Abraham's Children and Modern Terrorism

The death of Usama Bin Laden, has brought great joy to the U.S. and the west in general, however is hasn't done much to thwart terrorism in general. Recent events in Egypt, Libya and the like, has heightened our awareness once again of the threat of terrorism. One can hardly think of Arab states, the Middle East conflict, or terrorism without Israel becoming an issue. Our support for Israel through the years has been the supposed cause of contempt coming from the Muslim world, and especially Muslim terrorists.  Recent documents found in Bin Laden’s hideout, show him musing over just how many Americans he must kill to force the U.S. to withdraw from the Arab world. One would assume that this battle of ideology began with Israel having raised her flag and become a sovereign nation, in 1948. The truth is that this war has been going on for about 4000 years.

Christianity, Islam, and Judaism all share one common thread. We all claim Abraham as our father. Each can substantiate that claim. Abraham was born around 2000 B.C. In the process of time, three Children set the stage for conflict. The descendants of Ishmael, Isaac, and Keturah, make up, the predominant population of the middle east. Isaac was the promised Child and Ishmael was the child born out of a direct lack of faith in God’s promise. Keturah was one born form a concubine. Ishmael’s disdain for Isaac was passed down to His descendants. Muhammad, who didn’t live until the 7th century A.D. claimed to be an Ishmaelite descendant of Abraham. In fact the Ishmaelites along with intermarrying with the descendants of Keturah, make up the Arab world. The problem lies in the fact that it was the children of Isaac, (the children of Israel) who were promised a land. Ishmael, and His descendants were a nomadic people. While Israel has fallen prey to many intruding controlling forces, they as a people, occupying one land, are one of the oldest nations on Earth. The long and short of the problem is that these two boys hated each other, and their descendants have been fighting ever since. Politicians, and governments have again and again sought to bring peace to the middle east region, but it simply has not happened. Those of us who accept that Scripture is truth, understand that peace will not come until Jesus returns. Try as we may, and pray as we must, this is a war that will only be decided by God himself. America, is involved in this war simply because we support Israel’s right to inhabit the land that God gave them.

There are many lessons to be learned from this, but one stands out. We cannot fathom the full consequences of our sin. Abraham was certainly a great man of God, however he was a sinful man, He and Sarah both suffered a crisis in faith. The entire world has lived with the results of His adultery ever since. Modern terrorism is the result of Abraham’s infidelity, and the birth of one illegitimate child.   

Gene Hawks : https://www.facebook.com/gene.hawks1