The Road to Emmaus / Die Pad na Emmaus

March 31, 2025

Die pad na Émmaüs

In hierdie tyd is ons volgens die Joodse kalender ingewig tussen “ Hag Mazot”en “Hag Shavu’ot—Pasga (Passover) en die Fees van Weke, wat in Christelike term ooreenstem met die opstanding van Jesus tot op die dag van Pinkster. Dit was gedurende hierdie spesifieke tyd wat Jesus uit die dood opgestaan het en begin het om in die tuin aan Sy dissipels te verskyn.

Jesus het deur mure van Jerusalem geloop; Hy verskyn op die strand van die See van Galilee, dan is daar Sy verskyning op die pad na Emmaus.

Wat met Jesus Gebeur, Gebeur met Ons.

Kom ons begin met die Hebreeuse Profeet Hosea – “Howshea Ha’Nabiy.” “Kom en laat ons terugkeer tot die HERE; want Hy het verskeur en sal ons genees, Hy het geslaan en sal ons verbind. Hy sal ons ná twee dae lewend maak, op die derde dag ons laat opstaan, sodat ons voor sy aangesig kan lewe. En laat ons ken--laat ons dit najaag om die HERE te ken; sy opgang is so seker soos die dagbreek, en Hy sal tot ons kom soos die reën, soos die laat reëns wat die aarde besproei.” (Hosea 6:1-3)

Hier het ons drie verse- elk met ’n profesie oor Jesus, maar op ‘n manier sê Hosea al drie van hulle word op ‘n manier gelykmatig op ons toegepas. “Kom laat ons terugkeer tot die HERE.”

‘Terugkeer’ is ‘tesuba’, die Hebreeuse woord vir “bekeer” Wat beteken om terug te draai na God. Ons dink van bekering soos toe ons weer gebore is, maar Jesus sê vir die gemeente by Efese, ‘n groep mense met die korrekte lering en goeie werke, om terug te keer na hulle eerste liefde. (Op. 2:4,5) maar dan lees ons—“want Hy het verskeur en sal ons genees, Hy het geslaan en sal ons verbind.”

Wat het met Jesus gebeur? Hy was gewond. Dieselfde term word in Jesaja gebruik- letterlik: “Hy was deurboor –“paga”- om oop gesny te word. (Jes. 53:5) Hierdie woord “paga”- gewond, gesny- kom van ‘n Hebreeuse woord- om tussenbeide te tree, wat beteken Hy was in die plek van iemand anders gewond. Maar alhoewel daar ‘n verwonding was, het die Here ‘n genesing gebring.

Jesus was aan die kruis in ons plek deurboor, maar met die opstanding was Hy genees. En wanneer die Here ons wond dan sal Hy ons verbind. “Hy sal ons ná twee dae lewend maak, op die derde dag ons laat opstaan, sodat ons voor sy aangesig kan lewe.”

Wat met Jesus gebeur het gebeur met ons. Dit sê nie net Jesus sal op die derde dag opstaan nie, nee, ons sal op die derde dag opstaan. Sy dood is ons dood; daarom is Sy opstanding ons opstanding. Dink aan die opstanding as ‘n vrugbare gebeurtenis.

Ons wag nie vir die Wegraping of vir die opstanding nie; die Wegraping en die opstanding het alreeds begin, ons wag vir ons rol daarin. Die opstanding begin met die Eerste Vrugte—Jesus was die Eerste Vrugte van die Opstanding. (1 Kor. 15:20) Omdat Sy Dood ons dood is, is Sy opstanding ons opstanding. Die opstanding het alreeds begin en ons wag vir ons rol daarin. Net so met die hemelvaart; die Wegraping het alreeds begin. Ons wag nie vir die Wegraping nie, ons wag vir ons rol daarin. Dit is waarom Hebreërs 1-1-2 die konteks- “in hierdie laaste dae” voorsien. Omdat ons alreeds in die Laaste Dae is. Die Wegraping en die opstanding het alreeds begin.

Die beste manier wat ek dit kan verduidelik is deur die Normandiese inval met D-Dag in Junie 1944. Amptelik was D-Dag op die 6de Junie 1944 maar in werklikheid het dit al die 5de Junie begin toe Amerikaanse en die Britse valskerm soldate agter die Duitse linies geland het en hulle kommunikasie lyne verwoes het. Maar dit was ‘n geheim niemand het geweet wat in die werklikheid besig was om te gebeur nie alhoewel die inval in Normandië op die 5de Junie begin het, het net sekere mense geweet dit is die inval, dit was eers die volgende dag, D-Dag dat almal geweet het wat besig was om te gebeur toe die amfibiese voertuie op die strande geland het.

Dit is dieselfde met die Laaste Dae. Die Laaste Dae het alreeds begin maar net die ingeligtes weet dit. Net ons weet dit. Dit begin by die opstanding en die hemelvaart van Jesus, die wêreld weet dit nog nie. Ons is soos die Britse en Amerikaanse troepe wat agter die Duitse linies geland het om die weg voor te berei vir die groot inval.

Ons is eenvoudig net hier om die komende eeu in te lei, die koms van die Here Jesus. Jesus sal kom en die inval is inderdaad aan die kom. Die inval is alreeds besig om te gebeur, ons wag basies vir almal om dit te sien gebeur. Maar ons weet dit is alreeds besig om te gebeur. Jesus se dood is ons dood, Sy opstanding is ons opstanding.

“En laat ons ken--laat ons dit najaag om die HERE te ken; sy opgang is so seker soos die dagbreek;” Weereens, al vier die Evangelies sê Jesus het met “Hag Ha’Mazot,” die Hebreeuse Eerste Vrugte Fees, die eerste dag van die week met dagbreek toe dit nog donker was-opgestaan, maar dan word dit as ‘n Pinkster profesie gesê... “--en Hy sal tot ons kom soos die reën, soos die laat reëns wat die aarde besproei.” (Hos. 6:3) Die uitstorting van die reën wat in die watertafel-“maim hayim” gevorm word, is ‘n metafoor vir die Heilige Gees.

“Want Ek sal water giet op die dorsland en strome op die droë grond; Ek sal my Gees op jou kroos giet en my seën op jou nakomelinge.” (Jes. 44:3)

Die reën wat begin val is ‘n beeld van die Heilige Gees as Lewende Water soos ons sien in Johannes 4 en 7 waar Jesus sê die Heilige Gees is Lewende Water. As ons dus weer in Hosea daarna kyk, dan sien ons die verwonding maar ook die opstanding. Ons het die uitstorting van die Heilige Gees na die opstanding. Wat met Jesus gebeur het, gebeur met ons, Sy dood moet ons dood wees, Sy lewe is ons lewe en die krag van Sy Gees wat in ons manifesteer.

Verenigde Samehorigheid in Bar Abbas.

Ons het ‘n teologiese term wat geken word as ‘n “verenigde samehorigheid.” (Corporate Solidarity) Dit is waar een persoon ‘n groter groep mense verteenwoordig, waar een man of een vrou ‘n beeld is van ‘n groter groep. In die Lyding verhaal, die verhaal van die dood en opstanding van Jesus, is daar ‘n hele paar belangrike “verenigde samehorigheid”, mense wat beelde is van ons. Een van die mees belangrike mense is iemand wat in Aramees “Barabbas”- “seun van die vader” genoem word. Ons sien dit toe Pilates hom in Lukas uitgebring het.

“Maar die hele menigte skreeu en sê: Weg met Hom, en laat vir ons Barábbas los!” (Luk. 23:18)

“Gee vir ons Barabbas.” Pilates wou Jesus vrylaat, hy wou die saak na Herodes verwys.

Maar Herodes sou Jesus vrygelaat het as Hy ‘n vertoning gelewer het. As Jesus gewillig was om wonders en tekens te doen dan sou Herodes gewillig wees om Hom vry te laat. (Luk. 23:8).

Let op die enigste ding wat Jesus moes gedoen het om nie na die kruis toe te gaan nie was ‘n om ‘n “Benny” of ‘n “Kenny” op te dis. Al wat Hy moes doen was om godsdienstige drog tekens- vertonings (shows) op te voer.

Jesus het nie een keer wonder en tekens en genesings, “semeion mipla’ot” in Hebreeus, toegelaat om die hoof fokus van Sy boodskap in Sy bediening te wees nie. Dit is nie waaroor Jesus se bediening gegaan het nie. Hierdie tekens volg. Daar is mense wat beweer dat wonders en tekens die sleutel is om mense tot redding te lei; Dit is was John Wimber se argument, maar die feit is Johannes 10 sê die teenoorgestelde: Jesus vra: “Oor watter een van dié werke stenig julle My?” (Vers 32)

“Die geloof is dus uit die gehoor, en die gehoor is deur die woord van God.”(Rom. 10:17)

Dit is nie om na vertonings te kyk nie. Die Antichris en die Valse Profeet gaan vertonings lewer en hulle gaan die nasies mislei. (Op. 16:13-14); Hulle gaan die Jode en die afvallige kerk mislei. (Die feit is, hulle is alreeds mislei, hulle wag net vir ‘n groter misleiding.

Herodes stuur Jesus na Pilatus en Pilatus sê” “Wel, ek sal hierdie man op ‘n manier moet loslaat, ek weet Hy is onskuldig, wat gaan ek doen? Ek weet! Ek gaan ‘n terroris in sy plek kry.”

