 | Pastor Dave grew up in northern New Jersey in a very diverse cultural area. He attended Central College in Pella, Iowa received a BA in sociology and psychology. He was an offensive guard for their NCAA Div III National Championship team in 1974. In speaking for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, he sensed a call to full time ministry. Meeting is future wife Sandy at Central, went to Michigan to finish her college while Dave started Western Seminary in Holland, Michigan. Dave married Sandy in 77 and completed his Masters of Divinity degree in 78. Pastor Dave’s first church was in Fort Lee, New Jersey, home of the George Washington Bridge. Their three children were born there and he also served as a Police and Fire Chaplain for the city. In February 1991, they came to Wichita to start Harvest Community Church. In 2006, he received his Doctor of Ministry degree from Covenant Theological (Presbyterian) Seminary in St Louis. During that year he gained a daughter-in-law with now 2 grandsons of 3 years and 6 months old. Besides Pastoring at HCC for the past 20 years, he has been Director of the SCSD & WPD Police Chaplains for 11.
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Religion
2012-11-19 10:10:43
Israel and Judaism: is it a biblical thing?
Q- We have a relationship with Israel, whereby whatever (to a point) they get involved in, the U.S.A. government backs them. Is it a biblical thing?
A- Early in the beginning of the nation of Israel God gave Abram a special promise as he followed the call of God to go into the world , “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. {2} I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others.” {Genesis 12:1-2} Since that day we have seen God in history work through His chosen nation to become a great and powerful nation. There were times she became a weak nation, even at the point in becoming a vassal state of some of the great nations of the world in certain periods of time. Even to this day, as God said, she would be a very powerful influential nation and the land a pivotal piece of the world. {Revelation 16:16} She has played a huge part in keeping peace throughout the world.
God has also used Israel to give the greatest blessing of all eternity to mankind which is the Lord Jesus Christ who provided our eternal salvation. God saw fit that our salvation would come from Israel and this is why Paul says the gospel is to the “Jew first.” {Romans 1:16} He was of Jewish heritage back to Abraham {Matthew 1:2; Luke 3:34} and given in land of Israel {Micah 5:2}. Israel has fulfilled already the missionary call of God in being “blessed to be a blessing.” That is so true for all Christians and Western Civilization.
But also this promise to Abram came with an affirmation and a warning to the rest of the world’s nations. “And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed." {Genesis 12:3} We see this throughout her history that those who play nasty with Israel pay a price. {2 Chronicles 32:31} Even when God uses a nation to punish Israel for her sin, God brings upon that nation punishment for doing the damage she has done to Israel later on in history. {Ezekiel 26:1-5}} Some of us have even seen Israel in our present day against great odds glean victory that leaves observers scratching their heads wondering how Israel could have pulled off those victories. {Consider her War for Independence in 1947.The Sinai War in 1956, The 6 Day War in 1967, The Yom Kipper War in 1973 or even the Lebanon War in 1982 and 2006.}
Israel is truly a blessed nation and has a special protection around her. But does this warrant that we as a nation right or wrong stand behind Israel no matter what she does? Now I do believe our nation does need to stand with Israel as a good ally but we also need to be very careful how we stand with her. The scriptures tells us, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” {Proverbs 14:34} America like a good friend should when we see our ally committing sinful acts confront her and tell her so. The scriptures are clear that every nation, including Israel, is like clay in the potter’s (God’s) hand in Jeremiah 18. That God through the prophet says, {7}”If I announce that a certain nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed,{8} but then that nation renounces its evil ways, I will not destroy it as I had planned. {9} And if I announce that I will plant and build up a certain nation or kingdom, {10} but then that nation turns to evil and refuses to obey me, I will not bless it as I said I would.” {Jeremiah 18:7-10} There is no better way of being a good ally then by preventing such catastrophe from coming upon Israel.
Even further, much of the foundation blocks for our legal system and the laws in America that protect us come from the Law God set down for Israel. “Or what great nation is there that has statutes and judgments as righteous as this whole law which I am setting before you today?” {Deuteronomy 4:8} Our forefathers who were the framers of the constitution modeled and cloned it. Our Second President, John Quincy Adams wrote, "The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal code as well as a moral and religious code. These are laws essential to the existence of men in society and most of which have been enacted by every Nation which ever professed any code of laws. Vain indeed would be the search among the writings of secular history to find so broad, so complete and so solid a basis of morality as the Ten Commandments lay down." This is all part of the blessing that has come to us because of our affinity with the God of Israel and His people.
The framers also saw the connection of God with our country’s blessings as Israel did in verse 7 where it says; “For what great nation has a God as near to them as the Lord our God is near to us whenever we call on him?” Why did the framers of the constitution stop at critical points to bow their heads, get on their knees and pray? Even Ben Franklin made a motion in a log jam debate to ask the framers call upon God in prayer to break the jam. May our Leaders stand with our ally Israel and these principles from the Torah. Blessed of God, PD.
