The Rise of Antisemitism in the World and our Response to it

This world seems strange and inadequate to me personally. And those who try to understand it rationally and determine how it will develop further, and where it will all lead, time after time come to a dead end and fail to understand why things happen the way they do.

But the Lord warned about this long ago, but also again and again and again. Because this world does not lend itself to rational human analysis and predictions. It exists in some other dimension. And very often we see that this dimension clashes with the simplest benefit of those who make decisions.

Putin and Hamas - senseless  decisions 

For example, what did Putin seem to lack? He had everything before the invasion of Ukraine. And now he has to bow to China, Iran, or (can you imagine?) beg Kim Jong-un, the rejected dictator of North Korea, to give him shells and missiles. He has turned into a rogue dictator and all civilized people see him for what he truly is by now. Look at how much his closest entourage has lost in the world. Sanctions upon sanctions. Severed relations with Ukraine for years and years, which they called sisterly. Why? What's the point?

Another example is the “great victory of Hamas over Israel” proclaimed by Hamas and Iran. What was the expression of this victory? - they horribly slaughtered some 1,300 defenseless civilians, including the elderly, children, and women. And what did this “great victory” lead to? It led to the fact that Israeli troops are simply destroying Hamas. 

Before this “great victory,” Hamas reigned in Gaza - everything was in their hands, all of the money that came from Israel, Europe, and America. It was a completely tyrannical system. The entire core leadership of Hamas lived abroad in luxurious conditions, while the second echelon of the leadership lived like czars in Gaza. The current prime minister of Israel used to appease Hamas. They occasionally launched rockets at Israel, and Israel responded by lightly bombing wastelands and empty garages.

As a result, the entire Hamas infrastructure, which was built over decades, is now half-destroyed. Those that remain have been driven into tunnels. Millions of Gazans have migrated to the south of the Strip. And now Hamas is demanding a worldwide Jewish pogrom and crying out for Islamic brothers, including Iran. But no one defends Hamas, not even its closest friends, and no Arab country is willing to accept refugees from Gaza. It turns out that everyone is willing to rally against the Jews, but no one really wants to go to war. Why would they do that?

Only one book that reveals the meaning of these unfolding events

If we do not know the Bible, if the Lord does not show us that the prince of this world is the one who is called in Scripture the prince of this world, and he is also the enemy of all men, we will not be able to understand what is going on in this world. And this enemy - he is primarily the enemy to Israel and God's children of all nations, but he is also the enemy to the rest of the people. Ultimately the prince of this world is the enemy even to his servants whom he exploits and drives to hell.

It is because of his rule that he has an invisible army of dark evil servants who promise many things to their slaves and always, sooner or later, break their promises. It's because of them that the things that are happening are happening. If we fail to understand those spiritual undertones, if we do not delve into the Word of God, if we do not understand the prophecies that are being fulfilled before our eyes, we will be in complete bewilderment, confusion, and fear – not knowing what to expect, where to turn, and how it will end.

And we know how it all ends. We know that the Lord is preparing a great victory over all the forces of evil, over all the darkness, over all those who now think they would succeed in some things. He is preparing a victory that will change this whole world. This whole world will be renewed in the fire of God's glory. This earth itself will be transformed, the heavens will be transformed. And the Lord will reign in Jerusalem over all the earth.

That’s why we never stopped praying for Israel in Ukraine

Before the October 7 events in Israel that took place on the last day of Sukkot, many of our brothers and sisters from many good churches were somewhat perplexed: “There is a terrible war going on in Ukraine. Why do you pay so much attention to the Jewish question, to antisemitism, to Israel? Moreover, Israel is not helping Ukraine as actively as America or some European countries".

We had to explain the situation at length and in detail, elaborate a lot of things. And now everything has become simple. Because in the world for all people in any country of the world, even for the winterers in Antarctica, two wars affect the whole world - the war in Ukraine and the war in Israel. And many Christians, especially evangelical Christians, now realize without question that these two wars are far apart geographically, but very tightly connected spiritually.

Of course, now the world media has switched from the war in Ukraine to the war in Israel. But those who know that the entire Bible is one book, who are trying to delve into it and compare everything that is going on with the only recorded Word of God, understand very well who is behind these two wars that are central to the world at this time. 

They understand perfectly well that the same spirit that started the war in Ukraine has started the war against Israel. The same evil spirit that is trying to prevent the fulfillment of God's promises to the Church, the Body of the Messiah of all nations, and God's promises to God's chosen Jewish people, is the same spirit. He started these two wars, and he is also trying to turn the masses of people around the world against Israel.

Rise of antisemitism after October 7

According to a recent statistical study, the number of antisemitic incidents and even crimes around the world has increased elevenfold since October 7. Not one and a half or two times, but eleven times!

Israel suffered because it wanted to appease these demons. It wanted to appease this evil, to placate Hamas. And all that Israel gave them, they turned it into a weapon against Israelis. All the things that Israel did for the sake of appeasing them, it all worked against Israel.

And what was the reaction of antisemites around the world after that? Israel is to blame and America is to blame. Russia, which has been posing as Israel's friend, declared at the UN that Israel has no right to self-defense because “Israel is occupying Palestine.” It turns out that if the Jews became brazenly defensive, they crossed a red line.

