Pastor Hagee discusses the impact that Derek Prince had on his life with Pastor Matt. Pastor’s meeting with Derek was the impetus of his long and rich history of supporting Israel and the Jewish people. Derek told Pastor to visit Israel and that planted a seed that resulted in Christians United for Israel. This grassroots organization has been able to fund numerous causes throughout Israel while building genuine, loving relationships between Christians and Jews around the world. Why is it important for Christians to support Israel? The Bible tells us that God will bless those who bless Israel…and what is important to God should be important to us.
I’m so glad you’ve joined us today for
the difference pastor heggy and I are
going to be discussing a moment in time
That Changed History forever how did it
happen stay tuned and find
out thank you for being a part of the
difference today I’m so excited to
continue the conversation with pastor
heggy about 65 years of life and
Ministry people ask me all the time
what’s your dad doing now and I say the
same thing he was doing then he he’s
he’s still in full-time Ministry but one
of the things that I really enjoy about
these moments when we get to look back
is in many ways we see uh the memorial
stones of God’s goodness as he told the
children of Israel with Joshua you set
up these stones and every time you walk
by them you tell your kids this is how
he got us here this is what he did for
us and and you use it as a reminder um
when we talk about
relationships like Derek Prince he came
into your life at a time when you needed
Direction in terms of theology but what
he did was launch your life in a brand
new Direction when it came to your
responsibility as a Bible believing
Christian to know something about Israel
yes what was your life life like with
relationship to Israel prior to meeting
Derek and after meeting Derek I had no
relationship with Israel I had no no
desire to go Derek Prince came to the
church and we went out to lunch as we
always did whenever he was doing our
guest speaking and in one of our
conversations he said have you ever
thought about going to Israel I said no
I have not he said said you need to go
and that’s all he said and we went on
think about talk about other
things shortly thereafter uh in our
church we were showing the film apples
of gold and uh I was I was deeply moved
by that movie I was sitting by
Diana and uh she reached over and said
uh why are you so moved by this I said
said we’re going to Israel and and you
were going on a tour you were not on a
spiritual Mission you were not compelled
of God you just I’m going to go yeah and
by the way you you went as well I I know
I was four months pregnant with Matthew
when we went well so the three of us
went yes we did made my first trip
without voting yeah I wanted to see the
city of Jerusalem because I knew that in
the future when Jesus comes comes back
to Earth the capital building of the
kingdom of God is going to be that City
and I was deeply moved by all of the
things that I saw I went to the Western
Wall to pray and about Midway through my
prayer I looked over my shoulder and I
saw an elderly Jewish man sitting in a
rocking chair rocking back and forth
reading the word of God with tears on
his face I was deeply moved by his
emotion at simply reading the word of
God and I turned back to face the wall
and I felt this
overpowering thought come to my mind and
the thought was this that man is your
spiritual
brother he’s afraid of you and you don’t
know one thing about him I want you to
do everything in your power to bring
Christians and Jews together in a
nonthreatening environment without
condition to express love and mutual
respect for the Jewish people people
will tell me your father is a Pioneer
and I agree he is a Pioneer in this
space he’s not a pioneer as a pastor
other people have pastored he’s not a
Pioneer on television other people have
been on television he is a Pioneer when
it comes to Bringing Christians and Jews
together because this was a trail that
no one had ever even attempted to cut
before never never ever so when I when I
left the wall I I said I’ve got to share
this with Donna and when I shared it
with her she said however you going to
do that Christians and Jews have been
fighting for 2,000 years I said I don’t
know how I’m supposed to do it but I
know I’m supposed to try I got books
about the Holocaust I got a book about
the Spanish Inquisition I got several
books about the Christian
Crusades and I told Diana I said I think
we’re supposed to try to bring
Christians and Jews together and but I
just I didn’t know how because no one
had ever done it this was a very trying
time this two two years he he became
very depressed he really did because he
thought to
himself I didn’t know this and this is
reality this is how the Christian Church
treated the Jewish people and and one of
his Heroes Martin Luther right when he
thought when he saw that Martin Luther
was a rabid anti-semite Semite it was it
was more than his mind and his his soul
could could handle and so he had to
process this very slowly and at that
point he thought the purpose of this is
to teach my church his church is always
first I’m supposed to teach my church
the importance of our Jewish roots and
the history of anti-Semitism within the
church fathers and that was his vision
