Brown - Egypt

Good morning,
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. We are under the ferocious grip of winter here in the Southern Tier of New York. All the schools including the university, colleges, and community colleges are closed. I had a note from our friend Fred, who lives Oklahoma City, they were clabbered with snowfall that has been reported to be as much as 19 inches - a real upstate New York kind of winter (Syracuse or Buffalo style, that is.) Just a few days ago it was in the 70's in Oklahoma city. Where is the global warming?
I am enclosing an brief write-up on the events in Egypt as viewed in light of the Scriptures, the Word of God. It is written by Canon Andrew White, the Vicar of Baghdad. I met Canon White in a meeting held Sussex, England, while I was there last July. Canon White is a Cambridge University trained medical doctor, who has trained to become ordained clergy of the Church of England. He is the Vicar of St. Georges Church in Baghdad. This church has been bombed systematically, killing Christians. Canon White leaves his wife and children back in England, whereas he stays in Baghdad to serve the Lord with His people in the face of constant terror and danger. Let us be encouraged, knowing and trusting that the Lord moves in very mysterious ways. May Jesus be praised.

Brown


Isaiah 19
Dear Friends,

The Middle East is in a state of crisis.
We can scrutinize current events politically or spiritually.
My work in Iraq and the wider Middle East involves both the political and the spiritual, but today I want to focus on the latter.

Protests underway in Egypt are biblical in magnitude, and if the Old Testament was being written today, surely this gathering of opposition would be mentioned.
Tomorrow's theologians would downplay the event; tell us there were not so many people involved.

The ripples of revolution
But today, it is on camera. Live before our eyes, as we witness the fears - and power - of revolution ripple through its neighbours also - Tunis, Yemen, Lebanon.

Today the crisis has moved to Jordan, though it has been largely overshadowed in the media by events in Cairo.

The King of Jordan has sacked the government, replaced the Prime Minister with the former Jordanian Ambassador to Israel, Marouf al-Bakhit, a great friend to Israel.

So in the Arab world there are cries for democracy. In Israel the peace process is in danger of crumbling entirely. And here in Iraq violence has radically increased: religious sectarian attacks continue. Christians live in mortal fear. They wonder what will happen next.

Isaiah 19

For a long while now I have spoken of the significance of the end of Isaiah 19. Today, as a million or more Egyptians unite in Cairo to oppose a regime and topple their leader, the passage seems more significant than ever.

Thousands of years ago, the prophet Isaiah wrote of tumultuous times between the Egyptian people and the Lord. He wrote that, during its dark days, Egypt would turn to the Lord, and he would hear them, and respond with love.
Current events should be viewed through political eyes yes, but also with spiritual awareness.

Isaiah 19: 23 goes on to tell us about a highway connecting Holy lands... "In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Iraq. The Iraqis will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Iraq. The Egyptians and Iraqis will worship together. (24) In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Iraq, a blessing on the earth. (25) The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying,
"Blessed be Egypt my people, Iraq my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance."

We hear now about the highway from Iraq (known then as Assyria) to Egypt through Israel - something which today, cannot happen without passing through Jordan, a land which did not exist in Isaiah's time.
The Lord is here
On a day like today, we might stand in wonder, and ask what is happening.

I simply repeat the words I say at the beginning of each service here at St George's: The Lord is here, and His Spirit is with us.

For several years I have returned time and again to Isaiah 19. Keep your eyes on it, and the words at the very end of the chapter: "The Lord Almighty will bless them, saying, 'Blessed be Egypt my people, Iraq my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.'"

With peace and blessings,
Andrew

Canon Andrew White