The Mounting Controversy of Zion
There are three primary reasons why I consistently emphasize what Isaiah called “the controversy of Zion” (34:8 KJV) and oppose the idea that it is a peripheral and insignificant issue:
1. Jerusalem has been a point of intense contention and controversy throughout history
2. Jerusalem is a point of mounting contention and controversy in our generation
3. Jerusalem will be the greatest point of contention and controversy in the generation of the Lord’s return (Zech. 12:2-3, 9; 14:13; Mt. 24:15-31; 2 Thess. 2:1-10; etc)
Most Christians in the West are ignorant, apathetic, or indifferent towards the issue of Jerusalem because of rampant Biblical illiteracy, false teaching about Israel, and rabid cultural isolation. Without a global perspective infused with Biblical conviction they believe the world revolves around them and are oblivious to what’s happening on the other side of the globe.
The video above serves to burst our bubble of cultural isolationism and confirm what the Bible says about the “controversy of Zion” that is said to mount and culminate at the end of the age.
It was shot in Cairo and released Monday by Egypt’s Al-Nas TV. You’ll hear Muslim preacher Safwat Higazi telling thousands of Muslim Brotherhood supporters at a soccer stadium, “We can see how the dream of the Islamic caliphate is being realized, God willing, by Dr. Mohamed Mursi” (the movement’s presidential candidate), as Mursi and other Brotherhood officials nod in agreement.
“The capital of the caliphate – the capital of the United States of the Arabs – will be Jerusalem,” Higazi said, before leading the crowd in chants of “Millions of martyrs march toward Jerusalem.” Mursi responded, “Yes, Jerusalem is our goal. We shall pray in Jerusalem, or die as martyrs on its threshold.”
If you write this off as fringe and irrelevant you’re no different than those who were indifferent towards the preaching of Hitler in the 1930′s. It is in our face. It’s clear. And it’s bold.
For more resources about these issues check out http://thecontroversyofzion.com as well as my book “The Controversy of Zion and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble”
We Have On Our Side All the Undiscovered Wealth of God and His Omnipotence
Samuel Zwemer (1867-1952), one of my greatest heroes, on the rigors of engaging the Islamic world with the Gospel:
Face to face with baffling problems in his own station, and conscious of the vast areas still unoccupied by missions and of the hundreds of millions untouched, the individual missionary may well grow discouraged, and let hope deferred make his heart sick. But the remedy for such discouragement is not to be found in a study of statistics. The things that are impossible by statistics are often possible by dynamics. Mere numbers are as nothing over against the power of Life. The things that are impossible with men are possible with God. In the struggle for supremacy between Islam and [the Gospel] in the Dark Continent, the statistics are all on the side of the Moslem, but the dynamics are with the Christian. To those who believe the promises of God, who know the living Christ and have caught the vision of world-wide redemption, there can be no discouragement. We have on our side all the undiscovered wealth of God and His omnipotence.
From his epic book, “A Call to Prayer for the Moslem World.” Get it on Amazon.
Epic Video – “Muslims attack Pastor with Acid: The Umar Mulinde Story”
From my friend Ron Cantor (@roncan1) at MaozIsrael.org:
“On Christmas Eve 2011, two Muslim terrorists threw acid in the face of Ugandan Pastor Umar Mulinde. This video shares his amazing story of coming to faith, reaching other Muslims and how he ended up in Israel to receive medical treatment. Maoz Israel and our partners are paying for his hotel and meals, while he receives outpatient medical treatment in Tel Aviv. If you would like to help this dear man of God, you can go to www.MaozIsrael.org/Mulinde to make a contribution. Please pray for Pastor Umar, that he will know the next step for him and his family in their journey with Yeshua.”
An ex-Muslim from Africa being treated for wounds by Messianic Jews in Israel. Simply amazing.
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Preachers of Social and Political Righteousness or Preachers of Christ?
The following words are as relevant now as they were when they were penned 100 years ago in 1913.
“There is a strong tendency today towards propagating social theories which seem to us Christian, towards making the progress of the world our hope. Men see the truth in heathen religions, they see the virtues of heathen character and they urge that the end of Christian missionary work is not so much to convert individuals, not so much to establish the Church, as to leaven society and to help forward a movement towards a goal of glory to which heathen truth and Christian truth alike are tending. They see this as the end, and their imaginations are fired by the vision of a world led by many paths to the throne of God. . .The result is that they would make missionaries, preachers of social and political righteousness more than preachers of Christ.”
- Roland Allen, Missionary Principles (Grand Rapids: MI: Eerdmans, 1964), 95.
