Israel’s eternal energy endures

The world’s failure to speak up for the only Jewish state and Jews everywhere has not diminished Israel’s thousands of years of endurance—living under hate of every kind. In fact, although January 2, 2025, marked the end of Israel’s second Hanukkah while fighting its defensive war, they sang, they danced, they feasted, and lit their Feast of Dedication candles. They sang on the Temple Mount, they sang at the Western Wall (Kotel), they sang in the streets, and they sang in their homes. Their overcoming endurance remains eternal, even as they suffer nationwide trauma, loss, and lies from every corner of the globe.

True, during Israel’s Hanukkah celebrations, Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, over a thousand miles to the south, fired ballistic missiles toward Israel every night of Hanukkah, forcing millions of Israelis to run for bomb shelters. However, the Jewish ability to drive out darkness with light began before Hanukkah, when a menorah was built in Hostage Square in Tel Aviv made from missile and rocket pieces. In another location, Israelis built a menorah using fragments from an Iranian ballistic missile fired at Israel a few months ago.

This amazing capacity to drive out darkness takes us back over centuries. The main reason for Hanukkah celebrations, of course, is the victory of the ancient Maccabees over the Seleucid Syrian King Antiochus in 164 B.C. History is replete with facts that the small nation of Israel and its people have overcome the worst circumstances—from Roman rule and the Babylonian captivity to the Holocaust—and, I believe, will do the same in their present-day war against the world’s biggest terror network. This will be the outcome, despite the Islamic Regime’s leaders and proxies in the Middle East having spread their wicked tentacles across the globe, reaching into universities, praising Hamas in the streets, and yes, many pastors and churches remaining silent and fearful. 

However, Israel’s obvious warring enemies—or those who are apathetic, or mentally scarred by propaganda—easily forget that Israel is eternal. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob created and designed Jews to bless the world with redemption and rescue for those who believe in Jesus, our Jewish Messiah. In Isaiah 62, verses 1-4, God makes Himself clear: For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch. The nations will see your vindication, and all kings your glory; you will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow. You will be a crown of splendor in the LORD’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God. No longer will they call you Deserted, or name your land Desolate.

Forgetfulness also extends to the fact that God invested His own words to the world through His chosen people. The Bible, written through Jews, for Jews, and to Jews was extended to us as non-Jews grafted into the olive tree roots of Judaism. In the New Testament, God transformed Saul on the road to Damascus, struck him blind, healed him, then renamed him Paul. This brilliant Jewish scholar, intent on murdering Jewish believers in Jesus, was transformed and commissioned by God to take the Good News to the Gentiles.

Today, lawlessness and the wars on the ground are manifestations of spiritual warfare in the heavens, good against evil. It is easy to fall into depression or despair hearing the news, which is filled with a Hitler-like propaganda against Israel that leads to inaction. We believers in Jesus, our Jewish Messiah, would do well to renounce these emotions. Instead, we should focus on God’s thousands of years preserving His Jewish people, and, for that matter, rescuing us from our own personal challenges. Israeli stamina is a role model for the world—if the world would only grasp that truth.

Like the ancient Maccabees, Israel is victorious on fronts far beyond what was thought possible in their seven-front war for the last 15 months. As an aside, in John 10:22-23, the apostle reported the only passage in the Bible about Jesus attending the Feast of Dedication in the Second Temple. The Maccabees had reclaimed and cleansed it hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth. I daresay our Savior, the King of Kings, rejoiced in the Maccabees’ victory.

More good news for 2025 emerged in the U.S. Congress. You may be surprised to know that our 119th Congress is deemed the most pro-Israel in history. On January 2, 2025, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) reported that 348 pro-Israel Democrats and Republicans—plus the leadership teams of both parties—were sworn in as members of Congress. Included in the success are Mike Johnson’s reelection as Speaker of the House and that two members of the notoriously antisemitic “Squad” no longer serve as members of Congress. These successes rest in large part on Americans who are dedicated to consistently interacting with members of Congress—to educate others and urge them to support Israel—which provides mutual security benefits to both countries.

Please do not mistake the good news here as downplaying the reality of war and the many challenges that lie ahead. Boosting our prayers, matched with our actions, is a necessity. Once again, I am sending out a plea for every reader to include in-person and social media advocacy for Israel in your New Year’s resolutions.

Israel advocacy is part of honoring God in His eternal plans for Israel, yet we have an important role to play in the here and now.

Social media advocacy is simple. It is not time-consuming. Here are several of my favorites: CBNIsrael.com, AlIisrael.com, Israel21c.org, ICEJ.org, CAMERA.org, and IDSF.org. Explore one, then forward one fact/article to correct lies about the Holy Land with truth. If every reader decides to pass on a fact a week, a bigger cadre of truth tellers will emerge.

This article originally appeared here and is reposted with permission.