The thirty-third chapter of Rees Howells, Intercessor talks about the burden of the Jews that God put upon Howells' heart. They prayed and prayed for the Jewish people during the middle of World War II. One thing really kicked it into gear for him -- September 3, 1938, when Mussolini announced that all Jews must leave Italy within six months. They began to pray for these people to have a homeland to return to -- 4,000 years after the Abrahamic covenant.
Howells felt like the "age of the Gentiles" was coming to a close, and God would bring His people back to Israel to precipitate His Son's return.
I imagine that a lot of us look at Israel and the Israeli-Palestinean conflict with a strange lens. We were mostly born after 1948, when this nation came into being. We don't have the perspective that those alive during that time do. This official state came into being out of nothing.
I love a line out of The Hiding Place, where Mr. Ten Boom (a Christian) made a reference about Hitler's treatment of the Jews; how they had mistreaded "the apple of God's eye." Truly this is how God feels about those people.
Today this conflict rages on.
It's interesting to note that God gave Howells a message about the Arab people at this time.
"He said: 'God put me aside for some days to reveal the position of the Arabs. In Genesis 16:12, God says of Ishmael that 'he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.' This is the problem. Does God mean the Arabs to dwell with the Jews? Abraham loved Ishmael and wanted him to have the inheritance; and God, who means what He says, declared: 'I have blessed him.' The Arabs only worship the One God. Did God mean them to be blessed as well as the Jews? They will afford shelter to the Jews (Isaiah 21:13-15), and will be the first to come to Jerusalem to pay homage to the King (Isaiah 60:7). Just as we were only burdened for the Jews when we had to make intercession for them, so the Lord wanted us to have a concern for the Arabs also. They also are the sons of Abraham. Can the Holy Ghost bring in something which will break down the barrier between the Jews and Arabs that there may be a home and a blessing for both? Certainly the Arabs are the people of God, if they are to shield the Jews and live in those countries which are to escape out of the hand of the Beast.'" (Howells kept refering to Nazi Germany and Hitler's group as "the Beast."
Israel is a blessed country -- both then and now. It'll be interesting to see how things work out over there. I wonder what Howells would say about the Arab people today, or what he would say if he read the Q'ran. Can a people avowed to "wipe another country off the map" ever hope to have peace with that country? It's hard to figure out.
Posted by Doug Van Pelt at August 7, 2006 10:47 AMI saw a great documentary movie about this book called "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" where it stated the Jews were planning on ruling the world. Later in the 1900's it was stated that the take over the world thing was false.
The muslims in the Middle East think the Jews are trying to rule the world. There never will be peace between the Jews and the Arabs. Will there be a peace? I would like see this happen but I don't see it happening in my life time. Everybody blames everything on the Jews. I pray that Jesus comes soon but I am still here. Jesus was a Jew. Peace in the Middle East.