Barabbas was iemand wat die Nuwe Testament na verwys as ‘n Zealot. (yweraar) Josephus skryf baie oor hulle, die “Sukim”. Dit was mense wat godsdiens gebruik het om hulle booshede soos moord en ander wreedhede weg te steek, baie soos Al Qaeda en die IRA of ander wat godsdiens gebruik as ‘n sambreel of ‘n propaganda oogmerk of ‘n pakket. Mense wat met die mees gruwelike kriminele aktiwiteite te doen het. Hulle teer op hulle eie mense. Josephus skryf oor die wreedheid van hierdie mense teenoor die Jode wat erger was as wat die Romeine met hulle gedoen het. Hierdie “Sukim” waarvan Barabbas een was, was wreder teenoor hulle eie mense as wat die Romeine ooit gewees het.

En dan het ons “Bar- Abbas.” Nie ‘n Hebreeuse naam nie, maar ‘n Aramese naam wat letterlik “seun van die vader” beteken.

“Wie gaan ek vrylaat? Bar-Abbas of Rabbi Yeshua Bar Jozef? Wil julle hê ek moet hierdie terroris, hierdie krimineel, moordenaar vrylaat, of wil julle hê ek moet hierdie rabbi van Galiléa loslaat wat liefde vrede en vergifnis leer, wat ‘n dogter uit die dood opgewek het, wat die blindes laat sien het, die dowes laat hoor het, die lammes laat loop het, hierdie man van liefde?”

Wie sal dit wees: “Bar-Abbas, of Rabbi Yeshua?” En dieselfde skare wat ‘n paar dae gelede Hosanna gesing het met die triomferende intog in Jerusalem- skree nou, “Kruisig Hom! Gee vir ons Bar-Abbas ! Toe Jesus gewillig was om vir hulle ‘n vertoning te lewer was almal vir hom maar toe Hy nie opgetree het soos wat hulle wou gehad het nie wou hulle niks meer met Hom te doen gehad het nie. “Kruisig Hom! Gee vir ons Bar-Abbas!” Nie almal nie maar baie van hulle was deur die godsdienstige leiers van die dag opgehits. Die Sanhedrin het hulle opgehits om te sê: “Gee vir ons Bar-Abbas!” Gee vir ons die seun van die vader!

Ons is almal Bar-Abbas

As iemand weergebore is- as mense hulle sonde bely het en Jesus aanvaar het dan het hulle ’n ander naam ontvang, en hierdie naam is “Bar-Abbas”. Elkeen van ons word ‘n seun van die Vader. “Gee ons Bar-Abbas!” Ons het ‘n seun van die Vader geword omdat Jesus deur die Vader ‘n vloek geword het vir ons sonde. Gee vir ons “Bar-Abbas!” Dit is altyd so.

Gee vir ons daardie dwelm smous in Oos New York, Jacob Prasch. Wat sal ek doen met hierdie Rabbi wat mense uit die dood laat opstaan, wat die siekes genees, wat die kreupeles laat loop, wat liefde en vrede leer, wat die dogter se lewe vir haar terug gegee het, wat sal ek met Hom doen? Maak Hom dood! Gee vir ons Jacob Prasch. Maak Hom dood! Gee vir ons John Higgens. Ek word ‘n “Bar–Abbas” omdat Jesus, wat onskuldig was, in my plek vervolg was.

Maar ek is die skuldig aan al hierdie dinge waarvan hulle Hom beskuldig het. Muitery, rebellie, laster, om mense te mislei. Ek was skuldig aan al hierdie dinge waarvan hulle Jesus beskuldig het.

Jy kan my “Jacob” noem, dit is aanvaarbaar, maar wat maak ons as my en jou regte naam- “Bar- Abbas,- Barabbas is?. Hoekom is ek Barabbas? Hoekom is ek ‘n seun van die Vader? Omdat met betrekking tot die Ware Seun van die Vader, van wie hulle gesê het “ Kruisig Hom!” Het Hy gesterf sodat ek ‘n seun van God kan word. Dit is die eerste verenigde samehorigheid.

 

Die Verenigde Samehorigheid van Simon van Cirene.

Volgens die Romeinse wet, wanneer ‘n persoon tereggestel word deur die Romeinse kruisiging metode (die Jode het mense gestenig en kruisiging was basies ‘n Grieks – Romeinse instelling) dan moes die persoon sy skuld dra wat hy in die openbaar moes vertoon deur die dra van die kruis. Die skuldige persoon moes sy eie kruis dra, dit was die Romeinse wet. Maar dan sien ons iets anders wat gebeur.

“En toe hulle Hom weglei, neem hulle 'n sekere Simon van Ciréne wat van die veld af gekom het, en sit die kruis op hom om dit agter Jesus aan te dra.” (Luk. 23:26)

Hoekom het Jesus nie Sy eie kruis gedra nie? Omdat volgens die Romeinse wet sou dit beteken dat Hy skuldig was vir dit waarvoor Hy veroordeel sou word.

Jesus was nie skuldig vir dit waarvoor Hy veroordeel sou word nie; Simon was skuldig, ek was, jy was, ons was, Richard Wurmbrand was skuldig, hy was ‘n Joodse gelowige wat ‘n Christen geword het—My vrou het hom geken voordat hy gered is van die Joodse gemeenskap in Roemenië- hy was as ‘n Jood deur die Nazi’s vervolg en ook deur die Kommuniste as ‘n Christen. Hulle het hom vir 14 jaar toegesluit, hulle het sy vrou gearresteer, hulle het hom wreed mishandel en gemartel. My vrou kon met hom in Roemeens praat en hy het ‘n preek aangehaal wat hy gepreek het waar hy gesê het: “Jesus het nie net eenvoudig gesê ek gaan in jou plek sterf nie! Hy het gesê- Ek gaan in jou plek sterf, maar kom jy hier en sterf saam met My.”

Hy sal ons ná twee dae lewend maak, op die derde dag ons laat opstaan, sodat ons voor sy aangesig kan lewe, (Hos. 6:2) omdat Sy opstanding ons opstanding is en Sy dood is ons dood, en so het Simon hom gevolg-- Simon het Hom gevolg. “Neem op jou kruis en volg My”. (Mat. 10:38; 16:24).

“My las is lig” (Mat. 11:30). Hy het die ware werk gedoen en ons is geroep om die kruis te dra. Hy moes aan die kruis vas genael word. Neem die kruis op! Kruisig die ou natuur, kruisig daardie ou man! Kruisig daardie ou vrou!- die ou skepping. (Rom. 6:6) Neem op jou kruis en volg My!

As iemand skuldig is aan dit, kruisig dit en volg My. Ja, ons het ‘n ander naam. Miskien is jou naam “Jack” of “Jill” of miskien “Harry” of “Griet”, dit maak nie saak wat jou naam is nie, jou naam is ook “Simon van Ciréne” As jy ‘n ware Christen is, neem op jou kruis.

Die Verenigde Samehorigheid van die twee Kriminele.

Maar daar is ook ‘n derde verenigde samehorigheid wat baie belangrik is, ons lees daarvan in dieselfde hoofstuk wat gaan oor die kruisiging.

“En een van die kwaaddoeners wat opgehang is, het Hom gesmaad en gesê: As U die Christus is, verlos Uself en ons. Maar die ander een antwoord en bestraf hom en sê: Vrees jy ook God nie, terwyl jy in dieselfde oordeel is? --ons tog regverdiglik, want ons ontvang die verdiende loon vir ons dade, maar Hy het niks verkeerds gedoen nie. En hy sê vir Jesus: Dink aan my, Here, wanneer U in u koninkryk kom. En Jesus antwoord hom: Voorwaar Ek sê vir jou, vandag sal jy saam met My in die Paradys wees.” (Luk. (23:39-43)

 

Dit is belangrik. Ons is almal kriminele; ons is almal diewe; ons is almal moordenaars. Ek is ‘n dief en ‘n leuenaar. Die Bybel sê as iemand iets begeer wat aan iemand anders behoort dan is dit in die oë van ‘n Heilige volmaakte God dieselfde asof dit gesteel is. As ons iemand se vrou of man begeer, of by ‘n getroude man of vrou wil slaap dan is dit volgens God dieselfde asof dit alreeds gebeur het. (Mat. 5:27-28) Ons is almal hoereerders, ons is almal moordenaars. (Mt. 5:21-26).

As ek kyk na al die politieke korrupsie in die wêreld en die skynheiligheid van die media en Moslems dan bevind ek my in ‘n geestelike stryd om nie woedend te raak nie. Ek haat die sonde, nie die sondaar nie. Ek onthou dat afgesonder van die genade van Jesus is ek nie beter as hulle nie. Ons is Almal moordenaars.

Ons lees in die Boek Job en Klaagliedere dat niemand ‘n rede het om te kla nie. Daar is diegene wat ‘n baie slegte deel in die lewe ontvang het, ek is baie jammer daaroor, dit is moeilik, maar dit maak nie saak wat met hulle gebeur nie, dit maak nie saak hoe onregverdig dit is nie, omdat ons sondaars in die oë Here is, het ons geen rede om te kla vir dit wat ons ontvang het nie.

Jesus is die enigste Persoon wat nie sonde gehad het nie en Hy het die slegste deel van alles ontvang. Hy was totaal onskuldig maar Hy het nie gekla nie; Hy het nie ’n woord gesê nie. (Hand. 8:32) Ons kan kla en kerm (kvetch) maar Jesus het dit nie gedoen nie.

En so het ons ‘n derde verenigde gemeenskaplikheid: Die kriminele of, die “goeie” en of die “slegte” een. Een van hulle op die kruis sê: “Jesus, U is, is die Messias, kry ons hier af.” Al wat hy wou gehad het is dat Jesus iets vir hom moes doen in hierdie lewe en in hierdie wêreld.

