In Touch Quarter 2 - 2017

2 nd Quarter 2017 • No 191 Christian Friends of Israel UK 

O Lord God of Israel 

there is no God like you 

1 Kings 8:23; 2 Chronicles 6:14 

INSIDE 

EDITORIAL - PROPHETS AND APOSTLES 

MINISTERS ISRAEL STUDY TOUR 

HEBRAIC BIBLE STUDY - ABRAHAM HEARD THE GOSPEL? 

HEBREW WORD STUDY - GLORY 

CFI PRAYER CONFERENCE REPORT 

IF I FORGET YOU, O JERUSALEM 

BRIEFING AND LOBBY DAY REPORT 

RESOURCES & EVENTS

Editorial 

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Front Cover Image: 

View over Jerusalem 

2 IN TOUCH • 2 nd Quarter 2017 

Jacob Vince 

In previous editorials I have 

expressed my preference for 

referring to the four quarters of 

the Bible - Law, Prophets, Psalms 

and Apostles (see Luke 24:44 and 

Acts 2:42) – rather than the Old 

Testament and New Testament. 

Recently I discovered when the 

terms old and new were first used to 

categorise the collection of the books of 

the Bible, and also by whom. Believe 

it or not, it was Marcion who first 

used the terms in this way. He saw 

the God of what he referred to as the 

Old Testament as inferior to the God 

of the New Testament – an early form 

of replacement theology. In this he 

was roundly condemned as a heretic, 

to the credit of the Early Church 

Fathers. However it appears they 

retained Marcion’s categorisation of 

Old and New Testament, and indeed 

the Septuagint order of the books rather 

than the Hebrew order, which is the one 

Jews use right down to today and the 

one Jesus himself used in his day (Luke 

24:44). 

Following this four-quarter designation 

I want to focus on some words 

that the apostle Peter writes in his 

second and final recorded letter. 

Peter writes this: 

‘Dear friends, this is now my second 

letter to you. I have written both of them as 

reminders to stimulate you to wholesome 

thinking.’ 

And this is the key sentence, 

‘I want you to recall the words spoken 

in the past by the holy prophets and the 

command given by our Lord and Saviour 

through your apostles’ (2 Peter 3:1-2). 

So here we have the commendation of 

the word spoken through the prophets 

alongside the word spoken through the 

apostles. 

I expect we know well the 

introduction to the letter understood 

as written to the Hebrews, where the 

writer states: 

‘In the past God spoke to our forefathers 

through the prophets at many times and in 

various ways, but in these last days he has 

Prophets 

and Apostles 

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spoken to us by his Son’ (Hebrews 1:1-2) 

Some in the church would take this 

to mean that the words spoken by 

the prophets are no longer important 

because now he has spoken to us by his 

Son. However, the earlier extract from 

Peter’s second letter contradicts this 

approach. Peter wants his readers to 

recall the words spoken in the past by 

the holy prophets. Of course it makes 

sense when taking the Hebrews passage 

as our guide that God speaks by his Son, 

or to put it another way, that Jesus is 

God’s word in the flesh. However, Jesus 

himself refers constantly to the written 

word of the Scriptures, contained in 

the first three quarters of the Bible, and 

then entrusts its final quarter to his 

immediate apostles and also, in due 

course to the apostle Paul, to write and 

record their witness statement (Luke 

1:1-2) regarding ‘all that Jesus began to 

do and to teach’ (Acts 1:1). Indeed, at 

the close of the Apostles’ section, in 

the Revelation of Jesus Christ, John 

was specifically requested to write this 

down. ‘Write, therefore, what you have 

seen, what is now and what will take place 

later’ (Revelation 1:19). So we see that 

the written word itself tells us about 

Jesus the living Word. 

As the apostle John writes toward 

the end of his first letter, ‘And this is the 

testimony God has given us, eternal life, 

and this life is in his Son … I write these 

things to you who believe in the name of 

the Son of God’ (1 John 5:11-12). These 

are indeed powerful written words, 

telling believers about the living Word. 

It is interesting that John calls this his 

testimony, which is a better word than 

testament. Either way, it is a written 

record of what has been seen by closeup 

eye witnesses, in the same way that 

the foreseers of old, the prophets, saw 

from afar what was to come. Both sets 

of records, or testimonies, are necessary 

and this is why the apostle Peter writes, 

‘I want you to recall the words spoken 

in the past by the holy prophets and the 

command given by our Lord and Saviour 

through your apostles’ (2 Peter 3:1-2).

Report 

Ministers’ Israel Study Tour 2017 

Revd Andrew Byfield 

Waking up with a view 

over the Mediterranean 

Sea took my breath 

away. I had seen this stretch of 

water at various points before 

(along the French and Italian 

coasts) but seeing its eastern-most 

shore in the Promised Land was 

surprisingly moving. 

I sat at my breakfast table and ran a 

Bible search on ‘Mediterranean Sea.’ 

Up came the verse from the book 

of Joshua, ‘Your territory will extend 

from the desert to Lebanon, and from the 

great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite 

country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the 

west.’ (Joshua 1:4). Now here it was in 

front of me. 

Later that first day we headed south 

to the Gaza border. Before leaving the 

UK I had visited the Foreign Office 

website. It expressly warned not to go 

near this spot! There were nerves as 

we stared into Gaza City, well within 

reach of Hamas rockets. It was worth 

it. Seeing the Israeli efforts to love their 

neighbour by sending tens of lorryloads 

of aid into the Gaza Strip every 

day was a stunning experience and 

one no western media outlet had ever 

told me about. Friends at home were 

equally surprised when I told them on 

my return. 

