My dreams for pilgrimage to Israel started in 1995 when I listened to a testimony from a Baptist pastor in Cameroon. He had visited Israel bringing along with him a piece of rock from Gethsemane and some water from the place where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the Jordan River, as a symbol of faith.
As these materials were passed around in the congregation I felt in my heart a deep longing for Jesus Christ and the land where he lived and ministered. In 2006 while in Nigeria as a seminary student, I learned that Nigeria’s government offers pilgrimages to their Christians to Jerusalem and Moslems to Mecca once in their life time. As a Cameroonian, I could not visit Israel on the Nigerian government pilgrimage program.
My hopes for pilgrimage to Israel were almost entirely lost but the longing intensified. God was at work, planning to meet this desire in ways that I didn’t realise. My love for Israel grew as a result of my disagreements with Replacement Theology over the years. As a pastor in Cameroon, I often spoke about God’s love for His people, Israel in congregations and seminars. My understanding of biblical revelation on Israel’s place in redemptive history was greatly enriched as I read books, attended seminars, interacted with Christians who love Israel and sometimes served the Jews in practical ways. My Christian friends prayed with me for an open door to visit the Land of Promise some day. I did not know it will come so soon.
This year, God gave me the opportunity to visit Israel in a Training Tour program organised and sponsored by Christians for Israel International. It was a wonderful experience for me to be in Israel and a delight to set foot on the land where Messiah once trod. I was the only Cameroonian in the group, and saw the need to pray for Cameroonian church leaders to have an opportunity to make pilgrimage to Israel.
The message of the Bible and salvation history became clearer for me when I visited biblical lands such as Caesarea, Mount Carmel, Rama, the Lake of Galilee, Mount of Beatitudes, Capernaum, River Jordan, Bethsaida, Chorazim, Caesarea Philippi, Mount Tabor, Nazareth, Jerusalem, Emmaus-Nikopolis, and Judean desert. It felt the first and second centuries of the church so close to me as I stood in the ruins of the palaces of Herod the Great, prayed in Gethsemane, in the empty tomb of Christ. I walked at Megiddo (Armageddon) and Masada, I felt the end of the Age so near. Nehemiah’s tunnel, Ancient Dan, the Tomb in honour of Gideon and other ancient Biblical lands and sites gave me a fresh grasp of the Old Testament history.
Having witnessed the roots of our faith, I now offer some analysis of how I understood my experience in Israel in the light of biblical prophecy, for the edification of the saints and for church leaders in Cameroon who wish to visit Israel. For me, visiting Israel turned out to be more than a tourist experience. It was a time of revelation, a time of miracles. God gave a specific message for my life experiences and calling. This is an experience I will always remember and for which I will ever be thankful to God.
Returning and Rebuilding the Nation
Throughout Israel I realised that the Jews are a very hard working people. They are determined to rebuild their country from the ruins of history with their own technology and manpower. With the declaration of independence in 1948 Jews from all over the world have been returning to the land of their forefathers. In the ancient biblical lands, new communities, modern highways, and green vegetation are immerging fast from ruins and empty desert land. It is amazing to see chains of mountains once empty, now covered with green fruit-bearing trees.
We see in this development the fulfilment of the prophecies of the ancient biblical seers who foresaw the return and the rebuilding of the empty lands of Israel. “But you O mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. I am concerned for you and will look on you with favour. You will be ploughed and sown, and I will multiply the number of people upon you, even the whole house of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt”(Ezekiel 36:8-10). Isaiah, another ancient Jewish prophet had prophesied concerning the return of the Jews to Israel saying: “They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations” (Isaiah 61:4).
Nothing better explains the rapid development of the modern state of Israel than the handiwork of God. It is not by accident that a tiny little nation in the Middle East surrounded by hostile nations and constantly engaged in armed conflicts and surprised terrorist attacks continues to excel in nation-building and military superiority. God’s people have pointed to irrefutable fulfilment of hundreds of Biblical prophecies in the modern state of Israel. Although modern Israel (as was ancient Israel) has its failing and stumbling blocks, the importance of the nation in the consummation of redemptive history cannot be underrated.