Daar is mense wat heel gelukkig is om te bely dat hulle Christene is, of dat hulle na Jesus gekom het, hulle hand op te steek met ‘n kansel oproep, of om ‘n kerkraad vergadering by te woon, met die idee dat Jesus iets vir hulle in hierdie wêreld en lewe gaan doen.

Ek wil nou nie sê dat Jesus nie kan nie of dat Hy nie iets vir ons in hierdie wêreld en lewe doen nie, Hy doen dit verseker. Maar dit is nie waaroor dit gaan nie. Daar is Christene wat niks anders as ‘n tronksel ken nie. Met tye bedien ek in Indonesië in Aceh waar mense onder die Sharia wet is waar Christene gemartel word. Die enigste ding wat Jesus vir hulle gee is ‘n martelaar kroon en jy hoor hulle nie kla nie.

Die “goeie” dief sê, “Kyk, dit maak nie saak wat met my gebeur nie, ek ken my sonde, Jesus het nie sonde gehad nie. Asseblief Here dink aan my in U Koninkryk.” Al twee van hulle roep uit na Jesus maar met wat se motief? Daar is mense wat na Jesus roep net om vry kaartjie te kry, ‘n goeie lewe in hierdie wêreld, en hulle mis die hele punt. Aan die ander kant is die “goeie dief” iemand wat na Jesus roep en sê: “Ek weet wat ek is, ek weet hoe sleg ek is en ek weet hoe totaal goed U is. Here dink aan my in U Koninkryk”

Ons is almal kwaaddoeners, die vraag is wil ons ‘n “goeie” een of ‘n “slegte” een wees? ‘n “goeie” dief is nie die een wat nie gevang word nie; ‘n goeie dief is die een wat weet hy verdien om gevang te word en dat Jesus hom na alles wil vergewe.

 

Verenigde Samehorigheid Ná die Opstanding.

Ons het gekyk na verenigde samehorighede, maar hierdie verenigde samehorigheid oorskry Jesus se kruisiging; hulle tree in werking na Jesus se opstanding. En so in hierdie tyd van die jaar lees ons in die volgende hoofstuk van Lukas ‘n verstommende verhaal. Hierdie verhaal vertel ons iets wat op so baie maniere in ‘n neutedop so baie van wat die Christen lewe behoort te wees maar wat baie van ons nie regtig verstaan nie.

“En twee van hulle was dieselfde dag op pad na 'n dorp wat agt myl van Jerusalem af was, met die naam van Émmaüs. En hulle was in gesprek met mekaar oor al hierdie dinge wat voorgeval het. En terwyl hulle praat en mekaar ondervra, kom Jesus self nader en loop met hulle saam.

Maar hulle oë is weerhou, sodat hulle Hom nie kon herken nie.”

“Hulle oë is weerhou, sodat hulle Hom nie kon herken nie.”

“En Hy sê vir hulle: Watter woorde is dit wat julle met mekaar loop en wissel, en waarom is julle bedroef? En die een wie se naam Kléopas was, antwoord en sê vir Hom: Is U alleen 'n vreemdeling in Jerusalem en weet U nie van die dinge wat in hierdie dae daarin gebeur het nie?.

Weereens, dit is belangrik om die tye te verstaan, hier was dit die periode tussen die Pasga en die Fees van Weke. Beide die Pasga en die Fees van Weke—Pasga en Pinkster—was pelgrims feeste. Die Jode het van verskeie streke afgekom om dit in Jerusalem te vier en as dit vir hulle moontlik was het hulle in Jerusalem oorgebly inplaas daarvan om heen en weer te reis. Baie mense het die plek besoek, ons kan dit vergelyk met ‘n vakansie oord en mense getalle wat toeneem gedurende die seisoen en ook die vermindering ná die seisoen.

“En Hy sê vir hulle: Watter dinge? En hulle antwoord Hom: Die dinge aangaande Jesus, die Nasaréner, wat 'n profeet was, kragtig in werk en woord voor God en die hele volk; en hoe ons owerpriesters en owerstes Hom oorgelewer het tot die doodstraf en Hom gekruisig het.”

Let op die strafbaarheid van die godsdienstige instellings, in daardie tyd was dit die Sanhedrin, vandag is dit die Vatikaan Curia en die Wêreld Raad van Kerke, hulle kruisig Jesus vandag nog.

“En ons het gehoop dat dit Hy was wat Israel sou verlos; maar nou is dit vandag, met dit alles, die derde dag vandat dit plaasgevind het.”

Die “derde dag” in Bybelse tipologie is altyd ‘n skadu verwysing na ‘n opstanding ondervinding.

“Maar sommige vroue uit ons het ons ook ontstel nadat hulle vroeg by die graf was; en toe hulle sy liggaam nie kry nie, het hulle gekom en gesê dat hulle ook 'n gesig gesien het van engele wat sê dat Hy lewe. En sommige van die wat saam met ons was, het na die graf gegaan en dit net so gevind soos die vroue ook gesê het; maar Hom het hulle nie gesien nie.”

“En Hy sê vir hulle: o Onverstandiges, met harte wat traag is om te glo alles wat die profete gespreek het! Moes die Christus nie hierdie dinge ly en in sy heerlikheid ingaan nie? En Hy het begin van Moses en al die profete af en vir hulle uitgelê in al die Skrifte die dinge wat op Hom betrekking het. Daarop kom hulle naby die dorp waarheen hulle op reis was, en Hy het gemaak of Hy verder wou gaan; maar hulle het by Hom aangedring en gesê: Bly by ons, want dit is amper aand en die dag het gedaal; en Hy het ingegaan om by hulle te bly.”

(Let op, hulle nooi Hom in.) 

“Toe is hulle oë geopen en hulle het Hom herken, en Hy het uit hulle gesig verdwyn. En hulle sê vir mekaar: Was ons hart nie brandende in ons toe Hy met ons op die pad gepraat en vir ons die Skrifte uitgelê het nie? Toe staan hulle in dieselfde uur op en gaan na Jerusalem terug en vind die elf en die wat saam met hulle bymekaar was, wat sê: Die Here het waarlik opgestaan en het aan Simon verskyn. Toe vertel hulle wat op die pad gebeur het en hoe Hy aan hulle bekend geword het by die breking van die brood.” (Luk. 24:13-35)

Tot vandag toe hou Ortodokse Jode die week na Pasga miniatuur Seder etes. Die Apostels kon dit nie bywoon nie omdat Jesus vir hulle gesê het dat Hy nie weer die Pasga sal neem tot en met die Huwelik aandete van die Lam (Luk. 22:14-18). Die Apostels kon nie daar wees nie. Maar Jesus openbaar Homself by die breking van die brood en dit is altyd na die derde dag soos wat Hosea gesê het. (Hos. 6:2).

Die Derde Dag

Die vraag wat dikwels gevra word, is: Hoe kom ons by die drie dae en drie nagte van Jesus se kruisiging uit? Het Jesus op ’n Woensdag of op ‘n Donderdag gesterf?

“En dit was omtrent die sesde uur, en daar het duisternis oor die hele aarde gekom tot die negende uur toe-” (Luk. 23:43) Met ander woorde van 12 uur die middag af tot 3 uur die middag.

Die Jode bereken tyd van sonsondergang tot sonsondergang, dit word altyd gebaseer op die skeppings verhaal in Genesis- ‘Owr’ na ‘choshek’- lig tot donker. Dit maak nie saak hoeveel ure van die dag oor is nie omdat as die son onder gegaan het was dit gereken as ‘n dag. Dit kon nie ‘n verduistering gewees nie om twee redes, eerstens dit was die 14de Nissan.

Die Jode volg ‘n maan kalender. Dit is die teenoorgestelde fase van die maan siklus vir ‘n sonsverduistering om plaas te vind. Dit kon nie ‘n sonsverduistering gewees het nie; iets moes met die son gebeur het. Hosea sê Hy sal ons op die derde dag laat opstaan. (Hos. 6:2) Die Hebreeuse profeet sê dit het ‘n toekomstige eskatologiese betekenis.

“En in dié dag, spreek die Here HERE, laat Ek die son op die middag ondergaan en vir die aarde die lig duister word terwyl dit nog dag is.” (Amos 8:9) Toe Jesus op die kruis gesterf het- het die son ondergegaan, net soos wat Amos geprofeteer het.

In die Bybel in verskillende tye het God tyd versteur .

Volgens Paulus is daar basies drie hemele. (2 Kor. 12:2) Die eerste hemel– die atmosfeer van die aarde; die tweede hemel- die buite ruimte; en die derde hemel- die ewigheid.

Maar tyd word altyd bereken en gekalibreer op die basis van die tweede hemel se planetariese beweging. Streng gesproke is daar atomiese horlosies wat nie deur die planetarium beweging werk nie maar deur die uitstraling van atomiese gedeeltes, maar tot hierdie uurwerk moet ook hulle berekeninge in nanosekondes uitdruk.

Tyd is afhanklik van die tweede hemel.

In Jesaja en Openbaring wanneer daar gepraat word van die “shamayim” – die hemele wat toegerol word soos ‘n boek (Jes. 34:4; Op. 6:14), wat beteken die buiteruimte verdwyn en die ewigheid ontmoet die aarde. Dit is wat gebeur; dan bestaan tyd nie meer nie.

