ZIONISM: SETTING THE STAGE FOR CHRIST'S SECOND COMING!

THE PROMISED NATION

Genesis 12:1-3 - Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:  and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curses thee:  and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

[Note:  The nation of Israel, is named after the grandson of Abraham; his name was originally Jacob, but the Lord changed it to Israel (Gen. 32:27-28).  It is also known as Sion or Zion, which mean "a parched place."  It refers to Jerusalem which is built, in part, upon Mount Hermon; it is often used of the entire city of Jerusalem; and since the Temple stood there, it was called the "dwelling place of God."  Taken from The Blue Letter Bible.]

SION

Psalm 65:1-2 - Praise waits for Thee, O God, in Sion:  and unto Thee shall the vow be performed.  O Thou that hears prayer, unto Thee shall all flesh come.

Romans 9:33 - As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a Stumbling-stone and Rock of Offence: and whosoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed.

Romans 11:25-26 - For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.  And so all Israel shall be saved:  as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob.

2 Peter 2:6-8 - Wherefore also it is contained in the Scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a Chief Cornerstone, elect, precious:  and He that believes on Him shall not be confounded.  Unto you therefore which believe, He is precious:  but unto them which be disobedient, the Stone which the builders disallowed, the Same is made the Head of the Corner, and a Stone of Stumbling, and a Rock of Offence, even to them which stumble at the Word, being disobedient:  whereunto also they were appointed.

Revelation 14:1 - And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the Mount Sion, and with Him an hundred forty and four thousand, having His Father's name written in their foreheads.

ZION

Psalm 2:6-7 - Yet have I set My king upon My holy hill of Zion.  I will declare the decree:  the LORD has said unto me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee.

Psalm 14:7 - Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion!   When the LORD brings back the captivity of His people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

Zechariah 8:3 - Thus says the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem:  and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.

ZIONISM

According to the Jewish Virtual Library, the term "Zionism" was coined in 1890 by Nathan Birnbaum.  Its general definition means the national movement for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel.  Since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, Zionism has come to include the movement for the development of the State of Israel and the protection of the Jewish nation in Israel through support for the Israel Defense Forces. From its inception, Zionism advocated tangible as well as spiritual aims.  Jews of all persuasions - left, right, religious, and secular - formed the Zionist movement and worked together toward its goals.  

I believe that the Lord is using Zionism as the central part of His plan to bring about the Tribulation, the Second Coming, and the Millennial Reign of Christ.