A while back I was asked to read the book The Harbinger by Jonathon Cahn and to watch a companion DVD. A few folks from the church wanted to know my opinion on the book and the topic it addresses. I’ve been meaning to sit down and talk with them about my reaction to the book and DVD, but I just have not had the chance. I plan to still do this, but I began to wonder if there might be others who had the same questions. So I am sharing my thoughts and questions here in hopes that someone else might look at the topic from a different perspective.
Jonathon Cahn is a Messianic Jew, meaning that he is Jewish by race and a Christian by faith. Nowhere did I read that he believes in substitute theology; where Christianity has replaced Israel. But he does seem to insist that what God spoke to Israel He also spoke to the United States; as if the Unites States has a privileged relationship with God that no other nation has at the moment. These assumptions set the tone for much of what he has to say in the book.
Here are a few of my reactions to what he says:
- He says that he was able to discern some hidden meaning from the Bible in light of current events. First of all, the Bible interprets current events, not the other way around. Also, we need to be skeptical of someone who comes along claiming to have some new revelation from God or to have discovered some new hidden meaning in scripture that no one else has been able to see. What they are claiming is that they, apart from all the other biblical scholars who have lived in the past and those alive today, have finally made sense of what God has been trying to tell humanity. We are wise to be skeptical because it is this attitude that we find at the foundation of every religious cult; every “Faith” that is not quite Christian.
- Another point we need to keep in mind when we read this book is that the Bible was written not just for American citizens, but also for every other person in this world. There are Christians and have been Christians living in many other nations, not just America. So I can’t help but wonder what makes these verses in Isaiah apply to the Unites States alone and not the other nations of this world. Other nations have been just as ungodly. Other nations have suffered tragedies. Other nations have lost their status in the world (Spain and England come to mind). Why, out of all the nations in this world, do these verses just now apply to America?
- To answer that question, Jonathon makes the claim that the United States was founded as God’s light to the nations; that the Unites States is the only other nation through which God is working and reaching. I’m not sure where he got that information, but historically it is not correct. Israel was called as a nation directly by God through a covenant He made with one man and his descendants (Abraham). The United States was formed on Christian principles and Christian morals, not called apart by God.
- It’s important to remember that Christ came to redeem ALL of humanity, not just America. As a matter of fact, God was disappointed with Israel for failing to reach the people of other nations, not to be simply concerned about themselves. In the Old Testament, Israel was supposed to be God’s witness in this world (see Isaiah 43:10). The promised covenant God made was for one nation – Israel. But through that nation (Israel) other people would be blessed. In the New Testament Jesus call His apostles and disciples to do the same thing. They were to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Samaria, and into the ends of the earth, not to stay in Jerusalem and worry about themselves. In John 10 Jesus speaks of sheep that He will gather who are not presently part of His flock – a clear reference to the Gentile people. So the message of Christ is not a message for one nation, but a message for all people.
The main thing we need to keep in mind is that God’s word is read by more than simply Americans. And if we are going to make any application of a promise that was intentionally made to one nation, then we MUST apply it to all. In other words, if we are going to take a warning that was intentionally spoken against the 10 northern tribes of Israel and apply it elsewhere, then it must apply everywhere. To do anything less is simply a heresy. For example, we can apply the message of Grace found in John 3:14-18 to everyone because that was its intention. But we cannot apply Jeremiah 25:8-11 to the United States because it was specifically written to a nation. Babylon will not take the United States captive for 70 years. And to claim that they will is nonsense. Yet Jonathan wants me to believe that the curse God speaks against Israel I must now apply to America? Why? Why does he believe these harbingers apply to America and not any other nation that has existed, does exist, or will exist?
Jonathon claims that somehow or in some way God has assigned America the great task of being the “New Israel”; the great nation that represents Him in this world. I’m not sure where he found this claim, for it is not printed in the Bible. No nation replaces Israel. No “nation” is given the task of being a light unto the Gentiles. Christians have been given this task. The Church is to represent Jesus to the world, but not another nation. This idea of a New Nation is actually quite similar to Mormon teaching and is similar to what some Messianic Jews are teaching in North America today.
Some North American Messianic Jews claim that the lost ten tribes of Israel have migrated to the United States. When Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel (which is what Isaiah 9:8-21 speaks of), they took the people of Israel captive. All but the poorest of poor were taken and scattered throughout the Assyrian Empire. But some people insist that rather than being absorbed into the culture, these ten tribes of Israel remained nomadic; wandering from place to place, ending up in Europe. It’s been claimed by some that these ten tribes became known as the Celts, Angles, Saxons and Danes; people, oddly enough, who were not nomadic. These people then conclude that America must be the land of these people since so many of these people came to America as settlers. This, they claim, is why America is such a great world power, just as England was once a great power. It’s where the lost tribes of Israel have settled. But the truth is, these people were not lost in another culture, but rather did maintain their identity (see James 1:1). This whole idea of British & American Israelism is based upon a book called “The United States and Britain in Prophecy” which is not based upon historical fact. The fact is that some of the people from these Northern Tribes did remain in the area. They became known as the Samaritans. Some even returned to the God of their forefathers. Your should read the article at http://www.askelm.com/prophecy/p900703.htm
I do need to stress that there are certain elements in Jonathon’s book that bear much truth. Indeed. Any church that drifts from the truth and turns its back on God is going to suffer the consequences. When the people of a church turn from love, grace, and peace, that church will eventually fall apart. In the same way any nation filled with greed, selfishness, and vain conceit will eventually collapse. But it will collapse because of an absence of moral behavior, not because God removes His “Hedge of Protection”. I agree that America needs a moral awakening. I agree that this nation has turned its back on God. But it is not the Nation of America that concerns the Lord. It is the people.
We are living in New Testament times. Today God works through people. Christ died to save people. The great mystery Paul talks about in his letters is God’s plan to bring about the Church (people who confess Jesus as Lord, not the organization). Presently we are living in the Time of the Gentiles (Luke 21:24). At the end of this period Christ will return again to fulfill His promise to one nation; only one nation. And that nation is Israel. He will rescue Israel from her oppressors, not America. Jesus will establish Himself as King in one nation. Again, that nation is Israel.
So today it is the Church (the people) who represents God in this world. It is the Church who will not fall, even though the gates of hell might come against it. And in this Church there is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. We are now all one in Christ. And ALL who believe belong to Christ. We have become Abraham’s offspring; heirs to the promise of God (Galatians 3:28-29). Since this is true, then American’s are no more blessed as a people then the believers living in other parts of this world.
I really have a hard time believing that the events of 9/11 represent the first harbinger. How can Jonathon make that claim? What sets this attack above all the others that have occurred before? What of all the other Christians who have lived in other nations? What of their attacks, disasters, and sufferings? Why do we not consider them? I guess what I’m trying to say is that we Americans had better not be quite so selfish with God. I think it is dangerous to assume that we, apart from all the other people on this earth, hold the highest favor of God. Christ came to redeem humanity and build a Kingdom not of this earth. We would be wrong to try and build one for Him.
For more information about the future of Israel reed Zechariah 12:8-14. And for the future of the Church read 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8.
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