Ons het twee woorde in Grieks vir tyd—“kronos” en “kairos.” Kronos is ’n kronologie van gebeure wat beteken ons het kronologie in die ewigheid maar daar is nie tyd nie. Ewigheid is nie ‘n uurwerk wat aanhou loop nie, omdat daar nie ‘n uurwerk is nie. God doen iets met tyd.

In die Boek Josua het God die son laat stil staan. (Jos. 10:12-13). In Openbaring 8:12 gaan God dit weer doen, ’n dag van 24 uur sal verkort word na 16 ure.

Met koning Hiskia se genesing het God die son laat terug beweeg. (2 Kon. 20:9-11).

As ons lees hoe oud Hiskia was gedurende sy regering dan het ons ’n man wat net so oud as Jesus sou gewees het—in sy 30’s- met die tyd wat terug gegaan het, so die tyd moes aangeloop het.

Met ander woorde toe die son met Jesus onder gegaan het, het die son met Jesus aan beweeg en die teenoorgestelde gebeur wat met Hiskia gebeur het.

Hier was ‘n man in sy dertigs wie se lewe verleng was omdat die uurwerk teruggeloop het, die son het terug gegaan, en soos met Jesus, is ’n man met dieselfde ouderdom se lewe verkort omdat dit aangeloop het. Dit het met Hiskia gebeur, en ons sien dit in Openbaring en in die Boek Josua.

In verskillende tye het God met tyd ingemeng. Toe die Here Jesus gesterf het, het die son twee keer ondergegaan. Gekruisig op ‘n Vrydag? Nee, nie op “Goeie Vrydag” nie. Mattheus , Markus Lukas en Johannes sê dit het met Pasga gebeur volgens die Maan Kalender, nie op die Paasfees (Easter) volgens die son kalender nie. Easter is ’n heidense fees. In die 4de eeu het die Roomse Katolieke kerk dit verander. Jesus het nie op ‘n “Goeie Vrydag” gesterf nie, maar ons kan sê Hy het op [‘n ] Vrydag gesterf. Die son het Vrydag onder gegaan, Jesus is van die kruis af, om 3 uur kom die son op, die son gaan weer onder op Vrydag nag, die son kom Saterdag op en gaan Saterdag aand onder en ons tel nog steeds 3 letterlike dae en nagte.. As Jesus op ‘n Donderdag gekruisig was dan het ons ‘n probleem gehad, ons sou 4 gehad het. Maar dit moes 3 dae en drie nagte gewees het, dieselfde as met Lasarus (Joh. 11:14), dieselfde met die twee getuienisse (Op. 11:9) en Jona. (Joh. 1:17)

 

Die Verenigde samehorigheid van Cleopas en die Dissipel

En met dit alles is dit die derde dag en Jesus is op pad na Emmaus en terwyl Hy op pad is ontmoet Hy Cleapas en ‘n ander dissipel, maar hulle oë is weerhou om Hom te sien, Jesus loop saam met hulle maar hulle kan Hom nie werklik sien nie.

“Watter woorde is dit wat julle met mekaar loop en wissel?” En hulle vertel Hom van al die dinge wat gebeur het, asof Hy nie weet nie en Hy antwoord.... o Onverstandiges, met harte wat traag is om te glo alles wat die profete gespreek het!...Was dit nie nodig dat hierdie dinge moes gebeur het nie? Let op, Jesus betreur dit omdat hulle die Skrifte nie ken nie.

“En Hy het begin van Moses en al die profete af en vir hulle uitgelê in al die Skrifte die dinge wat op Hom betrekking het.” (Luk. 24:25-27) Skrifte, die Skrifte, die Skrifte. o Onverstandiges--- met harte wat traag is om te glo” Alles wat in die Skrifte is.

Baie van ons het voorkeur Bybel verse en Skrifgedeeltes. Tot klein kindertjies het voorkeur slaaptyd stories soos Dawid en Goliat, dit is goed, maar ‘n voorkeur is nie inklusief nie. Al die Skrifte is belangrik. Drie keer (ingeslote Luk. 24:32) beklemtoon Jesus die Skrifte, die Skrifte, die Skrifte. Hy is die Woord wat vlees geword het; Hy is die “Logos”. Die Bybel is Jesus in druk—die Skrifte.

Jesus het saam met hulle geloop maar hulle het dit nie geweet nie. Hy probeer die Skrifte aan hulle verduidelik maar hulle begryp dit nie. Jesus het sekerlik uit die dood opgestaan maar hulle kan dit nie regtig verstaan nie, hulle weet nie of dit waar is nie. En so het ons ‘n situasie waar Jesus se eie dissipels nie die Skrifte kon verstaan nie of die feit kon begryp dat dit Hy was wat saam met hulle geloop het nie. Hulle het hom nie werklik gesien nie en Hom ook nie werklik gehoor nie terwyl Hy saam met hulle, by hulle was.

HY was saam met hulle, maar hulle was nie regtig saam met Hom nie.

Ek is seker Jesus is saam met my, maar die vraag is, is ek altyd regtig saam met Hom?

Hy is hier, maar sien ek Hom? Nie as ek die Skrifte nie verstaan nie. Hy is daar en Hy praat met my maar verstaan ek wat Hy sê? Nie as ek nie die Skrifte begryp nie.

Wanneer ons bid dan praat ons met God, maar wanneer ons die Bybel lees dan praat God met ons, dit is ‘n dubbelbaan gesprek. So, ek wandel met Hom, ek gaan kerk toe en luister na preke maar wanneer ek in verkeers knoop vasval dan wil ek van hierdie mense uit die wegruim—die man met die selfoon teen sy oor en sigaret in die mond, in al hierdie dinge is Jesus met my, maar herken ek Hom? Sal ek die sneller trek as Hy sigbaar langs my sit? Die feit dat Hy nie sigbaar by my sit nie ontken nie die waarheid dat Hy nog steeds werklik by my is nie. Hy hoor wat ek sê, maar hoor ek wat Hy sê? Hy sien my maar sien ek Hom? Hy probeer aan my verduidelik maar luister ek?

Lewe ek en Wandel ek in die Krag van die Opstanding?

Die punt is, Jesus is inderdaad iemand wat dood was, en vir geen oomblik twyfel ek oor die historiese werklikheid van Jesus se kruisiging nie. Ek betwyfel nie vir een oomblik dat Hy in my plek gesterf het en dat hy gekruisig was nie.

Wat ek wel bevraagteken is hoeveel van Jakob Prasch, van my ou self is besig om saam met Hom te sterf? Dat Hy na die kruis gegaan het is ek baie seker van; maar hoe getrou dra ek dit en wandel ek in Sy voetspore soos wat Simon gewandel het? Dit is die hoofsaak.

Jesus het opgestaan maar hulle betwyfel dit. Het hy opgestaan? Ek betwyfel dit glad nie—maar dit is nie die vraag nie, die vraag is lewe ek en wandel ek met Hom in die krag van die opstanding? Dit is my vraag. Dat hy gesterf het en opgestaan het, is ek seker van, maar het ek gesterf en opgestaan? Dit is die probleem. Die Skrifte is daar maar hoe goed verstaan ek dit? Hy is met my, maar sien ek Hom en herken ek Hom? Hoor ek wat Hy sê? Maar let op, Hy maak Hom aan hulle bekend met die breek van die brood, Hy eet saam met hulle.

In die Bybel, die rede waarom ‘n persoon geëet het nadat die Here hom of haar uit die dood opgewek het was omdat dit ‘n bewys was dat daar ’n letterlike opstanding plaasgevind het, geeste eet nie. Toe Jesus die dogter opgewek het Hy gesê hulle moet vir haar iets gee om te eet. (Mr. 5:43) Dieselfde met Lasarus. (Joh. 12:2)

God weet van die Jehovah se getuienisse lank voordat hulle begin bestaan het en dat hulle gaan beweer dat die opstanding nie letterlik en fisies was nie. Geeste eet nie. Jesus het letterlik geëet omdat dit ‘n letterlike opstanding was, maar dit is met die breek van die brood wat Hy Homself gemanifesteer het.

Let op Jesus het gemaak of Hy verder wou gaan. “Dit is hier waar ek julle gaan los- groete, Ek gaan vêrder op hierdie pad.” En hulle sê nee “nee, nee, kom in, bly by ons!” “Ons wil meer hoor!” Verklaar die Skrifte vir ons!” “Verklaar U Woord vir ons!” Vertel ons meer van Jesus!” “Asseblief bly by ons!” Hulle moes Hom innooi.

Die Nodigheid om Hom in te nooi.

Vandag is dit presies dieselfde. As daar ooit ‘n groep Christene was wat vandag nog op die pad na Emmaus loop dan is dit die Christene van Laodicea. En Hy sê: “Ek staan by die deur en klop” (Op. 3:20) Hy sê: “Kyk, julle sien My nie; Julle hoor My nie regtig nie. Julle sien nie julle eie naaktheid vir wat dit is nie; Julle sien nie julle ware geestelike toestand vir wat dit is nie. Julle is verblind deur materialisme en oorvloed. Julle dink dit is ‘n barometer vir ‘n groot seën?”

Dit is seëninge, maar dit is nie die skietlood nie; dit is nie die lakmoes toets nie. Hulle kan net nie sien nie en hulle kan ook nie hoor nie, (Op. 3:17-18) behalwe die wat ore het. (Op. 3:22) Dit is wat Jesus sê...”Kyk, Ek staan by die deur en Ek klop. As iemand my stem hoor en die deur oopmaak, sal Ek ingaan na hom toe en saam met hom maaltyd hou, en hy met My.” (Op. 3:20)

Baie mense soos ek gebruik gewoonlik hierdie vers in die loop van Evangelisasie en dit is goed en aanvaarbaar, maar dit is nie primêr waarvan hier gepraat word in sy eksegetiese konteks nie.