When a Bible-believing Christian visits Israel, the Bible becomes much clearer as one comes across biblical places and see the fulfilment of biblical prophecies.
Absorption of Ethiopian Jews
It was a delight to visit an Absorption Centre for Ethiopian Jews in Safed. Here a devoted Jewish staff provides African immigrants with practical assistance that eases their transition to modern Israeli life while preserving the immigrant culture. Most people who have no contact with Jewish communities of colour picture Jews only as Europeans and Americans. The news that Israel had airlifted 10,000 Ethiopian Jews in 1984 and 1985 in “Operation Moses” and 15,000 more in 1992 in “Operation Solomon” has often surprised Cameroonians and Africans in general.
Actually, the Jewish communities of Africa and Asia had dominated the Jewish intellectual and cultural scene in antiquity. During the time of Jesus, the largest Jewish community outside the land of Israel was in Alexandria, Egypt. The influence of the Alexandrian Jews on the early Church and surviving African- Jewish communities cannot be overlooked. Ethiopian Jews, the Fallashas, represent the oldest Jewish community outside of the land of Israel with an origin linked to the tribe of Dan. Another theory of their origin link the Ethiopian Jews to the Queen of Sheba.
The queen of Sheba is also referred to as the queen of the south by Jesus in Matthew 12:42 and is believed by historians to be a woman of colour. Sheba is descended from Cush (Genesis 10:7), the son of Ham who founded Ethiopia. The queen of Sheba ruled a land known for its international trade in spices, gold, and precious stones (1 Kings 10) which is how she heard of King Solomon. Again the return of Ethiopian Jews to the land of Israel is another fulfilment of prophecy.
Jews and the Bible
It was a privilege for me, a Gentile believer, to pray at the Western Wall in Jerusalem and in the synagogues, seeing copies of the Scrolls, the sacred Hebrew Scriptures otherwise known as the Five Books of Moses. Christ and Paul knew the Law of Moses and visited the synagogues. Israel’s devotion to God and His Word is demonstrated in their reverence for God and the Torah. Gentile Christians over the centuries have sometimes labelled Jews as atheists because of their rejection of Jesus Christ. Judaism is not the way to salvation. There is in Israel the religious and secular Jews.
Religious Jews are devoted to God. Paul, a Jewish apostle of Christ could “testify about them that they are zealous for God but their zeal is not based on knowledge” (Romans 10:2). Except for Messianic Jews, the vast majority of the Jews have not seen who the Messiah really is. Generally Israel’s unbelief is in part the result of the partial hardening of their hearts by God (Romans 11:7-8), persecution and genocide in the lands of Christendom darkened the face of Jesus even more for them. No doubt Jews, as all humans have a fallen human nature. In spite of all these obstacles, God has promised to reveal Messiah to His people Israel and to ultimately redeem them.
First, the Prophet Zechariah foresaw a time when the Jews will find their Saviour. “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son” (Zachariah 12:10).
Paul, the Apostle of Christ knew the Scriptures, and earnestly desired and prayed for the salvation of the Jews (Rom.10:1). God gave him the following revelation concerning the salvation of Israel: “I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited. Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved as it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godliness away from Jacob. And this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins” (Romans 11:25-27). Jews will be saved through Jesus Christ as there is no name whereby people might be saved except the name of Jesus Christ. But just how they will come to the saving knowledge of Christ is described by Paul as a mystery. Paul urges us, Gentile Christians not to be conceited when we think of our salvation and the plight of the Jews. Thus, I looked into the face of every Jew in Israel with boundless hope. God gave me several opportunities to whisper prayers for the Jews.
