Transcript [00:00] Can a nation be born in one day? The [00:03] League of Nations held a vote about [00:05] dividing the land of Israel. The vote in [00:08] the League of Nations was positive. The [00:10] Arab nations around Israel said, "We're [00:12] not we're not accepting this. We're [00:13] going to wipe all the Jews out. We're [00:15] going to drown them in the sea and [00:16] that's it." We didn't really have an [00:18] organized army. We didn't have [00:19] equipment. The Arab armies around us [00:22] were much much much larger. Well, we [00:24] stood. [00:41] We want to talk a little about the [00:44] miracle of the birth or rebirth of the [00:47] state of Israel. And I think a great way [00:50] to start into this is by our personal [00:54] stories. Stories of our family, the [00:56] stories of our respective families. Why [00:59] don't you start with that a little bit? [01:01] >> Well, when you think about the return, [01:03] the return to Israel, you're always uh [01:06] remembering that you cannot return if [01:09] you didn't leave. So, you left your home [01:12] and now you're returning. Well, at least [01:15] your ancestors left and now you are [01:17] returning to a home that's yours [01:20] >> that was given to you. So my grandmother [01:24] uh they her family were living in [01:27] Germany in 1930s and [01:32] uh in 1934 she strongly felt conviction [01:36] uh to come to Israel. Now her her family [01:40] completely Jewish but they were already [01:42] believers in Yeshua. [01:43] >> They were believers in Yeshua back back [01:46] in the 800s and 1900s. They were all [01:49] Orthodox Jews and somewhere in some time [01:53] you know they moved from Ukraine to [01:56] Poland and then to Germany. At that [01:58] point in Germany, okay, Hitler was [02:01] gaining power and um it was becoming [02:05] significantly difficult for Jews to [02:07] leave Germany. So my grandmother who at [02:10] that time had a strong faith in God felt [02:14] a strong urge to leave Germany and come [02:17] to Israel. [02:19] And uh she managed to get out. That was [02:23] also a miracle how she arrived here. She [02:26] first her first year was in Jerusalem [02:29] eventually ending up in Hifa [02:32] and her arrival in Hifa was significant [02:36] because she met her husband there who [02:39] was also living in Israel and their [02:42] ancestorries uh lived there for hundreds [02:45] of years [snorts] and they together uh [02:49] had a family they raised four children [02:54] that's why I'm here kind [02:55] Yeah, [02:56] >> a story of miracles and a story of God's [02:58] grace really bringing her because her [03:02] parents and sister they were murdered in [03:06] uh in the Holocaust and two three of her [03:10] siblings uh managed to survive as well. [03:14] >> That's that's a story that is not not [03:16] untypical [03:17] >> uh to many here. [03:19] >> It's a little bit similar in my family [03:20] as you know. So my on my dad's side, his [03:23] dad, his father, uh, Spanish Jews that [03:27] they were, you know, dispersed from [03:28] Spain um, in 1492, moved to Portugal, [03:32] expelled from Portugal in in 1496 and [03:35] ended up in Bulgaria for 500 years. And [03:39] when my grandfather was in his uh, you [03:41] know, late teen years, maybe early 20s, [03:44] he was studying to be a lawyer in the [03:46] capital of Bulgaria, the University of [03:48] Sophia. and um his sister, older sister [03:51] has already come to Israel and she was [03:54] you know a pioneer kaluta and they were [03:57] you know building kibbutz and this and [03:59] that [03:59] >> and she wrote him and his other siblings [04:01] who needs another Jewish lawyer you [04:02] should come to Israel and build a you [04:04] know build a build a land and so on so [04:06] on and so much to the dismay of his [04:08] parents that's what he did and when he [04:10] came here there was no land [04:13] >> and so my grandfather and his sister and [04:16] their friends that that generation they [04:18] bought [04:19] land, [04:20] >> right? [04:20] >> But they wouldn't sell them the good [04:21] lands. They they sold them the swamps [04:23] like where there was nothing with, you [04:25] know, cheap and unusable land. And so [04:28] what my grandfather and his generation [04:30] did [04:30] >> and probably your grandmother was part [04:32] of that in in, you know, in some way as [04:35] well. They drain the swamps [04:37] >> and build the land, you know, on on [04:39] Israel's coastal area, the area that [04:41] currently 70% of Israelis reside. [04:44] >> Yeah. [04:44] >> And so, um, that was in and of itself. M [04:48] >> I think a miracle. [04:50] >> Yeah. [04:50] >> Now what I always like to think about is [04:52] that how did the the coastal area of [04:55] Israel became all swamps [04:57] >> and I think it's it's part of the um the [05:00] genius of God. You know the geography of [05:01] Israel is such that you have the coast [05:04] on the west and east of it you have the [05:07] Samaria mountains. Now when the rain [05:09] falls it flows from the mountains and [05:11] drains into the Mediterranean. [05:13] >> Now the Mediterranean right underneath [05:15] Israel is Egypt. When the Nile gets into [05:18] the Mediterranean, it sweeps a lot of [05:21] sand, very fine white sand, and the [05:24] Middle Eastern current or the [05:26] Mediterranean current carries it to [05:28] Israel. [05:29] >> And so you can still see today in [05:30] beaches that are untouched that there's [05:32] a tremendous accumulation of very fine [05:36] white sand. [05:37] >> Now, the water couldn't get eventually [05:39] to the to the Mediterranean coming from [05:41] the mountains. And as a result, you have [05:44] water standing and you have swamps, [05:46] >> right? And that's why this area wasn't [05:48] inhabited for most of the last 2,000 [05:50] years. Um I think personally kept by God [05:54] to to our time. You know, we read in [05:56] Isaiah 11 that you know, God is asking a [06:01] question. Can a nation be born in one [06:04] day? Yes, it it it can happen because it [06:08] happened and you know God's prophecies [06:11] we see are continuously fulfilled and [06:14] yet to be fulfilled. But the amazing [06:17] thing is really the 1948 [06:20] >> Israel declared a nation. I know that [06:23] this is really close to your heart [06:25] about, you know, just the the the whole [06:28] issue of Israel being born in one day, [06:31] >> the mechanics of how it happened, [06:33] >> of how it happened because that by [06:34] itself is a miracle. [06:36] >> Maybe you could just touch a few of [06:38] those. [06:39] >> Sure. So on the 29th of November 1947, [06:42] the League of Nations, late to become [06:44] the United Nations, held a vote about [06:48] dividing the land of Israel. you know, [06:50] having the British leave and dividing [06:51] the land of Israel, the eastern part, [06:53] you know, the mountainous part will [06:55] become part of the kingdom of Jordan and [06:57] the western side, the worthless land, [07:00] you know, on the coastal area, would [07:01] become the Jewish state of Israel and [07:05] miraculous in and of itself, but the [07:06] vote in the League of Nations was [07:08] positive. I remember my dad who was a [07:11] kid at the time telling me, you know, he [07:13] remembers the, you know, they're going [07:14] out to the streets and and partying, you [07:16] know, all night and dancing and [07:17] whatever. Uh but then you know as the [07:19] British prepared to leave that was there [07:21] was a statement but it didn't yet happen [07:23] and as the British were getting ready to [07:25] leave the Arab nations around Israel [07:27] said we're not we're not accepting this. [07:29] I mean we're going to come down and [07:31] we're going to wipe all the Jews out. [07:33] We're going to you know you know drown [07:35] them in the sea and that's it and we're [07:37] going to take back over the land. as the [07:40] British prepared to leave, you know, the [07:42] the Jewish people, the generation of [07:44] your grandmother, my grandfather, [07:47] they are preparing to defend themselves. [07:50] >> And so about 6 months later, just before [07:53] the British literally left or right [07:56] after uh on the 14th of May 1948, [08:01] the um the first Israeli government [08:05] declared the statethood. And so in a [08:09] very real way also legally speaking it [08:12] was born born in the day and then and [08:14] then you know the war what we call the [08:15] war of independence started when several [08:18] armies uh all around have attacked us [08:20] and much to the um surprise I mean it [08:24] really was a miracle that state of [08:26] Israel has won. [08:28] >> We didn't really have an organized army. [08:29] We didn't have equipment. the Arab [08:31] armies around us were much much much [08:33] larger, better equipped, [08:36] >> but um but we stood. And so again, [08:39] >> still the story of our lives in a lot of [08:41] ways, but here we are. [08:42] >> I think