Challenging the ‘oath of allegiance’

Blow the trumpet!

“Announce in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem and say: ‘Sound the trumpet throughout the land!’ Cry aloud and say: ‘gather together! Let us flee to the fortified cities! Raise the signal to go to Zion! Flee for safety without delay!’

For I am bringing disaster from the North, even terrible destruction. A lion has come out from his lair; a destroyer of nations has set out. He has left his place to lay waste your land. Your towns will lie in ruins without inhabitant. So put on sackcloth, lament and wail, for the fierce anger of the Lord has not turned away from us.” (Jeremiah 4:5-9)

This is Jeremiah at his strongest and most confident; delivering a broadside in the early days of his ministry when news had reached Jerusalem that the Babylonian army was on the march. The whole pronouncement is in poetry, which would no doubt have made it more striking for those who heard it in Jerusalem, at a time of complacency and comparative prosperity.

It is difficult to date this passage but the indications are that it came soon after the untimely death of Josiah and early in the reign of his son Jehoiakim, which puts it in the period 607-600 BC. The Babylonians were busy acquiring sections of the old Assyrian Empire and steadily moving towards Judah (the Northern Kingdom of Israel having already been scattered by the Assyrians).

This proclamation from Jeremiah is a perfect example of the prophetic ministry in action, performing his role as the ‘watchman’ of the nation and messenger of God. It is a series of announcements, each in the imperative to add drama to the news being conveyed: “A lion has come out of his lair; a destroyer of nations has set out” (v7). But this was no ordinary piece of news. The Babylonians may have been the army that was threatening Judah and the holy city of Jerusalem, but the agent was God!

Claiming Immunity

Ever since the Temple, envisioned by King David but built by Solomon, was dedicated, it had been more than just a place of worship for the God of Israel. It was a living monument to the covenant between God and the house of David – the dynasty that David founded, that was endorsed and blessed by the Lord.

Hear God’s solemn promise at the dedication: “If My People who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chron 7:14).

This proclamation from Jeremiah is a perfect example of the prophetic ministry in action

That promise had become the focal point of a ‘royal-temple ideology’¹ that screened out covenantal reality and permitted self-deception. The aristocratic families surrounding the King who were in charge of the national government, and the priestly aristocratic families who were in charge of the Temple, were all under the deception that Jerusalem (represented by the Temple) was inviolable and that Judah as the Promised Land could never be invaded by a foreign army because it was under the protection of Almighty God. It was this delusion that Jeremiah’s harsh poetic pronouncement aimed to dispel.

Jeremiah alone seemed to perceive that they had failed to recognise that their covenantal relationship with God was conditional! It was conditional upon the people of Israel being totally faithful to the Torah, with the Decalogue at its centre – especially having no other God than Yahweh, the God of Israel.

Judgment Inevitable

The royal-temple ideology assumed that the covenantal conditions were fulfilled through morning and evening prayers in the Temple, conducted by the priests on behalf of the nation. But this was a mere religious ordinance.

This was the message that Jeremiah was called by God to proclaim (hence the imperative in his poetry): “Sound the trumpet throughout the land!” The purpose of sounding the trumpet was not simply to warn of the dangers on the international horizon, but to bring a message of warning from God: “I am bringing disaster from the north, even terrible destruction”.

There is no call for repentance in this pronouncement – only a call to put on sackcloth and lament. Jeremiah perceived the inevitability of judgment upon the nation and he knew the hardness of the hearts of the people. He had already called for them to break up their un-ploughed ground - the hardness of their hearts - but there had been no visible response.

Without repentance and turning, the covenantal relationship between God and Israel was dead. In fact, it was worse than that: it was a dangerous delusion that would bring disaster upon all the people, the priests and the prophets as well as the King and his family. No-one would be spared.

But the stark message of this pronouncement was that it was not the Babylonians who should be feared, but the God of Israel who had been deserted through the idolatrous practices of the people. There were even hints of this within the Temple itself, which showed the utter spiritual corruption that had become embedded into the nation.

Jeremiah perceived the inevitability of judgment upon the nation and he knew the hardness of the hearts of the people.

