From David Hocking (davidhocking.org)

THE BALFOUR DECLARATION'S COMEBACK!

By Tsvi Sadan (Israel Today News)

The love-hate relationship between the UK and Israel is well known.

One could dwell on the many setbacks of British policy toward the Jewish state.

The 1937 partition plan proposed by the Peel Commission, the infamous 1939 White Paper that restricted Jewish immigration to mandatory Palestine, and the present anti-Israel vitriolic from Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

These are sufficient examples of British hate toward the Israel.

But Britain has another side, the one that has produced the 1917 Balfour Declaration that proved foundational to the rebirth of the Jewish state.

Despite the many setbacks, the recent December 12 announcement by the British government that it is now adopting the 2005 US Department of State definition of antisemitism-"denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, and denying Israel the right to exist"-shows that the sentiments that gave rise to the Balfour Declaration are still well-embedded within British culture and politics.

Though received little attention in Israel, the UK's adoption of this new definition marks an important departure from the Labour Party's anti-Israel platform. As The Guardian reported, "Britain will become one of the first countries to use this definition of antisemitism ... to ensure that culprits will not be able to get away with being antisemitic because the term is ill-defined, or because different organizations or bodies have different interpretations of it."

One immediate result of this statement by Downing Street is its acceptance, reserved as it is, by the Labour Party.

Though she omitted the part that states that "denying Israel the right to exist" is an integral part of antisemitism's new definition, Corbyn's spokeswoman still made it clear that "Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour party share the view that language or behaviour that displays hatred towards Jews is antisemitism, and is as repugnant and unacceptable as any other form of racism."

Britain under the leadership of Theresa May and America under the leadership of Donald Trump may prove to be the long awaited formidable power that will put an end to the legitimacy antisemitism receives from human rights organizations that are dangerously effective at disguising defamation as legitimate "criticism."

THE FIGHT AGAINST ANTI-ISRAEL UN RESOLUTION ISN'T OVER YET!
Arutz Sheva News

Israeli ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, says Israel must remain vigilant against constant attempts to harm the country at the UN.

The delay, perhaps indefinitely, of the UN Security Council vote on an Egyptian-sponsored resolution ordering Israel to cease all "settlement activity" does not mean that the struggle against anti-Israel resolutions at the UN intended to harm Jewish rights in Judea and Samaria is finished, according to Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon.

Egypt represents the Arab League on the Security Council, but the resolution was not Egypt's initiative, but the League's, complying with the request of the PA. Egypt delayed the vote at the request of President-elect Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu.

"We are still in the middle of a very complex process, a battle on multiple fronts." Danon told Arutz Sheva. This postponement is certainly important, but the fight is still not over. The Palestinian proposal is still going around and being discussed in the corridors of the UN. The Prime Minister leads the campaign in Jerusalem, while we work here in New York with the diplomats and delegations. We tell them the truth.  This resolution is not good for Israel, the peace process, or even the Palestinians."

What response have you received to the proposed resolution?

"Many are waiting to hear the US position on the issue. There are many states which act in accordance with the US position, which has not yet been stated. Our expectation is that our good friend [the US] will veto it as it did in 2011."

Did you receive any indication on how the US intended to vote?

"There was no indication on this matter. This is also a result of the delay of the vote. The Americans are still examining the issue. We made it clear to the Americans that this is a sensitive period and that it is therefore important the US policy will continue as it has always been during this administration and the next administration. At this point a decision has not been made, and it should be made by the President himself. My guess is that the Americans will not rush to reveal their hand, unless they have to. They will reveal their hands only once they are confident that the issue will come up for a vote."

Would you say that the Egyptian resolution was dropped from the agenda altogether?

"There are discussions at the Arab League in Cairo at this time, where they discuss the resolution and the timetables. Everything is dynamic at the UN. A resolution can be submitted to the Security Council and discussed in just a few hours. We are prepared and are always on alert. It is clear that there are many attempts to harm us at the UN.

"I would like to point out that this resolution is a Palestinian and not an Egyptian resolution. Egypt is represented on the Security Council, but it was the Palestinians who formatted and promoted the resolution."

Danon noted that the PA is seeking a political victory over Israel before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. "This is a transition period between Presidents, and they are trying to take advantage of it. This is a biased, one-sided resolution, which affects the State of Israel and calls for the creation of mechanisms for a boycott of the settlements in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem. This is something we cannot accept and the American people would not accept."

Why would countries that support us on other issues turn their backs on us at the Security Council?

