Pro-Bible, Not Anti-Semitism

While Israel continues to partner with the U.S. to advance against the menace known as Iran, around the world, antisemitism continues to be a force to be reckoned with, and not in a good way.  We have to recognize the role of Israel in the world today and in the plan of God for the earth.  His covenant with the Jewish people has not been canceled, and as stewards of His truth, we have to recognize the importance of serving a God who keeps His promises.  In Romans 11, in the New Testament, Paul underscores this enduring covenant:
2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel?
3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.”
4 But what is God's reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
5 So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace.

God still has a plan for the Jewish people, and it includes seeing them come into a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, who has brought a New Covenant.  In the meantime, we honor God by honoring His promises, and I believe that involves honoring Israel.

Recently, in a piece published at the Harbinger's Daily website, Gary Hamrick, Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Chapel in Virginia, heard weeknights at 8:00 in Faith Radio, wrote this:

The Israeli people have been the target of hate, oppression, murder and genocide throughout history. Hitler’s attempted annihilation of the Jews during World War II took an estimated 6 million Jewish lives. Satan has been inciting nations and people to hate Israel ever since the tiny Jewish nation became the conduit for God’s redemptive plan for mankind.

Israel is central to the story of the Bible. God birthed an ethnic people group through the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to introduce the Savior to the world, whose Name is Jesus, Yeshua—a Jewish Messiah, sent on a rescue mission to save all who would receive Him.

The Bible makes it clear that this Savior—Jesus Christ—was born in Israel, died in Israel, rose from the dead in Israel, and is coming again to Israel!

Hamrick calls on the Church to reject what is called, "replacement theology," which teaches, as he puts it, "...that the church has superseded—or replaced—Israel in terms of the blessings and promises intended for the Jewish people in Scripture. This false doctrine suggests that God used Israel to bring the Messiah onto the world scene, but after the Jewish people took part in Jesus’ crucifixion, and many—though not all—denied Jesus as Messiah, God pivoted and transferred the promises and blessings intended for them onto the church."  Hamrick states: "God’s unconditional covenant—that He would establish a people and a place through whom Messiah would come for the sake of the whole world—is the basis for why we should support and bless the Jewish people while we continue to pray for their salvation."

Recently, Cornerstone Chapel hosted a panel discussion called, "The Rise of Antisemitism in Christian and Conservative Circles."  A Jewish woman named Elicia Brand Leudemann, writing for the LoudounNow website, stated:

The evening was led by Pastor Gary Hamrick, with guest speakers Rob McCoy, Bob McEwen, and Samuel Smadja. Together, they spoke with moral clarity without spectacle, conviction without cruelty, and courage without ego.

Pastor Gary’s decision to host this program was itself an act of bravery. He did so knowing the cost. Complaints, rage and even threats had already poured in. Pressure mounted. Silence would have been easier. Instead, he chose responsibility.

She relates: "The program closed with Pastor Gary reading Martin Niemöller’s First They Came. When he reached the final line—'Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.'—the room was still.  Leudemann relates: "He prayed for the Jewish people. Samuel Smadja closed with prayer in Hebrew, then English."  She adds, "I cannot adequately describe what it feels like, as a Jewish woman, to hear Hebrew prayers spoken aloud in a Christian church—not as performance, but as protection. As solidarity. As love."

Another woman, a professing Christian had written about Gary Hamrick, too.  But, was not quite so admiring.  In another Harbinger's piece, he wrote:

I am also very troubled by some comments by Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson over the past few months. As influencers with millions of followers, they are persuading people to believe some things about Israel and the Jewish people that I believe are damaging to our nation and dividing conservative circles—even dividing Christians.

This was evidenced for me by some of the slanderous emails that I’ve received, as well as the outrageous and inaccurate comments posted on our social media, about our recent service with a panel of experts, titled “The Rise of Antisemitism in Christian and Conservative Circles.”

Candace herself, two days before the service, posted my Instagram announcement on her podcast, mocking myself and our guests.

There is certainly plenty to unpack here, but first and foremost, we have to turn to a promise-keeping, covenant-keeping God - the Bible teaches that God is not through with the Jewish people and because of His love, longsuffering and reliability, He desires to see them come into a saving knowledge of Christ.  

And, Gary Hamrick draws the distinction between disagreeing with the nation of Israel and a strong dislike for Jewish people: "Simply being opposed to some policies of the Israeli government does not make you anti-Semitic any more than being opposed to some of the policies of the United States would make you unpatriotic. However, to harm Jews, to wish them harm, or to constantly blame the Jews for all the problems in the world is not only anti-semitic, it is delusional and demonic."

As Israel faces unprecedented attacks from Iran and is engaged, with the U.S., in a campaign to mute the Iranian threat, we are directed to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. We should approach the current crisis with prayer, recognizing the spiritual ramifications about what is taking place in that region of the world.  And, we can call on God in faith and expectancy that He alone will be glorified.   The advance of radical Islam, embodied in the so-called Islamic Republic, Iran, is extremely dangerous, and we can pray for wisdom for American and Israeli leadership to protect the peoples of the world from this menacing presence.