Depths of Conviction

The poetic pronouncement concluded with a declaration from God himself, beginning with the apocalyptic phase “In that day”. It stated the stark reality of the judgment that was about to descend upon Judah: “The King and the officials will lose heart, the priests will be horrified, and the prophets will be appalled.”

The fact that there is no ‘unless’ - no call for repentance or softening of the message - shows the depths of conviction that Jeremiah had received in his time of standing in the council of the Lord. In those moments in the presence of the God of Israel, time had been suspended, the future had become the present, shadow had become reality. The full horror that was about to descend upon the nation had been revealed to the Prophet. Like the Apostle Paul some 500 years later, he could not keep silent: “Woe unto me if I do not declare the truth of the word of God!” (1 Cor 9:16).

Of course, Jeremiah knew that if there were repentance in the nation, the Babylonian army could not penetrate the walls of Jerusalem or bring devastation to the cities of Judah, because there was no power on earth that could defeat the God of Israel. But he also knew the hardness of the hearts of the king and the priests and the leaders of the nation, who were blinded by a powerful spirit of corruption from the world that prevented them from perceiving the truth.

We Need Prophets!

The New Testament has many warnings of a similar blindness coming in the days leading up to the Second Coming of Jesus. 2 Timothy 3 speaks of this and the letters of Peter have strong warnings of the delusion that will drive the nations into a time of darkness and infect the Church with different forms of corruption.

Those who have prophetic gifts today need to spend more time in the council of the Lord, as Jeremiah did, and then to declare boldly what they are hearing and seeing revealed. In these days when the leaders of the Western nations have turned away from truth, and when many church leaders are also blinded by various forms of spiritual delusion so that they are unable to declare the word of the Lord, the greatest need is for the Lord to raise up prophets in our midst.

May those who have learned to stand in the council of the Lord, to recognise his voice, to understand how he is working out his purposes today – be given boldness by the Holy Spirit to declare the word of the Living God in this godless generation that is hungry for truth, but does not know where to find it.

References

1 E.g. Brueggemann, 1999. A commentary on Jeremiah: Exile and homecoming. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

This article is part of a series. Click here to read previous instalments.

The nationwide attempt to re-programme young minds.

Last week we received a letter from one of our readers describing what is happening in an infant school where she was assisting the reception class teacher. The school used the occasion of Prince Harry’s wedding to do a project on marriage. But the whole focus was upon the marriage of two men! She said that she did not dare to complain because she would lose her job and no other school would employ her.

This is part of the strategy in infant schools of normalising the abnormal to create a ‘new normal’. In other words, brainwashing the children to accept the new standards of British values.

Earlier this month we heard of a Primary School in Croydon where parents were informed that their children would be taking part in a ‘Pride’ march to celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender lifestyles. The school decreed that it would be compulsory for the children to take part and there was ‘no opt out’ for parents. Even the reception class of the youngest children were to be forced to take part in this march on the public streets of Croydon.

Many of the parents at the Heavers Farm Primary School voiced their objection but the school refused to change their plans, so on the day 110 pupils were absent in a display of parent power - forcing the school to cancel the parade and instead to hold a themed assembly for the children who did attend.

Concerned Parents Now ‘Extremists’

This is part of the moral and spiritual war that is taking place in Britain to try to force the nation to accept a new set of ‘British values’. Dame Louise Casey, who has led a Government inquiry into so-called ‘extremism and integration’, reported to the Housing Communities and Local Government Committee that parents at the Croydon Primary School who objected to what was happening to their children were ‘extremists’.

A moral and spiritual war is taking place in Britain to try to force the nation to accept a new set of ‘values’

She also said that all holders of public office should be forced to swear allegiance to the new set of British values, including same-sex marriage, because this is now the law of the land which has to be enforced. This sounds very much like what Paul foresaw when people give up believing in the God of Creation:

Since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity… (Rom 1:28-29).

Are we now becoming a totalitarian state? Will we soon have morality police enforcing the law? It was reported on BBC News this week (18 July) that there is to be a new drive to enforce the so-called ‘hate laws’. Police are to be retrained so that anyone who complains of being abused must be seen by the police within one hour!

