1. CALL FOR A CALIPHATE IN JERUSALEM

"But as for Me, I have installed My King upon Zion, my holy mountain" (Psalm 2:6).

"Thus says the LORD, 'I will return to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem will be called the City of Truth, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts will be called the Holy Mountain" (Zechariah 8:3).

"May all who hate Zion be put to shame and turned backward.Neither let those who pass by them say, 'The blessing of the LORD be upon you; We bless you in the name of the LORD.'" (Psalm 129:5,8).

"Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads" (Revelation 14:1).

Wednesday and Thursday of next week (May 23-24) an election process begins in Egypt which is supposed to put an elected leadership in place before July 3rd. In a clip released last week the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate Dr Mohamed Mursi sat in a Cairo soccer stadium along with thousands of Brotherhood supporters to hear a Muslim preacher place, as it were, a kind of spiritual mandate on the candidate: "We can see how the dream of the Islamic caliphate is being realized, Allah willing, by Dr Mohamed Mursi.The capital of the caliphate-the capital of the United States of the Arabs-will be Jerusalem, Allah willing. Our capital shall not be in Cairo, Mecca or Medina." The cleric, Safwat Higazi, reportedly then concluded by leading the crowd in chanting, "Millions of martyrs march toward Jerusalem!" According to reports, Dr Mursi nodded in agreement regarding the establishment of the "Caliphate". According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, a caliph is "the chief Muslim civil and religious ruler, regarded as the successor of Muhammad." Mursi, as of this writing, is not a front-runner in the polls; however, given the immense power and influence wielded by the Brotherhood in Egypt, his status could quickly change. (See: "Egypt Islamist vows global caliphate in Jerusalem": JPOST.com, 05/08/2012 01:27).

Although stories regarding the cleric's sermon quickly vanished from news reports, we see its message as one more indicator that the spiritual agenda behind Islam as concerns Jerusalem is still alive and progressing:

*Within 50 years after Mohammad died in 632 AD, the location of the mysterious Al Aqsa (The Furthest Mosque) to which he had supposedly been spirited away by night to ascend and receive divine revelation, had been changed from a place near Mecca on the Arabian Peninsula to Jerusalem. 691 saw the building of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. Although within the dome there are references to Jesus as being a prophet, five places it is prominently written that Allah is to be worshipped alone and "he has no associate".a euphemism historically taken as reference to a divine Son.

*In 1946 a Kingdom was formed in the Transjordan section of Palestine. This Kingdom of Jordan was ruled by a direct descendant of Mohammad, a Hashemite whose ancestors had for centuries been custodians of the Muslim holy sites at Mecca and Medina. In 1967 when Israel took the Temple Mount from the Jordanians, driving them out of Judea and Samaria and across the Jordan River, she allowed an Islamic trust (the WAQF) with close ties to the Jordanian monarchy to retain custodial "oversight" of the Muslim holy sites on the mountain. During recent years rumors have repeatedly surfaced of a design by the present Jordanian King to construct a "fifth" minaret on the Mount, probably on the location of the Eastern Gate. The five minarets would then be seen as corresponding to the Five Pillars of Islam.

*In late 2001 as Muslims were being allowed by Israel to construct an under-ground mosque beneath the south-eastern corner of the Temple Mount (to protect large Ramadan crowds from the elements), a Knesset Committee heard testimony of how the Arab press was filled with reports of another agenda to the diggings--that the Muslims were cleaning out ten ancient underground cisterns for the purpose of eventually filling them with water brought from the Zamzam River in Mecca. The 'sanctity' of the mountain would then be elevated to a level with that of Mecca and Medina, preparing the way for an eventual Haj to Jerusalem. The Haj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam.

It has been said that the last Great Battle will be over Who will be worshipped on the Temple Mountain in Jerusalem. As we see nations raging and peoples plotting vain things, kings of the earth positioning themselves and rulers taking counsel together "against the LORD and against His Anointed".as we see ancient powers of darkness yearning after the place where YHVH has placed His Name, and which He has ordained as a place for the throne of His Son:

PLEASE PRAY:

*The Scriptures regarding God's perspective on Zion at the heading of this section.

*That God's Kingdom come and His will be done in Jerusalem. For angelic protection in the heavenlies over the city.

*For the Body of Messiah in Israel to become spiritually mature.keeping in step with the Holy Spirit, discerning and moving in the Spirit's power.

*Divine guidance for Prime Minister Netanyahu and his government in administrating Israel's sovereignty over the Temple Mount and the City of Jerusalem.

