Mogoeng Receives Prestigious Pro-Israel Award At Feast Of Tabernacles Celebration In Jerusalem

Written by: Andre Viljoen 
Article source: gatewaynews.co.za 

Former Chief Justice of South Africa, Mogoeng Mogoeng was presented with the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem’s (ICEJ) annual Nehemiah Award at the Pais Arena in Jerusalem on the fourth day of this year’s Feast of Tabernacles celebrations hosted by the ICEJ.

The award, which was presented to Mogoeng by ICEJ president Dr Jürgen Bühler in front of a gathering of more than 2 000 pilgrims from over 70 nations, is made each year to a Christian leader who has distinguished himself or herself as a strong, committed supporter of Israel and the Jewish people.

Mogoeng and his wife, Mmaphefo, are visiting Israel for the first time and attending the Feast of Tabernacles celebrations as part of a group of 36 South Africans led by Vivienne Myburgh national director of ICEJ South Africa.

The Nehemiah award is named after the biblical leader who spearheaded the return of the Jewish people from exile in Babylon to Israel. “He not only displayed great courage and zeal, but he was a determined and godly leader,” said the announcer at last night’s event before naming Mogoeng as this year’s recipient of the prestigious award.

He said: “As a prominent public figure and devout Christian, Chief Justice Mogoeng has since 12 April 2020 been leading a prayer and intercession movement for the nation of South Africa and the rest of the African continent to fulfil its divine prophetic destiny without delay. Through his project, Mogoeng has and continues to travel across the length and breadth of South Africa to share the message of hope, healing, restoration and revival according to the prophecies of God concerning the nation and the rest of the continent.

“Also of great note, over the past year Chief Justice Mogoeng has distinguished himself in South Africa and worldwide as a committed, courageous and principled supporter of Israel on biblical grounds. After voicing support for Israel on this basis, he bravely refused to reverse his stand in the face of tremendous public pressure and arguably unprecedented vilification.

“Therefore, the ICEJ wishes to recognise South Africa’s former Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng for his courageous biblical stand with Israel, which has contributed greatly to the just and moral cause of the Jewish nation and people, especially against this false charge of apartheid. May he continue to bless and support Israel on biblical principles and encourage others to do likewise. Congratulations to this year’s recipient of the Nehemiah Award!”

Mogoeng thanks all who supported him during time of persecution
In response to receiving the award, Mogoeng said: “I wish I had time to express appreciation for all those who supported me at the time when I was confronted by untold, vitriol and persecution, but time simply does not permit.

“I choose to see this prestigious and humbling award — this special badge of honour, as a clarion call by God to me and fellow soldiers of Christ, to intensify efforts and speed up the process of having our nation of Azania — God says you must call it Azania, meaning ‘God hears’, I’m told in the Hebrew language –the continent of Africa, Israel and other nations of the earth restored or transitioned to where God wants us all to be. Lest we forget, Jesus Christ says in Matthew 10:32-33, that whoever openly and publicly acknowledges Him, He too will acknowledge him before the Father. But whoever denies Him before the people, He too will deny him before God the Father in heaven.

“For in truth, it is the apparent need for self-preservation, or an attempt to avoid reputational damage, the love for position or power, fame or seemingly good, but truly deceptive and manipulative publicity, that have led many to deny Jesus Christ and switch allegiance to the kingdom of darkness. This is what the devil tried to do to disconnect me from my destiny, but by God’s grace, and with the prayers of the saints, I mustered the courage to say: ‘No, I belong to Jesus’.

“Broadly speaking, this is how you and I can deny Christ publicly and disconnect from our personal and national destinies. John 1:1 & 14 tells us that Jesus Christ is the Word of God. And if you bless Abraham, Isaac, Jacob or Israel, and their descendants, and their descendants, God will bless you. But if you curse them, God will curse you. All that is reflected in Genesis 12:3, Genesis 26:4, Genesis 28:14 and Galatians 3:6, 7 and 29. A rejection of Jacob or Israel and his descendants is a rejection of God’s promises for them. And it is also an attraction of the curse to you, who reject the blessings of the descendants of Israel. Take a careful look at all those who chose to curse instead of blessing Israel and the children of Israel, and you be the judge whether you see blessings or curses instead.

“Isaiah 9:6 tells us that Jesus is the Prince of Peace. And Psalm 122:6 commands us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and promises prosperity to those who love Jerusalem.

