The Promised Land

Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. For your name's sake, O LORD, pardon my guilt, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the LORD? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land. The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. (Psalm 25:8-14 ESV). The history of Israel is the story of God’s faithfulness to His promises. A Hebrew kingdom was established in 1000 BC. It was later split into the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, Persians, Romans, and Alexander the Great of Macedonia subsequently invaded them. By AD 135, few Jews were left in Palestine; most lived in the scattered and tenacious communities of the Diaspora. Palestine became a center of Christian pilgrimage after the emperor Constantine converted to that faith. The Arabs took Palestine from the Byzantine Empire in AD 634–40. Interrupted only by Christian Crusaders, Muslims ruled Palestine until the 20th century with a Turkish rule from 1516. During World War I, British forces defeated the Turks in Palestine and governed the area under a League of Nations mandate from 1923. As part of the 19th-century Zionist movement, Jews had begun settling in Palestine as early as 1820. This effort to establish a Jewish homeland had received British approval in the Balfour Declaration of 1917. During the 1930s, Jews persecuted by the Hitler regime poured into Palestine. The postwar acknowledgment of the Holocaust, Hitler's genocide of 6 million Jews, increased international interest in and sympathy for the cause of Zionism. However, Arabs in Palestine and surrounding countries bitterly opposed prewar and postwar proposals to partition Palestine into Arab and Jewish sectors. The British mandate to govern Palestine ended after the war, and in 1947 the UN voted to partition Palestine. When the British officially withdrew on May 14, 1948, the Jewish National Council proclaimed the State of Israel. U.S. recognition came within hours. The next day, Arab forces from Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq invaded the new nation. By the cease-fire on Jan. 7, 1949, Israel had increased its original territory by 50%, taking western Galilee, a broad corridor through central Palestine to Jerusalem, and part of modern Jerusalem. Even though there is still controversy and conflict in the Middle East, it cannot be denied that God has been faithful to return the Jews to their Promised Land. He keeps His promises. Of course there are many different lessons we may find interesting from a study of the return of the Jews to Israel, however the main principle I’d like to show you today is in the faithfulness of God to His word. As Christians we have a “Promised Land” also. For every believer in Jesus Christ, we have a hope in heaven that will be fulfilled. It is that hope, that promise that encourages and motivates me to walk in the joy of victory. When the enemy comes, and come he will, that promise provides the strength to endure every trial. As you think about the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel, remember there is coming a day of fulfillment for you as well! Trust in His word!