‘It’s A Religious War’: Israeli Christians Serving Jesus Amid Iran Missile Blasts
TEL AVIV — Passover plans this April 1 are a tossup for Israel, including the nation’s 20,000 to 30,000 Christians.
“We’re at war, and we have rockets every day, and missiles falling every day,” Tel Aviv Messianic pastor Avi Mizrachi told Baptist Press. “It’s a real challenge. We make plans, but we don’t own the time, because things can change every day.”
Mizrachi, founder of Adonai Roi Congregation and the humanitarian outreach Dugit Ministries, was driving to a desert in southern Israel for a twice-yearly meeting with about 40 Christian pastors and leaders when he spoke with Baptist Press on March 22.
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Adonai Roi’s 100 or so members will likely hold Passover Seders in their homes, Mizrachi said, as it will be too dangerous to meet in public. Additionally, the Israeli government has limited in-person gatherings to 50 people, as long as there is a nearby bomb shelter seconds away that can hold all of those in the meeting.
“We tell the story of the great exodus from Egypt and how God saved us through His mighty hand, redeemed us from the hands of the Egyptians, and how He opened the Red Sea,” Mizrachi said of Passover. “We declare the sovereignty and the authority of the Lord in the midst of all this, and believe God that He will continue doing miracles.”
Weekly worship and prayer services are held on Zoom, Mizrachi said.
Iran has launched on Israel more than 400 ballistic missiles, which Mizrachi describes as explosive busses in the air capable of destroying whole neighborhoods, as well as cluster warheads that open midair and rain munitions from the sky. Tens of thousands of sirens have sounded since Feb. 28, according to Israeli military leaders, warning Israelis to seek shelter. Israeli Defense Forces have intercepted 92 percent of the missiles headed their way, but those that make it through cause immense damage.
Israel is fighting on two fronts, with hundreds of air strikes from Hezbollah in Lebanon.
At least 18 civilians have died in Israel since Feb. 28, and 4,829 have been injured, the tracking site WarDeathCount.live reported March 22. Another 3,500 or so have been internally displaced within Israel, with the government providing temporary shelter, according to media reports.
All of Israel is a war zone.
“This is the life we’re living every day,” he said. “Every day, we have to trust God. And during this time, all we can do is pray and ask for the Lord’s protection. He is a fortress and a shield. We pray for His angels to surround us.”
Missiles are less likely to rain on Israel’s southern desert, Mizrachi said, as Iran targets residential areas. Still, two missiles that struck Dimona and Arad in the Negev desert March 21 injured 200 civilians and caused the Israel Ministry of Education to cancel in-person classes across the nation March 22 and 23, the Institute for the Study of War reported.
Among those meeting with Mizrachi are pastors and leaders from the approximately 500 Christian denominations across Israel, including Hebrew, Arab, Russian, French and Amharic speaking congregations spanning conservative and charismatic Christian denominations.
Religious leaders overlook denominational differences and focus on their joint belief in Yeshua – Jesus — our Messiah, and their joint perspective that the current turmoil increases their mandate to share the Gospel with unbelievers.
“We are such a minority here in the land of Israel. We need one another,” he said of Christians. “We believe the basics of our faith. We pray for one another, and we want to see (Israeli Christians) working together for the kingdom until all Israel is saved.”
Nonbelievers are more receptive at this time, he said, with Dugit Ministries serving many with food baskets and Bibles as the war continues.
“I’m a Jewish believer. I’m a follower of the Messiah, Jesus, Yeshua,” Mizrachi said of himself and other Israeli Christians. “And this is what we need to… communicate to people. … The Gospel has gone from Jerusalem to the nations to bring salvation to the nations.”
He encourages Christians in the U.S. to pray for the salvation of Israel. and, if so led, to support the Christian community financially. Send Relief, the Southern Baptist humanitarian arm, is also accepting donations to support those in need in the Middle East.
“I believe that the believers in America need to understand that this war is not just between Israel and Iran,” Mizrachi said. “Muslim fundamentalists … proclaim death to America, death to Israel. They see America and Israel as the evil ones.”
As jihadists work to destroy those who worship on Saturday, Mizrachi said, their next target will be those who worship on Sunday.
“For them, it’s a religious war,” Mizrachi said. “And we must fight them because if we don’t fight them, they will think they are victorious and Muhammad is the true prophet, not Jesus.
“That’s how they see it. They don’t think like we do in the West. They think differently.”
This article has been republished with permission from Baptist Press.
Diana Chandler is Baptist Press’ senior writer.