Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
Shalom from the wonderland of British Columbia! This Canadian province has so much beauty packed into it, it makes the rest of the Americas blush. I arrived here earlier this week, accompanied by my dear friend and speaking partner, Pastor Barry Stagner. Wednesday saw Barry and me at Christian Book and Music in Victoria signing books and meeting people. Then tonight, I’ll have a great evening of Bible Prophecy at Coastline Church in the same city. There’s still an opportunity to register if you’d like to join me!
From Victoria, Barry and I will head right across the Strait of Georgia to Vancouver where we’ll hold a Discovering Daniel Conference on Saturday, July 26. Christian Life Assembly has opened its doors to allow us a chance to teach through the entire book of Daniel in one day. If you would like to attend, you can register today. From B.C., we’ll travel one province east to Alberta for An Evening of Bible Prophecy on Wednesday, July 30, where I’ll be teaching for one evening at First Alliance Church in Calgary. Once again, registration is still available. Finally, the Canadian tour will wrap up on August 2 all the way over in Oakville, Ontario, where Pastor Barry and I will once again lead a Discovering Daniel Conference. Our venue will be The Meeting House and, as always, registration is required. If you live in Canada, please take one of these opportunities to join us for teaching, worship, and an all-around blessed time!
This past week has been very special as I’ve spent time with my great friend of nearly three decades, Pastor Jack Hibbs. It began Wednesday night with a powerful Happening Now show, in which we discussed Israel, Iran, Gaza, and other issues, all through the lens of prophetic scripture. But there was so much to talk about, we didn’t even come close to covering it all. So, Pastor Jack turned his Sunday morning services in a sort of Happening Now Part Two. At each of the three services, we picked up where we had left off on Wednesday, talking through all the most important issues surrounding Israel and the Middle East. It was fascinating how, despite having the same key topics for each hour, our discussion at the services followed such different paths. You can check out the Wednesday night Happening Now here, and the Sunday morning Happening Now Part Two church service here. I’m so grateful to Jack for the time and for allowing me to join him for the two times of teaching.
By the way, did you know that Behold Israel has never, nor will we ever, charged a church or venue for me to come speak. That includes speaker fees, hotels, flights, and any other expenses. That was a commitment we made from the beginning, trusting that if God wanted me somewhere He would provide the funds. And that is just what He has done! So, I want to take a moment to thank all of you who have given to Behold Israel over the years. It is because of your generosity that I am able to take the truth of Scripture around the world and share it with those who are anxious to hear.
MidEast & Beyond
If you want to see some of these stories fleshed out to a greater extent, tune in today to a special MidEast & Beyond Update with Pastor Barry Stagner and me. Also, for up to the minute news on the Middle East, be sure to subscribe to my Telegram channel.
Historic Vote in the Knesset
Yesterday, the Israeli Parliament (Knesset) voted on a proposal regarding Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank. With a majority 71 votes, the government affirmed that Judea and Samaria indeed were part of the State of Israel. Now, before we go too crazy, this vote was symbolic in nature and was not legislative in any way. However, it was a significant turnaround from the direction of appeasement and compromise in which Israel’s government had been drifting over the past number of years. This cross-aisles vote demonstrated once and for all that there will never be a Palestinian state – not in Judea and Samaria and not in Gaza. When Hamas crossed the border on October 7, 2023, they did so with the intention of there only being one state in the region – a Palestinian state. Yesterday, Israel agreed with them about the one state solution. It just won’t be the one state that they intended.
Gaza Starves while Israel Fiddles?
If you watch mainstream media, you have likely heard horror stories of how Israel is committing genocide through starvation in Gaza. They’ll throw up statistics and show pictures of emaciated children. I’m sure you’ll not be surprised to learn that it is all fake news, and the media should be ashamed of the way they exploit starving children from Turkey and other countries by using their photos to create a false Gazan narrative.
