Turmoil on the streets, in schools and in matters of state: what has gone wrong?

Two chaotic scenes shown on television this week speak volumes about the state of the British nation today. One was a short film about a school for excluded pupils showing young people whose behaviour was so disruptive they had been banned from mainstream education. They were some of nearly 50,000 dysfunctional or ill pupils taught in alternative provision schools.

The second was Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons with 600 representatives of the people all shouting at the same time and no-one listening to anyone else. This was the Mother of Parliaments in action – the oldest and most respected political institution in Western democracy. Brexit fever had spread its pernicious toxin across the House and sanity had fled the building. Chaos reigned supreme.

I went into my study and wept. What has gone wrong with the nation I have loved and served throughout my working life? Is there any word from the Lord? Isaiah 31 came to me. The Assyrian Empire was at its height and many in Israel feared invasion. In Jerusalem there was a strong pro-Egyptian party who had persuaded the king to send emissaries with lavish gifts to sign a treaty binding them with Egypt. The word of the Lord came to the Prophet Isaiah,

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in the multitude of their chariots and in the great strengths of their horsemen, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the Lord…But the Egyptians are men and not God; their horses are flesh and not spirit. When the Lord stretches out his hand, he who helps will stumble, he who is helped will fall; both will perish together.

How apposite this is for our current situation! When do we ever hear any of our political leaders ask if there is any word from the Lord? Of course, it should be obvious that if M. Barnier and the European Union are happy with the deal, it must raise doubts as whether it will be good for Britain. But the greatest need among our Members of Parliament is for spiritual discernment, which is woefully lacking at present.

When do we ever hear any of our political leaders ask if there is any word from the Lord?

Facing Turmoil

No-one, however, could fail to admire the resilience of the Prime Minister facing a baying pack of critics in the House of Commons with insults and jibes thrown at her from all sides, yet she answered each one with dignity and confidence. At the end of the day she held a televised press conference in the full view of the nation and defended the deal she had struck with Brussels, saying that her major objectives had been achieved and Britain would be leaving the European Union on 29 March 2019.

Her objective has been to seek an arrangement that would ensure frictionless trade with the rest of Europe while at the same time taking back responsibility for our borders; but safeguarding the position of EU workers in Britain and British citizens resident in Europe.

Her objective has also been to get out of the Common Agricultural Policy and the Common Fishing Policy which have favoured foreign producers. Above all, a major objective has been to ensure that Britain is free from the rules and regulations of the European Court of Justice and all the other legal impositions of Brussels. This is where there are major doubts among those who have fought for many years to be free from the EU and return sovereignty to the British Parliament.

Anti-Brexit protestors in Westminster this week. NurPhoto/SIPA USA/PA ImagesAlongside all these objectives has been the complication of the border between the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland. No one wants to return to a hard border, but the DUP, whose 10 votes in the House of Commons are needed for a Government majority, do not want Ulster to be treated any different from other parts of the UK.

Most of the politicians shouting abuse at Theresa May had not read the 580-page document jointly agreed by the negotiators from Britain and Brussels. It will no doubt be argued over for a long time and there will still be hardline Brexiteers who will prefer Britain to leave the EU with no deal than one that keeps Britain tied to European laws and customs-regulations for an ill-defined period.

The weakness of all those opposing the EU deal is that they have no rational alternative. They all appear to be a bunch of individuals peddling their own political ambitions - in contrast to the statesmanlike conviction of the Prime Minister.

The greatest need among our MPs is for spiritual discernment, which is woefully lacking at present.

Nation Under Judgment

The turmoil in the House of Commons and out on the streets of Westminster is something never before seen in my lifetime. There is a simple reason for this: we are a nation under judgment. Since the 1950s, one law after another has been passed in our Parliament that violates biblical values and teaching. The final red line was the passing of The Same-Sex Marriage Act in 2013.

This was not only directly against God’s act of creation in making human beings male and female in his own image, but it also further undermined the central importance of marriage and family in the social structure of the nation. This, together with all of the other laws which have enabled and encouraged family breakdown, is why we are now seeing so many children and young people who have no understanding of right and wrong and whose behaviour is uncontrollable. And this is why so many young people are dying on our city streets in a wave of knife crime, drugs and gang warfare.

Our politicians are infected with the same spirit of rebellion that we see among young people. Once you reject the word of God, ultimate standards of truth and righteousness disappear from the nation. If Parliament rejects the deal offered by the EU and agreed with the Prime Minister, the only alternatives are a ‘No Deal’ or another referendum. But a second referendum would only increase division and bring utter disaster, releasing uncontrollable anarchy on the streets.

It is important to remember that the European Union is also under judgment for having rejected the word of the Lord and scorned its centuries of Judeo-Christian heritage. In the near future, I believe we will see one nation after another enveloped in turmoil across Europe with rising nationalism tearing aside the false unity created by Brussels with their one-size-fits-all, secular-pagan politics.

The turmoil in Westminster is for one simple reason: we are a nation under judgment.

