A few weeks ago God directed me to Isaiah 40 (Comfort my people) and I realised that, for the first time, I was to write a book directed primarily to the Jewish people, both to comfort and reassure them but, most importantly, to present the gospel to them in a culturally relevant way. I don't think there is - or has ever been - a book on the market that does this.
This 40th book is the book that my whole writing career over the last 25 years has been leading to, combining the Hebraic mindset, truth on Israel and the Jews, Church failings and Jewish evangelism!
For Jews who don’t know their Purpose - Why us? Why does the world hate us?
For those Christians who don’t know their God - Why them? Why do they think they are so special?
For the rest who just don’t know. - Why does the world obsess about them?
This is a warts 'n' all book. Here Jewish people are shown why they have problems with Jesus and how they can find the real Jesus. As the primary problem has been the historical attitude to them by the Church, this is laid out to explain all. The facts of Replacement Theology are laid bare and dealt with. This is also a good book to give to those Christians who are trapped in this heresy. Finally, the book is a wonderful apologetic for God, using the Jewish story as a pointer to the reality of the spiritual warfare that surrounds us. It is a book for absolutely everyone!
Here's the deal:
I am looking for 40 crowdfunders, paying £150 each, to pay for the production, printing and marketing of the book (quite a large one 80,000 - 100,000 words). I expect to publish it later in December and you will receive the first copies.
All crowdfunders will get ten copies of the new book (£15 rrp)
Send £150 by Bank Transfer (contact Steve for details)
Send a cheque for £150 by post to Saltshakers, PO BOX 2215, Ilford, Essex IG1 9TR
HERE IS THE INTRODUCTION (Subject to tweaks)
Here is a quote from the IsraelForever Instagram page:
“Israel has no oil. No special natural resources. A population barely the size of a mid-sized American city. They are surrounded by enemies. Hated in the United Nations. Targeted by terror. Condemned by celebrities. Boycotted, slandered and attacked. And still, they thrive like there’s no tomorrow. In military. In medicine. In security. In technology. In agriculture. In intelligence. In morality. In sheer, unbreakable will.”
What does this conjure up for you? Are your emotions stirred? Of course, I have no way of knowing. What we see here are dry facts, not opinions, so we are forced to accept these truths. Or do we? So much around us is fake, so who knows? You are right to be critical, though it’s sad fact that truth can often be so elusive and unknowable. What about if I assure you that every word here conveys a real truth? No nuance, no spin, just the reality of an extraordinary country. Trust me on this. Now trust me a little more - let’s take this to the next level.
Here’s a short anonymous piece, also on Instagram, that caught my eye:
“There’s something about Israel that makes people uncomfortable and it’s not what they say it is. They’ll point to its politics, settlements, borders and wars. But scratch beneath the outrage and you’ll find something deeper. A discomfort not with what Israel does, but with what Israel is. A nation this small should not be this strong. Period.”
Now we venture into emotions. Israel is that sort of country. It conjures up opinions, driven by emotions, the whole spectrum from pure hatred (“Death to the IDF”) to a love bordering on idolatry (“God’s own country”). But now we have discomfort. There is something weird going on here. That’s because it is weird. Israel is weird. Jews are weird, too, speaking as a fully paid-up member.
We Jews are a strange people. Buffeted and battered by the forces of history, we survive with our senses intact. Our story is perhaps the saddest of all, yet we have helped to give humour to the world! A race that was being systematically slaughtered by Nazi brutes in Europe was, at the same time, entertaining America on stage and screen. A people who have, on the world stage, produced the highest proportion to size of Nobel Prize winners have been persecuted and reviled and forced into Jewish ghettos. A folk who provided Gentiles, in Jesus of Nazareth, with a saviour and inspiration are tortured and killed in the name of the same man.
It’s even weirder now, you must agree. This weirdness has a start point and, to discover this, we need to go on a journey. Decide now if you wish to purchase a ticket for the total excursion, or perhaps you’re planning to dip in and out, joining for some stretches but not all, because some of them may make you feel uncomfortable. It will be a bumpy ride. On the other hand … perhaps we all need to be taken out of our comfort zone …
If you are Jewish you may think the following. Why can't they all just leave us alone - to create, invent, compose and entertain - and find another people to torment? What's it all about? So, the Jews are meant to be different, the 'chosen people'. Does our chosen-ness mean anything to us now, in the 21st Century? Sure, it's a source of great pride when we look at the achievements of our people, often against great odds. But we don't like reading and hearing about the other side, the Holocaust and the pogroms. Yet they both work together, they are both part of the same package, like strawberries and cream (or should I say 'smoked salmon and beigels'). Are you curious to find out more? Despite where this may take you? This is the challenge being presented in this book.
If you are not Jewish, you may be asking other questions. You may already have an understanding, of sorts, of the Jewish journey because, as a Christian, you are told that Jews have a role to play in the great scheme of things. Or perhaps not. Any role they have may take many guises, depending on your theological view but – and I need to make this very clear – this may be more important than you could ever imagine.
And then there are the rest of you, neither Jewish nor Christian. No axe to grind, perhaps, no iron in the fire. Just casual observers. Perhaps you are troubled by our current cultural atmosphere and are asking, what on earth is going on here? Why is the World obsessed by this tiny country and this insignificantly small race of people?
In a recent survey, it was found that 21% of British people are antisemitic (by agreeing with at least four common antisemitic tropes). This is almost double of what it was just a handful of years earlier. Even more disturbing is that this figure is a lot higher for Generation Z (18-30 year olds) and that 31% of our young people believe that Israel doesn’t even have a right to exist. Doesn’t have a right to exist! Are you kidding? Can you honestly say anyone saying this about any other country, let alone almost a third in your age group being of like mind? Is Israel that evil? Are Jews really of the devil? The world seems to think so!
There is a massive story to be told here. Are you ready for this? If so, then you are very welcome to join us, it may even change your life too.
