Who could’ve known that a terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 would not only change Israel but the entire world?
The Bible clearly prophesies that a time is coming when Israel will be surrounded by nations bent on destroying them. On “Black Saturday” which October 7th is now called, Israel received little sympathy for the Hamas attack when over 2,000 armed terrorists broke through the Israeli border. 1200 Israelis and foreign nationals were brutally murdered and 253 hostages, dead or alive, were kidnapped into Gaza. Over 285 Israeli soldiers were killed on that first day. The brutality and evil that was perpetrated against the Jewish State was the worst attack in its 75-year history.
Prior to this, the Hamas terrorist group had become irrelevant in the Gaza Strip according to The Arab Barometer, a nonpartisan research group, with 67% of the people not trusting Hamas as a viable government. On top of that, other Arab countries began normalizing relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords while skipping a comprehensive peace treaty with the Palestinians as a prerequisite.
Yet just a few hours after the vicious attack on October 7th a volcanic eruption of Antisemitism went global. Israel went from victim to villain on the same day. Are the days the Bible predicted in Zechariah 12:2 already here?
“On that day, when ALL the nations of the earth are gathered against her…”
And if those days are here, how did it happen in the blink of an eye?
The answer is simple, the hatred of Jews worldwide is a supernatural hatred. It’s unexplainable that so many people despise an entire people group, many whom have never personally met a Jew.
Something else happens when anti-Semitism is on the rise. Christian persecution rises as well. They are like twins that grow at the same pace. So, since October 7th, Christians in the Middle East have been on high alert.
One Year Later
BUT…. despite the ongoing war that has now spread to 7 fronts against Israel and the sharp rise of Christian persecution in Muslim majority nations, God hasn’t hit the Pause Button on the Great Commission.
Both Jews and Arab/Muslims are desperate for answers that are found only in Jesus Christ who will one day bring peace to this volatile region. It won’t be based on a peace treaty, nor will it be temporary.
The fallout from “Black Saturday” may set the whole region ablaze with more terrorism and violence, but Uncharted’s leaders throughout the Middle East and Central Asia tell us there is a fresh new receptivity to the Gospel.
Muslims are coming to faith in Christ now more than ever and the Jews in Israel are showing signs of wanting to know more about Yeshua.
The days we live in are filled with evil but there is No Panic in Heaven!