Emotional Conditioning

Britain today is rapidly becoming a fully secular society. It has taken only 50 years, since the 1960s, to destroy almost completely the Judeo-Christian heritage of 1,000 years. The process of normalising the abnormal¹ has been extended right down to the primary school and the nursery. It uses a curriculum known as CHIPS – ‘Challenging Homophobia In Primary Schools’.

Brian Hadley says that CHIPS uses “heart-warming stories about lovable, cute and cuddly animals (e.g. the rabbits in ‘Rabbityness’; penguins in ‘And Tango makes Three’; and cats and kittens in ‘The Whisperer’) to plant and entrench ideas about ‘difference’ and ‘homosexuality’.”² It uses certain words frequently to implant them into the minds of small children. This is part of a process of ‘emotional conditioning’ to indoctrinate the children to accept homosexuality and gender transition as normal conditions of human existence.

It has taken only 50 years, since the 1960s, to destroy almost completely the Judeo-Christian heritage of 1,000 years.

Hadley states, “CHIPS starts to deconstruct the true meaning of ‘male’ and ‘female’ as being a person’s biological sex, by planting the idea in young children’s minds that they can create for themselves any gender and sexuality they wish.”³

But the great danger of what is being done to children in our schools is that they are disturbing their emotional balance at a formative time in a child’s life when they are just learning basic things such as how to read and write and tell the time. At this stage in development, children are also learning their own identity and how to cope with other children outside their own family.

Grooming Now Government Policy

This policy of deconstruction is creating enormous emotional strain upon children that will affect them for the rest of their lives. Already, in Britain our Health Services are almost at crisis point in dealing with the vast numbers of people in the population who are suffering from depression and various forms of mental illness. Last year, 300,000 people left employment due to mental health problems, according to Government statistics.

If our schools are allowed to continue deconstructing the emotional lives of small children in the nurseries and infant schools, the resultant level of mental health problems in the nation will be unbearable.

Those are the practical problems: but what about the moral and spiritual significance of Government education policy? There has been a huge public outcry at the revelations of gangs grooming of vulnerable young girls for sex and warnings have been given to children about paedophiles using the internet to target children and begin grooming them. As a nation we hate this kind of abuse. Yet it is now becoming Government education policy to groom the nation’s children in nurseries and primary schools to force them to accept new definitions of sexual relationships, marriage and family.

If our schools continue deconstructing the emotional lives of small children, the resultant level of mental health problems in the nation will be unbearable.

Moreover, all those who wish to hold on to traditional values are labelled “extremists” and made liable to prosecution. Are we becoming a nation of child abusers?

As Billy Graham once said, “If God does not bring down judgment on such a nation he will have to apologise to Sodom and Gomorrah”.

References

1 See: Nolland, L et al, 2018. The New Normal: The Transgender Agenda. Wilberforce Publications, London.

2 Hadley, B. ‘EDUCATION OR INDOCTRINATION? An assessment of CHIPS’, in Rose, L (ed), 2016, What Are They Teaching The Children? Wilberforce Publications, London, p140.

3 Ibid.

Further shameful acts exposed as Prince makes historic visit to Israel

As evidence has come to light of further shameful acts of anti-Semitism carried out by British officials during its charge over the territory formerly known as Palestine, it is hoped that next week’s Royal visit to Israel will help heal the wounds of those who suffered.

I reported last month on a special ceremony held near Haifa at which UK representatives shared a ‘declaration of sorrow’ for the way our country treated Jews in the years leading up to the re-birth of their nation in 1948.
A more detailed report of that 11 May event has since come into my possession¹ and I am thus able to reveal – exclusively - some shocking facts shared by Holocaust survivors and others attending the ceremony, organised by Love Never Fails, an alliance of Christian groups supporting the Jewish state.

Atlit detention camp (now a museum). Photo Gemma Blech, courtesy Anne Heelis.It took place at Atlit, a former detention camp where Jewish refugees were held as part of British policy to limit immigration to the region, adding further trauma to a people who had already suffered terribly under the Nazis.

Granted a League of Nations mandate to prepare a safe homeland for Jews, Britain instead interred them behind barbed wire complete with watchtowers.

