Standing in support of Israel, Jews, and believers in all the nations, in the name of Jesus (Yeshua). Sharing biblical truth, encouragement, news and prophecy.
Recapping our most recent trip to Israel, David and I speak of the highlights in northern Israel and in the capital city of Jerusalem, Israel.
(Part 1 of 3 videos)
Videos filmed and shared by Steve Martin, Founder, Love For His People Ministry in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA.
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Before 2016 even began, the Lord told me 2016 would be a year of shifting seasons and suddenlies. That means transitions. Many are reporting shifting seasons, suddenlies and transitions—or feel one coming on. Others are frustrated because they bear witness to the prophetic word but feel stuck. Consider what the Lord told me:
"Many neglect the angels of transition, and they bypass the help I have sent to transition them into the next stage of their journey. Many ignore the angels of transition and, therefore, fail to enter into the new place I have set aside for them at the appointed time. Many are working in their own strength, struggling in the flesh and failing to embrace the work of My angels on assignment to help them transition into the new thing. Look for the angels in times of transition."
Only God can transition you from glory to glory, but there are angels to help you. Despite the acknowledged extreme teachings in the realm of angels, I was surprised at how much angelic activity we find in both the Old and New Testaments. Angels are mentioned 108 times in the Old Testament and 165 times in the New Testament—and the New Testament is much shorter!
I believe we're neglecting this powerful resource. We certainly do not worship angels, but it's absolutely foolish to ignore their ministry. Let me show you some ways angels can help in times of transition.
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You Have an Angel
In Matthew 18:10, Jesus said: "See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven." We see angelic activity in the New Testament was common. When Peter was released from prison (by an angel) he came knocking on the door where intercessors were praying for his release—but they didn't believe when he actually showed up. They said, "It is his angel" (Acts 12:15). The Bible says angels are ministering spirits to those who inherit salvation (Heb. 1:14).
We focus so much on demons, but remember only one-third of the angels fell. Two-thirds are still on our side. We need to understand the ministry of angels.
Angels can offer information in times of transition.
"Angels" really means messenger, so this is one of primary functions of an angel.
Gabriel announced the birth of John the Baptist (Luke 1:5-25).
Gabriel announced the birth of Jesus (Luke 1:26-38).
God used angels to interpret visions He gave to Daniel, Zechariah and John in the book of Revelation.
Angels shared with the shepherds the location of Christ's birthplace in the manger (Luke 2:8-20).
An angel warned Joseph to flee to Egypt because Herod wanted to kill the child Jesus (Matt. 2:13).
An angel announced Christ's resurrection to the women who found His empty tomb (John 20).
WARNING: We should seek the Lord for information, not angels. But we should understand when we ask Him, He may send angels.
Angels can offer direction in times of transition. An angel directed Abraham's servant in Genesis 24:1-7 to find a wife for his son. Abraham told him, "He shall send His angel beforeyou and you shall take a wife for my son from there. The angel directed the servant straight to Rebekah."
An angel directed Philip in Acts 8:26: "Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Rise up and go toward the south on the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.'"
An angel directed Cornelius to call for Peter in Acts 1:3-5: "About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, 'Cornelius.' When he looked at him he was afraid, and said, 'What is it, Lord?' He said to him, 'Your prayers and your alms have come up as a memorial before God. Now send men to Joppa, and bring back Simon whose surname is Peter."
WARNING: We should not ask the Lord to send angels to direct us. We should ask Him to direct us. But He may choose to send angels to direct you. Be mindful that angels can direct you.
Angels can protect you in times of transition. An angel protected Daniel in the lion's den in Daniel 6:19-22. Daniel told the king, "My God has sent His angel and has shut the lions' mouths so that they have not hurt me, because innocence was found in me before Him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm."
An angel protected Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace in Daniel 3:26-29. The Bible says God "sent His angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him. They have defied the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God."
An angel spoke to Moses sternly about angelic protection in Exodus 23:20-22: "Indeed, I am going to send an angel before you to guard you along the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. Be on guard before him and obey his voice. Do not provoke him, for he will not pardon your transgressions, for My name is in him. But if you diligently obey his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries."
WARNING: God is our stronghold, our fortress and our protector. We should not seek angels to protect us. We should cry out to God to protect us and know that He may choose to send angels. Psalm 91 promises angelic protection to those who dwell in the shelter of the Most High.
Angels can bring provision in times of transition. An angel provided water for Hagar after Abraham expelled her in Genesis 21:15-19. An angel bought Elijah food after his battle with the false prophets and his run from Jezebel in 1 Kings 19:5-6: As he lay and slept under the juniper tree, an angel touched him and said to him, "Arise and eat." He looked, and there was a cake baked on coals and a jar of water at his head. And he ate and drank and then lay down again.
