Foot Washing Interview with Bishara Awad
(This is really from 2 interviews and other questions placed together to make sense.)
Bob - How did you become a Christian?
Bishara - My mother became a Christian and led us children to the Lord?
Bob - How did she become a Christian?
Bishara - It’s a moving story. But let me tell you another story to help you understand. I was in Fresno, California doing education work and I was in a market speaking Arabic with my sister. An older lady came up to us hearing us speak Arabic. She said she had been a missionary in Jerusalem but had never seen anyone accept Christ. I asked her what she did. She had been a school teacher. She said she had prayed for this one girl for 40 years, her name was Houda—did I know her? It was my mother. I asked her, “Are you Mrs. Brown?” “Yes” she said, “How did you know?” “Because our mother told us you led her to the Lord.” Now our family is in Christ.
Bob: How did you wind up going into the ministry?
Bishsara: My name means “Good News” and at the orphanage I grew up in (they were refugees and his mother could not afford to care for them, his Father was killed in the war of ‘48) they called me St. Bishara because I shared my faith with everyone. But the real turning point came when I was back in Bethlehem and leading an orphanage. I would speak in chapel every day, but realized that I was filled with hate and revenge for what had happened to my family. My mother would always say, “We will love as Christ, and not be filled with vengeance.” So, I realized I had become filled with anger, and hate - I asked God to forgive me. It transformed me.
Bob: Do you love Jews?
Bishara: Yes, and I love everyone?
Bob: Do you have Jews that are friends?
Bishara: Of course.
Bob: Do you know Messianic Jews?
Bishara: Yes, we are very close. We pray together and encourage one another. Their life is also difficult.
Bob: Do you agree with all the issues of the Holy Land?
Bishara: No, but we can still love one another.
Bob: Do you believe in Jesus—that he is God?
Bishara: Yes, I do.
Bob: Do you believe in the authority of the Bible?
Bishara: Of course.
Bob: What about the Great Commission? Do you believe God has called Palestinian Christians to that?
Bishara: He has called us and all Christians to that.
Bob: You sound like one of us! I met several young Palestinian pastors who believe that God wants them to play a special role in sharing the Good News all over the Middle East.
Bishara: It is our culture and passion to make Him known.
Bob: I imagine it’s difficult being a minority of faith there. How has it been relating to the evangelical church in the West?
Bishara: It has been something we love.
Bob: Have you ever felt rejected from the evangelical church because of the exclusive public support for the Jews?
Bishara: Yes, it has been painful. We have had churches get caught up in “Zionism” and as a result stop supporting us and helping us.
Bob: I’m sorry for that Bishara. Some of us believe the Bible is true and we should support all nations and all peoples who want to spread the Gospel. Some of us also believe God values all nations—not one above the other. Some of us also believe the Kingdom of God Jesus preached is the one we are to strive for—not a physical kingdom. Would you be willing to partner with us to serve people in Bethlehem and the Middle East?
Bishara: We would be grateful. I have a gift for you Bob. It is carved out of Olive Wood in Bethlehem. It is Jesus washing Peter’s feet.
Bob: Thank you Bishara. You told me you were going to give our church this. I’m honored you have come today. We are in our new worship facility and I want this displayed somewhere prominent.
Bishara: Good.
Bob: Bishara, in front of all of these people, today, knowing the gift you were giving me, the Lord woke me up and laid this on my heart. (I move toward the front row and get a bowl full of water and a towel) Bishara, you have had a very difficult life. You choose to remain in Bethlehem to serve, when you could be here in the US with a life of ease. I kneel before you today, and ask you to forgive me and the church in the West for ignoring your issues. I support Israel and will continue to do so, but I will also equally support you. I ask you to forgive the church in the West for ignoring you and making you feel rejected for one simple reason—you are Palestinian. Forgive us—we love you.
I washed Bishara’s feet and he was deeply moved. Members came and laid hands on him and we prayed passionately for God to raise up the Palestinians and Bethlehem Bible College to train pastors to engage the Middle East like no place on the face of the earth.
I didn’t get to preach my whole sermon. We didn’t get to sing all the songs we planned, but God was in the house. I told our people, it’s not about a worship service, it’s about a story and today a story is being told. This is something we will all remember years to come. The past four weeks in our new Worship Center have just been incredible—not without the typical headaches and challenges of people moving, sound, lights, getting used to a building—it’s all part of it. But what excites me most is that I can’t remember a time when God was more present in our worhsip, when more things were happening.