We spent the next night in Ramallah, 

another trouble spot I had been 

warned about by years of western 

press coverage. There we met an 

Anglican Vicar of the town. Over 

dinner I felt somewhat ashamed of 

my ignorance of the plight of Arab 

Christians. Combined with hearing 

the Palestinian Authorities’ take on 

the Arab-Israeli conflict earlier that 

day, it was all such a stark contrast to 

the narrative coming from those just 

a few miles away in Israeli territory. 

That tension has still not resolved itself 

in my mind months later. Perhaps it 

never will. 

Before we had time to process it 

we were off again, this time in search 

of the shores of Lake Galilee and the 

stunning remains of Capernaum. 

Gazing into Simon Peter’s house and 

the synagogue where Jesus cast out a 

demon suddenly brought the gospel 

accounts into sharp focus for me. 

That experience was to be repeated 

again and again throughout the next 

few days as we took the journey south 

to Jerusalem. Over lunch in Galilee 

our tour guide happened to mention 

something I had never heard of before, 

‘Jerusalem Syndrome’. Apparently 

medics recognise it as a genuine 

condition. So overwhelmed with 

emotion and deep connection to their 

religious roots are visitors to the great 

city that they struggle to cope. There 

is apparently to this day in Jerusalem 

a wing in the hospital laid aside for 

sufferers. 

It seemed laughable at the time, 

but later in the week seeing the place 

with my own eyes I could vaguely 

understand why it happens. Seeing the 

magnificence of the Temple complex. 

Walking the Palm Sunday route down 

Ministers’ Israel Study Tour 2017 at Shiloh 

the Mount of Olives from Bethany. 

Staring into the Garden of Gethsemane 

where the Lord chose to go to the cross 

for me. Visiting Skull Hill and the 

Garden Tomb. It was hard to come 

away from all these places without 

being deeply moved and affected for 

many weeks to come. 

For me, though, it was the tiny stone 

crypt a few days later in Bethlehem, 

said to be the location of the Christmas 

manger, that left the deepest 

impression. I had expected nothing 

more than a tourist trap, a place full 

of cheap souvenirs. Combined with 

not being one given to strong emotion 

my expectations were low. However, 

entering that little chamber I was 

overcome with a profound sense of the 

presence of God. Hard to fathom that 

here was the place the Word became 

flesh and made his dwelling among us. 

On the way home we visited the 

Dead Sea and Masada, the arid 

landscape reflecting the chilling 

history of the place. Personally I found 

them ideal surroundings to reflect 

on all we had seen so far on the trip: 

the massive political questions in the 

seemingly intractable conflict between 

Arab and Israeli; and the vivid biblical 

sites making Bible stories come alive in 

three dimensions. 

It was a trip I will never forget and I 

am so thankful to God and to the trip’s 

organisers for the opportunity to go to 

the land of Israel. 

facebook.com/cfiuk twitter.com/cfi_uk 2 nd Quarter 2017 • IN TOUCH 3

Hebrew Word Study 

Melissa Briggs MA, 

Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 

Melissa is an experienced Hebrew 

teacher with a desire to make the 

rich language of the Scriptures 

accessible to Christians. 

Like many people at the beginning of a new 

calendar year, I made some 2017 resolutions 

about eating more healthily. But my plans took 

an abrupt, unexpected twist in January when I came 

across 1 Corinthians 10:31: ‘… whether you eat or drink, 

or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.’ 

This verse was not new to me, but I had never stopped to 

consider actually applying it to my life. What would it even 

look like to do so? I sensed that my motives (and actions) 

required alterations, and I was genuinely intrigued at this 

invitation to a better, more holy way of daily dining—and 

life. So I stopped and asked the Lord how a person could 

eat and drink to his glory. 

Why do so many of us have difficulty following the 

instructions of 1 Corinthians 10:31? Firstly, we are fighting 

the deeply ingrained Greek mindset in our culture that says, 

“God only cares about the ‘spiritual’ aspects of our life, and 

not any day-to-day ‘mundane’ tasks and realities.” Plus, 

few of us understand what ‘glory’ in fact means. I realised 

immediately that I only had a vague idea! 

In this first part of a two-part Hebrew word study, I hope 

to present a biblical definition of glory and then point to 

Jesus as the perfect representation of God’s glory. In the 

second part I plan to suggest how mankind and 

creation can reflect God’s glory, and then to 

express some hebraic thoughts on the practical 

application of eating and drinking to the glory of 

God. 

The central word for glory כָּבֹוד kavod, comes 

from the verb כָּבַד kavad which means to be 

heavy, weighty, burdensome, honoured. 

Even in English we use a similar word picture when we 

talk about something significant by saying, “it is a weighty 

matter”. 

Kavad is connected with a family of words through its 

root letter system: 

Kaved - heavy (adjective) 

Kaved - liver (believed to be the “heavy organ”) (noun) 

Koved - heaviness, abundance (noun) 

Kavod - glorious (adjective) 

Kavod - abundance, honour, glory, splendour (noun) 

Kvudah - abundance, riches (noun) 

Kvedet - heaviness (noun) 

The Hebrew word for heavy kavedכָּבֵד is connected to 

honour/glory כָּבֹוד kavod, and conversely the Hebrew 

word for light קַ‏ ל qal is connected to the Hebrew word for 

dishonour / shame קַלון qalon. Western culture has largely 

lost the emphasis on the importance of honour and shame 

that is part of biblical culture and many eastern cultures. 

Glory 

PART 1 

Glory is 

God’s 

awesome 

greatness 

כָּבֹוד 

To my surprise, the word Shekinah does not appear in the 

text of the Tanakh, although the idea is certainly there! It 

appears in extra-biblical Hebrew literature and is connected 

by root letters to the word for tabernacle mishkanשְׁכָּן מִ‏ used 

in the Tanakh. 