Pray for Mercy

If Britain were a godly nation we should simply leave the European Union, with or without a deal, and put our trust in the Lord, who would undoubtedly respond with protection and prosperity. But without faith we are likely to be driven by spirits of darkness.

The future of Britain is at greater risk today than at any time since the darkest days of Dunkirk in 1940. Will God have mercy upon us for the sake of our godly heritage and the faithful remnant of believers who are still interceding at the throne of grace?

Christians: Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong (1 Cor 16:13). And pray: pray for a spirit of repentance to fall among our politicians. Pray for eyes to be opened to the realities of what has gone wrong. Pray for prophetic voices to arise to call the nation back to God. Pray for mercy in the midst of judgment.

Christians pay the ultimate price as biblical prophecies are played out

The shocking story of Pakistani Christian Asia Bibi, and the persecution of Christians generally in that country, alongside the alarming news of plans to implant microchips in humans, is convincing evidence that we are surely living in the last days.

It was apocalyptic scenarios like this that the risen Jesus graphically conveyed in his Revelation message to the Apostle John, in exile on the Isle of Patmos, as a picture of what life would be like towards the end of the age, shortly before his return.

It would be particularly marked by vicious persecution of his followers, who would nevertheless be rewarded with eternal bliss in his presence by standing firm in refusing to bow to worldly pressure.

Ready to Die?

Asia Bibi was a poorly paid farm labourer who has incurred the wrath of an entire nation for apparently insulting Muhammad – a nation, it seems, that appears unable to protect her from being lynched by angry mobs after the Supreme Court acquitted her of ridiculous charges of blasphemy for which she has endured the best part of the last ten years on death row.

Her alleged crime was committed during an argument with colleagues who accused her of contaminating a vessel used for drawing water from a well – simply because she was an ‘infidel’. Now, finally, she has been freed – or has she?

The Pakistani Government, led by former cricket international Imran Khan, claims no country has so far offered her asylum – we know, shamefully, that this is so far the case with Britain, who fear reprisals from Islamists here – so she is being held in a ‘safe house’.

But she and her family remain in fear of their lives. In fact, at least two of those who have stood up for her, including a former state governor and a Government minister, have already paid with their lives for doing so.

Asia Bibi was a poorly paid farm labourer who has incurred the wrath of an entire nation for apparently insulting Muhammad

Governor of Punjab Salmaan Taseer was gunned down by his own bodyguard – shot 27 times in central Islamabad – who was subsequently hailed a hero with an estimated 100,000 mourners attending his funeral.¹

Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan’s minister for minorities and himself a Christian, also protested against Asia’s conviction and sentence. And less than two months after Governor Taseer’s death, his car was riddled with bullets as he drove through Islamabad. He died in hospital.

But he had evidently known what was coming, as was learnt through a video released after his assassination. Speaking to the camera, he said: “I believe in Jesus Christ who has given his own life for us, and I am ready to die for a cause. I’m living for my community…and I will die to defend their rights.”²

Persecution…and Then the End

Christians in Pakistan have suffered dreadfully, with hundreds of lives lost through suicide and other bomb attacks on churches. It is a despicable situation which none of our weasel Western governments have the spine to address.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus warned: “The time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me” (John 16:2f).

And in his revelation to John, this was spelled out a little more graphically: “I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been” (Rev 6:9-11).

Later on, a great multitude appeared from every nation, tribe, people and language – all dressed in white robes and worshipping God who would “wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev 7:9-17).

Speaking of the last days, Jesus had earlier said:

Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:9-14)

Alarm Bells Over Implants

Meanwhile alarm bells have been ringing over the prospect of British companies implanting staff with microchips to improve security, according to a report in The Guardian.

UK firm BioTeq, which offers the implants to businesses and individuals, has already fitted 150 in the UK. The tiny chips, implanted in the flesh between the thumb and forefinger, are similar to those for pets. They apparently enable people to open their front door, access their office or start their car with a wave of their hand. Another company, Biohax of Sweden, also provides human chip implants the size of a grain of rice.

Christians in Pakistan have suffered dreadfully, with hundreds of lives lost through suicide and other bomb attacks on churches.

In earlier articles I explained that we would appear to be approaching the days when the biblical warning, also in Revelation, against taking the Mark of the Beast is about to be fulfilled. The prophecy reads: “It [the Beast] also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark…” (Rev 13:16f).

One of our readers, Patricia Jelbert, has already witnessed moves towards using this kind of technology in South Africa, where she warned politicians, churches and schools about it. She writes: “We need to teach our children and grandchildren to say ‘no’. The cost will be high, eventually with no access to anything money buys, but the need not to succumb is vital.”³

In another alarming step towards this apocalyptic scenario, the BBC were recently reported to be encouraging ‘straight’ staff to wear badges indicating their support for LGBTQ+ colleagues, which is likely to ensure that those whose conscience will not allow them to back a gay lifestyle will be discriminated against.

I rest my case. We are living in the last days. Christians, look up, for your redemption is near (Luke 21:28).

References

1 Pendlebury, R. Row over a cup of water that led to murder, riots and global outrage with a Christian mother sentenced to death over blasphemy charges in Pakistan. The Daily Mail, 14 November 2018. 

