Rebirth of the Nation of Israel

Transcript

Well, if you've been awake the last few days, you couldn't help but miss Israel in the news. And what I thought we would do tonight is look at some encouragement that we just had in our daily readings from Ezekiel chapter 36 about the reestablishment of the nation of Israel and consider how this applies to our individual discipleship.

God's message to Ezekiel goes back to Genesis chapters one and two, and Brian Lloyd sent me a great quote which says, God's current work with the nation of Israel is thus likened to a new creation. Israel is invited through repentance to be back in fellowship with him like in Eden, the fellowship that was lost because of sin. So there's a lot of rich examples and a lot of ties to what we see going on in the world today in this chapter in Ezekiel 36. So I think we'll enjoy going through that together. Also lessons that we can pick up and just some good times, fun times that Sister Jen and I had in our trip this past month to Israel, to some historical spots in Jaffa, Galilee, Jerusalem, and the Dead Sea, and a few little mishaps that we had along the way. And also we will close things out with some current events that are impacting the peace that we are expecting in the land of Israel. What has happened this past weekend, there's been a lot of glitz and glamour, but there's also a scriptural precedent for peace in the land in the Middle East prior to the return of Christ or at the time of the return of Christ. And we're very familiar with the words of Ezekiel chapter 38. You will say, I will invade a land of unwalled villages. I will attack a peaceful, unsuspecting people, speaking of the nation of Israel, all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nation. So we're going to talk about those resettled ruins in Ezekiel chapter 36. And then we're going to look at where this current peace deal could take the nation of so that they're prepared for that Russian host with Iran and other nations that would like to come down and eliminate the nation of Israel. And prophecy tells us that this is when Christ will reveal himself to the world and to the nation as the Messiah and save them from this calamity. So a lot of interesting things happening, certainly to keep us on our toes and ready and watching and waiting. If we look at the map of Israel and we see that black line coming down the land, there's a little lake up top. That's the Sea of Galilee. And then we have that black line that runs down. And that is the Jordan River. And that runs into the Dead Sea. And in the middle there, right across from the Dead Sea, that larger body of water, you see light brown area that has a black marker that goes around it. That is the West Bank. That is land primarily that is referenced in Ezekiel 36 and 38, the mountains of Israel, although the whole land is inclusive. And it says in Ezekiel 36, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel. And this area in the West Bank is where the mountains are. And it says, hear the word of the Lord. This is what the sovereign Lord says. The enemy said of you, ah, the ancient heights have become our possession. Therefore, prophesy and say, this is what the sovereign Lord says, because they have ravaged and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of the people's malicious talk and slander. Therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the words of the sovereign Lord. This is what the Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and the deserted towns that have been plundered and ridiculed by the rest of the nations around you. So we know in AD 70, the Roman destruction was a devastating blow to the Jewish population. And so these words ring true in that beginning verses of Ezekiel 36 from Jerusalem to Samaria and Judea and throughout the entire land, there was destruction. It was ravaged. It was crushed. And there was despair and desolation. Now after AD 70, the final revolt took place at Masada. And this was built by King Herod. And they had enough food and water here for years. There was a swimming pool here and a sauna. And it's famous for being the last stand of Jewish patriots against the Roman army in AD 70. So the beginning verses of Ezekiel 36 bring to end this time period. And after the fall of Jerusalem, the Jewish rebels occupied this fortress, making it the free Jewish stronghold in the land of Israel against the Roman Empire. And the Jews captured this fortress from a Roman garrison around AD 66. So they hung out there for about seven, eight years. Now Josephus writes about this time period, which also ties in with those verses we just read from chapter 36. He writes, the ramp was completed in the spring of 73. And you see the ramp that is like a very steep slope heading up to the top of Masada, which is a flat area where the people lived. After probably two or three months, which it took to build, a giant siege tower with a battering ram was constructed and moved up the completed ramp. While the Romans assaulted the wall, a volley of blazing torches against the wall of timber, allowing the Romans to breach the wall in the fortress on April 16, 73 AD.

