Israel’s assessment of antisemitism in Ukrainian politics; COGwriter’s assessment for those in the Church of God.

Jews in Poland has to Wear the Above Badge After Germany Invaded in WWII (Daniel Ullrich, Threedots)

The State of Israel is being cautious about how to handle antisemitism in Ukraine:

April 24, 2014

JERUSALEM — Israel played down on Thursday suggestions that anti-Semitism in Ukraine is linked to Kyiv’s standoff with Russia, offering a more measured assessment than the Kremlin or the United States as it avoids taking sides in the East-West confrontation.

Moscow has aimed allegations of anti-Semitism against the pro-Western Ukrainian government. Washington has condemned an incident in a city with a strong pro-Russian movement where Jews were handed leaflets using language reminiscent of the Holocaust.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman rejected a connection between the five months of unrest and the situation of Ukraine’s 200,000 Jews.

“There is no specific action against Jews which is an outcome of the political crisis,” said Lieberman, a Russian-speaker who grew up in Moldova when it was a Soviet republic.

“What there is, as happens to my regret in every country, is a phenomenon of anti-Semitism which is not necessarily linked to the political events but which, given the political events, of course receives unusual attention,” he told Israel Radio.

Remaining neutral

Anti-Semitism remains a feature of militant nationalism in both Ukraine and Russia. During unrest that saw the overthrow of Kyiv’s Kremlin-backed president in February, several attacks on Jews and synagogues were blamed on Ukrainian far-right groups.

The Jewish state has tried to keep out of the crisis, wary of upsetting its crucial U.S. ally or Russia, which is influential in the Middle East flashpoints Iran and Syria.

That has entailed turning down appeals from some Ukrainian Jewish leaders for a public stand against Russia and even the dispatch of Israeli security experts. The community is itself divided between Kyiv and pro-Russians in Crimea and other southeastern areas. http://www.voanews.com/content/israel-rejects-link-of-ukraine-crisis-to-anti-semitism/1900398.html

Israel, obviously, opposes antisemitism and seems to want to not stir this up.

But the reality is that there remains a lot of hatred towards Jews in the world, even in the 21st century.

Jesus Himself foretold of persecution for Christians. There was a poem that said something like:

They first came for the Jews, but as I was not a Jew, I paid no attention,

Then they came from one group then another, then lastly they came for me.

Those in the true Church of God have always been the side being persecuted and has never been on the side of the persecutors. And this will be true again in the future.

I have long expected that because we in the Church of God have practices that many consider to be “Jewish’ that this will be a factor in persecution in the end times. Some Roman and Eastern Orthodox writers have accused people with COG practices of being ‘secret Jews.’

As a historical point, let me state that in the past (details are in the article Persecutions by Church and State), Christians were persecuted because they:

Kept Passover on the 14th
Refused to eat unclean meat
Would work on Sunday
Had false accusations railed against them
Were binitarian
Kept the Sabbath
Were not trinitarian
Taught that the pope was an Antichrist and precursor of the final Antichrist
Rejected papal authority
Did not accept idols
Had different teachings than the Church of Rome
Had writings Rome did not like
Rejected Roman sacraments
Objected to the dress of the Roman ministry
Considered Rome to be the prophecied Babylon
Taught that in the time of the final Antichrist that some would fall away
Had practices that Rome considered Jewish
Refused to baptize infants
Did not participate in carnal warfare
Taught the Kingdom of God
Teaching the millennium
Baptized adults

In the future, according to Catholic teachings, Christians also will be persecuted for:

Not accepting non-biblical teachings about Mary
Not accepting the Great Monarch (Beast, King of the North)
Teaching that the Kingdom of God will come soon
Not wearing crosses
Teaching after the Great Tribulation begins that Jesus will return within a few years

Christians have been persecuted for holding doctrines that we in the Continuing Church of God hold and are clearly expected to be persecuted in the future for holding Continuing Church of God doctrines.

Persecution is a fact of history. It has happened before and we should be prepared for the fact that it will happen again. And during the time of the final persecutions, the Bible records:

25 He shall speak pompous words against the Most High,
Shall persecute the saints of the Most High,
And shall intend to change times and law.
Then the saints shall be given into his hand
For a time and times and half a time. (Daniel 7:25)

12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. (Revelation 14:12)

Thus, though the Philadelphian Christians will be subject to intense persecution first (Daniel 7:25a, 11:30-35), even the Laodiceans (The Laodicean Church Era) and other Christians will receive some praise if they endure the persecutions (Daniel 7:25b) that will then come during the time of “the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world” (Revelation 3:10).

Some items of related interest may include:

Persecutions by Church and State This article documents some that have occurred against those associated with the COGs and some prophesied to occur. Will those with the cross be the persecutors or the persecuted–this article has the shocking answer. There is also a YouTube video sermon you can watch: The Coming Persecution of the Church.
God’s Grace is For All Is being Jewish a hindrance to salvation? What about not being a descendant of Israel? What does the Bible really teach? Here is a link to a related sermon titled Race and Grace; Do you view race as God does?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2014, 2015, or 2016? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2013 o 2014? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon video: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives.
The Philadelphia Church Era was predominant circa 1933 A.D. to 1986 A.D. The old Radio Church of God and old Worldwide Church of God, now basically the most faithful in the Church of God, like who hold to the beliefs and practices of the Continuing Church of God.
The Eurasian Union, the Kings of the East, and Bible Prophecy Is there a Eurasian union that will be formed? Is one being formed right now? Are any leaders working on that in the 21st century? Does the Bible teach that there will be a Eurasian union? If some type of Eurasian union is formed, who might it benefit and who will it destroy? A related video would be Is The Eurasian Union Rising?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy and a video sermonette available: Ukraine in Prophecy?