Taking a Stand by Dr. Lisa Burkhardt Worley

Do you stand for what is right, no matter what opposition faces you?

In today’s culture, supporting Israel and the Jewish people is not the most popular thing to do. After seeing what occurred in Boulder, Colorado, over the weekend, a visible allegiance to Israel has the potential to be dangerous.

As volunteers from the organization “Run for Their Lives” peacefully gathered at the Pearl Street pedestrian mall in Boulder to call for the immediate release of Israelis being held hostage in Gaza, 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman yelled, “Free Palestine,” then used a flame thrower, and threw two Molotov cocktails into the crowd of Israel supporters. Twelve people were injured.[1]

Terrorist actions like this could tempt those of us who support Israel and who fight antisemitism to shirk back or to let fear creep in, but the LORD wants us to take a stand for what He loves, and he cares about the Jewish people.

For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord has chosen you to be his treasured possession, out of all the nations on the face of the earth (Deuteronomy 14:2).

God protects us when we take a stand for Him. When Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were carried off to Babylon during the Babylonian exile, they were hand-selected to serve King Nebuchadnezzar. The four were provided a daily provision of the king’s finest food and wine and were required to train for three years before serving the king. However, Daniel took a stand for himself and his friends. Saying they would not defile themselves with the king’s food and wine, he requested that they only eat vegetables and drink water. They took a stand based on their religious practices.

After the three years, King Nebuchadnezzar found no one like these four young men (Daniel 1:19) and “in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers who were in all his realm” Daniel 1:20).

Later, when Daniel was later thrown into the lions’ den for praying to God, he was not harmed by the wild beasts (Daniel 6). It was another stand that God honored.

We cannot be afraid to take a stand, even when it is not popular. 1 Corinthians 15:58 says, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (ESV).

Where are you tempted to compromise your faith? Are you trying to please people more than God? The LORD may be calling you to stand for His godly principles. Join us in our fight against antisemitism. Here is a link to our latest award-winning documentary that speaks against Holocaust denial, “Their Blood Cries Out.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5_OyEUwW0E&t=559s

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[1] Colleen Slevin and Olga R. Rodriguez, “What We Know About the Suspects and Their Victims in the Boulder, Colorado Attack, APNews.com, https://apnews.com/article/boulder-terror-attack-colorado-c90a20758b3ebee597c84eb296e44e91.

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