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  • Pastor Todd Weston's Blog

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Diaspora & Aliyah

3/27/2017

 
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​There are two words I want to present for your consideration.  They are diaspora and aliyah.  The first word is from the Greek.  The second is from the Hebrew.  Both words are significant to the nation of Israel and the Church of Jesus Christ.

The word diaspora means to scatter about.  That’s exactly what happened to the Jews living in the land of Israel in fulfillment of the ancient prophecy of Deuteronomy 28:25.  As a result of generational disobedience, Moses gave this prophetic warning, “The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies, you shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them; and you shall become troublesome to all the kingdoms of the earth.”

The first diaspora occurred around the year 722 BC when the Assyrians attacked the ten northern tribes of Israel and carried the people into captivity.  A little over one-hundred years later, a second diaspora happened with the invasion of the southern kingdom of Judah by the Babylonians.  Most of the population in and around Jerusalem was carried into captivity at that time, only to return seventy-years later.

The next diaspora occurred in AD 70 when the Roman general, Titus, attacked Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.  This attack occurred on the exact same date the Babylonians destroyed the first temple in 586 BC.  Many Jews were killed, and most survivors were taken as Roman slaves.

The final diaspora occurred about fifty years later when the the Roman Emperor, Hadrian,  attacked to put down a Jewish revolt.  The conflict resulted in the major depopulation of Jews from Israel.  In his determination to erase even the memory of Israel, Hadrian changed the name to Syria Palaestina.  He even changed the name of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina.  Jerusalem was then rebuilt as a Roman Colony dedicated to Jupiter, and Jews were forbidden to enter the city.

For nearly two-thousand years the Jewish people have been scattered throughout the nations without a homeland.  And then events began to occur in the early twentieth-century which led to the rebirth of the State of Israel in their ancient homeland in May, 1948.

That brings us to the next word, Aliyah, a Hebrew word that means “ascent, going up.”  Aliyah is the name given to the modern phenomenon of Jewish people returning to their biblical homeland.  They are literally going up to Jerusalem.  

Jews are returning to Israel in fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah 43:5-6, “Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west; I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’  And to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’  Bring My sons from afar; and My daughters from the ends of the earth.”

God Himself is bringing the Jewish people home to the land He gave to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  This is just another sign of the times pointing to the nearness of the Lord’s return.  At the Second Coming, Jesus Christ the Messiah will return.  He will descend upon the Mount of Olives and will triumphantly enter the city of Jerusalem as the promised Messiah.  As one author pointed out, “He will reveal Himself to His Jewish brothers by the Holy Spirit just as Joseph revealed himself to his brothers in Egypt.”  What a moment that will be!

Diaspora is historical fact.  Aliyah is present reality.  The Second Coming of Christ is our future hope.  “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!”

Pastor Todd Weston

Lunch in Jericho

3/15/2017

 
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I had lunch today in Jericho.  Yes, the place we read about in the Old Testament book of Joshua where the people marched and the walls fell down.  Situated less than ten miles west of the Jordan River at the base of the Judean hills, the new Jericho is built around the ruins of the biblical city.

At lunch our group met a very interesting man; an Arab with a violent past.  A former Muslim.  A trained killer.  An assassin associated with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).  But all of that changed in one transformational moment.  Several years ago Jesus Himself appeared to this man in a vision.  He appeared to this man who, like Paul, had been, “a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man.”  And just as Paul obtained mercy, so did this man.  God saved and forgave him.  In God’s mercy, the nation of Israel forgave his crimes.​

This man now lives in Jericho and leads a very effective ministry.  In sharing his testimony with us at lunch he said something that stood out, “Jesus didn’t save me just to be a Christian.  He saved me to make a difference.  Where I once brought death, I now want to bring life.”  For the last forty years since his salvation experience, this former Muslim but now Christian brother has committed his life and his fortune to doing just that.

What the man said is true for every believer.  God didn’t save us just so we could be Christians and go to heaven.  If that were the case, God would translate us immediately like He did Enoch.  God saves us and then calls us to a life of service.  He calls us to spend the rest of our lives making a difference in a world of darkness.

