The Friends of Israel Today

As anti-Zionism spreads throughout the world, threatening to separate the Jewish people from their ancestral homeland, Christians are faced with an important question about their faith: Was Jesus a Zionist? In part 1 of our series answering this question, Chris digs into the Gospels to consider what the connection between the land of Israel and the Jewish people meant to our Savior. As we examine...

What does it mean to love God with all your strength? It goes far beyond physical power! The conclusion of our series on the Shema brings us to the final portion of the command in Deuteronomy 6, the command to love God with all one’s strength, or me’od. This term indicates that believers, like the Israelites, are to love God completely, with all that we are, at our maximum capacity, creating a lov...

Are we made of body and soul, or are we one holistic being? After studying the heart last week, our study of the Shema in Deuteronomy 6 brings us to Moses’ instruction to the Israelites to love the Lord with all their soul—their nefesh. This command requires more than mere outward obedience. Rather, the Israelites needed to worship Him with the entirety of their being. Believers in the Lord Jesus...

Before the call to love God “with all your heart,” the well-known Shema begins with an instruction to “hear.” While this part of the Shema is easy to overlook, it sets the tone of God’s Word to the Israelites, as it invites them to know and follow Him truly, developing a heart of loving obedience. Part 2 of our series on Deuteronomy 6 examines God’s call to the Israelites to change their hearts an...

In Moses’ final words to the Israelites in Deuteronomy, he told them, “Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn.” Though the Israelites were already physically circumcised, what God intended for His people went far beyond the act of keeping a single commandment from the Law. We open a new series this week studying the Shema in Deuteronomy and what genuine love for...

Concluding our 3-part series on the Lord’s prayer, we consider the Year of Jubilee, a year of rest and reset occurring every 50th year, which God instituted for the Israelites in the Mosaic Law. When Jesus prayed, “Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors,” He alluded to this Year of Jubilee as a shadow of greater freedom to come. We hope you now unders...

Jesus prayed to the Father, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” What does this Kingdom look like? The Hebrew prophets provide answers in specific, physical details. Israel will experience a full restoration—both physical and spiritual—but first, it must repent and turn back to the Lord. And likewise, when we as believers pray the Lord’s prayer, we are to surrender o...

Many Christians can recite the Lord’s prayer from Matthew 6 by heart. But Jesus’ model for prayer meant much more to His Jewish listeners than we realize today. Chris begins a 3-week series on the Lord’s prayer by revealing the monumental implications it had specifically for Israel. Jesus’ prayer was a petition that God would soon fulfill His promises to restore the Jewish people, give them His Sp...

Since Israel and the United States entered into war with the nuclear-aspiring nation of Iran in February, many have learned that the Islamic Republic is the shadowy threat that has hung over Israel for decades. In the latest issue of Israel My Glory magazine, Dr. Randall Price demonstrates how the 1979 Islamic Revolution led Iran to become the ruthless terror of the Middle East it is today. His an...

What do Israel’s offerings teach us about our relationship with God? This week we conclude our series on the Lord’s instructions to the children of Israel regarding sacrifice. We’re studying the fellowship offering, which demonstrates that we are not meant only to understand God from a distance, but rather to enjoy close communion with Him. May this study of Israel’s fellowship offerings bring you...

We humans are impossibly far from God. We cannot approach Him in our sin; an atoning sacrifice for sin is necessary. This week, as we study sin and trespass offerings in part 2 of our series on the Levitical sacrifices, we see that sin carries heavy consequences, but we also see God’s mercy, as He graciously provided the means of purification to allow His Chosen People to continue fellowshiping wi...

If God is truly holy, how could sinful men ever approach Him? We’re studying Israel’s burnt offerings this week as we begin a new series on the Levitical sacrifices God appointed for Israel to come near and worship Him. Considering the many lessons the burnt sacrifices provide, we rejoice today knowing that Jesus is the true whole burnt offering who took on all sin with His once-and-for-all sacrif...

The Friends of Israel (FOI) Executive Director Steve Conover recently returned from a trip to Poland. There he saw the concentration camps at Auschwitz and Birkenau, where many of the unspeakable tragedies of the Holocaust occurred. But then, Steve visited FOI Poland’s camps for Jewish children and their families. This safe, loving community of Jewish children enjoying fun activities together serv...

