Elijah, the man who could make it rain - Japanese

April 3, 2025

エリヤ 雨を降らせることのできる者

ジェイコブ・プラッシュ

『義人の祈りは働くと、大きな力があります。エリヤは、私たちと同じような人でしたが、雨が降らないように熱心に祈ると、三年六か月の間、地に雨が降りませんでした。そして、再び祈ると、天は雨を降らせ、地はその実を実らせました。』(ヤコブ 5 章 16 節-18 節)

エリヤは、私たちと同じような人でしたが、雨を降らせることのできる者でした。この箇所を通して、聖霊が私たちに伝えようとしていることは、もし彼ができるのなら、私たちもできるということです。私たちも雨を降らせることができます。しかし、それはどのような意味なのでしょうか?

雨は聖霊が注がれることの象徴

聖書の象徴の中で、様々な種類の液体は聖霊の異なった側面を表しています。

新しいぶどう酒は、聖霊を賛美の面において象徴している液体です。もうひとつの液体は、油であり、それは聖霊が注がれることについて語っています。一方、聖書の中の生ける水 はいつでも、聖霊が降り注がれることを表しています。雨は降り注ぎ、地下水となり、湧 き水となるのです。

イエスは次のような形で説明されました。『わたしを信じる者は、聖書が言っているとおりに、その人の心の奥底から、生ける水の川が流れ出るようになる。」これは、イエスを信じる者が後になってから受ける御霊のことを言われたのである。イエスはまだ栄光を受けておられなかったので、御霊はまだ注がれていなかったからである。』(ヨハネ 7 章 38節-39 節)イエスは、生ける水とは聖霊が流れ出ることだとはっきりと語りました。『わたしは潤いのない地に水を注ぎ、かわいた地に豊かな流れを注ぎ、わたしの霊をあなたのすえに、わたしの祝福をあなたの子孫に注ごう。』(イザヤ 44 章 3 節)

再び、神はかわいた地に水(雨)を注がれると言われています。そして、それは神が御霊を注がれるという意味だと言っているのです。雨とはその象徴です。

一つの町には雨を、他の町には雨を降らせない

『わたしはまた、刈り入れまでなお三か月あるのに、あなたがたには雨をとどめ、 一つの町には雨を降らせ、他の町には雨を降らせなかった。一つの畑には雨が降り、雨の降らなかった他の畑はかわききった。』(アモス 4 章 7 節)

例えばなぜラインハルト・ボンケ(Reinhard Bonnke)がアフリカで説教するとひとつの集 会で、何万人もの人が救われるのに、彼がドイツやイギリス、オーストラリアに行っても、大したことは起こらないのでしょうか。その答えはこのアモス 4 章 7 節にあります。神は 一つの町には雨を降らせ、他の町には降らせないのです。そして、雨が降らなかった町に 収穫は来ません。

御霊の注ぎに関して、神は恵みをみこころのままに与えます。ブラジル、韓国、インドネシア、フィリピン、アフリカの多くの地に雨は降り注いでいます。しかし、500 年間聖書を持っていた西洋のプロテスタントの国々は、今はかわききっています。神はその恵みを裕福な国から、貧しい国へと移されました。

白人によるプロテスタント系キリスト教は、数において、道徳面において、財政面において、神学的にも、霊的にも世界中で減退しています。

カトリック教国や黒色人種の国、オリーブ色の肌をした民族の国々、黄色人種の国で教会は増えつつあります。イギリス国教会は大幅に減退しています。それに対して、アフリカの聖公会(英国国教会)の多くの主教たちは大胆な福音伝道者です(デズモンド・ツツ

(Desmond Tutu)主教は聖公会の中での目立った例外的存在です)。アフリカの聖公会はナイジェリアにおいて、イスラム教徒からひどく迫害を受けています。アジア全域にわたって、聖公会はとても生き生きとしています。しかし、本国イギリスの聖公会は生命力の無い教会です。昔オーストラリアのサンシャイン・リバイバル(Sunshine Revival)、カリフォルニアのアズサ・ストリートのリバイバル(Azusa Street Revival)、スミス・ウィグルスワース(Smith Wigglesworth)に導かれたイギリスでのサンダーランド・リバイバル