All month long we have been in a Sunday morning series on making an impact.  I met a man today who is doing just that, and he’s doing it in Jericho.  We can do the same thing right here where we live if we only will.  Pray, speak, serve, give, go.  In whatever way God enables you to do it, make an impact in this world for Jesus Christ.

Pastor Todd Weston

Faith Promise Giving

3/13/2017

 
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Last Sunday was a big day for River of Life.  It was our annual Faith Promise Sunday, the day we go on record concerning what we are going to do in the coming year for the cause of world missions.​

As you know, the Great Commission is the command of Jesus to evangelize and make disciples of all the nations (Matthew 28:19).  The call is to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15).  Not everyone can go, but we can all give.  This is why we schedule a Faith Promise Sunday every year.  We do it in obedience to the Great Commission.  

So what exactly is a faith promise?  A faith promise is the amount of money I believe God will enable me to give through my church to missions in a year’s time.  A faith promise is not a pledge.  A pledge is an amount I come up with.  A faith promise is an amount God comes up with.  A pledge is what I am able to give.  A faith promise is what God enables me to give.  

Pledging to give out of my extra resources hardly involves faith.  Making a pledge and waiting for the funds to magically appear doesn’t involve faith either.  The act of faith is not in writing down a number on a card.  Anyone can do that.  The act of faith is acting on what you have committed to do.

This is where the “promise” comes in.  By making a faith promise I am saying that I commit to begin giving to missions now, trusting the Lord to provide the funds as I go.  Sheri and I have done this for over thirty years and we can tell you God always provides!

The missions theme for the Assemblies of God this year is BEYOND BORDERS.  Obviously, we want to take the gospel places it has never gone, and to people who have never heard.  Along with that, let’s take our missions giving in 2017 beyond borders as well!    

River of Life has a history of doing just that.  In the last ten years we have tripled the number of missionaries we support.  In recent years our missions giving has equaled over 15% of our total church budget.  And out of some 13,000 Assemblies of God churches in the United States, River of Life has ranked consistently in the top 400 in missionary support.  

Congratulations!  Now let’s push beyond that and do more than ever for the cause of world missions so all can hear!

Pastor Todd Weston

Jerusalem

3/6/2017

 
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In just a few days I will be leaving on the trip of a lifetime.  I’m going to Israel, the land God promised to Abraham and his descendants some two-thousand years before the birth of Christ.​

I will celebrate my fifty-sixth birthday in Jerusalem, “the city of peace.”  There is no city on earth like Jerusalem.  While the first biblical occurrence of the name “Jerusalem” appears in Joshua 10:1, the first reference to the city is found much earlier in Genesis 14:18 along with its mysterious king, Melchizedek.  

Known as Salem (peace), or Jebus (the home of the Jebusites), the city was conquered by David early in his reign (2 Samuel 5:6-9).  So it was that “the city of David” became Israel’s capital.

Of all the great cities of earth, Jerusalem is the only city with eternal significance.  Isaiah spoke prophetically of the coming Prince of Peace who would reign on the throne of David (in Jerusalem).  This will come to pass in the Millennial Age.  The reign of Christ on David’s throne will continue for all eternity in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:2).

Of Jerusalem alone it is said God put His name there (2 Chronicles 6:6).  Not New York, London, or Paris.  Just Jerusalem.  People often put their names on items belonging to them as proof of ownership.  God put His name on Jerusalem.  The city uniquely belongs to Jehovah.  Despite the desire of it’s enemies to wipe Jerusalem off the map, the city will endure under the protective care of God Himself.

So I am looking forward to my trip to Israel.  I can’t wait to visit the Garden Tomb, stand on the Mount of Olives, climb Masada, swim in the Dead Sea, see the Jordan River, and spend the night in Galilee.  But most of all, I long to see Jerusalem.

Pastor Todd Weston

    Pastor Todd

    Lead Pastor
    River of Life
    Assembly of God

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