Vol. H-0004 May 1999 No. H-0005

INTERCESSION...VITAL!

​​"He [Jesus] is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them" (Heb. 7:25). What a comfort it is to know that Jesus is always before the Father on our behalf! But what about those who do not know Jesus, who do not draw near to God through Him? Who is interceding for them? And why do they need intercession?

"All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). Without Jesus we cannot be assured of eternal life with our heavenly Father. Therefore, it is necessary for us to recognize Jesus as our Messiah and Savior in order for us to have that eternal life, salvation. Many of us can remember that day when we made the decision to accept Jesus as our Savior. And many of us were told afterward by friends and/or family that they had been praying for our salvation for a long time. Their prayers played an important part in our coming to know Jesus. Those of us who now know Jesus as our Savior and Lord know many people - friends, family, co-workers, teachers, etc. - who do not know Him. Daily we pray for their salvation, just like the many who prayed for us.

Among our friends, and perhaps our families, is a People, the majority of whom have not accepted Jesus as their Messiah, - - God's People Israel. There is a reason for this. In Romans 11 Paul explains that the Jews' eyes were blinded to the truth of Jesus as their Messiah, as prophesied by Isaiah, in order that salvation might come to the Gentiles. The hearts of the Jews were hardened for the sake of the Gentiles. Think about that! If the eyes of the Jews had not been blinded and their hearts not hardened to the truth of who Jesus is, they would have accepted Him as their promised Messiah and this message of salvation might never have been preached to and/or accepted by the Gentiles. So what does this mean to those who are Gentile believers in the Messiah Jesus? It means we have a job to do - intercede on behalf of the Jewish People! "From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God's choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." (Rom. 11:28, 29) We have received the Gift of Eternal Life at their cost. But God does not mean for their exclusion to be eternal (Rom. 11:25, 26). On the contrary, His Chosen People are still called His Chosen People. And He desires them to know His Son Jesus as their Messiah. Just as we came to know Him as Messiah Jesus through the intercession of others, they, too, can do the same.... if someone is interceding for them. Our intercession on behalf of our Jewish brothers and sisters is vital. They need to know their Messiah Yeshua, or perish. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16) The Jews were sacrificed in order for the Gentiles to come to know Jesus. Now the Gentiles must intercede in their behalf that they might receive the Gift of Eternal Life. What a small price for the Gentiles to pay!

Psalm 122:6-8 is a good place to begin learning how to intercede for God's Chosen People.

"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May they prosper who love you. May peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.' For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, 'May peace be within you.' " Pray for the peace of God's land of Israel and for His people, the Jewish People, in Israel and in all parts of the world. As you do so you will begin to share in the Father's Love for His people and His desire that they come to know their Messiah Yeshua. Many of His Chosen People literally cross your path every day. They live where you live, eat where you eat, shop where you shop, drive where you drive, work where you work, play where you play. You see many on television and in movies and read about them in the media. Whether you know them or not you can pray for them: that God's Will would be accomplished in their lives; that they would come to know their Messiah Yeshua. As you do so you will realize what a privilege it is to be involved in the salvation of the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They are an ancient people, chosen from the time of God?s call to Abraham (Gen. 12). They are the "apple of His eye" (Zech. 2:8).

THE BOTTOM LINE

"Am I my brother's keeper?" (Gen. 4:9) This was Cain's answer when the Lord asked him where his brother Abel was. The Lord responded, "The voice of your brother's blood is crying to Me from the ground." (v. 10) It is time for us to be our brothers' keepers - our Jewish brothers and sisters. Each Jewish life that passes from this earth without having accepted his Messiah Yeshua lives eternally without Him. If no one is interceding for them they may never have the chance to make that choice. May it never be said that their blood is on our heads (Ez.33:1-6)!

FROM THE BRIDEGROOM

"Weep for your 'brothers and sisters', indeed. Jerusalem is My Heart--My Heart weeps for My Chosen--their pain is so great. Their need--like your own--is deeper than they realize. Arise in your intercession for My People--My Chosen are now the thrust of My Spirit. IN THE NAME OF THE LORD YOUR GOD--REPENT AND INTERCEDE for your people--they are your people by My Gift. Pray for Mine Own--as you are Mine Own! Be pierced within for My Chosen!" (March 7, 1996)

GOD'S CHOSEN PEOPLE

Are God's Jewish children as important to you as they are to Him? They should be. The Apostle Paul knew the importance of God's People Israel and the importance of their salvation: "But by their transgression salvation has come to the Gentiles, to make them jealous. Now if their transgression be riches for the world and their failure be riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their fulfillment be! For if their rejection be the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?" (Rom. 11:11, 12, 15)

CHOICE

"Life from the dead" - that is the result of Jesus' surrender to the Will of His Father. He, through His Life and Death, has paid the price for our sins and bought us eternal life - for the Jew first and also the Gentile. We are dead through sin until we accept the Gift of Eternal Life - Jesus, our Messiah. Have you received the Gift of Life? It's a choice you must make for yourself. You can also choose to intercede for Eternal Life for others, especially God's Chosen People - the apple of His eye - His People Israel. Make your choice now, while there is still time.

CURRENT EVENTS

You may have noticed that this issue of "Knowing The Times" has arrived earlier than usual. There is a reason for that : May 4, 1999. This is the date of the expiration of the Oslo Accords. Yasser Arafat has indicated many times that he desires to declare Palestinian statehood on that day. On January 20, 1999, he told the worshipers on the occasion of the Moslem feast of Id Al Fitr at the end of the month of Ramadan, "I would like to bless you all on the feast of Id Al Fitr, and pray that next year we will celebrate in Jerusalem, the capital of Palestine." (1) We have to look back only 51 years to see what happened when Israel declared statehood on May 14, 1948 - the immediate attack of Israel by the Arabs. We make no prediction of what may or will happen on May 4th. However, the following words from the weekly communique entitled "Our Position," issued by Yasser Arafat’s Fatah faction of the PLO, on Dec. 19, 1998, in the official Palestinian Authority newspaper, Al-Hayat Al-Jadeeda, give us cause to be concerned. "This is Palestine from the [Jordan] river to the [Mediterranean] sea, from Rosh Hanikra to Rafah [in Gaza]... It is impossible to struggle against the [Israeli] settlements, the confiscation of land and cold-blooded killings via negotiations. There is no alternative but a struggle that will smash the Israeli aggression and emphasize the readiness of our people to explode with force against any aggression..." (2) We request, urge, appeal to, beseech you to intercede for the Jewish people. If you have not already done so, begin now to go before the Father in behalf of Israel. Pray that His will would be accomplished in their land and their lives. Pray for the protection of His people. Do not delay. Time is short. May 4th is days away.

*Editor's Note: The incidence of terroristic activity tends to increase during such times. Please be alert, no matter where you live.

Baruch Haba B'Shem Adonai!

Blessed is He Who Comes In The Name Of The Lord!

In Yeshua's Name, Be Blessed!

(1) dispatch from Jerusalem, Mar - Apr 1999, Vol. 24 No.2, pg. 4