WARNING: We should not pray that angels will bring us provision. God is our provider. We pray to Jehovah Jireh, and if He needs to choose to send an angel to bring provision, we should be alert enough in the spirit to recognize this.
Angels can war on your behalf in times of transition. God sent an angel to fight for Israel in 2 Kings 19:35: "On that night the angel of the Lord went out and struck one hundred and eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. When others woke up early in the morning, these were all dead bodies." And God showed Elisha's servant the angel armies that stood with them in 2 Kings 6:15-7.
WARNING: We can ask the Lord to dispatch His warring angels, but if we stop there we are limiting God. We should ask God to intervene on our behalf, which gives Him the freedom and flexibility to send angels or help us in whatever way He chooses.
Angels Obey the Word of God
Psalm 103:20 says, "Bless the Lord you His angels, who are mighty, and do His commands, and obey the voice of His word." The Message Bible says, "So bless God, you angels, ready and able to fly at his bidding, quick to hear and do what he says. Bless God, all you armies of angels, alert to respond to whatever he wills."
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We will stand with Israel even if the rest of the world does not. We pray for protection for our friends. Steve Martin President Love For His People, Inc.
Israel and the Jewish people face many threats these days — from a nuclear Iran, from terrorist rocket fire out of Gaza, from Syrian chemical weapons, and from rising anti-Semitism and a global movement to isolate and delegitimize Israel, especially pernicious in Europe, to name just a few.
Sometimes Jews wonder, “Why are we the Chosen People? How has that worked out well for us? The Pharoah chose us. Hitler chose us. Stalin chose us. The ayatollahs chose us. Choose someone else, Lord, please!” It’s a sad but understandable sentiment.
As we see current threats — and as we remember the horrors of the Holocaust and the Nazi regime’s determination to annihilate all the Jews of Europe — we need to remember that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob has never forgotten or forsaken the people He sovereignly chosen. We have, all too often, forgotten Him. But He has never forgotten us.
Indeed, that is why His Word commanded us to celebrate Purim, which takes place this weekend.
Purim is the Jewish holiday that celebrates the remarkable story of how the God of Israel used two faithful believers — Esther and Mordechai — and a movement of prayer and fasting to rescue the Jewish people from an evil Persian regime determine to annihilate them.
Remember: the evil Persian leader Haman literally used the language of annihilation all those years ago. As we read in Esther 3:13, “Letters were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, women and children, in one day….”
The Bible tells believers throughout the ages to celebrate this important holiday. This weekend, I will be teaching at a Baptist church in Tampa about the Jewish holiday of Purim, and why it is so important, and how from ancient Persia to Hitler’s Germany to modern Iran, Purim reminds us of God’s faithful love for and sovereign protection of the Jewish people from those who seek to destroy them.
Here are four ways you and your family can celebrate this year:
Learn – Jewish families around the world read the Book of Esther as a family to remember all the details of this amazing story, and Christians should, too. Study the story in its own historic context, to understand what was really happening, and the enormous faith and courage it took for Mordechai and Esther to do what they did. Then consider how the lessons in the historical account apply to Israel’s challenges today’s, and your own.
Pray–We are to praise the God of Israel that He is the Redeemer of the Jewish people, and of all people. We should thank Him that He also saved so many Persian people who turned to the Living God at the end of the story (many people miss this part). And especially in these times, we should follow Mordechai and Esther’s example by praying and fasting for the redemption of the Jewish people amidst this current showdown with an evil Persian regime that wants to annihilate them, and praying for the Persian people to be saved as well. Who knows if God has chosen us for a time such as this?
Give — In the Biblical account, the Lord encourages us to give food and other gifts to the poor. We read in Esther 9:20-22, “Then Mordecai recorded these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, obliging them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day of the same month, annually, because on those days the Jews rid themselves of their enemies, and it was a month which was turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and rejoicing and sending portions of food to one another and gifts to the poor.” Consider how you can give to the Jewish people today and be a blessing to Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus.
Go — If you’d like to invest to a ministry that is providing food and other gifts to the poor and needy in the Land of Israel, please go to The Joshua Fund’s website at www.joshuafund.net.
May the Lord bless you, and all of Israel, and all of the Persian people this Purim season.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and his British counterpart David Cameron attend a joint press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday, March 12, 2014, following their meeting. (photo credit: AP)
British Prime Minister David Cameron, on his first state visit to Israel, spoke about his Jewish relatives and about how seriously he takes the history of the Holocaust.
