A Great Documentary

I try to bring somewhat different perspectives for you, the reader, through this Israel Watch column. That means that there are weeks when I don’t do a straight “Israel analysis” column.

This week is another week like that. Instead, I want to talk about something that will hopefully give you an interesting look at how we support Israel.

Over the weekend, I came across a fantastic new documentary, “The Israel Dilemma,” promoted by Answers in Genesis. I found it on their website. Hosted by Timothy Mahoney, of the “Patterns of Evidence” group. A stellar production from start to finish. Now, some personal background about this, then I’ll dive into the documentary itself.

In 2007, I wrote an Israel Watch column in which I mentioned that Answers in Genesis did not discuss eschatology. That was objectively true, but I ruffled some feathers there by stating that fact. Large ministries are sensitive to any perceived criticisms. Ironically, I had in the paragraph before that statement praised AiG for the magnificent work they’ve always done in the area of creation vs. evolution.

In fact, until I left the publisher I worked for, I had been an editor on several AiG projects. I knew them very well.

My point in relating this background is to pivot to AiG’s recent willingness to now broach the subject. It should be obvious that I am giving credit where credit is due. My personal view all these years is that if a national ministry would offer a “bookends” approach—handling both origins and eschatology, and everything in-between—their audiences would mushroom and be energized in a “whole Bible” approach.

(It should be obvious that discussions of eschatology are controversial only because of emotions rising in such discussions. I very well understand that a creationist-based ministry does not want to get bogged-down in ridiculous debates and arguments over Dispensationalism, Replacement Theology, eschatological timelines. But my “bookends” model is sound.) Here is the blurb from AiG:

“While AiG does not involve itself in eschatological discussions, it is still important to study Scripture and understand that since Scripture was true about a past judgment by God (in this case, the conquest and exile of both Israel and Judah), then it will also be true about a future judgment by him. Whether referring to Rome’s conquest of Israel in AD 70 or any future judgments, the principle is the same. God can and does judge sin, and Christ will return to this earth in judgment. We can and should help unbelievers see the connection between past and future biblical judgments so that we might more effectively share the gospel of Jesus Christ.”

So, kudos to AiG for advertising this on their huge website. Now to the documentary itself. By the way, the sequel to it, “The Israel Dilemma II,” is now ready! I am beyond excited to see it, because there they will delve into more specific Bible prophecies. I plan to watch it over the upcoming snowy weekend.

Honestly, I always start out with a skeptical view on these things. Just like I pay very close attention to the translators’ notes on new Bible versions. For example, if a new translation is soft on the creation accounts in Genesis, I write-off that version. Likewise, if they offer Replacement Theology perspectives, or otherwise diss Israel, I stop reading. (This is one reason I study from the King James Version; I don’t need modern translators, many of whom are liberal, to interpret Scripture for me.)

Now to the documentary.

First, Mahoney interviewed Benjamin Netanyahu and the late Shimon Peres. The latter is especially intriguing, because he wasn’t known as a religious guy. Still, he acknowledges the biblical themes of Israel and even showed a very deft understanding of the distinctions between the Holy Land and the Promised Land (in my view, Christians over the years have gotten comfortable calling Israel “The Holy Land,” rather than…Israel. Most do this without malice or agenda, but I do believe many Christian leaders have used this term as a way not to have to say “Israel.”)

Mahoney then talks with conservative thinkers and scholars like Peter Gentry, Rabbi Mannis Friedman, and Brent Kinman. As a matter of balance, he also interviews well-known Israeli archeologist Israel Finkelstein, a person who is not convinced that many biblical accounts are actually factual. Interestingly, Finkelstein later in the documentary does acknowledge the historicity of some events.

Mahoney makes many very relevant points, looking at various prophecies.

If the prophecies are true, then it means life is not a meaningless cycle of events but is part of a Divine plan. It’s mentioned that God’s prophecies are “Headed toward definite outcomes.” In this way, prophecy refutes random evolution! This is an important point. It also forges a worldview alliance with groups like Answers in Genesis.

On this note, Mahoney said, ““This means prophecy can provide a kind of scientific tool.”

EXACTLY!

