The Mystery Of Israel’s Survival Series

Giant Mysteries Series

“The Mystery of Israel’s Survival”

(Based upon Ron Philip’s book, Unexplained Mysteries of Heaven & Earth)

June 1, 2014 Chester’s FBC, Chester, IL Dr. Mike Fogerson, Speaker

Introduction:

A In 1896, Mark Twain moved to Austria and witnessed government-sanctioned anti-Semitism spread from neighboring Czechoslovakia into Austria.

1 Witnessed Jews being the victim of state sanctioned attacks, violence.

a He wrote an article entitled “Stirring Times in Austria,” which was published in Harper’s Magazine in March, 1898.

aa The article caused a big response, got people talking.

bb Sometime later, an American lawyer (Jewish) wrote a letter that caught Twain’s attention: “Will you kindly tell me why, in your judgement, the Jews have thus ever been, and are even now, in these days of supposed intelligence, the butt of baseless, vicious animosities?”

b Twain’s response was as follows:

“If the statistics are right, the Jews constitute but one percent of the human race. It suggests a nebulous dim puff of star dust lost in the blase of the Milky Way. Properly the Jew ought hardly to be heard of; but he is hear of, has always been heard of. He is as prominent on the planet as any other people, and his commercial importance is extravagantly out of proportion to the smallness of his bulk. His contributions to the world’s list of great names in literature, science, art, music, finance, medicine, and abstruse learning are also away out proportion to the weakness of his numbers.

He has made a marvelous fight in the world, in all the ages; and has done it with his hands tied behind him. He could be vain in himself, and be excused for it. The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose, filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream-stuff and passed away; the Greek and the Roman followed, and made a vast noise, and they are gone; other peoples have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it burned out, and they sit in twilight now, or have vanished.

The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no weakening of his parts, no slowing of his energies, no dulling of his alert and aggressive mind. All things are mortal but the Jew; all other forces pass, but he remains. What is the secret of his immortality?”

2 What is their secret? Why have they outlasted EVERY one of their enemies? Overcame every adversity? (Hittites, Amorites, Jebusites, etc.)

a Even the Apostle Paul, a Jew himself, calls the purpose of God for Israel a mystery.

aa Romans 11:25 (NASB) 25 For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;

bb Paul, as Jewish as they came, was broken hearted over Israel’s rejection of their Messiah to the point of even desiring to go to hell/forfeit his salvation if it meant his fellow Jews would receive/accept Christ.

cc Romans 9:1-4 (NASB) 1 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises,

b There are Jews being saved all over the world, accepting Yeshua Ha’mashiah, but the majority are still in spiritual blindness/unbelief.

aa Nationally they are surrounded by nations that hate, despise them. (Syria, Iran are prepared to remove Israel from the globe.)

bb The Nazi movement is growing through out the European Union and even here in the U.S. there is steady rise in anti-Semitism. (Calling for America to de-invest in Israel, our strongest ally in that region.)

B Who can forget the Holocaust? (We remember photos & films of bodies piled up in concentration camps of Dachau, Buchenwald, Aushwitz, and many others.)

1 Today, there is an ever growing movement of holocaust deniers (Over 40% of Israeli Arabs deny that the Holocaust actually occured.)

a I’m a tremendous supporter of the Jewish state, but not simply because of the Holocaust.

aa “Zionism” is the belief that the natural land of Israel belongs to the Jews and they have the God-given right to posse the land for themselves.

bb Zionism WASN’T a by-product of WWII. (It was solidified because of the 6-9 million Jews killed in the Holocaust)