We are in good company if we are seeking to know and 

understand God’s kavod better. It was Moses’ heart cry: 

‘Then Moses said, “Now show me your kavod.” And the Lord 

said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will 

proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence” ... Then the Lord 

came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed 

his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 

“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow 

to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to 

thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin …” Moses 

bowed to the ground at once and worshiped’ (Exodus 33:18-19; 

Exodus 34:5-8). 

Kavod is a complicated word to describe because it is 

grand and complex, rather than concrete. God’s glory is 

impossible to put in a box, as it is endlessly abundant. 

So here is an imperfect attempt at a definition based on the 

biblical use of the word: 

Glory is God’s awesome greatness on display. 

God’s glory is the public presentation of his 

infinite worth, majestic beauty, astounding 

creativity, limitless power, righteous nature, 

unmatched significance, and perfect holiness; he 

is intrinsically worthy of great honour. God is so 

weighty and important, that when this is shown 

forth publicly, it is described as his glory. 

This kavod of the Lord fills all of creation. The seraphim 

around the throne of God cry: “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of 

hosts; the whole earth is full of his kavod” (Isaiah 6:3). 

And how glorious our God is: “Yours, Lord, is the greatness 

and the power and the kavod and the majesty and the splendour, 

for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the 

kingdom; you are exalted as head over all” (1 Chronicles 29:11). 

When a pop star is welcomed onto stage in the opening 

act of a sold-out stadium show with brilliant lights and 

loud fanfare, they receive glory as they present their limited 

‘greatness’, beauty and talent to the audience. How much 

more is the Lord deserving of all admiration, adoration and 

applause. 

The glory of God is perfectly displayed through the life 

and ministry of the Lord Jesus. Jesus best gave glory to God 

the Father! 

‘The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation 

of [God’s] being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After 

he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand 

of the Majesty in heaven’ (Hebrews 1:3). 


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‘When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified 

and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will 

glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once”’ (John 

13:31-32). 

‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have 

seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from 

the Father, full of grace and truth’ (John 1:14). 

‘For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his 

light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of 

God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 4:6). 

When we look to Jesus, we can begin to comprehend and 

see God’s kavod. 

The future is glorious and the Lord will indeed be glorified: 

“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the kavod of the 

Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14). 

If you are interested in learning the Hebrew language through online 

tuition (or in person if you are local to Berkshire), or if you are interested 

in hosting a Hebrew language day for a group in your area, please contact 

Melissa for more details at: 

hebrew.explore@gmail.com or at www.explorehebrew.co.uk 

CFI-UK Strategic Prayer Conference 2017 REPORT 

Ruth Henderson 

‘Filled with the 

knowledge of his will…’ 

Colossians 1:9 

Recently I had the privilege 

of attending our Strategic 

Prayer Conference at 

Windmill Farm Conference Centre, 

near Oxford. 

During the 48 hours we set apart for 

prayer, 88 people attended overall, the 

majority were residential and others 

came as day visitors. It was very 

encouraging to see so many, from 

around the country, gather together to 

pray for Israel. 

Over the preceding months much 

prayer had gone into the preparations 

for the conference and we were 

encouraged by seeing some answers 

to those prayers. Jacob Vince, CFI UK 

chief executive, had felt it right to 

focus on Ezra and Nehemiah. One of 

the participants shared that she wasn’t 

sure if she should come, but the Lord 

confirmed it to her, because she had 

been studying Ezra and Nehemiah 

before attending. One observation was 

that Ezra starts with praise and ends 

with prayer, while Nehemiah starts 

with prayer and ends with praise. 

During our time, some participants 

discovered that they lived in the same 

area and so now they can continue 

to meet and pray for Israel together. 

Others had experienced trouble with 

their car, but on arriving safely they 

were helped to get the car fixed. We 

were all grateful for travelling mercies. 

Our time was hosted by Chairman 

of Trustees, David Greer, and his wife 

Sandra; assisted by CFI UK trustee 

David Linnell attending with his wife 

Anne. Jacob Vince accompanied 

our sung worship on guitar very 

sensitively. Other contributors were 

Rosie Ross and Tom Brooker. Rosie 

shared about the ministry that she is 

involved with, ‘Repairing the Breach’, 

and the need for repentance on behalf 

of the church and the UK for our 

terrible and shameful actions and 

attitudes towards the Jewish people 

during the British Mandate period. 

Tom Brooker (from Ebenezer) shared 

about the ‘Aliyah’ beginning to happen 

from many different countries around 

the world. A few of our CFI UK 

Regional Links and Church Links also 

shared about what they are doing in 

their own particular areas. 

Both mornings started with a biblical 

meditation introduced by Sandra 

Greer: Isaiah 43 and Psalm 33. We all 

found a quiet place to meditate on the 

particular passage of the Bible for about 

30 minutes and then using the ‘roving 

microphone’ came back together to 

share what had stood out for us. 

Isaiah 43 was written concerning 

Israel but also is personal for us who are 

‘grafted in’. The Lord has compassion 

on Israel and the Lord is faithful and 

will make a way in the desert. The 

place of Israel is a witness to the Lord’s 

faithfulness to all of us. 

Psalm 33: 11 & 12 – ‘But the plans of the 

Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his 

heart through all generations. Blessed is the 

nation whose God is the Lord, the people 

he chose for his inheritance’ stood out, as 

did verses 20–22, ‘We wait in hope for the 

Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him 

our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy 

name. May your unfailing love be with us, 

Lord, even as we put our hope in you.’ 

