The Wondrous Word of Yahweh

Yahweh inspired more than 40 men to write down His messages to us in 3 languages over a period of 1500 years.  He then moved men to collect and preserve those writings throughout history. What an amazing accomplishment! Nothing is too difficult for Yahweh, The Almighty God.

However, many people today do not know Yahweh or acknowledge His accomplishments, so they deny the accuracy of scripture. Entire books have been written hoping to undermine widespread confidence in the eternal Word of God. I have read some of these writings intended to cause a loss of faith and have been encouraged by what I learned about the history of the Bible. My post today is to encourage an informed understanding of the issues and the facts.

Even those scholars who believe some errors have crept into the Scriptures through its long history are forced to admit those changes are few and far between and do not affect the Bible's overall message. The Jewish scribes who copied the Hebrew Old Testament by hand over many centuries followed very strict procedural guidelines to insure its accuracy. A partial list of those guidelines I found in The Story of the Bible by Larry Stone follows. (Great book!)

     a.  Nothing could be written from memory. A scribe was required to copy from another scroll and pronounce each word out loud before writing it down.

     b.  If a letter touched another letter or was written incorrectly, or if there was a hole, or a tear,
or a smudge which made reading difficult the scroll was not usable.

     c.  No column was to have less than 48 nor more than 60 lines and it was to be an exact copy of the original.

     d.  An editor would review the copy within 30 days of its completion counting every letter (304,805) and every word (79,976). The middle word of each copy was checked to make sure it was the same as the middle word on the scroll being copied. 

     e.  Revisions within 30 days of completion were allowed as follows. A scribe could fix up to three mistakes on a single page. If a single letter was added or left out and not fixed within 30 days of completion the manuscript had to be buried. (see The Story of The Bible by Larry Stone.)

During the New Testament era, Jesus (God in the flesh) grew up using the Old Testament scrolls and did not complain about errors in them. In fact, Jesus and the New Testament writers quoted from 34 of the 39 Old Testament books.

In his public speaking, Jesus confirmed the accuracy of the Old Testament by referring to many portions of scripture.

In defense of monogamous marriage for a lifetime, He spoke of the creation of the first man and his wife at the beginning. He also spoke of Abel, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Lot and Lot's wife, Moses, Elijah and the widow in Zeraphath, Elisha, Naaman, David, Abiathar, Solomon, the Queen of Sheba, Zechariah, Daniel, Jonah, Satan, Sodom, Gommorah, The Law and the Prophets and Psalms.  

He spoke of the people as historical figures and the places as historical places and He used the scriptures to confirm His identity and His mission.

Therefore, if we believe Jesus, we must believe what He said. He clearly endorsed the Old Testament as the inspired and prophetic Word of God. He said, "For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled." Matthew 5:18

In addition, the modern day discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has confirmed the remarkable accuracy of the Old Testament which was maintained by following those strict scribal guidelines. 

The New Testament has been copied so many times there are thousands of ancient manuscripts to compare to each other today which verify its accuracy as a whole. Yes, there are a few scriptures considered to be spurious by some scholars. These few verses are rejected or questioned by some scholars because they are not found in the oldest known manuscripts. The debate continues but, even if a few verses are spurious, they do not have the effect of cancelling the inspiration of God in the 99+% unquestioned portion of the New Testament. They simply reflect human error or misplaced zeal.   

For further insight see:
http://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Topical.show/RTD/cgg/ID/5518/Spurious-Scriptures.htm

Yahweh gave us His Word for a purpose and has preserved His Word for that same purpose. Let's look at what the Word itself tells us about that purpose.

I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13 NLT

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Tim 3:16-17 NIV

Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God's promises to be fulfilled. Romans 15:4 NLT


May you believe and receive eternal life. May you be fully equipped for every good work. May you have hope and be encouraged as you await the fulfillment of God's promises!  

