Clifford Hill responds to the recent attacks in Brussels.

The latest atrocities in Brussels have shocked the Western world. It is time that world leaders, both East and West, face the fact that their policies in the Middle East have been disastrous.

Russia, the United States, Europe, Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia all have different interests and objectives. It is time to face the truth that unless they can find some common ground, the seething discontent and political instability in the region could spill over into a world conflict.

Slaughter and Self-Delusion

Islam is fighting an all-out war for survival, with the militant extremists of the Islamic State (who claim to be the only true Muslims) patterning their violent behaviour on their Mediaeval founder Muhammad. His policy was that people either accepted his revelations as truth or they were slaughtered. His militant Muslim followers today follow the same policy. The latest round of atrocities in Brussels underlines both their determination and their ability to disrupt Western society. They will not go away quietly - neither will they be defeated by military action.

For too long Western politicians have run away from the truth, hiding behind lies and deception, saying that the violence is nothing to do with Islam which is a religion of peace! Until this self-delusion is broken our cities will go on being targeted by deluded religious fanatics and our citizens killed and maimed without warning as they go about their daily lives.

For too long Western politicians have run away from the truth, hiding behind deception and saying that Islam is a religion of peace.

Western VulnerabilityGareth Fuller/PA Wire/Press Association Images

There is not a city in the Western world that is safe. The security forces in Belgium have been on high alert for the past six months, ever since the Paris bombings; they knew that an attack was imminent after the arrest of Salam Abdesalam four days earlier. But they were unable to prevent terrorist attacks on soft targets.

More than 1 million Muslims have entered Europe in the past year from the conflict zones of the Middle East and they continue to pour in despite every effort being made by the European Union to protect its borders. The Islamic State claims that some 5,000 of the migrants are Muslim fighters and the Brussels attacks demonstrate the vulnerability and danger that we all face every time we travel into a crowded city.

Disillusioned Young Men

The broadcaster and philosopher Ahmed Abbadi, who is chairman of the Council of the Islamic scholars in Morocco, says that there is a generation of angry young men across the Arab world who "are jobless, wife-less and hopeless".¹ They know that there is plenty of wealth in Europe, which makes them increasingly angry and vulnerable to Islamic State recruiters who promise them jobs, beautiful wives and high social status if they will come and join them in their ideal Caliphate.

There is a generation of angry, disillusioned young men across the Arab world who are vulnerable to radicalisation.

The situation facing young people in the Middle East is a straight choice between either trying to get to Europe or joining the Islamic State – it's a straight choice because the Middle East, with its long history of colonialism and dictatorship, has no home-grown tradition of good governance: the whole concept of democracy is foreign and there are no deep foundations of a civil society upon which one can be built. This is the tragedy of Syria where the entire infrastructure has been destroyed and Libya where social order has collapsed.

Islamic Oppression

The starting point for reconstruction is the recognition of the truth that much of the responsibility for the lawlessness and hopelessness in the Islamic world lies with the religion of Islam itself. Violence and coercion are endemic to Islam, which allows dictators such as the Saudi royal family to exercise total control over their subjects, teaching generations of children hatred against their opponents (including Jews, Christians and the Shia minority, who are brutally oppressed).

An undercover film, 'Saudi Arabia Uncovered', was broadcast by ITV on Tuesday 22 March with a number of horrendous scenes such as a woman being held down by four policemen in a public road while another man beheaded her; and another scene of five beheaded men strung between two cranes. Some of these scenes were reproduced on the Mail Online.² There was some doubt as to whether the Government would allow the film to be aired, as the Foreign Office usually go to considerable lengths to protect the Saudi Government in order to maintain both political and economic interests. This is nothing new: Winston Churchill had the same problem with the Foreign Office back in the 1920s.³

A recognition is needed that much of the lawlessness and hopelessness in the Islamic world comes from the religion of Islam itself.

The film, about life in Saudi Arabia, showed a woman being punched and kicked by a man in a supermarket and the religious police controlling every aspect of life. Women are not allowed to drive and they have difficulty visiting a doctor without a male escort. It showed children in school being taught to hate Christians and Jews who, they were told, must all be killed. There appeared to be little difference between life in Saudi Arabia and what is happening in the Islamic state. Both are driven by what they claim to be a pure form of Islam.

This is what Islamic State intend to impose upon Europe. But European leaders who have opened the door to more than 1 million Muslims in the past year have not yet woken up to the extent of the horror to which they are condemning the nations of Europe.

The objectives of the jihadist bombers who have infiltrated Europe with the million migrants will continue to hit soft targets in an effort to achieve their objective – the Islamisation of Europe.

Facing the Truth About Islam

Today the security of all Western nations hangs in the balance. If a little nation like Belgium can be so targeted, how much more vulnerable are the larger nations of the West and Russia! The extent of conflict between Shia and Sunni and other Islamic factions is destabilising the whole of the Arab world and creating uncertainty even in those states not directly involved in conflict such as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Algeria.

European leaders have not yet woken up to the horrors to which they are condemning European nations.

They all have an interest in establishing stable societies. The first step to genuine reconstruction lies in facing the truth about Islam. This is slowly being recognised by a number of Islamic leaders and scholars and this is where Western leaders and Christian scholars could be of assistance. President Sisi of Egypt was the first major leader in the Arab world to call for a "religious revolution" of Islam to purge the religion of extremism and violence.⁴ He made his dramatic announcement in a New Year's statement (2015) and repeated it in August that year.

Christian Contributions

In Egypt it is not only political leaders but Islamic scholars who are also open to discussing reform. In 2006 Dr Rowan Williams, as Archbishop of Canterbury, was invited by the Islamic scholars of the largest mosque in Cairo to present a lecture on Christianity. Christian leaders could be of immense help in examining the holy books of Islam alongside the Bible and taking out the teaching on violent jihad which characterised the Mediaeval period of Islamic development and which has no place in the modern world.

Most Islamic scholars have a healthy respect for Jesus. Although they do not accept his divinity, they do believe him to be a prophet. The teaching of Jesus on love and forgiveness of sins is absent from Islam but could radically transform Muslim teaching. I'm certainly not suggesting some kind of amalgamation of Christianity and Islam! But if Islamic scholars were willing to study the Bible with Christian scholars it might help them to correct the gross errors in the Qur'an.

References

1 Connolly, K. Battle of ideas at heart of fight against Islamic State. BBC News, 17 March 2016.

2 Oborne, P. A woman beheaded in the road. Five headless corpses hanging from cranes. As a documentary exposes the horror of life in Saudi Arabia, why DOES Britain cosy up to this kingdom of savagery? Mail Online, 21/03/16.

3 See chapter on 'Churchill and the Question of Palestine', in Fromkin, D, 2003. A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East. Phoenix, London, p515f.

4 Smith, S. Egypt's President Urges Muslim Clerics to End Violent Islamic Ideology, Lead Peaceful 'Religious Revolution' in Groundbreaking Speech. Christian Post, 13 January 2015.

Two more attacks in the name of the so-called 'religion of peace' have been carried out in the past week in predominantly Muslim countries by Islamic State fighters.

Turkey and Indonesia are both in shock from deadly blasts in their capital cities where innocent civilians going about their daily tasks have been murdered.

Although they are targeting Westerners, the aim is also to hurt Islamic countries who they don't regard as true Muslims. So who are the true Muslims: Islamic State fighters or the ordinary Muslims of Turkey and Indonesia?

True Disciples

A similar question was asked about Christians in New Testament times. Who are the true Christians? The Apostle John wrestled with this question when he was living in Ephesus surrounded by many different religions and some Christians defected. His answer was to point to the life and the teaching of Jesus. He says "The man who says, 'I know him', (Jesus) but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him" (1 John 2:4).

People flee the attacks in Istanbul, which killed at least 10. See Photo Credits.

Jesus himself strictly forbade violence. When a Samaritan village did not welcome him his disciples asked "Lord do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them? But Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they went to another village" (Luke 9:54).

If you apply the same test of truth to Muslims, you have to examine the life and teaching of Muhammad.

The whole subject of his treatment of the people of Mecca is controversial in the history of Islam in terms of the reason why Muhammad slaughtered them, but what is undeniable is the teaching recorded in the Qur'an that he used as justification when some of his supporters were reluctant to carry out his orders. He claimed that Allah had revealed a command making fighting a binding duty for all Muslims:

Fighting is prescribed for you, and you dislike it. But it is possible that you dislike a thing which is good for you, and that you love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knows, and you know not (Qur'an 2:216)

According to the Apostle John, true Christians are those whose lives point to the life and teaching of Jesus. If you apply the same test of truth to Muslims, you have to examine the life and teaching of Muhammad.

God's Purpose: Salvation

So why has the God of Creation who holds the nations in his hands "like a drop in a bucket" (Isa 40:15) allowed these two atrocities to take place? It is surely because the time has come in world history for God to expose the great deception that has held many nations enslaved in darkness for centuries. From the middle of the last century there have been prophecies of a great Muslim harvest, releasing people from the fear and violence of Islam and it is in Indonesia, the largest Muslim population in the world, that this is happening on a massive scale.

