A MESSAGE OF HOPE FROM DR JACK VAN IMPE

We want to continue our study where we ended last week.

Birth of Zionism

The first of these organizations was called “Hoveve Zion,” or “Lovers of Zion.” This was a worldwide movement to promote interest in Jewish settlement in Palestine.

The second organization was a small group named “Bilu,” composed of people who actually went to Palestine and began to work the land in spite of the objections of the Turks. The circumstances were very difficult and the settlements that were started were not economically successful. They were taken under the protection and assistance of Baron Edmund DeRothschild. In this way they survived.

The move among the Jews to return to their land, the stirring of the dry bones, was a small affair for more than a dozen years. In 1895, however, a dramatic event set one man’s heart afire for the cause of Zionism. His name was Theodor Herzl.

Herzl, a Jewish Austrian newspaperman, had come to Paris to cover the public humiliation of Alfred Dreyfus, a French soldier convicted of collaboration with Germany. Dreyfus, a Jew, seemed the perfect example of one who had assimilated into the European culture and society, overcoming race and religion barriers. Having attended a famous military academy in France, he had received the rank of captain. Now he was accused of giving French military information to the German military attaché at Paris. Despite scanty evidence, a secret court-martial condemned Dreyfus to public humiliation and life imprisonment on Devil’s Island. The case has gone down in history as a miscarriage of French justice.

The public humiliation of Dreyfus took place in January of 1895. Theodor Herzl stood with the crowd and heard them begin to cry, “Kill the traitor, kill the Jew.” As the Jewish writer listened to the screams of the mob, a shock wave rolled through his entire being. Herzl heard that same crowd in effect crying for his blood, since he was also a Jew.

Walking away from the spectacle, Theodor Herzl was a broken man. Like Dreyfus, he had lived in comfort and had almost forgotten the persecutions of his people and the barriers that had existed between Jews and Gentiles through the centuries. Now he understood that those barriers still remained, that hatred for Jews was still real, and that all Jews were in jeopardy wherever they found themselves in the world. This awful awakening sent Herzl into seclusion to write a book that would shake the world and play an important role in establishing the State of Israel.

Herzl’s book was a one-hundred-page work entitled: Der Judenstaat — The Jewish State. The book began: “The Jews who will it shall have a state of their own.”

In 1897, two years after the publication of his book, Theodor Herzl called the first World Zionist Congress to session in Basle, Switzerland. The meeting was held in a gambling casino. The name of those determined to bring about the return to their land would now be “Zionists,” so named for Mount Zion in Palestine. Herzl was elected the international executive. A Jewish fund was established as well as a land bank to make it possible to purchase land in Palestine. A flag was chosen. The colors were white and blue for the colors of the tallith prayer shawl, and “Hatikvah” (The Hope) was designated as a national anthem.

At the conclusion of that first Zionist Congress, Herzl wrote in his diary, “I have founded the Jewish state. If I were to say so today, people would laugh at me, but in five years’ time, certainly in fifty years, it will be seen that I was right.” (On November 29, 1947, almost fifty years after Herzl wrote the words, the General Assembly of the United Nations by a majority vote made the birth of the State of Israel legally possible. In May of 1948, the nation was born.)

The new leader of Zionism exhausted himself in the cause to which he was committed. During the next eight years he met with many of the world’s statesmen. This leader of a homeless people had a vision of a modern-day exodus. He dreamed not of straggling groups finding their way back to the Jewish homeland, but rather of great companies of Jews settling in their land and prospering there.

Herzl spent much of his early effort seeking sponsoring nations among the European powers. His first thought was of Germany and he wooed Wilhelm II. Finding no help there, he turned to England. In 1903, one year before Herzl’s death, the British offered the Jews the country of Uganda as a place to settle. Although the Jews rejected this African area, England’s offer gave official recognition to the Jewish right of a homeland. Herzl counted that a great victory.

Shortly after the turn of the century, increased persecution in Russia sent many immigrants to Palestine. Herzl’s work was bearing fruit. Among these Jewish settlers was a young man named David Green from Plonsk, a Polish town northwest of Warsaw. His father, an attorney, had been an avid Zionist and young Green had listened enthusiastically as his father discussed the merits of Zionism with his friends.

David Green was not content to simply debate the issues. He longed to live in Israel and had come there to contribute to the establishment of that nation. In their book, O Jerusalem, Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre write that young Green found Jerusalem like a modern tower of Babel, with Jews speaking forty different languages and half of them unable to communicate with the other half.

Changing his name to David Ben-Gurion, this young immigrant became the editor of a Zionist trade union paper committed to the revival of the Hebrew language. After Herzl’s death, he would become an important force in the establishment and development of the nation he loved.

The foundation of the nation had been laid. The dry bones were coming together. Ezekiel’s vision was on its way to fulfillment; the most significant sign of the end times and the return of the Messiah would, in the next half century, become a reality.

But there were troubled times ahead.

War would come to Europe and to the world. Jews would find themselves in the middle of a global war, having friends on both sides of the conflict. The war itself would threaten to extinguish Zionism. For a time it would seem as if the bones of the vision would retreat to the dust and be as dry as the arid soil of the land the Jews were seeking to reclaim.

How did this struggling people manage to overcome the perils of World War I?

What part would World War I play in the development of the State of Israel and in setting the stage for the final drama of the ages?

What events in World War I were necessary to prepare the world for closing time?

