Who Is This Man?

We had the opportunity to take a boat across the Galilee, which was really cool. Ben and I illustrated the biblical event of Jesus and the disciples on the boat. Jesus was asleep and a storm came.

The disciples got stressed and woke Jesus up. He immediately calmed the storm.

When the disciples saw Jesus calm the storm, it caused them to ask, "Who is this man, that even the wind and the waves obey him." As we allow Jesus to move through us in the midst of the storms of life, people will ask, "Who is this man, Jesus?"

We went up Mt. Arbel, which has an incredible view. You are looking at the Northern shore of the Galilee, which is where the majority of Jesus' Galilean ministry took place. It includes Capernaum, Bethsaida, and the feeding of the 5,000.

Refuge

The Judean Wilderness was known to the Hebrews to be a place of refuge. Although it was a dangerous place, people who knew the land had a definite advantage. David and other biblical authors picked up on this theme. David wrote, "I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust." (Psalms 91:2)

We visited this area yesterday. The picture below was taken at Masada on the Dead Sea. This was known as a refuge and stronghold, and a fortress was built upon it. This is the type of area that David had in mind when he refered to God as a fortress or stronghold. And yes, we climbed up.


We also visited En Gedi on the Dead Sea. We got to float on the Dead Sea, which was incredible. You wouldn't believe how buoyant it is until you experience it. You can't keep your feet down. We also hiked David's Canyon, which includes the En Gedi Spring. This is the area where David was hiding from Saul. It is a beautiful oasis in the wilderness. This area, like God, was a refuge to David. Let God be your refuge rest in His shadow today.

We will be in the Galilee region for the next four days, and I don't know if I will have internet access. If I do, I will post more. Otherwise, it will be a few days.

We just got back from 3 days of journeys in the field. We visited the Shephelah (Judean lowlands), the Negev, and the Dead Sea. I have just a few pictures here. A few biblical examples and a few pictures of me in front of beautiful areas.

Moses struck a rock in the wilderness when God told him to speak to it. This simple act of disobedience prevented Moses from entering the Promised Land. The very thing that Moses had given his life for, his dreams of leading the people to the Promised Land, were shattered. Disobedience is expensive!

We are taking turns giving short devotions. I had the privilege of giving the morning devotion in the Judean Wilderness.

At En Gedi by the Dead Sea, we hiked up David's Canyon. This is the area where David was hiding from Saul. It is a beautiful oasis in the Wilderness.

Here is a picture of me in front of the Elah Valley. This is the place where David fought Goliath. The Philistines were encamped on the side of the Valley closest to me, and the Israelites were on the other side. Right behind me is where the battle probably occurred.





This is an excavation at Arad, in the Negev, known as the Great Wilderness in the Bible. This was known as a high place in the Bible. A high place is a place of worship and sometimes used to worship false gods. This altar shows two stones, with two altars of incense. This indicates that two gods were worshipped here. This is one of the reasons for which God punished the Israelites and they went into captivity. It is likely that this high place was torn down by Josiah.


This is Nahal Zin, a beautiful canyon in the Negev. I can't believe all the beautiful places there are here. We hiked up one of the sides of this canyon.

We are getting ready to leave of a 3 day field tour of Judah, the Dead Sea, and Philistia. I'm not sure how the internet access will be, so this may be it for a couple of days. I will leave you with a picture of me overlooking Jerusalem, with the temple mount and city walls in the background.

In the Wilderness

Today we spent some time in the Judean Wilderness. Here is a picture of me at the site in Old Testament Jericho. They believe they have found the archaeological site of the destroyed walls of Jericho.

I thought it would be cool to see a picture of a shepherd with his sheep.

We actually walked a portion of the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. This is the area in which Jesus was tempted and spent 40 days in the wilderness fasting. After spending some time there, I can't imagine spending that much time in such a place without food. It was under these circumstances that He was tempted. Being there helped me understand this text: "Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted." (Hebrews 2:18). The camel in the picture is a bonus.

This is the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Although the road wasn't paved back then, obviously, this is the same route. This is the setting for the parable of the Good Samaritan. It is also the road Jesus would have taken many times.

I was shocked at how rugged the terrain of the wilderness was. People normally travelled on ridge routes to get through, avoiding the canyons.

Gethsemane

My highlight of yesterday was going to Gethsemane. As you see on the video, the olive grove is just about how you would picture it being during that time. Inside the church, there is a rock that, according to tradition, is the rock that Jesus prayed on. That is also in the video. Now, we don't know for sure that this is the exact location of Gethsemane, but it is certainly in the close vicinity. Gethsemane is located on the Mount of Olives. It is in this setting that Jesus went through a tremendous amount of pressure, anticipating the cross and all the suffering involved. It was here that He prayed, "Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. But not my will, but yours be done." I'm been contemplating this since visiting Gethsemane. I want that to be my prayer as well: Not what I want, but what He wants for my life. It was also here that Judas betrayed Jesus and Jesus was arrested.

Brad Goes to the Temple!

My favorite thing we did yesterday was to go to the wall of the temple. I have always been a little fascinated by the temple, so I loved this experience. In the first picture, I am in front of some rocks piled up in front of the western wall of the temple to the North of the Wailing Wall. These rocks date back to the second temple and were from when the Romans destroyed the temple in 70 A.D. This fulfills the prophecy of Jesus. "And as He came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, 'Look teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!' And Jesus said to him, 'Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.'" Mark 13:1-2 What Jesus says happens, and we can trust in His Word!


These are the stairs going up to the temple. Although some of the stairs have been refinished, some date back to the first temple in the time of Jesus.

This is a purification bath located outside the temple. It is in the bedrock, meaning that this is how it looked at that time and is a true location. They were required to go through a ritual cleansing prior to entering the temple. This is probably one of the origins by which the Christian tradition of baptism emerges.

I shot this video from the City of David. The City of David is located on the Eastern Hill in Jerusalem. It is the area that David conquered from the Jebusites (2 Sam 5:6-7) and was the location of his castle. You will see three mountains on the video, although they really look more like hills. You are looking across the Kidron Valley to these mountains. The first one apparing on the video, on the right, does not have a biblical reference, but is known locally as UN hill. I think the UN has offices there. The middle hill is known as the Hill of Offense. If you look in 1 Kings 11, you will see that on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built high places for false gods. Then to the far left, you will see the Mount of Olives. If I were to keep filming in a complete circle, you would next see Mt. Moriah, or the temple mount. Then you would see the Western Hill. The City of David, or Jerusalem in the time of David, was completely surrounded by mountains. Looking at this scene brought alive the following verse: "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore." Psalms 125:2. Today we will be doing the New Testament Jerusalem walk.

Church of the Holy Seplucher

Yesterday we visited the traditional site of the crucifixion of our Lord. It is a huge church that includes stations of the cross and many artistic renditions and icons. There is a definite orthodox influence present. This mural is only part of a telling of the gospel on the wall. To the left you can see them preparing the body of Jesus for His burial, and then you see Him on the cross.

This is the believed site of the crucifixion. People are lined up to pass by. There is a rock encased there that is supposed to be part of the rock at Golgotha. People bend down, reach in, and touch the rock. It was powerful to contemplate the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins.

Old City Walks

We've been doing a lot of walking around the past two days. Five hours each day, to be exact. We haven't taken bus tours, but instead walk everywhere. This helps us to understand the geography and better interact with the land. I appreciate this approach, and it will also help me drop a few pounds!

This is a view of the Mount of Olives taken from Mt. Zion. The Mount of Olives is where Jesus ascended into heaven.

This is the Western Wall of the Old City of Jerusalem. The walls and gates are really cool. Some of the bottom level stones date to the time of Jesus, and the upper levels were constructed by the Ottomans. The Old City is divided into four quarters: Armenian, Muslim, Christian, and Jewish. There are holy sites in each quarter. The Muslim holy site is the dome of the rock, where they believe Mohammed ascended into heaven. The Christian holy site is the Church of the Holy Seplechur. The Jewish holy site is the Wailing Wall, and the video for that is in the previous post. It is lots of fun to hang out in the Old City.

This is me with the Dome of the Rock in the background. This site build on the Temple Mount, also known as Mt. Moriah. It was in this location that Abraham was going to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice, and was the site of the Holy of Holies and the temple. It is also considered a Muslim holy site. The wall you see surrounding the Dome of the Rock is the wall separating the temple compound. On the Western Wall is where the Jews worship and pray, known as the Wailing Wall.

The Old City and Wailing Wall

Wow! Today was our first full day in Israel, and it was amazing. We started off this morning with orientation. After lunch, we took a 5 hour walking tour of the Old City. We went to the Church of the Holy Seplecure. That is the probable site of Golgatha and the tomb of Jesus. It was a powerful experience to be there and consider the sacrifice of Jesus for us and His resurrection power! Another highlight was the Wailing Wall, which I filmed and hopefully the video works for you. That is the Western Wall of the temple compound, and dates back to the days of Jesus. In other words, it housed the temple where Jesus taught. Beyond the Wailing Wall is the temple mount. So why is the Wailing Wall so significant for the Jews? Why don't they just go to the temple mount to worship and pray? First, it is a Muslim holy site. Secondly, they would be afraid that they would accidentally set foot on the location of the Holy of Holies. Therefore, this wall is the safest place to worship where they can be closest to the Holy of Holies and the temple mount, without fear of accidentally treading upon it.

I will post some pictures later tonight, hopefully.

Go Teachers!

This week we celebrate teacher appreciation week. This is our opportunity to thank our teachers for all the hard work they do every day. The PTA and administration at our kids' school do a great job of recognizing teachers. This week we are providing special meals and treats for teachers every day. Today I had the privilege of bringing in some Alaskan halibut for the teachers. Thank God for teachers who love our kids, treat them with respect, and teach them valuable information. I took this picture of our school's principal and secretary. Thank a teacher this week for their input in shaping the next generation.