One of Colorado’s biggest supporters of Israel never had a Bar Mitzvah, nor a b’ris. He does not attend synagogue.
In fact, he’s not even Jewish.
Jason King, the senior pastor of Faith Bible Chapel — the Israel- and Jewish people-loving non-denominational evangelical Christian mega-church in Arvada — is a Christian Zionist. He imparts his support of Israel and the Jewish people on a regular basis to his 3,000-member congregation.
Pastor King’s love of Israel is rooted in his childhood. He grew up in a farming community in southern Illinois at the Kentucky border on the Ohio River.
“I grew up in a Christian evangelical household; we were strong supporters of Israel. We would watch the news of Israel, what was happening in the country. We prayed for Israel. That’s the household I grew up in,” he tells the Intermountain Jewish News.
Now 40, King was in his formatitive years when the second intifada was raging against Israel. He says he didn’t quite grasp what was happening politically at the time, as his interest in Israel came from a purely theological place. “This is what was deposited in me: that G-d established the nation of Israel from his covenant and promise to Abraham. That’s what I knew. Truly, that’s the foundation of everything. If that is in question, then everything else is in question.”
King worked on farms growing up and attended a small rural high school of just 130 students. After high school, he had a short stint in the oil and gas business before he realized he wanted to be a pastor.
He enrolled in International Bible College in San Antonio, Texas and pursued a bachelor’s degree in biblical studies. During college he worked with one of America’s foremost Christian Zionist leaders, Pastor John Hagee, whose church is in San Antonio.
“I’ve always seen myself as a reluctant servant of what was set in front of me,” King says. “I always just walked through doors that were open in front of me. I started out working in high schools, and in campus life groups, meeting with teenagers, giving them a positive influence of Judeo-Christian values.”
“I was given advice as a young man by a popular musician: ‘Never say no to an opportunity, even if you don’t want to do it.’ I live my life by that. I just trusted that G-d would open those doors. When you are young, there are fewer opportunities. When you get further in your career, you gain the wisdom, so there’s a lot of opportunities.”
After graduating bible college in 2003, King came to Arvada to Faith Bible Chapel, his wife Sheryl’s hometown church. The couple had met at bible college. Sheryl grew up attending Faith Bible Chapel’s annual signature event “A Night to Honor Israel.”
King started at Faith Bible Chapel as a youth pastor, then became the music pastor who played a key role in the night to honor Israel.
The Kings moved to the UK, where he worked at a church outside of London for three years. “That church was also pro-Israel, which is quite challenging in the UK because of the strong Muslim influence there.
“One thing led to another, and I began discussions with Pastor George Morrison [the longtime senior Pastor of Faith Bible Chapel] and I came back here to Faith Bible Chapel four-and-a-half years ago. I did not come back to lead this church. I came back to serve in other areas that Pastor George had asked me to. Within a year, Pastor George was dropping these little hints about my leadership. Come to find out, he had been observing me for many years.
“After many discussions, church leaders asked me to take over the church upon Pastor George’s retirement. I never set the course to pastor, particularly, this church. If I did lead a church, I thought it would be in the UK, but it’s obvious that this is what G-d has brought us to.”
Jason King became senior pastor in January, 2017.
At Faith Bible Chapel, support of Israel is not limited to the annual night to honor Israel. “We see our support of Israel as part of our ministry. It’s an extension of what we do. We have all types of extensions, such as missional outreach, as churches should do, serving the poor and orphans in Thailand and other areas of the world,” King explains.
“Israel is a part of our ministry. It is not all that we do, but it is significant to what we do because it’s a biblical mandate and we are championing what G-d has set into place. As the pastor, I want to make sure that everything that we do is championing, representing well, what we read in Scripture.”
For King and his flock, support of Israel also means support of the Jewish people. “We know that the Jewish people came through Abraham. Therefore, they’re all included in our efforts to show support, strength and stand in solidarity with their plight, with their journey and to do our best to honor how G-d thinks about them.”
This begs the question: How can King love all Jewish people, no matter their beliefs or personalities?
“I often come across Jewish people all over the world. Some are very liberal as to whether the nation of Israel should exist; others are very conservative and are strong Zionists. My job is to love and serve both types. I may disagree with some Jewish people and some of their views, not just on Israel but other things that I believe Scripture is clear on, but it doesn’t affect how I love them.
“There’s this saying in Christianity: Sometimes we have to die to our flesh. In other words, what our natural desires are, we have to die, because we have to live out what we know is right. I never shy away from saying what I think. It’s not what we say; it’s how we say it.”
Love of Israel is not a requirement for membership at Faith Bible Chapel, “but it is something that they will hear throughout the year,” King says.
