Open letter to U.S. Christians

Dear Bible-believing Christians,

This is an emergency. In just two months, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon plans to expel thousands of Jews from their homes and turn over parts of the land of Israel to the Arabs.

In one fell swoop, all of Israel's major cities would be in range of Palestinian rockets, and Palestinian terror groups would be able to create a rogue terrorist state from which they could destabilize the entire region.

Now, you might be wondering what exactly all of this has to do with you. After all, who cares about what happens thousands of miles away in the sand dunes of Gaza or in the hills of Samaria?

The answer, of course, should be clear, and it can best be summed up in one word: Genesis.

Over three millennia ago, a brilliant and original thinker named Abraham came to recognize the one true God, and walked in His ways. When God told him to leave behind his native country, his birthplace and his father's home, Abraham unhesitatingly complied, becoming the first Jew in history to make aliyah and move to Israel.

And it was there, in Elon Moreh outside of Shechem (Nablus), that God made an indissoluble vow to the father of the Jewish people: "Unto thy seed shall I give this land" (Genesis 12:7).

Had the United Nations been in existence back then, one can only imagine what the reaction would have been. Had the liberal media been around to cover the event, they would surely have criticized and distorted what occurred.

But the fact remains that God's promise to His chosen nation is a central theme that runs throughout the Bible. It was reiterated to Isaac and Jacob and to their descendants, and it was articulated repeatedly by the prophets as well.

There is no getting around it: the Land of Israel belongs to the people of Israel because the God of Israel said so. Period.

Nonetheless, a prime minister has arisen in Israel who seeks to act counter to God's promise. Just 38 years after Judea, Samaria and Gaza were miraculously returned to the Jewish people in the 1967 Six Day War, Ariel Sharon seeks to undo the miracle by turning over large chunks of territory to Palestinian control.

And then there is U.S. President George W. Bush, who insists on dividing God's Holy Land by creating a Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Both these men seemingly have all the power and ability they need to push the withdrawal through. After all, who can possibly stand in the way of a prime minister and a president?

That is where you come in to play.

As an undergraduate studying political science at Princeton, I remember well how the professors sought to drive it into our heads that international relations is, in effect, the interplay between the various actors on the world stage.

But what those learned educators neglected to mention is that in addition to actors, there is also a Director - the Creator of the World who guides and influences all events.

In His kindness, God has given each of us the ability to turn to Him in prayer and to ask that He alter the course of human affairs. If history is akin to a film, then we are all in a position to influence the script, by appealing directly to the One who oversees the entire undertaking.

Therefore, I am turning to you in the hopes that you will understand the critical nature of our present situation, and that you will cry out to God before it is too late.

Each of us must use the power of prayer, and plead for God's intervention on behalf of His people and His Land.

We can, and we must, stop this withdrawal from taking place. This is not just a Jewish responsibility - it is incumbent upon every God-fearing person everywhere. As the prophet Joel makes clear, at the end of days God will judge the nations of the world for their treatment of His people Israel. In particular, he notes, God will settle accounts with those nations who "divided my Land" (Joel 4:2).

Hence, there is no room for sitting on the fence on this issue. To borrow a phrase from George W. Bush, himself, each of us has to choose whether we are with the land of Israel or against it, with all that entails.

So drop whatever you are doing, put aside your concerns about other burning public issues of the day, and pour out your heart to God that He should prevent the withdrawal from occurring.

For anyone who takes the Bible seriously, the time to stand up and speak out is now.

[ Published: June 12, 2005 ]