"One" Gospel, Faith, Body & Way

There is one body and one Spirit—…one hope…—one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. Eph 4:5-6 NLT

All true believers are a part of the body of Christ, have the same Spirit, and the same faith. Denominations and sects do not represent “different forms of Christianity” any more than people of different colors and languages represent different races of humans. There is one human race with one blood exhibiting many genetic variables. There is one body of Christ (form of Christianity) manifesting through many doctrinal facets. The Cross: salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ by faith is the central doctrine of all true Christians.

Paul also made it clear there is no other gospel.

Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead—… To the churches in Galatia: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the One who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! Gal 1:1-9 NLT

Succinctly, there is only one way to respond to the gospel and that is to accept it by faith. Jesus died for our sins and rose again to give us eternal life. Jesus said, “…unless you believe that I Am who I claim to be, you will die in your sins.” How much clearer could it be?

It's such Good News. Won't you believe today? 

Foolish Ideas About God

There seems to be no limit to the foolish ideas people will embrace in an attempt to escape accountability to God.

I was reading a blog about the many twisted ideas men have about what God is like. The blog was essentially saying we can't really know God. Of course, this claim ignores both natural revelation and special revelation (the Holy Bible). 

One comment in response to that blog included the following statement.

“There is no difference in claiming the universe always existed or God always existed...” He was saying no First Cause was needed.

My first thought was, "That's not true because the universe is showing signs of age and decay, whereas, God is eternal! But, not wanting to make a statement which would require extensive documentation, I decided to just leave it to God's quick and powerful word. So, I posted the following quotes and left it at that.

Romans 1:18-22,28,32

18 But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness.

19 They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them.

20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused.

22 Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools.

28 Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done.

32 … Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, forbearing, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin? Romans 2:4

Friends, we were not born into darkness, but into light. God created light before He created man for a reason. He wanted us to know the truth about our relationship with Him!

Adam and Eve opened their eyes for the very first time looking into the eyes of the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ who had just formed them and breathed into them the breath of life!

They had daily fellowship with Jesus in the Garden of Eden. He regularly came in a physical body and talked with them in the cool of the day. He taught them what they needed to know and He instructed them in the ways of righteousness.

Since they were without sin, the only restriction required of them was to avoid doing something that would break their relationship with God. And, as we know, that meant not eating from only one tree in their garden. Everything they needed for life, health and happiness had been amply provided for them.

They lived in the light of God's loving presence and provision. They had no questions unanswered. They had no needs unmet. They had no natural inclination to disobey God or to care about one tree out of so many. Nothing within them shunned the light. They were fulfilled.

That is, until a beautiful creature in the garden tempted them to question God's Word and God's goodness.

You know what happened. And foolish people have been questioning God's Word and God's Goodness ever since. 

You've heard the questions. You may even have questions. If so, I urge to to read the Bible for yourself. It is God's living Word. If you read it with an honest heart, an open mind and a seeking spirit. You will find Jesus speaking to your heart just as He spoke with Adam and Eve. He wants you to know Him.

There is no reason to have foolish ideas about God when you can know Him.

You might want to start with the Gospel of John.

If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. Jeremiah 29:13

May you know Him is my prayer for you!

Is Tolerance A Virtue?

Father Dominique Pire
Let us not speak of tolerance. This negative word implies grudging concessions by smug consciences. Rather, let us speak of mutual understanding and mutual respect. I have engaged in making comments on some blogs recently. The activity has possibly taken me further into liberal territory than I have ever been before. I am still naïve enough to be shocked by reasonable people losing the ability to think rationally when discussing their perspective of political and religious issues. Perhaps I just don't understand why they can't understand my point of view. Lol

One of the most grating habits liberals engage in is constantly harping about their "tolerance and compassion," while denying those perceived virtues in conservatives. So, that's what I want to address in this blog.

First of all, as you can see in Father Pire's quote above, tolerance is not a virtue and this is why many conservatives lack that trait. Conservatives, who base their lives on the Bible, or at least on solid moral values gained from their Christian heritage in this nation, believe in the integrity of the foundation they live on and, are therefore, not willing to sacrifice their moral standards to please people who lack those standards. And, contrary to what liberals would have you believe, standing up for what you believe is a virtue! Exercising that virtue is how our country gained its freedom from Great Britain to begin with.     
As Father Pire says, tolerance is a negative word. Tolerance doesn't embrace the beliefs or even the intrinsic value of other human beings, it merely--yes, even grudgingly--allows room for the beliefs of others when it has not the power to forbid or extinguish them. And, this allowance is only given out of a superior attitude which Father Pire calls a "smug conscience." Yes, the liberal "knows" his ideas are right, but he will allow you to hold to your ideas (in the short term) as long as they in no way hinder, block or alter his ultimate agenda, which is to deny your freedoms altogether.

If. however, you hold to any ideas that hinder, block or alter the progressive agenda's implementation, you must be stopped at all costs (by votes or by physical or emotional means). Wait a minute, you may say. What happened to tolerance? You must have misunderstood. Progressives always define tolerance as behavior which furthers their agenda and stops yours! Rules and the definitions of words are changed arbitrarily to confuse, mislead, and deceive non-progressives and aid leftist causes. The left will only use new rules and new definitions as long as they can gain advantage with them. If the advantage fails, those rules and words are abandoned. In other words, the "tolerant" are never ultimately tolerant. 

First, you will be called intolerant and any other names deemed appropriate or effective to stop you from hindering a liberal's progress toward his goals. He will not openly and honestly discuss his goals because he would be hard pressed to defend them in a rational way since they are irrational. So, he will block the opposition mercilessly. Histrionics, labeling and name calling will be used consistently to draw attention away from the real issues--again, because they are indefensible.

They will bypass legislative bodies and use liberal judges in the courts to force their will on others. (This reveals what they will do if gain absolute control.) They will attempt to be the loudest voice. It doesn't matter if the message being pushed is true or the methods being used are moral. The message and the agenda are supreme. Pragmatism rules!

Next, let's talk about compassion. Does this use of tolerance sound compassionate? No, because it's not. Compassion is another red herring for liberals. Their compassion primarily resides in their "smug consciences" alongside their bogus tolerance.

They revel in talking about the needs of the "poor" and the "disadvantaged" and how those needs can be met by the government. They call that compassion! They are thrilled to spend someone else's money on ineffective programs and think that means they ooze with compassion. They sidestep personal sacrifice or actual involvement with the needy? By their definition, that has nothing to do with compassion.

How little wealthy liberals give to charitable causes has been consistently documented. The social and financial damage their programs have inflicted on our country is incalculable.

Facts are facts and it's time to break free of the liberal political correctness that silences the truth as it blares the propaganda of "liberal tolerance and compassion" and "conservative intolerance and lack of compassion" throughout our society.

It would help if we could discuss the dire issues facing our country today with "mutual understanding and mutual respect." But that can only happen when the censure ceases and both sides are open and honest.

Edmund Burke (1729-1797) British political writer
There is a limit at which forbearance ceases to be a virtue.

Your thoughts are welcome-- even if you disagree. We should use our freedom of speech while we still have it.

Day 6 and 7: Trip to Israel 2008

We started our day at the Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum.

Yad Vashem, on the Mount of Remembrance, is a huge complex which houses the Holocaust History Museum and several memorial sites; such as, the Children's Memorial and the Hall of Remembrance. It also includes The Museum of Holocaust Art, many sculptures, memorial sites such as the Valley of the Communities, a synagogue, archives, a research institute, library, publishing house and an educational center, The International School for Holocaust Studies.

Gentiles who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust are honored as the Righteous among the Nations. They receive a certificate, a medal, and have a memorial plaque in the Garden of the Righteous. 23,000 non-Jews had been honored as of 2008. The project continues as stories are submitted.

