Zechariah 12:2-3
2 “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. 3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it."
We have seen this prophecy come true ever since Israel became a nation in 1948. Today we see this happen more and more.
All nations seem to be drawing away from Israel, even her allies, even the USA.
Just recently Turkey, the only Islamic country that supported Israel turned their backs to Israel. A recent article by Joel Rosenberg stated:
The Apostle Paul wrote much of the New Testament either in Turkey (then “Asia Minor”), or to the churches located throughout that remarkable land. The Apostle John saw in Turkey the startling vision of the End Times that became the Book of Revelation. The country later became the seat of the Ottoman Islamic empire. Later it became a modern democracy, a NATO ally, a friend of Israel, and the original “Reformer” country.
# Turkey has canceled a NATO military exercise because Israel was invited to participate
# Turkey has aired a drama on state-run TV portraying an Israeli soldier walking up to a Palestinian child and barbarically shooting her point-blank
# Turkey has made moves to draw closer to Iran and Syria, including choosing to engage in military exercises with Syria instead of Israel
# Turkey has made moves to draw closer to Russia
These are troublesome developments on two levels.
First, they indicate that Turkey is not simply turning against Israel but doing so, in part, to curry favor with an emerging Russia-Iranian-Syrian alliance.
Second, these developments are consistent with Bible prophecies found in Ezekiel 38-39 which indicate that in the “last days” Turkey (identified in the prophecies as “Gomer” and part of “Beth Togarmah”) will join a Russian-Iranian alliance against Israel. While it remains too early to draw any conclusions on whether the Ezekiel 38-39 prophecies will come to pass in our lifetime, much less soon, it is not to early to be concerned about the pivot Turkey is making away from Israel and toward her enemies, and ours.
Please pray for the leaders of Turkey to resist the temptation so many other world leaders are having to turn against Israel. Please pray, too, for the gospel to spread throughout all of Turkey and that many in that country find the amazing love and grace and forgiveness found in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Finally, please pray for the leaders of Israel to have the wisdom to know how best to handle the current tensions with Turkey.
We also see Iran getting closer and closer to having nuclear weapons, once they have them the door is open for all Islamic nations to obtain them. We know from God's word that He will protect Israel but we see dark days ahead of us.
This is just another sign of the times. We must not fool ourselves in believing that this is normal, and this is nothing new, this has happened in the past and will happen again. We need to read God’s word and see what He has written about the end times, we must study and learn, and listen to the Holy Spirit. He did not give us the word to confuse us, but He gave us the word for us to understand His plans and His plans for our life. We are in the end times, Jesus is coming back soon, we see the signs all over, we see it everyday, again and again, we just cannot ignore it , we just need to open our eyes of understanding and rejoice that the Lord is coming back!
Are you ready? Do you know someone who is not, if so, share the Gospel, tell them of the good news of Jesus Christ. Remember we all have eternal life, but do you know where you will spend that life at?
The Lord said He did not want anyone to perish but for everyone to have everlasting life.
Marantha!