"Those countries subscribe to the mistaken theory that the settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria is the cause of the conflict. I toured Maaleh Adumim a few days ago with 14 ambassadors. They could not believe that the city is a 'settlement.' In their eyes, a 'settlement' is a hill which was taken illegally from the Arabs. Once they were in Israel it changed their perception. Unfortunately Europe and other countries still approach the 'settlements' as the obstacle to peace."

David Hocking

HFT Connect

From David Hocking's Newsletter (davidhocking.org)

TREES OF LIFE

(Israel Today Staff)

After the numerous wars and intifadas (Arab uprisings) Israel can include another conflagration in the history books: "The war for our own possessions" with a "fire intifada"! This is not new terror but rather just another way to fight Israel!

Since the 22nd of November when the first fire was intentionally set, the Israeli fire service and rearguard soldiers have fought the flames in numerous places like Haifa and the Jerusalem mountains. More than 500 homes and houses have been completely destroyed and in Haifa more than 60,000 people were evacuated at the height of the fires. Firefighting aircraft from all over the world helped to fight the fires. Israel's citizens have been standing shoulder-to-shoulder in support, among them Arab citizens, who opened their hearts and doors to fire victims.

Approximately 3,000 acres of forests in Haifa and the Jerusalem hills have been destroyed. Now the houses have to be rebuilt and the forests have to be replanted.

It will take years and, in some cases, even decades until nature regenerates itself.

PALESTINIANS FIGHTING FIRE WITH SMOKE?

When Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas sent firefighters to help extinguish fires in Israel a week ago, some saw it as a significant breakthrough in relations between Yasser Arafat's successor and the Jewish state.

But, as usual in the Middle East, there's more to the story than good vibes.

It turns out Abbas will likely write checks to the terrorists who set the blazes, according to an expert on Palestinian propaganda efforts that have turned much of the world against Israel and in favor of the PA.

"So far Israel has arrested 23 suspected arsonists connected to the hundreds of fires that raged across Israel last week burning more than 500 homes and 32,000 acres of forests and national parks," writes Itamar Marcus in the Jerusalem Post.

"According to Palestinian law anyone imprisoned for 'resisting the occupation' receives a high monthly salary. Therefore, all of those convicted and imprisoned for arson will receive PA salaries 'from the day of arrest until the day of release.'"

But it gets worse, writes Marcus, the director of Palestinian Media Watch.

"Of course, it is not only arson-terrorists who receive a PA salary," says this report.

"All Palestinian, Israeli Arab and Arab terrorists from any country who are imprisoned are rewarded with high salaries from the PA. According to PA law and practice, 'resisting the occupation' includes any Arab imprisoned for attacking Israelis by any means, including throwing a stone at a car, driving a car into people at bus stops, building bombs for suicide bombers to blow up at cafes, or shooting and stabbing civilians to death in their sleep.

"Since the PA automatically includes anyone who attacked Israelis or their possessions as 'fighters' who are 'resisting the occupation,' there is no justification under Palestinian law and practice not to include recent arsonists among the Palestinian 'heroes' who receive monthly salaries," Marcus writes.

In other words, the PA appears to have been fighting fires with propaganda smoke and mirrors.

The subsidization of terror in the PA is significant.

"Significantly, these salaries for terrorists rise the longer terrorists are in jail," explains Marcus.  "Terrorists convicted of murder and serving life sentences will reach a high salary of NIS 12,000 a month - more than four times the average Palestinian salary.

"The PA has already paid the five Hamas terrorists who murdered Eitam and Naama Henkin in front of their four children last October in total NIS 91,000 as reward for their murders. And terrorist Abdallah Barghouti has already received NIS 645,000 for building the bombs that murdered 67 Israelis at the Sbarro pizza shop, Sheffield Club, Moment Café, the triple bombing at the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall, Hebrew University and No. 4 bus in Tel Aviv."

LEBANESE CHRISTIAN BILLIONAIRE BUILDING ISRAEL'S FLEET!

(Israel Today Staff)

Last week it was reported that Iran holds nearly 5 percent of shares in the German conglomerate supplying Israel's submarines.

Perhaps more surprising is that the conglomerate in question, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, works hand-in-hand with Abu Dhabi MAR to provide naval surface vessels to various nations, including Israel.

Abu Dhabi MAR is partly owned and is fully managed by Iskandar Safa, a French-Lebanese billionaire from a Maronite Christian family in northern Lebanon.

Safa today spends most of his time in Paris and London, having been personally wounded during the bloody civil wars that ravaged his homeland. But his company, Privinvest, which owns 30 percent of Abu Dhabi MAR, still has offices in Beirut.

An expose published in Israel's Yediot Ahronot suggested that Safa, who sees himself as a "citizen of the world," has had ties to Israel for decades.

