose minds should be focused upon the truth of the
Scriptures, are being fed a diet of false teaching in the churches.
A prime example is the universally held belief that the State of Israeli, set up in 1948, is the fulfilment of prophecy for these last days. This is Satan’s masterstroke of deception. The congregations are urged to pray and support this ‘so called’ State of Israel. There is overwhelming evidence, both Biblical and secular, that this is a counterfeit nation, which does not fulfil the criteria which we would expect if it were the Southern House of Judah. Undoubtedly there are a FEW who are able to trace their ancestry to Hebrew, Israelitish blood. But, without a doubt, the vast majority comprise many of the worlds’ nations, who have embraced the religion of the Jews. Throughout history they have bee indefatigable in their determination to make converts to their religion. Our Lord spoke about this in Matthew 23:15.
” Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves”.
If the religion of the Jews is the one that we should look to in these last days, why did Jesus say that converts are made ‘twofold the children of hell’? In the seventh century A.D. the Khazars, a nation of Turko-Mongoloid origin, accepted it overnight. This was the commencement of European Jewry. Such scholars as Julian Huxley and Professor Ripley both stated that the Jews are not a race or even an ethnic unit, but rather a socio-religious group.
When the Israeli State was inaugurated in 1948, thousands of European Jews who were virtually homeless flocked there in order to settle, and have a feeling of mutual identity. To declare that the European Jews today are the Israelites of old is quite untrue. Over two and a half thousand years ago Isaiah, prophesied that people would call themselves by the name of Jacob Israel.
” One shall say, I am the Lord’s; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the name of Israel.” – (Isaiah 44:5)
The first question a Christian should ask is this; if we are to believe the Scriptures that Israel is to become so vast numerically, that she is likened to the sand on the seashore (Genesis 22:17, II Samuel 17:11, I Kings 4:20 and Hosea 1:10) can we truthfully say that the population of the Israeli State fits this description? It is estimated that the total number of Jews today is somewhere around fourteen million. Only a proportion of those are actually residing in the Israeli State.
Today, we often hear the expression ‘Judeo-Christianity’. We are told that the roots of our faith are deeply embedded in Judaism. Does this claim fit the facts? If so, then how are we to understand Christ’s condemnation in Matthew 23:13-14:
” But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.”
If Christianity is based upon the teaching of the Scribes and Pharisees, then ours is a dead religion. How can God bless that which He has cursed? In answer, the Pastors will say that the Jewish religion has changed down the centuries, that they are now more tolerant towards Christ. Judaism has not changed, neither has Rome, but what has changed are Christians! It is because of that evil thing, political correctness that the thinking processes of Christians have been dulled and they have fallen asleep. They simply believe what they are told by the Churches without studying the Scriptures for themselves.
Christians are besotted with the false teaching that we must look to the Jews, for they are the very essence of God’s presence in the world. If this is so, then we can do no better than to.see what the Rabbis teach concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, and His claim to be God the Son, and the Son of God. The following quotations are from the Talmud:
‘If a man tell thee, I am God, he lies. If he tell thee, I am the Son of man, he will end by regretting it. If he says: I shall ascend into Heaven, he merely makes this utterance, but he cannot fulfil it’.
The Rabbi quotes Numbers 23:19 to back his teaching. The text states:
” God is not a man, that he should lie, neither the son of man, that he should repent”.
Another Rabbi, refuting Christs’ claims, writes this concerning God:
‘I am the first; I have no Father, I am last, I have no brother. And beside me, there is no God; I have no son’.
Yet another Rabbi says:
‘How foolish of heart are the falsifiers! They say that God has a son. Behold, God permitted not Abraham to sacrifice His son. Does it stand to reason that He would permit His own son to be executed, without turning the world to chaos’?
Nothing could be clearer from these examples that the Jewish religion is in constant rebellion against God and His anointed Son. They reject out of hand our Lord’s claims in spite of the evidence of their validity. This being so, how can Christians be so blind, and continue to support the Israeli State? See how important they see themselves in the scheme of things, I quote:
‘If Jews were to disappear, the Torah would disappear, and God Himself would lose the most effective witness of His presence’.
Again,
‘Wherever a Jew enters, there Right enters also’.
Compare this claim with what Jesus said in John 8 verse 12:
” Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”
It is important to note the Pharisees’ reaction in verse 13:
” The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true. Then Jesus answered and said unto them (v14), Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go.”
Christ was clearly telling them that their minds were closed to spiritual truth. Is the situation any different today?
The Jews’ claims that if they were to disappear then God would lose His witness on the earth, is based on Psalm 83: 1-4:
” Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance”.