We will cover these topics in the coming weeks.

FROM THE HEART OF DR. REXELLA VAN IMPE

You Are God’s Gift to a Lost World

Did you ever realize that you are God’s gift to your world? He has planted you on this earth like a precious flower to share the beautiful scent of salvation with people in the parched desert around you. He gave you as a gift to these souls in need, and He expects you not only to brighten their world, but to bear fruit of new souls won to His kingdom. It’s not difficult to do when you allow the Holy Spirit to work through you.

People all around you need hope. You can tell, just reading the newspaper. I read several periodicals every week, just to keep current on world events . . . And I can’t help but notice that so many articles in the papers point to despair.

Violent crime is on the rise. Unemployment and poverty are rampant. Even suicide – which used to be so rare – is becoming commonplace. It breaks my heart to read that suicide is one of the leading causes of death among teenagers. Now even children are following this deadly trend, like the little girl we read about in Florida. She threw herself in front of a train because her mother was dying with the AIDS virus.

Yet every time I read a newspaper item like this, it just rings an alarm bell in my heart that says: People need HOPE. They need the truth of God’s love. “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” We read about the love of God in Hebrews 6:19. That hope is our anchor, and God is calling each one of us to share that hope with souls in danger around us. Jesus has chosen you and me as His gift to a lost and dying world, to share his eternal love.

I know that you prize soul-winning above every other calling in your life; you have demonstrated that by your strong support of this ministry, which is sharing God’s love continually with those in need. Yet I also believe that God has called each one of His children to share His precious salvation message in our personal lives.

How can we do it? How can we find the words?

The Lord knows you inside and out; He knows you better than you know yourself. Through His intimate knowledge of your special talents and your limitations, I believe He will call you to win souls in the best, most effective way possible for you … What I mean is, God does not expect you to become an evangelist or a Gospel singer or a street-corner preacher. He simply calls you to do what you are able to do in presenting a Gospel witness.

For instance, there’s a little shopping mall near my home where I like to browse when I can spare a few minutes. I don’t go there with my Bible under my arm, looking for someone I could talk to … I simply go shopping like any other lady. But the Lord has given me opportunities to witness to several of the workers at that mall – waitresses and sales ladies.

Sometimes one of them will say, “Why are you always so happy? There’s something different about you.” They don’t care whether or not I’ve been to Bible school or what church I attend. They just notice Gods love at work in me. Or sometimes if I ask one of them how they’re doing, they will say, “I’m having a problem …” and they pour out their hearts to me.

They sense my love and interest in their lives, and they want to know what makes me happy. Through these simple things, the Lord has allowed me to lead several of these ladies to the cross and pray with them to accept Jesus. It’s not difficult, and it doesn’t require that you know a lot of Scripture or have a powerful testimony.

I would encourage you to use our video teachings in your personal witnessing. Invite your neighbors to a Bible study in your home, and use Jack’s video teaching as a guide – or give our videos as a gift. It’s a loving and effective way to warn your friends about the coming end times and lead them to Jesus.

I know from my own personal experience that there is something YOU can do for the Lord. You can personally witness to others and help lead them to Christ, in a specific way which God has enabled you to share and which no one else on earth could do like you. You are God’s gift to a lost world – let Him use you to reach your world with His good news!

CHANGED LIVES-one at a time

Hi, Dr. Jack and Rexella. I just want to thank you for what you are doing. You have both been a great inspiration to me and I have learned so much through watching your program. I support you in everything you stand for and everything you do. I am simply a sister in Christ who wants to follow after and serve Jesus. Your program has really influenced me. I enjoy watching you. You are two of my favorite people in the world and I will always support you no matter what. I love you guys so much. God bless you, Jack and Rexella. Jesus loves you. Keep it up and keep on smiling. 🙂

Stephanie S.

Brother Jack, the world needs you to keep on keeping on preaching TRUTH as you always have. Especially in these last days, please keep standing firm as all true believers should. Thank you for not tickling the ears of what people want to hear. Thank you for allowing God to speak His TRUTH through you. God bless you, Jack and Rexella Van Impe. I will be praying constantly for God’s protection from physical harm and the door to remain open in all of your venues to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the prophecies that are so needed right now.

Love in Christ,

Susan W.

HIGHLIGHTED PRODUCT OFFERS

The Prophetic Voice of Dr. Jack Van Impe

For 70 years, Dr. Jack Van Impe’s prophetic voice has been warning our world of the apocalypse to come — and the desperate need for every human being to choose new life in Christ before it’s forever too late!

Now all the prophecies Drs. Jack and Rexella have been uncovering are happening rapidly before our eyes … and people still need to know the Truth about the current apostasy, the Rapture, the Tribulation, the return of the Lord, and more!

Do not let your friends and family stumble blindly into these latter days! Use this DVD teaching to help you share the facts about Bible prophecy — and the Gospel with everyone.

Animals in Heaven?

For anyone who has ever lost a beloved pet, Dr. Jack and Rexella Van Impe have good news! You will see your furry or feathered friends again – in heaven! Explore this exciting truth taught by twelve of the greatest Christian theologians.

You will see and hear the exact spine-tingling statements from the pens of men like Dr. John Walvoord, Dr. Billy Graham, Dr. J. Vernon McGee, Dr. John Calvin and many others. This video study deals with animal intelligence, animal communication, and how animals literally teach humans some valuable lessons.