About the Bible and its prophecies, they are, “A verifiable test of its legitimacy.”

YES!

Joel Richardson also states that a great evidence for the God of the Bible is the People of Israel. Yes, yes, and yes. (This is the hallmark of my own site, The God That Answers.)

All in all, I highly recommend that you watch these documentaries.

 

 

 

 

God is ALWAYS in control!

We’re all human. Sometimes even Christians waver, go all wobbly, as Margaret Thatcher warned George H.W. Bush against. We sometimes wonder if things are spinning out of control.

Actually, they’re not. Not really. With all the absolute madness going on in the world, we must focus on the Word, and the nature of God. Years ago I read a great book by Claude Duvernoy, Controvery of Zion. He was a friend of my mentor, David Allen Lewis.

Duvernoy coined a term, the Lord of History. I love that. The whole book is an extraordinary look at how in control God really is, no matter what our emotions tell us. I want to point out a couple things regarding Israel, pointing to this truth about God.

In 1967, with Egyptian soldiers massed on the border with Israel, “President” Nasser kept threatening to wipe Israel off the map. As usual, the UN was helpless. Even American President Lyndon Johnson couldn’t be trusted. He warned Levi Eshkol not to respond militarily. The old, tired, dangerous “give diplomacy a chance.” Johnson lived in a huge, powerful country. His vast ranch near Austin, Texas was a long way from any type of danger.

Israelis every morning can see their enemies from their patios.

As May, 1967 bled into June, Eshkol and his advisors had to make a choice.

They chose to preempt.

On the morning of June 5, Israeli warplanes took to the skies. They headed out to the West, which told the Egyptians this was just another dry run, an exercise.

Then they turned sharply to the east. Within minutes, the full Egyptian air force was beneath them, exposed on the ground. Within 30 minutes, Israel took out most of that enemy air force. This was key to a quick, six-day miraculous victory.

You see, for the previous decade, Israel had been working on cutting the time it took to land, re-arm, refuel, and get back in the air. This turnaround time might be the difference between life and death for the Jewish state.

Egypt was doing the same thing, the same kind of exercises. And they got good at it. The Egyptians reduced their turnaround time to eight hours. This gave them confidence.

Except Israel had reduced their turnaround time to eight minutes.

Wow.

I’ve always felt this was not only the product of superior Israeli ingenuity, but act of God.

Now, 60 years later, they find themselves in a similar situation. It was announced this week that the missile defense system known as Iron Beam—an improvement on the 2006 breakthrough Iron Dome—is ready to be used. Iron Dome has knocked-out 90 percent of missiles fired at Israel, but at great financial cost. Each knockdown requires two missiles, and the cost is $40,000 each. So then each time Israel destroys an incoming missile, it costs $80,000! Multiply that by hundreds of such intercepts.

Do you know what the new, laser-beam technology costs to shoot down a missile?

Two bucks.

You read that right. Two to three dollars per intercept. That’s insane! Partly because of that astonishing rate, Israel’s arms sales are going to mushroom, no pun intended. Suddenly, European states, along with the UAE, wants to talk to Israel. When you combine this revenue and oil and gas revenue, Israel is about to get very rich.

Now, as usual, I caution us to speculate too much about how this affects everything prophetically. Some are already analyzing how this fits into Gog-Magog. In other words, how do we square this new information with Israel “dwelling safety”? No walls.

I don’t know.

We simply can’t jam such info into a square or round hole. We just know in general that we are moving forward all the time. If Iran is defanged, how then do we see Persia one day joining a lethal coalition and “coming to take a spoil”?

I don’t know.

It’s enough for us to trust that God is not only guiding all things, but He has gifted us with a front-row seat. Those two “little” stories should thrill us: Israel is powerful and that comes from God. Although we know from Scripture that one day, they will be alone and vulnerable, it’s amazing to see how God is acting right now to preserve the Jewish state.

The Ayatollah might be yesterday’s news by morning, who knows? But we just don’t know what’s going to happen five minutes from now, or six months from now.

Let’s just rejoice and rest in the fact that God guides His People in astonishing, supernatural ways now.

He will see it all through and keep all His promises.

Jimfletcher761@gmail.com

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