Archives for 2012

Today was all about walking in the footsteps of Jesus and seeing what he saw. Firstly we visited the Mount of Olives. If we think about Jesus coming up to Jerusalem three times a year from childhood it is very likely that He would have known this mountain very well.

Jesus spent a lot of time with his disciples in this location. In Matthew 24 the disciples asked Jesus about the end of the age, when it would come and what the signs would be. Jesus replied “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there will be famines, and pestilences and earthquakes in divers places. All these things are he beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

But he that shall endure to the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

When Jesus was sharing these words with the disciples and helping them to understand what would come at the end he was actually referring to what the prophet Zechariah had spoken of in Chapter 14 of Zechariah. In this chapter the end is described and the return of the Lord Jesus, when His feet would stand on the Mount of Olives, which would then be split in two.

The coming of the Lord is going to be something that the entire world will experience. Standing here in Jerusalem causes us to be expectant of our Lord’s coming. All of us as believers look forward to that day when he shall return. We thank the Lord for helping us in Matthew 24 so that we would not be fooled by false messiahs.

Boldness Because of Who we Serve

From the Mount of Olives we then went to the House of Caiaphas the High Priest at St Peter at Galicantu (meaning the cock crowed). We stood on a beautiful path surrounded by poppies and other bright flowers. Rev Taylor and Pamela then recounted when Peter denied Jesus three times. Typically we would focus on Peter, however to continue our theme of women in the bible we concentrated on the maids to which he maid the denials.

It was fascinating to consider these maids and their significant role in Peter’s denial of Christ. Even though they were servants, they were bold, persistent and accusatory towards Peter. Noting his reticence, they could sense that he was unwilling to communicate his knowledge of Jesus but boldly they demanded that he confess. It was unusual for a female servant to be so brazen and particularly towards a man. However knowing that they were in Caiaphas’ camp and that Peter was on the “enemy’s” this gave them a boldness.

How much more bold should we be? We are on the Lord’s side. We are on the side of the King of heaven and earth.

Jaffa Gate

In the afternoon we went to the Jaffa gate and reflected on the Passion of Christ, his innocence and faithfulness to the end. In addition we looked at the faithfulness of the women who followed Jesus all the way to the cross. Verse 55 and 56 of Matt 27 says “And many women were there afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him: Among which was, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses and the mother of Zebedee’s children”.

These women were in the background being faithful and Jesus noticed. We then asked ourselves are we always trying to be seen or are we happy to be in the background coming forward when called by Jesus? It is better that Jesus be the one to bring us forward.

We also considered the women who were following Jesus to the cross, with lamenting and mourning in Luke 23:27. They were possibly professional mourners or followers. Despite being physically exhausted and wounded, Jesus said to them “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs of those that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck..” What did these women think of this saying? Did they hear of his resurrection?

Jesus loved women and it is easy to see why they were devoted to him. Even when he was wounded and in severe pain, he wanted to make sure that his mother was taken care of and so he desired John to consider Mary as his own mother and John as her own son. Jesus showed love to the very end.

We then walked through Jerusalem moving from the Muslim quarter to the Jewish one. We visited the Temple institute where we learned about the Jewish hope and preparations for the third Temple to be built. Reader, pray that the Jewish people realise that they are the temple and that God wants to live in them.

We have one more full day in Israel so Shalom Alechem (Peace to you)

Today we went to En Gedi, a place that was well known to David during his days as a shepherd boy, before he became king. It was also a place of refuge to him when being chased by Saul. En Gedi is a beautiful place with lush oases, waterfalls and a perfect area from which to explore the love that Christ has for his bride, the church.

Rev Taylor and Pamela stood in the water, with a small cascading waterfall as a backdrop, ready to share the word of God to the group. En Gedi is mentioned in the first chapter of Solomon “My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire (henna blossom) in the vineyards of En Gedi”. There are three main ways that Songs of Solomon is interpreted; allegorically, as a means of explaining God’s love for Israel and the church, literally as a book about godly marriage and sexual relationship or typically as Solomon’s own personal experience.

Women are usually very romantic and love to feel loved. We are made to respond to love and there is only one person who truly knows about love and romance and that is God. In Songs of Solomon, God shows how he wants to love us; we are the apple of his eye. He also expresses that if we call him and run after him he will draw us to himself. It is a romantic pursuit by God for intimacy with us with the result being that we respond to Him.