2 Ibid.

3 Private email communication, 14 November 2018.

When faithful believers leave the pews.

At Prophecy Today UK we have become aware of a seemingly growing number of Bible-believing Christians in Britain retreating to the outskirts of formal/traditional expressions of church, or opting out altogether. This is an altogether different trend to the ‘falling away’ of nominal believers, representing instead mature, committed Christians acting in good faith and conscience. In August/September 2018 we circulated a survey through both Prophecy Today and Issachar Ministries to learn more.

We were pleased at the response we received, yielding 162 finished surveys and over 250 expressions of interest.

There are caveats; for instance, the sample was not representative and so we cannot make general statements about national or denominational trends. However, as a preliminary piece of research it is proving extremely helpful for our internal discussions and strategy, and we can share a number of findings at this stage in which you may take interest.

Key Findings

The survey asked participants about their historic church attendance, their journey ‘out’ of church, their current position and their pastoral needs. Aware that individual patterns of church attendance/belonging are complex, we tried to give as much space as possible within the survey for participants to describe their journeys.

Past church experience

We found that 62% of church moves made by survey participants during the course of their adult lifetimes were on grounds of conscience (i.e. some kind of disagreement or concern), while 37% were practical (e.g. job or house move), 1% involving elements of both. When we looked only at each participant’s most recent church, the percentage leaving on grounds of conscience rose to 84%.

Of those leaving their churches on grounds of conscience, the most common complaint was of ‘spiritual concerns’ in the fellowship, followed by pastoral disagreements, then disagreements over fundamental doctrine.

At Prophecy Today UK we have become aware of a seemingly growing number of Bible-believing Christians in Britain retreating to the outskirts of formal/traditional expressions of church, or opting out altogether.

Stereotypical connections were made between certain problems and specific denominations: e.g. CofE, Methodist and URC churches were commonly associated with spiritual dryness, while charismatic and Pentecostal churches were often associated with worldliness and consumerism.

However, issues such as LGBTQ+ affirmation and problems stemming from the Toronto ‘Blessing’/the ‘prophetic’ movement in the USA, also errant theologies like dominionism and liberal theology, are spilling out across denominational boundaries. In particular, both Baptist churches and CofE churches stood out in our survey as being ‘blown about by every wind of doctrine’.

Current Position

More than 1 in 4 (28%) participants said that they cannot find a sound, biblical church in their area. Many highlighted the difficulty of finding a fellowship that declares the whole council of God, including the place of Israel, with relevance to the issues of the day.

1 in 4 cross the threshold of a mainstream church occasionally – whether still committed but deeply unhappy, or on the fringes/occasionally attending but not committed.

Happily, we found that the majority of participants (87%) enjoy fellowship with like-minded believers in other contexts (e.g. prayer groups, home fellowships, regional meetings). However, most did not consider their present situation to be satisfactory and there was a near-universal cry for more and deeper fellowship.

1 in 5 (21%) effectively feel cut off from like-minded believers, fellowshipping only with their spouses, or online, or considering themselves totally isolated.

Emotions and Attitudes

Just as people’s journeys ‘out of church’ are complex, so their emotional reactions are also complex. However, across all the participants, some emotional responses were particularly prevalent:

• Reaction against structure and authority: Looser, Hebraic forms of fellowship were stressed. Some participants concluded that all kinds of church structure and pastoral authority are unbiblical.
  
• Lonely but not alone: Many respondents described experiencing deep loneliness and often senses of guilt or confusion at finding themselves ‘out of church’. But many also testified to experiencing relief, thankfulness and times of refreshing and deeper communion with God.
  
• Suspicion, fear and hesitancy: Several implied that their past experiences have left them with deep wounds and a need for healing, rest and refreshing. Common was a hesitancy to commit to new forms of fellowship with people they don’t know and trust well.
  
• Relief and gratitude: Many were grateful to see the issue acknowledged and to realise that they are not on their own.
  

More than 1 in 4 (28%) participants said that they cannot find a sound, biblical church in their area.

Our Thanks

We believe that the ‘out of church’ trend may represent a new chapter in the life of British Christianity, indicative not only of the sorry state of many existing churches but also of an exciting, fresh move of the Lord, bringing new forms of fellowship to life.

We do not necessarily believe this means that all Bible-believing Christians should immediately leave any organised fellowships of which they are part! However, we do recognise that those who find themselves ‘out of church’ in a practical sense are not necessarily out of ‘Church’ in the spiritual sense. And we wholeheartedly affirm Hebrews 10:24-25: “…let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Once again, we are profoundly grateful to all who contributed to this survey. Please have Issachar Ministries and Prophecy Today in your prayers as we seek the Lord for his guidance as to how to respond to these changes in British church life.

Children’s author Roald Dahl rejected for coin image because of his unsavoury views

Proof, if it were needed, that it doesn’t pay to be anti-Semitic has come with the rejection of Roald Dahl’s image for British coins.