at the time so I’m sitting watching
television and the television starts
describing the Israeli Air Force and
their bombing of the nuclear reactor at
osaris and and that nuclear reactor was
in Iraq it was in Iraq and it was under
the control of some guy named Saddam
Hussein yes so 20 years before the
United States thought this was a problem
Israel saw it and was trying to solve it
yes monum Bean who was a great
leader released the Israeli Air Force to
to bomb that nuclear reactor and the
media in America was blaming the Jewish
people and I thought the Jewish people
had done the world a favor and should be
applauded rather than accused so out of
my mouth I said we’re going to have a
night to honor Israel we’re going to
invite all the Pastors in San Antonio to
come to the Lilac cochal theater and we
are going to invite the Jewish people of
San Antonio to come there and we are
going to express our profound
appreciation to them for their
contributions to Global Peace to America
and for their contributions to
Christianity and I started writing all
that down on the legal pad I had in my
hand and she said what Jewish people do
you know and I said don’t know start who
are you going to invite cuz I’m the only
Mexican you’re talking to right now I
said who are we who who do I know you
don’t want to go away we’ll be right
back on the
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storm welcome back to the difference
we’ve been talking with pastor heggy
about God’s faithfulness in his life and
Ministry how God opened doors and made
the impossible possible all of my
life I was in an exact 180 degree
experience from you because you grew up
without knowing anything about Israel
and I grew up thinking every Christian
kid knew how to sing havenu shom Alim
that’s right and I remember when
Christians United for Israel started in
the very first year that you took
leaders to Washington 2006 correct you
know at this point in time
2006 and in that press conference at
that first Christians United for Israel
a a hostile liberal reporter asked you a
question what is it that you want to do
with this organization Christians United
for Israel and your answer to him was
just a moment in the exchange that y’all
had but it impacted me significantly
because I’ve lived with you for a few
years by now and you said I believe that
everything that has happened in this
moment of my life has led up to this
point in time and this is the most
important breath I’ve ever breathed and
I think it’s important for our viewers
because they hear these things and they
think well that’s what God did with John
heggy but God is no respector of persons
if you take one step God will start to
open up the path and show you how to get
where he wants you to go yes and it will
not be without opposition that’s right
here’s here’s exactly what happened in a
nutshell I discovered there was such a
thing as a Jewish Federation where you
have to clear all activities that will
involve the Jewish people because if
they don’t approve it it ain’t going to
happen that’s exactly right I went down
walked into the Jewish Federation and
The Man Behind The Desk knew who I was
and I said I’d like to have a night to
honor Israel and he almost
just he stopped he was shocked he said
uh tell me what that would mean and I
told him and he said well we’ll have to
have a committee meeting about that one
two three committee meetings and the
committee meetings got bigger and got
more verbal and at that point in time
Rabbi shinberg came to my office and uh
the Orthodox Rabbi he’s an orthodox
Rabbi a godly man he came into my office
and said tell me what what is it you’re
trying to accomplish very compassionate
and I laid it out for him he said I I
think I can help you do that I got up
and I hugged his neck and I felt the 45
caliber pistol on his hip and I said
right under his prayer shell I said this
is yeah this is my kind of guy was
instantaneous faith without works is
dead that’s right so he went back to the
Federation and said look as Jews we know
how to handle our enemies but what if
this man means this we have footage of a
testimony from rabbi shinberg about that
first night to honor Israel take a look
more than 5 years ago when we went to
the Jewish Community for the very first
time and said we would like to have a
night to honor
Israel and it was something of an
astounding
concept and in the finest Jewish
tradition they called a committee
meeting I was able to say to everyone
there let’s give this person a chance we
know how to deal with our enemies
but what if this person’s a
friend so there’s 37 years I mean 37
years with him he we watched our
families grow and uh and and mature in
so many ways uh so there there’s a very
deep deep feeling of of of love and
respect love and
respect that’s Rabbi shinberg and his
own words he’s now awaiting return of
Messiah amen he was just a godsend to me
uh I can say the best friend I ever had
on this Earth in the ministry and we
know we’ll get to see him again soon uh
but without his influence here in the
local community you would have never
stayed with this idea long enough to see
it have the national impact it had
that’s true we couldn’t have
I want you to hear more of this exciting
testimony when we return on the
difference I’m so grateful that I chose
differently I’m so happy that I chose
you I get to see you become the person
