The Friends of Israel Today

We're going to be talking with Joseph Gitler, who is the founder and chairman of Leket Israel, the national food bank of Israel, and you’re going to want to hear about the work that he's doing to make sure the poor and the needy in Israel are fed. We’re also going to take an in-depth look at Israeli elections and don’t miss Zvi Kalisher changing the worldview of two lost men in this week’s Apples...

There’s a king from Israel’s history who doesn’t get talked about often but he plays a major role in the story of Jesus. How major? Without this king, the line of David would have ended! This week’s program, part 4 of 4 on the kings of Israel, looks at the life of King Jehoiachin. Not much is said about this king, but you won’t want to miss this story of how God used Jehoiachin, even in his unfait...

God chose the Israelites for Himself, but that doesn’t mean the Israelites always chose Him. Ancient Israel suffered through the reigns of some evil kings in the days of the split Kingdom. This week’s program, part 3 of 4 on the kings of Israel, breaks down the life of Manasseh, a wicked ruler over the Kingdom of Judah who learned an important lesson about the Lord at the end of his life. Discover...

Have you ever heard the term “Aliyah”? It describes the process of Jewish people immigrating to Israel. But this relocation is spiritually significant, and this week’s program will teach you why! Join us for an interview with The Friends of Israel’s Steve Herzig about his Aliyah-themed, Israel My Glory magazine article “No Place Like Home.” Then listen to Chris’s interview with Fred and Eva Schwei...

It’s hard to break a cycle of evil. Israel learned this lesson firsthand in the days of the split Kingdoms of Judah and Israel. But two of Judah’s kings stand out for their righteous rule of God’s people: Hezekiah and Josiah. Beyond their devotion to the Lord, they shared a surprising number of similarities. Join us for this second part in our 4-part series on kings in the line of Jesus to learn h...

We are so blessed to serve the King of Kings: Jesus the Messiah! Here’s something we often forget: He has a royal bloodline, too. We’re opening a series on the kings of the split Israelite kingdom who preceded Jesus, beginning today with Asa. Join us as we study this king of the nation of Judah and great-grandson of Solomon whose decisions show us that a ruler’s success comes by following the Lord...

Las Vegas, Nevada—a city full of people who need to hear God’s Word, as well as a home to a bustling Jewish community. We’re hard at work sharing God’s love and helping meet the needs of the Jewish people in this city. Spearheading our work in Las Vegas is Jonathan Craft, who has carried out our mission faithfully for more than two decades. This week Jonathan shares with us his projects and volunt...

Demons are all too real. But don’t worry—you already have what you need to reject them! This week you’ll see what demons have done in the Bible and how they continue to do Satan’s bidding now. We’ll also take a look at how Satan came to be our bitter adversary and what he’s doing today as he tries to escape his ultimate ending in the Lake of Fire. Know your enemies and how to defeat them in this c...

If you get all your knowledge of angels from Hollywood, you’re in for a surprise! The only way to learn what they are truly like is through our most trusted source, the Bible. Fortunately, God’s Word has plenty to say about them! This week’s teaching ranges from cherubim and seraphim to the activities of angels to the most famous angelic messengers God has told us about. Listen closely for biblica...

What’s in a name? A whole lot! The Bible tells us the importance of a name—the Lord’s name, specifically—and our most recent issue of Israel My Glory magazine features a wealth of teaching on His name. Chris explains why the name Yahweh matters so much in how we understand and relate to our sovereign God. This week’s program features an interview with David Levy for a special look at his Israel My...

After studying three groups of Jewish people who live all over the world, the fourth and final part of our series focuses on the Jewish people who have always lived in the land of Israel. Chris explains the history of the Jewish people’s uninterrupted presence in Israel, affirming their right to the land God promised them. Tune in to learn how malaria, kibbutzim, and the founding of Petah Tikva le...

Here’s one Jewish ethnicity you may have never heard of before: Mizrahi. After focusing on the more familiar Ashkenazi and Sephardic backgrounds the past two weeks, we’re directing your attention to this lesser-known group this week. Chris shares exciting stories about their traditions and history. He also reveals the horror of the massacre they suffered in Iraq and other eras of persecution they’...

