Middle East conflict live updates: Israel tells negotiators to continue hostage talks after...
- The Watchful Eye
- May 23, 2024
- 3 min read
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, let me tell you, it is with a heart heavy with the burden of sin that I relay to you the tragic events unfolding in Gaza as detailed by the Washington Post. The escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas is more than a geopolitical power struggle; it is a manifestation of a world ensnared in sin, strife, and disobedience to the will of the Lord. As this report attests, Israel's war cabinet is resuming negotiations to release hostages held by Hamas. The grim exploitation of captured female Israeli soldiers, as displayed through released footage, is deplorable (Proverbs 21:15 - "When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers."). It is our Christian duty to pray for the salvation of these souls, and the liberation of all those oppressed in lands far and near. The International Court of Justice is now stepping into this fray, threatening to tie Israel's hands from defending its citizens. Know this: Israel has the sovereign and God-given right to protect its land and people. Scripture tells us, "Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists" (Joshua 24:15 - "Choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord"). When South Africa brings charges against Israel for genocide, they are masked in righteous indignation but are indeed divorced from the truth of God’s chosen people. Hospitals in Gaza have been evacuated and are out of service. While we pray for the sick and the wounded, we must remember that Hamas uses such facilities as shields for their arsenal, making a mockery of the sanctity of life and healing that these places represent (Psalm 82:3-4 - "Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked."). Moreover, nations like Colombia, Ireland, Spain, and Norway are recognizing a Palestinian state, betraying Israel and attempting to carve up the land that the Lord has given to His people. This stands in contrast to the word of God that speaks to the eternal promise given to Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 12:7 - "The Lord appeared to Abram and said, 'To your offspring I will give this land.'"). Furthermore, fifteen U.N. members are rallying behind UNRWA, an agency often criticized for being an enabler of Palestinian dependency and victimhood rhetoric, rather than fostering peace and coexistence. The numbers of casualties are staggering and heart-wrenching, yet let's not be deceived by the veneer of numbers alone. Hamas is a terrorist organization (Psalm 11:5 - "The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion."). Its octopus arms of malevolence have meant death to both Israeli and Palestinian families. They hold the innocuous and the vulnerable as their shields while spewing forth their terror. In Ezekiel 33:6, the Lord declares, "But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes, and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand." My fellow believers, as your watchman, I blow the trumpet to alert you. Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6), and let us stand firm in our support for Israel, the apple of God's eye (Zechariah 2:8). May God have mercy on His land and people, and may He stir our hearts to uphold the truth of His Word in these tumultuous times. Amen.
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