The Royal Mint, responsible for such decisions, has ruled him out for his virulent anti-Semitism, which should be taken as some consolation at a time when British society is rife with anti-Jewish sentiment – even a Kristallnacht 80^th anniversary vigil at Hyde Park’s Speakers’ Corner was broken up by men shouting “Kill the Jews” in Arabic.¹

Dahl’s Dark Side

Dahl’s views on the subject were apparently not widely known in spite of the fact that the immensely successful children’s author made no secret of it.

But his dark side was brought to light with the Royal Mint’s decision against honouring his achievements by dedicating a British coin to him. As Tony Rennell put it in the Daily Mail,² the honour went instead to one William Shakespeare “whose caricature of a Jew, Shylock, in The Merchant of Venice fed anti-Semitism for centuries.”

I think that’s a little unfair as the Bard did not make a habit of such sentiment. Dahl, on the other hand, was quoted in The Independent newspaper as saying: “I’m certainly anti-Israel and I’ve become anti-Semitic.”³ And he told the New Statesman: “Even a stinker like Hitler didn’t just pick on them [the Jews] for no reason.”

Dahl’s anti-Semitism might have had him arrested today.

Rennell lists several other nauseous instances of Dahl’s anti-Semitism that might have had him arrested today (he died in 1990, aged 74). And while acknowledging that he remains one of the greatest children’s storytellers of the 20^th Century, Rennell suggests that the dark side to many of Dahl’s tales is a fair commentary on his life, with much evidence of cruelty and unpleasantness. Yet not even Jewish Hollywood director Steven Spielberg, when he shot the BFG (Big Friendly Giant) film, had any idea of Dahl’s rank anti-Semitism.

What really bothers me is that there is so much that is dark and gloomy in today’s literature, especially for children, as well as in TV drama. In fact, it’s an absolute obsession, reflected by the way in which Halloween is rapidly challenging Christmas for our kids’ attention as an increasing number of homes are decorated with various aspects of occult paraphernalia.

There is surely an urgency as never before to point our children to the “light of the world” (John 8:12).

Choose Life!

Dahl’s rejection for our coins reminds me of how America’s famous aviator, Charles Lindbergh, fell spectacularly from hero to zero as soon as his Nazi sympathies were made public on a national radio broadcast.⁴ He ended his life in relative obscurity and even a star-studded movie about his magnificent flying exploits was a flop at the box office.

In other words, he brought a curse on himself. For the word of God says of Abraham’s seed: “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse” (Gen 12:3).

Whatever anyone may think of the Jewish people, the Bible tells us quite plainly that they are God’s chosen people, with several references to them being his “treasured possession” (see, for example, Deut 7:6).

Whatever anyone may think of the Jewish people, the Bible tells us quite plainly that they are God’s chosen people.

Anti-Semitism is thus the evil end of the dark road of rebellion against our Creator. Hitler went all the way down that path, and not only destroyed himself, but also brought his country down with him, along with much of Europe.

A massive battle for the soul of our nation continues today – between good and evil, light and darkness, God and the devil.

Jesus warned: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matt 7:13f).

Choose life!

Notes

1 The vigil was specifically held in honour of Jews murdered in Arab countries around the same time as Germany’s Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass) in 1938, when 7,500 Jewish businesses were destroyed along with Jewish homes, hospitals, schools and synagogues, 91 Jews murdered and 30,000 arrested and sent to concentration camps. The London vigil was forcefully broken up by a group of men shouting: “Jews, remember Khaybar; the army of Muhammad is returning.” The cry relates to a 7^th Century atrocity when Muslims massacred and expelled Jews from the town of Khaybar, located in modern-day Saudi Arabia. Jerusalem News Network, 12 November 2018, quoting INN. Thanks also to Christians United for Israel here and here, both 9 November 2018.

2 The Daily Mail, 8 November 2018.

3 Ibid.

4 See Bill Bryson’s One Summer – America 1927; also A Nation Reborn by Charles Gardner, Christian Publications International, p139.

Paul Luckraft reviews ‘Noise’ by Steve Maltz (Saffron Planet Publishing, 2018)

This slim volume is a follow-up to Maltz’s last book, Into the Lion’s Den, in which he explored the origins and consequences of Cultural Marxism.

‘Noise’ is a simpler book on the same topic, intended to be given away to anyone not yet familiar with the way Western society has changed so radically in recent decades - and why. As such it has a more evangelistic flavour to it.

Confronting the ‘Data Infestation’

The title reflects the fact that today we are surrounded by a clamour of competing and distracting voices. This ‘data infestation’ hampers our attempts to find a true understanding of the world and our part in it.

The book has seven chapters, prefaced by a short introduction which sets the tone in a straightforward but telling manner that makes you want to read on. Maltz argues that this is a time when “focus, reflection and deeper thinking is really needed” (p6) but instead we are assailed and distracted by noise of all kinds, visual as well as verbal. Our brains are “impressive organs, but they are not designed to cope with such a maelstrom and the outcome is confusion and a lack of focus” (p6).