Every day was an inspiration to pray 

Sandra Greer - giving the Biblical meditation of the day 

Food and fellowship in the dining hall 

Small prayer groups focussing on prayer for Israel 


Feature 

James Whitman 

serves as president 

of The Centre for 

Judaic-Christian 

Studies (JC Studies) 

In this series of articles I have 

given you some handles 

on how our New Covenant 

ancestors understood the person 

and work of Jesus. This month, 

let’s step back and apply what we 

are learning by way of review and 

by taking a fresh look at a familiar 

Bible verse. 

First, a Review 

(You can access these articles in previous 

editions of In Touch magazine: http:// 

www.cfi.org.uk/intouch.php) 

In ‘How to Keep the Testaments 

Connected’ (2nd Quarter 2016), I wrote 

a reminder that the word testament 

means covenant, and that the word 

covenant is code language for God’s 

saving activity. When we keep the 

Testaments together, divine action - 

from beginning to end - is coherent. 

The next instalment, ‘Knowing the 

Heart of the Father’ (3rd Quarter 

2016), shows how the covenanting 

work of the Holy One in history paints 

a sweeping portrait of who he is in 

light of what he has done. When we 

keep the Father’s heart before us, his 

character is consistent. 

‘The Lamb Slain’ (4th Quarter 2016) 

carries forward the theme of divine 

immutability with a challenge to 

think simultaneously of the Father as 

we read about the Son, and the Son 

as we read about the Father. Though 

distinct, by keeping this in mind we 

see that both speak and act in a unity 

of purpose. 

Most recently, ‘Why Israel?’ (1st 

Quarter 2017) points out that for both 

Father and Son, dwelling amidst a 

people through whom they work 

their redemptive purposes is part and 

parcel of salvation. This great grace 

requires each believer to respond to 

divine faithfulness with faith and good 

deeds (see Titus 2:11-14). 

Next, a Fresh Look at a Familiar Verse 

Can these ideas help us read the 

Bible for all it’s worth? As a test case 

let’s use this familiar verse, ‘Abraham 

believed God, and it was counted [reckoned, 

Reading the Bible for all it’s worth! PART 5 

Abraham heard 

the gospel? 

accounted] to him as righteousness’ 

(Galatians 3:6) 

Paul’s letter to the Christians in 

Galatia would find its way to other 

congregations in Asia Minor and 

eventually to us. It is a treasure chest 

of historical detail, containing some 

of his most autobiographical sketches. 

His writing is full of memorable quotes 

about being a disciple, like this one 

near the end, ‘May I never boast except in 

the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through 

which the world has been crucified to me, 

and I to the world’ (Galatians 6:14). 

However, overshadowing everything 

else is a doctrinal duel between 

the Jewish Apostle to the Gentiles 

and several Jewish-Christian teachers 

disrupting the fledgling churches. The 

issue is whether non-Jewish believers 

were to live according to the Torah as 

interpreted in Second Temple Judaism. 

Depending on how one dates the 

Galatian letter, the ‘works of the law’ 

controversy had already been, or 

would soon be, settled by the Apostles 

in Jerusalem (see Acts 15). 

More importantly for us, Paul 

reasons out why he is against this 

approach as a means for the justified 

ones to grow in grace; it can create an 

artificial barrier between the Father 

and his children which hinders 

the freedom necessary for ongoing 

regeneration (Galatians 5:1). It amounts 

to a subtle but significant shift from 

Jesus as the source, to someone else 

(Galatians 6:13). Paul both refutes this 

‘different gospel’ (Galatians 1:6) and 

answers the sanctification question by 

citing our text about Abraham. 

‘So again I ask, does God give you his 

Spirit and work miracles among you by 

the works of the law, or by your believing 

what you heard? So also Abraham 

“believed God, and it was credited to him 

as righteousness.”’ (Galatians 3:5-6). 

Look carefully, and you will notice 

that textual translators use tools like 

quotation marks, all caps or footnotes 

to indicate that Paul is quoting, in this 

case, from the Torah. By putting this 

text back in its Genesis 15 context, 

we begin to discern that he is not 

just using a Bible verse to support 

his point; the verse is his point! Paul 

wants his readers to grasp a simple but 

profound truth. 

The Book of Genesis is a literary 

masterpiece designed in two major 

parts: the first part (chapters 1-11) 

recounts human origins and the 

downward spiral of sin, the second 

part (chapters 12-50) reveals what God 

intends to do about both the problems 

and their source. The divine call of 

Abram and the promises given to him 

in chapter 12 serve to connect and give 

purpose to both parts of the book, “all 

peoples on earth will be blessed through 

you” (Genesis 12:3). 

After several adventures and 

confirmations of the original promises, 

we find our hero at night, plagued 

by fear because he has no son to help 

further the work of El-Shaddai. In an 

unforgettably intimate scene, our good 

Father initiates a conversation, the first 

in which Abram speaks directly to 

him. Moving the discussion outside 

of the tent, God says to the patriarch, 

“Look up at the sky and count the stars—if 

indeed you can count them.” ‘Then he said 

to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Abram 

believed the Lord, and he credited it to him 

as righteousness’ (Genesis 15:5-6). 

Skimming the surface of the text 

leaves us with the impression that Paul 

wants Christians to believe in God 

like Abram. Belief in God is certainly 

necessary and implied here. But a 

more informed reading reveals that 

Abram believed something specific 

about God, something that Paul finds 

compelling and relevant to those in the 

New Covenant. 

