by Joseph Shulam.
Out of Zion.
Dear Brothers and Sisters around the world,
Israel is being attacked today from Gaza, including rockets being shot toward Jerusalem and the surrounding hills, including Mevasseret Zion where we live. Rockets were shot toward Israel from as far as Yemen, that is by the Houties a part of Iran’s long arm in the Middle East.
Now the arena has spread from Lebanon and Syria in the North, Gaza in the South and Yemen from the far South, with Iran orchestrating and threatening Israel.
This is a red-light district now and Israel needs help and the most important help has to come from God and from Heaven. Please lift up your voices and open up your generosity.
Netivyah is at the tip of the sword as far as Jewish Disciples of Yeshua in the Land of Israel and the help to the Israeli Defense Forces with much needed gear and other supplies including hot meals for our soldiers in the very front lines.
Our congregation just had the Korean brothers and sisters cook a typical Korean Meal and took it to the front lines and the soldiers expressed a gratitude and enjoyed every bit of the spicy Korean food.
I can’t stress the seriousness of this time and this situation. It might sound dramatic and panicky, but it is not. Israel’s existence is being threatened from some five Arab countries and from all four winds of the earth. The abilities and the arsenal of these countries is at least four times
bigger than little old Israel.
Especially Iran has an army that is at least 3 times the size of Israel and a huge arsenal of long and medium range rockets with very big war heads.
Israel and we, the Jewish Disciples of Yeshua, need your prayers and your practical and financial support. You all know that we have very seldom and very rarely have asked for financial help. Now we need your help so that we can help our soldiers in the front lines.
It is not only a physical help. On the contrary, the major help is not the physical, but the physical help with tactical materials that they need and with other materials that will make their lives in the battlefield easier and less stressful.
The change in the attitude toward the Jewish Disciples of Yeshua in this land and the good witness of our soldiers in the front lines is a change of the Consciousness; not only toward us, the Jewish Disciples of Yeshua and our brothers from Netivyah and the Roeh Israel Congregation that come from Korea, Japan, Holland, Finland, Papua, Switzerland, Germany, the USA, and South America.
The international nature of our congregation in Jerusalem will spread good news with a global scope with every good deed that we do for our soldiers in the front lines.
Please contribute so that we can continue to bless and provide much needed gear for our soldiers.
Especially pray and pray and knock knock knock on Heaven’s door as the prophet Isaiah
says to the nations:
“For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a lamp that burns. The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the LORD will name. You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no longer be termed forsaken, nor shall your land any more be termed desolate; but you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; For the LORD delights
in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice
over you.” (Isaiah 62:1-5 NKJV)
By the way, our brothers and sisters in the United States that need tax credit for your charitable contributions can contribute to the Netivyah USA account and get the tax credit. I know that this helps and the credit that you get will bless not only the Lord’s work in Israel and round the world, but also give you an added blessing. You can do this through the Netivyah.org web page and just choose the “Netivyah USA “button. I know that this is just a little added benefit for the American citizens that need that IRS credit.
In the darkness of war, and the very bitter hate that the enemies of Israel have against us, the biblical parallel is with the Amalek. The Hamas and those who finance them have proven more than one time that they are Amalek. This is what the Word of God commands Israel already during the exodus from Egypt:
“Remember what Amalek did to you on the way as you were coming out of Egypt, how he met you on the way and attacked your rear ranks, all the stragglers at your rear, when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God. Therefore, it shall be, when the LORD your God has given you rest from your enemies all around, in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, that you will blot out the remembrance of
Amalek from under heaven. You shall not forget.” (Deut. 25:17-19 New King James Version)
The behavior of the Hamas leader and their terrorists and their beastly and beyond beastly behavior has proven that they are not only descendants of the Amalek but that they are the Amalek. Or should I say the reincarnation of their long-passed ancestors from the same roots of the Amalek. [1] I am sad to say again that our most bitter and cruel enemies throughout our history have been from among our own ethnic roots, our kind of not-so-distant relatives. Isaiah the prophet already said this in the 8 th Century B.C.