                                                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yad_Vashem

"And to them will I give in my house and within my walls a memorial and a name (a "yad vashem")... that shall not be cut off." (Isaiah 56:5)

                                                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yad_Vashem

                                          The Hall of Names

                                                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yad_Vashem

 The Hall of Remembrance with the eternal flame.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yad_Vashem   

Memorial to the victims of Concentration Camps by Marcelle Swergold 

The Children's Memorial was deeply touching. As you enter the cave-like structure there are pictures of actual children who perished. Then, there is a voice sharing the names and ages of the children who were killed and the light of memorial candles is reflected by a system of mirrors, so that innumerable flames seem to shine in the darkness, in commemoration of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust.

We spent several hours inside the Museum and other memorials and walking the grounds. It was not enough. One could spend the whole week there and barely touch the surface of the information available. There were countless videos of survivors telling their stories. There were hundreds of thousands of documents and pictures and endless memorabilia. And all to good purpose. It leaves a profound impression.

Since I really like jewelry, I was drawn to a diamond and emerald necklace and the story behind it. A wealthy Jewish man had liquidated all his assets and had purchased the necklace in hopes of preserving his ability to support his family once the crisis had passed. He and his wife were both taken to concentration camps. He survived and his wife was incinerated. He donated the necklace to Yad Vashem because wealth meant nothing to him without his wife. Only one heartbreaking story among millions.

     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Yad_Vashem_view_of_Jerusalem_valley_by_David_Shankbone.jpg

This is the view of Jerusalem from Yad Vashem. The notable aspect of the picture is the trees. The landscape was almost barren of trees when the Jews returned to Israel. It grows greener by the year.
 

We returned to the Old City of Jerusalem for lunch in a sidewalk cafe. And then we visited the Two Brother’s Store. It was very interesting and I'll talk about them later.

From there we went to the Wailing Wall again. This time we took pictures. I went down into the Women's Section and touched the wall and prayed among the Jewish women. It was akin to praying in the Upper Room. The presence of the Lord is evident in a place where so much prayer is offered up.

 While we were visiting the wall, someone left a backpack unattended in the open area and the bomb squad was called. We had to wait while a robotic machine inspected the backpack and its contents. It was a false alarm but it illustrated how seriously threats are taken in Israel.

                              Then we went through the Rabbi's Tunnel. 



This is an underground tunnel exposing the full length of the Western Wall. While the public portion of the Western Wall is approximately 190 feet long, the majority of its original length, some additional 1500 feet, is hidden underground.

                             This is one of Herod's original columns.

   This plaque in the tunnel marks the spot Rabbi's believe is beneath the Holy of Holies.

The largest stone is about 40 ft long and 4 ft high and estimated to weigh 570 tons (1,140,000 lbs).

We walked the length of the tunnel and went up a stair case and exited onto the Via Dolorosa and went back out of Lion’s Gate to our bus.

The bus then took us to the site of the Garden Tomb and Golgotha.

Stone Sepulcher in the Garden believed to be Joseph's Tomb where Jesus was interred.

        Modern door which replaces the stone which was rolled away.

                             Another exterior view of the tomb.

                             Actual burial stone inside the tomb.


This is an actual stone door but not the door for Joseph's Tomb--which hasn't been found. This one is  too small at about 5 ft diameter. The original stone door was about 12 ft diameter.

                        View of Golgotha from the Garden's edge.

    Another view of Golgotha, located north of the Damascus Gate.

The Garden Curator gave us an historical lecture about the Garden tomb and Golgotha as we gazed at the mountainside. Golgotha was discovered by British General Charles Gordon in 1883. He thought it was the likely site of Golgotha and when the ancient rock hewn tomb was found nearby, it fit the Biblical description and the site was adopted by some as the genuine place of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus.

The land was purchased in 1892 by an association of believers and has been maintained since that time by a resident Garden Curator. He discussed the differences between those who believe Jesus was buried in the area now known as the Church of the Sepulchre and those who believe Jesus was buried in the Garden Tomb.