Harrowing Stories of Betrayal

Among those who shared their harrowing stories of the time was Hannah Avrutsky. A survivor of the notorious Warsaw ghetto,² she was hidden in a monastery before being smuggled to the Exodus ship bound for Israel in 1947, only to face a British naval blockade and be sent back to a Displaced Persons’ camp in Germany, where so many of her people had been murdered!

Ben Zion Drutin spoke of being hospitalised after being wounded by the British on board the Exodus and then held in Atlit for six months.

Arie Itamar, who was eight years old on the Exodus, compared Israel to a “betrayed lover” during the Mandate.

Granted a League of Nations mandate to prepare a safe homeland for Jews, Britain instead interred them behind barbed wire complete with watchtowers.

Pinchas Kahane spoke of his parents’ escape from Auschwitz, his birth in a Cyprus detention camp and how Britain prevented them leaving the camps until February 1949, well after the establishment of the State of Israel.

Dr Miri Nehari, whose father had been a leader in mobilising the escape of Jews from Europe after the Holocaust, read out a British telegram to the Polish Government-in-exile asking them to close the borders to escaping Jews.

Brits and Israelis together at the Atlit meeting. Photo courtesy of Anne Heelis.Zehavit Blumenfeld, whose 70^th birthday has coincided with that of Israel’s, said: “I do not forget, but I forgive.” She was born in the Cyprus detention camps where 53,000 Jewish refugees from the Holocaust were interned by the British.

She and others were moved by the warmth and sympathy of the Christians who came to express their sorrow and hope that Prince William’s visit will be an important step towards reconciliation.

The testimonies concluded with stories of British collusion with Arab terror during the Mandate. Noam Arnon, representing the Hebron Jewish Community, spoke on behalf of those who had survived the 1929 massacre there, outlining British complicity.

Zehava Fuchs witnessed the Hadassah convoy massacre as a girl in 1948 when the British had deliberately not intervened to rescue Jewish passengers – 78 people, mainly doctors and nurses, were killed in the attack by Arab terrorists. Zehava is still unable to attend a barbeque as it reminds her of the smell of burning flesh.

Declaration of Sorrow

Rachel Rust, daughter of a former British officer who served in Palestine, confessed her deep sorrow at the cruel treatment handed out by the British army.

On a positive note, Rita Offenbach shared how her mother was among 180 Jewish fighters rescued after being besieged by Arabs attacking their convoy. Another paid tribute to British officer Orde Wingate who is still much loved in Israel for having laid the foundations of the Israeli Defence Force in creating special night squads.

The declaration of sorrow read, in part: “We grieve that [Britain’s policies] led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Jews who could have escaped Hitler’s ‘final solution’ if the gates to their ancient homeland had been fully open.”

Many Israelis are still waiting to hear an apology from Britain for her betrayal of Israel. There is still a need for much repentance and reconciliation.

Film-maker Hugh Kitson³ expressed sorrow, not only for the failures of the Mandate but also for the fact that today’s British Government fails to recognise Israeli sovereignty over their own capital city.

Many Israelis are still waiting to hear an apology from Britain for her betrayal of Israel in breaking a pledge to prepare a safe refuge for the Jewish people. Israel came into being without our help in the end, but not before many lives were unnecessarily lost due to the delay. There is still a need for much repentance and reconciliation.

Hope Persists

Prince William is scheduled to touch down on Monday for the start of the first ever official visit to Israel by a British Royal, during which he will pay his respects at the tomb of his great-grandmother, Princess Alice of Greece, who hid a Jewish family from the Nazis during the war. It is hoped that the visit will mark a turning point in Britain’s relationship with Israel.

It is certainly encouraging that, according to a senior Conservative source, British Home Secretary Sajid Javid will take steps later this year to fully ban Hezbollah, one of Israel’s most implacable enemies. Since banning the terrorist group in 2008, Britain has continued to recognise its political wing – a distinction not even accepted by Hezbollah, a heavily armed proxy of Iran which has held successive London rallies against the Jewish state.⁴

Also encouraging is Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s condemnation on Monday of the United Nations Human Rights Council over its long-standing anti-Israel bias, demanding the Council drop a controversial agenda item placing Israel under intense scrutiny.⁵

These are indeed steps in the right direction, and we trust and pray that the Duke of Cambridge will encounter true peace as he walks in the footsteps of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

References

1 My thanks to Rosie Ross, Israel’s Love Never Fails representative, for the Atlit report, and to her colleague Anne Heelis for passing it on to me. Further signatures to the declaration can still be made at www.nachamuami.com.

