Julia Fisher introduces her latest book

Julia Fisher

Israel has a destiny that is determined by God and utterly unique. No other nation has the same destiny as Israel and Israel is the only nation to whom God said,

'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.' (Isaiah 49:6 & Acts 13:47) Is this why the Bible describes Israel as God's 'chosen' people, selected to serve a specific purpose and carry out a particular task?

However, far from bringing 'light' into the world, many people take the view (including many Christians) that Israel, even by her very existence, is the cause of so much tension and trouble, how could she ever bring salvation to the ends of the earth!

Through the stories of fourteen Messianic Jewish believers living in Israel today, 'Israel's New Disciples' explores the evidence which shows that a movement is emerging from within modern Israel; a movement that is gathering pace and will soon be noticed not only by Israelis, but also the rest of the world, proving that Israel is indeed beginning to see her final destiny being fulfilled.

All the interviews were recorded in a two week period during September 2007 (apart from one which, due to unforeseen circumstances, had to be recorded three weeks later), in order to reveal what is going on at a particular moment in history. There are many other people whose stories are not included in this book as they were not in Israel at the time; if it had been possible to interview them their stories would simply have added to the weight of evidence.

And so Israel's Destiny reveals a new phenomenon - Jewish believers in Jesus (Yeshua) who not only understand that the nation of Israel will one day become a 'light for the Gentiles', but who are driven by this vision and are working full time to see it realised.

Much has been written about the Holocaust; this ugly, evil period in European history cannot be excused. However, every cloud has a silver lining and in 1948, a few years after this particularly dark cloud had passed, a miracle of re-birth occurred as Israel once again rose from the ashes to become a sovereign state.

Fifty years later, in 1998, I visited Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. I went on my own. It is not an easy place to visit and when I eventually emerged into the sunlight I sat on a wall overlooking modern Jerusalem and realised that whilst thousands of Jewish people had come to live in Israel since the end of the Second World War, the battle was now on for the 'soul' of this battered nation if they were ever going to achieve what God has destined for them, to be a light to the Gentiles and bring salvation to the ends of the earth. They had physically returned to the land but now there had to be a spiritual re-birth if they were to fully realise their destiny. And that's what this book is about.

Having written about reconciliation between Jewish and Arab believers in Israel: the Mystery of Peace, and then about Arab Christians in Israel and the wider Middle East who understand God's plan for Israel and the Jewish people and who are actively praying and working for their salvation, 'Future for Israel?', this book tells the stories of an emerging group of Jewish believers who have realised that their job, their destiny, is to be a light to the Gentiles and bring salvation to the ends of the earth!

On the pages of this book are stories of fourteen Jewish believers in Jesus who are outspoken evangelists who have realised their destiny!

Why are they prepared to share their stories when it is certainly not popular and can even be dangerous being a Jewish believer in Jesus in Israel. And they are certainly not welcome in Islamic countries - no Jew can travel freely in such places. So who are these Jewish believers, where have they come from, why are they so passionate and how are they going about their 'mission'?

Just as many of the Arab Christians I wrote about in Future for Israel? were prepared to risk much and 'go public', so many of the people who share their stories in this book are risking much.

However, the facts are that from Israel in particular, as well as other countries around the world, a number of Jewish believers are emerging (Messianic Jews) who are passionate, fearless evangelists. Over the past ten years I have visited Israel on average three or four times a year, researching stories, broadcasting and leading tours. Ten years ago there were only a few hundred Jewish believers in Israel - today there are over 10,000 and their numbers are steadily growing. In a country of only 6 million people, this represents a sizeable increase and the trend is clear.

So what has this got to do with the Church in the nations? Avi Snyder, a Jewish evangelist currently working with Jews for Jesus in Germany says,

'If you love Israel and the Jewish people, then understand we were chosen to be a light to the nations. The best way for the Church to interfere with the process of world evangelisation is to keep the Gospel away from us Jews and not to pray for the salvation of Israel and not to pray for the people who bring the Gospel to the Jewish people and believe the lie that Jews don't need Jesus (Yeshua) to be saved.

But give us the Gospel and pray for the salvation of Israel and pray for those of us who bring the Gospel to our people and we'll bring the gospel to everybody we meet because that's why we were created!'

The stories told in this book feature some of those who are turning their attention to the nations, even the Arab world. When you consider that no Jewish person is even allowed to travel to many Arab countries, because their safety cannot be guaranteed, this is amazing. So what is happening? Who are these people? How are they going about their 'mission' and why are they so passionate to share their faith?