People flee attackers in Jakarta. AP/Press Association.

We reported in Prophecy Today last year that the imams in Indonesia were anxious because some 2 million Muslims a year are converting to Christianity. The Prophecy Today team have visited Indonesia a number of times and seen at first hand the rapid growth of the church there.

We have seen thousands accepting Jesus as Lord and Saviour in Jakarta, Surabaya and other cities in Sumatra where a kind of spontaneous outpouring of the Holy Spirit is still bringing whole communities into faith in Jesus.

One church leader, whose fellowship had only been founded six months, asked for advice on the right time to invite a pastor to lead the fellowship. He said they were already up to 500 but they thought they should wait until there were 1,000 in the congregation before appointing a minister.

Struggle Ahead

One church in Surabaya we have seen grow from 200 to more than 25,000. It is this kind of growth that could be seen in many other countries in the near future as the great deception of the so-called 'religion of peace' is exposed and the violence practised by Muhammad - endemic in the history of Islam - is recognised.

Why has God allowed these atrocities to take place? Surely the time has come for him to expose the great deception that has held many nations enslaved in darkness for centuries.

But this will not happen without a struggle in which many innocent people like those in Paris will lose their lives; and many Christians will be martyred - like those in Syria and Iraq and other parts of the Middle East. Islam will not release its hold upon the nations of the Middle East without a struggle and acts of terrorism are also likely to spread across the Western nations including Britain.

The Coming Disillusionment

The key to the future lies with the millions of Muslims spread across Europe and America as they begin to ask serious questions about whether the Islamic State are the true representatives of Muhammad. Once the serious study of the Qur'an and the historic documents of Islam begins, in the same way as the Bible has been subjected to intense academic scrutiny, the true nature of Islam and Allah, its god, will be revealed which will result in multitudes left disillusioned.

The great danger then will be who - or what - will fill the spiritual vacuum. Will the secular humanists win the disillusioned: or will those who seek the truth find Jesus as their Lord and Saviour? Much depends upon the ordinary Christians in the Western nations who are in daily contact with their Muslim neighbours. So many nominal Christians have imbibed the secular humanist values of a greedy corrupt and godless civilisation that they are no longer witnesses to the love and moral purity of Jesus.

If multitudes of Muslims become disillusioned with their faith, who – or what – will fill the spiritual vacuum?

Need for Repentance

Perhaps the greatest need right now in the West is for a wave of repentance to sweep across the nations, beginning with the churches who have failed to stem the tide of corruption that has engulfed whole generations. It may be that only some great catastrophe will open eyes that are blind to the reality of Western civilisation that is surely a stench in the nostrils of the God of Creation. But surely he who so loved the world that he sent Jesus to bring the light of life to humanity will find a way of steering the history of the nations to the point where there is openness to the Truth – the Truth that sets us free.

Dark fantasies become reality as hell breaks loose on earth.

Even before I learnt that the main target of the Paris massacre was a theatre that until recently was owned by Jews,¹ I had been wondering whether we Westerners were reaping the consequences of 'dancing with the devil'.

Dark Concert

That so many civilians enjoying an evening out should suddenly find themselves face to face with a virtual firing squad almost defies the imagination. It was an appalling attack on unsuspecting individuals which had all the hallmarks of Satan. But there was evidently an elephant in the room, a great unmentionable that dare not speak its name.

London Mayor Boris Johnson referred to the perpetrators – Islamic State terrorists – as a 'death cult',² which it certainly is. But what commentators seem deliberately to have missed – along with the Bataclan concert hall's Jewish connection – was the link between such evil extremism and the dark nature of the concert that claimed most of the lives lost last Friday night.

The Eagles of Death Metal band had apparently just started a song called Kiss the devil³ when the gunmen opened fire and the auditorium morphed into the devil's domain. Fantasy became reality, with one witness describing it as "hell". I am not suggesting in any way that the victims had brought this disaster on themselves, but I am saying that Western society as a whole is partly responsible. For we have collectively lowered our guard against the demonic forces now unleashed with such ferocity, by betraying our Judeo-Christian foundations.

We have collectively lowered our guard against the demonic forces no unleashed with such ferocity.

'Prophetic' Media?