When the Romans entered the fortress, they had found it to be a citadel of death. The Jewish rebels had set all the buildings, but the food stores ablaze and had killed each other, declaring a glorious death, preferable to a life of slavery or death by Roman hands. And so after this, the land was decimated. The Jewish population was significantly decreased. They were scattered throughout the earth for 2000 years. From 324 to 638, monks built monasteries in the mountains, but small Jewish communities, though scattered, maintained a continuous presence in various towns in the mountains. And this visual here is in the area of Jericho. The same here from 638 to 517, the Islamic conquests brought the mountains under Muslim control. The Dome of the Rock was constructed on Jerusalem's Temple Mount or Mount Moriah. And in 1691 AD, the site became a major Islamic holy place. And we're going to touch on that more because the Temple Mount has become a point of contention among the world and the nations. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the mountains became a key battleground during the Crusades. Christians captured Jerusalem and built numerous fortresses and churches throughout the mountainous regions. So the Judean Mountains, Jerusalem, all of these areas were no longer under Jewish control. The Jews were scattered throughout the earth. And we have a depiction here under the Turkish Empire, Sultan Selim. He routed the Marmalukes, who had held dominion over Israel, Jerusalem, since 1270. The Ottoman Turks conquered this region in 1517 and ruled the area until 1917. And we're starting to get up to the time period where we're going to see large changes in the land that apply to us and to our salvation in this 36th chapter of Ezekiel. Now, under the rule of the Ottoman Turks, Jewish immigration was initially stimulated. But as the rule gradually declined in the mountainous regions, there was widespread neglect of the Jewish immigration opportunity.

The ancient irrigation systems were destroyed and most of the trees on the hills were cut down because of a tax placed on each tree. And it's kind of interesting how today we have tax credits if you plant the tree. Now, near the end of the Ottoman period, early Zionist pioneers began establishing new agricultural settlements in the region. And so the words of Ezekiel ran true, because they ravaged and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of people's malicious talk and slander. And it was God's purpose, as we'll see, to bring his people back into land. Now, there's been several reconstructions of the Golden Dome, of the Dome of the Rock. And the third reconstruction project involved the complete restoration of the roof and replacement of the dome of the Shrine Rock. This included curved brass sheets placed initially with copper and nickel and finally with a huge amount of pure gold. It was completely refurbished. And it's one of the oldest Islamic surviving structures and one of the first Islamic buildings ever constructed. And so the depiction here of this reconstruction process, which took place over many years. In 1993, there was $10 million worth of gold that was used to do this reconstruction. It was pounded very thin. And the dome was rebuilt the first time after being destroyed by a great earthquake. And we know from scripture that another great earthquake is coming when Christ's feet come down on the Mount of Olives. There'll be a great earthquake in this area that will disrupt the topography, including the Herod's old structure, the temple platform, as well as the Dome of the Rock. Now, Gold City, Jerusalem, you have from this vantage point, the Muslim area, the Jewish area, and the Christian area. Now, it's sometimes confused that this is a mosque, but it's actually just a holy site where the Muslims believe Muhammad flew to heaven on his horse. Underneath the dome on the rock is the rock where Abraham intended to offer Isaac. And we see the contention in the news about this site, as well as Israel proper. In terms of the current conflict where we hear chants of eliminating Israel from the river to the sea, which means to completely push them out of the land, it's important to remember that Judaism precedes Islam by several centuries. So the claim that Israel has no right to the land or claim to the land of Israel or to the Temple Mount is not factual. And the same holds true throughout the entire land of Israel. Now, we were fortunate to be able to go up onto the

Temple Mount. It's restricted with hours that you can go up in with dress. We've had rocks thrown at us up on the Temple Mount. It's a little bit stressful to do, but it's quite an experience to go up on what is a building that was constructed in 673 AD.

The tile work here that you see was put in place in the 16th century project, which involved over 45,000 handcrafted tiles produced in the Ottoman capital. Passages of the Quran are woven into the vibrant patterns, serving both as a decoration and a proclamation of the Muslim faith. And in Islamic art, the color blue symbolizes the sky, suggesting the eternity of the heavens. And this is an important site for the Muslim faith because they believe this is where Muhammad had his vision and ascended to heaven. Obviously, for Christianity and for Judaism, this is where the temples were built. This is where worship took place. This is where Abraham received the promises and so much history, rich history in the land of Israel has taken place in this area. Looking from this vantage point, you're looking out at the area of the mountains of Judea and Samaria. That area that we started in on the map, that light brown area in the area that Ezekiel is talking about. It goes on in Ezekiel chapter 36 to say, Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, this land that in the first five verses was left desolate, this land that was taken away from Israel as they were scattered throughout the earth. It says prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains into the hills, to the ravines and valleys. This is what the sovereign Lord says. I speak in my jealous wrath because you have suffered the scorn of the nations. Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says. I swear with uplifted hand that the nations around you will also suffer scorn. But you mountains of Israel will produce branches and fruit for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. And that's what we've seen. We've seen the nation of Israel come home, particularly after World War Two in 1947 and 48 being declared a nation and millions and millions of Jews returning to the homeland from all across the world. In verse eight, it says verse nine, I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor. You will be plowed and sown and I will cause many people to live on you. Yes, all of Israel, the towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. And this is what you have. You have these brand new, gorgeous homes that are being built in Judea and in Samaria. And I can't help but think when I read these verses about God's love and care for each one of us, as he says in verse nine, he's concerned for Israel and we'll look on them with favor. I think we all feel that same concern and favor that God has for us, that Jesus has for us when he died for us on the cross, where he ever liveth to make intercession for us. And so there's a comfort there. There's a comfort when we see the nation of Israel flourishing and God fulfilling his promises that his promise to us that he will deliver us to his kingdom. We can have sure faith in that as well. So these ruined towns have been inhabited. They are being irrigated. And it goes on to say in verse 15, I will increase the number of people and animals living on you and they will be fruitful and become numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and I will make you prosper more than before. And Israel is one of the most prosperous nations on the planet. Then you will know that I am the Lord. I will cause people, my people, Israel to live on you, to live on these mountains. They will possess you and you will be their inheritance. You will never again deprive them of their children. And this has become a point of global contention that the Jews are living on the mountains of Israel. And I think it's interesting and really thought provoking when God says that he's doing this so that they will know that he is the Lord. And as we see these things come to pass, it should prick in us our understanding and our conviction that these things are being done so that we can glorify God, so that we can see these things and say, yes, this is being done by the Holy One of Israel, by God Almighty. No one could do this type of work with the people that was scattered, with the language that was dead, and bring them back to a land and make them one of the most powerful nations on earth other than the creator of heaven and earth. This here is a farm. It's called Aragut Farm. And the name means or the intention of this farm is a redemption on the Judean frontier. And it ties in with Ezekiel chapter 36, where it says, No longer will I make you hear the taunts of the nations and no longer will you suffer the scorn of the peoples or cause your nation to fall, declares the Lord Almighty. And so this is in process. The children of Israel are back in the land. They are inhabiting these mountains. They're growing vineyards. They're raising cattle and animal. They're fruitful and they're multiplying, but they still are hearing the taunts of the nation. This has become evident not only in our country, but around the world where we've seen a rise in anti-Semitism, protesting, protest calling for Israel to be removed from the land and universities. And it is a disturbing thing to see with attacks that are happening against Jewish individuals. In verse 24 of chapter 36, it says, For I will take you out of the nations. I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. And I think the hope that this holds for us is in our discipleship. Our discipleship, it's not always a smooth road that we that we take. We can run into family problems. We can run into problems at work, problems in general. But the promise from God, if we look at the history of the nation of Israel and what they have suffered and what they have gone through as a nation, God has always cared for them and he brought them back to their land. And so as we continue to seek God in our lives, we should never lose hope, just as the children of Israel have never lost hope. Verse 25 says, I will sprinkle clean water on you and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. And I believe that this process is ongoing right now as God has gathered Israel out of the nation. He is cleansing them. He is hearing their prayers and

he loves this people just as he loves us. It says, I will give you a new heart and a new spirit in you. I will remove from your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And isn't that what study of the word does to us? It softens us. It creates a humility in us. It creates a compassion and a care in us for our fellow servant, particularly those in the household of faith. This is what's currently happening in the nation. They're being softened. They're being ready, ready to accept their Messiah. It says that they will carefully follow God's decrees and his laws. Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors and you will be my people and I will be your God. I will save you from all your uncleanness. And we have this same promise in Christ through baptism, through forgiveness of sins, through prayer, through redemption. We are going to be saved from all of our uncleanness. It says, I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine. Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices. And we know from Zechariah that when they see Christ, when they see the Messiah and they ask him, where did you get those wounds in your hands? And Christ responds and says, I received these wounds in the house of my friends. In other words, you did this to me. My brothers and sisters, you did this to me. They will mourn each family to their own home. And I think there is a place for us to remember our evil ways, wicked deeds so that we have that repentant spirit, so that we are exhorted, that we seek Christ, that we don't hold ourselves up on a pedestal, that we're better than anybody else because we're all sinners. And this is the intention that God is bringing forth in his people, that he's done all these things for them, bringing them back into the land. And they're going to see, wow, Christ is the Messiah. And he says in verse 32, I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the sovereign Lord. He is doing this for his holy name and for the promises he's made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and to us. And of course, he loves his people and will be satisfied to see them flourish on these mountains. There is an article about this Aragut farm or redemption on the Judean frontier. And I'd just like to read a little bit of it to you because it gives a flavor of the mindset of the people that are living in Judea and Samaria, the type of motivation in the lively spirit that they have to be back in the land. And the individual who writes this lives in this farm. His name is Ari Abrahamitz. And he says, this is my home. I live on a mountaintop on the southeastern tip of the Judean frontier. I could try to describe it to you in words, but I've come to believe that's impossible. It would be like showing you a sheet of musical notes instead of taking you to an orchestra. Along with my three pioneering partners and their families, we transformed these previously inaccessible mountains from a barren desolation of rocks, thorns and tumbleweeds into a garden of Eden-like oasis, unlike anything in the land of Israel. From a distance, our farm appears on the horizon like an ancient Judean kingdom. I've heard the word Camelot thrown around as well. Rising from the center of the mountain is our cattle -like retreat center, which although only half completed, is already a destination which people from all over the world come to experience. This idea that he brings out, this rebuilding, this rebirth here, that they cleared this land of rocks and tumbleweeds and turned it into an oasis.

He goes on to write, A short walk away, one can find an ancient cave untouched for millennia. And this is a natural spring that is in this Aragut farm. He says you can be reminded of the great stories of history from King David and the Maccabees and the battles that took place in Judea. In the southern valley surrounding our mountains are the organic vineyards we planted just five years ago, which have just recently yielded our very first bottles of wine. These are the words of Ezekiel 36 coming to pass. It says, A source of pride and splendor for the nation of Israel, a place of indescribable beauty. Our goal was to transform these barren mountains into nothing short of a jewel in the crown of Judea. Although we are far from completion, I am deeply grateful for our farm is already considered among the most beautiful destinations in Israel. And he closes out the article with words that I think are very applicable to our walk in the truth and to our viewing of global events, particularly Israel back in the land. He says, I say these words with humility. We recognize that what we have accomplished here far transcends anything we could have accomplished with our own skills and strengths. If not for God's help and often thinly veiled miracles, there is no way that we could have possibly manifested this vision. The only thing we could possibly take credit for is saying, here I am. So this very somber, humble recognition of how small man is that the only reason they're back in the land is through the hand of God. Just as God said, his people would see when he brought them back into the land. Continuing in those verses in Ezekiel 36, it says, I will resettle your towns and the ruins will be rebuilt, just like Aragut. The desolate lands will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through. This land that was laid waste has become like the Garden of Eden. The cities that were lying in ruin, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited. I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken and I will do it. So the ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people and they will know that I am the Lord. The children of Israel are being cleansed. Their heart of stone is being turned into a heart of flesh. They are rebuilding just as God said they would. And they are acknowledging the Holy One of Israel for their return to the land and praising him and thanking him and seeking to worship him. Looking for the return of the Messiah. Jen and I went on a hike very close to this farm and you can see the lushness of the area. We walked through a lot of wet spots and rivers ending at this very deep pool with this waterfall where we took a swim. It was really an amazing experience and it just speaks to the rebirth that's happening in the land and the regeneration. Moving on to some of the hot spots of the trip that Jen and I took to this land that is the rebirth that's happening. We spent our first night in Herzliya which is a small surfing town. It has a very relaxed vibe. It's on the Mediterranean coast and just a nice place to get acclimated, used to the time change. There's a boardwalk that goes from Herzliya down to Jaffa past Tel Aviv. It's about 13 miles and our first day I was going to walk the boardwalk and Jen wanted to rent a scooter. So our first day we set out. We had a great plan. Jen looks very innocent and happy there but we ended up getting separated and Jen didn't have a phone. So I assured her that we would not get separated and that she didn't need her phone. The boardwalk didn't quite bring her where I thought it was going to bring her.