An ancient spring fed cistern was uncovered which further confirmed that a garden had been maintained in the area. The garden has been restored and the site has been maintained in a natural state, unlike nearly every other significant site in Israel which has been covered by a church. It was a refreshing change.

They gave us olive wood communion cups and we shared a very special communion time in the Garden, led by Bob McNaul.

As we left the garden, I bought some homemade Bedouin silver bracelets from a Bedouin street merchant for $5.00 each and we headed back to the hotel for dinner and rest.

Just for fun I've decided to share Ishah's Garden Tomb & Golgotha art project for school with you.

Ishah's  "Empty Tomb" creative project for art class at Rhea County Academy 

Ishah's "Golgotha"

Final Day In Israel

Day 7                                                               Free Day.

We got ready and packed our bags. Around noon we started walking to the Old City area.

We walked through the King David Hotel and looked at all the famous signatures on the floor. They had Golda Meir, King Hussein, Pres. Nixon, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Hillary Clinton, Jacqueline Onassis, Barbara Streisand, etc.

                                    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_David_Hotel at night 2008

About halfway to our goal a Palestinian taxi driver persuaded us to ride with him. He drove us without fare  and dropped us off at a relative’s store in the Palestinian Quarter of the Old City. We browsed and considered but made no purchase there. Then we continued shopping on our own. I preferred the Jewish quarter because there was no pressure to buy. I bought a star of David necklace for a friend and a Jewish blessing bracelet for myself.

We went back to the Two Brother’s Store I mentioned earlier and talked to the brother who is a Rabbi again. He was very interesting. He reads the New Testament in order to keep the dialogue open between Jews and Christians. Some of his ideas surprised me.

He believes Satan is simply a faithful servant of God.
He believes the book of Daniel has already been fulfilled.
He believes the Messiah will be just a man– anointed by God.
He believes the serpent pushed Eve against the tree to ‘show her’ she would not die if she touched it and he thereby deceived her into believing she could also eat the fruit without ill consequences.
He said the serpent approached Eve because she was the more difficult of the 2 to convince.
He said the serpent knew if he got Eve, Adam would follow.

Those are just tidbits of the conversation. We had a lengthy discussion. Questions and answers were going both ways and it was open and pleasant.

Then we met with some of our group and headed back toward the hotel. Mike and I stopped to buy a Wailing Wall print and caught up with them at a coffee shop for a light lunch. Then we all walked back to the hotel, checked out at 4 p.m. and waited in lobby for the bus until 6 p.m.

Our tour guide took us to eat at a Jerusalem Restaurant and then drove 90 minutes to Tel Aviv and waited 3 hours to fly out. Our bags went through the x-ray machines twice and then we had to open 2 of them. They were concerned about our purchases. They wanted to make sure the items we packed were the ones we picked up in the store– no substitutes that could contain dangerous materials. We assured them that they were and they let us go with all our stuff.

We had an uneventful flight home and landed in Newark around 6:30 a.m. Due to bad weather coming in later in the day, we caught a flight out around 7:30 a.m. to Houston. We then ended up spending the night in Humble, Texas, because of bad weather. And, when we got back to the airport the next day for our 1:10 flight, we got voluntarily bumped because the flight was overweight. They bought our lunch and gave us $500.00 worth of free future flights. Our flight to Knoxville ended up being at 5:20 p.m., so we got home around 11:00 p.m. on the 14^th– Valentine’s Day.

It was a wonderful trip. I'd love to go again. Hope you've been blessed by the trip information and get a chance to go to Israel if you haven't already and want to!