The Jewish experience is not easy to pinpoint because of the significant differences among Jewish backgrounds. The countries of origin of Jewish people are spread out all over the world, from Morocco to Mexico, from Ukraine to Spain, and many nations in between. But this week we’re narrowing our focus to the experience of the Jewish people from Spain and Portugal: Sephardic Jews. Whether or not th...

We know you love the Jewish people, so we want to help you get to know them! Study the backgrounds of God’s Chosen People with us for the next 4 weeks, beginning with the Ashkenazi Jewish heritage today. You’ll recognize their music, cuisine, humor, and elements of their language that are a daily part of modern society. Showing love to your Jewish friends starts with understanding their culture, a...

As we prepare for another year of ministry, we’ve got eyes on our workers and Jewish friends in Eastern Europe this week. To share the details of our work in this region, we chat with Mike Stallard, director of International Ministries for The Friends of Israel, and Timothy Rabinek, our field representative serving in Poland. Timothy updates us on the work he and his team have done to serve the Lo...

How amazing is it that the God of the universe wants to have a relationship with us? Though we often forget this fact, it’s a truth that gives us daily strength and eternal hope. We studied how God relates to us through covenants last week. But the Old Covenant had a shortcoming: We could not possibly obey all of God’s commands. So He made a New Covenant, one that included the birth, death, and re...

Let’s kick off the new year with a happy topic: how God relates to us! We are so blessed to serve a God who loves us and pursues a relationship with us. God Himself is relational through His three distinct persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit who interact with one another but are one. Even though we are sinful and lost without Him, He seeks to interact with us, too! Listen and learn...

We hope you’ve had a very merry Christmas! While we studied Isaiah 7 last week, we’re jumping ahead to chapter 53 to read about Jesus’ divine mission to save His people from their sins. Even though this chapter comes from the Tanakh, it’s not welcome in Jewish synagogues. That’s because it so clearly validates Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah that it goes against Jewish teachings. We pray this week’...

Christmastime is here! As we prepare to celebrate during this happy season, this week’s program takes us back to the very first Christmas. The Old Testament prophecies and New Testament context converged in this time to create an incredible account of the virgin birth that fulfilled the divine Messianic expectations and made a way for us to have a relationship with the Lord. This program is bursti...

It’s a very special time of the year for our Jewish friends: Hanukkah! And what better way to share how cherished it is than to hear the tales of those who remember it so fondly! We welcome three Friends of Israel employees—Steve Herzig, Lorna Simcox, and Mitch Triestman—to the show this week to swap stories and reminisce about what Hanukkah meant to them growing up in Jewish homes. Their discussi...

Immanuel: It’s a name we hear used for Jesus every year at Christmas meaning “God with us.” But Immanuel is not just a title to think about at Christmas. It’s an incredible truth that should impact every day of our walk with Christ! This week features an interview with Bruce Scott discussing his Israel My Glory article “Immanuel Forever.” The presence of God today is an amazing privilege, and it’s...

We all see Jesus differently! We’ve been exploring this fact for the past two weeks, as we’ve learned how the Romans dismissed His ministry and the Jewish religious leaders of His day considered it a threat. But some people were much more interested in our Savior. This week we hear about “The People of the Land,” the average Israelites of Jesus’ day. You might find these Jewish people more relatab...

Not everyone loved Jesus. Many didn’t accept His saving grace because they saw Him as a threat or an insignificant distraction in their lives. We saw this attitude last week through the eyes of the Romans, who were more concerned with their empire than with the King of Kings. This week we look at Jesus through the eyes of the Pharisees and Sadducees, the religious leaders of His time. It seems unb...

Who is Jesus? This question seems to have a different answer for every person. Muslims say He is a prophet. Jewish people say He is a rabbi. Unbelievers say He is nothing more than a moral teacher. But we who believe in Him for salvation know He is our Savior and our Lord. Chris opens our three-week series on how everyone sees Jesus differently with this look at how the Romans saw Jesus in the fir...

What’s better than getting a gift on Christmas? How about giving a gift on Hanukkah? That’s what Ty Perry and Becky Meissner, our field representatives in Las Vegas, Nevada, are doing in their Jewish community this year. As they deliver special Hanukkah baskets filled with Israeli goods, they share God’s love to His Chosen People with the message of the gospel. Chris speaks with Ty and Becky on th...