(Sunderland Revivals)、それらの場所で注がれた火は、今エクアドルやチリ、フィリピン、インドネシア、ケニアのような場所で注がれているのです。神は一つの町には雨を降らせ、雨の降らない他の町はかわききるのです。今日、教会成長のための秘訣のようなものを教えている人々がいます。しかしそのようなものは無意味であり、何も変えることは出来ません。神の主権による恵みという要素が欠けているのです。御霊が注がれなければなりません。

神のことばは無駄に帰ってくることがありません。ここにひとりあそこにひとりというよ

うにある人々は救われますが、大量の収穫を得るのに雨が無ければ、穀物は実らないのです!しかし、エリヤは雨を降らせることのできる者でした。そして、私たちと同じような人であったのです。言い換えると、彼ができるのなら、私たちもできるということです。

父たちのため、また彼の御名のため

私は確信を持って言えるのですが、イエスが戻られる前に、神は西洋のプロテスタント民主主義にもう一度悔い改める機会を与えたいと願っておられます。それは私たちのためではなく、彼の御名のためです。私たちがそれを受けるに値するからではありません。私たちの教会は大きな規模で堕落しているのでふさわしくないのですが、それは私たちの父たちのためなのです。

ローマ 11 章で言われているように、神はイエスが再臨するこの世の終わりにおいて、ユダヤ人にもう一つのチャンスを与えようとされています。なぜなのでしょうか?それは、神がイスラエルを見るとき、ただイスラエルの罪、自分たちのメシアを拒否し続けていることだけではなく、神の目からは、エレミヤがまだ牢獄に閉じ込められ、イザヤがマナセ王によってのこぎりで半分に切られ、ゼカリヤが神殿で殺され、バプテスマのヨハネの首がはねられたときのように見えているからです。そして、神は言われます。「彼らの父たちのために、わたしはこの国にもうひとつのチャンスを与えよう」。

イギリスに対してもそうです。神がイギリスを見られるとき、ただ今日の状態だけを見てはおられません。この名ばかりのキリスト教国では、カンタベリー大聖堂でヒンドゥー教の神々が礼拝され、一方、主教たちは復活と処女懐胎を否定しているのです。

神が現代のイギリスを見られるとき、過去、現在、未来のすべてを見られます。その目は、ジョン・バニヤンがベッドフォードの牢獄の壁に 12 年間つながれ「天路歴程」を書いてい るのを見、国教会によって扇動された暴徒に石を投げられていたジョン・ウェスレーを見、また、私たちが英語で聖書を読めるようにと努力したティンデールがローマ教会によって 生きたまま焼かれるのを見ています。その他にも、神はチャールズ・ハッドン・スポルジ ョンを見ています。またリドリー(Ridley)やラティマー(Latimer)、フーパー(Hooper)などのイギリスの殉教者たちを見ています。そのため、神は言われるのです。「彼らの父 たちのため、そして私の御名のため。私はこの国にもう一度チャンスを与えよう」

これはアメリカに関しても同様に真実です。神の目は未だにジョナサン・エドワーズや

D・L・ムーディー、ハリー・アイロンサイド(Harry Ironside)を見ています。神は忠実なクリスチャンを見ておられます。神は今日あるような、繁栄だけを約束する説教者、拝金主義者たちや異端者たちだけを見てはおられないのです。

神はこれらの西洋プロテスタントの国々にもう一度、悔い改める機会を与えたいのです。しかし、彼らがその機会を得るためには、雨が降らなくてはなりません。

まず初めに、私たちが干ばつの中にいるという事実を認めなくてはなりません。そして、この干ばつが終わるまで、この世のすべての試みは教会に悔い改めとリバイバルをもたらすことはありません。雨が必要なのです。雨が無ければ穀物は実りません。雨が無ければ収穫は来ません。エリヤは私たちのような人でしたが、雨を降らせることのできる者でした。そして、今日、神は私たちのような雨を降らせることのできる男女を探しておられます。