Jesus praat nie hoofsaaklik met ongeredde mense nie alhoewel dit op ‘n manier van toepassing is op hulle; Jesus praat met ons. “Laat My inkom Ek wil saam met julle eet.” “Laat My saam met julle eet.” Eet saam met My en Ek sal saam met jou eet. “Ek sal hierdie dinge aan jou verduidelik.” Jesus wou verder gaan op die pad. Hy maak asof Hy verder wou gaan. Hulle moes Hom vra om in te kom en dit is net toe hulle Hom vra om in te kom dat Hy Homself aan hulle geopenbaar het, en toe verstaan hulle die Skrifte; Toe sien hulle Hom vir wie Hy is; en toe, en net toe, het hulle Sy Woord verstaan vir wat dit is. En toe, en net toe het hulle werklik gesien en waarlik gehoor.

Ja, Hy het opgestaan, maar wandel ons in die krag van daardie opstanding? Ja, Hy het gesterf, maar het ons gesterf? Ja, Sy Woord is die Waarheid, maar drie keer sê Hy vir Sy dissipels dat hulle dwaas is omdat hulle die Woord t nie verstaan het nie. Hulle kon nie sien nie en ook nie hoor nie.

Ons wandel op dieselfde pad met Jesus. Hy is volkome tevrede en volkome vasbeslote om self die pad te loop, maar Hy sal nooit ‘n uitnodiging na ‘n middag maal van die hand wys nie.

God Seën.



JP/ Moriel / 08/2017 / vertaal

Staying the course amidst isolation

By David Passmore • May 30, 2026
Staying The Course Amidst Isolation Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Living in Israel one gets the feeling that the metaphorical walls are closing in. Israel's reputation is being tarnished all over social media and the mainstream media, and this is reflected in massive public disdain towards this country. We are constantly told that there is near consensus amongst academics and commentators that a genocide was committed in Gaza. The very legitimacy of the state is brought into question. The majority of Americans are now hostile towards Israel. There is real fear that the next U.S. administration will turn against Israel. Even if this were to happen passively, by the U.S. refraining from exercising its veto power towards Security Council Resolutions condemning Israeli actions this could be catastrophic. Internally it is a fractured society leaning increasingly right wing which further alienates Israel from world opinion. An example in point is how Ben Gvir mocked the most recent participants of a global aid flotilla to Gaza. Such conduct further agitates outrage at Israel. The left-wing media presents the ruins of Gaza as a mortal wound in Israel's side. When the world observes this level of carnage no degree of public relations can ameliorate the sense of indignation towards Israel. We can liken the situation of Israel to that of a depressed person. All he sees is hopelessness and gloom. But this isn't the first time that the Jewish nation has been faced with such darkness. Things change and we don't know how the geo-political map will reconfigure in the future. We need to ride out this storm and keep going. On a historical note, the situation is reminiscent of what our ancestors faced when we returned from the Babylonian exile to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was faced with constant lies and conspiracies designed to entrap him by hostile actors: Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem the Arab. They employed deception, slander and ridicule in order to maintain their political eminence. There was also a certain sense of abandonment amongst the Jews in Israel then as in our own day. We read in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah about the anguish of the leadership in Israel concerning the lack of assistance from the Babylonian diaspora towards the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and the Temple. Only 20% of the exiles returned to the land. It was largely the poor who returned. Most of the affluent, established Jews remained in Exile. This is a continuing theme in Jewish history. It is also important to observe that from its very beginnings there were bible believing Christians who spearheaded the return of the Jews to their land. The idea of organizing a return of the Jews to Israel began as a Protestant Restorationist objective that can be traced to 17th century Puritan England. The protagonists of the Cromwellian Republic viewed themselves as the new Israel fighting the Papist forces of Satan. Alongside this, interest grew in the notion that biblical prophecies pertaining to the return of the Jews to Israel were a necessary precursor for the return of Christ. The growth of the British Empire in the 19th century lent political clout to Christian Restorationism with specific missions to the Jews established. Although there had been a longing to return to Israel as written in the thrice daily Amidah prayer, Jewish Zionism arose in the midst of mid nineteenth century nationalism and was further fermented by European antisemitism. It was an altogether secular enterprise. Although Israel's situation appears rather stark, we can draw strength from the Providence afforded to our ancestors in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah when they too were faced with defamation. This is also an opportunity to grow closer to our natural allies in the evangelical world who from the beginning of Zionism were steadfast supporters of the project to establish a Jewish homeland in Israel.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Signs of the Times - Tony Pearce

