The author has his Doctorate, but has never read Revelation?
What’s needed here is a heavily nuanced, navel-gazing 5 page article in Salon or The Atlantic explaining why Evangelicals are worse than ISIS, by some liberal s**thead. /s
It’s much simpler than the author describes.
The Jews are Gods chosen people.
Israel is the land of the Jews.
Who wouldn’t want to align themselves with Gods chosen people?
While I don’t hold to the dispensational view of OT Israel, I do think they have the right to exist and not be screwed with by uppity Muslims.
I think Evangelicals regard the Jewish people as family and while you may not always agree with family you love them and hope for the best. They were first, we are grafts, so respect and humility seems in order.
Don’t forget that evangelicals are all racists that hate The Black Man in the White House.
Why?!
Unless it’s a rhetorical question, if you have to ask, then you don’t get it.
There are numerous reasons, but I’d summarize it by saying I am grafted in - contrary to nature.
If you don’t get it, you don’t get it.
“Why Do So Many Evangelicals So Strongly Support Israel?”
Because, God does?!!!!
This is not why I support Israel over terrorists, but it is true. God did promise that land to the Jews forever, and that promise does not expire. However, the reason I oppose terrorists is much simpler. I do not approve of kidnapping, suicide bombing, random mortar attacks, murdering people over their religion, and other tactics that are policy for those who oppose Israel. I judge the other side by their own words and actions, and that mandates an extremely harsh conclusion. I judge Israel by their own words and actions too, and those (with rare exceptions that are condemned energetically by Israel's leaders) lead to a positive conclusion. This is a battle between good and evil, and unlike today's democrats, I choose to side with good - and with God.
The LARGEST SINGLE GROUP in the USA who supports Israel are Christians who are Dispensationalists. Of course there are other Christians who also support Israel, but Dispensationalists make up the bulwark of that support.
And this support doesn’t operate from the basis of Genesis 12. It’s known and recognized, but it’s not a motive for the support. For dispensarionalists, the support is derived from God’s Word that there are the promises of God, given to Israel, which will be fulfilled during the reign of the Messiah of Israel during the Millennium (the 1,000 years spoken about in Revelation).
— — —
What is dispensationalism and is it biblical?
http://www.gotquestions.org/dispensationalism.html
Answer: A dispensation is an administration, a system, or a management. In theology, a dispensation is the divine administration of a period of time, a divinely appointed age. Dispensationalism is a theological system that recognizes these ages ordained by God to order the affairs of the world. Dispensationalism has two primary distinctives: 1) a consistently literal interpretation of Scripture, especially Bible prophecy and 2) a distinction between Israel and the church in God’s program.
Dispensationalists claim that their principle of hermeneutics is that of literal interpretation, which means giving each word the meaning it would commonly have in everyday usage. Symbols, figures of speech and types are all interpreted plainly in this method, and this is in no way contrary to literal interpretation. Even symbols and figurative sayings have literal meanings behind them.
There are at least three reasons why this is the best way to view Scripture. First, philosophically, the purpose of language itself seems to require that we interpret it literally. Language was given by God for the purpose of being able to communicate with man. The second reason is biblical. Every prophecy about Jesus Christ in the Old Testament was fulfilled literally. Jesus’ birth, Jesus’ ministry, Jesus’ death, and Jesus’ resurrection all occurred exactly and literally as the Old Testament predicted. There is no non-literal fulfillment of these prophecies in the New Testament. This argues strongly for the literal method. If literal interpretation is not used in studying the Scriptures, there is no objective standard by which to understand the Bible. Each and every person would be able to interpret the Bible as he saw fit. Biblical interpretation would devolve into “what this passage says to me...” instead of “the Bible says...” Sadly, this is already the case in much of what is called biblical interpretation today.
Dispensational theology teaches that there are two distinct peoples of God: Israel and the church. Dispensationalists believe that salvation has always been by faith—in God in the Old Testament and specifically in God the Son in the New Testament. Dispensationalists hold that the church has not replaced Israel in God’s program and the Old Testament promises to Israel have not been transferred to the church. They believe that the promises God made to Israel (for land, many descendants, and blessings) in the Old Testament will be ultimately fulfilled in the 1000-year period spoken of in Revelation chapter 20. Dispensationalists believe that just as God is in this age focusing His attention on the church, He will again in the future focus His attention on Israel (Romans 9-11).
Using this system as a basis, dispensationalists understand the Bible to be organized into seven dispensations: Innocence (Genesis 1:1–3:7), conscience (Genesis 3:8–8:22), human government (Genesis 9:1–11:32), promise (Genesis 12:1–Exodus 19:25), law (Exodus 20:1–Acts 2:4), grace (Acts 2:4–Revelation 20:3), and the millennial kingdom (Revelation 20:4-6). Again, these dispensations are not paths to salvation, but manners in which God relates to man. Dispensationalism, as a system, results in a premillennial interpretation of Christ’s second coming and usually a pretribulational interpretation of the rapture. To summarize, dispensationalism is a theological system that emphasizes the literal interpretation of Bible prophecy, recognizes a clear distinction between Israel and the church, and organizes the Bible into the different dispensations it presents.
Recommended Resources: Dispensationalism by Charles Ryrie and Logos Bible Software.
No, it's not perfect, but it's a whole lot better than "pro-Israel liberals" who think Israel is the Cuba of the Middle East.
I'm a supporter of Israel, an admirer of how they've transformed a most god-forsaken and inhospitably arid part of the planet into a fertile dynamo of innovation and invention; and I'm an unequivocal believer in their right to exist. The Six Day War was stunning. In dealings with their neighbors, Israel is in the right more often than in the wrong. But I find this recent congressional side-show of standing-ovational genuflection (Oxymoron? Why not?) shameful on many levels, not the least of which is the fundamental cynicism behind so much of Republican “support” for Israel, which differs from mine by 180 degrees. Mine wants to see it exist as a Jewish state forever; mine is based, in part, in respect for my heritage. Theirs is predicated on a Bible story of the Apocalypse, and a vision of Jesus' return to the land, heralding the burning of Jews in hell for all eternity if they don't admit their evilness and convert on the spot. I find it — what's the word? — creepy.
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20150314/OPINION04/150319605/For-a-change-we-could-base-actions-on-rational-thought-
he Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:1-3) says, among other things, that God promised the land of Canaan to the Jews forever.
"And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise."
I don't see how it could be anything else! God will ALWAYS keep His promises. He is faithful even we are not.