911

Is it September Eleven or should it be expressed in Arabic numerals 9-11? If we write the numbers out using the Phoenician alphabet, we have nine, one, one … 911 … EMERGENCY!

The United States of America has an EMERGENCY.

It started when terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners on September 11th, 2001. Two were crashed into the World Trade Center's twin towers in New York. A third struck the Pentagon Building in Washington, D. C. While it appears that passengers on the fourth plane resisted, it fell into a rural area in Pennsylvania. Around three thousand innocent people were killed.

This nation has every right to seek out the terrorist organizations wherever they are and stop their criminal activities.

Who and why? Religious extremists of Islam committed these acts because the U. S. has troops stationed in Saudi Arabia, their holy ground, and because of the low moral standards in America.

The third and most compelling reason is U. S. support for Israel. Believers throughout the Muslim world share this resentment. Muslim means "believer". Islam means "surrender, submission".

The world's two largest religions, Christianity (1.6 billion) and Islam (1.1 billion) have a common origin, Judaism.

Friday is the holy day for Muslims because Adam and Eve were created on that day. They recognize six prophets, the first five being Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus.

Abraham had two sons. The oldest was Ishmael. He had twelve sons, which became princes. Their descendants inhabited Arabia and are the Arab people of today.

Around 613 AD, Mohammed, an Arab living in Mecca, claimed to be chosen a prophet of God. He preached for 9 years, converting few adherents. Opposition to this teaching forced him to flee to Medina in 622 where he was welcomed and gained a large following. His opposition in Mecca was mostly business people in the caravan trade. They protected a sanctuary in the city where Pagan Arabs came to worship.

Mohammed organized armed bands, which raided these Meccan caravans. His forces grew so large that when he approached Mecca in 630 AD, they submitted to him and he was acknowledged a prophet by all Arabia.

Mohammed destroyed all of the 360 idols in the Meccan sanctuary and declared, "There is no god but Allah!"

Mohammed died in 632. He claimed that the Koran, Islam's holy book, was transmitted to him through Gabriel. He is the 6th and final prophet of Islam.

Some scholars believe he was greatly influenced by earlier contacts with Jews and Christians who have a holy book, and who look for a Messiah.

Within 100 years, Arab Muslims had conquered most of the Middle East, North Africa, and Spain. They were finally defeated at Tours in central France by Charles Martel, father of Charlemagne, in 732 AD. Islam was spread by the sword while Christianity was spread by the Word.

Islam was indirectly responsible for the discovery of America. In 1453, Constantinople fell to the Ottomans. These Turkish Muslims cut off the easy access to the Silk Road, forcing Europeans to seek for another route to India, which sent Columbus across the Atlantic.

At this time Islam was the largest, most dominate world power. While the West was on the rise, Muslims were more advanced culturally, and in medicine, mathematics, astronomy, and other sciences.

According to the Bible, God promised Abraham that through his seed all the families of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3).

About 8 years went by and Abraham had no offspring. At his wife Sarah's suggestion, he took her maid Hagar and Ishmael was born. This was an attempt to fulfill the promise of God by the effort of man, symbolic of salvation by works. Ishmael is an illegitimate son of Abraham.

Thirteen years later, Sarah, who was 90 years old and who had been barren all her life, did conceive and Isaac was born. God miraculously fulfilled His word to Abraham and Isaac became the child of promise (Genesis 17:17-22; Galatians 4:28).

The promise of a Messiah made to Abraham would come through Abraham's legitimate sons, Isaac, Jacob, and the twelve patriarchs. Jesus of Nazareth came through the tribe of Judah.

"And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:29).

The record states that Abraham "… believed in the Lord; and he (God) counted it to him for righteousness" (Genesis 15:6; Romans 4:3, 5, 9, 11, 20-22; Galatians 3:6).

Abraham is "… the father of all them that believe …"
(Romans 4:11).

The believer is the true son of Abraham. (See, Romans 2:28, 29; 9:4-8.)

Ishmael is a symbol of salvation by works while Isaac represents salvation by faith, the faith of Abraham.

On the world stage, the conflict between faith (Christianity) and works (Islam) is being acted out.

This conflict is in the mind of man, fallen, sinful man.

