‘It makes the Bible come to Life’ | Follow The Joshua Fund and Faith Wins ‘Solidarity Mission’ of Evangelical pastors to Israel on THE ROSENBERG REPORT

ALL ISRAEL NEWS Editor-in-Chief Joel Rosenberg and his wife, Lynn, this month hosted The Joshua Fund’s second Evangelical solidarity mission to Israel since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War on Oct. 7, 2023. The first delegation, co-hosted by newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, traveled to the country in December 2023 with high-profile Evangelical leaders. 

This time around, the group consisted of almost 50 ‘grassroots’ pastors, ministry leaders and their wives who came from 11 different states. 

“What's intriguing to me, and super encouraging, is that not a single person that has signed up for this trip canceled… Because rockets and missiles started flying in, from all directions, in the week before they were supposed to come,” said Rosenberg.

The latest episode of his program, THE ROSENBERG REPORT, which airs weekly on TBN, accompanied the pastors as they toured the country and reflected on what has had the greatest impact on them.

About half the group had never been to Israel before. They were grateful for The Joshua Fund initiative that took them on such a meaningful experience in its partnership with FAITH WINS, a ministry run by Chad Connelly and his wife, Dana. 

“What led me to come to Israel during this time of war? It's the time they need us the most,” said Senior Minister Donald Eason from Metro Church of Christ in Michigan, who participated in the Solidarity Mission. 

Eason, who also serves as the president of C.U.R.E., the Center for Urban Renewal and Education, explaind that he had attempted to visit Israel last year, but flights were canceled due to the war. 

“We were just grateful that we could come back at this time to show our support for the Israeli people. It's one thing to say it 5,000 miles away. It’s another thing to be here and say, ‘We're here, we support Israel’.”

Upon arrival in the country, the solidarity mission went straight from the airport to participate in a humanitarian aid event with Holocaust survivors. The Grace and Truth Church, supported by The Joshua Fund, helps and serves the Jewish elderly survivors every month. It is a Messianic congregation, located about six kilometers (less than four miles) from the Gaza border.

“It is an opportunity to show love to people who don’t feel loved,” Rosenberg described the encounter. “And you can say, ‘Well, did you preach the gospel to them?’ No, we didn't. We tried to live the gospel in front of them.”

The Solidarity Mission also visited significant biblical sites, including Capernaum, the Sea of Galilee and Caesarea, from which the Apostle Paul took the Gospel from Israel to the Roman world. 

The pastors also visited Jerusalem, where they met with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, as well as former deputy prime minister of Israel, Natan Sharansky. 

“He is one of the great heroes of the Jewish people who spent nine years in the Soviet gulag, was tortured by the KGB for being a human rights activist and a Jewish rights activist. He eventually was set free by the Soviet Union,” Rosenberg shared. 

Yet, as some of the pastors described, the most memorable moments and interactions on the trip were with survivors of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. 

They visited the site of the Nova Music Festival, where nearly 400 young Israelis were massacred by the terrorists. They also went to one of the most ravaged communities from that day, Kibbutz Be’eri. 

“I feel like the most significant moment on this trip has been Be’eri,” said senior pastor Jim Scudder, Jr. from Quentin Road Baptist Church in Illinois. “The reason is because it was such a devastating thing that happened to the community… We’re inside walking on the rubble, and you're hearing the crunch of glass and you're seeing shrapnel and bullet holes all over. You know that children died, and the heinous acts of Hamas occurred there.”

“It brought back to my mind how important it is to continue to pray for peace in this land and the salvation for all people, but to especially love and support the Jewish people,” he continued.

Scudder is also the host of InGrace, a weekly TV show on TBN. Speaking to THE ROSENBERG REPORT, he reflected on another powerful experience on the trip.

“I feel like God has spoken in a powerful way at the Garden Tomb. Although we're not positive this is the exact spot where Jesus rose again, it feels like it. And I love the fact that we serve a risen Savior. And you look at all other religions. Our faith is the only one that has an empty tomb.”  

When asked about their takeaways from the solidarity mission, other pastors in the group offered a range of responses.

Pastor Dave Huizenga from Bridgewood Church, Savage, MN: “The connection of what is here on the land transforms how you speak of the word. You know, Christ spoke about what was near him and used illustrations about everything he was looking at.”

Senior Minister Donald Eason from Metro Church of Christ in Michigan: “I already had a lot of energy for my love of Israel and God's chosen people, because that's what I came through, and now I just get to go back and share with my whole congregation and wherever that sends me.”

Pastor Dan Reehoff from Dayspring Church and Schools in Pewaukee, WI: “You can read about Jesus ministering in Capernaum or read about him walking on water, but once you actually go to Capernaum, once you actually go to the Sea of Galilee and you say, ‘look, this is where he walked, this is what he did’ – It kind of makes the Bible come to life.” 

Pastor Matt Teis from Liberty Baptist Church in Las Vegas, NV: "This experience will change me in my desire to come back to this place, to encourage others to be part of this place. We are his people in the United States, but these are his people here in this country. And there is a great unity under the one God, our Savior, Jesus Christ.” 

Joel Rosenberg invites viewers to sign up for The Joshua Fund’s Alaska Cruise in August.

He concluded the episode, urging the audience to pray for the release of all Israeli hostages from Gaza, a total victory over Hamas, and for Israeli believers in Jesus, both Jewish and Arab. 

Watch the Joshua Fund and FAITH WINS solidarity mission to Israel on the TBN website.

THE ROSENBERG REPORT airs Thursday nights at 9 p.m. EST and Saturday nights at 10 p.m. EST on the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), the most-watched Christian television network in the United States.