『ギルアデのティシュベの出のティシュベ人エリヤはアハブに言った。「私の仕え ているイスラエルの神、主は生きておられる。私のことばによらなければ、ここ二、三年の間は露も雨も降らないであろう。」それから、彼に次のような主のことばが あった。「ここを去って東へ向かい、ヨルダン川の東にあるケリテ川のほとりに身 を隠せ。そして、その川の水を飲まなければならない。わたしは烏に、そこであな たを養うように命じた。」

それで、彼は行って、主のことばのとおりにした。すなわち、彼はヨルダン川の東にあるケリテ川のほとりに行って住んだ。幾羽かの烏が、朝になると彼のところにパンと肉とを運んで来、また、夕方になるとパンと肉とを運んで来た。彼はその川から水を飲んだ。しかし、しばらくすると、その川がかれた。その地方に雨が降らなかったからである。すると、彼に次のような主のことばがあった。「さあ、シドンのツァレファテに行き、そこに住め。見よ。わたしは、そこのひとりのやもめに命じて、あなたを養うようにしている。」彼はツァレファテへ出て行った。その町の門に着くと、ちょうどそこに、たきぎを拾い集めているひとりのやもめがいた。そこで、彼は彼女に声をかけて言った。「水差しにほんの少しの水を持って来て、私に飲ませてください。」

彼女が取りに行こうとすると、彼は彼女を呼んで言った。「一口のパンも持って来てください。」彼女は答えた。「あなたの神、主は生きておられます。私は焼いたパンを持っておりません。ただ、かめの中に一握りの粉と、つぼにほんの少しの油があるだけです。ご覧のとおり、二、三本のたきぎを集め、帰って行って、私と私

の息子のためにそれを調理し、それを食べて、死のうとしているのです。」

エリヤは彼女に言った。「恐れてはいけません。行って、あなたが言ったようにしなさい。しかし、まず、私のためにそれで小さなパン菓子を作り、私のところに持って来なさい。それから後に、あなたとあなたの子どものために作りなさい。イスラエルの神、主が、こう仰せられるからです。『主が地の上に雨を降らせる日までは、そのかめの粉は尽きず、そのつぼの油はなくならない。』」

彼女は行って、エリヤのことばのとおりにした。彼女と彼、および彼女の家族も、長い間それを食べた。エリヤを通して言われた主のことばのとおり、かめの粉は尽きず、つぼの油はなくならなかった。これらのことがあって後、この家の主婦の息子が病気になった。その子の病気は非常に重くなり、ついに息を引き取った。彼女はエリヤに言った。「神の人よ。あなたはいったい私にどうしようとなさるのですか。あなたは私の罪を思い知らせ、私の息子を死なせるために来られたのですか。」

彼は彼女に、「あなたの息子を私によこしなさい」と言って、その子を彼女のふところから受け取り、彼が泊まっていた屋上の部屋にかかえて上がり、その子を自分の寝台の上に横たえた。彼は主に祈って言った。「私の神、主よ。私を世話してくれたこのやもめにさえもわざわいを下して、彼女の息子を死なせるのですか。」そして、彼は三度、その子の上に身を伏せて、主に祈って言った。「私の神、主よ。どうか、この子のいのちをこの子のうちに返してください。」主はエリヤの願いを聞かれたので、子どものいのちはその子のうちに返り、その子は生き返った。そこで、エリヤはその子を抱いて、屋上の部屋から家の中に降りて来て、その子の母親に渡した。そして、エリヤは言った。「ご覧、あなたの息子は生きている。」その女はエリヤに言った。「今、私はあなたが神の人であり、あなたの口にある主のことばが真実であることを知りました。」

それから、かなりたって、三年目に、次のような主のことばがエリヤにあった。

「アハブに会いに行け。わたしはこの地に雨を降らせよう。」そこで、エリヤはアハブに会いに出かけた。そのころ、サマリヤではききんがひどかった。』(1列王記

17 章 1 節-18 章 2 節)