I have a very high respect and deep friendship with many Palestinians, both Muslims and Christians. I deeply respect Palestinian Muslim friends and confess that I trust them more than I trust some of my so called “messianic Jewish brothers” or some Christian missionaries.
I know for sure that many Palestinians both Christians and Muslims are also ashamed and embarrassed by what these demonized and heated creatures drugged with hate did to innocent human beings and to innocent girls and women and little children.
Only the Devil himself can be the architect of such horrible and demonic behavior and only our Lord Jesus Christ can change such twisted souls as those who raped mothers in front their children and then shoot or cut the throat of their fathers and mothers and took the children as hostages. Such behavior could only be compared to what the Nazis did to Jews during World War II.
We all know that as the darkness of human behavior grows, even a little light has the power to dispel it and allow people to see the goodness that exists in human beings. Yes, what happened in Gaza just a few short days ago is a product of racism and hate, and envy and brainwashing by the Hamas leadership that uses the people of Gaza as human shields to be cannon fodder for their own private enrichment while the common people suffer.
The Torah portion that is being read in the synagogues this Shabbat is the portion called Noah.
The reading is from Genesis 6:9 – 11:32. The Haftarah,reading from the prophets is from
Isaiah 54:1 -55:5, and the reading from the New Testament is from Luke 17:20-27.
The most significant verse in the Torah portion of Noah and may be especially in these days, the most important verse in the whole Bible for our days:
“And the LORD was sorry (Repented) that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the LORD said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:6-8 NKJV)
I have a hard time imagining how it is possible for God, the Creator of all and the father of all mankind, could have regretted, repented, sorry, that HE has made man on this earth.
I sometimes, especially when I am sick and have to stay at home, take up a brush and do some very amateurish painting. I have hanging on my walls my paintings; some are good and some are not so good; but they are my babies. I have never thought that I will destroy even one of my not so good and not so successful works of art.
Here we have the creator of the Universe repenting, regretting, being sorry that He created man! This is one of the saddest texts in the whole Bible. But I am so happy that this “But” exists in the Word of God, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” There you have it dear brothers. The power of one semi-righteous man, and his family; Noah who made God think twice before destroying the world. The power of one righteous and just and obedient individual that saved the fate of humanity and was able by his dedication and obedience to preserve the human race as we know it from Genesis till now!
This is probably my greatest teaching – the power of one individual to change the world. If I would not believe in this BIBLICAL TRUTH, I would not have dedicated my life to teach the Word of God all around the world, and to make disciples from both Jews and Arabs, white and black, from Finland and from China, all the way to Brazil and Bulgaria.
It is this one short verse that has, over and over and over, renewed my faith in my own self, and in other individuals: that have changed my understanding of God and of man alike.
I just want to mention of a few of these individuals. Ernest Stewart, Ralph Henley, Bill Long, W.B.West (with whom I had the privilege of spending a few weeks in Israel, but from whom I learned what it means to be committed to the restoration of the First Century Church!).
Dr. John McRay and His family, and
Moshe Ben-Maier and his wife Ahuva. And from Joseph Vactor, who was as different as a person
can be, but as great a disciple of Yeshua and as much as an Orthodox Jew can take the Good
News seriously.
There are some more Holy men and women that have a great influence on me, but no one like Noah who found grace in the eyes of the Lord when the rest of humanity didn’t care! [2]
Please don’t forget to stand with Israel these days, don’t forget to pray for Israel and for us personally, these days. Don’t forget to help us help our men in the front lines during this harsh time.
Don’t give up and keep holding our hands up in praise and gratitude like Joshua and Hur held the hands of Moses to keep the battle against Amalek.
Dear brothers and sisters, now is the time! Let us come together in prayer especially for each and every person who is dealing up close with this horrible situation.
We invite each and every person who is ready and able to give to please do so, for the purpose of providing necessary aid to those suffering from the war that Israel is experiencing right now!
We also encourage you to share with others you know for whom Israel is close to their hearts, who may wish to take part as well in supporting our soldiers and civilians on the frontlines.
Share it now with people who want to help Israeli soldiers!
To support here now: