Our last day! We agreed to the "Divine interruption" in our schedule to baptize the Spanish singer. We went to 2nd baptismal site in the region of the tribe of Judah, in the Judean Desert (4-5 days walk from Galilee and 4 hours walk from Qumran). This site was much different than the other one since it bordered Jordan and is bordering a military zone, complete with landmines and wire fences. Although baptism is important, Pastor Kyle warned, "Don’t make the “thing” more important than the purpose. This is starting point of something new and transformational." We baptized, cheered, and will pray for each of the people in their team by name. We were happy to get out of the blistering 106 degree heat and onto the air-conditioned bus! We made it through the border patrol with no issues. Aroma coffee was closed because it is Sabbath. A construction sign on highway confirmed working Sunday-Thursday. So Shafik surprised us with coffee at Elvis American Diner. Laura said it looked like Elvis threw up in there. Even the outside wall mural included him. Are Israelis Elvis fans? Or do they do this purely for our benefit, thinking that we are? We traveled on to Tell Azekah, overlooking Valley of Elah where David & Goliath fought. The Philistines ran around Tel Azekah toward Gath after defeat. We hiked to the top of the tell where the archaeological digs can be seen. Aside from the dig sites, broken pottery from Iron Age floats up from the earth from King Sennacherib’s destruction. We also got to go down to Valley of Elah and saw a wadi with stones similar to the ones David used on Goliath. From childhood stories of David using five smooth stones in a sling, it's easy to think of them as pebble-sized, but they were more likely the size of a man's fist. Then we went to our last stop before leaving: Jaffa/Joppa means beautiful “The Bride of the Sea” This is the place where Jonah boarded a ship to Joppa instead of Tarshish (Jonah 1:3), where Peter raised Tabitha from the dead (Acts 9:36-42), and where Peter went to Simon the Tanner’s house after he had a vision (Acts 10) that meant good news for the Gentiles! We walked along the Mediterranean sea, took pictures, saw the sun set, and prayed over our guide and driver (who had a Mission Impossible ringtone on his phone!) Laura tried to capture the splash of the waves at sunset - and they caught her, too! Shafik’s parting words: “Your pilgrimage is about to end, but your fellowship is about to begin. Share your faith and God’s love.”
Thanks for joining us on the journey! : )
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After lunch in small Jerusalem restaurant, we had a busy, crowded walk up to and through the Damascus Gate to the Garden Tomb. The tour of the Garden Tomb was done by American or British Guide (Shafik not allowed to guide us here). The Church of England purchased land in 1890. They thought the “skull” face in side of cliff with two caves could be place of Jesus’ burial outside the city because Jews stoned/executed other Jews there and Romans would have used highway to do executions so others would see. When Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took Jesus’ body to a garden nearby, the garden would have been an agricultural one, not just flowers and trees. They found a wine press below, so it could have been a garden/vineyard. When grapes were pressed, they used small people to tread on them but not break the seeds because it would taint the flavor of the juice. The trough or channel is for the juice to run or pour. Then we saw the tomb, which has small window to allow soul to get out, and a channel for stone to roll. Normally a body would have been left one year, and then the family would come and put the bones in an ossuary (box) and move it out. Rounded roof could indicate Byzantine church in 4th century and has a painted red cross with symbols of Jesus Christ, Alpha – Omega It’s not important to know the exact location; it’s about the resurrection in your heart. Pastor Kyle preached and we celebrated communion. Then we sang the hymn In the Garden. We had time to reflect ... and notice the sound of the water, see pomegranate trees bearing fruit and a bird close by... As we prepared to depart, an Israeli Government Tour Guide came and asked if Pastor Kyle would meet with a vacationing Latina singer. We had seen her entourage yesterday at the top of the Mount of Olives and again at the Garden of Gethsemane, where she openly listened to Kyle's message - then talked with Shafik for a full explanation and answer her questions. Now, when she saw us at the Garden Tomb, she asked Pastor Kyle to pray with her (and she cried). Then she asked to be baptized.
As we drove away from the Garden Tomb, we saw tombs/monuments of Absalom and Zachariah (pointed roof). It brought to mind Jesus' warning in Matthew 23: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside ... you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness." It's not the outward appearance, but the heart that matters to God. We went to Western Wall (also known to us as Wailing Wall, but not referred to that by Jews). This is where the Jewish people believe they can be closest to God and the Holy of Holies in the Temple. The prayer areas are divided for men only and women only. When Jews finish praying, they respectfully back away from the wall rather than turning their back on it. We stayed for Sabbath - Shabbat Shalom Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16)
We walked the Via Dolorosa through Muslim Quarter to Bethesda. Shafik told us, "We will walk the way of the cross and feel the weight, and then the relief at the end." (And he warned that we may be attacked by Muslims about our ‘stupid Jesus’ with eggs or rotten fruit, but we went without incident.) There was a lot of police presence to keep peace (and breakfast helps, too!) Beth (house) Hesda (mercy) = means House of Grace and Mercy. Brian read Luke 5 about healing man at Pool of Bethesda on Sabbath. Bethesda is in the northern section of the city. St. Ann’s Church is here, built by Crusaders, and tradition holds this is where the Virgin Mary was born to Anna (mother of Mary) & Joachim. The acoustics perfectly echoed as we sang Alleluia. Ecce Homo (means Behold the Man) Convent – “Behold here is your man” – Pontius Pilate. Built by two Jewish brothers who converted to Christianity and realized it was on the Roman Fortress of Antonia. The Via Dolorosa, or Way of the Cross, which has stations marked on buildings or in churches. 1st station: Jesus is condemned to death. Lithostrotos (Greek) / Pavement stone remains at the entrance, upon which Jesus was tried by Pilate (John 19:13). We went in Armenian store called “The Palace” which has original wall of Antonia Fortress. The Temple was destroyed, but not the retaining wall. Earlier we saw the Royal Stoa, the ancient basilica constructed by Herod the Great during his renovation of the Temple Mount at the end of the 1st century BC, where the Pharisees and Sadducees sat. That’s where they asked Jesus, “Should we pay taxes to Caesar or God?” (Mark 12:13-17). They were not supposed to have coins with images on them in the temple area, so when Jesus asked, “What’s on the coin in your pocket?” they were already in trouble/embarrassed for having them. Now, we saw actual coin used for “give to Caesar what is Caesar, and to God what is God’s” (Mark 12:17). 2. Jesus carries his cross 3. Jesus falls the first time 4. Jesus meets his mother 5. Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the cross. We took pictures of the 3rd, 4th & 5th stations. The 6th station is an old stone tablet set in the wall along the street, according to Catholic tradition, where Veronica wiped Jesus' face. Station 7. Jesus falls the second time. 8. Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem – “Don’t cry for me but for yourselves and your children” (Luke 23:28). 9. Jesus falls the third time. 10. Jesus is stripped of his garments. 11. Crucifixion: Jesus is nailed to the cross. 12. Jesus dies on the cross. 13. Jesus is taken down from the cross (Deposition or Lamentation) – body prepared. 14. Jesus is laid in the tomb. We went into the Church of Holy Sepulcher, which had last 5 stations of Cross.
Seven last statements of Christ on the Cross - and how we are the living seven:
1. "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34). Our Father forgives and our faith forgives. 2. "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:39-43). Jesus assures us, “I am going to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:2) 3. "He said to his mother, 'Dear woman, here is your son,' and to the disciple, 'Here is your mother'" (John 19:26-27). We are His children and family, and we love our neighbor as ourselves 4. "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:45-50). In Aramaic, lama sabachthani means “I am destined for this” 5. "I thirst" (John 19:28-29). We thirst – hunger and thirst for His righteousness 6. "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit" (Luke 23:44-49). We surrender and commit ourselves as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1) 7. "It is finished" (John 19:28-30). It is finished – done and complete. Our salvation is secured. We walked toward the temple from the archeological park. We entered the royal Stoa, or marketplace, which ironically sounds like "store" in a Boston accent. (Thanks Mr. Bell) As you can tell, there were giant stalls for grain or animals, but even bigger were the Herodian stones The smallest one weighed 2.5 tons, or 2500 pounds. That is a large stone. The stones in the road are from the Romans, who pushed them down to destroy the street. We also saw the Mikveh, or ritual bath Yes, I am aware that it is spelled differently on the sign. There are two ways to spell Mikveh. Speaking of nothing in particular, Now might be a good time to mention that this was not where Jesus was turning over the tables, it was the Court of Gentiles - that is part of the reason Jesus was mad. The salesmen were taking over part of the temple to do business (probably dishonestly) in the only place the Gentiles could go. No pics of that particular rock, but it's pretty cool. We walked a little ways past a palace. We then arrived at some steps. These were important steps. It's a little hard to tell, but the steps are in a pattern of wide, short, wide, short. On the wide steps, a Jewish person walking up to the temple would say a Psalm of Ascent. (Psalms 120-134) These are the steps that Jesus walked up. There are drains or channels that were for blood from sacrifices to run down from Temple to Kidron Valley. Lots of blood from the sacrifices, but now Jesus is our perfect sacrifice once and for all. There were also multiple more mikveh (say that 5 times fast). The steps led up to the south gate of the temple. GUYS, JESUS WAS HERE. IT'S SO COOL! AAAAAAaaaaaaand that's a good place to stop. YAY.
Love to All, Laura. “I come here to walk among the past to hear its echoes … I carry its memories for a lifetime.” We got an early start for a trek through Old Jerusalem and got to see the remains of the city walls from the First Temple Period. We saw St. Mary's Hospice of the German Knights from the Crusader Period, and we walked through the Jewish Quarter - largest section but most modern; upper section of the old city. As the sun rose, we saw the first clouds we had seen on our trip. The Western Wall (including the constructed gateway for non-Muslims to access the Temple Mount). Next stop: Jerusalem Archaeological Park We spied a tiny kitty hiding among the fig leaves - and fed him : ) Artifacts from the Byzantine Period discovered in the excavations near the Temple Mount - including the oil lamps (right) like Jesus taught about in the Parable of the ten bridesmaids or virgins (Matthew 25).
The night before we noticed a sign above a window advertising tickets to walk the wall. The times listed showed from 8 am to 6 pm. Since it was only 5, we decided to give it a shot. Diane said she would come along with us. We paid for tickets at the window, and asked if we could walk longer than 5 pm. The man selling the tickets said we could walk a long as we liked. We headed up some stairs just to the right of the Jaffa Gate, put our tokens in the slot, and walked out onto the top of the Old City wall. Just as we get on top of the New Gate, some guys below us start yelling at us "What are you doing up there"? Like it's not obvious, we're walking... "You can't be up there, get down." But we were told we could walk as long as we wanted..."No! You must get off the top of the wall at once." So much for walking all the way around the Old City before supper. Anyway, the brief time we were allowed on the wall was spectacular. So we went shopping in the Christian Quarter - service with a smile.
We walked through beautiful flowering trees to the Garden of Gethsemane. The name Gethsemane in Hebrew comes from gat + shemanim and means (olive) oil press. Jesus and His disciples came to Gethsemane to pray on the night He was betrayed and arrested (Matthew 26:36-55; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-53; John 18:1-12). We sat in sight of the blocked up Eastern gates across the Kidron Valley, behind which lies the Dome of the Rock, where blood was sacrificed after Abraham offered Isaac. Jesus was pressed and sweat drops of blood here. And beyond the Dome of the Rock is Golgotha, where Jesus was crucified and shed blood. Pastor Kyle did a teaching time here, outside the Garden:
The Gethsemane olives are possibly descendants of one that was in the garden at the time of Christ. This is because when an olive tree is cut down, shoots will come back from the roots to create a new tree. It is impossible to kill olive trees unless you pull out the roots and shoots. If you cut off the branches, new shoots will come out. They are an ever-living tree - an appropriate symbol for our ever-living God. Shafik prayed the Lord ’s Prayer in Aramaic. As we finished contemplating, the bells rang long and loudly. We entered the Church of All Nations, also known as the Church or Basilica of the Agony. It is a Roman Catholic church next to the Garden of Gethsemane and it has a beautiful mosaic on its facade. It was built to recall how Jesus agonized over us to the point of sweating blood (Luke 22:24) and it enshrines a section of bedrock where Jesus is said to have prayed before his arrest. Three churches - Byzantine, Crusader and a modern church were built successively on the site where it is believed that Jesus prayed to the Father hours before his crucifixion, was betrayed by Judas with a kiss, and was strengthened by angels before He was arrested. The chapel was built between 1919 and 1924 using funds donated from many different countries. The respective coat-of-arms of each donating country are incorporated into the glass of the ceiling, each in a separate, small dome, and also into the interior mosaics. Violet-colored glass was used throughout the church to evoke a mood of depression analogous to Christ's agony, and the ceiling is painted a deep blue to simulate a night sky. Hebrews 4:14-15 - Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Hebrews 4:16 - Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
As we walked from the City of David, we had a clear view of the Mount of Olives. And we could see the excavation to our right, which was found because they went to build a parking structure and found the wall from the City of David. The Mount of Olives seemed scarce of trees but full of graves. Across the Kidron Valley from us, this 2900-foot hill has served as one of the main burial grounds for the city. And the view back over Jerusalem shows how very close the two locations are to each other. All Jews are buried with feet facing the Temple Mount so they can arise when the Messiah comes and walk toward the Temple. That is true even for Jews living in other countries. Instead of our American custom of leaving flowers at the grave site, families honor the dead with rocks to assist in rebuilding the new Temple. Jews are buried in tombs, not in the visible boxes, but 4 meters below. In Jewish tradition, the Messiah will descend the Mount of Olives on Judgement Day and enter Jerusalem through the Golden Gate (the blocked-up double gate in the center of the eastern wall of the Temple Mount, also known as the Gate of Mercy, or the Beautiful Gate). (I think it will take more than blocking up the gate and filling it in to stop Jesus' returning.) As Christians, we believe in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, while many Jews still await a Messiah. Laura reflected on the teaching time and left her own cairn on the steps. Afterward, we walked down the "Palm Sunday Road." It is the biblical road that Jesus followed when he entered into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, where Jesus road a donkey to the Temple Mount. He was sacrificed on the Mount of Olives four days later. The Palm Sunday Road descends from the Mount of Olives to the Garden of Gethsemane, which is where we went next...
Hello Everyone! Laura here and we are picking up right where we left off. The City of David leads into what looks like just a normal little museum. The museum was underground a little, which was nice because it was so hot outside. We walked through a system of tunnels... And saw an ancient pool. The "normal looking" museum got less normal And pretty soon, we were on our way into Hezekiah's tunnel. Hezekiah's tunnel is a 1750-foot (530m) tunnel carved during the reign of Hezekiah to bring water from one side of the city to the other against siege by Assyrian King Sennacherib. For information, check out 2 Kings 20:20 and 2 Chronicles 32. Below, you can see what is about the middle of the tunnel. It splits off momentarily because the 2 groups digging missed a little. Since the tunnel is an underground waterway, there is no light. So the five of us that had flashlights had to guide the way and we would all shout back to each other. "Tunnel gets lower! Watch your head!" "Lower! Heads!" "Watch your heads..." It did get very low at some points, and also very narrow at some spots. Oh, and don't forget we were walking in knee deep water the whole time ;) Anyway, we all survived and got out of the tunnel. The "wet" tunnel took about 45 minutes to walk through. There is also a "dry" Canaanite tunnel that takes 15 minutes and also is lighted. Good for people with claustrophobia. We exited near the Pool of Siloam, mentioned in Nehemiah 3:15 and John 9, when Jesus heals a man born blind. We headed to lunch at the Notre Dame Hotel. It was very fancy : ) SO IN CONCLUSION!!! If you are in Israel at some point, go to Hezekiah's tunnel! It is super interesting. Just make sure to wear shorts and bring a flashlight : )
Love to all, ~Laura Day Six was jammed packed and started early with breakfast at the hotel. Then a dash through the old city to the Western Wall so we could get in queue to visit the Temple Mount, AKA Dome of the Rock since it's controlled by Muslims, and only Muslims are allowed to enter inside the shrine. No Bibles or crosses or any marker of Christianity allowed, and security searches both on the way in and on the way out. You can NOT be Jewish and visit the Temple Mount as Jew aren't sure where the Ark of the Covenant ended up and would not take the chance of stepping over it by being up above the Temple area. The Temple Mount is a very large area and there also seems to be a lot of cats hanging out on it. This site is the holiest site in Israel, hotly contested between the Jews and Muslims. In Jewish history, this is the site where Abraham bound Isaac, and later where Solomon built the Temple of God. In Islam's history, this is where they believe that Mohammad went up to heaven and got the rules for their religion. An interesting difference is in Islam, God gives love. For Christians, God is love. We saw Solomon's Gate and the Eastern Gate among the eight arched entrance ways. After a short walk off the Mount we came to The City of David. We saw olive trees bearing fruit as we entered a small garden. 2 Samuel 5:7 - "David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David" The City of David is on a ridge southeast of the old city of Jerusalem, below the Temple Mount area. Two valleys that protect the City of David are the Tyropoeon Valley = Valley of the Cheesemakers and Kidron Valley = Valley of Jehoshaphat (Josiah), which separates the Temple Mount from the Mount of Olives. The Hinnom Valley = Valley of Hell, Greek =Gehenna, is where child burnt sacrifices happened, and where Judas Iscariot bought plot of land and killed himself Ophel is part of the Eastern Hill that sits between the City of David and the Temple Mount. Ophel means “swell or rise” (see 2 Chronicles 27 and 33, Nehemiah 3:26, Isaiah 32:14 and Micah 4:8) The archaeological park and ruins are amazing! We voted down including the picture of the ancient toilet, but it was incredible to see houses that were in part of the wall Nehemiah built. Luke 2:11 - For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
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AuthorThis blog is mainly written by me (Laura Walkendorf,) and also by my parents. Archives
April 2017
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