Years ago, an anonymous source told a French newspaper that Safa had "ties in all communities in the Middle East, including Israel and the Mossad."

 

Former Mossad agent Uri Lubrani confirmed to Yediot that he met with Safa in the 1980s as part of efforts to secure the release of Ron Arad, an Israel Air Force navigator downed and captured during the First Lebanon War.

A PILLAR OF CLOUD DEFENDS ISRAEL'S BORDER WITH SYRIA!  

(Israel Today Staff)

Amidst increasing ISIS activity on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, Israeli soldiers stationed there reported that over the weekend a literal pillar of cloud descended on the border.

The bizarre storm completely engulfed the Syrian side of the border, but stopped just at the boundary and did not enter Israel.

A number of soldiers captured the phenomenon on their cellphones.

The video went viral on Facebook, where not a few Israelis labeled the storm as "divine intervention."

"Huge miracle! Notice how God stopped this enormous storm exactly on the border," wrote Yifat Romano. "Thank you, Father!"

Netanel Tanaami wondered, "What more do you need to believe?"

"The Creator of the world is protecting us," proclaimed Nissim Nahoum.

David Hocking

HFT Connect

What is Christmas by Ken Ham (answersingenesis.org)

What Is Christmas?

From Creation to Bethlehem

by Ken Ham on November 27, 2013; last featured December 8, 2016

Also available in Português

PDF Download

 
 

What is Christmas? This article shows the surprising connection between Christmas and the creation of the world.

Note: This article is featured in this booklet, which shows the surprising connection between Christmas and the creation of the world.

In December, many Christians celebrate a holiday called Christmas.1What is Christmas? During this season, there is particular emphasis on an event that occurred around 2,000 years ago in the town of Bethlehem in Judea (today called Israel).

Christmas commemorates the birth of a baby—an event recorded in the Bible in such New Testament passages as Luke 2:1–20 and prophesied about in Old Testament passages such as Isaiah 7:14. The name given to this baby was Jesus.

During Christmas time, many churches display nativity scenes. These exhibits show the newborn Jesus in a stable surrounded by various animals, shepherds, and Mary and Joseph. Such nativity scenes traditionally have also been displayed in public places (shopping centers, public schools, parks, etc.) in much of our Western world.

Also at Christmas, people sing special songs known as “carols.” The words of many of these carols outline the events surrounding the birth of Jesus.

Because of the influence of Christianity and the birth of baby Jesus, history is divided into two basic divisions—AD (Anno Domini, Latin for “in the year of the Lord,” Jesus) and BC (“before Christ”). As evidenced by the fact that Western calendars and historians count the number of years from this time, this was a very significant event even apart from religious aspects.

Christmas Is Changing

The Creation Museum features a Live Nativity at the annual Christmas Town.

In much of the Western world today, nativity scenes are no longer displayed in public places. Such displays are now banned from many public parks and schools.

Whereas Christmas carols used to be sung in public (i.e., government) schools, many times such songs have been replaced by ones that do not mention anything about Jesus and His birth.

Furthermore, more and more people are now calibrating their calendars with BCE (Before the Common Era) and CE (Common Era), rather than “before Christ” and “in the year of our Lord (Jesus).” The year-counts are the same, but the name of Christ has been removed.

In public schools in America, teachers and students are being urged or required by administrators and lawyers fearful of lawsuits to use phrases like “Happy Holidays” or “Season’s Greetings” instead of “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Christmas.”

Many advertising pieces during the Christmas season now delete the “Christ” part of the word “Christmas.”

Why was the birth of the baby Jesus considered so significant in the first place? And why is Christmas being viewed differently today? What has happened to cause an event which has so influenced the modern world to be slowly erased from people’s thinking?

The History

To understand the significance of the birth of this baby, we need to understand the history that led up to this event. The only compilation of books in the world that gives a detailed history that enables us to fully comprehend the significance is the Bible.

Over three thousand times the Bible claims to be the revealed Word of the God who created the universe and all life, and who has made Himself known to man. If this book really is God’s Word, then it should explain the meaning of the universe and life—and it does. Not only that, but observational science continues to confirm the Bible’s history as true. (See our booklets on the accuracy and authority of the Bible: available as a free PDF or on our online store.)

Genesis (which basically means “origins”), the first book of the Bible, gives an account of the origin of life and the universe. It tells of the origin of matter, light, earth, plants, sun, moon, stars, animals, humans, marriage, clothing, death, languages, nations, and so on.