for a lot of our viewers also, [08:45] they're hearing a lot of chatter also in [08:47] Christian circles [08:49] >> that to be a Zionist [08:52] is really bad. [08:54] >> So what is a Zionist? What where's the [08:56] word coming from? What what what what [08:58] can we say about Zionism? [09:00] >> Well, it its origin is in the Bible. So, [09:04] all those that are wondering where it [09:06] comes from, it comes from the Bible, [09:08] which most of us believe in, you know, [09:11] and uh even those that say that they're [09:13] anti-ionists, it actually appears about [09:16] 153 times if I'm correct. And uh [09:21] actually God says that he desires Zion. [09:26] You know in Hebrew the words are very [09:27] very strong but that's his desire of his [09:31] heart is Zion. Um a name for Jerusalem [09:34] but also for Israel [09:36] >> for the nation. [09:36] >> For the nation for for the land of [09:38] Israel. So Zion is actually a wonderful [09:41] name. It's a it's a beautiful glorious [09:43] name. It has uh obviously it's uh [09:46] physical location but also there is a [09:48] lot of spiritual significance to the [09:50] name. [09:51] >> That's right. And and very very [09:53] specifically many people recognize the [09:55] word Zion or remember it in the Bible [09:57] because it says in Psalm 137:1 [10:00] on the rivers of Babylon where we sat [10:02] down and we wept [10:05] >> uh remembering Zion. [10:07] >> And so Zion in the Bible carries the [10:10] idea of of a heart's desire of something [10:12] you you long for. We see that in Jewish [10:15] tradition when often times, you know, [10:17] well, not often time, every every [10:18] Passover, every Jewish family will say, [10:21] "Next year in Zion, next year in [10:24] Jerusalem." [10:25] >> And so that was something that's very [10:27] present, [10:27] >> right, [10:28] >> in uh throughout uh Jewish history. [10:31] >> So we know it's very very meaningful to [10:34] us. We know it's a biblical and [10:36] spiritual meaning. But then we should [10:39] ask you know there is so much people so [10:42] many people that are uh going against [10:44] this word what would that mean what [10:46] would Zion mean to them eventually [10:50] to all those that love Zion [10:53] what would they gain from Zion and [10:55] that's the question [10:56] >> and I think that's the key point because [10:58] if you label yourself anti-Zionism [11:03] and God says I love Zion I desire here [11:07] Zion who you put yourself against not [11:10] against you and me [11:12] >> you know it's against God himself [11:14] >> God himself but also that would be a [11:17] place where all nation it says will come [11:20] >> to worship the Lord of host [11:21] >> to worship the Lord of hosts all nation [11:24] means all nations that are not from the [11:27] Jewish people obviously will come and [11:29] join the blessings of Israel coming up [11:33] to the mountain and worshiping God in [11:35] Zion [11:36] So that would also be part of the [11:39] messianic kingdom [11:41] >> which includes all those that really [11:43] share and participate in Yeshua's uh in [11:48] Yeshua's salvation and [11:51] those that love [11:54] what God loves. And what God loves is [11:57] Zion. [11:58] >> Oh man. And I think, you know, in in in [12:00] the Bible, we see it in in in circles, [12:03] so to speak, that are increasingly [12:05] significant. You know, it starts with [12:07] Abra and Isaac, you know, going up Mount [12:09] Mariah, Mount Zion, where Isaac is [12:12] carrying the wood for his own sacrifice [12:13] before the angel intervenes and stops [12:16] Abraham from sacrificing his son. And [12:19] then later on, we see the son of God [12:22] >> going up the same hill with the wood on [12:25] which he himself will be sacrificed. And [12:27] as you say, it's going to be on the same [12:29] hill that he himself will come and [12:32] reign, not just Israel, but the entire [12:35] world from Zion. [12:37] >> From Zion. [12:38] >> So, it's something to look forward to. [12:40] >> Yes. Up until a few years ago, there [12:42] were more Jewish people living outside [12:45] of Israel than inside of Israel. What [12:48] made that change? Today, actually, the [12:51] majority lives in Israel because that [12:55] also has a significance. It's true. The [12:57] goat says in his word, you know, through [12:59] the prophets that he's going to send [13:02] hunters and fishers, fishermen to bring [13:05] his people, people of Israel, back to [13:08] this land. And so that means that he's [13:10] going to God's going to employ different [13:12] methods to bring us. Now when the state [13:15] of Israel was established, so the [13:17] generation of your grandmother, my [13:18] grandparents, uh there were there were [13:20] about 10 and a just over 10 million [13:23] Jewish people left in the world because [13:25] six were murdered, six million were [13:26] murdered in the Holocaust. [13:28] >> Of the 10 million, less than 1 million [13:31] were residing in Israel. So nine nine [13:35] more than 9 million Jewish people were [13:37] residing outside the land. Now the [13:40] estimates are that there's about 14 [13:42] million Jewish people around the world. [13:44] Over half 7 and a half million Jewish [13:47] people reside in the land of Israel. So [13:51] for the first time at least since the [13:53] time of Yeshua since the time of Christ [13:55] there are more Jewish people residing in [13:57] the land of Israel than outside. Now, is [14:00] that and I think every every follower of [14:02] Yeshua has to ask themselves, is that, [14:06] you know, an accident, an act of man? [14:10] >> Is that outside of God's will or through [14:13] his sovereignty, through his word, is [14:15] God fulfilling what he said? [14:18] >> And um we think it's it's part of God's [14:21] plan. And we're when we're thinking [14:23] about uh the remnant and I'm talking [14:26] about those that the disciples of [14:30] Yeshua, those that love Yeshua and uh [14:33] call him Lord. Okay, we're talking about [14:35] that and we're thinking about for [14:37] example in 1948 [14:40] there were maybe 23 families. [14:43] >> No, 23 individuals. [14:44] >> Individuals, sorry. 23 individuals [14:47] living. [14:48] >> Your grandmother was one of them, [14:49] >> right? And that that's 1948, right? And [14:54] um we we we think about, you know, the [14:58] time where um there was going to be war [15:01] and they were afraid that, you know, the [15:06] all the Jewish believers would be [15:07] slaughtered, [15:08] >> right? [15:08] >> Can you talk about the grace operation? [15:11] >> Yeah. So before before 1948, as the [15:14] British were prepared to leave. Okay. [15:16] Okay. So in this 6 months season between [15:18] the vote in the UN and uh the [15:20] self-declaration of the state of Israel [15:22] by the Israeli government um you know [15:25] the British are preparing to leave and [15:26] there at that time there were several [15:28] hundreds apparently Jewish believers in [15:31] Yeshua under the British mandate and so [15:34] the Brits uh under the opaces of the [15:36] Anglican church decided to do what they [15:39] call operation grace. And they came to, [15:41] you know, to the believers in Yeshua and [15:43] they said, "Listen, there's going to be [15:45] a war and it's most likely that the [15:48] Arabs are going to win. And when the [15:50] Arabs going to slaughter all the Jews, [15:51] they're not going to ask you, "Are you a [15:53] believer in Jesus or not?" They're just [15:54] going to slaughter all the Jews. So, [15:56] they're going to kill you. [15:57] >> Now, with the off chance, small chance [16:00] that the Jews are going to win, [16:02] >> they don't like you anyway. They're not [16:03] going to kill you, but they don't like [16:04] you. So the Anglican church offered to [16:08] the Jewish believers in Jesus uh asylum [16:11] in the United Kingdom in England and the [16:13] majority left [16:15] >> and um you know again your grandmother [16:18] is one of the few that has remained in [16:20] the land. Now, we um you know, we've [16:23] fast forward 78 years and we're Israel [16:27] is now 78 years old. [16:29] >> And conservative estimates are that [16:32] there's between 30,000 to 50,000 Jewish [16:36] followers of Yeshua [16:37] >> in over 300 synagogues, congregations, [16:41] churches around the country. So, yes, we [16:44] still are a remnant, a small portion, [16:47] but we're a much bigger, more visible uh [16:50] remnant. And you know, in the state of [16:53] Israel, we are 100% uh equal rights [16:56] citizens. We vote. We serve in the [16:59] military. We uh participate in social [17:01] life. And so um that in and of itself is [17:04] something that hasn't happened literally [17:06] since the time of Jesus. [17:08] >> Yeah. [17:09] >> Well, CeCe, thank you so much. It is a [17:11] miracle um the state of Israel and a joy [17:14] for us to be part of that. Um [music] [17:16] thank you. It's [17:16] >> uh great being in partnership.