Gentiles have benefited so much from the Jews. Through a Jew, Jesus Christ, the Gentiles received salvation. Through the Jews we received the Holy Bible. The Bible is a book about God’s dealings with the Jews, Gentiles and the Church. Amongst all the religious books I have come across, only the Bible is written by about 40 God-led authors from very different backgrounds in different geographical locations over a period of about 1600 years.
Each author at a time recorded a part of the one story of redemptive history so that we now have the whole story in 66 books. This revealed record of salvation history has come to us through the Jews. Yet history indicates that the Church has acted ungratefully to the Jews. The Church did not only remain silent while German Nazis murdered 6 million Jews between 1933-1945 but even claimed to have replaced Israel in what became known as Replacement Theology. Replacement Theology falsely asserts that God rejected the Jews when they rejected Christ and that the church has now replaced Israel. Paul was reacting to Anti-Semitism and the pride of Gentile Christians in Rome when he wrote:
“I ask then: Did God reject his people?By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew…Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious” Romans 11:1,2,11).
God has not replaced Israel. Israel and the church are distinct. The church is composed of both believing Jews and Gentiles. God’s plans for the Jews still stand and He will be faithful to His people to the end of time. God’s covenants with Jews are everlasting. God will restore the Jews to their place of privilege among the nations at the appointed time (Romans 11:17-26). This will happen when the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled (Luke21:24), when Christ returns (Matt 23:39). The crises in the Middle East and the tension over Jerusalem and the land of Israel all point to the gradual process leading to the Return of Messiah for the restoration of Israel. When Christ’s disciples questioned him concerning the time of the restoration of Israel, Christ urged them to concentrate on evangelism, warning them that “it is not for them to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority”(Acts 1:7). Christ never denied the fact of the restoration of Israel.
The land and Christian heritage
I met thousands of pilgrims from several nations visiting the holy land of Israel. Judaism and Christianity are connected to this land, not merely sites or special places. Without the modern state of Israel, Christian pilgrimage to the land of Israel will not be possible. The story of Christianity would have been without historical evidence. Excavations on various historical sites have uncovered valuable historical remains of biblical Judaism and Christianity.
Paul, a Jewish rabbi and apostle of Christ taught that righteousness “is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith” (Romans 1:17) and not by sight. However, the remainders of history provide the historical basis for our faith and also validate the right of the Jews to re-possess the land that God gave their ancestors. It is clear that the Land of Israel is more than a habitat for the Jews. The land is important for the fulfilment of biblical prophecies that will culminate in the consummation of redemptive history. Israel is the root of our faith. Christianity from its birth, development and consummation is inevitably tied to Israel.
The peace of Jerusalem
The media have been so successful in creating a scary image of Jews and Arabs in the disputed territories of Israel. A first time visitor to the land will expect Jews and Arabs to be literally at each other’s throats 24 hours a day. However, life in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, and Shechem is not exactly full of tension as the media want us to believe. Although there are sporadic and periodic incidences of violence, Arabs and Jews in Israeli territories coexist peacefully.
In a Baptist Church in Bethlehem I saw a Jew embrace an Arab. Jewish people and aliens walk freely through the Arab owned markets in Jerusalem and other places. This encourages me to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. There are results. God is at work in Jerusalem. Although the peace of Jerusalem is an eternal wish, we can pray more confidently because Yeshua, Prince of peace reigns in Jerusalem. Just as the real causes of the controversy over the land of Israel are not found in our time, no Christian should expect the absolute and permanent peace of Jerusalem at any time in this age. Biblical prophecy indicates that the on-going conflict over the land of Israel will in time instead escalate into a full blown catastrophe leading to Armageddon.
Jesus Christ himself revealed the battle of Armageddon to the Apostle John. “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty…Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.”(Rev. 16:12-16).
