בס”ד

Parashat Chukat (Statute of) Numbers 19:1-22:1

Haftarah: Judges 11:1-33

World War II represented a period of great turmoil when more than sixty nations went to war and a total of approximately seventy million people died. Although there have been wars since this conflict, nothing has compared to the instability and suffering which this war brought. Messiah Yeshua taught that the Last Days would be characterized by wars and instability. In fact, it will be a major war that will bring about a transition in the world which will create the scenario for the antichrist to assume power. The Scripture is clear in teaching that the conflict which will establish the rule of the antichrist will involve the Middle East.

Today, the Middle East and Northern Africa is in a period of transition. At the heart of this transition is a political philosophy that masquerades as a religion. As followers of Messiah Yeshua, we know that the only religious truth is the Bible, comprising of the Old and New Covenants. Islam is growing rapidly throughout the world and is returning to what its founder, Muhammad, had intended for it to be, a political and military movement utilizing a so-called Divine authority as a pretext for gathering and controlling its followers.

As I am writing this article, I just received an update from an Israeli news outlet that the Israeli Air Force has attacked nine separate targets in Syria. This came after a missile shot from Syria killed an Israeli Arab young boy (13 years old) and injured three other individuals. This does not mean that Israel and Syria are now at war, but simply another example of the increased tensions in the Middle East. There are so many examples of this tension, for instance the conflict in Iraq and Syria with the ISIL army. The American and European News tend to want to minimize the number of soldiers that this army has. I heard a French outlet estimate the number between two and five thousand soldiers. This figure is not even logical considering the number of cities that ISIL controls. Also, there is a tendency to call this group ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, rather than ISIL, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.  The term “Levant” implies much more land than just Iraq and Syria; it also consists of Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Cyprus, and parts of Turkey. In fact, the leaders of ISIL have stated that they see this conflict moving into additional countries, more than the ones previously mentioned. In other words, the media tends to minimize the potential threat that this conflict could pose to the world.

In this week’s Torah portion, there is a phrase which often times goes unnoticed by many students of the Bible. This phrase appears in Numbers chapter 21 and verse 14,

“Therefore, it was said in the Book of Wars of HaShem (the L-rd)….”

This book recorded the wars which our G-d fought for Israel in bringing about a very important transition. This transition was bringing the Children of Israel into the Land. It is simply a testimony of how the world stood in opposition to G-d’s plan and the extent the nations went to, to keep the Israelites out of the Promised Land. Although this book has been lost, it is certainly a memorial to the victories that HaShem gave to Israel in fulfilling His promise to Abraham.

Once again, the world, to a very large degree, sees the Jewish people in the Land as a problem. Recently one “Christian” denomination voted to desist from doing business with companies that have a relationship with Israel. The current action involved three companies that sold equipment to Israel which it uses in the so-called “occupation” of “Palestinian territories.”  I am most confident when I tell you that this denomination is led by satanic influence. I do not shy away from stating that those who oppose the right of Jewish people to live in Israel, including Judea and Samaria, are far away from the Holy Spirit and are using the word Messiah (Christ, i.e. Christian) falsely, for they do not know Yeshua! Let me be most clear in stating that those who call for a two state solution are in opposition to prophetic truth and not surprising that this same denomination also took the following action:

The church also voted, by an overwhelming majority, to change the language about marriage in the church constitution to “two persons” from a “man and a woman,”

The Palestinians (who most of the world wants to have their own State) are of the same “religious” perspective as ISIL. A Palestinian State fits in with the agenda of ISIL. Yet, so many “Christians” support a Palestinian State, whose leaders are of the same mindset as those who take control of a city or village and kill anyone who does not affirm the pagan deity allah. That means, who kill Christians.

Islam is a wicked political movement. It is quite clear that those who speak of the radicalization of Islam are misguided. It is not just an extreme form of Islam that is problematic, but all of Islam.  Islam in and of itself is a terrorist organization and needs to be treated as such. I hear one political and military analyst after another stating that there is not a good option in Iraq. Why is this? The answer that most shy away from stating is that both sides are Islamic.

It is high time for believers to voice strongly their opposition to Islam. Do not be mistaken, because whether it is ISIL that rules in Iraq and Syria or the Iranian supported leadership which comes out on top, after securing the region and unifying it, Israel will become their target.

There is a significant percentage of those who identify themselves as Christian who believe in a type of pacifistic G-d. The reason why I mentioned the verse from Numbers chapter 21 is to show that our G-d, Who does not change, is a G-d of War. It is appropriate for believers to pray His judgment upon those who violate His laws, taking the lives of those who do not want to be part of Islam. True Arab Christians feel largely abandoned by Western Church. Be assured that Yeshua will rise up one day against Islam and all others who stand in opposition to His Father’s purposes. Some will argue that this is when the Gospel will be supernaturally proclaimed throughout the world. This is indeed one aspect of His opposition, but one needs to realize that those who truly accept the Gospel will submit to HaShem’s will and not work against His plan by supporting those who strive to oppress others.

In the book of Revelation chapter 2, Yeshua speaks about the Nicolaitans.  This word is comprised of two Greek words, the first is “to conquer” and the second is “people”.  In regard to the Nicolaitans, Revelation 2:6 states that Yeshua hates them.  Although Islam is not the Nicolaitans, followers of Islam have the same primary objective as the Nicolaitans.

Wake-up!