After about 20 minutes when I got an email that the scooter session had ended, I knew we had a problem. So our backup plan was that Jen asked somebody to use their phone and call me, which she did. And then I rented a scooter and went and retrieved Jen and then we got on with our day. But we had a little bit of I would say that her guide failed her and she's sitting right next to me. And I'm glad she's not speaking up because she probably wouldn't be as kind about the story as I'm saying it. So much more to the story. So much more. Absolutely. But when you take this track along the boardwalk, you're going to go by beautiful beaches, surfing in the distance there. That's Jaffa. And it's a wonderful place to get started. We had a beautiful lunch there. And the first place that we went was the House of Simon. The Tanner. And at the beginning of our visit to the land, this site reminded us of the wonderful vision and message of scripture that's proclaimed in the gospel of salvation that's available to all people. And the symbolic significance of this site,

Tanning of animal hides was considered an unclean profession in Jewish tradition. And so Peter staying with Simon was a symbolic act that demonstrated that Christianity was moving beyond strict Jewish laws to embrace all people. And that's the wonderful hope that we have. The that we've been grafted into this hope that we can preach this hope to anyone in the world and that God's intention is to bring all people under this umbrella of

salvation through his son. And Peter comments on this when we look at Acts chapter 10 verse 27 says Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. He said to them, You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean.

Verse 34 goes on to say, Then Peter began to speak. I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism, but accepts from every nation, the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