The problem is not childlessness but 

what being childless meant to Abram 

in light of God’s promises. Having no 

male heir caused Abram to despair 

because God’s plan to include him 

as part of the solution to sin would 

be derailed. The Father restates and 

reinforces the good news and Abram 

heard it with faith (Galatians 3:5). As 

he gazed upon the myriad of stars 

hung by the faithful Creator, he again 

glimpsed the heart of the Holy One 

who so loves his world that he had 

enacted a plan - both merciful and just 


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“all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” 

(Genesis 12:3) 

- to redeem fallen humanity. And on 

that night Abram believed, again, that 

somehow his family had a part to play. 

‘Understand, then, that those who have 

faith are children of Abraham. Scripture 

foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles 

by faith, and announced the gospel in 

advance to Abraham: “All nations will be 

blessed through you.” So those who rely on 

faith are blessed along with Abraham, the 

man of faith’ (Galatians 3:7-9). 

The crucifixion of Jesus, says Paul, 

is the core of the gospel and the only 

means of salvation (Galatians 1:3); 

he justifies those who believe in him 

(Galatians 1:16). But wait, he goes on 

to say, there is more. Our crucified 

Lord, now risen, is the source of the 

sanctifying Holy Spirit, ‘in order that the 

blessing given to Abraham might come to 

the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that 

by faith we might receive the promise of the 

Spirit’ (Galatians 3:14). 

So how are New Covenant believers 

to grow in the grace and knowledge of 

our heavenly Father? For Paul, Jesus 

is the answer. He is the sole source of 

both our salvation and sanctification. 

(1) By the Spirit, Jesus - as he was with 

his original disciples - is here to lead 

and instruct us according to God’s 

Word now written upon our hearts. 

‘So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you 

will not gratify the desires of the flesh’ 

(Galatians 5:16). 

(2) The Spirit who gave Jesus the power 

to do good and heal those oppressed 

by the devil (Acts 10:38) now indwells 

us and wants to do the same through 

us. ‘For the entire law is fulfilled in 

keeping this one command: “Love your 

neighbour as yourself.”’ (Galatians 5:14) 

If you look with eyes of faith, you 

will see that these kingdom realities 

are taking place around the world 

under the same stars in which Abram 

foresaw us. Here is one such example. 

I heard the following account firsthand 

from the missionary involved in 

the events. The story still moves me 

after fifteen years. Trained by Brother 

Andrew (of Bible smuggling fame), 

teams planted churches throughout 

Russia after the Iron Curtain fell in 

1991. My missionary friend stood 

preaching in one such church when a 

woman interrupted the gathering by 

rushing to the front and falling before 

him. Holding onto his shoes, she wept 

uncontrollably. 

He stopped speaking and gazed 

around the congregation who stared 

back at him with universal disdain. 

No one moved. One of the local 

church leaders motioned to him and 

said that he should not let her touch 

him, she is a prostitute. Flooded with 

compassion, he knelt down, lifted her 

tear-stained face in his hands and said 

these words, “Daughter, Jesus forgives 

you and frees you from your sins.” 

The crowd gasped and gossiped as she 

hugged him in gratitude and hastily 

fled the scene. 

Years later his travels brought 

him back to minister amid the same 

congregation. After the last meeting, 

when almost everyone had gone, a 

woman approached him shyly. She 

had been at every gathering, but up 

close he was touched by the softness of 

her eyes and the beauty of her bearing. 

After exchanging pleasantries, she 

said, “You do not recognize me, do 

you?” Before he could answer, she 

identified herself as the weeping 

woman from his previous visit. He 

was delighted that she had been 

responsive to the discipleship efforts of 

the church. “Oh no,” she said, “they 

wanted nothing to do with me, can 

you blame them?” Tears now filled the 

missionary’s eyes as he listened to her 

explain how, ever since that night, the 

Spirit of Jesus had walked and talked 

with her, teaching her what it means to 

be a woman, a daughter, and a citizen 

of the Kingdom of God. The change 

was so complete that she now attended 

the congregation and cared for the 

needy in the community without being 

recognised. 

‘For through the Spirit we eagerly await 

by faith the righteousness for which 

we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither 

circumcision nor uncircumcision has 

any value. The only thing that counts 

is faith expressing itself through love’ 

(Galatians 5:5-6). 


Feature 

‘If I forget you 

O Jerusalem’ 

Robin Lane 

For Jews around the world the 28 th day of the 

month of Iyar is a special day. It is ‘Jerusalem 

Day’ — the day on which they celebrate the 

reunification of the city of Jerusalem. In 2017 that day 

falls on 24 th May, and it will be an extra special day as 

it marks the 50 th anniversary of the reunification. 

The city was divided during the War of Independence, 

fought between the Jews and their Arab neighbours who 

were determined to drive them out of the land. Fighting 

had started soon after the General Assembly of the United 

Nations voted on 29 th November 1947 to partition what was 

then known as Palestine. 

Even before the British withdrew from the region on 14 th 

May 1948, Jerusalem had become a central point of the 

struggle. The Arabs tried to isolate the Jewish community in 

the city by ambushing the convoys that supplied them with 

food, fuel and clothing. Early in April the community had 

been cut off for two weeks, experiencing severe rationing 

until a large supply convoy made it through and was 

greeted with great joy. Many people were moved to tears 

at the sight of the convoy’s arrival, especially the words 

written on the front bumper of the lead vehicle, ‘If I forget 

you, O Jerusalem.’ 1 (Psalm 137:5). 

