Cruz’s evangelical backer seeks to convert Jews, predicts new concentration camps

Times of Israel ^ | February 9, 2016 | Eric Cortellessa

[Praxeologue]

A controversial Christian evangelical leader whose endorsement is being proudly trumpeted by Republican presidential hopeful Ted Cruz works energetically to convert Jews to Christianity and has predicted that there will be a new period of concentration camps for Jews before the return of Jesus.

Mike Bickle is also notorious for having said that God sent Hitler to hunt Jews for not accepting Jesus as the messiah.

Bickle, the founder and director of the International House of Prayer, a Kansas City-based Pentecostal Christian missions organization, runs the Israel Mandate project, an effort to “mobilize an international prayer movement that would pray 24/7 for the nation of Israel to receive their Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus),” according to its website. The ministry hosts a regular livestream of such prayer for anyone to participate.

In public sermons over the years, Bickle has focused intensely on end-times prophesies, and has predicted that Jesus will not return until Jews embrace him as their Lord and savior. His website claims that “Jesus ‘bound’ Himself by His own prophecy, saying He would only come back and rule in Jerusalem when Israel’s leaders ask Him to reign as King over them.”

For Bickle, this is what explains Nazi Germany’s murder of more than six million Jews. In a 2011 sermon, Bickle cited a passage from Jeremiah 16:16 to elucidate the attempted extermination of European Jewry.

“The Lord says, ‘I’m going to give all 20 million of them the chance to respond to the fishermen. And I give them grace.; And he says, ‘And if they don’t respond to grace, I’m going to raise up the hunters.’ And the most famous hunter in recent history is a man named Adolf Hitler,” he told an audience.

On January 21, 2016, Cruz issued a press release announcing Bickle’s endorsement. It came a little more than a week before the Iowa caucuses, a contest where support among evangelicals helped Cruz edge out real estate mogul Donald Trump, who had been previously leading in the polls.

“Through prayer, the Lord has changed my life and altered my family’s story,” Cruz said in the announcement. “I am grateful for Mike’s dedication to call a generation of young people to prayer and spiritual commitment. Heidi and I are grateful to have his prayers and support. With the support of Mike and many other people of faith, we will fight the good fight, finish the course, and keep the faith.”

The press release included a biography of Bickle and a description of the many facets of his organization, including its annual conference for young adults, three full-time ministry schools and “24/7 prayer led by worship teams.” It also included a statement from Bickle.

“Our nation is in a great crisis in this hour,” Bickle said. “We need a president who will first be faithful to honor God’s Word. We need a president who will work to defend religious liberty, uphold our Constitution, keep our country safe and our economy sound, and speak truth to the nation. We have been praying for righteous leaders, and Ted Cruz is such a leader. I am enthusiastically endorsing Ted Cruz.”

Cruz has faced some criticism in recent days over his use of the term “chutzpah” to mock real estate magnate Donald Trump’s “New York values,” a comment some said reeked of anti-Semitism.

“Using ‘New York’ as a euphemism for ‘Jewish’ has long been an anti-Semitic dog whistle,” The Washington Post’s Dana Milbank wrote last week. The role of Bickle and evangelical leaders in past campaigns

This is not the first time Bickle has involved himself in national politics. He played a prominent role in former Texas governor Rick Perry’s Response Prayer event that effectively launched his 2012 presidential bid. Bickle spoke on stage during the event and musicians from the International House of Prayer’s worship team performed.

This is also not the first time that a controversial evangelical leader — and one with a history of calling Hitler’s persecution of Jews an expression of God’s will — has been involved with US presidential politics. In 2008, Sen. John McCain welcomed the endorsement of the Rev. John Hagee, a televangelist and pastor of a mega-chuch in San Antonio, Texas.

Audio from a sermon in the 1990s captured Hagee, like Bickle, citing the Book of Jeremiah and saying, “If that doesn’t describe what Hitler did in the Holocaust, you can’t see that.”

Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., heaps criticism on the Obama administration's policies with Russia, Iran and other international hot spots as he questions Secretary of State Kerry during the committee's hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 8, 2014. (photo credit: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., heaps criticism on the Obama administration’s policies with Russia, Iran and other international hot spots as he questions Secretary of State Kerry during the committee’s hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, April 8, 2014. (photo credit: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

McCain eventually rejected the endorsement and denounced Hagee’s rhetoric, but not until three months after this sermon first came to light, and after he had secured the Republican nomination, although the veteran Arizona senator said he had been unaware of such comments at the time of accepting Hagee’s backing.

“Obviously, I find these remarks and others deeply offensive and indefensible,” McCain said in a statement. “I did not know of them before Reverend Hagee’s endorsement, and I feel I must reject his endorsement as well.”

His campaign would admit that it did not sufficiently vet Hagee’s background, while also saying that it had been seeking his support early in the election process. Bickle on the fate of Jews

Throughout Bickle’s ecclesiastical career, he has professed adamantly that biblical prophesy suggests a bleak future for the Jewish people, including another era of Holocaust-like conditions.

On December 2, 2005, he delivered a sermon that said “Israel’s condition just before Jesus’ coming is described in scripture as being in prison camps and assaulted by foreign armies. Not all of Israel,” he clarified, “but a significant number of Jews will be in work camps, prison camps or death camps.”

‘A significant number of Jews will be in work camps, prison camps or death camps’

Bickle went on to say that half the Jews in Jerusalem will wind up in those camps:

“God says, ‘I’ll gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem. The city will be taken.’ And it says ‘half of the city,’ he said. “There’s 600,000 Jews living in Jerusalem now. And I don’t know what the number will be then, but according to the numbers now that would be 300,000 brought into prison camps from one city.” He then repeated for effect, “Three hundred thousand Jews.”

In a separate sermon, on July 23, 2006, Bickle cited more scripture to expand on what he claimed will become of the world’s entire Jewish population.

“A lot of Israel’s going to get converted, but a lot of Israel’s going to worship the anti-Christ,” he said. “A lot of Israel’s going to have revival, a lot of Israel’s going to fall away. Portions of Israel will be supernaturally protected and portions of Israel will die and go away to prison camps.”

He explained that, according to the Book of Zechariah, one third of world Jewry will “get radically saved and become lovesick worshippers of Jesus,” sparing them from the inevitable apocalyptic fate of the rest of their fellow Jews.

“And so all of Israel, at the end of the day … they end up dying or if they survive they get radically converted at the Second Coming.”

But it’s not all bad news, according to Bickle. “Many are going to get converted between now and then,” he said, reassuringly. “We’re not giving up on Israel until the Second Coming. It’s the efforts of leading people to the Lord right now that’s significantly related to the events that are going to happen.”

The Cruz campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

[OneVike]

As I said, what is wierd with a guy who is following what Christ told all Christians to do?

Spread the Gospel and warn them that they will die in their sins if they reject Christ.

It is called the Great Commission. Matthew 28:18-20

[Praxeologue]

WTF is your problem with him speaking the truth?

See my post #35.

I support Cruz.I want him to reject Bickle's support and disavow his statements NOW.

[miserare]

That is an extreme interpretation.

[OneVike]

Why?

He is closer to the truth than those who claim other things about the end times.

As I said. God used the Egyptian, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, Rome, and YES most likely even Hitler and Stalin to punish His 1st chosen people, why is it so strange to think He will not do so again if they continue to reject Him, and now their Messiah?

[miserare]

Yeah—that Great Old Punisher in the sky.

My God is a God of love and mercy, and does not will his beloved sons and daughters to suffer.

[Praxeologue]

God used the Egyptian, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, Rome, and YES most likely even Hitler and Stalin to punish His 1st chosen people, why is it so strange to think ...

Because it sounds like a wish or a threat. Rightly or wrongly, that's the way it comes across.

[OneVike]

Your problem is you people look at things in the prism of today, with God He looks at things all in one.

God is the same today, yesterday and forever, we change not Him.

He may have graduated us from the Law to Christ the Messiah, but we still must all accept Him. Now we do so through His Son. Reject His Son and pay the consequences.

Not my rules, His.

[El Cid]

Here: -- The Lord says, 'I'm going to give all 20 million of them the chance to respond to the fishermen. And I give them grace.; And he says, 'And if they don't respond to grace, I'm going to raise up the hunters.' And the most famous hunter in recent history is a man named Adolf Hitler, ... '

Whether it was a misapplication of scripture, or not, I don't know - but the 'Evangelical backer' was making reference to Jeremiah Chapter 16, where God says that after driving the people out of Israel, HE will bring them back to the land by 'fishers and hunters':

Jeremiah 16
15 But, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers.
16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.

God has certainly uses evil men for his purposes - and God is sovereign over all.
I don't know about concentration camps (if the evangelical guy was quoted properly - I think he pulled that one out of his posterior), but his other comments are in line with what one would expect from a Christian.

[unlearner]

The is no greater supporter of Israel and Jewish people than Evangelical Christians.

Anti-semitism exists, but so do anti-Christ blood libel which is what this is.

[Idaho_Cowboy]

I've never heard of this yokel endorsing Cruz, but it's worth noting two things:
It's amazing the Islamist flooding Europe and the refugees that our headed are way have not been mentioned yet on this thread. Mind you they won't bother with concentration camps.

John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

In John 3. Jesus tells a Pharisee and ruler of the Jews he needs to be born again not that he needed to stay a Jew.

John 3:15-18 “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

[OneVike]

I guess you would have been with the crowd that cut Isaiah in half and stoned Jeremiah for coming off like their prophecies were threats.

Not calling this guy a prophet, but he speaks the truth and you just don’t like it

You also come off like those who claim Christian preachers should not threaten them with hell if they don’t stop practicing or being homosexuality.

[CA Conservative]

I’m not sure what the issue is here. If you are a Christian, of course you want Jews to accept Christ as their Messiah. And the Bible talks about the Great Tribulation, which will have Israel go through a period of peace followed by a period of severe persecution. So I’m not sure why it would be a problem for Cruz if one of his supporters is teaching the Bible...

[tallyhoe]

If Muslim ISIS OR OTHER EXTREMIST TOOK OVER THERE PROBABLY BE JEWISH CONCENTRATION CAMPS. But not by the free world countries!!!

[OneVike]

Good points, and like I said, God has punished the Jews before for rejecting Him and now His Son their Messiah, why would I question some preacher for saying it is possible He would do so again?

[ShivaFan]

Too many of the Cruz supporters are involved in religious cults with an agenda of a Mullah-like Theocratic state that is totally incompatible with the Constitution of the United States. Being a so called true conservative to them means being a member of their cult or you are not true. This is total bongo stuff, and even Cruz knows he will massacred in the general election if this stuff gets out, and it will. The other day, one of these same cults had a big advert sign on the freeway essentially attacking Israel and Jews that unless they convert then Jesus will not come. This is not far removed from the Shia Iranian extremists saying the Mahdi that will come and establish Islamic utopia will not come out of some well in Iran unless and until the entire world is in flames of world war, only from world war and the flames and destruction will the Mahdi come out of the well. It does not matter if some other Cruz supporters try to make excuses for these cults which includes Glenn Beck and company, saying conversion is voluntary for the Jews, if these cultists took power they certainly would use force conversion on Jews in order to hasten so return of Jesus. This is without doubt. Of course, their madness would be resisted with massive response of citizen militias that will take down such nutcases in a New York minute.

[OneVike]

Thank you. I was beginning to think my fellow freepers have become anti-Scriptural

[OneVike]

You are obviously not a Christian who ever read the Scriptures about end times warnings.

You are the nut, you and those who claim true Bible believing Christians are nuts

[beandog]

Says a member of the Trump cult.

[Roman_War_Criminal]

How about posting a link or screen capture?

[Praxeologue]

Says a member of the Trump cult.

To my mind, this is not about Trump. It is about winning in November. Evangelicals can parse Bickle's words, scripturally true of false, all they want. The typical agnostic voter only needs to hear 'Hitler' and 'concentration camps' and we lose.