There is a massive amount of food in the humanitarian areas of Gaza. Johnny Moore, chairman of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and a leading figure in the Evangelical community in the United States, asserts that 90 million meals have been distributed so far and an additional 50 aid trucks are entering Gaza every day. One of the major critics of Israel, not surprisingly, is the United Nations, but Moore says that he has had to challenge the UN for dropping the ball in providing its aid to the area. The GHF even begged to be allowed to pick up the UN’s slack, but the august body refused the help. More food is flowing into Gaza now than before the war, and the starvation narrative is only succeeding because the media amplifies it. If it’s against Israel, the papers will print it.
The fact that so much food is getting to the Gazans is causing panic within Hamas. Stealing and reselling aid was a huge economic boon for the terrorist group. But now that the humanitarian zones are allowing Gazans direct access to aid, that financial spigot is running dry. The Washington Post recently published an article that talks about how Hamas is hitting a wall. Their economic resources are running out and they are having difficulty paying their fighters. As a result, they are intimidating those who are getting their aid directly from the humanitarian sources by attacking them and beating them. If any of the Gazans resist Hamas, they are shot in the foot or killed outright. If there is any hunger in Gaza, it is because of the evil of Hamas and the failure of the United Nations.
Iran Says, “No Nukes for Us”
On Monday, President Donald Trump made it clear that the United States would once again attack Iranian nuclear facilities if it deemed it was necessary. Two days later, in a turnaround from his usual bluster, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said, “We completely reject the possession of nuclear weapons, and this is our political, religious, humanitarian, and strategic position. Trump says Iran should not possess a nuclear weapon, and we accept.” Well, that was easy. President Pezeshkian followed up this surprising statement by saying he has some oceanfront property just outside of Tehran that he’s selling, if anyone is interested. Oh, and he’s also taking bids for the Brooklyn Bridge.
It is very likely that President Trump is not buying into Iran’s sudden “nice guy” statement. I know Israel is not, because things keep going boom in Tehran and other cities. Monday, two drones detonated at the police headquarters in Tabriz. Tuesday, there was an explosion in an apartment in Qom. Wednesday, it was Tehran, Isfahan, and two other explosions at a military research facility in Jamshidiyeh in northern Tehran. Now, I’m not pointing fingers. I’m just saying that if I had to choose between Israel, Costa Rica, and Latvia being behind the attacks, I’m scratching the last two off the list.
Syrian Ceasefire has Not Stopped the Atrocities
If you follow my Telegram channel, you may have watched some of the appalling, murderous actions carried out by jihadists against the Druze of Syria. There are horrible acts of brutality and torture. Women and children are kidnapped to the roofs of buildings where mothers are forced to watch as their sons and daughters are thrown to the ground below. Streets, houses, and cars are filled with the corpses of slaughtered innocents. And the massacre continues to this day, even after the ceasefire agreement was put in place between Syria and Israel. President al-Sharaa talks peace, but his soldiers make war.
The Kurds in Syria have seen what al-Sharaa’s al-Qaeda military have done to the Alawites, the Christians, and the Druze, and have determined that it is not going to happen to them. Thus, they have now refused to hand over their weapons to the Syrian regime. I would not be surprised to see al-Sharaa directing his military the Kurdish direction when they’re through with the Druze.
Meanwhile, some members of the US congress are trying to find ways to slow down President Trump’s blanket removal of sanctions on Syria. They want ties to actions and milestones to be put in place that will force al-Sharaa to temper his military, thus protecting the Syrian minorities. Israel is watching all this very closely. They see how far south these jihadists have traveled and how close they now are to Israel’s northern border. If you ever wanted justification for the IDF creating a buffer zone in southern Syria, you are now witnessing the exact scenario.
Lebanon and Hezbollah at a Standoff
The Lebanese government has told Hezbollah that they want them out of governmental leadership and out of the country. Hezbollah replied to the Lebanese parliament speaker, “No.” Now it’s going to be up to the nation’s leadership to determine how they will respond. Will they cave like they have in the past, or will they finally stand up no matter the cost?