When the British did withdraw, the Jews declared the 

Establishment of the State of Israel, and five Arab armies 

attacked the new state. By 7 th June 1948 the hundred 

thousand Jews in Jerusalem were again in a desperate 

Uzi Narkiss, Moshe Dayan, and Yitzhak Rabin enter through the Lion’s Gate 

into the Old City of Jerusalem, June 7, 1967. Photo: GPO/Ilan Bruner. 

situation, down to 

their last three days 

of food. Despite 

heroic efforts to get 

Paratroopers at Western Wall. Photo: David Rubinger 

food through to 

them, they were only saved by a truce that was brokered by 

the United Nations and came into effect on Friday 11 th June. 2 

That truce enabled the Jews to maintain their hold on a 

small segment of West Jerusalem, but they failed in a final 

attempt to recapture the Old City after the truce expired. So 

the Jordanian Army was left in control of both the Old City 

and East Jerusalem (which includes the north and the south of 

the city). Thus Jerusalem was divided and Jews were denied 

access to the parts of the city they considered most important 

– especially the Western Wall of the Temple Mount. 

Indeed, whilst it was under Jordanian control, no Jews 

were permitted to live in the Old City, or have access to 

worship at the Western Wall; and the Christian population 

fell from around 25,000 to 9,000. Dozens of synagogues were 

destroyed and many other restrictions were imposed in 

accordance with Islamic principles. 3 

Almost 20 years later, on 5 th June 1967, Israel responded to 

the mobilisation of its Arab neighbours with a pre-emptive 

air assault that effectively neutralised the Egyptian and 

Syrian air forces. On the same morning Jordanian forces 

began shelling West Jerusalem – disregarding Israel’s 

warning to stay out of the fighting. The Israelis then 

mounted a counterattack that drove the Jordanian forces out 

of the Old City and East Jerusalem within just 48 hours. 4 

Reactions to the reunification were very emotional, 

especially the renewed access to the Western Wall. The 

Israeli Chief of Staff, Yitzchak Rabin, is quoted as saying, 

“I felt truly shaken and stood there murmuring a prayer for 

peace. Motta Gur’s paratroopers were struggling to reach 

the Wall and touch it. We stood among a tangle of rugged, 

battle-weary men who were unable to believe their eyes or 

restrain their emotions. Their eyes were moist with tears, 

their speech incoherent. The overwhelming desire was to 

cling to the Wall, to hold on to that great moment as long 

as possible.” 5 

His words give some idea of the importance to the Jewish 

people of the city of Jerusalem. So it is not surprising that 

the reunification is celebrated annually on Jerusalem Day, 

a national holiday in Israel. And special celebrations are 

planned for Jerusalem Day in 2017 because it marks the 

Jubilee of the reunification. Delegates to CFI Jerusalem’s 

conference will be present to enjoy the celebrations. 

Footnotes: 

1. O Jerusalem, Larry Collins and Dominique Lapierre, Simon & Schuster, 1972, p259. 

2. O Jerusalem, p535. 

3. Jerusalem Day, Wikipedia, accessed 5th April 2017 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem_Day 

4. Six Day War, Encyclopaedia Britannica, accessed 5th April 2017 

https://www.britannica.com/event/Six-Day-War 

5. Reunification of Jerusalem, CAMERA, accessed 4th April 2017 

http://www.sixdaywar.org/content/ReunificationJerusalem.asp 

8 IN TOUCH • 2 nd Quarter 2017 www.cfi.org.uk

SPECIAL REPORT 

Briefing and Lobby Day 

Pledge for Peace 

There was a great response to 

the call for CFI and Zionist 

Federation (ZF) to join together 

this year and lobby MPs in Parliament. 

As we checked people in at Reception 

in the Emmanuel Centre we welcomed 

around 170 people to the event. Many 

had travelled hundreds of miles. In fact 

the coach from Norwich was held up in 

traffic and only just made it for the Israeli 

Ambassador’s speech. Central to the news 

that week was Barak Obama’s release of 

funds to the Palestinian Authority (PA), 

Brexit and the need for Article 50, and 

Donald Trump’s comments on moving the 

US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. 

The briefing was chaired expertly 

by Jacob Vince of CFI UK and Eric 

Moonman of the ZF. We were honoured 

by the Israeli Ambassador’s input to the 

briefing – a first for this event. He called 

for all to understand that Israel is ready 

to talk peace with no preconditions. 

Bassam Eid spoke via Skype. He 

is an analyst for Israeli TV and radio, 

and a former Palestinian human rights 

activist. For many years his research 

concentrated on violations committed by 

the Palestinian Authority (PA) and the 

Palestinian armed forces on their own 

people. He spoke of the negative legacy 

left in the White House by Barak Obama, 

and his concerns over accountability of 

the PA’s use of funds from the USA. 

In the afternoon we met at Parliament, 

where a full Committee Room listened 

to speakers from both the House of 

Commons and the House of Lords. Lord 

Polak (Conservative) reassured us of 

the Prime Minister’s stand and her 

understanding of Israel’s position. He 

endorsed the work of Priti Patel, who 

was a member of Conservative Friends 

of Israel when a back bencher, and said 

that some good coexistence projects are 

coming up for support by the Department 

for International Development (DFID). 

Joan Ryan MP, Chair of Labour 

Friends of Israel, challenged those who 

supported Israel to, “redouble our efforts 

for the Middle East’s sole democracy,” 

saying that we must offer an alternative 

for those involved in the conflict. She said 

the three pledges on our card represented 

that alternative. She continued by 

saying, “BDS is wrong in principle and 

does nothing for the cause”. She will be 

working on a new bill with cross-party 

support for these objectives and was 

enthusiastic about its potential. 

Theresa Villiers MP (Conservative) 

said she was “honoured” to be there 

and to be a strong supporter of Israel. 

Bob Blackham MP (Conservative) had 

commissioned the room for the day, and 

noted that, “we need a bigger room!” 