By David Passmore • May 25, 2026
Signs of the Times Tony Pearce ‍ ‍ Left, right or center – is our democracy in danger “Things fall apart, the center does not hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” W.B Yeats ‘The Second Coming. ’ ‍ ‍ Labour’s losses in the council elections and the battle for succession to their unpopular leader Kier Starmer have raised the possibility that we may soon have our seventh Prime Minister in ten years. Local elections saw Reform and the Greens make sweeping gains, leading Green Party leader, Zack Polanski to say that we are seeing ‘the end of the old two party system’. Maybe we are. In which case what comes next? Will we head to the far left, the far right or will the center hold on to power? Or will it end with ungovernable chaos as unqualified people take control of local and national government? Behind all this there are fundamental questions, ‘What is government for? Who does it represent and where is it going?’ ‍ ‍‍ ‍ According to the Bible (Romans 13) the purpose of government is to promote good and restrain evil. The government has the right to raise taxes for the common good of society and people should pay them. In 1 Timothy 2 Paul encourages us to pray for the government that ‘we may live a godly and peaceable life’. In other words, pray that the government will create an orderly and peaceful society and not interfere with our right to set up communities that teach and preach the Word of God. The situation becomes more difficult when we see government promoting things which are harmful and restraining things which are good and clamping down on freedom of speech with a threat to our ability to live a ‘godly and peaceable life’ ‍ Since becoming a Christian in my early twenties, I have wrestled with the question of how our faith applies to contemporary political issues. I started this quest on the left politically after leaving university and working as an English teacher with sympathies for Marxism. I then became a born again Christian in 1970, and joined my late wife Nikki in evangelizing the radical left, by handing out leaflets at their marches and demonstrations in London and attending their meetings to discuss matters of faith and politics with them. ‍ ‍‍ ‍ We had some good discussions with people and hope we made some consider the Christian alternative. However as we looked at Marxism from a Christian point of view and its practice in Communist countries, we understood that behind this ideology there is a strong anti-christian spirit. It denies the existence of God and promotes the idea of human perfectibility by our own effort. This is exemplified in the words of the Internationale, the socialist battle hymn, ‘No saviour from on high delivers, no faith have we in prince or peer, our own right hand the chains will shiver, chains of hatred, greed and fear.’ This Antichrist spirit led to the persecution of Christians in the Communist countries of eastern Europe, the Soviet Union and China. Far from creating the socialist paradise on earth that Lenin wrote about in ‘Socialism and Religion’, it created a society ruled by hatred, greed and fear, controlled by secret police, prison camps and responsible for the death of millions. ‍ ‍ In western society we have witnessed the growth of ‘cultural Marxism’ a movement aimed at infiltrating and changing society from within, rather than fomenting the workers’ revolution. Labour’s Fabian Society, with its (now discarded) logo of the wolf in sheep’s clothing, has been engaged in this process since the beginning of the 20th century. Social change really took off with the permissive society in the 1960s, which succeeded in changing traditional values, especially in the area of sex and the family. It replaced biblical values with a new ‘morality’ that is fundamentally anti Christian. These ideas have permeated large swathes of our society including the education system, the judiciary, the Civil Service, much of the media, mainstream political parties (including even the Conservative ‘wets’ and parts of the established church). ‍ ‍ Melanie Phillips describes the results of this in her book, ‘The Builder’s Stone.’ ‘Having decided that the West was rotten to the core, western elites set out to create a new culture that would usher in the brotherhood of man and eradicate hatred, prejudice, and war. Their Brave New World junked biblical religion with all its constraints on behaviour and revolved instead around self gratification. Everybody had the right to live as they wanted; nobody could say that their way of life was better or worse than anyone else’s; no one had the right to say that their culture was better than any other culture. That was ‘racism.’ At the heart of all this was the doctrine that there was no such thing as objective truth. Everything was relative; everything was a matter of opinion. Because there was no truth feelings became more important than facts. So the West abandoned the codes of morality, conscience, truth and lies, personal responsibility, and duty to others in favour of a culture of the self. In the process it junked its inherited traditions and biblical codes on which western culture was based.’ ‍ Britain changed from being a society that respected values based on the 10 Commandments and the teaching of Jesus Christ to one that discarded them for relative values. Ideas of ‘diversity, inclusion and equity’ became the norm, together with and a form of ‘tolerance’, that is really very intolerant if you oppose it. This ‘tolerance’ means accepting the virtues of multiculturalism and humanism and believing that all gods are equally valid or true (or none are). We must also accept that all lifestyles and family arrangements including homosexual and transsexual ones are just as valid as traditional two parent heterosexual families, with a father and mother committed to each other in lifelong matrimony looking after their own children. ‍ As society accepts this radical change in how we view culture, morality and religion, we are told not to criticize other cultures and world views or imply that they are anything less than equal to the culture, morality and faith derived from the Bible. ‍ All this has not improved society. Instead we have a collapse of values with no central idea to hold it together, just a group of competing ‘communities’ which are often only united in opposition to the traditional values and culture of Great Britain. A good example of this is the ‘red – green alliance’ of radical leftists and Islamists who come together to denounce Israel and campaign to ‘globalise the Intifada’. In practice this means a world wide war against Israel and Judaeo-Christian society and a desire to replace it with their version of either Islamism or Communism. However if one of them were to come to power, you can be sure that the Islamist’s would get rid of the leftists or vice versa. In fact that happened in Iran’s 1979 revolution, when Islamist supporters of Khomeini and Communists came together to get rid of the Shah. Then the Islamists seized power, turned on the Communists and wiped them out. ‍ Alisteir Heath wrote in the Daily Telegraph: ‘Ruined by decades of political vandalism, the Britain we knew and loved, a land of stability, pragmatism, and ancient freedoms, is no more. Today’s UK is uglier, impoverished, volatile and disorderly. We’ve lost our level-headedness. Anger and frustration have become our defining emotions. Our institutions have wasted away, and we have been taught to despise our history. The decline of family, community and faith have led to alienation, dependence on welfare and the rise of novel ideologies, mostly secular but also sectarian, turbocharged by social media. While the state becomes unnervingly authoritarian, the air reeks of insurrection and every variety of extremism. The British public’s sense of betrayal is as well-founded as it is dangerous. The machinery of state is incompetent and self-serving, a vehicle for social engineering in the global interest.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ Criticism of this process now risks being classed as ‘hate crime’ with a growing authoritarian society monitoring social media posts and public teaching of alternative ideas in ways which risk shutting down free speech in our society. A Christian teacher Enoch Burke is currently in prison in Dublin after he was suspended from his job and jailed after refusing to accept and teach transgenderism in the school. ‍ ‍ ‍ Nick Timothy, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice, got into trouble when he questioned mass Muslim prayer in Trafalgar Square. He wrote: ‘Mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination. The adhan – which declares there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger – is, when called in a public place, a declaration of domination. The domination of public places is straight from the Islamist playbook.” He is right in this. Allah hu Akhbar actually means Allah is greater, greater than your God, Muhammad is greater than Jesus and the Koran is greater than the Bible. ‍ ‍ ‍ Tim Dieppe of Christian Concern for our Nation wrote: “The fact that we have mass Islamic prayer in Trafalgar Square at all is indicative of the massive culture change that we have seen in the last few decades. A culture change that was not voted for or ever agreed to by the British people. And, a culture change that can hardly be described as having been entirely beneficial to our culture as a whole. I only need to mention grooming gangs involving mostly Pakistani Muslim men , sharia courts, honour crimes, terror attacks, the assassination of an MP, an attempt to blockade Parliament, mass antisemitic marches through London, a convicted terrorist standing for local elections, sectarianism, and many other examples to make the point. Earlier this month, the Government gave Muslims special protection with the adoption of an official definition of anti-Muslim hostility .” ‍ ‍ ‍ You are not really supposed to question this in public life today. A message circulating on social media is an apt commentary on all this. ‘First they overlook evil, then they permit evil, then they legalise evil, then they promote evil, then celebrate evil, then persecute those who call it evil.’ Soviet dissident Solzhenitsyn wrote: ‘A Communist system can be recognised by how it spares criminals and criminalises its opponents.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ The root cause of all this is the rejection of God and biblical values. The 18th-century French philosopher Joseph de Maistre coined the phrase "people get the government they deserve." David Pawson followed up on this idea, arguing that in democratic societies like ours, the moral and spiritual condition of a nation's citizens is directly reflected in the leaders they elect. If the general public abandons moral truths, they will inevitably vote for governments that reflect those same compromises. David Pawson taught that God may use governmental leadership to judge or bless a nation, depending on the people's obedience. He noted that Hebrew prophets saw wicked rulers as a form of divine judgement on a society that has strayed from God's laws. Therefore a nation's ultimate hope rests on repentance rather than just political change. His conclusion is that Christians should actively stand for moral truth in society. He believed that the church is meant to influence culture upward, and that a decline in national morality inevitably leads to deteriorating governance. ‍ ‍ ‍ Sadly much of the church today has become the ‘salt that has lost its savour’ through compromise with antichristian forces in society and government. It may be too late to save our country and western democracy as social and economic pressures create a collapse of democracy and push us either towards anarchy or dictatorship. ‍ ‍ ‍ Yeats’ poem quoted at the beginning of this article ends with the enigmatic line ‘Some rough beast slouches towards Bethlehem to be born.’ Most likely he is referring to the coming anti-Messiah who is labelled the Beast in the book of Revelation. Many believe his is now waiting in the wings to replace the true Messiah (born in Bethlehem) and bring in the dictatorship prophesied in Revelation 13. The Bible indicates that the Beast or Antichrist will have power for a moment, but it will be short lived and doomed to destruction at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ to the earth. Then the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our God and of His Messiah and He shall reign forever and ever (Revelation 11.15) and the ‘government shall be on His shoulder’ (Isaiah 9.6). ‍ ‍ ‍ Maranatha come Lord Jesus. ‍ ‍ ‍ Water, water nowhere and not a drop to drink. (Apologies to the Ancient Mariner) ‍ ‍‍ ‍ While nations worry about supply of oil and gas as a result of the war in the Gulf and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a much more vital commodity for human survival is water. And it is in short supply in a growing number of nations. ‍ ‍ As of 2026, over 25 countries face extremely high water stress, with the most severe crises located in the Middle East and North Africa. This region is home to the world's most water-stressed nations, including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, and Libya. India and Pakistan face critical water scarcity due to overexploitation of aquifers and population density. Much of Africa , Somalia and Ethiopia in particular are facing severe shortages due to drought and climate change. Mexico and parts of the United States (particularly Texas and the west coast) are experiencing significant water shortages and declining groundwater levels. ‍ ‍ ‍ Iran is facing a severe, multi-year water crisis as of May 2026, with major cities like Tehran, Mashhad, and Karaj approaching the point where taps could run dry due to depleted reservoirs. Groundwater is depleted across most of the country, and nineteen provinces are experiencing severe drought. The crisis is driven by a combination of climate change and decades of poor water management, including excessive dam construction and inefficient, water-intensive agriculture. China is facing a severe, multi-faceted water crisis defined by extreme scarcity in the north, widespread pollution, and mismanagement, threatening its food supply and economic growth. ‍ ‍ ‍ Several countries are significantly affected by upstream dam construction that reduces downstream water flow, causing, environmental, and diplomatic crises. These countries include Iraq, heavily impacted by dams built on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers by Turkey and Iran, leading to reduced water for agriculture, destruction of forests, and increased sandstorms. Egypt and Sudanface significant water security risks due to the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile. Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laosare affected of dams built by China on the upper Mekong River ‍ ‍ One country which bucks this trend is Israel. Israel manages its water resources by transforming a chronic shortage into a surplus through large-scale desalination, extensive wastewater recycling, and a centralised national water carrier system. The agriculture sector has shifted away from freshwater, using treated effluent instead. Advanced drip irrigation technologies are widely used to minimise waste. Israel has exported its water technologies to countries around the world, particularly Africa where it has given advice on how to use limited water resources to great effect. ‍ ‍ ‍ Without water no society on earth can survive. Bible prophecies indicate that water shortage and pollution will be a global problem in the last days. Most obviously no water equals no food, so famine is an inevitable result of water shortages. Jesus warned of this as a sign of the last days in Matthew 24.7. Revelation 8.10-11 speaks of something called ‘Wormwood’ falling on rivers and springs of water causing it to become bitter and many to die from drinking it. ‍ ‍ Prophecy speaks of the two great rivers of the ancient world, the Nile and the Euphrates, being affected by a crisis causing the Euphrates to dry up (Revelation 16.12) and the Nile to become contaminated and its waters turn foul (Isaiah 19.5-11). Isaiah 24 speaks of a curse devouring the earth in the last days causing the earth to be ‘defiled (or polluted) under its inhabitants.’ ‍ ‍ ‍ According to the New Scientist, there are massive amounts of water hidden deep beneath the Earth's surface. Scientists have found evidence of a reservoir of water three times the volume of all surface oceans combined, located roughly 250–400 miles underground within the mantle. ‍ ‍ ‍ It may be that the Lord will release this water to replenish and clean up the earth in the Millennial kingdom when ‘waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water.’ Isaiah 35. Zechariah 14.8-9 says, ‘In that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea; In both summer and winter it shall occur. And the Lord shall be King over all the earth.’ Zechariah 14.8-9. See also Ezekiel 47. ‍ Rethinking Russia ‍ Things are not going well for Vladimir Putin in his ‘special military operation’. Four years after invading Ukraine in February 2022, Russia is not making advances and actually losing ground. Russia is losing as many as 25,000- 35,000 casualties a month and over 1.2 million have been killed and wounded since the war began. Ukrainian skills in drone warfare have destroyed large quantities of Russian equipment, tanks, armoured personnel carriers, artillery and rocket systems, helicopters, and naval vessels. ‍ ‍ Russia is spending an estimated 40% of the entire federal budget on the war effort. As a result of this and western sanctions, Russia is increasingly unable to fix chronic infrastructure problems at home. During the bitter Russian winter thousands of people were left without heat, light, or even water. All forms of transport, trains, trucks and planes, are facing logistical problems, making it difficult to transport goods and people across the vast Russian regions. Russia is on the way to an infrastructure collapse that will likely take decades to recover. ‍ ‍ Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov warned the State Duma that Russia's faltering economy risks stoking a 1917-style revolution. He demanded urgent financial and economic measures by autumn to avert a potential economic collapse. This raises the danger of the Russian Federation fracturing. The Caucuses are restive, the far east is looking to China and Siberia is facing an acute problem as a result of melting permafrost, causing buildings, bridges and pipelines to collapse. ‍ ‍ In the present circumstances it is hard to see how Russia could lead the Gog and Magog invasion of Israel (Ezekiel 38-39). Some have said that it is more likely that Turkey is the lead power in the War of Gog and Magog. They say that Meshech and Tubal are not Moscow and Tobolsk, but regions of modern Turkey. Erdogan’s Turkey is backed by an Islamist world view hostile to Israel, seeking the recovery of its Ottoman Empire. He has his eyes on taking control of Jerusalem. Turkey is possession of a large land army already stationed in the region, some of it occupying part of Syria. ‍ ‍ The alternative is that the War of Gog and Magog is some way off, possibly part of Armageddon, giving time for Russia to recover from its present distress. We wait and see, but meanwhile spare a thought and a prayer for the people of Ukraine and Russia, suffering as a result of Putin’s futile war, oppressed by his corrupt dictatorship and facing an economic and social collapse caused by his failed policies. ‍ ‍

Trumps visit with Xi

By David Passmore • May 25, 2026
Trump's Visit with Xi Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The tempest path of Sino-U.S. tensions came to a head during Trump's first term in office with the outbreak of Covid. Many commentators believed that the deterioration in relations was in terminal decline and that a major confrontation in the straits of Taiwan was fast looming. Trump held China responsible for the spread of Covid, insisting that he would pursue reparations. The election of Biden halted this commitment. Biden sought a non-confrontational policy towards Beijing. In the aftermath of the disastrous premature withdrawal from Afghanistan handing that country over to the Taliban and the Russian invasion of Ukraine under his watch, Biden became too preoccupied to assertively engage with China. Chinese State media portrayed Trump's visit as being rather unremarkable in the context of other foreign dignitaries lining up to meet Xi, pointing out that just a week later Putin would arrive in Beijing. China manifests that it is winning the trade war that Trump began in 2018, beating America at its own game of capitalism. They frame the U.S. as being in a position of weakness because China is able to source whatever products they buy from the U.S. elsewhere like oil from Canada, and soybeans from Brazil. The oil, soybeans and 200 Boeing's Xi agreed to purchase from Trump were presented as a mere gesture to placate Trump as China has already bought 350 Air Buses in the last year. China would have the world believe that it is only semi-conductors where America has the edge. Here China hints that it is not likely to buy H200 Invidia Chips because it would mean that China will always lag behind the U.S. in building their AI tech. China's major contention and concern is that the U.S. may impose export controls to contain China. China's strategy instead is to invest massively on indigenous innovation. China wants to become an innovation powerhouse that will export its own Chips to the Global South. China is fast catching up with America's lead in AI with the launch of Deep Seek and they claim similar progress with Chip making. China is now ostensibly only eight months behind the U.S. on Large Language Models. Running contrary to this narrative Trump insists that China is desperate to trade with America. China's economy has now peaked. Emblematic of this stagnating growth is rising youth unemployment. China is no longer America's biggest trading partner. Trump has shifted manufacturing back to the U.S. and Trump believes that China can't revive its economy without America. Lined up to meet Xi with Trump were the heads of some of America's biggest Tech Corporations. Corporations like nvidia seek a relaxing of export controls for Chips as they want short term profits, ignoring the risk that China will reverse engineer this technology. More broadly, China and the U.S. are playing a geopolitical chess game spanning the globe. Trump outmaneuvered China in Latin America with the removal of Maduro from power in Venezuela. China is exploiting its influence on Iran in order to get Trump to refrain from taking more active steps towards the defense of Taiwan. Indeed, Trump didn't say anything about Taiwan during his visit. Trump's instincts are of a transactional approach towards alliances, where he is only willing to underwrite defense assistance if allies pay up as an insurer would. It is also important to note that saber rattling the Taiwan card also serves the CCP agenda to distract internal dissent concerning the state of the Chinese economy. Most imminently Trump needs China to pressure Iran to open the Straits of Hormuz and get oil prices down before the midterm elections. China has largely insulated itself from the Gulf energy impact due to stockpiles. Trump would also like China to stop providing Iran with GPS for its missiles. Other Chinese weapons systems and technology sold to Iran have failed to perform well against U.S. and Israeli military hardware. Matters boil down to a leverage between whatever Trump can do on Taiwan, China can do on the strait of Hormouz with Iran. Human Rights concerns, espionage and the alarming rate of Chinese acquisition of U.S. land have been placed on the back burner for the time being.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Prayer request for Phil Malone

By David Passmore • May 17, 2026
Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for Phil Malone and family “Please keep me and my family in prayer. My mum passed away on 13th May at the age of 93. It's a time of mourning, but may it be a time for the Gospel of Christ to be preached to my unbelieving family, especially my brother.”

Please Pray for Joanne Rizzetto, Pastor Dave Rizzetto's wife

By Mea Fredrickson • May 13, 2026
Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for Sister Joanne Rizzetto, wife of Pastor Dave Rizzetto of Church of The Open Door in New York City. Joanne has developed painful complications and adverse side effects from medications following knee surgery. May The Lord intervene for healing and give guidance to her physicians. Lord, we humbly ask you to intervene in the life of our dear sister. We know you can do all things and that you hear our prayers and consider your servants. Please put a stop to the adverse reaction. Restrain and reverse its effects and restore our sister so that she can continue to serve you in the ministry that you have called them to. We do glorify Your Name. We don't ask as those who treat you as our debtor, but as those who have tasted your goodness and found such mercy and compassion at your feet. Grace and peace and mercy be with Joanne and Pastor Dave.

Will Lebanon miss its golden opportunity?

By David Passmore • May 5, 2026
Will Lebanon miss its golden opportunity? Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Converging new facts on the ground have transformed the political landscape in Lebanon. With Assad removed from power in Syria, a vital lifeline of arms supplies for Hezbollah originating in Iran has diminished. Hezbollah suffered considerable losses in its last round of fighting with Israel. The decapitation of its leadership with the targeted pager attack inflicted a severe blow. Hezbollah's new leader Naim Qassem is a weak substitute for the charismatic Nasrallah who was assassinated by Israel in 2024. Hezbollah in its frail state foolishly fell into line with Iran's instruction to join the fighting against Israel following the recent American-Israeli war with Iran. This was contrary to the wishes of the Lebanese government which was fearful of the inevitable destruction that would be wreaked by the Israeli response. The differing attitudes to Israel amongst Lebanon's population is reflective of its ethnic composition. The predominant groups in order of plurality are Christians, Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims with a smaller minority of Druze. The major concern of most Christians in Lebanon is the dire state of their economy. They have no appetite to further their plight by invoking Israel's rage. During the colonial inter war period the French envisaged the demarcation between Lebanon and Syria as carving out enclaves for Christian and Druze control. Within Lebanon there would be a shared government that by convention would have the Executive power split between a Christian President, a Sunni Prime Minister and Shia Speaker of Parliament. The Christians in southern Lebanon (particularly Maronite Catholics) saw themselves as being anthropologically descendants of ancient Phoenicians as opposed to an Arab identity where the Arab Christians were largely Eastern Orthodox. The schism between the Maronites and the Arab Eastern Orthodox dates back to the time of the Crusades. The Maronites were culturally French, speaking French as their main language and held precedence in much of the Lebanese economy. The first threat to Lebanese stability and cohesion was settled by the U.S. Eisenhower administration in 1958 which landed Marines in an amphibious operation. A repeated attempt at this by the Reagan administration in 1983 ended in a military disaster for the U.S. due to suicide bombings by Iranian controlled terrorists. Israeli efforts to bring in stability during the Lebanese Civil War in conjunction with its Lebanese Christian allies led by Major Saad Haddad likewise came to calamity when the Sabra and Shatila revenge attacks took place following the assassination of Lebanese leader Bashir Gemayel. The ''Good Fence'' policy of an Israeli friendly free Lebanon zone in Southern Lebanon eventually ended badly following Menachem Begin's second incursion into Lebanon called ''Shalom HaGalil'' aimed at stopping the PLO rocket attacks on Israeli border communities like Metulla, Kiryat Shmona, Naharya, Rosh Hanikra, Tzfat and Carmiel. The proxy Israeli occupation from the Israeli border to the Litani river became an imbroglio that many in Israel viewed as Israel's Vietnam with widespread domestic protest and a collapse of morale within the IDF. Eventually Israel absorbed Christian war refugees from Lebanon, while the Vatican and most of the Christian world turned their backs on the Lebanese Christians. Lebanon was then saddled with two states within a state. The first was in the aftermath of Black September in 1970 when King Hussein of Jordan defended his Hashemite throne and government from Yasser Arafat's attempt to take over Jordan due to Jordan having a 70% Palestinian Arab demographic majority. The Jordanian legion drove tens of thousands of its pro Arafat Jordanian citizens into Lebanon, creating a population base for the first state within a state under Arafat. However the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and other factions had their niche interests. Courtesy of the Israeli Air Force Arafat relocated what he saw as his government in exile to Tunisia. This was a missed opportunity by the Lebanese government to assert its autonomy and full territorial control by making a Camp David type peace with Israel inclusive of economic and mutual security provisions. Instead an Iranian backed Syrian intervention replaced Arafat's state within a state with a new one that morphed into Hezbollah. The fall of the Assad regime and the Israeli counter-offensive against Hezbollah re-presents Lebanon with the opportunity that it once lost. The predominantly Christian controlled Lebanese military could and should operationally coordinate with the IDF, to obliterate and remove Hezbollah as the Israelis relieved Lebanon of Arafat's state within a state. Such a rapprochement would likely have strong American and possibly French and British support, allowing Lebanon to be at a non-combative peace with Israel along the lines of Egypt and Jordan, and now some of the Emirates. The natural comradery of the Lebanese Druze community with the Israeli Druze and the pro-Israeli Druze of Syria would additionally re-enforce a regional harmony, as would the Maronite Christian community in Israel with their co-coreligionists in Lebanon.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Pastor John Angliss