After journeying through ancient Israel’s Tabernacle, we finally arrive at the inner sanctum to find the veil, the ark of the covenant, and the holy of holies. This was the Lord’s throne room on Earth, and it demonstrated that God desired not merely to be worshiped from afar but to reign as King in the midst of His people. As we conclude our study of the Tabernacle, remember that the Almighty God...

As we continue exploring ancient Israel’s Tabernacle, we find the sacred furnishings in the holy place: the menorah and the altar of incense. Taken together, these elements provide illumination and worship, reminding us that God not only redeems His people from afar, but also brings them near and welcomes their worship in His presence. Through Messiah Jesus, we enjoy the privilege of His light and...

What do King David and MLB Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson have in common? A lot of home runs—and a lot of strikeouts. Paul Golden joins the show to share insight from his Israel My Glory magazine article about David’s shortcomings and place of honor in the bloodline of the Messiah. The prominent list of failures that appear in this line demonstrates God’s decision to redeem and repurpose undeserving...

After studying the altar and the laver within ancient Israel’s Tabernacle in recent weeks, we now continue into the sanctuary, the holy place, to find the table of showbread. After cleansing His Chosen People, He invited the priests inside to fellowship with Him and eat bread on behalf of all the people. The bread demonstrates our God’s desire to dwell with His people. Likewise, He invites believe...

In Israel’s ancient Tabernacle, the Israelites immediately arrived at the altar, where they met the Lord through sacrifice. Just beyond the altar in the courtyard stood the laver, the bronze basin where the priest met God through cleansing. Part 3 of our series on the Tabernacle extracts the truly profound significance of the instrument God used to purify the priests and allow them to enter into H...

The altar of Israel’s Tabernacle was a sacred place. Why? Because God Himself established it as a place to meet His people in covenantal faithfulness! In part 2 of our series on the Tabernacle, Chris offers a plethora of valuable truths about the altar, where ordinary Israelites were allowed to go to present their offerings to the Lord. Heaven and earth converged at the altar, the living intersect...

What was the purpose of Israel’s ancient Tabernacle? Exodus 25:8 explains it well: “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.” God wants to dwell with His people! The Tabernacle and the Temple pointed to God’s eternal covenant with Israel. But even further, God dwelled in the midst of Israel to invite all nations to know Him through the witness of the Jewish people. Understand...

At the moment Gentiles are saved, they enter into a story far beyond themselves—God’s story with the Jewish people. Their salvation signals the fulfillment of God’s covenant promise with Israel. Thanks to the Spirit’s indwelling work, we foster compassion for Jerusalem and the Jewish people, and we pray for the city’s peace, which, ultimately, will facilitate the peace of the entire world. Praying...

Has the church really replaced Israel in God’s plans and affections, like many Christians today believe? No! God’s Word clearly teaches that the church is not a replacement, but rather a wild branch grafted into a covenantal olive tree rooted in Israel. Gentiles’ salvation should provoke the Jewish people to jealousy and draw them back to their Messiah—a desire we should humbly pray for God to mee...

Many influential voices are shaping a narrative that demonizes Israel, and it’s catching on at an alarming rate with young Christians in particular. But God loves Israel, and we should too—and we must pray for the nation. While many tie their views on Israel to its politics, we must let Scripture and the covenant God made with Abraham dictate our immovable support for the nation. Discover the bles...

When so many headlines signal disaster for Israel and the world’s hatred toward it, peace and security seem so far off. But the Bible has an amazing future in store for Israel! Our newest Israel My Glory issue teaches the story of the book of Amos, and Dr. Stallard closes our study with an article detailing God’s wonderful promises to the nation of Israel. Enjoy his conversation with Chris this we...

As the world grows increasingly restless and unstable, the prophecies in the book of Revelation garner much attention. That’s where a new book from Pastor Mark Hitchcock comes into focus. In The Revelation Answer Book, Dr. Hitchcock addresses 125 end-times questions with the truth of God’s Word. He joins our show this week to share how believers can read and understand the prophecies in Scripture’...