I leave in a few hours to be all over the Middle East and then Korea. I don’t like the timing. We’ve just entered our building. BUT, this was scheduled months ago and God is in charge. We have one God at NorthWood, but many preachers; many worship leaders, many pastors, many disciples, many followers of Jesus, many spiritual gifts, many blessings, many stories, many dreams, but one Kingdom and one King. It is the Kingdom of God and His name is Jesus.
Father, make NorthWood a place where the Prince of Peace is seen. Make her a people of truth, justice, and love. Make her a people where many stories are happening at once. Make her a people where hope becomes reality. Make her a people that looks far beyond her walls to her community, her inner-city, and her world. Make her a people where people think of others, more than themselves. Make her a people where servanthood is the order of the day and not consumer Christianity. Make her a people where you are glorified in everything she does. Make her a people that always “moves ‘em chunky legs” forward.
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Feb 12, 2008 at 12:40 PM
This last Sunday (Feb 10th) definately left an impression on me, and was a time of true worship, I will not soon forget. I must confess that my belief about the Palestinian people has been somewhat fragmented by images from the media, and a people living in the midst of conflict, and unrest. I did not consider the christian Palestian, and because of my own sinfulness, could have been someone that rejected the christian Palestian, in preference of Jews, and support of Israel. I had to repent as the Lord is showing me His love for all peoples, regardless of my own ignorance. Christ began a work with this people long ago. Great point about the Palestian people being the first gentiles to come to Christ. Thank you pastor, for the opportunity to pray with this man of faith in the midst of great difficulty, and for allowing us the opportunity to hear testimonies from men like Bishara, and pastors from Vietnam. The global impact of Christs work on the cross is beyond measure - Thank you for a glimpse.
Feb 12, 2008 at 02:18 PM
[...] I really don’t want this to sound like an “angry asian man” post, it’s coming rather from my delight and enthusiasm of a post I read in glocalnet blog - and a desire to look something like that as a church. I’ve written before about a church in Bellingham that is both local + global = glocal… and one of the global focuses I hope we can have as a church is the Middle East, with all of its dangers and terrorism - still, church, we have a mission to do. [...]-----
Feb 13, 2008 at 01:10 AM
AT breakfast this morning - Chris Seiple and I were talking about how easy it is to judge and dislike people you really don't know.
Feb 16, 2008 at 12:56 AM
This is a groundbreaking event for American Christianity. I pray this type of prayer and dialogue will continue to happen. My pastor is a Palestinian, as are some of the people in my congregation. I have at times seen them frustrated to the point of tears when they talk about their reception among American Christians. They find themselves on the bottom rung of a caste system invented by the prophecy industry.
Americans need to understand that we as Eastern Orthodox are no less Christian than the evangelical or the messianics. Some Palestinian Christians are physical descendants of the earliest believers, the kind of legacy the messianics aspire to. And some of our worship is a living continuation of the pre-Constantine, catacomb Church... the kind of legacy the evangelicals aspire to. In other words, the dialogue and solutions cannot come from one denominational family alone.
Thank you Pastor Roberts for your courage. Through this simple act of esteeming your brother in Christ, you have laid a powerful precedent for bringing our relationships overseas more in line with the message of the Gospel and Paul's admonition in Ephesians to be eager to keep the bond of unity. I pray this resonates through many churches.
Feb 17, 2008 at 06:17 PM
Bob, The interview was owesome. We learn thing that we did not or even thought of. It was a great service, then the foot washing was just great, that was very humbling. Take care on your trip, you are in our prayers.
The service today was great, Jordan really led a very inspiring service, the Lord was with us and I think everyone could feel it. I know I did.
We love you and what you do.
Feb 24, 2008 at 11:23 PM
Dear Bob, I am not a member of your congregation but I am of Middle Eastern background/Palestinian who wants to give a response to your interview with Bishara whom I had the honor of meeting in his Bible School. My heart is also deeply touched by your humbled, open spirit and willingness to grow and be accepting of other brothers and sisters of the faith who are non-Jews in the Holy Land.
