“A man came to me and his face looked like the sun was shining out of it. He said, ‘You belong to me, don’t be afraid!’ I began to cry and shake and He put His hand on my head and wiped away my tears.”
This is just one testimony among many that we are being told, as people from Muslim backgrounds living in the areas surrounding Israel are encountering Jesus.
Here at ONE FOR ISRAEL, our focus is primarily reaching Israel with the gospel of the Messiah, and proclaiming Yeshua to Jewish Israelis who do not know Him yet. 80% of Israelis are Jewish and speak Hebrew, but one in five Israelis speak Arabic, and Yeshua loves them too!
The Word of God goes forth from Zion
One of our Arab staff members, our Director of Arabic Evangelism, began making videos in Arabic to declare the gospel to Israeli Arabs, both those from a nominally Christian background, and also Muslims, and those videos have reached further than we could have imagined.
Several people have come to faith now through seeing the videos we have been publishing, including a well-known singer, an expert in Islamic literature, and most recently a seeker who went to the highest authorities trying to find a convincing response against what Carlos was saying. No one could provide him with a satisfactory answer.
The more he read about Jesus, the more he loved what he was reading. Several members of his family are Muslim leaders, and he understands the significant danger he is stepping into by choosing to follow Jesus, but he chose to make the courageous step of faith nonetheless.
As far afield as Iraq and Syria, we are hearing from people who have either accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, or who are on a spiritual journey of discovery. Carlos and his small team are engaged in many discussions over the internet, often started by outraged Muslims defending their religion against the assault of truth Carlos delivers in his videos. They may begin with hostility, but often these conversations turn into friendships, and some of these Muslims, a bit like Saul, eventually realize they are fighting against God.
Please pray for angelic protection!
Those who put their faith in Yeshua in strictly Muslim environments are in effect putting their lives on the line. It is not uncommon to be disowned, divorced, or even killed. One new believer we’re in touch with recently escaped the death penalty for apostasy by sheer miracles of God. Please pray for these brave new believers – the ones we know, and the thousands of others coming to faith all across the Muslim world – for protection, for courage, to be built up and grow strong in their new faith in Jesus so that they can also disciple others.
It should come as no surprise that multiple death threats have also been made against Carlos and his family, so we would greatly value your prayers both for our neighbors who so desperately need to encounter the God who loves them, and also for Carlos and his team who are determined to keep preaching the gospel.
“I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes—to the Jew first and also to the gentile.” (Romans 1:16)
Main photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash
