Prophetic
Insights: Seeing Events From Heaven's Throne Room
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An
Open Letter to Pope Benedict XVI
Two
Wrongs Don't Make A Right
by
Angus Wootten |
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Recently
a statement made by Archbishop Busros, as part of a joint statement
of a Catholic synod at the Vatican on persecution of Christians in
the Middle East was made public. In his statement Archbishop Busros
declared that the original promises made by God to the children of
Israel "were nullified by Christ, and there is no longer a chosen
people."
Pope Benedict, with all due respect, I am quite sure that
Archbishop Busros' declaration was not well received in Heaven's
Throne Room! I strongly encourage you to review the above statement
in light of the following comments, and insure that it reflects
your understanding of Scripture, and the opinion that you would
want a billion Catholics to accept.
God said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'The
LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. 'This is My name
FOREVER, and this is MY MEMORIAL-NAME TO ALL GENERATIONS'" (Exodus
3:15).
There are two people groups, Christians and Jews, on earth today
who recognize the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as their God.
Reason calls out that these people be recognized as part of the
people of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Since we do not have
a copy of the Book of Life available to us we can not prove, and so
we cannot say, whether any person's name is or is not written in
the Book of Life. This is true even though both groups would agree
that there are people who call themselves Jews or Christians whose
names will not be in the Book of Life.
Therefore, it is wrong for Christians to illegitimize Jews who
believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by saying they are
not part of the people of the God of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob!
Likewise, it is also wrong for Jews to illegitimize Christians who
believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by saying they are
not part of the people of the God of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob!
The division between Jews and Christians is not over the God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but rather whether Jesus Christ is the
Messiah promised by the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Christians, and many Jews are adamant that He is, but the vast
majority of people who see themselves as Jews believe that the
promised Messiah is yet to come. The solution seems simple, "All
who believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are His people."
But unfortunately the maxim seems to be, "You must believe as I
believe." This prideful attitude has not only resulted in dividing
Jews and Christians, but it has created divisions among Jews and
Christians. Multiple divisions that have made Jesus' prayer for a
united people a seemingly impossibility (John
17:20-22).
The dilemma is that most Christians do not see themselves as being
part of the people of Israel, nor as being descendants of Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob. This viewpoint is reinforced by Jews who agree
with them. The Jewish attitude is, to be part of the people of
Israel your mother must be Jewish and you cannot believe that Jesus
is the Messiah. So if you want to be part of the people of Israel
give up your faith in Jesus as being the Messiah and convert to
Judaism. Thankfully, the vast majority of Christians would never
accept such advice. The Christian community's basic attitude over
the past two thousand years has been that since Jew and Christian
cannot both be people of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
obviously Christians have replaced the Jews. Unfortunately, in the
past they have at times attempted to prove their point by brutally
annihilating the Jews. After all, if there are no Jews than then we
are the chosen people. Archbishop Busros statement, "there is no
longer a chosen people," in my opinion, is yet one more attempt to
bully them, replace them, and eventually annihilate
them.
The root of the problem is that for the past two thousand years the
people who acknowledge the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as their
God have been deeply divided, again, not over the issue of who
their God is but over the identity of the Messiah He would send to
deliver His people. Two thousand years ago there were some seven
million readily identifiable people of the God of Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob on earth. Interestingly enough they were a tithe (tenth)
of the Roman Empire's seventy million. These people were called
"Jews," although they were not all from the tribe of Judah. Almost
half of them lived in the Roman Province of Judea, which is
comparable to the area occupied by the modern state of Israel. They
had a temple, a Levitical priesthood and an animal sacrificial
system. They also had achieved a workable relationship with Rome
which allowed them to have their own God, a favorable tax status,
and they were not required to worship the gods of
Rome.
Then a Son was born in a stable in Bethlehem. The promised Messiah
had come. Unfortunately, Yeshua's life, death and resurrection
caused deep division among the Jewish people, which was further
sealed by the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Without a temple,
a tabernacle or the animal sacrificial system, the manner in which
the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had been worshiped since the
Exodus from Egypt was over!
This Scripturally based worship system was replaced by two Jewish
sects whose primary differences were based upon whether Jesus was
or was not Israel's Messiah. The first century Jews who refused to
acknowledge that Jesus was Israel's Messiah, founded Rabbinical
Judaism. At the same time those Jews who had accepted Jesus as
their Messiah founded "The Way," which eventually became known as
Christianity. Unfortunately that division has continued to this
day.
Rabbinical Jews have portrayed themselves as primarily being from
the tribe of Judah. And while their numbers may be smaller than
that of the Christians, they have over the years succeeding in
maintaining their image as being the "people" of Israel. This
identity has been greatly reinforced by the fulfillment in the past
century of Zechariah 12:7, as the tents of Judah have been the
first to return to the land and have formed a secular state. These
returning Jews have wholeheartedly embraced being brought back to
their homeland, but they have failed to understand that being first
assumes a second.
Zechariah goes on to say that the tents of Judah are coming up
ahead of the House David. So at some point the tents that make up
the House of David, which includes all the tribes of Israel must
also come up. It was also significant that the name of the new
state was changed at the last minute from 'Judea,' to 'Israel.'
