Daily Topic for November 17, 2006
Have you ever tried to justify a sin by citing “spiritual” reasons? That was Saul’s tactic. He had been commanded to kill all the Amalekites and all their flocks, but in disobedience Saul saved a few of the best of each. When questioned by Samuel, he insisted that he had disobeyed with the best of motives-“to sacrifice to the Lord.” How do we today often seek to evade the clarity of the Great Commission? By citing family obligations? personal ambitions? the absence of a “call”?
Dear Lord, You have been so good to us. Forgive our rationalizations for not obeying You fully, and lead us into service to unreached peoples.
There are people in Israel who believe the same Old Testament prophets we do, read God’s Word with anticipation and are zealous for Jehovah. Yet they are even more resistant to the gospel than Muslims, who have a favorable view of Jesus. To the Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Jesus is a threat, not a Messiah.
These people, also known as Haredi, believe that when the Messiah comes, He will establish His nation. Since the messiah did not establish the state of Israel, they do not recognize it. They live apart from other Israelis and have their own separate rabbis and courts.
Conflict arose last May when a member of their community was forcibly taken by Israel’s authorities to stand trial for the manslaughter death of his infant son. The Haredi people rallied to the defense of the young father because they believe that the issue should be handled by their own leaders. Though they believe the prophets who spoke out in defense of helpless children, they are more concerned with their own autonomy than protecting the innocent or obeying God.
Learn more at joshuaproject.netPray that the Holy Spirit will touch the hearts of Haredi leaders, so that they will accept Jesus as their Messiah, and embrace the spirit as well as the letter of the law.-KC