Maltz explains that “the book explores ways of analysing and filtering the torrents of data that bombard us” (p7). He urges us to reclaim our brains, confront the wall of noise and engage in ‘a search for sense’ (the book’s subtitle).

‘Noise’ is a simpler book on Cultural Marxism intended to be given away to anyone not yet familiar with the way Western society has changed so radically in recent decades - and why.

Sources of Noise

Chapter 1 uses material from Into the Lion’s Den to show how the original global economic vision of Marxism was later reinvented into what is now known as Cultural Marxism, infiltrating and re-directing Western societies from the 1960s onwards. This is a potted account with some useful extra updates, which serve as a timely reminder that life has not stood still in the months since this previous volume was published.

In concise, readable prose, Maltz then surveys the ‘Swinging 60s’ and examines the developing stranglehold of political correctness. His excellent analysis builds up a picture by the end of chapter 4 of the relentless invasion of cultural ‘noise’, convincing us that we must learn how to apply our critical faculties to filter it out.

In subsequent chapters, other sources of unnecessary ‘noise’ are unpacked, from the psychological legacies of ancient Greek thinking (a theme of several of Maltz’s previous books) to the spiritual noise coming from the more recent penetration of Eastern religions into Western society.

Discovering Sense and Purpose

Repeatedly throughout the book, Maltz asks, ‘Is there any sense amidst the noise?’ His concern is that sense is being constantly drowned out by a cacophony of other ‘truths’ clashing and grating against each other. We cannot rely on the one who shouts the loudest to provide us with the truth we need.

Maltz takes this theme further, challenging readers to focus on one key question amid all the noise: ‘do you believe there is any purpose to your life?’ The noisiness all around us is “the great disrupter and thwarter of destinies” (p76). If we can filter out the nonsense that attempts to distract and derail us, then we may find the certainty for which we yearn.

Maltz’s concern is that sense is being constantly drowned out by a cacophony of other ‘truths’ clashing and grating against each other.

Throughout the book the author makes good use of italics to emphasise the main points, usually in question form. Clearly he wants his readers to stop every so often and really think, which makes it a good book to give to those who are seeking sense and truth amidst the noise.

As a further incentive, there is an offer of a free copy of one of his earlier books to those who email in explaining how this book has been useful. There is also a special offer of ten copies for £25 (half price) for those wishing to bulk buy to give away.

‘Noise: A Search for Sense’ (78pp, paperback) is available from the publisher for £5, or 10 copies for £25.

The mid-term elections and the battle for America's soul.

The mid-term elections in the USA have attracted a vast amount of attention not only in America but also in Britain and elsewhere in the world. The highest voter turnout in 50 years for mid-term elections confirms their importance in the mind of the general public, where the media have portrayed the elections as a popularity contest for the Trump presidency.

Both Republicans and Democrats had something to cheer in the outcome of the elections and for Donald Trump personally it was a confirmation of his presidency. With this level of support, if he had been up for re-election this year, he would have been successful.

But the elections were also a triumph for America’s electoral system, whereby although the Republicans increased their majority in the Senate, they lost their majority in the Lower House of Congress, which will strengthen the Opposition and enforce greater scrutiny of all government decisions. These are the checks and balances of democracy in action - and will ensure that the White House cannot force through measures without them being carefully weighed by elected members.

Of course, Trump boasted that in marginals where he had campaigned on behalf of the Republican candidate, there had been significant victories. He was also able to claim with a degree of accuracy that the American economy has improved significantly in the first two years of his presidency, particularly providing more jobs for blue-collar workers, from whom he derives much of his support.

Bias and Bitterness

It was notable in Britain how the BBC stressed the negative aspects of the elections and underplayed Trump’s achievement. They celebrated that without a majority in Congress he will not be able to get his policies approved, which could lead to gridlock in Government procedures. But this is all part of the BBC’s bias against right-wing populism which undermines the hold on power exercised by the left-wing ruling elite in most parts of the Western world.

Both Republicans and Democrats had something to cheer in the outcome – but it was notable in Britain how the BBC underplayed Trump’s achievement.

Many reports have noted the bitterness of the rhetoric on both sides of the political divide in the US in the lead-up to the mid-term elections. This bitterness was not just because they were seen as a test of Trump’s popularity. There is a far deeper significance in the political battle that is raging not only in the media, but right across the public sphere in every state in the USA: underneath is a spiritual battle between left-wing secular humanist values and conservative Bible-based values.

America is at war with itself over God: it is as simple as that!

Reversing Values, Rejecting Truth

Put in its biblical context, it is a battle between light and darkness, between right and wrong, between goodness and evil.

The Bible has a lot to say about this battle. It was put neatly by the Prophet Isaiah, who one day startled the residents of Jerusalem by standing up in a public place in the city and singing what in Hebrew would have come over as a rap song! Its theme was about a vineyard which did not grow good grapes and only yielded bad fruit. So, the owner decided to destroy the vineyard.

It was only towards the end of the song that the people realised that this was a parable and the vineyard was really the House of Israel, whom God would no longer protect because “They have rejected the Torah [teaching] of the Lord Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel. Therefore the Lord’s anger burns against his people” (Isa 5:24).