                                                                Israel: God's Country

You Can Know You Are Saved By Your Creator

Jesus, The Word, Created All Things

In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. John 1:1-5 NLT

He came into the very world He created, but the world didn’t recognize Him. He came to His own people, and even they rejected Him. But to all who believed Him and accepted Him, He gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn– not with a physical birth … but a birth that comes from God. John 1:10-13 NLT

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through Him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see– such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through Him and for Him. He existed before anything else, and He holds all creation together. Col 1:15-17 NLT

We can be Confident of Salvation and Eternal Life

—“When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace He declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life.” Titus 3:4-7 NLT

…God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1John 5:11

I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13 NLT

But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name. John 20:31

Day 5: Israel Trip 2008

We started our day again with a delicious breakfast and then headed down to the Old City to walk the Via Dolorosa (The Way of Suffering). There are 14 Stations of the Cross along this walk which mark significant events as Jesus carried the cross. We visited the churches built to commemorate specific events such as the flogging of Jesus (Church of the Flagellation) and the traditional spot where Jesus was condemned to death (Church of the Condemnation and Imposition of the Cross) and the traditional burial site at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Some of these sites are contested, of course, but the walk is informative and well worth it.

We entered the Old City through the Lion's Gate. The gate is about 300 feet from the Via Dolorosa.

There are eight gates into the Old City. The Golden Gate (Eastern Gate/King's Gate) is closed. The other seven gates are usable. They are the New Gate, the Damascus Gate, Herod's Gate,the Lion's Gate, the Dung Gate, Zion Gate and Jaffa Gate or Tower of David).

           Church of the Flagellation stained glass window.

Church of the Flagellation: Crown of thorns in the ceiling.

Stone revered as the site used to wash the body of Jesus when He was removed from the cross. 

             Depiction of removing Jesus' body from the cross.

                               Section of the Via Dolorosa

                      Mary with Jesus at a Station of the Cross

                                          Pool of Bethesda Sign

                                 The Pool of Bethesda

Bethesda means "house of mercy." Water was supplied from a nearby spring. Archaeological digging has confirmed the Bible's description of five porches.

"After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked" - John 5:1-9

            We shared a Palestinian bagel near the Damascus Gate.

Our tour bus took us to the Bethlehem wall. Since Bethlehem is under Palestinian control Schlomo could not go with us and our bus couldn't enter. So, we got off of our bus and walked across the border and boarded a Palestinian bus with our new Christian, Palestinian guide, Avraham.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/upyernoz/2877428954/sizes/z/in/photostream/

                               Separation Barrier

Avraham took us to a restaurant for lunch. We had lamb shish-ca-bobs, which tasted great and then headed out to the Fields of Boaz.

I was quite taken with the idea of being in the fields where Ruth may have met Boaz. Nature is so permanent as opposed to all these churches that have been built, destroyed and rebuilt through the years.

The Fields of Boaz, about a mile and a half from Bethlehem, are home to the Shepherd’s Grotto (cave), and The Church of the Shepherd's Field which is shaped like a nomadic tent and has a dome that allows the chapel to be flooded with light to commemorate the Star of Bethlehem.

Mike and the 2009 group entering the Shepherd’s Grotto, a cave which the shepherds who were visited by the angels may have used for shelter in bad weather.


Inside the Shepherd’s Grotto.  Our guide, Avraham practically preached during our visit in 2008.

Avraham spoke 5 languages and was very knowledgeable. He told us all about the historical sites, as Schlomo did, but he also shared his Christian faith. That added a whole new dimension to his talks.



http://www.flickr.com/photos/upyernoz/2876595585/in/photostream/
                    
                The Church of the Shepherd's Field

                     Dome of The Church of the Shepherd's Field

Picture of the shepherds being greeted by a heavenly host, inside The Church of the Shepherd's Field. 

Then we visited the Church of the Nativity. St Justin Martyr identified it as the site of Jesus' birth in the second century. The entrance door was only about 4 feet high. This forces people to humble themselves to enter. The church covers about 36,000 square feet. It houses a number of chapels and several convents of  different ‘denominations.’ It is believed to be the oldest continuously operating Christian church in the world.