2 Where Jews were herded into a cramped, unsanitary location as a staging post for being transported to death camps.

3 Hugh Kitson’s latest documentary Whose Land? explores Israel’s historic and legal rights to their land.

4 Jerusalem News Network, 18 June 2018, quoting the Jewish Chronicle.

5 JNN, 20 June 2018.

Welby, the wedding and the Gospel

My colleague Charles Gardner has written a splendid piece on the Royal wedding, eulogising the sermon from Bishop Curry that made such a great contribution to the union of Harry and Meghan. It was a powerful message delivered with great skill and passion that captivated not only the congregation in St George’s Chapel, Windsor, but countless millions watching the service around the world.

At the risk of being a spoilsport and dubbed a ‘prophet of doom and gloom’, I want to offer a few thoughts to go alongside what Charles has written. I too watched the wedding on TV and I was delighted with the charismatic message delivered by the Bishop. And I was really pleased that he did not only speak about love in a sentimental, romantic context, but he spoke about the love of God and got some Gospel into his message.

I applauded him for taking the opportunity of presenting the Gospel in simple words that would have communicated clearly to probably the largest congregation any preacher has ever faced. It was certainly good for Christianity.

Changes in the Church

My concern was not with the message but with the whole event and with the enormous changes that are taking place within the Church – especially the Church of England as our state Church. The last time a prince of the realm wanted to marry a divorced American lady whose ex-husband was still living, it resulted in the abdication of King Edward VIII. 

My concern is not with the message but with the whole event and the enormous changes taking place within the Church.

That was the 1930s and much has changed since then. But Harry and Meghan’s wedding could not even have taken place 10 years ago, when Dr Rowan Williams was Archbishop of Canterbury and Prince Charles wanted to marry Camilla Parker-Bowles whose ex-husband was still alive – something that was directly against the teaching of Jesus (Luke 16:18).

I remember discussing it with Rowan at the time. He was steadfastly against allowing a full Anglican wedding service and Charles and Camilla had to go to Windsor Town Hall and have a civil ceremony, after which they went to St George’s Chapel for a blessing.

Now, everyone is so delighted that the Royal family have accepted a beautiful, racially-mixed young lady into their midst that no one takes any notice of her divorce. I believe it is right under exceptional circumstances that the Church should offer a full wedding service where someone has been divorced – I have done this myself – and I don’t know the circumstances of Meghan’s former marriage, so I’m in no position to make any comment on this. My concern is really with Archbishop Justin Welby who has said publicly that it is his intention to make the Church of England ‘more inclusive’.

Gospel Truth?

It was Welby who advised Harry and Meghan to have Bishop Curry as their preacher, knowing full well that Curry is an advocate of same-sex marriage and the propagation of the LGBT code of immorality. I know that the Archbishop sent out guidelines to all CofE primary schools last year urging teachers to encourage the children to cross-dress in preparation for living in a gender-free society. 

What message is the Church sending to the world?

So, I wonder what Welby’s next move will be in undermining our Judeo-Christian heritage? How far does he intend going in promoting the LGBT agenda, destroying biblical truth and promoting an apostate Church?

Yes, it was a lovely wedding and only the British could put on such an amazing pageant in such an historic setting, blessed by perfect weather. It was great to have a national celebration in the midst of the dark Brexit-laden days we are enduring. It was great for the public to enjoy such a celebration and it was good for the national image worldwide. My only concern is: what message is the Church sending to the world? Does the Church of England even know the truth of the Gospel it is supposed to proclaim?

Royal wedding cleric challenges two billion people on faith

Many of us had just about given up the fight. We had unfurled the white flag of surrender to godlessness and immorality. We’d reluctantly come to accept that the Western world recognises neither God nor the Bible.

Then a black American bishop shook the airwaves with a thundering sermon on the burning love of God supremely manifested in the sacrificial love of his Son. This was a love so strong that it changed the world – and is still able to do so.