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they lost their innocence and became aware and ashamed that they were naked. They made themselves aprons or coverings from fig leaves - not just one. It appears that they were satisfied with their covering … until … until time to come in the presence of God. They hid because the works of their own hands was not sufficient to cover their shame. God made them coats of skins.

From where did the skins come? From an animal. What had the animal done? Nothing. It took the death of an innocent one to cover the sin of Adam and Eve. The gospel message found in Genesis 3:21.

Abel's animal sacrifice indicated his trust that the death of an innocent one would make him acceptable to God. Cain brought his own works and was rejected.

It is in our confused, fallen nature to think that we can do something which will justify us (make us acceptable) before God. In all other religions, the believer gains favor with God by some act, some development or reaching some level of spirituality. Muslims must submit to the will of Allah. In Christianity, it is the Deity that performs the act that brings man into favor with God.

In the last days of earth's history, this conflict is being acted out on the world scene.

The underlying reason for all of Islam's, extremists and moderates, resentment of the U. S. is the support for Israel. Why does the U. S. support Israel?

When the State of Israel came into being in 1948, there were more Jews in New York City than in Israel so there are political reasons. A Jew, Eddie Jacobson, was a partner in a haberdasher business with Harry Truman in Kansas City in the 1920's. Many powerful voices, including Jacobson's, urged the recognition of Israel to President Truman.

What brought about the State of Israel? Because of strong persecution (pogroms), many Jews fled Russia, which included Poland, and settled in Palestine in the late 1800's. Jewish leaders hoped for an officially recognized state to be created. There had always been a small number of Jews in the area.

Leading Zionists in England approached the government with this request. Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour wrote a letter to Baron Rothchild, head of the Jewish banking family in England, the following which became known as the Balfour Declaration:

"His Majesty's Government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this objective, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine" November 2, 1917.

The Turks, who occupied Palestine, were allied with Germany during World War I. A British Army under General Allenby invaded the area and captured Jerusalem. The Balfour Declaration was incorporated into the mandate that the League of Nations gave Great Britain over southern Palestine in 1922.

In the ensuing years, there were times when the British effort to regulate Jewish immigration and fairly govern the area was seen by the Arabs to favor the Jews. When changes were made to accommodate Arabs, the Jews objected.

Two Jewish terrorist groups were formed, one headed by Menachin Begin, future Prime Minister of Israel. Between 1944 and 1948, they killed 127 British soldiers, wounded 331, and killed thousands of Arabs.

The British, in November of 1947, turned the problem over to the United Nations, which recommended separate Arab and Jewish States. The British pulled out in May 1948. Prime Minister Ben Gurion declared the State of Israel, and the Arab League proclaimed a jihad, holy war.

Karen Armstrong states in her book, "Islam: A Short History", that there was no anti-Semitism among Muslims until 1948 when the state of Israel was established in Palestine. The rights of Jews and Christians had always been respected in Islam because Mohammed had said that they are a, "people of the book".

Karen Armstrong states in her book, "Islam: A Short History", that there was no anti-semitism among Muslims until after the State of Israel was established in Palestine in 1948.

Generally speaking, the rights of Jews and Christians were respected because Mohammed had said that they were "peoples of the book".

Many good, sincere, conservative Christians see the establishment of the State of Israel as a fulfillment of Bible prophecy. They believe last day events will take place in that area of the world. Millions of books have been sold which express this view. These people constitute a strong segment of the U.S. support for Israel.

There are other Christians who believe that future references in the Bible concerning Israel, Jews, and Jerusalem have a spiritual or symbolic application and really refer to true believers who are the real children of Abraham, who the Bible says is, "… the father of all them that believe …" (Romans 4:11).

When on their way to the Promised Land, the children of Israel were not to distress or contend with the Moabites or the children of Ammon because they were descendants of Lot (Deuteronomy 2:9, 19). If God protected the lineage of Abraham's nephew, what about those of his son Ishmael, who are the Arabs. Could America go too far in attempting to punish terrorists? What shall be the destiny of those who live by the sword?

For more information, log on to www.christianitysconfusion.com, article #13, "The True Israel of God", or request a printed copy through the mail.

Material for this article came from four encyclopedias and from "Islam: A Short History", by Karen Armstrong.