He visited Yad Vashem on Wednesday, the Israeli Holocaust museum and research center.
During his address to the Knesset,Cameron also announced that he will be visiting the Auschwitz death camp in southern Poland later this year, and said, “I want every child in Britain to learn about the Holocaust and to understand just how vital it is to fight discrimination and prejudice in our world.”
One of the most moving experiences I have had as Prime Minister came in January this year, when I held a reception in Downing Street for 50 Survivors of the Sho’ah. I met some of the most inspiring people and heard some of the most incredible stories.
People like Harry Spiro who couldn’t understand why his mother pushed him out of her house and off to the factory, when she was actually saving his life.
Gena Turgel, who witnessed her brother being shot by the Nazis and lost another brother and two sisters before she was eventually liberated from Bergen-Belsen and went on to marry the British soldier who freed her.
And Ben Helfgott who endured 3 years in a ghetto, 2 labour camps and 3 concentration camps to make it to England where he was reunited with one of his sisters, the only other member of his family to survive. Ben went on to represent Britain as a weightlifter in 2 Olympics set up a society for Holocaust survivors and was honoured in Poland for his reconciliation work between Poles and Jews. And I am delighted that Ben has come with me here today.
All of the survivors have made such an incredible contribution to Britain.
And one of the things so many of them have done – and which never ceases to amaze me – is to go into our schools and share their testimony first hand.
It is hard to imagine the sheer strength of humanity it must take to do that.
And I am determined that long after they are gone and long after we are all gone their memory will be as strong and vibrant as it is today.
As a father, I will never forget last year visiting the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin with my young children and for the first time trying to explain to them quite what had happened.
I want every child in Britain to learn about the Holocaust and to understand just how vital it is to fight discrimination and prejudice in our world.
It is vital that we do all we can with our international partners to preserve the site at Auschwitz, which I will be visiting later this year.
But we need to do more.
That is why I have set up the Holocaust Commission in Britain. A number of the Commissioners are here with Ben and me today and as we visit Yad Vashem together later today, our pledge to Ben will be that Britain will never forget what he and his fellow survivors have taught us.
We will preserve the memory of that generation for every generation to come.
But remembering the past goes far beyond that horrific suffering of a generation.
It is about remembering the long and rightful search of a people for a nation. And the right for the Jewish people to live a peaceful and prosperous life in Israel.
Joel C. Rosenberg (www.joelrosenberg.com) is the author of numerous New York Times best-selling novels and non-fiction books, with nearly 3 million copies sold. He is also the founder of The Joshua Fund (www.joshuafund.com).
His books include:
The Last Jihad (2002)
The Last Days (2003)
The Ezekiel Option (2005)
The Copper Scroll (2006)
Epicenter: Why The Current Rumblings In The Middle East Will Change Your Future (2006, non-fiction)
Dead Heat (2008)
Inside The Revolution: How the Followers of Jihad, Jefferson & Jesus are Battling To Dominate the Middle East and Transform the World (2009, non-fiction)
The Twelfth Imam (2010)
The Tehran Initiative (2011)
Implosion: Can America Recover From Its Economic and Spiritual Challenges In Time? (2012)
Israel At War: Inside The Nuclear Showdown With Iran (2012, non-fiction e-book)
Damascus Countdown (2013)
The Auschwitz Escape (March 18, 2014 — forthcoming)
He is also the co-author with Dr. T.E. Koshy of The Invested Life: Making Disciples of All Nations One Person At A Time (2012).
He has also produced two documentary films, based on his two non-fiction books (Epicenter and Inside The Revolution).
The Ezekiel Option was named by the ECPA as the Gold Medallion winner of the “Best Novel of 2006.” Dead Heat reached #4 on the New York Times hardcover best-seller list.
Joel — whose mother is Gentile and whose father is from a Jewish background — previously worked as an aide to several U.S. and Israeli leaders, including Steve Forbes, former Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Natan Sharansky, and then-former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also worked for The Heritage Foundation, Empower America, and Americans For Hope, Growth & Opportunity.
He has been interviewed on hundreds of radio and TV shows, including ABC’s “Nightline,” CNN, CNN Headline News, C-SPAN, Fox News, MSNBC, The History Channel, the Rush Limbaugh Show, the Sean Hannity Show and the Glenn Beck Show. He has spoken to audiences throughout the U.S. and Canada and all over the world, including Israel, Iraq, Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Russia, Germany, France, Brussels, Italy, and the Philippines. He has addressed audiences at the White House, Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.