Why? Because the world's elites and those crazed, obsessed mobs that are now all over the world in support of Hamas, allow Israel and the Jews to exist only if they are victims who are not defending themselves. The attitude of this part of the world, subservient to the prince of this world, is, “We will pity you if you are mocked, if you are murdered, but you endure and cry.” But as soon as Israel dared to start retaliating...

This is very similar to what was happening in Ukraine, especially at the beginning of the war. When many so-called brothers from Russia called and wrote: “Well, Ukrainians, accept it, surrender. You realize that you can't do anything against the great Russia.... Like Israel surrendered to Babylon, now you surrender to Russia”. They did not realize that if Russia is compared to Babylon, then Russia is an idolatrous aggressive empire. 

The same spirit is not only behind the aggression against Ukraine and Israel, but also behind those who explain to Ukraine and Israel what they can and cannot do, and lead them to believe that it is time to surrender to violence.

The relevance of the Messianic movement today

Now many of our brothers and sisters in Ukraine and other countries understand why it was so important to pray not only for Ukraine but also for Israel, why it was so important to pray not only against the aggressive attack on Ukraine but also against all those forces of darkness that opposed Israel and prepared this attack on them.

The annual Prayer Against Antisemitism and the weekly Prayer for Israel, which were initiated by our congregations, now take on a special significance. It is worth noting that the prayer for Israel existed before we began to unite congregations and churches in this prayer. But prayer against antisemitism and Nazism is, in a certain respect, a unique phenomenon. Interestingly, it was initiated by our daughter congregations in Russia. Every year there is a central Prayer Against Antisemitism and Nazism in Kyiv, and more than 40 countries join in this prayer that the Lord has given us to organize.

Our vision is very relevant. We realize that our ministry - the ministry to save the Jewish people, the ministry to free the Body of Messiah from the curses of the spirit of antisemitism, and the ministry to restore the fullness of the Body of Messiah not only in Ukraine but also in the whole world – and the fullness is impossible without a living Jewish New Covenant family –  this ministry is becoming more and more relevant every year, every month, every week. 

I didn't want all that is happening now to happen. Of course, we prayed for something else. But by the grace of God, our prayers and the prayers of our brothers and sisters around the world have prevented much worse from happening. And all that has happened and is happening shows how important our ministry is. Rest assured, even your simplest prayers in these directions, even when you didn’t feel the power and fire, you prayed in unity nevertheless with the whole congregation and many other congregations and churches. And those prayers brought about specific results.

This is a time when we must advance this movement forward and not become distracted from these two main areas of the ministry of our lives. Why the ministry of our lives? Because in the Word of God, especially in the New Testament, the life of believers and their ministry to God and people are not separate but are one and the same.

Antisemitism in peaceful Switzerland

My wife, who is now in Bern, called me today and told me something interesting. When I was there recently, there was a special meeting in the local synagogue dedicated to solidarity with Israel. The Israeli ambassador came, and a rabbi flew in from Israel. And there was our friend Pierre Bezancon. He and the local synagogue chairman bought a large number of Israeli flags and printed on them a quote from the prophet Zechariah: “He who touches you [Israel] touches the apple of His eye” (Zechariah 2:8). And these flags were hung all over this French-speaking canton of Neuchâtel in many places. 

Within a short time, almost all of these flags were desecrated. Many had “Israel” crossed out and “Palestine” written on them. Many had swastikas painted on them. Only two flags survived because they were very high up. And this was in Switzerland! In Switzerland, where there were no aggressive demonstrations in support of Hamas, and those demonstrations that did take place were quiet and small. Can you imagine what is happening in France, in England, in Germany? Although in Germany to a lesser extent, because the German police are finally cracking down on pro-Hamas demonstrations.

A conference in Switzerland that I attended on my last trip brought together believers from different parts of Switzerland. Good brothers and sisters. But most of them were elderly people. The young people in the evangelical churches in Switzerland are not so ready to support Israel and speak up for the Jewish people. The new generation of believers are distancing themselves from this. The situation is very challenging. But when I asked them the question, “In which country in Europe are there only rallies in support of Israel, but no rallies in support of Hamas and ‘Palestine’?” some of them guessed it was Ukraine.

It’s time to actively fight the spirit of antisemitism

I'll go even further. Even numerous antisemites in Ukraine have already realized that we have a common enemy with Israel. Even they have realized this through the veil of antisemitism. So we have great hope that God will break the curse of antisemitism in Ukraine definitively, that He will give victory over this evil spirit, and that the people of Ukraine (forever, I hope) will be freed from this age-old defeat. 

Friends, we have the right, we have the fire of the Holy Spirit and though limited, the power of Yeshua to act so that the people of Ukraine will rise up in freedom from this terrible millennial defeat, the enmity against God's chosen people. That the people of Ukraine will throw off this deception. That the lessons of the horrors of Khmelnytskyi and Koliyivshchyna pogroms and World War II be finally learned by all, and that no one can ever again justify fighting the God of Israel.

Can you imagine, on those flags of Israel with the quote from the prophet Zechariah, they were desecrated with swastikas, not even realizing that by doing so they are confirming what scripture says - that they are trying to touch the apple of God's eye. What will happen to those who play this game, we know very well. But we must also pray for them, for these enemies of God, enemies of God's people, enemies of the Body of Messiah, that the fear of God may come upon them and break the captivity of the devil.

Boris Grisenko, KJMC Rabbi

The Word at the KJMC Shabbat service, November 4, 2023

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