In Genesis 1:27 and 2:7, we read of the creation of the first man called “Adam.” Interestingly, in 1 Corinthians 15:45, the one born in Bethlehem is called “the last Adam.” To understand the reason for the “last Adam,” you have to understand what happened to the “first Adam.”

The First Adam

The Bible records that on the sixth day of Creation, God made the first man and woman:

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (Genesis 1:27)

We read more of the details concerning the creation of the first man in Genesis 2:7:

And the Lord God formed man [Adam] of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

We are later told in Genesis 2:21–23that God created the first woman from the first Adam’s side. From elsewhere in the Bible, we learn that all humans who have ever lived descended from these two people (Genesis 3:20; Acts 17:26; and so on). Therefore, all humans today are related because we have the same first ancestors.

God’s Instruction

When God created Adam, He didn’t make him to be a puppet; Adam had the ability to choose and make decisions. God gave Adam an instruction to obey in Genesis 2.

Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:15–17)

Adam’s Fall

Not long after this command to Adam, Satan, through a serpent, deceived Eve into eating the fruit. And Eve gave some to Adam, and he ate as well. Adam chose to disobey God by eating the fruit of the one tree God had told him not to eat from (Genesis 3:6).

Because Adam was the first or “head” of the human race and all humans ultimately have come from this first man, what Adam did affected all of humanity. When Adam disobeyed his Creator’s instruction (resulting in his “fall” from his state of perfection), that was the first sin. And just as God had warned, the punishment for Adam’s sin was death—not only for Adam, but for all his descendants (including you and me) as well:

Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned. (Romans 5:12)

Why are we punished for what Adam did? As the head of the human race, Adam represented each of us, and because we all come from Adam, we have his nature, inherited from him. He sinned (disobeyed God), so we sin (disobey God). If it had been any of us faced with the decision to eat or not eat from the forbidden tree instead of Adam, the result would have been the same.

Oh! The Nakedness

After Adam and Eve sinned, Genesis 3:7 states that “they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.”

In sewing fig coverings, it wasn’t just that they recognized that they had no outer clothing—they also saw that they were destitute of righteousness. Their innocence was lost. Adam and Eve were no longer perfect but were now polluted creatures in their hearts and their flesh. They were naked before the justice of God’s law, and the fig leaves were attempts to cover what they had done.

However, no man or woman can hide their sinfulness from the sight of a holy God by their own doings. God sees us in all our nakedness and knows our impure, sinful, rebellious hearts.

The Bible says our attempts at covering ourselves (our “righteousness”) are but “filthy rags” to the Creator (Isaiah 64:6). No ceremonies, rites, or attempts at keeping the law can change this. Our works cannot take away our sin because our hearts are impure (Jeremiah 17:9). We cannot make ourselves acceptable before a holy, pure God because of the gross imperfection of our very nature—just as Adam and Eve’s fig leaf coverings could not help them.

How can we ever be reconciled with a holy God? This is an important question since we are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and as such, even though our bodies die because of sin, our soul (the “real us” that inhabits our bodies) lives forever. As sinners, we cannot live with a holy and righteous God, nor can we make it to heaven by our own works—we would be separated from God forever and live in our evil, sinful states for eternity. What a horrible existence that would be. As the Apostle Paul says in Romans 7:24, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

The Promise of the “Last Adam”

In Genesis 3:15, God made a statement to the deceiving serpent that actually sums up the message of the entire Bible and provided hope to Adam and Eve and their descendants (us!) that there was a way to be saved from the effects of sin. So, what is Christmas? Well this declaration summarizes what the Babe of Bethlehem is all about; in fact, it is the whole meaning of “Christmas”:

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.

What does this mean?

Genesis 22:18 gives us further clues about the identity of the promised “seed” of the woman who will bruise the head of the serpent:

In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.(emphasis added)

And Paul clarifies things in Galatians 3:16:

Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ. (emphasis added)

Paul builds upon the use of the singular “seed” in Genesis 22:18. Here we see the extent of the infallibility of Scripture, down to the use of singular and plural words.

The words “her seed” are actually a prophecy concerning the One who, conceived by God Himself, would be born of a woman (actually a “virgin”): the baby who was born in Bethlehem—the last Adam.

The “Head” and the “Heel” of Genesis 3:15

It is a great mystery to fallible, created human beings like us that the Creator God (Colossians 1:16) became flesh (John 1:14) so that as a perfect Man, He could become “sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21) by dying on a cross to suffer the penalty for sin (the meaning of “bruise his heel”). But, because He is the infinite Creator, He has ultimate power, and thus He rose from the dead, overcoming the Curse.