It encourages me to see greater openness among Americans even toward the Muslim community in which I came from. The Lord has taught me not to choice sides but be on His side and minister to the needs of the oppressed; for He loves both Arabs and Jews. Let us continue to walk the Faith wearing the shoes of peace and practice out true reconciliation & oneness in the faith. I hope many will follow your footsteps in broadening their understanding regarding the complex issues of the Middle East especially among the people of the Holy Land. You are courageous and the Lord is pleased.
Feb 25, 2008 at 12:29 AM
Seema, how can we ignore it.
Mar 7, 2008 at 06:20 AM
Dear Brother Roberts
I read with amazement your interview with Bother Bishara. We, as Palestinian Evagelical Christians in the Holyland, do feel rejected and neglected by our brothers and sisters in the US, and elsewhere. Nevertheless, because of our love for the Lord, deep feelings of duty, and a sense of obligation to His call to evangelize our people, many of us are going back to do the Lord's bidding. Seeking the Lord's approval, glory, and the saving power of His name to save our poeple. I am grateful for the privilege and the opportunity to do just that. Thank you dear brother. Keep us in your prayers. If you, or any brother and sister of the same precious faith, happen to be in the Holyland please visit us. We would love to fellowship with you.
Aug 11, 2008 at 06:39 PM
Coalition of U.S. Evangelical Christians
voice support for Palestinian state
By Laurie Goodstein
Sunday, July 29, 2007 [New York Times and International Herald Tribune]
NEW YORK: In recent years, conservative evangelicals who claimed a biblical mandate to protect Israel have built a bulwark of support for the Jewish state - sending donations, denouncing its critics and urging it not to evacuate settlements or forfeit territory.
Now more than 30 evangelical leaders have stepped forward to say these efforts have given the wrong impression about the stance of many, if not most, U.S. Christians.
On Friday, these leaders sent a letter to President George W. Bush saying that both Israelis and Palestinians had "legitimate rights stretching back for millennia to the lands of Israel/Palestine," and that they supported the creation of a Palestinian state "that includes the vast majority of the West Bank."
They said that being a friend to Jews and to Israel "does not mean withholding criticism when it is warranted." The letter added, "Both Israelis and Palestinians have committed violence and injustice against each other."
The letter was signed by 34 evangelical leaders, many of whom lead denominations, Christian charities, ministry organizations, seminaries and universities.
They include Gary Benedict, president of The Christian and Missionary Alliance, a denomination of 2,000 churches; Richard Mouw, president of Fuller Theological Seminary; Gordon MacDonald, chairman of World Relief; Richard Stearns, president of World Vision; David Neff, editor of Christianity Today; and Berten Waggoner, national director and president of The Vineyard USA, an association of 630 churches in the United States.
"This group is in no way anti-Israel, and we make it very clear we're committed to the security of Israel," said Ronald Sider, president of Evangelicals for Social Action, which often takes liberal positions on issues. "But we want a solution that is viable."
"Obviously, there would have to be compromises," he added.
They are clearly aiming their message not just at Bush, but at the Muslim world and policy makers in the U.S. State Department.
Sider said he and three other evangelical leaders got the idea for the letter in February at the U.S.-Islamic World Forum in Doha, Qatar, where they met Muslim and U.S. diplomats who were shocked to discover the existence of American evangelicals who favored a Palestinian state. Sider said they would translate the letter into Arabic and distribute it in the Middle East and Europe.
"We think it's crucial that the Muslim world realize that there are evangelical Christians in the U.S. in large numbers that want a fair solution," Sider said.
In the past year and half, liberal and moderate evangelicals have initiated two other efforts that demonstrated fissures in the evangelical movement. Last year, they parted with the conservative flank by campaigning against climate change and global warming. This year, they denounced the use of torture in the fight against terrorism. Some of the participants in those campaigns also signed this letter.
The Reverend Joel Hunter, senior pastor of Northland Church in Longwood, Florida, said: "There is a part of the evangelical family which is what I call Christian Zionists, who are just so staunchly pro-Israel that Israel and their side can do no wrong, and it's almost anti-biblical to criticize Israel for anything. But there are many more evangelicals who are really open and seek justice for both parties."
The loudest and best-organized voices in the evangelical movement have been sending a very different message: that the Palestinians have no legitimate claim to the land.
The Reverend John Hagee, who founded Christians United for Israel, was informed of the letter and read most of it. He responded: "Bible-believing evangelicals will scoff at that message."
"Christians United for Israel is opposed to America pressuring Israel to give up more land to anyone for any reason," Hagee said.