There was mention of prophecy in the Mail on Sunday, who recalled their "prophetic" report in May headlined "Med boats' secret cargo: jihadis bound for Britain". The same paper also reported the "chilling prophecy" of a controversial film about a terrorist rampage in Paris – about to open in French cinemas – that has now had to be withdrawn twice in the wake of the actual thing happening instead (it was also due to be screened earlier this year, but was pulled following the attacks on the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine and the Jewish supermarket).

Hardly anyone in the media talks of biblical prophecy, however. Yet that would shed an awful lot of light on this dark subject! Just one example of this is that the world would be full of violence – as in the days of Noah – in the time immediately preceding the return of Jesus to set up his kingdom of peace.

What 'Civilisation'?

Politicians have referred to the Paris massacre as an 'attack on civilisation'. But my response is: what civilisation? We seem obsessed with dark and lurid fantasy, and with images of violence in our living rooms. We congratulate ourselves on our culture of 'freedom', bought at a great price in two world wars and, before that, with the blood of Christian martyrs. They went to the stake for the cause of publishing God's word, which has now been discarded and thrown to the winds, only to be replaced by moral relativism where there are virtually no rules for living; where we promote death (through abortion and euthanasia, for example) and set about 'redefining' marriage, family and society as a whole.

We congratulate ourselves on our culture of 'freedom', but this freedom was bought at a great price and built on the word of God, which has now been discarded.

Homophobia and Islamaphobia are among the many politically correct don'ts to have replaced the Ten Commandments. As I write, a highly respected Northern Ireland preacher is facing trial on allegations of breaking the latter rule. It's possibly only a matter of time before we are denied the freedom of saying that Jesus is the only way to God (a claim he made about himself) for fear of offending other religions. But our civilisation was built on this very statement! We believed him, because he was totally authentic, and rose from the dead. We don't have to force anyone else to believe him; we simply declare the truth about him.

Defences Down

Tragically, however, our moral defences are down, our walls have been breached, and the foundations of our Judeo-Christian civilisation have been undermined. That is why we are wobbling as a society in grave danger of collapse.

I can't speak for France and the rest of Europe, but as far as Britain is concerned, time is running out. The iconic Big Ben clock, which has become a symbol of the UK throughout the globe, has recently undergone repairs amidst fears that it is rapidly becoming beyond repair. It is, of course, part of the complex comprising our famous Houses of Parliament, which is itself in danger from crumbling foundations with talk of MPs possibly having to move out.

Building on Sand

We were once a great nation sending missionaries around the world to share the life-changing (indeed, nation-changing) good news about Jesus. But now we have thrown out what was once most precious to us. Jesus told us to build on the rock. But we have built on sand.

Instead of building on the Rock that has stood the test of time, the sure and certain foundation that is Christ, the certainty of his resurrection from the dead and his coming again to set up an everlasting kingdom, we have built on the shifting sand of appeasement, uncertainty and short-term comfort.

Instead of building on the Rock that has stood the test of time, we have built on the shifting sand of appeasement, uncertainty and short-term comfort.

But there is still hope. Our loving Saviour holds out arms of love, willing us to return from our self-imposed exile and, with Him, repair the walls that have broken down. Oh, that one of our leaders would call a national day of prayer! That is my prayer.

References

1 According to JNN News, quoting the Arutz-7 news site, a member of the radical group Army of Islam told French security services back in 2011 that "we had planned an attack against the Bataclan because its owners are Jewish". It seems the perpetrators may not have known that the venue has recently changed hands. I have consistently stated in earlier articles that the ultimate target of Islamic State is the Jewish nation, referred to in a new video as Muslims' No 1 enemy.

2 Johnson, B. Islamic State? This death cult is not a state and it's certainly not Islamic. The Telegraph, 28 June 2015.

3 Lyrics include: "Who'll love the devil? Who'll sing his song? I will love the devil and his song." Horton, H. Photos show the excitement at the Bataclan minutes before 89 audience members were killed in the Paris attackaclan minutes before 89 audience members were killed in the Paris attack. The Telegraph, 17 November 2015.

"Thank God for ISIS!" This extraordinary statement by an Egyptian leader shocked delegates at a recent international Christian conference...

He went on to explain that thousands of Muslims are turning to Christianity in reaction to the atrocities committed by the Islamic State.

All over the Middle East similar things are happening among Muslims as they see the chaos created by militant Islam and the turmoil that has spread across the whole region. It is not only Christians, Yazidis, Kurds and Shia Muslims who are suffering, but also members of the Sunni Arab community.