“Similarly, Matthew 5:9 tells us that the peacemakers are blessed, for they shall be called the sons of God. The question that confronts you and I is whether we are peacemakers or strife creators. Whose sons are we in reality? Let us check from the depths of our hearts, how we relate to Israel and the descendants of Jacob, and what our hidden attitude is towards them.

“And John 14:23, Jesus says, If anyone loves him, he will obey his word. His Word says in Matthew 5:44, that we are to love our enemies, and pray for those who persecute us. For this reason, you and I should love Israel, and love the Jews, and love all including our enemies, those who hate us, or want to disgrace us and even those who want to kill us. We must refuse to deny Jesus, we must refuse to deny the Word, simply because it is considered by unbelievers, the haters, and the intolerant, as being politically incorrect.

“Nehemiah was an ordinary child of God, like you and I, an ordinary cup bearer, a wine or drink waiter. Because he loved God, he obeyed the Word of God. He loved what God loved and hated what God hated. He loved the Land of Israel and the descendants of Jacob or Israel.

“Nehemiah fasted and prayed for God’s guidance, favour and I believe for supernatural enablement to restore the people to God and rebuild the holy city of Jerusalem. Nehemiah saw it as his duty to stand in the gap, instead of hating, judging, or condemning the children of Israel for the sins that led to their suffering. God saw his heart, guided him, and gave him favoUr with the king of Babylon his master.

“God anointed Nehemiah for the responsibility to restore the people back to God, to rebuild the holy city of Jerusalem, to refocus the church on God. God gave Nehemiah the authority and the commanding voice over the leaders of Israel, and nobody questioned his authority or instructions. They all obeyed him because he chose to obey God. The enemies of Israel opposed the godly assignment led Nehemiah to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, but because he trusted God, prayed unto Him, and depended on God, he accomplished the mission. And those who were the enemies, the mockers, and the hateful, I quote, ‘perceived that this work was done by our God’.

“Let me conclude by saying, is it a coincidence that you and I are here during the celebration of the Feast of the Tabernacles? Are we not here as the Nehemiahs of our modern days, so that we can reflect and help others in our respective nations to reflect on the kind of relationship we have with God, and the responsibilities that we truly ought to be assuming in relation to our nations and even the State of Israel and the people of Israel?

“Should we not be like, Nehemiah and Ezra did, challenging people within our sphere of influence, our communities, and our nations to repent, even for the negative and ungodly attitude towards Israel and the people of Israel?

“Should we not be asking the Lord to search us deep, to search our hearts, and reveal to us all that we need to be repenting for, so that in the season, the month of Tishrei and in the year 5783, we can do what ought to be done, according to the Bible; go back home, lead people in the right direction so that the world and our nations can move from the state of captivity, to the land of promise and abundance that God is itching to deliver to us.

“Saints, I challenge myself and I’m challenged by this award. I challenge all of you to go back home, let us move from our comfort zone and assume the critical responsibility of helping people, of influencing people to play that role that God expects of us to play in this time and this season. May God bless you.”

This year’s annual Feast of Tabernacles celebration opened at the Capernaum National Park on the Sea of Galilee last Sunday. After five days of festivities in Jerusalem, including the colourful Roll Call of the Nations at the Pais Arena on Tuesday and the Jerusalem March today, the celebrations will end this Sunday with over 1 000 Christian pilgrims visiting the western Negev for a solidarity rally and tree-planting ceremony with the Jewish National Fund and leaders of Israeli communities along the Gaza border.

South African worship singer Trevor Sampson, together with recording artists and dance troupes from Israel, Brazil, Norway and the Philippines performed at the opening event which was held at the Sea of Galilee for the first time in the celebration’s 43 year history.

Other notable Christians attending the feast include Andrew Brunson, an American pastor who was held for two years in a Turkish prison on false charges of “terrorism,” as well as two Iranian-born singers who performed worship songs they have written in Persian and Hebrew.

The ICEJ Feast of Tabernacles is the largest Christian gathering in Israel and largest solidarity mission to the country of 2022. It also signals the return of Christian tourism to Israel after two years of corona lockdowns and travel bans.

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Date published: 21/10/2022
Feature image: From the left, former chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng receives the Nehemiah Award from Rev Malcolm Hedding, former executive director of the ICEJ and Dr Jürgen Bühler, president of the ICEJ at the Feast of Tabernacles celebrations at the Pais Arena, Jerusalem (PHOTO: ICEJ Media)

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