Comparing that love to the harnessing of fire that powers the modern world, Bishop Curry passionately challenged two billion viewers to see what the Christian Gospel can do to change our broken society into communities that love one another and work for each other’s benefit.

Love Stronger than Death

Taking his text from the Song of Solomon, he showed how romantic love between a man and a woman is God’s idea, but that it is not something sentimental – it is as fierce as fire and stronger than death, and was ultimately demonstrated on the cross of Calvary, where Jesus died for our sins.

True love involves pain and sacrifice. It’s “’til death us do part”. God himself is an incurable romantic – from the beginning to the end of his book, the Bible, we see that he pursues us as the ultimate Bridegroom seeking the perfect Bride.

Yes, there was great anticipation for this Royal Wedding; the courtship of Harry and Meghan had all the ingredients of a fairy-tale with the handsome young prince falling for the beautiful Hollywood actress. But they were both from broken homes, and Meghan was divorced. It seemed a bleak scenario reflecting much that has already gone wrong in our society.

Many of us had just about given up the fight, accepting that the Western world recognises neither God nor the Bible.

And yet no-one saw it coming – certainly not the liberal elite who have persuaded themselves that God is dead, but not even evangelical Christians, including myself, were prepared for this. Broadcasters and their interviewees couldn’t stop talking about it afterwards – not the dress, but the ad-dress – as expressions like “electrifying” and “blown away” were bandied about.

Apparently there were some 40,000 Tweets per minute on the subject, most of which reflected an undeniable joy which made me realise afresh that people really do want the Gospel after all. It really is good news for a world gone mad with political correctness. People genuinely warmed to a heart-stopping explanation of what Jesus came to do.

False Motives or True

Don’t get me wrong. I’m fully aware of what the bishop didn’t say, and what he is alleged to believe, for example, about same-sex issues. Some might even question his motive but, like the Apostle Paul, we should be thankful that the Gospel was preached and made millions sit up and take notice – even in faraway Argentina, I’m told.

“The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached” (Phil 1:18).

In my opinion, Bishop Curry is way off track with his unbiblical views on LGBT rights (which he did not address at the St George’s Chapel ceremony) along with his reported statement that Trump voters “cannot credibly call themselves Christians if they support policies such as tax cuts for the wealthy”.¹ But he undoubtedly has the gift of summing up the Gospel in less than 14 minutes!

The Prophet Isaiah foresaw this kind of surprise (at how the Gospel would become known, for example) when he wrote: “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord” (Isa 55:8). In this context he explains that just as the rain and snow causes the earth to bear fruit, so his word will not return to him empty, but will accomplish the purpose for which he sent it.

People genuinely warmed to a heart-stopping explanation of what Jesus came to do.

The same passage urges us to “seek the Lord while he may be found, call on him while he is near.” When you know that what you are hearing is the truth, don’t let the moment pass. Call out to your Creator, who knows you intimately and who loves you with an everlasting love.

“Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon” (Isa 55:6f). If you do this, your world will never be the same. For “you will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands” (Isa 55:12).

Changing the World

Is the Gospel making a comeback? You bet it is. Speaking of the end times and the signs that would immediately precede his coming again, our Lord Jesus told his disciples: “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Matt 24:14). And as St Peter, on the Day of Pentecost, reminded his hearers of the words of the Prophet Joel, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21).

Too many have been switched off by soothing ten-minute homilies that neither challenge nor inspire.

It was predictable that the Windsor Castle chapel message would be hijacked by the diversity, equality and inclusivity brigade – he did, after all, touch on areas that suited them like black civil rights, in itself perfectly in order as Meghan is descended from slaves. But then, as I have already suggested, the Gospel has always been misused.

However, the essence of the Bishop’s address was the love of God that brought peace and harmony even to slaves in their desperate predicament – that the Gospel is what mends a broken society. After all, it was the Gospel that emboldened William Wilberforce to campaign against slavery. Campaigns in themselves will not change the world; that will take men and women who have fallen in love with the man who changed the world, our Lord Jesus Christ.

You might also be interested in our editorial this week, on the same topic.