"What has the policy of appeasement ever produced for Israel that was beneficial?" he added.
"God gave to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob a covenant in the Book of Genesis for the land of Israel that is eternal and unbreakable, and that covenant is still intact," he said. "The Palestinian people have never owned the land of Israel, never existed as an autonomous society. There is no Palestinian language. There is no Palestinian currency. And to say that Palestinians have a right to that land historically is an historical fraud."
Christians United for Israel held a conference with 4,500 attendees in Washington this month, and Hagee sends e-mail action alerts on Israel every Monday to 55,000 pastors and leaders.
There is a crucial theological difference between Hagee's views on Israel and those expressed by the letter writers, said Timothy Weber, a church historian, former seminary president and the author of "On the Road to Armageddon: How Evangelicals Became Israel's Best Friend."
Hagee and others are dispensationalists, Weber said, who interpret the Bible as predicting that in order for Christ to return, the Jews must gather in Israel, the third temple must be built in Jerusalem and the Battle of Armageddon must be fought.
Weber said, "The dispensationalists have parlayed what is a distinctly minority position theologically within evangelicalism into a major political voice."
Letter to President Bush From Evangelical Leaders -- July 29, 2007
President George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
We write as evangelical Christian leaders in the United States to thank you for your efforts (including the major address on July 16) to reinvigorate the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations to achieve a lasting peace in the region. We affirm your clear call for a two-state solution. We urge that your administration not grow weary in the time it has left in office to utilize the vast influence of America to demonstrate creative, consistent and determined U.S. leadership to create a new future for Israelis and Palestinians. We pray to that end, Mr. President.
We also write to correct a serious misperception among some people including some U.S. policymakers that all American evangelicals are opposed to a two-state solution and creation of a new Palestinian state that includes the vast majority of the West Bank. Nothing could be further from the truth. We, who sign this letter, represent large numbers of evangelicals throughout the U.S. who support justice for both Israelis and Palestinians. We hope this support will embolden you and your administration to proceed confidently and forthrightly in negotiations with both sides in the region.
As evangelical Christians, we embrace the biblical promise to Abraham: "I will bless those who bless you." (Genesis 12:3). And precisely as evangelical Christians committed to the full teaching of the Scriptures, we know that blessing and loving people (including Jews and the present State of Israel) does not mean withholding criticism when it is warranted. Genuine love and genuine blessing means acting in ways that promote the genuine and long-term well being of our neighbors. Perhaps the best way we can bless Israel is to encourage her to remember, as she deals with her neighbor Palestinians, the profound teaching on justice that the Hebrew prophets proclaimed so forcefully as an inestimably precious gift to the whole world.
Historical honesty compels us to recognize that both Israelis and Palestinians have legitimate rights stretching back for millennia to the lands of Israel/Palestine. Both Israelis and Palestinians have committed violence and injustice against each other. The only way to bring the tragic cycle of violence to an end is for Israelis and Palestinians to negotiate a just, lasting agreement that guarantees both sides viable, independent, secure states. To achieve that goal, both sides must give up some of their competing, incompatible claims. Israelis and Palestinians must both accept each other's right to exist. And to achieve that goal, the U.S. must provide robust leadership within the Quartet to reconstitute the Middle East roadmap, whose full implementation would guarantee the security of the State of Israel and the viability of a Palestinian State. We affirm the new role of former Prime Minister Tony Blair and pray that the conference you plan for this fall will be a success.
Mr. President, we renew our prayers and support for your leadership to help bring peace to Jerusalem, and justice and peace for all the people in the Holy Land.
Finally, we would request to meet with you to personally convey our support and discuss other ways in which we may help your administration on this crucial issue.
