Evangelicals and Israel: The Mideast must be viewed through biblical lens

By JOSH HASTEN

Published: AUGUST 28, 2020 15:43

EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN pilgrims and tourists reach for the sky at a 2019 religious retreat in Nazareth (photo credit: AMMAR AWAD/REUTERS) — EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN pilgrims and tourists reach for the sky at a 2019 religious retreat in Nazareth

(photo credit: AMMAR AWAD/REUTERS)

While “unholy alliances” have been formed against Israel between extreme leftists and radical Islamists, those threats have been neutralized by the support of 600,000,000 evangelical Christians.

When the Roman general Titus destroyed Jerusalem, burning the holy Temple to the ground in 70 CE and crushing the Jewish rebellions in the subsequent years, the Roman leaders believed that this was the end of the Jewish story.

However, as author Josh Reinstein explains in his new book Titus, Trump, and the Triumph of Israel; The Power of Faith Based Diplomacy, Rome erred because they viewed the, “Jewish people as just another nation, rather than through the lens of the Bible.”

In fact, it was the Roman Empire, which eventually collapsed while the Jewish nation continues to thrive today, over 2,000 years later – especially here in Israel, its historic homeland.

From Abraham and Sarah, persecuted for their monotheistic beliefs, to the antisemites who run the BDS movement – disguised as anti-Zionists – and many other points in between throughout Jewish history, Reinstein says that a nation or a movement’s successes or failures are hinged on God’s Biblical promise to Abraham, “And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse (Genesis 12:3).”

Therefore while “unholy alliances” have been formed against Israel between extreme leftists and radical Islamists, those threats have been neutralized by the support of 600,000,000 evangelical Bible-believing Christians who view Israel’s independence as the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy.

The book goes on to quote many biblical passages about the return of the Jewish nation to its homeland, explaining the sources of the awakening and theological shift of many Christians who have moved from being anti-Israel “mainline Christians,” who believed that God abandoned the children of Israel, to “Bible-believing Christians” who trust that God has kept his covenant.

It is through that evangelical support that Reinstein shares how in 2004, he co-founded the Knesset Christian Allies Caucus to strengthen cooperation between Israeli and Christians leaders around the world.

Three years later he founded the Israel Allies Foundation made up of parliamentary caucuses from governments all over the world to combat antisemitic boycotts of Israel, fight the Iranian threat, and recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s undivided capital.

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Reinstein refers to the phenomenon of Bible-believing Christians supporting Israel in massive waves as “faith-based diplomacy,” which he says “has become the most effective weapon in Israel’s diplomatic arsenal.”

He credits this alliance as being the springboard for many states in the US passing anti-BDS legislation and other legislation to combat antisemitism. Even with these successes, Reinstein says that the biggest success of faith-based diplomacy was the Trump Administration’s decision to relocate the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018.

Reinstein unabashedly is a supporter of US President Donald Trump, who he claims has done more for Israel than any other US president. The book details the vast differences between what he feels are the Obama Administration’s misguided policies in the Middle East, including its pressuring Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians; attempts to appease Iran; and bolstering the Muslim Brotherhood and other Israel-haters – as opposed to Trump, who he believes has an impeccable record when it comes to supporting the Jewish state.

Despite President Obama’s horrible record on the Middle East according to Reinstein, the reason he is viewed as being more pro-Muslim than Trump, is because Muslims “are looking through a political point of view rather than a biblical point of view.”

He admits that while many are critical of Trump’s brash style, in the end it is his policies that count, and therefore he says that Trump has massive evangelical Christians support due to his stances on Israel and support of the Jewish people.

At the same, time those armchair diplomats who claim to know what’s best for Israel and are determined to find a solution between Israel and her neighbors fail to understand the realities of the situation. They “view Israel as just another country instead of looking at it from a Biblical point of view,” he says.

As Reinstein explains, “The only path to peace comes from following the Biblical guidelines – recognizing the Jewish people’s connection to the land of Israel and ensuring the safety of its citizens.”

In other words, he argues that the only hope for achieving a lasting peace between Israel and her neighbors in the Middle East is “by changing the paradigm” and looking at the situation “through a biblical lens, not a political one.”

While the main focus of the book is clearly on Bible-based Christian support of Israel, the book does include sections explaining the truths of the conflict between Israel and her neighbors. It could thus serve as a useful handbook for those interested in honing their knowledge set for public diplomacy purposes.

I was disappointed that Reinstein puts nearly all of the blame for what he believes are failed Israeli policies such as trading land for peace, or the disengagement from Gaza, on pressure from foreign countries and international bodies. Some of that criticism I feel should be reserved for Israel’s leadership, who either initiated or were willing to carry out those policies.

That being said, the book is an important read in understanding the current relationship between the Evangelical community and Israel. And while the book codifies the Jewish nation’s legal and political rights to the Land of Israel, according to Reinstein, those rights “pale in comparison to the biblical rights of the Jewish people to the land.”

The writer is a freelance journalist and talk-radio host on the Land of Israel Network at www.thelandofisrael.com.

TITUS, TRUMP AND THE TRIUMPH OF ISRAEL
By Josh Reinstein
Gefen
265 pages; $18.95