*God's mercies over Egypt in the up-coming elections-that radical Islam and those who would come against God's covenant people and land will not be allowed to gain rulership.

*The Christian Body in Egypt.unity in the Holy Spirit, courage and direction, anointed ascending in Praise so as to come into God's strategy and array for the warfare.

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2. PLEASE PRAY FOR RAIN IN ISRAEL DURING THESE FINAL WEEKS OF "LATTER RAINS." After a wonderful break in the drought during the winter months, we have had very, very little in the past two months. "Ask the LORD for rain in the time of the latter rain. The LORD will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, grass in the field for everyone" (Zechariah 10:1).

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THIS WEEK'S TORAH PORTION:

From ancient times there has been a weekly portion (Parashah) from the first five books of Moses (The Torah) and an ending (Haftarah) from the Prophets read on the Sabbath in synagogues around the world. This portion is given a Hebrew name drawn from the opening words of the Torah passage. An illustration of this practice appears to have been recorded in Luke 4:16 where Yeshua (Jesus) arrived in the synagogue in Nazareth and was asked to read the portion (Isaiah 61) from the Prophets. We have found that in perusing these weekly readings, not only are we provided opportunity to identify in the context of God's Word with millions of Jewish people around the world, but very often the Holy Spirit will illumine specific passages pertinent that week in our intercession for the Land and people of Israel. All texts are those of English translations of the Scriptures.

The reading for this week May 15-21 is "B'Chukkothai"-"In My Statutes":

TORAH: Leviticus 26:3-27:34

HAFTARAH: Jeremiah 16:19-17:14

With this reading we come to the end of the Book of Leviticus. Chapter 26 brings the book-proper to a close (Chapter 27 is an appendix "focusing on a variety of laws pertaining to voluntary offerings and taxed obligations to the sanctuary). Chapter 26 emphasizes the favour and blessing which will accompany walking in obedience to statutes and commandments of the Lord (vss 3-13). Obedience will affect the very weather and soil of the land (even as disobedience in the Garden had brought a curse on it). Then follow five necessary warnings of the consequences of getting out of the protection afforded by obedience to God's directives. Each of these warnings is preceded by "But if you do not obey Me"-or, "And after all this, if you do not obey Me"-or, "Then if you walk contrary to Me, and are not willing to obey Me"-or, "And if by these things you are not reformed by me, but walk contrary to me'. The clear implication is that it is the LORD's desire that these severe disciplines will draw His people back into His way of Life, not away from it. Verses 34-35 deal with the recovery of the Land if Israel is finally ejected, the plight of Israel in exile without God (36-39); and the restoration of the people when they at last humble themselves ("It is the Lord's mercies which lead us to repentance") and turn back to seek His ways. These closing words would be a comfort and encouragement to repentance and hope of a future for Jews-both during the future exile in Babylon, and through an even greater exile down to today.

*Jeremiah 17:5-8 (NIV): "This is what the LORD says: 'Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD. He will be like a bush in the wastelands; he will not see prosperity when it comes. He will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.'" This passage, something of an expansion on the truths of Psalm 1, can provide strength to our prayers over the Body of Messiah in Israel. It is so essential that we be weaned from trusting in our own natural abilities-otherwise, we will not even see true prosperity when it arrives. We know that 'heat' will be coming, and in many forms (We have just passed through several "years of drought"). But it is God's desire that we be rooted in the streams of His living Spirit so that His grace will keep us green and fruitful during those times. Please pray that we be nurtured and trained in placing our trust and confidence totally in Him. We pray the same for you!

*Jeremiah 17:14: "O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you shall be ashamed. 'Those who depart from Me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the source of living water, the LORD.' Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; Save me, and I shall be saved, For You are my praise." HaTiqva-"The Hope", is the name of Israel's national anthem. The 'hope' in that song is "to be a nation free in our Land." Israel will never be truly 'free' in her land until the Son has set her free and she is "free indeed" (John 8:36)-until she realizes that the LORD alone is her 'Hope'. BUT THIS IS BEGINNING TO HAPPEN!! Please continue to pray that more and more of us will find the 'Source of living water, our healing, and our Salvation-and that He become "Our Praise!"

Martin and Norma Sarvis
Jerusalem

[The reading for next week May 20-26 is called Bemidbar-"In the Desert": TORAH: Numbers 1:1-4:20; HAFTARAH: Hosea 1:10-2:20.]

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Martin & Norma Sarvis
Jerusalem

You may give to our work in Israel by calling 1 (888) 965-1099 or 1 (940) 382-7231.