God intended you to be thank you heggy
Ministry Legacy Partners there has never
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partner you you tried
this structure for what is now
Christians United for Israel you know 40
years ago and it was looked at as
absolutely not we’re not going to do
that yes and in 200
2006 you Tred it again yeah 81 you said
they’ll come they didn’t 2006 you
invited 400 of the nation’s leaders to
come how many of them came everyone
everyone came and what did you ask from
them I said we need to organize in
America a national Grassroots
organization with enough strength to
impact public policy in Washington DC in
favor of the Jewish
people and I told them basically the
biblical reasons that we have for
supporting Israel and being a comfort to
the Jewish people especially in times of
trouble and I said and this has to be
without conversionary motive you’re not
inviting them to your church to become
members you unconditional are going to
fellowship with them without any
preconditions at
all and I said how many of you are
willing to do do
that and as the Lord sits on his throne
every Pastor in that room raised their
hand that was one of the greatest
Miracles I have ever seen in my life 400
preachers anywhere agreeing on anything
is a miracle but 400 of the leading
preachers in this country who raised
their hand was an exceedingly great
miracle it was a Moses watching the the
the army of Israel drowned in the Red
Sea miracle and and
you you asked them for specific action
in that first
meeting one of the major goals was not
just to bring awareness to the
challenges that Israel faced but to tell
the United States leadership that the
embassy of the United States did belong
in Tel Aviv it belonged in Jerusalem
absolutely now getting pastors together
for church services I’d seen that happen
all my life okay I think we can do that
Dad telling people that Iran is is being
run by a a dictatorship that has nuclear
intentions okay I think that’s something
we’re probably going to be able to
accomplish dad getting an embassy moved
from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
why on Earth would anybody listen to a
couple of preachers from down the road
who started out in Goose Creek Texas but
again steps of the righteous are ordered
of the Lord kufi becomes a reality
progress begins to be made
millions of faithful Bible believing
Christians now join this organization
and start to have influence state
tostate District to District City to
city and hundreds of nights to honor
Israel are happening so all of the
different fruit producing efforts are
taking place but this issue of the
embassy Still Remains yes what happens
next I had an opportunity to talk with
some very
um powerfully placed people who got me
an audience with the president of the
United States Donald Trump Don and I had
uh were invited to the White House for
supper and we went there and now I
started this journey to Israel with you
how come you didn’t take me to that
meeting actually that meeting was off
the Record exactly just saying but but
to what you said want publicly noted I’m
disgruntled yeah but to this moment
experts on both sides of the aisle
Christians and Jews kept telling your
father take this off the table it it was
the it was the non-starter it’s too far
you’re never going to get
going as long as you want this they
won’t talk to you about anything else
exactly take it off the table so uh we
were on time sitting at the table
waiting for him to come and he came in a
few minutes late and he was very cordial
he clapped his hands together and said
it’s good to see you and he sat down and
started talking to one of my friends at
the head of the table and uh at after
about 2 or 3 minutes with him he said uh
asked the gentleman he said now what
about the issue of Jerusalem and what
about the embassy and the person who
made it possible for me to have that
meeting your host you should talk to
Pastor Hy I was I’m sitting at the end
of the table with Dan and he said okay
pastor floor is yours I took my Bible
with me and uh I said Mr President I
said uh God really doesn’t care how
America deals with China or with Russia
but everything you do toward Israel he’s
watching because he is the defender of
Israel I said and there’s always this
Bible prophecy and Bible promise in
Genesis the 12th chapter of God blessing
those who blessed the Jewish people and
I said it would be a blessing if the
embassy could be moved to
Jerusalem and I said this is it was 1917
this
is a jubilee year I said a jubilee year
in Israel is the 49th year that leads to
the 50th that brings the Year of Jubilee
where God always does something that’s a
supernatural Miracle to bless Israel I
said this is the year
that this can be done in line with what
the Bible has to say and I read it from
the Bible for him and I said and you are
the only person on the stage of world
history that can do that and if you will
do this you will be remembered forever
it was 2017 yeah and he he paused for 15
seconds and he said other presidents
have failed you but I will not fail you
I will move the
embassy and in due time he did that in
due time he did it take a look at this
video in
2017 pastor had the privilege of having
the audience with the president to
specifically discuss the Biblical
significance of the embassy being moved
to Jerusalem being in Israel for the
