© 06 November 2015 Revive Israel Ministries

Family of God

By Asher Intrater

We were blessed to participate in the Global Gathering this month in Munich, Germany.  There were representatives from nations all over the world, including mainland China and various Arab nations.  Led by our friend, David Demian, the Gathering has a deep and wide revelation of the international ecclesia as the "Family of God." 

Our team from Israel was asked to lead a prayer on this topic, which we did in Hebrew, translated into many languages.  "I bow my knee before the Father from whom is named the whole family both in heaven and on earth" – Ephesians 3:14-15.  Notice the word "father" in verse 14 and the word "family" in verse 15.  Any father is happy when his children are united in love, and any father is pained when his children are divided in disagreement. 

The Father Wants His Family Unified

We want to make our Heavenly Father happy.  We want to be a family; we want to show Him our unity and love together. Notice that this family has both a heavenly identity and an earthly one.  We are a family that is bought and brought together by the blood of Yeshua.  We are seated with Him in with a universal, international, heavenly identity (Ephesians 2:7).

Yet there is also a human, earthly tribal identity as the extended family of Abraham.  Paul's vision for the ecclesia as the family of faith may be seen as a fulfillment of God's promises to Abraham (Galatians 4). One of God's first promises to Abraham was "In you all the families of the earth will be blessed" – Genesis 12:3. And the meaning of this promise was expanded when God lengthened his name from Abram to Abraham, calling him "a father of a multitude of nations." (17:5)

Who are the multitude of nations of which Abraham is their father? Where are all the families in the earth blessed through Abraham and his seed?  These are those who follow in the steps of Abraham through faith in Yeshua.  The ecclesia is to be the extended family of Abraham.  This is our identity.

The Extended Family of Abraham

He likes the process of marriage, pregnancy, birth, raising children, having uncles and cousins.  This is why Yeshua did not just "parachute" straight down from heaven, but was born and raised and went through childhood and puberty.  There is supposed to be a real tribal family feeling to being the international ecclesia.

This is an aspect of identity that perhaps the Arab Christian and Messianic Jewish believers—as the natural offspring of Abraham through Ishmael and Isaac--can help restore to the international church ecclesia.  In fact, at one point in the Global Gathering, we joined together, Arabs and Jews, to bless the international body.  We prayed we would all be a united family to our Father in heaven and an extended family from our father Abraham. 

This was a powerful moment in which we felt that there was a historic fulfillment of the prophecies and promises of Scripture for the people of God to be a family together.

By Bassam Tawil (Excerpt from Gatestone Institute)      

We all know perfectly well that Al-Aqsa mosque is in no danger. Ironically -- I am ashamed to admit it -- thanks to the Israel Police, Al-Aqsa is the safest mosque in the Middle East.
Today we sacrifice both our sons and daughters on the altar of empty slogan -- lies such as "Al-Aqsa mosque is in danger," in the vain, blasphemous notion that omnipotent, omniscient Allah needs us to die as martyrs for his sake.

The hypocrisy and politicization of Islam has led our sheikhs deliberately to misinterpret verses in the Qur'an, and in that way we disrespect the words of Allah. There are clerics present Islam as a hideous religion bent on murder and paganism, and on sanctifying the stones of Al-Aqsa mosque more than the lives of faithful Muslims.

The Qur'an promises the Children of Israel that they will return to the land of Israel from the four corners of the earth... so we should have greeted their return as living proof of the words of Allah and the realization of the prophecies of Muhammad. Instead, we fight the Jews, which means we fight the wishes of Allah.

The Qur'an tells us that the Jews are the chosen people and the inheritors of the land, so why do our religious leaders deny it and refuse to admit that the Qur'an does not name or even hint at "Palestine" or "Palestinians?"

If the Jews had come without divine intervention, they would not have been able to overcome the Arab armies that attacked them during the wars after that. Their victory was proof that Allah was on their side.

When the Second Caliph, Omar bin al-Khatab, conquered Jerusalem, he and his advisor Caab al-Akhbar (a Jew who converted to Islam) both affirmed that the location of the Temple of the Jews had been on the Temple Mount, next to today's Al-Aqsa mosque.

In this message Rob Parker from IHOPKC teaches on biblical stewardship at Revive Israel. Gods ownership of the entire creation is key to understanding our role as stewards under His authority. To watch in English, click HERE!

We want to recommend this new film series that explores the history and theology of the enduring controversy over the Jewish people, the Land of Israel, and the city of Jerusalem. Visit the website HERE and watch the first episode HERE!