『アハブがエリヤを見るや、アハブは彼に言った。「これはおまえか。イスラエルを煩わすもの。」』(1列王記 18 章 17 節)

『そこでエリヤは彼らに命じた。「バアルの預言者たちを捕らえよ。ひとりものが

すな。」彼らがバアルの預言者たちを捕らえると、エリヤは彼らをキション川に連

れて下り、そこで彼らを殺した。それから、エリヤはアハブに言った。「上って行って飲み食いしなさい。激しい大雨の音がするから。」そこで、アハブは飲み食いするために上って行った。エリヤはカルメル山の頂上に登り、地にひざまずいて自分の顔をひざの間にうずめた。それから、彼は若い者に言った。「さあ、上って行って、海のほうを見てくれ。」若い者 は上って、見て来て、「何もありません」と言った。すると、エリヤが言った。「七たびくり返しなさい。」七度目に彼は、

「あれ。人の手のひらほどの小さな雲が海から上っています」と言った。それでエリヤは言った。「上って行って、アハブに言いなさい。『大雨に閉じ込められないうちに、車を整えて下って行きなさい。』」しばらくすると、空は濃い雲と風で暗くなり、やがて激しい大雨となった。アハブは車に乗ってイズレエルへ行った。主の手がエリヤの上に下ったので、彼は腰をからげてイズレエルの入口までアハブの前を走って行った。』(1 列王記 18 章 40 節-46 節)

雨はとても激しく降り注ぎました。

重要な背景情報

三年半の間雨が降らなかったということは、ダニエル書と黙示録に言及されている三年半の期間の象徴です。世の終わりに御霊は注がれなくなります。これは終末に起こることの予型であり、預言者マラキが予告したように、エリヤの霊が何らかのかたちで戻ってくるときに起こることです(マラキ 4 章 5 節)。

同様に、エリヤが異邦人の女とその息子を助けたことは、神が何らかの方法を用いて、エリヤの霊を使って、異邦人の教会を世の終わりに守られることを示しています。

エリヤとエリシャ、それにバプテスマのヨハネはみな同じ霊を持っていました。主はモーセに向かって、『あなたの上にある霊のいくらかを取って彼らの上に置こう。』(民数記 11

章 17 節)と言われました。

同じ地理的な場所で起こった複数の出来事は、多くの場合、霊的または神学的につながりがあることを意味しています。エリヤの奉仕はエリコの平原で終わりました。そこで、エリシャは彼の(権威を意味するものである)上着を取り、またバプテスマのヨハネの奉仕はその同じ場所で行われました。邪悪な女であるイゼベルは、黙示録に出てくるイゼベルのように、偽りの宗教の霊の象徴です。彼女は王や政治的な権威を自分が操ることのできるようにしました。彼女は、アハブに代わって、彼の欲しがっていたナボテのぶどう畑を

奪いました(1列王記 21 章)。聖書の中で、ぶどう畑はイスラエル、ひいては教会について語っています。邪悪な女は王のためにぶどう畑を取り上げようとしました。このことによって、エリヤは彼女との争いに巻き込まれ、彼女はエリヤを滅ぼすために王を説得しました。これはヘロデヤの話(マタイ 14 章 3 節-12 節)と全く同じことであり、邪悪な女が“エリヤ”(バプテスマのヨハネ)に対して王を敵対させたのです。

聖書の中での全ての邪悪な女は何らかのかたちで、黙示録に出てくる邪悪な女の特徴を示しています。エリヤとの争いは終わりの時代において繰り返されようとしているのです。

なぜ雨が止まったのか?

