Modern Israel and the Pentecostal Church
By Dr. Ray Gannon Ph.D.

In light of the full biblical revelation and Romans 9-11 in particular, there can be little doubt to observant Christian believers that after 2000 years there still remains a vital spiritual link between Israel and the Church. The events surrounding the one people seem to have direct bearing and consequence to the other.

Curiously, the three greatest moves of the Spirit of God upon the American Church in the twentieth-century, (1) the early twentieth-century outpourings at Topeka, Kansas and Azusa Street, (2) the healing revivals of 1948-onward, and (3) the birth and broad sweep of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s, historically correspond to (1) the 1897-onward rise of modern Zionism, (2) the 1948 rebirth of the State of Israel, and (3) the 1967 reunification of Jerusalem on the heels of the Six-Day War.

Our Pentecostal restorationist heritage seems to strongly parallel the actual restorationist events in the modern Jewish world.

What are the present circumstances in today’s Israel that may have or should have direct bearing upon the Pentecostal church in America? Let’s make five observations of life in modern Israel.

A first issue confronting the modern observer of Israel is: There is a current waning of Zionistic fervor and an evident decline of Israel’s corporate altruistic spirit. After half a century of constant immigration and social absorption of impoverished Jewish refugees, the citizens of Israel are suffering exhaustion from the heavy tax-burden required to sustain the ongoing absorption of new-comers. In addition, the financial draining of the Israeli tax-payers for constant military preparations against the perpetual threat of war and the ongoing battle against never-ending terrorism is taking an immense toll on the peace-evaded people of Israel. The pioneering sacrifices of the earliest Zionists are lauded as praiseworthy but a third and fourth generation of self-sacrifice has extended into a much longer period and required a far greater surrender of personal aspiration than most Israelis feel can be reasonably justified or should be required by any society. Some quietly slip off to life in America or other western democracies to make a greatly stress-reduced life for themselves and their children. Others remain and complain. But this generation of Israelis is increasingly intolerant of the ongoing sacrifice they are expected to make as good patriots of Israel. Clamor from their neighboring nations must end soon to make life more tolerable and to make the bright and peaceful future of Israel a reality that has been worth waiting for.

A second observation of modern Israel is: Real conflict exists between the secular and the ultra-orthodox. The Israeli government (1) heavily subsidizes Orthodox religious educational programs, (2) allows the ultra-orthodox youth to bypass the standard army service normally required for all Israeli youth of both genders 18 to 20 years of age, and (3) yields to socially unwelcomed religious impositions upon the desired life-styles of the Israeli public.

A third observation is: The desperation for spiritual reality among the disillusioned and disenfranchised youth of the nation. Much is being discussed in the Israeli public arena concerning what is quickly becoming an epidemic among Israeli youth. Immediately upon the completion of their army service many Israeli youth travel to remote areas of India and other parts East to sit under Buddhist or Hindu masters in an attempt to find peace of mind and freedom of soul. Simultaneously New Age outlets are increasingly found in the major pedestrian trafficked areas of the nation. Reminiscent of the American experience in the 1960s, the Israeli youth are often putting aside traditional Israeli values and are looking to the East for religious inspiration.

A fourth observation is: The fresh appeal of Jewish orthodoxy to alienated Israeli youth. The excessive suffering of the Jewish people during the European catastrophe of the 1940s and the perpetual psychological battle surrounding the threat of pending war and terrorism against Israel ever since, has fostered a widespread national tolerance for sexual liberties among the young. But this moral chaos has been still further compounded by the media bombardment of Israeli youth with decadent western influences which have now created a social identity crisis among a significant element of disenfranchised Israeli youth. Many youth are now desperately seeking a new moral order, the restoration of human dignity, and a proven guide for living. Traditional Jewish orthodoxy is making a major comeback with fresh recruits from among the younger people of Israeli secularized society.

A fifth observation is: The steady advance of the Kingdom of God in modern Israel. In spite of the reality that Jesus is often the very last option most Israelis expect to consider due to the conditioning of centuries of Christendom’s persecution of Jews, the Gospel is making an impact in the Land of Israel. The number of believing congregations and fellowships is rapidly growing among the native born Israelis (Sabras) and immigrant Israelis of Russian and Ethiopian national origins. Jewish people are responsive to the Gospel when they have a legitimate opportunity to examine the real Jesus, and not solely rely on His distorted and stereotyped European-Aryan image.

How should these present social dilemmas and religious realities in national Israel and, truthfully, throughout much of “All Israel” world-wide, inform American Pentecostals? Should these current social crises in “All Israel” effect the Church?

This is a signal moment in the modern history of Israel and the Pentecostal Christians should take note. Of course, many realize we are mandated to engage in intercession as we “Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem.” But even further, this may be a crucial historical opportunity to fully engage “All Israel” in Pentecostal encounter. Remember the Scripture indicates, “The Jew requires a sign.” Pentecostals are the Spirit-filled Christians God has uniquely equipped to have their evangelistic witness to “All Israel” accompanied with signs, wonders, and miracles. Pentecostals certainly can successfully provoke Israel to spiritual jealousy and bring “All Israel” to faith in Jesus as Paul envisioned in Romans 11.

This is a time for Christians to not stereotypically think of Jewish people or modern Israel exclusively in conventional terms of prophecy diagrams or dispensationalist charts. Rather, we need to recognize every living Jewish person is one Jesus really died to redeem and desperately wants in His kingdom. We owe it to Jesus, the King of Israel, and to every living Jewish person to present the Gospel to him or her in very comprehensible terms.

From the earliest days of the Pentecostal movement many among the first Spirit-filled generation recognized that a supernatural dynamic existed between Israel and the Church. Just as God was at work in the “latter days” restoring the Church to its pristine New Testament “former days” Pentecostal pattern, God would be at work restoring Israel to her former state in the Promised Land and effecting Israel’s spiritual regeneration in Christ and reconciliation to God. Pentecostalism and Zionism were the fraternal twins of God’s restorationist undertakings. Both camps, Pentecostal and Zionist, were being given afresh divine opportunities to shine for God. While prophetically Israel would be still to experience in time and space the grand commitments God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Israel’s ultimate destiny was inseparably bound together with the Messiah Jesus, the Scion of David, the Chief Son and King of All Israel. Jesus is still the One Anointed to lead Israel into the rich fulfillment of her promised biblical heritage, into the execution of her divine mission, and into the messianic destiny God prophetically decreed two and three and four thousand years ago.

But according to Romans 11, the key to Israel’s redemption is the Christians’ successful provocation of Israel to spiritual jealousy and “All Israel’s” resultant compelling reexamination of the conventional Jewish understanding of Jesus. The “signs, wonders, and miracles” people, the Pentecostals, should be seizing this historical Jewish moment of spiritual searching to fulfill the Christians’ God-given assignment of mercy leading to the salvation of “All Israel.” When the rich fullness of anointed, spiritually gifted, and mature Pentecostal witness occurs, “All Israel shall be saved.”