“Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. And it will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it. (Zech 12: 2-3)

            During the year 2002, Israel suffered an increasing number of atrocities from attacks on citizens and soldiers by suicide bombers and shooting attacks. The political situation between Israel and the Palestinians further deteriorated and there was a flurry of political activity. Every news agency in the world has at least hourly reports about the worsening situation and each agency has its own agenda, and they bias and distort the truth often with disinformation according to which side they identify with. For instance during a foreign report two nights ago about the double suicide bombing in Tel Aviv on Jan. 5, 2003 in which 23 people were killed, one news reporter reminded us that this was the first such incident in over a month and a half. She drew attention to the fact that no Israelis had suffered during that month and a half, but many Arabs had had no respite from Israeli attacks. She neglected to mention that the Israeli attacks were against terrorist targets, and they thereby prevented many Israeli deaths. Misinformation!

            This animosity and enmity between the Jewish and the Arab populations in Israel has existed throughout history. What was new in 2002 is that we have a large believing Jewish community and a large believing Arab community, each identifying with their own people and creating an increasing polarization among believers. The turmoil and the pressures and the stress are also causing polarization between Messianic Jews of different opinions. With Israeli elections coming at the end of January, some  Messianic believers are actively trying to influence support for the extreme right or left.  

            Many Gentile believers around the world have faithfully supported the rebirth of the State of Israel and have stood firmly alongside our country during its many struggles for survival. These believers have remained friends even during the most difficult controversial situations, because of their faith in God’s ultimate eternal plan for Israel. In the past couple of years of attack and retaliation in the intifada, however, and because of the pain and seeming injustices reported by the media, some friends have chosen sides in the conflict and changed their attitudes. Even the theology of some of these friends has been influenced. In some  countries in Europe and Scandinavia, there is a growing renewal of the doctrine of “replacement theology.” Even among traditional dispensationalists who always have been the strongest supporters of  the modern State of Israel, some theologians and schools are moving toward “progressive dispensationalism,”  which sees the “promised land” only being reborn in the Millennium as a spiritual entity.    

            There are several issues challenging the Messianic Body in Israel, and the Messianic communities worldwide. LCJE will need to continue to provide a forum for discussing these issues during 2003. In Israel there is a very heated ongoing debate about the “Deity of YESHUA.”  Some in the Israeli Messianic community deny that YESHUA is God (i.e. “Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh”) or that He was pre-existent, and others interpret His Deity mainly from an Old Testament Jewish perspective. Some of these believers reject the use of the word “trinity” which is not used in the Scriptures. A second divisive issue in the Israeli Body is “Messianic Judaism” vs. “Hebrew or Jewish Christianity.” The question here is about style of worship, fellowship, and identity as a group. A third issue we are dealing with in Israel is one’s individual identity. This issue was discussed at the annual Israel LCJE meeting on June 1, 2002. Although the initial conclusions of that meeting were that for young Israeli Messianic believers, identity is a non-issue; the group was not representative enough, and therefore the conclusions were inconclusive.

            The following quotation is from the LCWE Newsletter, December 2002:

“LCJE is the only global organization in existence today in which people involved in the field of Jewish evangelism can come together to a) share information and resources; b) study current trends; c) stimulate one another’s thinking on theological and missiological issues, and; d) strategize on a global level so that more Jewish people will hear and consider the Good News of Jesus.”

            In the 1999 Barry Levinson film “Liberty Heights,” about growing up Jewish in Baltimore in the 1950’s, one of the kids is quoted as believing that the whole world was Jewish. All the kids in his class in school were Jewish. His family, friends, and neighbors were Jewish. His personal world took care of itself and was independent of outside influences. Sometimes those of us serving the Lord in Israel may think that here is the whole world. We have no time or energy to think of anything else out there! Therefore we need the stimulation of a global organization of Jewish and Gentile believers as a constant reminder of the immeasurable and infinite grace of God. Only LCJE can provide the forum for these challenges and issues that the Messianic Jewish body of YESHUA is facing.

Arthur Goldberg
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