February 21, 2007 journal, Ben Graydon set the record straight on Israel this week in The Times Examiner newspaper. I believe this is the most important message for the church to hear today. I yield my opinions and comments to this great informed writer available. "Those studies in the Word of God and that willingness to ask questions was ingrained in me even by teachers whom I held in such awe as a youngster that I would not have ever questioned them. But becoming a man and a father and leader in other ways, and even realizing when I was passed the age and experience level of those teachers when they spoke to me the oracles of God, caused me to ask those questions that I had been taught to ask. Remember that it was you who taught me to ask them and to trust the one and only trustworthy guide book. So, rather than just make pointed statements here, in my inimitable "abrasive" (so it was described by one skeptic last week) fashion, I will refer-ence a few Scriptures and ask a few questions about a topic that has a huge bearing on our lives today. Israel. A huge segment of Christianity (as I was growing up, I was taught that all good Christians believe that God chose the Jews and the nation of Israel as his chosen people and that his blessing on those people's are directly related to how they treated Israel. This is based on Genesis 12:1-3 - "Now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed". So here are my questions: God was speaking to Abram before he became Abraham, before he became the father of Isaac and before he became the grandfather of Jacob and before Jacob was renamed "Israel" and before Israel became a nation. How can we then, from these short verses, extrapolate that God blesses those who bless the nation of Israel? Could we not as easily realize that God has blessed all families of the earth through Abram because it is through his lineage was born "Jesus" Christ? Assuming those questions can be answered, how can we further assume that this unique Divine blessing continues to a modern nation of Israel, especially in light of the fact that it was purchased and set up by the converts to Judaism who are not at all descendents of Abram and who rather, are not in pursuance of the Christ but of the Antichrist, as described in the Book of Revelation? Speaking of the Revelation, much of our "end times" theology centers around beliefs about the "Rapture" and the second coming of Christ, a millennium of his reign here on earth, etc., and that is heavily based in favor of this altered favorable view of Israel, no matter who or what they may actually be today. Much of that is relatively new doctrine, having been published by a handful of theologians and Bible editors just in the past 150 years. Which leads to this final question: should our planning, or lack thereof, for America in these "end-times" be so heavily influenced by these doctrines and ideas, especially if we cannot completely and firmly square them with Scripture? What if scripture does not teach what a handful of men say it says?" Acts 17:11-"These were more noble than those in Thessalonians, in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether these things were so". Psalms 119:-9-one-one,-"Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed there to according to thy Word. With my whole heart have I sought thee; O let me not wander from thy Commandments". Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee". This is the gospel truth! The wise will listen while the foolish continue to follow the star of Molock, the Old Testament idol.