7 Reasons Why I Pray and Take a Stand for Israel
By James W.Goll
Israel is still the “apple of God'seye” and His inheritance – They are close to Hisheart.
Pray and take a stand for Israel because Israel is stillvery close to God’s heart. In Zechariah 2:8, we read, "Hewho touches you [Israel], touches the apple of His eye."Centuries before Zechariah prophesied these words, Moses wrote a songcontaining a very similar picture:
For the Lord's portion is His people; Jacob [Israel]is the allotment of His inheritance….He encircled him, He cared forhim, He guarded him as the pupil of His eye….He spread His wings andcaught them. He carried them on His pinions (Deuteronomy 32:9-11).
The first reason why I pray for Israel is not profound. Ipray for Israel because I want to be close to God's heart and I want to bein alignment with God's sight. If God says that Israel is the“apple” or “pupil” of His eye, then I want to praywith insight with His sight. Do you want to be close to the heart of God?Then be close to the things, people and purposes that are close to Hisheart. Fulfill your appointment. Take a stand and be a watchman forIsrael!
God desires His servants to be filled withcompassion for Israel's conditions.
Pray and act for Israel because God desires us to befilled with compassion for Israel's conditions. Psalm 102:13-14 says,"You will arise and have compassion on Zion; for it is time to begracious to her, for the appointed time has come. Surely Your servants findpleasure in her stones and feel pity for her dust." The timehas come!
God wants to give us His heart so that we can pray overIsrael with compassion. The time has come for us to receive His heart sothat our prayers will go far beyond merely saying correct words and intothe prayer of the heart – even the prayer of tears. It is time tohave compassion on Zion. I have cried out to the Lord to tenderize myheart. You too can ask the Holy Spirit to give you His heart of compassionfor Israel.
God commands us to give Him and ourselves no restuntil He establishes Jerusalem as a praise in the earth.
Pray and take a stand for Israel because God wants toestablish Jerusalem and make her a praise in the earth. The prophet Isaiahdeclared the following:
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointedwatchmen; all day and all night they will never keep silent. You who remindthe Lord, take no rest for yourselves; and give Him no rest until Heestablishes and makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth (Isaiah 62:1, 6,7).
Give Him no rest until what? Jerusalem! Hedidn't say Washington D.C., Paris, or London. He didn't say Constantinople,Athens, Damascus, Moscow, or Cairo. He said until Jerusalem -until Jerusalem is made a praise. A what? A praise! Manynews reports will tell you that Jerusalem seems to be far from being apraise in the earth. Many curse Jerusalem and call the Jewish people namesI will not even dare repeat. So we must lift our voices in prayer until shebecomes a praise—a glorious praise—in all the earth.
Now we must have something very clear in our hearts andminds – this is not for our sake! It is forZion’s sake! It is not about what is convenient. It is apriority! Just set your heart to be resolute. Pray until…!
Pray that God’s heart would work through uson for Israel's salvation.
Pray and act for Israel so that Israel will be saved. Ihave shared that God wants to give us His heart of compassion—Histears—for Israel. Tears or compassion are not God's end objective.God desires that we receive His heart so that He can pray with accuracy anddiscernment for the salvation of Israel. The Apostle Paul said, "Ihave great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart…. My heart'sdesire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation (Romans9:2; 10:1). Paul declared, "I could wish that I myself wereaccursed…for the sake of my brethren…who areIsraelites" (9:3). Paul was willing to be separated from Christthat his brethren might know their Messiah. What sacrifice Paul was willingto make for the sake of Israel!
I have read this verse from the book of Romans many timesand I have fasted and prayed much over the years for Israel’s sake.We must pray for Israel’s salvation to go forth like a torch that isburning. God has desires . . . the apostle Paul had desires . . . do youpray with a burning heart of desire for Israel’s salvation?
God commands us to seek the spiritual andphysical good of the people of Israel and to pray for the peace ofJerusalem.
Pray and take a stand for Israel because God wants tobless Jerusalem and her inhabitants with His peace and goodness. David, thepsalmist, loved Jerusalem. This great warrior fought many battles forJerusalem. Wars and heated conflicts still rage today around the world overthis piece of land in the Middle East. David's exhortation in his songrecorded in Psalm 122 must still be prayed and sung today:
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosperwho love You. May peace be within her walls and prosperity within herpalaces."
The Apostle Paul also loved Jerusalem and was concernedfor the city and for the welfare of her inhabitants. In his letter to theRomans, Paul wrote the following:
But now, I am going to Jerusalem serving the saints.For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for thepoor among the saints in Jerusalem. Yes, they were pleased to do so, andthey are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in theirspiritual things, they are indebted to minister to them also in materialthings (Romans 15:25-27).
Today, with all of the hundreds of thousands of newimmigrants, tourism on a down turn, tension and pressures, terrorism, warsand rumors of wars, Israel’s economy has absolutely been devastated.We must pray for the shalom of God for the city of peace. But wemust do more. I have often quoted intercessor S. D. Gordon,“You can do more than pray after you’ve prayed. But you cannotdo more than pray until you have prayed.”
It is time for works to match our faith. It is time tofeed and clothe the poor, and to give a cup of water to "the least ofthese my brethren," Jesus' brothers after the flesh.
The Jewish people's acceptance of the MessiahJesus will lead to life from the dead – a worldwide revival ofunprecedented magnitude.
Pray and act for Israel because the Jewish people'sacceptance of the Messiah Jesus will lead to worldwide revival ofunprecedented magnitude. Romans 11:15 says, "For if [Israel's]rejection [of Christ] be the reconciliation of the world, what will theiracceptance be but life from the dead?" Wow! Life from the dead!
Isaiah prophesied, "In the days to come Jacobwill take root, Israel will blossom and sprout, and they will fill thewhole earth with fruit" (Isaiah 27:6). With fruit! This is morethan just natural fruit. One of the major keys to world revival is prayingfor Israel. As the Jewish people are awakened out of their sleep and beholdtheir Messiah, this will create a divine acceleration into a time whenhundreds of thousands - if not literally millions - turn to Jesus as theirMessiah. There is nothing more potent than a Jewish believer in the Messiahtelling others about the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Want to seeworldwide revival? Then pray!
Israel’s acceptance of their glorious Messiah willbe used to catapult the greatest worldwide spiritual awakening that thisplanet has ever seen. The whole earth will be filled with the fruit ofrevival.
Jesus linked His Second Coming to Israel'snational turning to Him.
Pray and take a stand for Israel because the SecondComing of Christ is linked to Israel's response to Him. Jesus prophesiedbefore His death, "For I say to you, from now on you shall not seeMe until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of theLord'" (Matthew 23:39). Jesus linked His Second Coming toIsrael's national turning to Him.
Do want to see Jesus come back in your lifetime? Is itpossible to hasten the day of His appearing? (2 Peter 3:12) Doyou want to see Jesus come again? Then pray that the blinders on the Jewishpeople’s eyes will fall off (Romans 11:25) and that they will welcometheir Messiah with a whole heart.
Why pray and take a stand of action for Israel? BecauseJesus said to, because Isaiah said to, because David the psalmist said to,and because today the Holy Spirit is saying to. There may be many otherreasons to pray and act for Israel. Pick whatever reason you want, but prayand take a stand for Israel!
As a Watchmen on theWalls!
James W.Goll