In Iraq, the militant Sunni jihadis led by al-Baghdadi regard all who oppose them as enemies - including fellow Sunnis. They especially hate Shia Muslims, whom they view as infidels. They see them as a fifth column at the heart of Islam that must be wiped out. The deepening Sunni-Shia rift in Iraq and the similar sectarian civil war in Syria has enabled the Islamic State to attract rebellious Sunnis from around the world.

Russian Fighters

Putin himself estimates that some 5,000-7,000 people from Russia and former Soviet countries have joined the Islamic State,¹ which is one of the major reasons why Russia has decided to join the Baghdad-based 'Intelligence Alliance', in partnership with Iran/Iraq and Syria. Their objective is to share information about the Islamic State so that a co-ordinated attack can be launched.

This has wrong-footed the USA, which has been backing so-called 'moderate' Islamic groups opposed to Assad in Syria. In a failed $500 million programme, the US had been supplying weapons and training to these groups which are now being attacked by Russian bombers. Most of the fighters with American weapons are said to have deserted to the Islamic State.²

The Wrong Weapons

But will Russia and her new allies be any more successful in combating radical Islam than the USA, NATO and others who have tried to wipe out ISIS?

The plain fact is – they are using the wrong weapons. The Islamic State will never be defeated by military power! Militant Islam is driven by a spiritual force which can only be overcome by a more powerful spirit. This moves the whole conflict into a realm of spiritual warfare of which the rulers of the nations have no understanding.

The militant Islamist fighters are driven by a spirit of hatred that is blind and unresponsive to normal rational thought processes. This spirit of blind hatred goes right back to Muhammad and the fearful atrocities he committed against his enemies, especially Jews and Christians. The historical accounts of his activities in and around Medina and Mecca are being replicated by the Islamic State in the name of the god of Islam.

Militant Islam cannot be overcome with human weapons, for it is driven by a spirit of hatred that can only be overcome by a more powerful spirit.

This is what is being increasingly recognised by those who have been brought up in the Islamic faith - such as President Sisi of Egypt, who in a New Year 2015 message called upon Muslim scholars to examine their scriptures and historical documents to determine what is happening in the Muslim world. This is something that only they can do.

Action Points for Christians

But is there anything that Christians can do? In the first place we can spread the whole situation before God in our prayers and seek to understand what God himself is doing in the Middle East and in other parts of the world (such as Indonesia, where millions of Muslims are becoming Christians).

The second thing we can do is in our Bible study groups, look at the way God has acted in the past. For example, when a united Arab army invaded Israel during the reign of King Jehoshaphat he recognised that the tiny army of Judah was no match for them and called for a time of prayer and fasting. He led the nation in prayer, "We have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you" (2 Chron 20:12). This prayer of faith was answered by a prophetic word: "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours but God's."

It is this kind of faith that is needed today, plus the discernment to see what God is doing so that we can pray into the situation with understanding. There is no doubt that God is at work among Muslims, opening eyes that were blind and enabling them to understand the spiritual power behind Islam that enslaves their women and drives the men to the most appalling acts of barbarism and savagery.

Christians need both faith and discernment to understand what God is doing. It can help to look at the way he has acted in similar circumstances in the past.

Heavenly Agenda

As the Egyptian Christian leader implied in his somewhat shocking statement quoted at the beginning of this article, God is actually using these atrocities to release those who are bound by spiritual evil.

Angela Merkel, who is said by those who know her to be a Bible-believing Christian, has got it right in welcoming migrants from the Middle East who are escaping war and terrorism. As a politician she has been incredibly bold in the face of considerable opposition, even from her own party. If Europeans are prepared to take the risk of Jihadi fighters being amongst the migrants and welcome them with love and generosity in the name of Jesus, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus will touch their hearts and there will be a mighty harvest for the Kingdom among the multitude coming into Europe.

It may even be that God will use this migration to turn the hearts of the European nations, who have so largely abandoned the word of God and despised the precious spiritual heritage of their forefathers.

Possible Revival

Only God can turn the tide of secular humanism that has already brought the nations of Europe to the brink of disaster. But God's purposes are always for salvation rather than judgement and in his mercy he is longing to use the tragic situation in the Middle East to trigger a mighty spiritual revival in Europe that could change the history of the world.

God is longing to use the tragic situation in the Middle East to trigger a mighty spiritual revival.

We are on the edge of a cusp which could tip either way – into disaster or into a glorious fresh spiritual awakening bringing Kingdom values into the life of the Western nations. The way we react to the migrant crisis may well determine the future history of the world.

References

1 Biryukov, A. Putin Says Thousands from Russia, CIS Joined Islamic State. Bloomberg Business, 16 October 2015.

2 Middle East Eye, 28 September 2015.