By David Passmore • May 5, 2026
PASTOR JOHN ANGLISS It is with profound sadness that we learned of the temporary separation from our friend and brother Pastor John Angliss. We look forward to being reunited with John in the millennial reign of Christ and indeed in God's Eternal Kingdom. Jacob Prasch visited John a few weeks ago in the UK while John was in hospice care having been diagnosed preterminal in his illness. While medically correct, it was of course a misdiagnosis. John is now cancer free and is alive and well in the presence of Jesus awaiting us in glory while his mortal body is being renewed for resurrection and immortality. In the meanwhile, during this temporary season of bereavement we do request prayer for his beloved wife Mary and for his congregation, The Ark Fellowship in England near Reading, England. Because he has recently arrived in the USA and is scheduled to address the Moriel Canada branch conference in Winnipeg, Jacob Prasch will regrettably not be able to attend the memorial service in Britain. Our condolences however are very much with Mary and our brethren in the UK who like us knew and loved Pastor Angliss. John was one of a minority of faithful voices who upheld a traditional biblically based Pentecostalism in the era of counterfeit revivals and apostasy that overtook most of British Pentecostalism. John was a faithful friend of Israel & The Jews standing on the prophetic purposes of God for Israel and the salvation of the Jews. John was a loyal friend to Moriel and Jacob Prasch and a colleague of David Pawson and Derek Prince, both of whom likewise stood by God's promises to Israel. John was also a founding leader of CMFI - the Christian Ministerial Fellowship International, former pastor of Three Mile Cross fellowship , and former board member of Focus On Israel (a Pentecostal Ministry to the Jews). While this separation is temporary, John's eternal gain will be our temporary loss. O GRAVE - WHERE IS THEY VICTORY, O DEATH WHERE IS THY STING ? Hosea 13:14 / 1 Corinthians 15: 55-57

We made it this far: Israel at 78

By David Passmore • April 28, 2026
We made it this far: Israel at 78 Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Since the last anniversary milestone of Israel at 75, we have been embroiled in relentless wars. Citizens had little respite to enjoy this year's festivities, coming on the heels of a lull in fighting on the Iranian and Lebanese fronts. We are constantly waiting for a breakthrough on the horizon that will normalize our relations with our neighbors and secure our position on the world stage. It is acutely exhausting to be the focus of the world's attention. But also there is a sense of inevitability accompanying the Zionist project. Specifically that Israel is destined to be central in the wider region and global affairs. Why is this? Is it due to it being a western transplant? Being geographically positioned on the crossroads of three continents? Religious believers would point to prophetic fulfillment. It is short sighted to only look at how our problems are rooted in today’s' reality. Greater forces are at work that will dictate the direction that Israel is heading. The Jewish diaspora will likely find itself in a growing precarious position that will lead to increasing Aliyah (immigration to Israel) and will perhaps ferment the emergence of a second Jewish commonwealth that will not need to heed international pressure in the same way that todays' polity finds itself doing. In this light it is interesting to ponder how our posterity would view our predicament and gains. And I frame matters in these terms with intentionality. We are enmeshed in a seemingly intractable conflict with the Palestinians, and yet Israel has made great gains particularly in the technological fields. There is a current of thinking that perceives Israel's way out of its quagmire is by making itself indispensable to technological advancements. We don't know how tomorrows' world will be shaped by the rapidly advancing AI revolution but so far Israel has proven to be uniquely adaptable and innovative to technological change. This has proved to be a boon to Israel's economy, as have offshore natural gas discoveries being developed in concert with Greece, Greek Cypriot and American energy interests that are geographically and strategically removed from any Straits of Hormuz shipping impediments that strangle the Persian Gulf deposits shared by Qatar and Iran. On another note we should contextualize the situation. How different are Israel's challenges from other nations? Is Israel any less stable than other countries (particularly in the region)? Israel doesn't find itself uniquely challenged to define its identity (most European countries do also, particularly in light of immigration). Nor does the government experience any more volatility than other comparable democracies. Israel's real problems lay in the nature of how its Jewish citizens desire to govern themselves. It is arguable whether the judicial reform protests that occupied public discourse in pre-October 7th Israel would have led to serious civil strife. But it is without doubt that this impasse was allayed by the external attack. The underlying tensions remain unresolved and there are many ways that they could play out. It has been framed as a battle for Israel's soul. Israel's enemies predict that Zionism is imploding and that the State won't survive another 5-10 years. Supporting this claim, they point to Israel's increasing alienation and growing pariah status on the international stage. Our Prime Minister has been indicted for war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Even public opinion in our staunchest ally the U.S. has turned sharply against Israel. With 80% of the Democratic Party being anti-Israel in a growing climate of anti-semitism we have even witnessed the shift of Alan Dershowitz to the Republican Party which must be seen as emblematic of a trend. There is apprehension in Israel of a post-Trump America dominated by the Democrats. However, these seeming incontrovertible facts may be offset by other measures of fortitude. This may be partially countered by the high investment by Silicon Valley in the Israeli Hi-tech sector, making Israel an asset for purposes of Research and Development in America's AI race against China. New opportunities for economic relations have also been opened with Arab nations through the Abraham Accords and with the powerhouse India. Furthermore, it is difficult to imagine a world in which Israel's technological prowess will not carry the sway of western decision makers in the long run. Israel's 78th anniversary is a moment to take pause and not catastrophize what the future may behold. The entire world is currently in a state of transformation and Israel is not an outlier in this context.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).

Council attempts to shut down and censor local church’s evangelism efforts.

By David Passmore • April 23, 2026
Please click this link:https://mailchi.mp/christianconcern.com/action-alert-street-preaching-22-04-26?e=f1df30be3f

A critical juncture in NATO's future

By David Passmore • April 14, 2026
A critical juncture in NATO'S future Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM NATO was originally established in 1949 to keep the Russian hordes at bay from toppling those European countries not forked over to the Soviet sphere of influence at the Potsdam conference. Europe lay in ruins. Britain had passed on the torch of global hegemony to the U.S. by tacitly acquiescing to the decolonization of its Empire when Churchill and Roosevelt agreed terms of the Atlantic Charter for the post-war new world order in 1941. So from its start NATO was very much an American driven endeavor. American money with the Marshall plan was propping up western European economies and its military might was forming the bulk of their defensive capabilities. The lopsided nature of this dynamic has informed how tensions have persisted and recently erupted in the Alliance. During the Cold War the U.S. felt obligated to shoulder the costs of underwriting Europe's security in light of the broader interests to keep the Soviet's in check. Following the fall of the Iron Curtain European complacency became a sticking point with the 'peace dividend' further exploiting American largesse. European NATO allies spent ever smaller percentages of their GDP on defense expenditure at U.S. expense. Now in a multi-polar world U.S. and European perceived threats are less aligned. This was first tested in the aftermath of September 11th when for the first time NATO elected to trigger its article 5 collective defense protocol. And since then the U.S. has sought to continue to expand the traditional theatre of operations beyond Europe's borders. No longer is Russia perceived by America as being a proximate existential threat to its interests, but rather containing Chinese expansion in the Pacific arena. Parallel to NATO a discrete 'five eyes' intelligence sharing alliance comprising the Anglo-sphere (the U.S., U.K., Canada and New Zealand) emerged. This stands at the center of the U.S. – U.K. 'special relationship'. A relevant question would be can this signals intelligence (NSA-GCHQ) partnership persist should the U.S. withdraw from NATO? Conventional thinking would have led one to believe that with Brexit the U.K. would naturally pivot towards closer U.S. relations but under Starmer the U.K. is distancing itself. European powers misrepresent the present conflict as an aggressive, rather than defensive U.S. adventure while they themselves are more likely to be at risk. In this the Starmer government resembles the Labor party led committee for nuclear disarmament in the 1980's. It opposed the Thatcher supported deployment of U.S. cruise missiles in response to the Soviet SS20's pointed at Britain's cities. The British left branded their response to Soviet strategic escalation to U.S. aggression. This time however there is for the moment no Thatcher to bring common sense into an equation dominated by emotionally driven ideologies in the face of an aggressor with definite aims. In terms of the Russian-Ukraine conflict we are reverting to the old question dating back to the Napoleonic war era: to what extent is London happy with the European nations fighting it out alone for dominance of the continent. Britain was never willing to accept a single power in control. Many variables will dictate what kind of world emerges from the current conflicts in Ukraine and Iran. How will power be extracted from potential gains? What will be the strategic impact of this? What is sure, in the age of Trump this pattern of reliance on U.S. muscle is becoming quickly exhausted. Dating back to the Roman Empire, a factor in the decline of major powers has always been astronomical military spending, a budgetary demand that the U.S. under Trump is no longer willing to shoulder alone. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).