Sincerely,
Ronald J. Sider, President
Evangelicals for Social Action
Don Argue, President
Northwest University
Raymond J. Bakke, Chancellor
Bakke Graduate University, Seattle
Gary M. Benedict, President
The Christian & Missionary Alliance
George K. Brushaber, President
Bethel University
Gary M. Burge, Professor
Wheaton College & Graduate School
Tony Campolo, President/Founder
Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education
Christopher J. Doyle, CEO
American Leprosy Mission
Leighton Ford, President
Leighton Ford Ministries
Daniel Grothe, Pastoral Staff
New Life Church (Colorado Springs)
Vernon Grounds, Chancellor
Denver Seminary
Stephen Hayner, former President
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
Joel Hunter, Senior Pastor
Northland Church
Member, Executive Committee of the NAE
Jo Anne Lyon, Founder/CEO
World Hope International
Gordon MacDonald, Chair of the Board
World Relief
Albert G. Miller, Professor
Oberlin College
Richard Mouw, President
Fuller Theological Seminary
David Neff, Editor
Christianity Today
Glenn R. Palmberg, President
Evangelical Covenant Church
Earl Palmer, Senior Pastor
University Presbyterian Church Seattle
Victor D. Pentz, Pastor
Peachtree Presbyterian Church, Atlanta
John Perkins, President
John M. Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation & Development
Bob Roberts, Jr., Senior Pastor
Northwood Church, Dallas
Leonard Rogers, Executive Director
Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding
Andrew Ryskamp, Executive Director
Christian Reformed World Relief Committee
Chris Seiple, President
Institute for Global Engagement
Robert A. Seiple, Former Ambassador-at-Large,
International Religious Freedom
U.S. State Department
Luci N. Shaw, Author, Lecturer
Regent College, Vancouver
Jim Skillen, Executive Director
Center for Public Justice
Glen Harold Stassen, Professor
Fuller Theological Seminary
Richard Stearns, President
World Vision
Clyde D. Taylor, Former Chair of the Board
World Relief
Harold Vogelaar, Director
Center of Christian-Muslim Engagement for Peace and Justice
Berten Waggoner, National Director
Vineyard USA
Addendum to List of Evangelical Christian Leaders endorsing this statement:
David Black, President
Eastern University
Wes Granberg-Michaelson, General Secretary
Reformed Church in America
Ronald W. Nikkel, President
Prison Fellowship International
Bill Pannell, Professor
Fuller Theological Seminary
Colin Saxton, Superintendent
Northwest Yearly Meeting of Friends Church
Jim Wallis, Executive Director
Sojourners/Call to Renewal
Robin Wainwright, President
Middle East Fellowship
Aug 11, 2008 at 06:50 PM
Here is a brief article by Dr. Bishara Awad concerning the subject of "Christian Zionism". You may also wish to visit the website http://www.chrisianzionism.org to read more by other Biblically faithful evangelical Christians on the subject.
(posted by John Berg, http://www.MiddleEastFellowship.org)
Christian Zionism
By Dr. Bishara Awad, Bethlehem Bible College
Definition and Introduction
As a person committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, one thing I will always search for is the truth. Therefore my commitment to Christ must take priority over my feelings as a Palestinian, as one who has been oppressed, become a refugee and live among people who continue to suffer. The subject before us is Christian Zionism. Simply stated, Zionism is defined as a national movement for the return of the Jewish people to Palestine and the sovereignty of the Jews over the whole Land. The Zionist movement was officially organized in 1897 calling for the restoration of the Jewish national home in Palestine. The movement was secular in nature and the leaders brought foreign ideologies to Judaism such as socialism and nationalism. However, the Zionist movement eventually picked up support from most Jewish traditions and factions, particularly after the Holocaust. This support for the Zionist movement appealed also to many Christian traditions, especially those evangelicals who adhere to the theology of dispensationalism. Christians who strongly and actively support Jewish claims of return to Palestine, and continue to offer support for the Jewish State, are known as Christian Zionists.
Christian Zionism and Israel
Christian Zionists see themselves as defenders of the Jewish people and in particular the State of Israel. They support Israel’s policies whether right or wrong. This support involves opposing those who are critical or hostile toward Israel. Consequently, most of them have little or no sympathy toward the Palestinians and are against any peaceful solution that may result in Palestinian statehood. From their perspective, God gave the Land to the Jews, period. The native Palestinians are dismissed as trespassers that have no rights in the Land of the Promise. Christian Zionists cite the Bible as justification for their positions. Dr. Rev. Stephen Sizer, in his thesis Christian Zionism and its Impact on Justice, itemizes several categories of behavior defined by Christian Zionism as being a true friend to Israel:
1. Encouragement of dialogue between Jews and Christians
2. Opposition to anti-Semitism
3. Education regarding Jewish origins of Christian faith
4. Humanitarian work among Jewish refugees
5. Opposition to moderate Jewish positions that are striving to negotiate Land for Peace
6. Misuse of Christian faith to justify denial of human rights
7. Apocalyptic Eschatology in danger of becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy
Theology of Christian Zionism
A. Restoration: The theology of Christian Zionism is based on the belief in the restoration - that the promise of the Land made to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph was unconditional and eternal. Thus they encourage and pray for the Jews to return and occupy what was given to them by God. GodÂ’s promises cannot be made void. Therefore they believe:
ℜ• God who scattered Israel will gather Israel back. (Deuteronomy 30:1-6, Jeremiah 31:10, and Isaiah 11:11-12)
ℜ• The Church’s responsibility is to provide comfort and blessing to Israel. If the Church fails, it will lose God’s blessing in consequence. “I will bless those that bless you and curse those that curse you”. Genesis 12:3
ℜ• According to the Christian Zionists, the role of the Church is to help restore, support, comfort, and commit to the survival of God’s Chosen People.
