The Words That Drive The Middle East Conflict Today - Genesis 48:3-4

Then Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, and He said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and numerous, and I will make you a company of peoples, and will give this land to your descendants after you for an everlasting possession.’

Jacob is on his deathbed.  Joseph, his most successful son as far as we know is now by his side.  Joseph’s two sons who were born to him in Egypt are also present.  And Jacob commences to relate how God appeared to him and blessed him with a promise that his people would multiply and be given the land of Canaan as “an everlasting possession”.

It is this phrase, this idea, that Israel and his descendants have been given a land promised by God and that they would get to keep it forever that is indeed at the crux of the issues between the opposing sides on the Israeli-Palestinian crisis even today as we approach 2012, some thousands of years later.

To me it is a very simple ‘decision-tree’ that we need to follow in order to determine what side of the political ledger we are on with respect to this issue:

1.     Do I accept there is a God? (yes)

2.     Do I accept that He is the God of Scripture? (yes)

3.     Do I accept that Scripture is His Divine Word? (yes)

4.     Do I accept that Scripture has been correctly and divinely protected with respect to its general meaning and content over time? (yes)

5.     If so, then I have to accept that God has given the present land of what was Canaan to the Jewish people.

6.     And they are to keep it forever – all of it.  It may be that they choose to give some of it away, although I believe they would be doing so out of weakness and lack of dependence on God to help them keep it.

7.     The Jewish people have a responsibility to allow others to live there as citizens of the land, but not necessarily as Jews.

8.     The Jewish people have a responsibility to protect the minority rights of all citizens living in their land as long as those rights do not contravene the word of God.

9.     No other entity, local or global, has the right to take that land away from the Jewish people or to assist others in taking that land away.  If they try, they are subject to the wrath of God.

10.  No other entity will ever succeed in doing so definitively.

I really believe that and that drives my thinking.  And as Charles Stanley says, echoing Proverbs 23:7, “What you think makes a huge difference in what you say and do.”

This does not make those who hold this view pro-Israel and anti-Palestinian or Arabs, or vice-versa.  It makes us pro-God, pro- His word, and pro- the fact that God will have His way regardless of what we mere humans, governments, and alliance of nations may or may not do.  It is that knowledge and the confidence that goes with it that gives us hope, strength, peace, and joy, along with a purpose and framework for living life in the meantime.

 [Are you looking for a speaker at your church, your club, school, or organization? Ken is available to preach, teach, challenge, and/or motivate. Please contact us.]

Thanks for dropping by. Sign up to receive free updates. We bring you relevant information from all sorts of sources. Subscribe for free to this blog or follow us by clicking on the appropriate link in the right side bar. And please share this blog with your friends. Ken Godevenos, Church and Management Consultant, Accord Consulting.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.