Now the Lord had said to Abram:

On The Topic Of God’s Chosen People, Few Christians Are Passing The Test

December 8, 2024

By Olivier Melnick

Reprinted from Harbinger’s Daily

In 2003, Ukrainian refusenik Natan Sharansky, who served as Israel’s interior minister and led the Jewish Agency, formulated his now famous “3 D Test.” To date, nobody has been able to come up with a more accurate test to determine if any words or actions are antisemitic. Sharansky posited that if any deeds could be described as Demonizing, Delegitimizing, or applying Double Standards as they pertained to Israel, they established irrefutable proof of antisemitism. Today, more than ever, the “3 D Test” needs to be applied.

Demonizing

Going back to the closing of the biblical canon and early Christianity, we can find many examples of the demonization of Jews. It started small and slow but increased over the centuries and through the Middle Ages to come to an apex at the time of the Holocaust. At that point in history, demonization led to the dehumanization of the Jews, which required complete annihilation to solve the problem.

The road to get there was extremely bumpy. As Jews, we were accused of killing Christ–an accusation that lives on 2,000+ years later. We were charged with killing Christian children to drain their blood to make matzo for Passover. We were charged with piercing communion wafers during Holy Week to “re-enact the killing of Christ. Our people were accused of poisoning the wells of Europe to start the black Plague. Many of the Church Fathers, all the way to Martin Luther and even beyond, described the Jews as instruments of Satan and demon-possessed.

Delegitimizing

Along with the attempt at painting the Jews as demonized comes their delegitimization. Hitler tried his very best to communicate his message that Jews were not legitimate human beings but vermin. We were then relegated to sub-humans, and as such, we became the prime targets for elimination.

But perhaps the best example of delegitimization in recent history is the false narrative about the displaced Palestinian people, leading to the Israeli people constantly being accused of colonization, occupation, and illegal land grabs. We hear the same message over and over, “The Jews do not have rights to the land of ‘Palestine.” The scary part is that this narrative is no longer questioned, but it is promoted with the hope of fully enforcing it soon enough.

In the words of Holocaust historian Raul Hilberg in The Destruction of European Jews, there is a progression not to be missed, “The missionaries of Christianity had said in effect: You have no right to live among us as Jews. The secular rulers who followed had proclaimed: You have no right to live among us. The German Nazis at last decreed: You have no right to live... to summarize: Since the fourth century after Christ, there have been three anti-Jewish policies: conversion, expulsion and annihilation. The second appeared as an alternative to the first, and the third emerged as an alternative to the second.”

Double-Standards

When it comes to double standards, the United Nations takes the prize. According to UNWatch, within the last 9 years, 164 resolutions have been adopted against Israel and 84 against THE REST OF THE WORLD! That’s twice as many against Israel than the rest of the planet. How is that even supposed to be fair? What about going after China, Iran, Sudan, and North Korea, to name just a few?

Amnesty International is a close second. They accuse Israel of genocide in what they call “the occupied Gaza Strip.” They published a 297-page report in which they state, “This report documents Israel’s actions during its offensive on the occupied Gaza Strip from 7 October 2023.” The Gaza Strip hasn’t had a Jewish ruling presence since 2005. They have been self-governed by Hamas. It is Hamas who broke the ceasefire, not Israel. The Gaza Strip is not occupied, and on October 7, Israel did nothing; it was Hamas that invaded Southern Israel and butchered 1,200 people.

To add insult to injury, the ICC (International Criminal Court) recently issued arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, based on a report and request filed in May 2024 by ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan. In his report, Mr. Kahn starts by pointing the finger at three leaders of Hamas (all dead) and claims that they are responsible for many war crimes. Almost in the same breath, and assuming moral equivalence, he issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant.

Many countries have already agreed to arrest the two Israeli leaders the moment they step foot on their territory. The ICC doesn’t have jurisdiction to enforce what it claims, but it showed its true colors and allowed many countries to join in its Jew-hatred crusade.

As believers, we can easily take the 3 D Test and identify Demonizing, Delegitimizing, or Double Standards. The challenge remains to do something about it, especially at a time when Jewish people do not know where to turn for help.

The “3 D Test” is not the hard one. Can believers take the 3 P Test and pass it with flying colors? The 3Ps stand for Pray, Promote, and Provide.

Pray

Any Bible-reading modern-day follower of Yeshua the Messiah will know that prayer is foundational to our relationship and walk with the Lord. Additionally, the Scriptures are replete with invitations to pray for Israel, especially for the peace of Jerusalem, as we read in Psalm 122:6, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May they prosper who love you.”

What is crucial to understand is that when we pray for peace in Israel, we pray for the coming of Yeshua, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6-7), the only one who will usher in and maintain absolute, true, eternal peace in the world. When we pray for peace in the region, we are praying for the Second Coming of Yeshua. In addition, we must also pray for the salvation of Israel and the Jewish people. Israel needs intercessors more than ever. Pray daily for salvation, protection, provision and peace.

Promote

Amid a tsunami of fake news and rewritten narratives, it becomes critical to spread the truth about Israel. Debunking the numerous lies about occupation, colonization, apartheid, forced starvation, and genocide has become the task of men and women of goodwill seeking to promote a balanced view of the Middle East. This might come as a surprise to many, but the “occupied” Gaza Strip is not occupied, and the genocidal IDF soldiers have made it possible for Gaza’s population to grow, YES…GROW by 2% in 2024. Some will say that 2% is not much, but considering that all genocides are always responsible for at least the death of 25% of a people group, this is quite a number.

Provide

Praying and promoting the truth should be an ongoing aspect of our approach to Israel, but in light of current events around the globe, we have come to the age of rescue and protection. We pray and spread the truth about Israel because we understand its importance in God’s plan (Romans 11). When Amnesty International, the ICC, the UN, and many countries go against Israel with everything they’ve got, believers need to unite and prepare to provide rescue and shelter to their Jewish neighbors, friends, co-workers, and family members.

Ultimately, God will protect Israel as He promised in Psalm 121:4, “Behold, He who keeps Israel Will not slumber and will not sleep.” That said, God is constantly using people, as He will be using during the Great Tribulation (Matthew 25:31-46.) Are you ready to provide, whatever the cost?

As we come alongside Israel, we must never forget that we are in a spiritual war and that nobody goes to war unprepared or unprotected. Ephesians 6:12 tells us “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

Satan is very prepared and equipped, and yet, he has also already been defeated by Yeshua, but his anger and disdain for the chosen people of God is real. Satan wants to hurt God, so he will hurt the apple of his eye, as Zechariah 2:8 reminds us. But, be encouraged because Zechariah also comforts us by stating in 8:2, “Thus saith the Lord of hosts; I was jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I was jealous for her with great fury.”

Be ready to identify the enemies of Israel and of the Jews by applying the “3 D Test,” but more importantly, be ready to be challenged through the “3 P Test.” Very few Christians are passing this test…Be one of those who do!

Olivier Melnick is an author, speaker, antisemitism expert, and the Executive Director for Shalom in Messiah Ministries.