The pastor of Jerusalem’s largest Messianic congregation says the truth about the Palestinian Authority’s recent push for statehood isn’t being told—and he intends to change that.Wayne Hilsden, senior pastor of King of Kings Community, says most Palestinian Israelis living in Jerusalem would rather remain under the current Israeli government’s jurisdiction than a newly recognized Palestinian state. Hilsden cited a recent survey conducted in partnership with Israel’s Council on Foreign Relations, which found that 35 percent of Jerusalem’s Arab residents would prefer to remain Israeli citizens—and even more would be willing to relocate if their neighborhoods became part of a Palestinian state.
“It’s a message that most of the world is not hearing,” says Hilsden. “And the fact that Palestinians themselves, for the most part, are not overwhelmingly supportive of Palestinian state should tell the rest of the world that maybe a Palestinian state is not the answer to this problem.”
Of the remaining Arab residents surveyed by the council, 30 percent wish to live under a Palestinian state, and 35 percent would not provide responses. But Hilsden, who has lived in Jerusalem since 1983, says it’s the last segment—those who won’t respond—that proves how complex this issue really is. Hilsden says Arab pastors who work closely within the Palestinian territories have found the majority of Arabs would rather be under Israeli rule, but many are afraid to publicly side with the Jewish nation.
“Israel treats them as equal citizens,” Hilsden says. “They’re able to get social benefits that they would never get under Palestinian rule. And if you go to most of the surrounding countries where Arabs live today, you’ll see that they’re living at a lower standard of living than Palestinians living in east Jerusalem and the so-called territories.”
Hilsden leads a community of Jewish and Arab believers in the heart of the world’s most important city and has seen up-close how the international media has misrepresented not only recent events in Israel and reactions from local, but also the supposed “Arab spring” sweeping across the Middle East that has resulted in government upheaval.
“What most people in the West don’t understand is this is not like the iron curtain falling; it’s not like glasnost—it’s not suddenly people want democracy and freedom,” he says. “There are elements of people that simply want to have a good job and be able to put food on the table, and they see the huge dichotomy between the rich and the poor in the Arab world—and they’re fed up with that. So they want human rights. … But there’s also a huge stream of [Islamic extremists] behind this who are taking advantage of the uprising and actually taking control in some areas. And they actually are getting to the point where they're going to lead much of the Middle East into a more autocratic type situation than a democratic type situation.”
Such an approach is disconcerting to Hilsden, who sees an autocratic situation resulting in less freedom. He believes this would make both sides less likely to compromise and come to a peaceful agreement. “We’re talking about Allah and we're talking about Islam and it's not a religion that compromises. They believe in their truth and if its truth, then its uncompromising truth. And so I would say in the natural, peace is less likely the outcome from these uprisings.”
Because of this, Hilsden believes prayer is more essential now than ever. In 2007, King of Kings Community established a Prayer Tower in which teams of believers pray almost continually throughout the week. “The answer is in Jesus the Messiah and the Savior of the world. And we believe the answer is prayer,” he says. “It’s going to take a change in the human heart, the individual's heart to change the Middle East … We want to be able to send a message to the church as well throughout the Middle East that this is impossible without the power of the Holy Spirit operating through our ministries … There is no way you can deal with the demonic forces that are hovering above the Middle East without a greater power, which is the power of the Holy Spirit.”
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1.Why has a pastor have to deal with political issues?
2.Why does Pastor Wayne talk about things when he has no expertise on them?
3.Why is this become his mission instead of the great commandment for example?
4.How can he depend on a just a poll to bring forward the truth/
5.Why does Charisma news give such statements such importance?
6.How can you say that few crumbles from the table of the Israeli national insurance are enough for the Palestinians to accept Israeli citizenship?
7.What is the alternative that Wayne offers? Let Israel annex the occupied terretories and then Israel will cease to be a Jewish state.
8.Palestinians lost their whole land and are the last people on eart who are occupied and now what does this pastor/politician want for the heaven's sake?
It was once said by an articulate Palestinian as follows: “The Israeli hell is better than the Arafat paradise”. That pretty much sums it up the political side of things. As to the spiritual, just think of what it would be if there were brotherly love and consideration between Jews and Arabs in the Middle East. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God for God is love. (1 John 4:7, 8) These verses shine a brilliant light on the human condition and especially on situation in the middle-east. The fact is there is little real knowledge of God despite all the profession of religion. Those that cry the loudest about knowing and following God are the least able to love their neighbor. Does this not tell us that humanity for the greater part is living in darkness and sin? Without Christ, it is impossible to know and experience the love of God. For, God only, can deal with the human condition of sin, and He has done so only in Christ. (See 1 John 4:9-11)
Wayne Hilsden is right to indicate that without earnest prayer and the power of the Spirit of God not much can be accomplished of lasting value. But it must also be said that without the personal presence of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, full blessing cannot come to the middle-east or the world. When it can be said, “The Kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christi, and he shall reign forever and ever” (Rev. 11:15) only then will full blessing have come.
Sorry to tell you that suffering of Millions of people because of the occupation by a greedy people with the support of the "enlightened nations" can not be summed up this way.
Political and spiritual are interwoven.What spiritual response do you have for the suffering Palestinians?
The reason you give for the cause of the suffering ‘because of the occupation by a greedy people with the support of the "enlightened nations"’ is incorrect. The Israeli’s are no more greedy than anyone else. One could just as easily say the cause of the suffering is the greed of the Arab peoples, as it has been stated time and time again that they really want all of Palestine. The whole history of the region, as regards the Arabs, has been one of the rejection of the right of the Jewish people to have a place of their own. If you are looking for a political solution you are bound to be disappointed. Any apparent solution will be short lived at best. The reason is spiritual. As it is written, “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members you lust and do not have you murder and cover and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. James 4:1-4 Notice that the world and its ways are at enmity with God. Worldly politics will fail because God has declared it so. The final political system will be totally against God and war against Christ. The Christian has a different path to follow. We follow a rejected Christ. The Son of Man had no place to lay his head. Shame on us Christians who are seeking a political solution in the present world system. We should rather be involved in the testimony of Salvation to a lost world. “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” It is as certain as God’s word that the gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world and then the end will come. Focus on, and work, in light of the coming Kingdom of our Lord and Savior. Do not try to be a champion of the present world system. Its is passing away with it’s desires, but he who does the will of God abides for ever. God will be justified and glorified in all that He does. Honor and praise be to Him alone.