   

                                        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_Nativity
The Door of Humility: Main Entrance into the Church.

The entrance to the church is a low doorway that has its own legends. One story is that the door was installed by the Muslims during their rule to remind Christians that they were guests in the country and must bow to their hosts. An alternative explanation is that the height of the door was designed to prevent unbelievers from entering the church on horseback. Yet another version holds that it was to protect the Christians from their hostile neighbors.

 http://www.farsinet.com/christmas/nativity_church.html

                                         http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_Nativity
 Interior of the Church of the Nativity beyond the Door of Humility.

                                       http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_the_Nativity

Believed to be the birthplace of Jesus in the cave beneath the church. A 14 point silver star marks the spot.

A newer section of the church is used every year to broadcast Christmas services worldwide.

Finally, we  visited another cave under the church where Jerome lived for 35 years or more translating the scriptures into the Latin Vulgate. Mike commented that he thought I could do that! (Occupy myself for 35 years with some kind of project! :-)  Jerome was also buried there.

From the Church of the Nativity, we went to a local Bethlehem gift shop. Mike got a replica of the Ark of the Covenant carried by priests. I got a 12 stone ephod necklace and a few knickknacks. Then we went back to the Dan Panorama in Jerusalem for the night. Our week was almost over!  It went too fast.

Day 4: Israel Trip 08

After a fabulous breakfast at the Dan Panorama Hotel, we started our day on Mt. Scopus with grand views of the city and a quick camel ride.

From there we walked down a small street between a Christian graveyard and the largest Jewish graveyard in the world. I noticed a variety of rocks placed on the Jewish graves and wondered about the significance. Our guide, Schlomo, said flowers wilt and fade but rocks remain so the Jews put rocks on the graves.

We passed the tombs of Haggai and Malachi and entered the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mt. of Olives. We saw some of the ancient olive trees among which Jesus may have prayed.

Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there and pray ... Matt 26:36

We visited the Church of the Teardrop, where Jesus may have wept over Jerusalem.

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it! Behold, your house is left to you desolate; and I say to you, you will not see Me until the time comes when you say, ‘BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!’” Luke 13:34-35

     I got a picture of the Eastern Gate from between the olive trees.



 Then we visited the Church of the Nations where Jesus may have agonized on the rock of Gethsemane. It is across the Kidron Valley from the Eastern Gate also known as the King's Gate.
 
                                Inside the Church of the Nations.

 From there we went to the Temple Museum. This is the Golden Candlestick for the future Temple.

Then we viewed the Wailing Wall but took no pictures because they are not allowed on the Sabbath.

Next we visited the Church of St Peter in Gallicantu. Gallicantu means cock crow because this is supposed to be where Peter denied Jesus three times. It is thought to be built on the site of the home of Caiaphas where they interrogated Jesus and held him through the night in the dungeon. The church is topped with a Golden Rooster.

                                       Statue of Jesus bound.

                                                        
                                  Gallicantu Prison Dungeons

Ancient steps Jesus may have used leading from the house of Caiaphas to the Kidron Valley.


From there we visited David’s Tomb and the Upper Room.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David%27s_Tomb

This is not considered to be the authentic site of David's Tomb but it was near the Upper Room so we stopped by.

This is not the original Upper Room but it has been visited and prayed in so much that I felt the presence of the Lord there more than any other place we visited, other than the Wailing Wall. We had a very special prayer time in the Upper Room.

2009 view of the Upper Room

My schedule gets a little fuzzy here. I believe we had lunch and then visited the miniature model of Old Jerusalem: The City of King David.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_the_Book

We toured the Shrine of the Book which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knesset

We viewed the Knesset (Israeli parliament) from a distance and Schlomo talked to us about how it works.

There is a lot of walking and the guide does a lot of talking so the days are full and very interesting-- and they fly by! The food is great and the hotels were really nice!

Thanks again to Dianne Swafford for the use of her pictures.