Caroline Ansell MP (Conservative) said 

that Israel needs “strong defenders”. 

She commended supporters for 

their commitment to the cause and 

encouraged all with the words: “what 

a force you are!” Matthew Offord MP 

(Conservative) spoke about his concerns 

over the BDS campaign, but also said that 

Israel has friends within DFID. 

Baroness Deech (Crossbencher) 

expressed concern that over the last 10 

years a steady stream of complaints have 

come from Jewish students about anti- 

Semitism in various UK universities. She 

also mentioned the increase in Muslim 

extremism and that, as well as the 

BDS campaign, Israel Apartheid Week 

is supported by many Student Unions 

– yet it is illegal activity. She feared 

some universities were “no-go areas”, 

some worse than others. She supported 

the initiative highlighting to university 

deans the illegality of their students’ 

actions under the Government’s adopted 

definition of anti-Semitism. She thought 

that Brexit would make things better, that 

EU policy for Israel and the situation in 

the Middle East was bad, and that more 

should be concerned about the policies 

on Syria and Crimea, to which she got a 

rousing response! 

Other speakers included Ian Austin 

MP (Labour) who expressed shame 

about the annual disgrace of Israel 

Apartheid Week. He was also apologetic 

about the distress and offence caused 

by his party and leader. Louise Elliman 

MP (Labour) told the group, “You may 

not realise how important you are,” 

expressing the feelings of most MPs who 

support Israel. Finally, David Burrowes 

MP (Conservative) introduced himself 

as a Christian Friend of Israel – now 

in his 11 th year in Parliament and also 

at the Lobby day. He said that it was 

important for all networks to be active, 

and present in church groups and prayer 

groups, as we can’t rely solely on the 

established churches. He was keen for 

the Balfour Declaration to be celebrated 

in its own right, but also as a celebration 

of democracy. 

This annual Lobby Day is a highlight 

in the year for CFI UK and the ZF – we 

appreciate our links with the Jewish 

Community and encourage all our 

supporters to stand with them where they 

feel able. 

Jacob Vince introduces the Lobby Day meeting 

The Lobby was well attended 

HE Mark Regev, Israeli Ambassador to the UK 

The group of supporters holding up the peace cards 

Caroline Ansell MP for Eastbourne at the briefing 


Resources www.cfi.org.uk/shop call: 01323 410 810 

A FRESH UNDERSTANDING OF ISRAEL 

What role does the Promised Land play for the people of Israel? Why were the Israelites exiled and why did they return? 

Who is Jesus? Did the disciples stop being ‘Jews’? Is Israel still ‘Israel’? 

A fresh understanding of Israel provides distinctive answers to these questions at the heart of the Christian encounter 

with the Jewish people. With contributions from a variety of writers, this book aims to offer the church at large a concise 

account of the consistency of God’s love for the Jewish people throughout Scripture. 

Adam Faffell is the Director of Ministry Development for Christians Care International which is working to build a 

brighter future for Jewish people in need. 

Jacob Vince has been Chief Executive of Christian Friends of Israel since 2010 and is a serving member of the General 

Synod of the Church of England and a Church Commissioner. 

B485 // BOOK // 70 pages // £6.00 (incl. UK p&p) Order by phone, post or website. 

ISRAEL, JESUS AND COVENANT 

Today many individuals, institutions and even nations are endeavouring to delegitimise the right of the nation of Israel to 

exist in the land of Israel. Additionally there are many in the world who are attempting to deny the actual existence or true 

identity or mission of Jesus of Nazareth. The existence and legitimacy of both entities, Israel and Jesus, stand upon the very 

same foundation and principle – the purpose of God Almighty as confirmed through the swearing of a covenant oath. This 

book explores the dual roles of these two, with special emphasis given to the promises of God by oath, and their relevance 

then and today. 

Kelvin Crombie came to know Jesus as a result of being in Israel for 24 years. Based on a previous book ‘In Covenant with 

Jesus’, this book presents an understanding of the relationship between Israel and the Church and the nations. 

B486 // BOOK // 396 pages // £12.50 (incl. UK p&p) Order by phone, post or website. 

A HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN ZIONISM IN BRITAIN 

Any discussion of ‘Christian Zionism’ in Britain nowadays must start by redefining the term. In some Christian circles, it 

has become a dirty word, implying religiously motivated support for Israeli colonialism. On the contrary, the truth is that 

Zionism was a Christian conclusion from the Bible (e.g. Jeremiah 31:6-12) long before modern Jewish efforts to build 

a homeland. Zion is a biblical term for the Jewish people as God intended, fully restored to their spiritual and physical 

inheritance. The question before us today, then, is where Britain’s philosemitism came from – its love for the Jewish people. 

This CONTEXT booklet by Dr James Patrick gives a good overview of British history in relation to the Jewish people. 

BT119 // BOOKLET // 32 pages // £4.00 (incl. UK p&p) 

Order by phone, post or website. 

CHURCHLINK Update 

Julia Soakell 

We have had a great response from supporters 

for taking on the role as Christian Friends 

of Israel Church Link. 

Since its launch in early 2016 we have approximately 30 

individuals, who in their own church, fellowship or area of 

influence, like their Lydia Cell, distribute CFI literature each 

quarter and help people sign up to our mailing list so they 

too can receive updates from us by post or by email. 

Many of our Church Links have been very busy setting up 

Display Boards and encouraging prayer for Israel and CFI, 

and some are now active in educating their church with the 

historic importance of the Balfour 100 commemorations for 

this year. 