“Are We Following the Apostolic Way?”
This afternoon I read through J. D. Payne’s new book on Roland Allen written in honor of the 100 year anniversary of the publication of Allen’s classic Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours?
For those involved in pioneering, Church planting, or ministry in an established missions context I’d encourage you to get a copy. It’s a short, easy, and engaging read. It can be read in an hour or two.
“…let us face this thing openly and honestly. Are we following the Apostolic way, the more successful way, of extending the Church, or are we employing a method which experience has proved to many people to be a conspicuous failure?”
- Roland Allen (p. 32)
For information about the book (and a 30% discount) click here.
A Sneak Peak Look Inside “Unto Death”
I’m excited for my book “Unto Death: Martyrdom, Missions, and the Maturity of the Church” to be released early this summer. As soon as the launch date is settled, we’ll let you know.
Until then, you can track with quotes, updates, and opportunities to score some free books over on the Facebook Page [Click Here]. If you want to help promote the book, “Like” the Page and share it on your Facebook wall.
Below is a sneak peak look inside the book. I’m grateful to Brian Kim (IHOP-KC, Luke 18 Project, ACTSchool) and David Sitton (To Every Tribe) for their contribution. Read more >>
The Hour is Late, The Harvest is Plentiful, The Laborers are Few, and the Jesus is Worthy of it All
Tonight I’ve been reading about General George Marshall (1880-1959). Looking at his life as a picture of what could be in terms of the “warfare” of global missions, I’m deeply stirred.
After leaving office, in a television interview, Harry Truman was asked who he thought was the American who made the greatest contribution of the last thirty years. Without hesitation, Truman said:
“I don’t think in this age in which I have lived, that there has been a man who has been a greater administrator; a man with a knowledge of military affairs equal to General Marshall.”
There are many reasons for such a legacy. What inspires me most is the fact that Marshall grew the US Army from 189,000 to 8 million in 3 years. That’s a 40-fold increase. Again, in 3 years.
Such an extraordinary feat would not have been possible without the overwhelming pressure of war-time urgency; urgency that the contemporary missions movement needs to grapple with and obtain in order to fulfill the purposes of God in this generation.
May such a resolute mentality, extravagant use of time and resources, and earnestness of conviction characterize a new generation of missional leaders whose mandate it is to “fight the good fight” among the hardest and darkest nations. Read more >>
Journey with Our Family and Team as We Begin Pioneering in the Middle East
To Our Dear Friends,
As many of you know, later this year we will be moving with a team of about 20 of our best friends to begin pioneering in the Middle East. We’d love for you to journey with us.
If you would like to receive regular updates, send an email to worthyofitall@gmail.com.
For security reasons, this will be the only forum where we can share some of the details about what we’re doing in the Middle East. If you are a close friend of ours and have been receiving the regular updates we’ve been sending out over the years from the other account, you’ve already been added to the new account.
He’s Worthy of it All,
Dalton
A New Book I’m Really Excited About
I flew into Atlanta today and found a pre-release copy of my friend Joel Richardson‘s new book waiting in the mailbox: “Mideast Beast: The Scriptural Case for an Islamic Antichrist.”
A few months ago I read the manuscript before it went to print. It is phenomenal. Two things really impressed me.
1. Joel’s exegetical clarity. The title may give the impression that it is a fringe conspiracy theory book. It’s not. It’s solid exposition of some key passages that have been butchered by historical scholarship.
I commend Joel for the way he has handled the Bible. Those who hold Joel’s eschatological perspective and those who don’t will appreciate the way he has been faithful to the Word of God. His treatment of the Major Prophets is well worth the price of the book. I have no doubt that it will be used to change many minds and bolster many hearts.
2. Joel’s missionary fervor. Many of the books about Islam that are flooding the market these days grieve me. They’re sensational, biblically bankrupt, American all too American and shallow all too shallow. But Joel’s book is different. One of his principle concerns is for the maturity of the Church at the end of the age that would enable her to withstand the coming scourge. In as much as the book is about prophecy, it is a book about missions.
The western world is paralyzed by fear about Islam. As a result, we’re content to turn a blind eye to the barren mission field of the Islamic world. Joel’s passion to engage the Muslim world with the Gospel shines through his writing. I will be sending many copies to leaders in the missions movement. As far as I’m concerned it is essential reading for those who are involved in frontier ministry in the coming years.
Missions aside, my hope is that this book would receive wide readership among the whole Body of Christ that is for the most part ignorant about what the Bible says about the end of the age and apathetic about the crisis of Islam.
You can order the book now directly from Joel before it’s officially released in September. Click here to order.