The Prophet went on to list the injustices and wickedness of the nation that were an offence to God. Isaiah said “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter” (5:20).

Underneath the political battle raging right across the USA is a spiritual battle – America is at war with itself over God.

It was this reversal of all the values of personal and corporate behaviour that was so offensive to God. Israel had turned upside-down the whole basis of society so that no one could trust a neighbour or know that a promise would be fulfilled. Fake news, lies and deception were everywhere, so God was threatening to remove his protection over the nation, leaving them open to attack from their enemies.

These same warnings ought to be sounding loud and clear in Western nations today, where biblical values were once held high but have now been spurned.

Christians Caught in the Battle

Christians are caught up in this battle between right and wrong, light and darkness. Though the spiritual battle is black and white, however, in practice things are of course more complicated, because humans are complex and imperfect beings.

This makes for difficult decisions: for instance, can American Christians support a President who is a self-confessed adulterer and who has numerous moral blemishes to his record? Clearly, Trump is standing against the ultra-left-wing, secular humanist establishment and upholding biblically-based social values, even if his own personal behaviour has often been objectionable. But does that make him trustworthy?

Is he a sinner who has recognised the good of biblical values and so surrounded himself with evangelical advisers who constantly pray with him? Is he a genuine God-seeker, who has even recognised the importance of supporting Israel, moving the American Embassy up to Jerusalem? Or is he simply an astute businessman who has spotted a way of winning power?

These were the questions that evangelical American voters had to face on Tuesday. None of us knows all the answers, of course, but we can all see the great and worsening divide in the US today as part of the spiritual battle that is raging across the Western world, including throughout Europe and in Britain with the Brexit battle nearing its climax.

We can all see the great and worsening divide in the US today as part of the spiritual battle that is raging across the Western world.

The polarising of Western societies reflects the diametrically opposite spiritual forces battling behind the scenes. Surveying this astonishing political landscape, it could be argued that the ground is being laid for the last great battle prophesied in Scripture, between the anti-Christ and the Messiah. Thankfully, we know the end of the story: “the Lord Jesus will overthrow [the anti-Christ] with the breath of his mouth and destroy [him] by the splendour of his coming” (2 Thess 2:8)!

The question we must all answer meanwhile, is which side of this ultimate battle we – and our family, friends, neighbours and colleagues - will be on.

Lawyer exposes mixed messages behind Labour leader’s denial of anti-Semitism

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is playing with fire over his mixed messages on Israel. He denies being anti-Semitic while at the same time openly supporting a terrorist group committed to wiping Israel off the map.

Meanwhile his party continues to be embroiled in controversy over anti-Semitism with a police investigation now underway over allegations of “anti-Semitic hate crimes”.¹

Acceptable Anti-Semitism

Mr Corbyn reacted sympathetically to the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre, though a Labour Party branch in Stockton voted down a motion condemning it after members criticised that there was too much emphasis on “anti-Semitism this, anti-Semitism that”.²

A Manchester-based Times of Israel blogger, commenting on Corbyn’s apparent compassion, said he believes it is because the attacker was a white supremacist rather than an Arab shouting ‘Allah Akbar’.³

Solicitor Robert Festenstein wrote that the shootings in America, which left 11 dead and six wounded, reminded him of a visit three years ago to a friend’s Jerusalem synagogue where, the previous year, two men had run in one morning with guns and knives and killed four congregants.

Corbyn denies being anti-Semitic while openly supporting a terror group committed to wiping Israel off the map.

He was particularly struck by Mr Corbyn’s tweet on the latest tragedy: “My thoughts are with those killed or injured in this horrific act of anti-Semitic violence, and with their loved ones. We must stand together against hate and terror.”

Festenstein wrote: “This was the first time I had heard him make any comment about any incident concerning attacks on Jews where he expressed a specific opinion and furthermore some support. At which point the penny dropped.

“Mr Corbyn, when he speaks of fighting anti-Semitism, is being mischievous, at best. It appears that he is deliberately misleading his listeners. He is not interested, as I am, in the identity of the victim. His motivation and those of his supporters…is based on the identity of the perpetrator.

“In other words, he is at the outset only interested in the person who pulled the trigger. In his world, therefore, and those of his supporters, it appears that a Jew can only be a victim of anti-Semitism if their attacker is white and crucially a neo-Nazi or white supremacist.

“If, though, the attacker is not white and is left wing, the attack cannot possibly be anti-Semitic…”

Festenstein went on: “Here in the UK, the writing is not only on the wall about the risks of a Labour Government; it is in letters of fire. What Mr Corbyn has now made perfectly clear is that he will not protect the Jewish citizens of this country if they are attacked by anyone other than a white neo-Nazi. Since the threats against us are mostly from the left, including from some members of Mr Corbyn’s party, we will not be safe if he becomes Prime Minister.”

