The Land Of Israel - Part Two

Our new series is about the physical land of Israel - past, present and future. In our first message we learned that God spoke numerous times to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob proclaiming that He would give to them and their descendants the land "From the river Egypt to the river Euphrates." This information is found in Genesis 15:18.

How did the concept of the Jewish people living in their own God-Given land actually take place? We need to first realize there is a connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem going back 3,000 years to King David who established Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Jerusalem was the center of the Jewish people's faith and identity. King Solomon built the first Temple in the tenth century which was destroyed in 586 B.C. A second temple was built a century later but was destroyed in 70 A.D.

Currently, some of the Jewish people are still dispersed around the world because of their disobedience to God. Even in their dispersion, God's people desire to be back in Israel saying, "Next Year In Jerusalem." This dispersion is still active today but many Jews are moving back to Israel on a regular basis.

Let us go back to the original question for this message - how did the idea of a particular land for the Jews designated by God come into being? Toward the end of the 19th Century dispersed Jewish people started believing they were not safe because of Anti-Semitism. As a result, the concept of a State of Israel surfaced and this became known as Zionism.

A Jewish man, Chaim Weizmann, invented an important material needed for arms production in Great Britain. Two important British government leaders, Lloyd George and Lord Balfour took notice of Chaim and started a Zionism Movement proposing the return of the Jews to their own land. 

As a result, Lord Balfour made a declaration known as the Balfour Declaration stating that "His Majesty's Government views with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people." Please stay tuned for our next message describing in detail the response to the Balfour Declaration! 

Blessings,

Frank