Armageddon stands for “Har Mageddon,” the mountain of Megiddo. I had the opportunity to visit Megiddo, a real place about 22 miles north of Shechem and 15 miles south of Haifa in the modern state of Israel. I walked through an ancient tunnel in Megiddo. According to historical accounts at least 34 bloody wars have already been fought at Megiddo and the adjacent areas of the Jezreel valley. It is clear that the war to end all wars in human history will begin from here. This war will end all disputes over Jerusalem and usher in the peace of Jerusalem.
The Nazi Holocaust: The Shame of the Nations
At Yad Vashem, the Jewish Holocaust museum, nothing could hold back my tears as I witnessed cruel images of Nazi Germany’s extermination of 6 million Jews. I silently prayed God to bless Israel and give her victory over her enemies in keeping with His promise that Israel is His chosen and treasured possession (Deut.14:2). I also realised that the Holocaust is one of the reasons why Jewish people find it hard to trust Christians with the Gospel as these horrible acts of evil took place in the silence of Christendom. The holocaust remains fresh in the hearts of the Jews. Late last year, I was part of a group that visited the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
There I witnessed a Jewish couple shed tears in memory of their departed loved ones. In fact when the museum-guide brought us to the Holocaust victims memorial, the tone of her voice changed instantly. Everyone could notice her pain as she talked about the unimaginable suffering of Jews and Jewish children in Holland during the Nazi take-over of the country shortly before liberation by the Allies in 1945. It is no surprise that the Jews today still retain fresh memories of their past horrors.
The endless stars that stand in a hall of darkness in the children’s memorial at Yad Vashem represent Israel’s endless pain over one and a half million children who perished in the Holocaust. Quite surprisingly, in spite of Israel’s anguish, the attitude of the Jewish people towards Christians and all who visit the land is that of love and hospitality. The mercy of Israel towards Christians and the nations is unusual for a people so despised and ill-treated even till date.
It appears that God will judge Christians and the nations depending on how they treat Israel. Throughout history, Israel has stood at the mercy of the nations, although specially favoured and protected by God. At different times Israel has been attacked and devastated by the nations; by the Assyrians (722-720 BC), the Babylonians (586BC) the Persians (538 BC), Greeks(332 BC), the Romans(63 BC) Byzantine(313 AD), Arabs (636AD), Crusaders (1099 AD), Mamluk (1291), Ottoman (1517) and British conquest in 1918.On May 14, 1948, the state of Israel is proclaimed.
In all the scramble for Israel, it is clear that God has a purpose for His chosen people. He did not reject them for His covenants with Israel are everlasting. Although God allowed the conquest of Israel to happen, His anger burned against the nations that rejoice over Israel’s ordeal. God declared concerning Edom of old: “Because you rejoiced when the inheritance of the house of Israel became desolate, that is how I will treat you. You will be desolate…” (Ezekiel 35:15). God’s way of dealing with the nations has not changed in the New Testament. In the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, a parable about the Second Coming, Jesus declares that the judgement of the nations will depend on the way they have treated Israel (and all believers), his brothers (Matt.25:31-46). For those nations that treat Israel with compassion, “The king will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me’ (Matt. 25:40). And for those nations that do not treat Israel with loving concern “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me’ (Matt. 25:45). In view of the Church’s historical connection to Israel, and God’s eschatological judgement of the nations, the role of the church in every nation should include preparing the nation for God’s favour. The church is a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God (1 Peter 2:9), the salt of the earth, the light of the world (Matt. 5:13,14), the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim 3:15b). In this regard, the church is to be the prophetic voice in the nations on behalf of Christ and his people both Jews and Gentiles.
This is the time for Christians to love and serve Israel. Without Israel, the Church will lose her historical roots and heritage. God is calling on Christians to love Israel by praying for them, by sharing God’s prophetic word concerning Israel and the nations. God calls on us also to love and pray for the Gentiles, including Arabs in the land of Israel for God’s love covers all peoples.
Do not miss any opportunity to visit the Promised Land.
Pastor Nchinda Gideon
Coordinator Christians for Israel, Cameroon
Tags: Africa, Israel, Israel Tour, Promised land
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