In March, Church Link Liz Day and her husband Andrew, 

Church Warden of St Pauls Barton on the Isle of Wight, 

hosted a very well attended CFI Conference Day with David 

and myself – where an update on the ‘Heart for a Generation’ 

seminar was shared and a teaching session on the ties of the 

Jewish people to Jerusalem met with enthusiasm. David 

also spoke at the church on the Sunday. 

If you would like to prayerfully consider becoming a 

Church Link please contact Julia.soakell@cfi.org.uk for a 

short pack and more information 

CFI PRAYER SUPPORT 

Do you have a heart for prayer? Why not use the 

prayer pages on our CFI website, where we have 

helpful suggestions on prayer and regular updates 

of areas which need your specific support. If you 

lead a group that prays for Israel and would like to 

be on our CFI Prayer Contacts listings, let us know 

– we hope to be able to send out direct requests for 

strategic prayer in the days and months to come, as 

the needs arise. 

Contact: julia.soakell@cfi.org.uk 

10 IN TOUCH • 2 nd Quarter 2017 www.cfi.org.uk

CFI-UK EVENTS 2017 

CFI-UK Annual Conference 

Friday 22 nd & Saturday 23 rd September, 2017 

Venue: Victoria Baptist Church, Eldon Road, Eastbourne BN21 1UE 

Israel: Covenants & Kingdom 

Advance 

Notice: 

Dates for 

your diary 

FREE ENTRY 

Refreshments provided 

International Speakers include: 

Willem Glashouwer 

Andrew Tucker 

Revd Willem Glashouwer 

Our main speaker is a Bible teacher and author of several 

books including ‘Why Israel?’ Willem is the president of 

Christians for Israel International, an ordained minister of 

the Dutch Reformed Church and a former director of the 

Evangelical Broadcasting Company in the Netherlands. He 

is married with four children. 

Andrew Tucker 

Andrew trained as a lawyer in Australia, UK and the 

Netherlands, where he practised for almost 20 years 

as an attorney in the field of international law. Since 

2004 Andrew has been serving as Executive Director 

of Christians for Israel International, based in the 

Netherlands. In this role he is responsible for coordinating 

and developing the international Christians for Israel 

network. He is married with four children. 

Stacey & Kevin Howard 

Will also take a session as part of their UK tour (see below) 

CFI-UK Annual Conference in 2016 

Exhibitors will include CFI-UK 

resources stall along with stalls of local 

and parallel ministries. 

Please put this date in your diary 

and look out for more details in the 

forthcoming brochure. 

We look forward to welcoming you. 

Please encourage your friends and 

contacts to attend this free event. 

Salt and Light in a dark world call: 01323 410 810 



Stacey Howard is the Executive Director 

of Christian Friends of Israel – Jerusalem. 

While the calling on her life to serve the Lord 

in ministry began as a young child, it was in 

2004 that she answered that call to devote 

herself full-time into God’s service, having 

raised 3 children over 20 years of marriage, 

and laying down her own bookkeeping 

company. With her husband Kevin they 

entered into study at Christ for the Nations in 

Dallas Texas, where they completed degrees 

in Theology receiving their ordination in 

2007. While always connected to the nation 

of Israel through biblical study as well as 

through her parents Ray and Sharon Sanders, 

co-founders of CFI – Jerusalem, God had now 

laid the calling of Israel upon her directly. 

UK DELEGATION TOUR 2017 

SEPTEMBER DATES 

Friday 15 th Luton, Bedfordshire 

Saturday 16 th Blackheath, West Midlands 

Sunday 17 th Dewsbury, West Yorkshire 

Monday 18 th Branch FM Radio, Dewsbury 

Tuesday 19 th TBC 

Wednesday 20 th Glasgow 

Saturday 23 rd CFI-UK Annual Conference, Eastbourne 

Sunday 24 th Old Woking, Surrey 

Monday 25 th TBC 

Tuesday 26 th TBC 

Wednesday 27 th Bristol 

Kevin Howard, also an ordained minister and graduate of Christ for the Nations, left a 25-year career in broadcast television production 

to follow the call of God. Kevin is the Director of Technology for Christian Friends of Israel – Jerusalem with oversight of its Radio and 

TV programming, IT Development, Social Media and Graphics production including: FocalPoint TV; FrontPage Jerusalem radio; and 

For Zion’s Sake Magazine. He is also the lead speaker-teacher for CFI – Jerusalem worldwide, travelling with Stacey, teaching and 

encouraging the church in its responsibility towards Israel and the Jewish people. 


CFI-UK Exhibits 2017 

National events where CFI-UK 

have applied to exhibit during 2017 

Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet 

(To be confirmed) 

SANDOWN PARK, 

ESHER SURREY 

17-19 OCTOBER 2017 

Please visit www.cfi.org.uk for updates on all events we will attend 

Resources www.cfi.org.uk/shop call: 01323 410 810 

Land of the Bible 

The Beauty of the Land of Israel 

16 Month Hebrew Heritage Calendar 

Features 15 unique photographs 

incorporating Scripture in NKJV, ENGLISH and HEBREW 

£10 

Includes 

UK P&P 

September 2017– 

December 2018 

• All dates in both JEWISH/LUNAR and GREGORIAN/SOLAR calendar systems, in English and Hebrew. 

• ALL MAJOR BIBLICAL/JEWISH/ISRAELI HOLIDAYS 

• SABBATH (Shabbat) BEGINNING AND ENDING TIMES for Jerusalem. 

• References shown for all WEEKLY SCRIPTURE PORTIONS (Torah and Haftarah) 

• Each calendar month has one or more WRITING SPACES for reminders and notes. 

Issued by: 

CFI Communications, PO Box 2687, Eastbourne, BN22 7LZ. 

Produced in Israel. Printed in the UK

In Touch Quarter 2 - 2017

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