In a Spirit-filled service marked by powerful testimonies and unwavering conviction, Pastor Jentezen Franklin welcomed Ambassador Dr. Yechiel Leiter of Israel to Free Chapel, where the congregation stood united in love and support for the Jewish state. The ambassador’s words, born from both personal tragedy and national resolve, stirred hearts and reminded all in attendance that Israel’s fight is not just for survival, but for truth.
The ambassador, who flew directly from Jerusalem, expressed deep gratitude to Pastor Franklin and the congregation: “I want to thank you and your congregation and all of your followers for all the wonderful support you give us. And it’s heartfelt.”
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Leiter addressed the ongoing war in Gaza with sobering clarity. “We’re not just in a battle for our security,” he said. “We’re in a battle for, really, I would say, truth.” He cited recent media misinformation, including false claims that Israeli tanks had fired on civilians waiting for aid. “It was a lie. Never happened,” he said, adding, “What they did was put a stain of Cain on our forehead and expect us to cower and succumb.”
“But what the Jewish people are now saying is we’re not going to succumb,” he continued. “We were attacked on Oct. 7th. They slaughtered 1,200 of our people. We cannot have jihadis living at our border… If it’s going to take some time, it may have to take some time. Because the world is in a state of confusion… But we’re going to weather the storm. We’ve been doing that for a long time… We did it in exile and now that we’ve come home, we’re not going to cower either. We’re going to weather this storm. We’re going to come out on top.”
Franklin responded with conviction, declaring, “We are fulfilling prophecy… Genesis 12 and verse 3: ‘I will bless those that bless Israel… and all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’” He reminded the audience that Free Chapel has donated over $28 million in partnership with the Jewish National Fund, building schools, bomb shelters, medical facilities and trauma recovery centers in southern Israel.
But the moment took a deeply personal turn as the ambassador shared his family’s loss. “My oldest son Moshe is the commander of forces that led our divisions into Gaza, and on the 15th day of the war, he fell,” he said. “He was a father of six children. He was 39. After spending 15 years in special ops in the Air Force, our equivalent of your Delta Force, he left me six grandchildren, and he was my best friend.”
He revealed how his son’s death changed the course of his own life. “When the prime minister called me, he said, ‘I know you don’t want to go into public life, but why don’t you ask Moshe what he would say?’ Somewhere from the Garden of Eden he came down and said to me, ‘Dad, now you’ve got to live for me too.’”
Pastor Franklin then turned to the congregation. “These people, Mr. Ambassador, are some of the most loving, supporting Israel people… They’re not being taught… to be anti-Semitic. They’re being taught that our faith… we only have because of the land of Israel and the Jewish people that have given us the Torah.”
Leiter reinforced the spiritual and historical foundation of Israel’s right to the land: “Two millennia before the Romans called the land of Israel Palestine, there was a land called Israel and a people called Israel and a commonwealth called Israel and temples that were the capitals of Israel… And we didn’t allow years of exile to erase the bond between the people of Israel and the land of Israel.”
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As the congregation looked on, he declared, “Zionism didn’t begin in the 19th century. Zionism began with the birth of the Jewish people when Abraham ascended the land… We’ve ascended the land again, we’ve come home, and we’re not leaving again. We’re not going to be defeated.”
In this powerful convergence of biblical truth, personal sacrifice and prophetic conviction, one thing was unmistakable: the spirit of Israel endures, and so does the call for Christians around the world to stand with her.
Now more than ever, let us lift up Israel in prayer, for her safety, for her strength and for the fulfillment of every promise God has spoken over His people.
James Lasher is staff writer for Charisma Media.