Appeasement Doomed to Fail

It is by now well known that Mr Corbyn once referred to Hezbollah and Hamas as ‘friends’, but few will be aware that, when making that comment, he went on to say that labelling Hamas as a terrorist organisation was “really a big, big, historical mistake”.⁴

Hamas, he declared, were dedicated to a peaceful solution!⁵ Yet they have openly, and consistently, vowed to destroy Israel and ‘reclaim’ all the territory “from the river to the sea”, as their slogan goes – a mantra also heard at this year’s Labour Party conference.

So he is trying to convince all who will listen (which includes a vast swathe of our young people) that Hamas and Hezbollah are people with whom we should be negotiating for peace – because they are purportedly interested in peace; though of course there is scant evidence of this.

Corbyn is trying to convince all who will listen that Hamas and Hezbollah are interested in peace, though there is scant evidence of this.

Neville Chamberlain tried to persuade the British Parliament – and public – that Hitler was interested in peace. But Chamberlain was playing with fire. And 50 million people died in the fallout, a tally which included the unspeakable murder of six million Jewish civilians.

Claiming that Hamas are interested in peace clearly amounts to playing with fire – quite literally – as we have seen for the past seven months on the Gaza border, where protestors have engaged in murderous mayhem as they vent their fury with kite and balloon firebombs and Molotov cocktails while, behind them, Hamas keep up their constant volley of rockets into southern Israel (this was even replicated in New York last Friday where an arsonist attacked Jewish schools and synagogues at seven different locations while ‘Kill all the Jews’ graffiti was found daubed elsewhere⁶).

As I write this on 5 November, when we give thanks for the uncovering of a religiously-motivated plot to blow up Parliament, it seems that Mr Corbyn is engaged in something even more sinister – support for those who want to destroy Israel, the very source of our civilisation.

Holy Fire

It is paramount that we don’t get too close to the fire, as I was reminded yesterday on our return from a weekend away when, after running the gauntlet of rocket fire down the half-mile stretch of our road before turning into our drive, I saw what looked like a house on fire nearby and promptly dialled 999.

It turned out that neighbours were ‘enjoying’ a bonfire right beside a half-completed house, with huge flames appearing to lick the exposed wooden beams of the roof. The Fire Brigade paid a visit, and the bonfire was soon snuffed out.

And yet, while fire destroys, it can also turn the wheels of industry; it can even be redemptive and is among the symbols of the Holy Spirit. When Elijah called down fire in his great contest with the false prophets on Mt Carmel, it burnt up the sacrifice and sparked a turning back to the God of Israel (1 Kings 18).

The devil wants to destroy Israel and the Jewish people, but the Lord “whose fire is in Zion, whose furnace is in Jerusalem” is more than a match for his enemies (Isa 31:9; see also Zech 2:5).

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Ps 122:6).

References

1 Jerusalem News Network, 5 November 2018, quoting INN.

2 Christians United for Israel, 23 October 2018.

3 My Friend David, Times of Israel blogs, 31 October 2018.

4 See note 2.

5 What he actually said was: “The idea that an organisation that is dedicated towards the good of the Palestinian people and bringing about long-term peace and social justice and political justice in the whole region should be labelled as a terrorist organisation by the British government is really a big, big historical mistake and I would invite the government to reconsider their position on this matter and start talking directly to Hamas and Hezbollah…”

6 JNN, 7 November 2018, quoting INN.

Why American Jewish attitudes need to change.

The results are in – and everyone is talking about how the mid-term elections have affected the balance of power in Washington.

Amongst Jewish communities in the US and abroad, understandably, questions are being asked about how the results affect Jewish interests: for instance, five Jewish Democrats were elected to senior House of Representatives positions, and the House’s leadership looks likely to remain staunchly pro-Israel, despite the election of some pro-BDS candidates.¹ And so on, and so on.

This is all interesting in its own right, but for those of us who take an avid interest in Israel and the Jewish people, there is a broader dimension that matters more than who is heading up the House Committee on Appropriations: the state of American Jewish political culture in general, and how this intersects with God’s purposes for the Jews, Israel and the whole world.

American Jewish Politics

Despite the obvious commitment of the Trump administration to Israel, American Jews notoriously lean left, with upwards of 70% identifying with the Democratic Party. This outstrips the general US public and starkly contrasts Israeli Jews, historically socialist, but who now lean to the centre and right.

American Jewish liberalism is strongly secular and includes a stereotypical left-wing rejection of Trump. Indeed, a poll caught my eye this week: 72% of American Jewry reportedly blame Trump for October’s awful synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, believed to be the deadliest anti-Semitic atrocity in US history.²

Their logic is much the same as that of Corbyn and much of the left-wing in Britain (see Charles Gardner’s article this week): anti-Semitism is seen as a purely far-right phenomenon; right-wing populism is seen as fanning the flames of the far-right; therefore, right-ring populists like Trump are solely and directly to blame if anti-Semitism is on the increase.

American Jewish liberalism is strongly secular and includes a stereotypical left-wing rejection of Trump.