Excuse me. This is our wonderful hope. It's who fears God. It's him who does right, not following strict observance of laws, and that this good news of peace through Jesus Christ is available to all. So after Ken got herself lost, we enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the Mediterranean. It's like nothing you've ever seen before. As much as this photo, I hope it looks amazing on your screen with a reddish orange globe dipping into the ocean until you see it with your own eyes. It is one of the most impressive things that you could visualize of God's handiwork. We left Herzliya and headed up to the north to the border of Syria, where we went on to the Ion Spring hike, which is about a two hour hike. It's beautiful waterfalls, and it brings you up right up to the Lebanon border, which these waterfalls, which originate in southern Lebanon, are used by Lebanese farmers for irrigation. So there's a cooperation between the other northern countries of Israel for crop irrigation. You can see the beautiful vineyards all surrounding in this area. We then went to Banius Waterfall, which is another beautiful hike, and it's very tranquil spot in the Golan Heights. I did accomplish one goal on this trip, which to tire Jen out so she doesn't really want to come with me again for a few years. But we drove along the Syrian border after these two hikes, and there wasn't another car in sight. And we drove past beautiful, beautiful farmland, people biking. It can be very flat up in this area, and it's just a lot of windmills. Just a beautiful, beautiful area, a lot of hikers. And when we finished off, we took a dip and a swim in the Sea of Galilee. And after a long day, it's very refreshing. We're watching the sunset over the mountains of Galilee and just the discussion back and forth about and reflecting on Jesus walking on these waters, healing the sick here, and instructing people in the Beatitudes very close to this spot to love righteousness and to seek peace. All of those wonderful principles that we try to make our lives about, those principles we try to shine forth to all those around us. And so after a very busy day, a really exciting day, traveling through the northern Golan Heights in Israel, we settled down in our place to watch the glow of the sunset over the Sea of Galilee. And we contemplated our day tomorrow as we were heading down to Jerusalem. We drove down through the West Bank, down by the Dead Sea, and headed to Jerusalem. And it becomes very mountainous. Use a lot of gas getting up these hills to get up into this area. This is a view from our apartment building on the 26th floor. You can see the, as we discussed earlier in the class, the Golden Dome. You can see the Mount of Olives in the distance there. And then those brownish mountains there, those are the Judean Hills. Those are, that's where the area where that Aragut Farm is. And it's just a beautiful time. There's a lot of energy here, although we're not a lot of tourists because of the war. We walked the old city streets. We enjoyed coffee and pastry. We walked where kings walked. We walked through Hezekiah's Tunnel. And we made our way back up to the old city of Jerusalem, like the pilgrims of old coming to worship in the temple. And it was a very festive atmosphere. There was music playing and bar mitzvahs happening and families rejoicing. And so we had such a wonderful time in Jerusalem. And I've been on many trips to Israel and never had an experience quite like we had on our final night in Jerusalem. We were out at this restaurant here under the stars. It was a clear night and a beautiful restaurant. We had finished our dinner. We were getting ready to go for a walk down to the Yehuda Market. And our waiter came over and very calmly told us that in a few minutes we may hear a bomb siren. And he instructed us if that happened, where the bomb shelter was in the restaurant and that we should make our way to it. Well, sure enough, just as a dessert came, a very loud piercing bomb siren went off. And Jen got her dessert and brought it with her to the bomb shelter. We made our way there. And surprisingly, ninety five percent of the people just sat at their tables. We made our way there with a few other couples and they put us at ease. They told us there was nothing to worry about, that this is routine for them and that this has been going on for two years now. And they had us look at the people that stayed in their seats and said, we're a very war weary country and nobody really pays any attention to these sirens anymore. It lasted a minute or two. And then we made our way back to our table. But it became very real for a minute. The what the Israeli people have been living under for the last few years in this war. One of the most interesting and thought provoking tours that we went on is called the Tunnel Tours. And at the end of the tour, there's a synagogue that is built underneath the old city of Jerusalem. And it's about right up to the old Western Wall, closest to the temple site as they can get closest to the holy of holy places. There's a synagogue where they where they worship. And our guide said to us at the end that she quoted Isaiah fifty six verse six and said the intention of the Jewish people is to bring all nations together. They see that as a action item of their faith. And she quoted for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations. And it was a very interesting point that was brought up to try to unite people together, especially in a wartime stance in the country. And she made very made a lot of interesting comments about this, including that it's our responsibility as citizens of the world to be uniters, to be peacemakers, to find common ground. And we know that ultimately, when Christ comes back, his government will go out from Jerusalem and it will be called a house of prayer for all nations. We concluded our trip down at the Dead Sea at a wonderful resort, Kabutz, the Ngedi Kabutz. We stay there with the Jewish family, an old Jewish couple. And this is the pool on site in this beautiful views of the Dead Sea. We went to Masada. We floated in the Dead Sea. This Kabutz is the only inhabited botanical garden in the world. It has over 900 plants. And on our last day, we enjoyed reflection of our trip. We enjoyed a company together. And of course, we enjoyed a swim here as well. As we made our way back to our condo, it was about 9 p.m. We had to pack our suitcases, our flight. We had to leave the condo about 330 in the morning. We noticed a light on from a door. It almost looked like a cellar door, but there was no structure. And we heard lots of laughing and kids playing. And as we made our way over to it just to to look at it, it was a bomb shelter in the Kabutz. And there were kids playing down in this bomb shelter. And the intention of that is so that when they have to go to the shelter, if there is danger, they will not view going to the bomb shelter as something to be nervous about. And so they've they've allowed the kids to play here. So they view it as not a scary place to go, but rather a safe place to go. As we made our way back to pack our suitcases, we brought everything out to the car about 10 p.m. And I unlocked the car and a message showed up on the dashboard that said battery low, start car. Well, I went to start the car and of course, it didn't start.

