The church and the people of Israel
Fumio TakuSUMMARY:
The speaker, Fumio Taku, introduces himself as a Japanese man who came to the United States when he was 13. He heads an organization called Christians and Jews united for Israel and loves Israel. He talks about the importance of Christians understanding the connection between themselves and Israel, as God has established a covenant with the people of Israel and brought the word of the Lord to us through them. He references various Bible verses, including Exodus 24:12, John 14:15-17, and 2 Corinthians 3:1-3, and discusses the promises God made to the people of Israel through prophets like Jeremiah. These promises include receiving a new covenant, having God's laws written on their hearts, and having their sins forgiven and remembered no more.
The message is about God's promises to the people of Israel and how they are being fulfilled today. The new covenant, brit hadasha, was promised to the people of Israel by God through Jeremiah over 2,500 years ago, and it includes forgiveness of sins and God's words being written in their hearts. God also promised to give them His spirit, which we as Christians now also have. The promise of restoration for the people of Israel will come when God brings them back to their land from all nations, and the spirit of God comes upon them. The message also highlights the role of gentile Christians in spreading the salvation message of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth, and our responsibility to pray for and support Israel, even in the face of criticism and anti-Semitism. The message ends with a prayer for God's people, Israel, and for understanding and illumination according to God's word.To introduce our speaker: Fumio Taku is from Japan. He was born in Japan and came to the United States when he was 13 years old, lived in Brooklyn. He’s a man after my own heart because I lived in Brooklyn also, when I was a little boy. He is a lover of Israel. He heads an organization called Christians and Jews united for Israel, as are so many of us, by the way, this church loves Israel, so you arrived in a very organic land, we love Jews, we love Israel as a whole and we’re very happy to have you here. So Fumio lived in Israel for 3 years and headed a company there, because he is a manager, administrator of companies, high tech companies, I believe it is mainly. He is a graduate of Yale University; he has a Master Degree in Administration from Yale University. A man of God who had a profound encounter with Christ many years ago and his life was transformed. We have been partners in some ways in the past few months. I know some of you went to the march on behalf of Israel just recently in Brooklyn, and I was enjoyed to be a part of that. And I’ve also been involved in a couple of other activities with Christians and Jews united for Israel. So it’s a joy to have pastor Fumio with us this morning.
We’re happy to have you, my brother. Welcome. It’s great to have you here.