神がどのようにしてエリヤを用い、雨を降らせる者へと変えたかを学ぶにあたって、最初に考えるべきことは、なぜ雨が止まったのかということです。雨は神の民の罪のために止まりました。西洋プロテスタント諸国(他の日本のような国々)に聖霊が降り注がれないのは、罪のため、エリヤの時代のイスラエルと同じような罪があるためです。

妊娠中絶は、旧約のイスラエルとユダにおいて、子どもたちが悪霊に捧げられていたのと同じことです。他の神々に対しての礼拝――バアルの祭司たちは外国人ではなく、ユダヤ人でした。今日でも同じことです。西洋プロテスタント世界のいたる所で、イスラム、ニューエイジ、ヒンドゥー教など、他の神々を拝むということが劇的に増加しています。ニューエイジは多くの福音派やペンテコステ派の教会に浸透しています。人々はキリスト教と異教を混ぜ合わせ――ローマ・カトリックはそこから生まれたのですが――今日もそのようなことが多くのペンテコステ派の教会で起こっています。

物質主義――教会はなまぬるく、物質主義的であり、おかしな教理で満たされています。人の考える“信仰”は聖書的でなくなり、クリスチャンであるように見せかけ、お金を拝んでいます。貪欲がキリスト教に変装しているのです。

これらのことのために雨は止まりました。何よりもまず、西洋文明の減退の責任はこの世にあるのではなく、私たちにあります。雨を止めたのは神の民の罪なのです。私たちの社会に蔓延する――薬物、中絶、離婚、暴力、犯罪などのすべては、教会の失敗を証言しています。

神の民は妥協してしまい、その結果、最終的にイスラエルの中はバアルの祭司であふれたのです。これがエリヤの時代に起こったことであり、今日起こっていることです。私たちの国々には雨は降っていません。それは神の民の罪のためです。

ケリテ

神がエリヤに最初に言われたことは、ヨルダン川の東にあるケリテ川に行き、そこでカラスにパンを与えられるということでした(1列王 17 章 3 節)。

ケリテはヨルダンの向こう側にあります。神がエリヤにこの地を去ってケリテに行けと言われたとき、エリヤに彼の国民性や文化的アイデンティティー、故郷の快適さを捨てろと言われたのです。それに加えて、カラスがパンを運んで来ました。カラスは「コシェル

(kosher)=律法にかなったもの」ではなく、“汚れている”鳥でした。神はエリヤが思いつきもしないような方法で、彼を養おうとされたのです。

今日の西洋では干ばつがとても厳しいので、雨を降らせる人々はケリテに行くことをよしとしければならないのです

それはときには、妥協してしまった伝統的な教派を教会が離れることを意味しているかもしれません。ときには、妥協し、誤りに陥り、悔い改めることを拒んでいる教会を、クリスチャンが離れるということを意味するでしょう。そして確かにそれが意味していることは、私たちが考えもしないような方法・場所で必要を満たしてくださる神に信頼するということです。たとえそれが、カラスのような、私たちが全く聖いと思わないものを通してであってもです。エリヤは神を第一優先にし、自分の土地を第二にすることを心に決めなければなりませんでした(これは日本において特に真実です。日本人の人と争わないという伝統のために、ほとんどのクリスチャンは福音を伝えるとき大胆に社会の罪を明らかにしません。また教会の中の罪も公に非難しません。日本社会での主な罪である性的不品行、教会の中での学歴についての誇り、それらが罪であると詳しく指摘されるのを最近いつ聞いたでしょうか。日本のクリスチャンが雨を降らせたいのなら、このような罪に対して公に立ち上がって反対する必要があります)。今日ある大抵の問題は、人々が彼らの土地―

―文化やアイデンティティー、教派、それに教派に対しての忠誠心――を神のことばへの

服従の前に置いてしまうことにあります。

しかし、雨を降らせるような人々は、ケリテに行き神を信頼することを恐れてはならないのです

ツァレファテ

夜明けの直前が一番暗いものです。物事は良くなる前にもっと悪くなります。ケリテ川は

次第にかわいていくのです。

9 節を見ると、エリヤはツァレファテと呼ばれる場所に、行かなければならなかったとあります。ツァレファテという言葉は、「焼く」または「火できよめる」という意味のヘブライ語の語幹から来ています。私たちのような者を用いて、雨を降らせる者へと変えるには、神はその者たちを火できよめなければならないのです。

これからはとても困難な期間になるでしょう。ただ試練や試み、干ばつ、迫害だけではなく、それらが合わさったものとなるのです。そして、それはツェレファテのやもめのように、自分が助けようとしていた者が裏切られたと考えてしまう段階まで達するでしょう。