The inference being that the Jews look upon themselves as being representative of all Israel. This is also what the vast majority of Christians also believe! However, there is a problem here, because two letters from the Office of the Chief Rabbi, one dated 18th November 1918, and the other 14th July 1950, both clearly state that the Jews only represent the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, plus a few of Levi. How can the Jews reconcile the two conflicting teachings of the Rabbis? One can only surmise that there are conflicting beliefs just as there are in the Christian faith. However, on the subject of Christ, the Jews are in agreement.
Is it not time that the true facts are clearly stated? Not ‘supposed’ facts based upon the traditions of men, but the absolute facts which are clearly set forth in the pages of the Scriptures. I Thessalonians 2 verses 14 to 16 are a great condemnation of the Jews and their religion.
” For you, brethren, became imitators of the churches of God which are in Judea in Christ Jesus. For you also suffered the same things from your own countrymen, just as they did from the Judeans, who killed both the Lord Jesus and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they do not please God and are contrary to all men, forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they may be saved, so as always to fill up the measure of their sins; but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost.”
Notice the four accusations:
1) The Christians suffered persecution at their hands,
2) They murdered Christ,
3) They murdered their own prophets, and
4) They forbade Paul to preach in the name of Jesus.
We now need to be clear as to whether the Israeli State fits the prophetic profile for the nation. Several texts demonstrate that Israel was to have a new home until such time as Messiah returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. II Samuel 7:10-16 contains the promise of a new home, and also God’s promise to David.
” Moreover I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime, And as since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also the Lord telleth thee that he will make thee an house. And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.”
Some may argue that the place of safety is Palestine, but can this be so? When the promise was made around 1042 B.C., they were already in the Promised Land. Some will say that the setting up of the Jewish State in 1948 is that prophecy being fulfilled. Do they have a descendant of David reigning over them?
Does Scripture give us a description of this place of safety? If so, does Palestine fit that description? The following three texts, Isaiah 24:15; 49:1 and Jeremiah 31:10 all say the same “the Isles of the sea”. Can this refer to Palestine? Jeremiah 33:17 informs us:
“David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel “.
If, as we believe, our Queen (no Salic law in Israel) sits on that throne, then the Northern House of Israel and the throne of David are firmly united. If, as most believe, the Israeli State is the Southern House of Judah, then why is the throne not established there?
What other tests of identity prove that international Jewry is not of true Israel stock? The words of Christ in Matthew 21 verse 43 cannot be misunderstood:
” Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.”
It is important to note two points in order to understand this text, firstly, who was Jesus talking to? He was addressing the Chief Priests and the Pharisees. Secondly, the Churches teach that the nation mentioned in the text is the Church. If that is the case, the Greek word would be ‘Ecclesia’ but the word is ‘Ethnos’ meaning race or tribe. Jesus was teaching that the Kingdom would be taken from the Jews, and given to a nation bringing forth fruits to God’s glory. Have the Jews brought forth that fruit?
“By their fruits ye shall know them” the Lord said in Matthew 7:6.
Some will rightly point out that as a nation, we no longer bring forth fruit. Sadly, this is true, for our days of doing so have come to an end. This does not negate what has been achieved in past days. A key text which firmly establishes our identity as the Northern House of Israel is Genesis 22:17:
“…that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;“
Notice the twofold blessing:
1) The multiplicity of the seed, and
2) That it would possess the gate of his enemies.[Gibraltar-Aden-Ceylon-Singapore- Falklands-Cape Town-Hong Kong]
How may this be understood? According to Strong’s’ Concordance under Ref 8179, it is a door, or gate which opens, or a port. Can it be said of Jewry that they have had at any time in their history, the command of major sea ports? Numbers 24:7 informs us that Israel would be a sea power, and this is confirmed in Isaiah 60:5 and 9. These prophecies can only refer to the Northern House of Israel, and not to Jewry.
Genesis 12:2 states that Israel would become a great nation and that the Lord would bless it. Does this apply to Israeli? Has it spread abroad to the west, to the east, to the north and to the south, and in that order, resulting in all the families of the earth being blessed? (Genesis 28:14).
The Jews’ rejection of Jesus was made very clear after He had restored a blind man’s sight (John 9:22-29). This article contains only a fraction of the evidence that the Jewish State is counterfeit, and made up of many races who have embraced the Jewish faith. Although they claim the Pentateuch as their foundational beliefs, over many centuries, even before Christ, man made traditions have been added. Our Lord couldn’t have made it plainer than in a conversation He had with the Scribes and the Pharisees:
” Then came to Jesus, Scribes and Pharisees which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”
May the day come soon when Christians will wake out of their long sleep. The night has gone, and we stand at the threshold of a new day.
