Winning by Losing
I was talking with a friend who is a pro Israel advocate. The current state of Israel advocacy—*disclaimer: in my opinion—reminds me of the great battles of World War 2.
You remember Normandy, of course. Largest invasion in history. The Allies hit the beachheads and met tough Nazi resistance.
By the end of the first day, it became clear that pushing through to a military victory was unattainable, so Eisenhower conferred with Roosevelt and Churchill, and they decided to call the whole thing off and sue for peace.
Remember that?
I don’t either.
I’m fictionalizing the reality of the situation to make a point:
Only and aggressive, relentless effort—with no possibility of retreat—won the day and freed Europe and brought an end to Hitler’s evil and madness.
That type of resolve doesn’t exist much in our world today. The failure to adopt that strategy almost thoroughly infects the Church Visible. Specifically in America. Today’s evangelical leadership is abysmal.
Rather than defeat an ideological opponent’s evil agenda, we seek to dialogue with it and “understand them.”
This ought not be.
Philosophical and “reasonable” efforts at peace are often just a cover for cowardice. Neville Chamberlain’s shameful attempts to appease Hitler in 1938 left millions vulnerable. It took a Churchill to save Europe and, it’s not a stretch to say so, humanity.
Many of today’s pro Israel advocates offer a soft approach that does stuff, but doesn’t seek to utterly crush our ideological opponents who traffic in open anti-Semitism. It ranges from a professing Southern Baptist president (Bill Clinton) warmly receiving one of history’s true monsters, Yasser Arafat…all the way to American evangelical “leaders” who leave Israel vulnerable due to their own cowardice and appeasement of their revenue streams.
Let me explain this last point.
Famous Ministry Leader X who professes to be “pro Israel” will not (will not) call-out his peers who pal around with anti-Semites and pro Palestinian propagandists.
Famous Ministry Leader X does not do this because it might result in a boycott of his books/podcasts/donation button. Mainstream Evangelicalism today in the United States is about accommodation of evil and maintenance of cash flow “for ministry.”
I’m aware that what I’ve written is harsh. It’s meant to be. It isn’t harsh enough, frankly.
The conversation I mentioned above took place with a “pro Israel” advocate who believes we should dialogue with our opponents.
(Those opponents, by the way, believe wholly in “dialogue” as defined by Soviet and Muslim propagandists, who follow Joseoph Goebbels’ dictum that a huge lie told often enough will work. They are not and will never be legitimately interested in the advancement of peace. They want sharia, totalitarianism.)
I was told by this person that a certain major evangelical leader does not agree with us about Israel (this person subtly and sometimes overtly undermines Israel), but I was not to “be negative” about him on the “advocate’s” social media page.
That’s fine, I can do that.
See ya later.
Why don’t I identify these people here? After all, there is a tension among Christians about “naming names,” or not naming names.
I don’t here because it would be pointless. Only if there is the will among a lot of people that change should come…will it come. Until and unless that happens, the other side will continue to make advances and win.
So then, at the end of the day, are we left with the view that as Jesus said in Luke 18:8—
I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?
Undoubtedly.
In a sense, this is the concept of winning by losing, because at the end, only Christ can save. Only He can set things right. Much as I might want to effect change by pure advocacy, I’ve come to slowly (reluctantly?) believe things are on a predetermined course.
Will He find faith on the earth?
The inference of the verse answers the question.
In the natural, we get amped-up on what men can do. There is now speculation that President Trump’s plan regarding the US Embassy is to keep it in Tel Aviv, but recognize Jerusalem as Israeli’s capital. Which, of course, does no real good.
So we are frustrated yet again by man’s attempts to “save Israel.”
As time continues to pass, more and more I think about Luke 18:8.
And that, my friends, will be one of the great fulfillments of prophecy.
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