But, there is an important difference emerging between the situations in Britain and the USA. In Britain, the penny is dropping amongst Jews that the left-wing is not immune to anti-Semitism either. The all-too-plentiful, high-profile scandals within the Labour Party have exposed this, and British Jews are getting the message: 90% now associate Labour with anti-Semitism and 40% are considering leaving the country, fearing for their own safety.³ The Campaign Against Antisemitism poll showed that British Jews now fear the far-left more than the far-right, with its chairman Gideon Falter remarking: “Many British Jews are mentally, if not physically, packing their bags.”⁴

In the US, however, no such comparable scandal has yet erupted on the left, and despite left-wing support for BDS and problems of anti-Semitism at left-wing rallies and on university campuses, American Jewry remains fixed upon the threat posed by the neo-Nazi far-right, though a comparatively tiny number of people. This is not to belittle the far-right’s capacity to wreak terror – as the Pittsburgh massacre shows – but it is to say, along with other commentators recently,⁵ that American Jews need to wake up to the fact that anti-Semitism can be found on both sides of the political spectrum, and that the left-wing isn’t necessarily their natural home.

Indeed, that American Jews embrace liberalism so unconditionally is cause for real concern. They end up blinding themselves to left-wing anti-Israel/anti-Semitic animosity and boosting a Party that has “embraced the identity politics, grievance culture and enraged narcissism that threaten to destroy American society”⁶ – and we might add, has brought the world the Iran Deal and repeated attempts to carve up Israel in the name of a ‘two-state solution’.

In the name of ‘authentic’ Jewish values they are actually embracing “the very antithesis of Judaism”, putting themselves “on course to destroy themselves as a community while aiding the left in the undermining of America”.⁷

This is the domestic picture. But there is another dimension to which all this matters even more: the global.

In Britain, the penny is dropping amongst Jews that the left-wing is not immune to anti-Semitism.

God’s Redemptive Purposes

We live in an extraordinary, unique period of human history: we are the generation chosen by God to witness the miraculous and final restoration of Israel to her historic homeland. In the last 150 years, we have seen wave upon wave of Jewish immigration back to the Land, legally signed over to them in 1948. As we write frequently in Prophecy Today UK, Israel’s journey since has been one of truly divine restoration, protection and blessing, despite enemies all around.

We also make frequent mention in Prophecy Today of how this fits with God’s covenant purposes for the Jewish people and his redemptive purposes for all Creation. While we will not discuss these in depth here, suffice to say that we believe it to be God’s purpose that the majority of the world’s Jews now return to their homeland, and that he is at work in the political and social affairs of the nations to this end.

Last year, we reached the tipping point: now, the majority of the world’s Jews do reside in Eretz Israel, in fulfilment of biblical prophecy.

Meanwhile, the largest group of diaspora Jews remains in the USA, and their political attitudes and voting habits bely a group that is highly secular, ultra-liberal and astonishingly out of touch with both domestic and global realities. Populous and prosperous, it is unsurprising that rates of American Jewish aliyah to Israel remain relatively slow. For this reason, I believe that God’s focus will be particularly on American Jews in the next few years.

Aliyah Rates Too Slow

At the current (relatively stable) rate of some 3,500 American Jews making aliyah per year, it will take well over 1,500 years for most of America’s 5.7 million Jews to transfer to Israel. If they are to be persuaded to uproot from a country that has been so welcoming and supportive for so long, the Lord might need to jolt them out of complacency.

Historically, he has done this in other countries by permitting anti-Semitism to proliferate until the Jewish people start to get the message – as we see at present in Britain. Far from anti-Semitism being a good thing, of course, it is woeful and a deep curse for those countries who fan its flames. However, that doesn’t mean that it does not have a stimulating side-effect on Jews that is ultimately positive, encouraging emigration back to the Land. There is a Christian parallel here: times of persecution are terrible, but they also classically unite, strengthen and grow the Church, furthering God’s purposes.

If our reading is correct, we may see many more events like Pittsburgh over the next years, as well as worsening anti-Semitism on campus, in the media and in US corridors of power.

Cultural Sea-Change Needed

Putting all these jigsaw puzzle pieces together, the emerging picture is very sobering: if our reading of the situation is right, then we are likely to see many more events like Pittsburgh over the next years, as well as worsening anti-Semitism on campus, in the media and in US corridors of power.

We cannot possibly rejoice in this. But we can at least pray that it would stimulate a cultural sea-change amongst American Jewry and a resurgence of conservative, biblical values, which (the statistics bear out) predispose greater support for Israel. This would lay the groundwork for the Lord to work his purposes out amongst this last great Jewish diaspora group, and one day lead them safely home.

References

1 Post-midterms: With Democrats retaking the House, Jewish leaders still see strong Israel support. JNS, 7 November 2018.

2 J Street poll: 72% of US Jews find Trump partly to blame for Pittsburgh shooting. Times of Israel, 7 November 2018.

3 Poll: 40% of British Jews Consider Emigration, 90% Cite Anti-Semitism. Breaking Israel News, 25 September 2018.

4 Ibid.

5 E.g. Jonathan S Tobin at JNS, Abraham H Miller for JNS, and Melanie Phillips.

6 Phillips, M. Jews and Conservatism: an idea whose time has come. 1 November 2018.

7 Ibid.