B. Chosen-ness: To the Christian Zionists, the Jews remain God’s chosen people and have a unique and unbroken relationship to God. God thus has never rejected or replaced His Jewish People, overlooking the New Testament teaching concerning God’s people.
But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham… Romans 9:6-7
C. Apocalyptic View of the future: Basic to Christian Zionist theology is the concept of dispensationalism . According to this concept, God planned the world from beginning to end according to a timetable, and each period is referred to as a dispensation. Israel plays the main role at the end of the last period, when it is to be restored as a nation, rebuild the Temple, and reinstitute the priesthood and sacrificial system. The dispensationalists keep Israel and the Church apart, and God works separately with both until the great battle of Armageddon. Then Jesus Christ will return as King of the Jews, who will rule the nations from His throne in the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. In the last battle, Israel will be brought to destruction and hundreds of thousands of Jews will die. For years the dispensationalists have been looking for the signs of times and fulfillment of prophesies. The declaration of the State of Israel in 1948 and the 1967 War have both been perceived as fulfillment of these prophecies, disregarding and overlooking the disposition of Palestinian Arabs and specifically Palestinian Arab Christians. All current world events are interpreted as “signposts” for the Second Coming of Christ. Prophecy charts are drawn up depicting these coming scenarios. Events—even the Holocaust, as evil as it was—were all considered as instruments of God’s judgment. So Hitler, who did not believe in the Bible, did help to fulfill an outstanding prophecy by driving the preserved people back into the preserved land.
It is very obvious that, without Israel, Christian Zionists’ entire prophetic plan, all dispensational theories and their fulfillment, would fall apart. This is why Christian Zionists have a special love for the State of Israel. To them, it is not a matter of two peoples fighting over a piece of land. It is a serious fulfillment of prophecies, the coming of Christ in glory and being in the perfect will of God. Christian Zionists are not willing to consider other interpretations of scripture and very clear teaching concerning peace and justice.
How do Christian Zionists support Israel?
For dispensationalists or, for that matter, Christian Zionists, not to support Israel is to align oneself against the purposes of God. Support for Israel comes in several forms:
a. Financial
b. Military
c. Propaganda
d. Service in the Israeli armed forces
e. Sponsorship of mass return of Jewish immigrants
f. Humanitarian
g. Prayer for Israel
h. Political
i. Miscellaneous support
What does this mean to Palestinians?
Because there is no time here to expand on all the above points, I will have to give one example. In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon. A Zionist Christian spokesman who was interviewed in the Jerusalem Post, made the following comments: “We (Christian Zionists) are better Zionists than you Israelis. You are too accommodating, too willing to compromise.” He urged Israel to secure its “God-given rights to the Land” by a more aggressive drive to build Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
As you can see, the Palestinians are not only facing the very strong Zionist state of Israel, but they also have a hidden enemy in the Christian Zionists. These Christians, though often well meaning, see themselves as not only helping the Zionist state but as helping and hastening the coming of Jesus.
The Christian Zionists base their theology on assumptions and theories. What is the real Bible message? Is God not concerned about the rights and welfare of the Palestinian population in the Land? Are the Christian Zionists doing justice to the Bible with their very selective interpretations?
Do Christian Zionists have the only Biblical Interpretation?