Did Radical Anti-Christian Israelis Burn a Church?
No. And the fact that people are talking about it is more proof of the antisemitic bent of the global mainstream media. Last week, a picture was shown of the roofless, wall-less, stone remains of a church in Taybeh in Judea and Samaria. The accompanying story told of how radical anti-Christian Israelis burned the church, and what the reader saw was all that was left. As proof, charred grass surrounding the building was shown.
What the news media failed to mention is that this church is actually the ruins of St. George’s Church built back in the Byzantine era, then reconstructed during the time of the Crusaders. It is an archaeological site that contains what remains of a building made completely of stone. In other words, it can’t be burned. How did the grass around the ancient site get scorched? Christian Arabs from the village of Taiba set fire to some open areas – four times in one week – to prevent Jews from grazing their animals nearby. Better to have the grass turned to ash than to be eaten by Jewish sheep.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee went to the area and, after investigating, announced that there was no damage to the church and the culprits who set the fire have not yet been identified. But, thanks to the media, for a couple days all we heard about was how Jews were burning Christian churches. Is it any wonder I call them the Medianites?
Is Israel Close to Completing Its Wars?
Hopefully, the answer is yes. Defense Minister Israel Katz stated, “We are at the closest point to achieving the war objectives. We have two open fronts left in Gaza and Yemen, and we must act to achieve full resolution in them.” It is an encouraging statement, despite the realization that there is still so much left to do in those two theaters.
The Ministry
In another amazing God moment, this past week saw two of my books rocket up the lists on Amazon. Exploring Ezekiel, which will be released October 7, shot up to #15 of Amazon’s Top 100 books list. Meanwhile, on the Amazon Movers & Shakers list, Exploring Ezekiel reached number three and right behind it at number four was The Israel Decree. It blew my mind, and I found myself praising God and thanking Him for His goodness. I also want to thank all of you who have purchased The Israel Decree and preordered Exploring Ezekiel. The former looks at Israel of today and clearly explains how we know that it is the same Israel that has been around since God miraculously created it thousands of years ago. The latter takes a journey through a book that shows how God used Israel in the past to show who He is and how He’ll use Israel again in the future to let the world know that He is the Lord.
Registration is now open for the Discovering Daniel Conference in Fort Worth, Texas. There will be two conferences, each one a day long, during which Pastor Barry Stagner and I will walk you through this incredible prophetic book of the Bible. The dates for the conferences are September 26 and 27, and you must register to attend. Because of the high demand for these tickets, we ask that you only register for one of the two conferences. We look forward to seeing you there!
I am very excited about the upcoming Behold Israel Exploring Ezekiel Norwegian Fjords Cruise next year. Taking place September 27-October 4, 2026, this amazing adventure will feature Pastor Barry Stagner and me teaching through the book of Ezekiel, as laid out in my upcoming book Exploring Ezekiel. Powerful, exciting, and so very timely, never before have we been living the days of Ezekiel so much as we are now. For more information or to register for this special cruise, visit our website.
As always, there are plenty of ways to tune in this next week, beginning with a very important update today!
• MidEast & Beyond Update, with Pastor Barry Stagner and me – Thursday, July 24, 11:00 AM PDT
• Public Reading of Scripture – Thursday, July 24, 6:00 PM PDT
• Authors’ Corner: By Way of Deception, with Steve Yohn and me – Tuesday, July 29, 10:00 AM PDT
• MidEast & Beyond Update, with Pastor Barry Stagner and me – Wednesday, July 30, 10:00 AM PDT
Thank you again for your prayers and faithful support. God has taken great care of us during this North American tour, despite a number of our team finishing the Alaska Cruise with the flu. We have seen the Lord at work, and we anticipate it continuing as we teach across Canada. You are a blessing to us, and we thank the Lord for every one of you.
Awaiting His Return,
By Davidbena – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=67469660