References

1 Daily Mail, 21 May 2018.

Here’s hoping and praying the Prince’s visit will usher in a new era of support

No British royal has ever yet made an official visit to Israel. But now that ‘exile’ is about to end, appropriately enough, after 70 years – the period spent in Babylon by the Jews of old.

Prince William, the Queen’s grandson and second in line to the throne, will arrive in the country shortly after the celebrations of the Jewish state’s 70^th anniversary, which is expected to coincide with the controversial US Embassy move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The historic visit will also take in Jordan and the Palestinian territories.

Foreign Office Appeasement

The long exile from the modern Jewish state by British royalty is perhaps complex, but seems to reflect Foreign Office policy, which generally amounts to appeasement of the surrounding Arab nations.

Last year a rumoured visit by Prince Charles, heir to the throne, was reportedly cancelled by the Royal Visits Committee on the grounds that it would “upset Arab nations in the region who regularly host UK royals”.¹

The royal family has historically always rejected Israeli invitations for official state visits, although individual members have visited the country in a personal capacity.²

The long exile from Israel by British royalty reflects Foreign Office policy, which generally amounts to Arab appeasement.

Although the Queen has travelled the world more than most, she has never set foot in Israel, the land which gave birth to the Christian faith she so devoutly follows. Prince Philip’s only trip was in 1994 to attend a ceremony commemorating his mother, Princess Alice, who is buried on Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives.

Prince Charles has visited twice to pay respects at state funerals as well as fulfilling a longstanding wish to visit his grandmother’s grave, but these were not considered official tours.³

Royal Righteousness

Princess Alice of Battenburg.

It will be the most high-profile and politically sensitive trip yet for the 35-year-old Duke of Cambridge, and I suspect he too will want to visit the grave of his great-grandmother, Princess Alice, recognised by Jerusalem’s Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum as ‘righteous among the nations’ for saving a Jewish family during the war.

As Princess of Greece, she hid Jewish widow Rachel Cohen and two of her five children in her home. Rachel’s husband had in 1913 helped King George I of Greece, in return for which the king offered him any service he could perform, should he ever need it.

When the Nazi threat emerged, his son recalled this promise and appealed to the Princess, who duly honoured her father’s pledge.

No doubt it was effectively out of her hands for the Queen to visit the Jewish state this year, but she has done even better than that by remaining a loyal, consistent and outstanding ambassador for the Jewish Messiah, whom she worships with undying devotion.

That said, now that the exile of official British royal visits to the Holy Land is finally over, I pray that our political, diplomatic and spiritual relationship with Israel will reach new heights of understanding and support, and thus bring blessing back on our own beleaguered land, plagued with infighting over Brexit along with threats to our freedom from the hard left and extreme right.

British Betrayal

We have betrayed Israel in her hour of need for long enough. A hundred years ago we were granted the great privilege of restoring Jews to their ancient land through an international treaty (at San Remo in 1920) that recognised their right to such territory.

Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice, is counted as ‘righteous among the nations’ and buried on Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives.

But in the face of Arab opposition, boosted by riots and massacres, we backed down and thus failed to fully carry out our noble calling. To this day we have kept appeasing those who made the most noise and threats, so that we have even allowed ourselves to be taken in by United Nations-backed Palestinian propaganda downplaying Jewish links to Jerusalem, and the Promised Land as a whole.

So, shamefully, we refused to follow President Trump’s lead in recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital – it’s been part of Jewish history for 3,500 years while the Palestinians were not even drawn together as a people until recent decades.

In fact, there was a time not long ago when Arabs refused to be known as Palestinians. When 30,000 Jews, along with a few hundred Arabs, volunteered to serve with the British forces during World War II, they were permitted to wear a ‘Palestine’ shoulder patch. But the Arabs wouldn’t wear it: “We are not Palestinians; we are Arabs,” they responded.⁴

Biblical Significance?

The celebrations marking 70 years since Israel’s re-birth on 14 May 1948 are particularly significant as 70 is a number holding great importance in the Bible, of which the exile in Babylon was just one example.
On the other hand, it also has some experts worried as, despite its long history in the land, Israel has only been a united, fully sovereign state (not occupied by foreign armies, for example) on three occasions, lasting an average of 70 years so far!⁵

But the fact that the big birthday will coincide with the US Embassy move to Jerusalem, followed by an official visit from British royalty, is both intriguing and encouraging.

I realise that we now live in a secular humanist environment, but politicians and diplomats would do well to consider the Bible’s recording of God’s word to Abraham: “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse…” (Gen 12:3; Num 24:9).

Even more alarming is the stern warning from Isaiah: “For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly ruined” (Isa 60:12).

The responsibility for Britain’s fortune or failure will inevitably have much to do with how we treat Israel.

There was a time not long ago when Arabs refused to be known as Palestinians.

Britain at the Crossroads!

We stand at the crossroads with a great opportunity to bless the Jews – to work with them towards a peaceful future in the Middle East or to work against them in appeasement of their enemies as we have done for much of the last century.

Which road will we take? Will we step out in faith – honouring the God of Israel – or succumb to fear of the repercussions?

References

1 Daily Mail, 2 March 2018.

2 Ibid.

3 Torch magazine, Christians United for Israel – UK, Dec 2016-Feb 2017.

4 Whose Land? by Dov Chaikin, Israel Today, January 2018.

5 See ‘How long will Israel’s third kingdom survive?’ Israel Today, December 2017.

Paul Luckraft reviews 'The Servant Queen and the King she serves' (2016, 64 pages, Bible Society, HOPE, LICC), a unique and magnificent tribute to Her Majesty.

This book is being published jointly by the Bible Society, HOPE and the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity (LICC), to mark the Queen's 90^th birthday in April. In a year in which the UK will be looking ahead to its future in or out of the EU, we also have the opportunity to reflect on the many decades of faithful service of one of the most remarkable and Godly monarchs in our long history.

Co-written by Mark Greene of LICC and Catherine Butcher of HOPE, this short book is a magnificent tribute to Her Majesty. It focuses primarily upon her own words delivered in her Christmas messages over the course of her long reign - words which reflect her deep faith in Christ and the gospel. Her gratitude to God for his steadfast love and continued faithfulness is commented upon in the foreword which Her Majesty wrote especially for this publication.

In the foreword, written by Her Majesty especially for this publication, her gratitude to God for his steadfast love and faithfulness shines through.

The book also contains several well-chosen anecdotes - sometimes humorous, always enlightening, which add to the overall impression of a real person behind all the pomp and ceremony of her position. Despite having many servants (though she would never regard her staff as mere servants) she always feeds the corgis herself!

Pictures of her smiling face as she meets and greets people while going about her duty are plentiful, but perhaps most striking is the close-up of her face in quiet prayerful reflection on Remembrance Day.

Through this book we come to understand just how dedicated she has been to the calling placed upon her and how hard she works on a daily basis. Her devotion to us stems from her devotion to God, and for that we can all be profoundly grateful.

Her Majesty's devotion to her people stems from her devotion to God, and for that we can all be profoundly grateful.

Two small snippets of information stood out for me. There was one part of the Coronation ceremony which was not televised as it was considered too sacred to show, but which is described here. This was the moment when all the regalia was removed and, dressed in a simple white dress, the Queen was anointed with oil and set apart to serve.

The other fascinating insight recounts how, when in residence at Sandringham, she often comes unannounced to join the local congregation at the church on the estate. No chauffeur, no ceremony, she slips in through the small side-door and takes a seat in one of the pews - not even the special one reserved only for her. She has simply driven herself to church because she wants to be there.

Overall, this is a very moving account of the private faith of a very public person. For me, what comes through these pages is an overwhelming sense of true majesty. I felt a strong impression that to simply stand - or kneel - silently in her presence, before her throne, would be to get a foretaste of what it will be like one day when we stand - or kneel - before the eternal throne of the King of Kings (and Queens!), the King she serves. And that she would humbly accept our homage as such.

This is a very moving account of the private faith of a very public person – and what comes through these pages is a sense of true majesty.

Bible Society, HOPE, LICC have designed this unique book to be given away to friends and colleagues, to start conversations and to bring communities together.

You can order 'The Servant Queen' through CPO by following this link.

Single copies are priced at £5 + P&P, with bulk orders (packs of 10) bringing the cost down to £1 + P&P. Extra resources also available for school and community distribution.