Sometimes, he faces tough questions about his support of Israel. “They can come from people who don’t understand. They aren’t particularly tough questions because it’s a straightforward biblical answer of ‘this is why we’re doing this and Jesus wants us to love our neighbors, and Jewish people are our neighbors.
“I don’t face it so much here in our community because it’s pretty well embraced and accepted. It’s part of our membership class. It’s clear that one of our beliefs is that G-d has not forsaken the nation of Israel. If you’re going to be a member here, you’re going to go through a class and you’re going to hear that, and people can ask questions.
“I don’t face a lot of opposition — more questions and curiosity. As you know, even within the Jewish community, there are many types of people with different ideas on Israel. It’s very similar in Christianity as well.”
At the end of this month, Jason and Sheryl King are leading a trip to Israel to go to military bases and provide entertainment and encouragement to the troops. The trip will be preceded at Faith Bible Chapel with friends and family night, where congregants can get a preview of the songs that their church’s International Singers will perform for the Israeli soldiers.
This will be King’s eighth trip to Israel.
“In 2003, when I was a youth pastor, I led a group of teenagers to Israel. That was my first time. I love leading trips. I love seeing the lightbulb moments I see in people’s minds because I know that’s G-d speaking to them on the validity of the Scriptures. It’s not just some story; Israel’s not just some nation. It is a G-d-established nation. Once you get there, you see it.”
In Israel, Faith Bible Chapel, in collaboration with JNF, is building a PTSD room for children in Sderot on the border of Gaza. Sderot is often the target of rockets shot from Gaza. The PTSD room will offer animal therapy.
“Children are able to go and have some sense of peace. I want to know we’re making a difference in a little kid’s life, so he or she knows that people love them, that Christians love them. That’s one of the things we say when we go to Israel at these military bases on the borders of Syria and Lebanon.
“I get up at the end of every performance and I say, ‘You’re probably wondering what we’re doing here, and they say, ‘Yes, what are you doing here?’ I say that we’re Christians and I came here to tell them two things: ‘One, G-d loves you, two, that you’re not alone.’
“They get so emotional. If we can lift their spirits, just for a little bit, it’s worth it to us. As with these kids down in Sderot, we just want to lift their spirits.”
His religious beliefs notwithstanding, King thinks Israel is a cool place. “If I could separate that and I weren’t a Christian, I would go to Israel and I’d have the time of my life. You can experience different climates, different terrains, different people, different nations, all within a half a day. I love it. In fact, next year I’m taking my mom to Israel for the first time.”
This interview took place three days after the shooting at Chabad of Poway in which a woman was murdered.
King’s response to anti-Semitism: “Any act of violence against innocent people is horrific, but anti-Semitism — and this is where some of my beliefs may differ from others — I believe an anti-Semitic act is a direct act against G-d Himself.
“To me it’s a very, very serious incident, and you have it all through Scripture, that those who participate in those types of things, will be judged by G-d in a very direct way. Scripture is very clear: I will bless those who bless Israel and I will curse those who curse Israel. (Genesis 12:3).
“I have compassion on those who would carry out horrific acts because their heart is darkened and they are not living the life that G-d created them for. Also, my heart is broken for those who are having to live with the aftermaths of these horrific attacks.
“We pray at our church when there are anti-Semitic attacks, as well as attacks against Christians. We pray for those people, that G-d gives them mercy and courage. Really, my heart truly grieves for the young people. Children are the soft spot in my own heart.
“What can happen is unforgiveness and bitterness. There is a proverb from Solomon that says the root of bitterness affects many. It just doesn’t affect you. It can affect families and communities. Forgiveness must be given immediately so we can be ourselves.”
King is the father of a daughter and a son, both teens. “I tell my children that sometimes how we respond to people isn’t about who they are, it’s about who we are. ‘If you can detach, I am going to forgive you not because you’re worthy of forgiving but I will forgive you because of who I am.‘”
The relationship between pro-Israel evangelical Christians such as those at Faith Bible Chapel and the Jewish community was not always an easy one. Jews did not understand or accept the Christians’ gestures of friendship and support. They were suspicious of their motives. Those days are pretty much over, as far as King is concerned.
“We can even joke about it. What’s great is that when you become friends, you can pretty much talk very openly. The elephant in the room is that I believe Jesus is the messiah and Jewish people don’t, but I still love you and you love me. We know that G-d has established the Jewish people and He will continue to bring us together.
“The Jewish people are so beautiful, so undeniably supernatural. When you look at Scriptures, and you look at prophecies, you can’t argue with that.”
Larry Hankin can be reached at larry@ijn.com.
Copyright © 2019 by the Intermountain Jewish News