Further, the flag of the new state displayed the six pointed star
on David's shield, the emblem of the united kingdom under King
David.
Additionally, the fact that Christians do not view themselves as a
particular people group, but rather emphasize the necessity of
having a personal relationship with their God, has enhanced the
portrayal of Jews as the people of Israel. The predominant reason
for this widespread Christian viewpoint is the result of the
punishment of Ephraim (The other house of Israel and the other
fold as Jesus' describes in John 10:15-16). Because of
disobedience, Ephraim was sentenced to the loss of his identity as
a people (Hosea 1:2-10). The duration of this punishment was
initially 390 years, however, because Ephraim would not repent and
turn back to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, his punishment
was multiplied sevenfold, for a period of 2,730 years (Lev
26:18,21,24,28; Eze 4:4-5). See Zechariah Patrol Report: "Fulfilling Your
Destiny!" for specific details regarding this
punishment.
However, the good news is the time period for the punishment has
been fulfilled, and we are witnessing a growing Messianic Awakening
in which many Christians of various faiths are seeing themselves as
being of Ephraim, the other house of Israel, and part of the chosen
people of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is an exciting
life changing message not only for Ephraim but also for Judah. For
as Ephraim realizes he is part of the people of Israel it will open
Judah's eyes to the realization that Jesus (Yeshua) is Israel's
Messiah.
Pope Benedict, I am sure that you daily pray the prayer, "Thy
kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." If you
keep in mind the idea that unity does not necessarily mean
uniformity, you could take a significant step toward fulfilling the
above prayer by having the Catholic Church recognize that all
people who claim that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is their
God, are part of His people!
Pope Benedict, one last thought to ponder. The founders of the
Way which evolved into the Catholic Church were
Jews!
Angus
For the Patrol
Contact Angus |
Your thoughts and comments.
This is a team effort and we would like to hear your thoughts
and comments. To
share them go to ZechariahsPatrol.com. This
report will be shown. Click on the title of the report you would
like to comment on, then go to the end of the report. There you can
post your comments, and review comments made by others
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We
are engaged in a War of Words
Be sure that you are well armed!
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For Ephraim to once a again become a
mighty man ready for YHVH's Whistle to return to the land and join
with his brother Judah, and together defeat their enemies, he must
increase his numbers (Zech 10:7-12). This requires that lost sheep
become found sheep. This transformation under the guidance of the
Ruach Ha Kodesh can best be accomplished by providing appropriate
verbal and written information, and fellowship to lost sheep.
Twenty thousand copies Ephraim and Judah - Israel
Revealed which have been distributed
in the past have been a key factor in turning
lost sheep into found sheep. It has proven to be an excellent
initial word weapon.
However,
Batya's classic "handout book" Ephraim
and Judah - Israel Revealed, is now out of print in
paper, but it is available as a free eBook. Click here
to download. Several people have asked for the eBook
on a CD. So we have made it available on a CD which is available
at Key of David Marketplace $4
(to cover shipping and handling costs).
The good news is that we will soon have
a new and improved version of this classic book. It will be titled, Who Is Israel - Redeemed Israel - A
Digest. This exciting new overview will make an excellent
and inexpensive handout
book. It can now be pre-ordered at a very special price at Key of David
Marketplace and is now due for delivery in late November or
early December. For more information see the Challenges of Being A
Watchman
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I Am
YHVH
We
encourage you to listen to a new song, written by Batya and
recorded by our friend, Will Spires. The song is titled
"I
AM YHVH"and it is truly inspiring. You might
want to listen to it before you pray. The song is about the
Father's heart cry for His chosen people: Judah and Ephraim. You
can hear it as you enter the Zachariah's Patrol
website or Key of David
Marketplace, and it can be downloaded for free
at Key of David
Marketplace.Several people
have asked for the song on a cd so they can play it in their cars.
So we have made available at Key of David Marketplace.a CD that has seven
renditions of the song for $4 (to cover shipping and handling
costs).
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Upcoming
Events
The Messianic Israel Alliance
Southeast Regional Conference will be held in the Tampa area on
Friday and Saturday, November 12th - 13th, 2010. For more
information go to Southeast Regional
Conference
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Contact Information
Key of David Publishing's
Books are available at the Messianic Israel
Alliance Marketplace (Phone 800-829-8777). They also are
available at Key of David
Publishing Marketplace,
where Bookstores, Ministries, and Way Stations are eligible for a
quantity discount.
Websites
to visit:
Messianic Israel Alliance The
MIA will help you to understand the Hope of Messianic Israel plus
Messianic Israel Inclusion Theology. You can become a Partner in
restoring the Kingdom to Israel.
Bnai' Ephraim International
This is the premier online presence that advocates for this
generation's sons and daughters of Ephraim.
Zechariah's Patrol Reports This
exciting site offers an abundance of prophetic insights that will
help you see how events on earth and in our own lives are viewed
from Heaven's Throne Room.
You can
support Key of David online. See the Key of David
Marketplace and the Messianic Israel
Alliance. Or send snail mail to Key of David, PO Box 700217,
Saint Cloud, FL 34770. Or call us at 407-344-7700.
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