embassy
dedication was nothing short of
miraculous as King David prayed 3,000
years ago we pray for the Peace of
Jerusalem and all its inhabitants let
the name of the Lord be glorified today
for the defender of Israel today
tomorrow and forever is here can we all
shout hallelujah hallelujah
amen
hard to describe it was it was a moment
that you knew that God and all the Holy
Angels were watching what was going on
on Earth the Bible says the eye of God
is on the city of Jerusalem day and
night just for normal
circumstances because right now God’s
focus is on the state of Israel and the
Jewish people they are uppermost in his
mind and thinking and I knew that he was
watching and listening to every word
because what happens in Jerusalem is of
Eternal
significance um you just had
goosebumps knowing the
supernatural uh occurrence happing yeah
that this was happening you’re standing
behind the podium I want to hear what
did you think when you saw this moment
well before he was called to go down um
to to speak the benediction because you
were there when he said we’re going to
have a night turn Israel yeah exactly
and I said and how many Jewish people do
you know but um no when when your father
and I were sitting there watching the
program began and and the various High
influential world leaders were speaking
I turned to your dad and tears were
flowing down his face and I said baby
what are you thinking about right
now and he said I remember sitting in
the kitchen of my father’s home in 1948
and we were both staring at a radio uh
President Truman had recognized Israel
as a state and he said son this is the
most
important event in Biblical history in
my lifetime he said
it totally confirms everything that the
word says about Israel and there he was
an eight-year-old boy at the time and
now here he was in
Jerusalem his father in Heaven 77 years
later he is praying the prayer of
dedication of not just any Nation the
nation of Israel the apple of God’s eye
and and he had such a small part of the
whole right but a very pivotal part and
it was it was truly overwhelming and
he’s always said if Israel is important
to
God Israel should be important to us and
all of that happened in that one moment
of time just it was just a
connection and we have had U many
Israelis uh dear dear Jewish friends of
ours who participated in that event who
heard Pastor hagy now remember they took
a big chance on having a Christian pray
a benediction uh and um and needed to be
a kosher prayer it did and uh they have
said that it is still known as one of
the most important speeches ever given
because it was a prayer it was a very
powerful prayer ever given in the
history of Israel now as has been our
our Norm
since you know sharing responsibilities
in leadership and Ministry when you’re
out I’m in and vice versa so with you
being in Israel I was home taking care
of the church and so I wasn’t there but
I was
watching and I remember all of the
feelings of of gratitude and and and
being proud of dad but in my own self I
thought well this is the Pinnacle
this is this is the the the climax this
is this is why God did not let the guy
shoot him in 72 this is why he was able
to survive all of these hardships on the
road it was for this moment in
time and yet one of the things that I
can honestly say to you both on
television you’ve never had that
Pinnacle moment you’ve just constantly
go from next to consistently kept your
trajectory pointed up and that was five
years ago yes you know six years ago
almost M and you know now
83 and still climbing the steps of the
righteous ordered of the Lord so what’s
next only God knows from Victory to
Victory every door that God opens that’s
right I go through it but I make sure
that God is opening it um because his
nature is to kick the door down oh yeah
yeah his nature and I mean you know when
I look at that moment in time Dad’s 77
yeah just like he was when he was 67 and
said to the reporter everything I’ve
done is for right now yeah and I thought
well this must be the Fulfillment of
that but you know since that time in
2017 the world has changed we we’ve had
a CO pandemic we we you and I shared
Easter services in one of the most
unforgettable Services I’ll ever be in
because you and I were the only two
people in the sanctuary well but I mean
we were the only two people that went to
church that day outside of the camera
crew that shot it yes um and yet the
vision continues the work goes on um I
feel that God has given this ministry a
generational calling that has a
generational Vision a and if it’s a
200-year Vision then your 65 years is
just the beginning of what is to
come throughout these conversations
we’ve often referenced my grandmother
and I want to bring her words to your
memory one more time if you want to be
successful find out what God wants you
to do and do that I promise you this
when God is for you nothing can stand
against you it may seem like what you’re
facing is impossible but impossible is
what our God does best so no matter the
circumstance that you face today I want
you to believe in God and remember the
words of Jesus Christ Our Savior all
things are possible to those who believe
thank you for being a part of this
program today I pray that you were
encouraged and I look forward to seeing
you again very soon on the
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