How to Pray for Israel

Father, I ask with this weighty subject and limited time that I will be able to say something helpful. Guard me against creating misunderstandings. Amen

I want to briefly cover 4 areas this morning: Israel in the Land, Success Stories for God, Strategies for Praying for Israel, and Israel and the End Times. I have done a handout of some of my points you may wish to collect at the end.

1. Israel in the Land

Look out for 5 startling facts that I want to give you this morning.

First Startling Fact

The first startling fact links to the terrible incident on 7th October where 1200 Israelis were killed, just over a month ago, when Hamas made incursions into Israel. On the Wikipedia entry for this, the plan had been to get much further into Israel than they did, wanted to occupy more land but were prevented because of the Israeli Defence Force (the IDF).

If we hold the Bible as the inspired Word of God, look at this:

Genesis 17:8 “8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.””

It must be said, God’s people have always been of much greater importance than the land itself, but it is wrong to separate the two out just because the NT doesn’t talk about it.

Second Startling Fact

The 2nd startling fact that I came across from Steve Maltz book Outcast Nation that I will be quoting from is that Jews nowadays are descended from the southern kingdom, Judah. There was a massive loss to the Jewish people in the 8th century when the 10 tribes were exiled by Assyria.

Replacement Theology states that Israel has now come under the church. They cite:

Galatians 3:28“28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Or they quote:

Hebrews 8:6 (NIV)

6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

What they argue is the Old Covenant has been totally replaced by the new. It’s not quite that simple!

The New Covenant is the one that applies to our salvation - Jews aren’t saved simply by being Jewish, but must believe in Jesus just like us. The ‘old one’ referred to in Hebrews is the Mosaic Covenant, the Law. The Law still serves a purpose but doesn’t save us. But the Abrahamic Covenant (or the Palestinian one about the land) has NOT been superseded. It still applies.

Marcion, one of the early church heretics, denied that the God of the OT was the same as the God of the NT. His argument has partly influenced replacement theology, that the church has taken over from the Jews. Most Christians in the UK believe in replacement theology, even if they’re not aware of it. They don’t carry a burden for Israel. A. W. Tozer said this: ‘It is an astonishing thing that multitudes of Bible students and lovers of the truth should calmly overlook their obligation to Israel.’

Marcion and other early church fathers such as Chrysostom, Augustine, Tertullian, and then also Martin Luther, with their antisemitism has led to hideous Jewish persecution over the centuries.

Hitler made use of Luther’s ideas in Mein Kampf, which of cause led to the Holocaust, which we can never forget. Was it God’s love for His people and the horrors of that which led to the 1948 establishing of the Jewish homeland?

So we are called to pray about the state of Israel, and to support the Jews, even those who are not believers.

In today’s climate you may feel uncomfortable with being told that we need to evangelise and convert others.

In one sense Christianity is like Islam that we want others to convert (unlike Jews who are a non-proselytizing religion) but we’re different from some branches of Islam where we would not condone forced conversion, or the ‘destruction of infidels’.

That’s God’s business - God will judge. We should not promote violence.

But what does Christian evangelism look like? To quote Don Carson, it’s a ‘humble articulation of the gospel and without any external coercion.’ This is what we’re doing. We’re not called to back people into a corner where they can only have our help if they become Christians.

2. Success Stories for God

You can make a difference as a Christian by praying, and you can make a difference by praying for Israel!

Rees Howells and his community of intercessors prayed for Israel in those crucial days in 1948 when the state of Israel was created. Anyone who has a ministry of intercession will find themselves, I believe, if they’re obedient to the Spirit, praying for Israel at some point.

From Rees Howells’ own account: During Oct and Nov 19487 whole days were given over to praying the Jews to come back to the land. We pleaded that because of the covenant with Abraham 4000 years ago God would take his people back to the land.

Day of voting, Nov 27th, 1947, partitioning of Palestine had not been carried. Nov 28th it was carried by 33 votes to 13. State of Israel was a fact. ‘During all those centuries there wasn’t a single sign that the country was to be given back to the Jews, who were scattered all over the earth.’

It’s something like 1800 years that Israel had not been in the land, the longest exile since Abraham came in. Some people think the formation of the state of Israel was a historical oddity or embarrassment. I would regard it as a miracle.

It’s not just a couple of isolated scriptures that promise the restoration of Israel, and having the land again. There are dozens of them in many different books. It’s one of the certain conclusions that we can come to by reading the Bible. I can send you a list of scriptures if you would like to look at it more.

Look at how early in Deuteronomy the experience of the Jews is prophesied if they don’t honour the covenant:

Deuteronomy 28:64–67 “64 “Then the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods, which neither you nor your fathers have known—wood and stone. 65 And among those nations you shall find no rest, nor shall the sole of your foot have a resting place; but there the Lord will give you a trembling heart, failing eyes, and anguish of soul.

66 Your life shall hang in doubt before you; you shall fear day and night, and have no assurance of life. 67 In the morning you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were evening!’ And at evening you shall say, ‘Oh, that it were morning!’ because of the fear which terrifies your heart, and because of the sight which your eyes see.”