しかし、いくら状況が悪くなり、暗いものとなり、干ばつが激しくなっても、私はふたつのことを約束することが出来ます。きよめられたいと願う者のかめの粉は尽きず、つぼの油はなくなることはありません。物事は打開されるまでは悪くなるものです。しかし、かめの粉は尽きず、つぼの油はなくならないのです。あなたは、何があっても、神のことばと聖霊の油注ぎに欠けることはありません。他の者たちが飢饉で死んでいく中、あなたの穀物と油は尽きないのです。

古い皮袋は破れる

『彼女はエリヤに言った。「神の人よ。あなたはいったい私にどうしようとなさるのですか。あなたは私の罪を思い知らせ、私の息子を死なせるために来られたのですか。」』(1列王記 17 章 18 節)

彼女の息子は死に、そのためにエリヤを非難しました。あなたが助けようとしたまさにその人が困難に会い、あなたを非難するようになります。状況はとても長い間悪いものとなって、私たちが愛しているものは復活する前に、死ななければならなくなるのです。

西洋世界の大半の教会は、復活する前に死ななければなりません。新しいぶどう酒は古い皮袋には合いません。これがカリスマ派運動にある問題のひとつです。彼らは古い皮袋に新しいぶどう酒を蓄えようとしているのです。ある教会を改善するためには古い皮袋を取り替えなければなりません。私たちの愛しているほとんどのものは復活する前に死ななければならないのです。

イスラエルを煩わす者

『これはおまえか。イスラエルを煩わすもの』(1列王記 18 章 17 節)教会を煩わすものはあなたですか?バプテスト連合を煩わすものはあなたですか?アッセンブリーズ・オブ・ゴッドを煩わすものはあなたですか?

  • エキュメニズム(キリスト教統一運動)や、「神の国はいまここに(Kingdom Now)」、
  • 「繁栄の信仰(Faith Prosperity)」、「名を挙げて要求すること(Name It and Claim It)」などに対して、立ち上がって反対している者!
  • 目的に導かれたキリスト教に立ち上がって反対している者!
  • お客様向けの教会(傷付けないように罪を指摘しない教会)に立ち上がって反対している者!
  • イスラエルを煩わす者!

エリヤはこれらのことを言われたのであって、もし、雨を降らせたいなら、あなたもこれらのことを言われるのです。

次に彼らはカルメル山に行きます。そこでイゼベルと対立が起こります。それは偽りの宗教の霊との争いであり、ローマ・カトリック、エキュメニズム、イスラム、同性愛、不品行、教会内にあるキリスト教のふりをした心理学、中絶やニューエイジなどに対しての争いです。そこには対立があり、その対立の中で勝利を得るのは、ツァレファテにおいてきよめられた者です。

私たちが今日“カリスマ派的な礼拝”と呼ぶものの大半は、騒がしく、わめき散らし、狂乱状態になり、熱狂しているものであって、カルメル山にいたエリヤよりも、バアルの祭司たちによく似ています。注目すべきなのは、彼らはそれがうまくいくと思い、答えが得られると考えていたということです。

※編集者注

(ジェイコブはここで、トロント(カナダ)やペンサコーラ(アメリカ)などの賛美礼拝において一般的に見られた動物のまねや体が震えること、自制を欠くことなどを語っています。この現象は世界中に広がり、西洋のカリスマ派教会において顕著になりました。これらのものは“トロント・ブレッシング”といって、世界中で人気を得ているテレビを使った礼拝の中で、ロドニー・ハワード・ブラウン、ケネス・コープランド、ベニー・ヒンなどが勧めた“笑いのリバイバル”というものから由来しています。最近ではそれはフロリダ・レイクランドのリバイバルで暴力という形をもって現われました。その“リバイバル”の指導者であったトッド・ベントリーは“御霊によって”人々を実際足で蹴りました。それが世界中の主要なカリスマ派の指導者たちによって支持されていたにも関わらず、ト

ッド・ベントリーは結局、姦淫と離婚の不祥事に陥り、リバイバルは突然終焉を迎えたの

です)

