An Alarming Story Few Reported

In the wake of the disappearance of the Malaysian Airliner with 239 people on board and the international search for the wreckage, the world lost sight of an important event that happened in the Red Sea off the coast of Somalia.  There Israeli commandos intercepted a Panamanian-flagged freighter filled with dozens of Syrian-made missiles and over 400,000 rounds of ammunition.  These weapons had traveled from Syria through Iran and were on the way to support the terrorist regimes within the Gaza Strip. 

The following is from the news conference Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu held as the weapons were unloaded and shown to the world.  "There are those who would prefer that we do not hold this news conference here today.  They feel uncomfortable that we show what is really happening inside Iran.  They prefer that we continue to nurture the illusion that Iran has changed direction.  They're not prepared to recognize that Iran, a brutal regime, has not abandoned its deep involvement in terrorism, its systematic efforts to undermine peace and security throughout the Middle East, and its ambition to destroy the State of Israel.  The weapons on this ship were destined for terrorists in Gaza who are committed to Israel's destruction.  The goal was to have these weapons rain down on the heads of Israel's citizens. The ship was organized by Iran, dispatched by Iran, financed by Iran. The missiles were loaded by Iran in Iran."

The Prime Minister then stated in bold, but true words as he related the reactions of the world, or should I say, the lack of reactions of the world to this weapons seizure: "This determination to ignore the truth, that was exposed once again with the capture of the ship, is first of all hypocritical.  I said a moment ago that at most I heard a few faint condemnations of Iran from the international community after we intercepted this murderous shipment.  We even saw representatives of the world powers shaking hands and smiling with the heads of Iran's regime, at the same time we were unloading these missiles here in Eilat.  And by contrast, if we build some apartment or some balcony in a neighborhood of Jerusalem, we hear a chorus of vociferous international condemnations against the State of Israel (emphasis added).  This is not only farcical, it's dangerous.  Because the willingness to ignore Iran's real fallacies is highly irresponsible.  Just as Iran hid its deadly missiles in the belly of this ship, Iran is hiding its actions and its intentions and many of its key installations for developing nuclear weapons."

Now, listen to these closing words from the Prime Minister.  They are almost prophetic: "The missiles that we uncovered today were intended to strike at the citizens of Israel. The intercontinental ballistic missiles that Iran is developing are intended to strike at the citizens of the West.  Come to think of it, Iran might not need ICBMs.  Just as they concealed these weapons in containers on this ship., they could tomorrow conceal in other containers the ultimate weapon, nuclear weapons, which they could ship to any port in the world.  So my message today is simple: those engaged in self-deception must awaken from their slumber."

I also need to share one other news article, reported by Joel Rosenberg.  The Times of Israel reported that "Brigadier General Hossein Salami, the air force commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, was quoted as saying that Iranian military commanders are prepared to attack and destroy the Zionist regime of Israel as soon as they receive such an order.  He went on to say, "Today, we can destroy every spot which is under the Zionist regime's control with any volume of fire power right from here.  Islam has given us this wish, capacity and power to destroy the Zionist regime so that our hands will remain on the trigger from 1,400 kilometers away for the day when such an incident takes place."  Friends, this article, reporting this speech of this Iranian general, came one day after Israeli commandos intercepted the Iranian weapons shipment. 

Friends, the world paid no attention to this act on the part of Iran.  The world is paying no attention to the actions of Iran in Syria, in Lebanon, in the Sinai peninsula, in the Gaza Strip.  The world is paying no attention to Iran's new found friend in Venezuela and in other parts of South and Central America.  The Ayatollah believes that the coming of the Twelfth Iman is near and the world must be in crisis as he arrives in order to establish the final worldwide Caliphate.  A few years ago I read Robert Spencer's book titled, "Religion of Peace? Why Christianity Is and Islam Isn't."  It was an eye-opening read.  Perhaps it is time this book is reread.

One final article that I read with alarm, but not shocked at its conclusions.  At Christianity.com website, an article appeared written by Kristin Wright and titled, "Support for Israel Fading in Evangelical Circles."  Allow me to share portions of the article: "Support for Israel today isn't as unquestioned as it once was in evangelical circles.  Today evangelical leaders on both sides say that the millennial generation sees the conflict differently - viewing it with a perspective of neutrality and empathy for both sides.  In June 2001, with church leaders convening in Cape Town, South Africa, for the third Lausanne Congress of World Evangelization, the Pew Research Center conducted a survey among evangelical leaders.  The finding showed lower support for Israel than many expected.  in fact, when asked if they sympathize more with Israelis or with Palestinians, a majority of American evangelical leaders (49%) expressed neutrality.  Of the leaders polled, thirty percent stated support for Israelis, and 13% for the Palestinians.  David Gushee, professor of Christian ethics and director of the Center for Theology and Public Life at Mercer University in Atlanta commented, 'What is happening is that the hard line of Christian Zionists was not successfully passed forward to the next generation, because it was based on theological themes that are now being questioned by younger evangelicals.'"

I have observed this trend happening.  People today tend to just shrug their shoulders and say, "Why should I care?"  The Bible tells us that as believers in Jesus Christ we need to care.  Yes, we need to care about those being displaced because of Syria's ongoing civil war (now entering its fourth year).  Yes, we do need to show concern for those Palestinians who are suffering economic hardships - primarily within the Gaza Strip; however, I must add, that much of that hardship is imposed upon them by their Hamas leadership.  Friends, I have traveled down the Jordan Valley from Galilee to the Dead Sea on many occasions and, while traveling through that area described as the West Bank, I have seen the growth of cooperation between Israeli and Palestinian farmers - both laboring side by side to achieve a level of prosperity.  But, friends, the Bible explicitly declares that we cannot turn our backs upon the nation of Israel.  Is it a perfect nation?  No, but what nation is perfect?  But it is the nation that God has called to bear His Name before the world.  I believe it is time that Christians rise up in support of the people of Israel, to pray diligently for God's wisdom to be given to their leaders, and to pray, more specifically, that God would open their eyes to see Jesus Christ as their Messiah.