And we're way down in the Dead Sea. And Hertz can't get to us. So they advise us to get a jumpstart from the car and make our way to the airport immediately for our flight, which doesn't leave till eight thirty. So I call the gentleman that we're staying with. He's an old Russian Jew in his 80s. He gets he calls a bunch of friends. They jumpstart the car and he says to Jen and I, my advice to you is to head to the airport now. Israel is full of good miracles and bad miracles. And we don't know why your car didn't start, but everything happens for a reason. So you need to go to the airport now. So we took that advice, drove to the airport, got there about twelve thirty and we slept in the car for the night. It wasn't a very restful sleep. About three thirty, I looked over at Jen and she was awake and I said, how are you doing? She looked around the car and then she looked at me and she said, how am I doing? So the answer was obvious. But we had a wonderful trip and we got home safe, learned a lot. We were certainly built up in the hope that we share. Now, round out our class tonight. We've been watching headlines as we know Jerusalem will be a burdensome stone in the last days. We've had a very tremendous amount of suffering that's happened in the last two years with this war with Gaza, with the suffering of the Palestinian people, with suffering in Israel. And after two years of no hostages being in captivity, they're all all that are alive, are back with their families safe. And so this was a tremendous celebration in Israel throughout the land of Israel. It has become their culture of bring them home. There are yellow chairs at every roundabout. There were yellow ribbons everywhere. There are tables set for the hostages and now they're all home. And this is a momentous event. And as was said, the Gaza peace deal is a big moment for the world. Peace in the Middle East has been one of the most elusive things for any president, for any leader. But it was a summit unlike any summit that has ever taken place. And the title of this is staggering from a prophecy point of view. The Middle East peace plan summit, which was held in Egypt, where 20 plus nations joined. And it was led by President Donald Trump, who said it's the dawn of a new age in the Middle East. And it took us 3000 years to get to this point. Peace in the Middle East is finally here. It's a great deal for everyone in the Middle East to stop the fighting, an absolutely historic event. And so even though challenges remain with this peace plan, this 20 point peace plan, the hostages are home. There is a fervor that is about to bring peace to this area, to stop the suffering for all people in this area. And we know from Bible prophecy that this will happen. Is this the event? It certainly seems like it is. We're in the times and seasons. We are in the latter time of these prophecies where Ezekiel chapter 36 is being fulfilled. We're seeing Ezekiel 38 fulfilled. And so in verse eight of Ezekiel 38, speaking of this time of peace, it says, And this is the interesting part, given this peace process happening now. You will say, I will invade a land of unwalled villages. I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people, all of them living without walls and living without gates and bars. So this is the way that we expect the nation of Israel to go. We do expect there to be peace and we do expect them to be dwelling securely and safety and safely without walls and bars. On our final night in Jerusalem, there was a special call for prayer as the New Year was approaching and as Yom Kippur was approaching. It was a little bit nerve wracking because there was such a high level of security because so many people were coming down to the Western Wall. But these prayers that were being said by the Jewish nation are special prayers that focused on asking Yahweh for mercy and for forgiveness, appeals for the well-being of the soldiers, healing of the sick and the swift return of the hostages. And ironically, this happened a few weeks ago when the hostages are home. And lastly, it was a prayer for the peace and security in Israel. And so as we close our class tonight, let us never waver in our faith. We have a God that is loving and caring and compassionate. He cares for the nation of Israel. He cares for each one of us. And let us never forget that however things stand in the world today, God has a plan and purpose and he will bring peace to the Middle East before he sends his son to save not only the nation of Israel, but to save the entire world and to bring peace to all nations. So let us stay together, stick together and to encourage one another with these things for our redemption draws nigh.