今日、エキュメニズムや“神の国は今ここに”という教理、再建主義に陥っている兄弟たちは非聖書的で間違った危険な教理、偽りと起こるはずのない預言を信じています。しかし、そこに対立は生じ、人々はだれが真実の預言者であるかを理解します。

雨雲

それは小さなことから始まります。最初は何も起こらないかのように見えます。「どこにあるのですか?」と言いたくなるようなものです。

バアルの祭司たちはみな大言壮語を言い、横柄であり、声を大きく上げ、偽りの者たちでした。しかし、神はそのような方法では働かれません。小さなことから始めるのです。人の手のひらほどの小さな雲が海から上ってきました。いつもそのように始まります。しかしそれはすぐ大きくなり、雨雲は空を覆いつくすほどになります。稲妻が光り、神の霊は注がれます。そして、どしゃぶりの激しい大雨となるのです。

自分の責任

西洋のキリスト教の衰退を止めるのに簡単な方法はありません。あまりにも長い間ひどいものだったからです。私たちは自分たちのリーダーたちに裏切られてきました。この世のすべての計画、ごまかし、策略はたましいの収穫をもたらすことはありません。雨が必要なのです。しかしそれは止まってしまいました。

どうしてなのでしょうか?社会の罪の影響も部分的にはありますが、主に教会の罪が原因です。そして、教会に悔い改めが起こらない限り、世の悔い改めも起こりはしません。

なぜ、雨は止まってしまったのでしょうか?それは第一に、ポルノや売春業者、売春婦、 麻薬密売人、同性愛者、妊娠中絶をする人たちの責任ではありません。それは第一に、私 の責任です。なぜなら、私は真理を知っていて、そのメッセージは違いを生み出すことが できるからです。それは私たちの責任です。西洋の教会はラオデキヤであるからです(黙 示録 3 章 17 節)。私たちがイエスよりも自分の生活、この世に頼みを置いているためです。雨が止まったのは私の罪のためであり、あなたの罪のためです

雨を降らせる者たち

雨を降らせることのできる者たちは、ケリテに行くことを恐れない――文化や団体に縛ら

れない者です。それらの者は、古い皮袋に新しいぶどう酒を入れようとしません。彼らは神が言われたことを行い、自らの考えに頼らず、与えてくださる神に信頼するのです。

それらの者はきよめられることを恐れずに、ツァレファテに向かいます。そして、自分の愛していたものが死ななければならないことを理解し、またそれらは清くよみがえらされることを知っています。それは困難なことです。しかし、どんなに困難であろうとそれを行う者のかめの粉は尽きず、そのつぼの油はなくならないということは確かです。

そして、きよめられた者はカルメルに行き、イゼベルの前――フリーメーソンや同性愛、ローマ・カトリック、イスラムなどの偽りの宗教の前に立ちます。彼らは、バアルの預言者の前――福音の奉仕者と自ら名乗りながら、偽りの教えに妥協している者たちの前に立ちます。

そこでは対立が生じるのです。そして、イスラエルを煩わす者が勝利を得ます。



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. ‍ ‍
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).
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.”
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.
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).
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
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).
By David Passmore April 23, 2026
Please click this link:https://mailchi.mp/christianconcern.com/action-alert-street-preaching-22-04-26?e=f1df30be3f
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).
By David Passmore April 9, 2026
Please keep brother Malcolm Betts from the New Life Pentecostal Church, Winsford in prayer. He is suffering from heart failure, valve problems and spinal stenosis. Your prayers for healing and intervention are coveted. Also, Malcom’s daughter Laura-Louisa is having complications with her pregnancy. Her baby boy is due on the 22nd of April and was in a breach position, however he is now moved to an oblique position which carries serious risk and possible surgical intervention. Laura is also at risk of postpartum haemorrhage. Please pray for the midwives and obstetricians skill and wisdom. Please also pray for Malcolm’s sister Susan who has sepsis in her leg. And please pray also for Sheila Carlisle. She is undergoing knee replacement surgery.