"Something is happening!" This is the comment from Mark van Niekerk who recently led HaZor'im's inaugural mission to Israel. Reflecting upon the month spent there, Mark commented, "We had virtually no one reject our exhortation to go to the Tenach (Hebrew Bible) to search for answers to Israel's and the world's dilemmas."
The HaZor'im group engaged with Israelis of all kinds, secular and religious, as they travelled around the country. This response from one Israeli was typical, "Eyal keenly took a card to go and investigate the identity of Messiah thanking me for showing love and concern for the Jewish people and for taking the time to speak to him."
The group found that each day offered different opportunities to speak about the Messiah and point His people to His Word.
The Messiah Comes t shirts and cards, directing people to the website, were the main tools used to connect with people and these resources proved very effective. Another quote from Mark whilst on the road: "The benefits of the Messiah Comes project were evident today in Jerusalem. A Jewish lady in the Supermarket was reading my shirt and asked about it. She wanted to know more and called the owner who confirmed it was from the Tenach. The concept of giving out a card pointing to the website is effective. I left her reading the names of Messiah and clearly from her smile she was excited."
The group were greatly edified by Bible studies held on location. They visited many places of interest including: Jerusalem, Old City, Holy Sepulchre, Ben Yehuda street, kotel, Absalom's monument, Zechariah's tomb, Elah Valley, Masada, Ein Gedi, Qumran Caves, Samaria, Alon Moreh, Mt Gerazim, Shiloh, Tel Beersheva, Galilee, Tiberias, Caesarea, Herodian palace, Haifa, Nimrod Castle on the slopes of Mt Hermon, Capernaum, Church of the Beatitudes and Korazin.
"The trip is essentially about evangelism. I was however felt led to let the evangelism be natural and not "forced". So the way was; let us visit biblically significant sights where we could do Bible study and in so do trust the Lord to put people in our path. The Messiah Comes concept is itself a huge positive in Jewish evangelism. We were never pushing into the faces and spaces of others but in a sense letting them come to us. The Hebrew Scriptures drew people to us and we were then able to engage. It is to my mind the most satisfying manner of evangelism I have experienced in the 18 trips I've made," said Mark.
Being in the land, sowing the seed of the gospel also had an impact on the volunteers. Said one, "The longer you spend in Israel the more your heart breaks for the people and the prophecies that are to come."