“Bruising the serpent’s head” speaks the mortal wound Satan received through Christ’s victory over him at Calvary. He is a defeated foe. His operation now is like the pockets of Japanese soldiers of World War II fighting after the surrender in August 1945—they could still instill casualties and do much harm, but they could not win the war.

Jesus came to take away sin and conquer the power of the grave—death.

Clothed by God

God illustrated what needed to be done to Adam and Eve by a particular act. In Genesis 3:21 we read:

Also for Adam and his wife the LordGod made tunics of skin, and clothed them.

God killed at least one animal—the first blood sacrifice—to provide the garments as a covering for their sin. It was a picture of what was to come in Jesus, who is the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

It is only the covering provided by God that can cover man’s “filthy rags.” The righteousness that enables a sinner to stand “just” in the sight of God is from God. No human being can put on the righteousness of Christ, for this can only be done by God (1 Corinthians 1:30). We can’t rely on our good works (our “coverings of fig leaves”) or on sacraments (e.g., communion, baptism) to stand just before God. It is only what God does for us that enables us to be clean before our Creator.

How Can We Be Clothed?

Now, if it is only God who is able to clothe us in righteousness, how can we obtain that clothing?

The Bible makes it very clear in Romans 10:9:

That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

When we acknowledge that we are sinners before God, repent of our sin, and confess the Lord Jesus, acknowledging that He died and rose from the dead, we receive the free gift of salvation from our Creator and will spend eternity with Him.

The Two Adams

The first Adam gave life to all his descendants. The last Adam, Jesus Christ, communicates life and light to all men (John 1:4). He gives eternal life to those who receive Him—who believe in His name—giving them the “right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

The first Adam experienced the judgment of God. He eventually died and his body turned to dust. Because of his sin, death came upon all men, “For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

The last Adam, Jesus Christ, also experienced the judgment of God—not for His own sins (He lived a perfect life), but for the sins of mankind. He died on the Cross to atone for sin (Isaiah 53:5; 1 Peter 3:18; Hebrews 2:9). But He did not stay dead, nor did His body “see corruption” (Acts 2:27; 13:35–37). On the third day, He rose again, thereby overcoming the devil and the power of death for all people who believe in Him (Hebrews 2:14), and bringing resurrection from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:22–23).

This is the message of the Babe born in Bethlehem. It starts with the creation of a perfect world, and then, because of our sin in Adam, leads to our need of a Savior—which is why Jesus stepped into history to become flesh 2,000 years ago.

What Is Happening to Christmas?

Throughout the world, generations of young people are being educated in schools, colleges, and by the media with evolutionary ideas about our origins.

Sadly, they are being brainwashed into believing that the history in Genesis concerning the first Adam and the entrance of sin is not true. Logically then, they begin rejecting the truth of the last Adam, Jesus Christ.

If the history in Genesis concerning our origins is not true and therefore the birth of Jesus is insignificant, then why should nativity scenes be allowed in schools and public places? Why should students sing carols about a meaningless event?

The erosion of Christianity in society is directly linked to the attack on the history of Genesis and the increasing indoctrination in a false history that has permeated the culture: that man is a result of millions of years of evolutionary processes.

Whatever the month of the year, the event that Christians celebrate in a very special way at Christmas is a message of hope for all people.

The message of the two Adams is what life is all about. But if we want people to understand this message, we need to ensure that we show them clearly that the history in Genesis is true, for otherwise, they will not understand or listen to what is said about the Babe of Bethlehem.

Here’s the Good News

Answers in Genesis seeks to give glory and honor to God as Creator, and to affirm the truth of the biblical record of the real origin and history of the world and mankind.

Part of this real history is the bad news that the rebellion of the first man, Adam, against God’s command brought death, suffering and separation from God into this world. We see the results all around us. All of Adam’s descendants are sinful from conception (Psalm 51:5) and have themselves entered into this rebellion (sin). They therefore cannot live with a holy God, but are condemned to separation from God. The Bible says that “all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) and that all are therefore subject to “everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power” (2 Thessalonians 1:9).

But the good news is that God has done something about it. “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Jesus Christ the Creator, though totally sinless, suffered, on behalf of mankind, the penalty of mankind’s sin, which is death and separation from God. He did this to satisfy the righteous demands of the holiness and justice of God, His Father. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice; He died on a cross, but on the third day, He rose again, conquering death, so that all who truly believe in Him, repent of their sin, and trust in Him (rather than their own merit), are able to come back to God and live for eternity with their Creator.

Therefore: “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18).

The Babe of Bethlehem . . . what a wonderful Savior . . . and what a wonderful salvation in Christ our Creator!