This has been the experience of the Jewish people.

Some Christians say: I’m for Israel, but not for them having the country. If you think that’s your stance I would encourage you to look at this again. What I believe it comes down to is our heart. Are we open to changing our thinking? Am I open to that? Far be it from me to reject the purposes of God, which could include the Jews back in the land.

Third startling fact

Did you know that 40% of the United Nations Human Rights Council resolutions are against just one nation, Israel - more than the actual worst human rights offenders combined. They passed a resolution in 1975 stating that Zionism - i.e. the idea that Israel was entitled to a homeland - is a form of racism.

That has to make us sit up and take notice, surely!

How on earth have the Jews survived for so long as a people when so much has been thrown against them?

3. Strategies for Prayer for Israel

Strategies for praying - four points here.

Firstly, bring clear petitions before God.

Ask him for clear things. What is God asking you to pray for?

Whenever we find ourselves confronted by a crisis, there are certain things it’s always good to pray for.

Pray for those who are afflicted, whose lives are suddenly torn apart by grief, loss, fear, trauma.

Pray for pastors and priests.

Pray for peacemakers, politicians and police - God to give clarity and wisdom to government agencies and NGOs.

Secondly, Lift verses out and pray them for Israel.

I trust everyone in this church reads the Bible on a daily basis, or at least aims to. Many verses in the Psalms, but everywhere too.

1 Timothy 2:1–4“1 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.”

What is the goal of our intercession?

1 Timothy 2:3–4 “3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

Yes you can pray for Hamas terrorists to be converted and come to Jesus. Whether it’s God’s will to save them at this time we don’t know. God has mercy on whom he will have mercy. God sometimes hardens people to bring about his eternal purposes. But we should pray most fervently for Jews to meet their Saviour. More on this in a moment.

Thirdly, gather together to pray.

Don’t just pray on your own-some lonesome. Take opportunities to meet together. Wednesday morning prayer zoom. If you’re meeting with someone else to pray, just ask if it’s okay to pray for Israel. There’s a prayer rally this afternoon in London for Israel. The Lord blesses his gathered people.

Finally on this point, Pay attention to the news.

To quote Steve Maltz: “the Middle East situation is a confusing one, so we tend to ignore it or have a superficial understanding, usually based on whatever has been fed to us by the media.

It is every Christian’s duty to grasp the important issues. You owe it to your God, to understand what’s really going on in Israel.”

We can’t possibly keep up with everything. A lot of us have joined Telegram where Amir Tsarfati gives updates. BBC news does not get it right often, they’re very pro-Palestine. They tend to be half a day generally behind Tsarfati’s updates and paint things in a different colour.

4. Israel and the End Times

In the early church virtually all the Christians were Jewish, but as the church grew it became more and more Gentile and a lot of Jewish distinctiveness disappeared. Why did we make 25th Dec Christmas, and why did we move the Sabbath to Sunday? We have moved very far from our Jewish roots.

Fourth Startling Fact

According to Steve Maltz, there are more Jewish believers worldwide today than at any time in history since the early days of the church.

Jesus was Jewish. Some people don’t realise this. The Bible was written by Jews. The vast majority of the NT written by Jews.

God’s purposes for the whole of humanity are bound up with his chosen people. His purpose before Jesus came was to preserve his people to bring about the Messiah. But his purpose continues for Israel to be in the land.

A quote from Steve Maltz: ‘We are mistaken if we see it just as another Bosnia or Northern Ireland or South Africa.’ It’s not simply a humanitarian issue. This is a spiritual battle.

Fifth startling fact

The final startling fact is that before Jesus returns, and I’m not going to go into the timeline of that, but before His second coming, Jewish leaders will need to acknowledge him as Messiah.

Matthew 23:38–39 “38 See! Your house is left to you desolate; 39 for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ””

Steve Maltz again:

Jesus is giving a key condition for his return. He will only return when they, the leaders of the Jewish nation ask him to return, from the Chief Rabbi to the Prime Minister. We are looking at a real miracle. They have to believe in him in the first place. That he came 2000 years earlier as their Messiah. They will have to admit they made a grave, tragic, heart-wrenching mistake, a mistake that led to 1800 years of sheer misery. And to do that their pride has to be broken.

Zechariah 12:10 “10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.”

Zechariah 13:1 “1 “In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.”

And they will believe in the Messiah. That is one of the things we are to pray for.

Let’s close with a prayer.

Father, we come before you with a serious frame of mind. We ask for comfort for all those since Oct 7th who have been bereaved. We pray right now for those in desperate situations, alone, without medical help, for the hostages. We ask for their speedy release. We pray that the ability Hamas has currently to hide the hostages will evaporate.

we pray further for our hearts in all this. Grant us the privilege of shaping history through our prayers at this time. We ask for many Jews to turn to You, and we lift up and ask for strength for the government, the soldiers, the Christians in the Holy Land at this time. Your kingdom come, Your will be done Lord. We are your people! We’ve even grafted in! Thank you for your incredible mercy to us Lord! Amen.