On Wednesday, December 6, 2017, President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the State of Israel.
His bold and courageous action was reminiscent of President Harry Truman when he ensured the United States was the first nation to officially recognize the State of Israel moments after David Ben Gurion read Israel’s Declaration of Independence in 1948. Both men acted in the face of great opposition.
Why it took seven decades for the United States to acknowledge Jerusalem as Israel’s capital can easily be blamed on politics. However, we know there is a great spiritual battle at play that resists recognizing Jerusalem’s place in Israel’s history. Since the day King David conquered the Jebusite city 3,000 years ago and established it as the capital city of the Jewish people, it has never served as the capital of any other nation. There has never been a sovereign nation of Palestine in the history of the world, and Jerusalem has never been its capital.
Israel is the only nation with a God-given right to the land and the city, and it is the only nation with a historic claim to Jerusalem as its capital. Jerusalem is the city of God, where God placed His house, the Temple, to dwell with Israel. It is the unique city where He has written His name. It is the city where God has promised to someday set His only begotten Son, the Messiah, on the throne of David to rule over Israel and the world. God has never given Jerusalem to any other nation, or people, including the Church.
The justification for a divided Jerusalem has no basis in history. What men label as East Jerusalem is, in fact, the ancient, historic city of Jerusalem. It includes the City of David, the Temple Mount, Calvary, and the tomb where Jesus was buried until His resurrection. All of the major Jewish and Christian sacred biblical sites in Jerusalem are contained within the area men are calling East Jerusalem.
President Trump’s action on December 6 recognizes the fact that Jerusalem belongs to Israel. He has walked where U.S. presidents before him have failed to tread. With this recognition, he has instructed the U.S. State Department to make plans to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Let’s pray it follows his directive and the U.S. embassy moves soon to the City of Gold.
The significance of the president’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital cannot be overstated. It will change the dynamics of future peace negotiations, as the greatest national power in the world today has made it official that an undivided Jerusalem, both east and west, belongs to the Jewish people. It removes from the negotiating table the question “To whom does Jerusalem belong?” and allows negotiators to focus on the real issues that prevent peace, such as the Arab refusal to recognize and accept the State of Israel. The U.S. recognition also stands in opposition to recent efforts of the United Nations and Europe to claim that Israel has no historical connection to its ancient city.
In the days of President Truman, after he officially recognized the new State of Israel, other nations followed suit. Our hope is that other nations will once again follow the U.S. lead and recognize Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish nation.
Jim Showers, D.Min.
Executive Director/President
Comments 8
GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME. AND ALL THE TIME GOD IS GOOD.
Dear Jim, thank you for this article, as I will be quoting your thoughts on this issue. I have been trying to defend President Trump’s declaration to a very influential friend in Italy. We grew up together and keep in touch through Facebook. He posted his opposition to the President’s decision and I couldn’t remain silent. He has many followers, and my hope is that through these conversations, I will be able to express, not only my opinion, but to point him and his followers to the Word of God as I a sure will not return void.
Keep up the great work at FOI, and may the LORD continue to bless you and your ministry.
Peace,
Mario.
This is what many of us have been waiting for over years. Biblical history over centuries pointed out clearly the ownership of Jerusalem to the Jews but the devil in his plans wanted or tried to stop it. I am very grateful God has used my dear bold friend Donald Trump to clear the air. We will continue to pray God to touch others to accept this historic fact.
Amen!!!
Amen , Seeing through ALL of God’s word that Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Israel . Will pray this happens soon .
God’s will be done. Viva La Israel! God’s chosen people. Even so come Lord Jesus…
it will always remain Jerusalem as the capital of Israel from the biblical point of view beginning from the OLD TESTAMENT on the days of the MAJOR and MINOR PROPHETS and up to the TIME of The NEW TESTAMENT on the DAYS of JESUS CHRIST The MESSIAH. SOON JESUS WILL COME AGAIN AS THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS TO REIGN IN THE WORLD FOR 1000 YEARS and JERUSALEM AS THE CAPITAL OF PEACE AND PROSPERITY
Just noting that Palestinian Christians almost unanimously have a very different take on this issue. Are you in contact with them? Do you recognize their suffering under Israeli military occupation? And are you grounding your theology in the nonviolent way of Jesus, who seemed entirely indifferent to the national status of Israel as he was leaving his disciples with their global gospel mission (Acts 1:1-8)?