Let’s look at the Bible as a whole, both the Old and New Testaments. I believe that the Christian Zionists are in error in failing to appreciate the continuity and the relationship between the Old and New Covenants, and how the new completes and annuls the old. We need to look at the scripture with Christian eyes. The book of Hebrews tells us very clearly “the Law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship.” Hebrews 10:1
(Also look up Heb 8:1-6, Colossians 2:16-17)
In the Old Testament, revelation from God came in shadow, image, and prophecy. In the New Testament, we have reality, substance, and fulfillment. I want to hold on to what is real as revealed in the Son of God Jesus Christ: “ In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in many various ways, but in these days He has spoken to us by His son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.” Heb 1:1-2
One also wonders how many times a promise should be fulfilled. The people of Israel, under the leadership of Joshua, did cross and they did posses the Promised Land. We read in Joshua 11:23, “So Joshua took the entire Land , just as the Lord had directed Moses and gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the Land had rest from war.”
Invasion of Canaan by Joshua.
Many Christians overlook the reason God allowed Joshua to destroy the Amorites, Hittites, Hivites, etc. It was because of their idolatry and gross immorality. It is clear from the Book of Deuteronomy and later in the Book of Joshua, the nations are allowed to stay in order to test Israel’s relationship with God. God gave these nations 400 years to repent and He told Abraham, “for the sins of the Amorites have not yet reached full measure.” Gen 15:16
Finally this time of grace ran out and Joshua took the Land. However, later when the Kings of Israel were committing the same sins as the Amorites (I Kings 21:26) God’s judgment fell upon Israel just as it had upon the Amorites and they were expelled from the Land. So God does not show favoritism.
Palestinians are not enemies of God
Let us remember that the Palestinian Arab people are not idolaters. They worship the God of Abraham. The moral standards of the Palestinians in general put most Americans to shame. What is happening to the Palestinians today certainly is not a judgment from God, but a result of political greed and man’s inhumanity to man.
Who are the descendants of Abraham
The Bible actually does not say “God gave the Land to the Jewish People.” What it does say is that God promised the Land to “Abraham’s seed (descendants).” Both Old and New Testaments affirm that Abraham’s promise is based on faith and obedience and not merely on fleshly descent.
Some Pharisees told Jesus, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus replied to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the things Abraham did.” John 8:39
Paul puts it in a beautiful way: “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the Promise.” Gal 3:29
Maybe at one time the Jews were the Chosen People of God, but after the coming of Christ “all those [Jews and Gentiles] who accepted Jesus became the Children of God.” John 1:12 In other words, all followers of Jesus Christ – including Palestinians – are God’s “Chosen People”.
The New Testament and the Jewish People
The New Testament does not suggest at all that the Jewish People have an unconditional divine right to the Land. Romans 9-11 suggests that as soon as the hardening towards the Gospel by the Jews is over they will be blessed, and their blessing can only be obtained through the Son of God, Jesus Christ. The future blessings are on reserve, for Jews who become “in Christ” as for Gentiles who are “in Christ”:
“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.” Rom 11:25
In the above and throughout the New Testament, there is no suggestion that the future salvation of the Jews is conditional in any way on possession of the Land. So it is thus “…through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and share together in the promise of Jesus Christ.” Eph 3:4-6
The Love of God
The summation of all this is based on the love of God for the whole world. The Promise of the Land has become the Promise of the World. This sect of Christianity known as Christian Zionism needs to repent to God for their misinterpretation of the scriptures, for being the instrument of division and hate, and for hindering the witness of Christ to all the people of the Land. Wrong interpretation of scripture can destroy lives that Jesus died for. The Israeli government in the year 2000 deported several foreign fanatic Christians out of Israel. Intelligence information accused some of them of inflaming the start of a war. Their enthusiasm for the Second Coming of Christ is making them very anxious for the Last Battle. Jesus’ words to all Christian Zionists and to us today is still: “It is not for you to know times or seasons…but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and you shall be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the world.” Acts 2:7-8
As Palestinian evangelical Christians, we do not see the theology of the Christian Zionists as being in harmony with the scriptures and the teachings of Our Lord Jesus. It has a negative impact on proclaiming the Gospel and could mislead the American Church in understanding its role in the Middle East. Our message to the Jews and Arabs alike is a message of hope, life, love and good news. Jesus did not die to redeem a land. He died to redeem humanity, to “rescue us from the domain of darkness and to bring us into the Kingdom of the Son He loves.” Gal 1:13. Jesus loved the world and thus saved it.
Dr. Bishara Awad
Bethlehem Bible College
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