In chapter 2: 14 it says “O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely”. What a picture for us, to show us that these are the places where God meets us; the secret places, when we draw away from the crowd and busyness, when we are still before God.

Chapter 4:12 – 15 of Songs gives a beautiful picture of a woman. Rev. Taylor encouraged us that we all have these beautiful attributes of womanhood within us, we just have to draw them out.

The love that God has for us is a stubborn sincere love. He went to the lengths of sending his son to die on the cross for us. What a love, what a cost we stand forgiven at the cross.

He Leads Me Beside Still Waters

After a short prayer, some of the group then traversed the hills of En Gedi. The topography was such that it was not hard to imagine that this was the place (as well as the Judean desert) that inspired Psalm 23. We walked by still waters, experienced hills and viewed valleys. This was a place where the soul could be restored.

Having traversed the hill, we reached a splendorous waterfall. The group took pictures and then descended, our next stop was the dead sea..

The Dead Sea Experience

A few members of the group had never been to Israel, hence this were their first experience of the Dead Sea. It was amusing to see their expression as they put themselves in a chair position and then floated as if weightless. One day there will be life in the Dead Sea again! (Ezekiel 47:10)

Table Fellowship

We ended the day with wonderful fellowship with Pamela and her husband Sh’muel at Jerusalem House. Refreshments were waiting for us and after we partook of them we all sat around the large table to hear what was on Sh’muel’s heart.

Sh’muel reminded us that on Thursday, the day of our departure; it would be the 64th anniversary of the State of Israel. During this time the Jewish people remember the 2000 year exile without their land, Jerusalem and their temple. God has brought the Jews back from the nations (from which they were scattered) in 1948 and this is considered a miraculous event before the full and final redemption of Israel.

We read from Ezekiel 36:22 – 24 which says “Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for our sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land” These are the main verses that speak of the return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel and Jerusalem.

The sanctification of God’s name is probably the deepest meaning of the State of Israel today. It’s not only about the people returning to the land or the spiritual restoration of the land of Israel when all Israel shall be saved. The sanctification of God’s holy name is what it is all about. For 2000 years God turned his face (presence) from Israel and scattered them amongst the nations. Church history teaches that God was finished with the Jewish people and has replaced them with the church even though Paul says in Romans 11 that God most certainly has not. Now we are in the time prophetically where he is turning his face back to Israel and turning to Zion.

We left knowing the most pertinent thing – how to pray for Israel. We read from Daniel 9: 3- 19 and were encouraged to pray these scriptures, making supplication before the Lord on Israel’s behalf. Reader, I encourage you to open your bible and do likewise…

It is only day 4 but already we have learnt so much about women in the bible. It has been invaluable to understand how we can apply the characteristics of the godly women and ask God to help us remove those unfavourable ones. Today was our last day in Galilee. The rest of the tour would be spent in Jerusalem. Along the way we would walk in the footsteps of more wonderful women of the bible.

From Harlot to Heroine

Our first stop of the day and backdrop for the next biblical woman was the ancient city of Jericho. We stood facing the mount of temptation, where Jesus was approached by Satan whilst fasting for 40 days and 40 nights. It was here that Pamela and Rev. Taylor spoke to us about the life of Rahab.

Rahab’s name comes from the Egyptian god Ra and means insolence and fierceness. She was an Amorite prostitute from an idolatrous nation. Rahab was very intelligent and had heard about the reputation of the God of Israel, how he always led them to victory. By faith Rahab chose to protect the Israelite spies who had come to spy out the land of Jericho and destroy the Amorites. Rahab put her faith in the God of Israel and because of this she and her family were saved.

After Israel defeated the Amorites, Rahab married one of the spies. Jesus was a descendant of this union. Her story shows us that God can turn any life around. Through faith she obtained a new life that led to the earthly life of even our Lord Jesus. We too can be changed and obtain a new destiny if we just have faith in God. There is no depth of sin that God cannot lift a person from, if they turn to Him by faith.

Mary and Martha – Which One Are You?

After lunch and fellowship in Jericho we went to Bethany the home town of Mary, Martha and their brother Lazarus (Luke 10:38). At Bethany we learnt about the intimate relationship that Jesus had with Mary, Martha and Lazarus. They had true friendship, they loved Jesus and Jesus loved them.

In Luke we see how Mary loved to sit at the feet of Jesus, whilst Martha was encumbered with the duties of serving. When Martha asked Jesus “Lord do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?” Jesus said lovingly “Martha, Martha you are careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her”.

Sometimes we can get caught up in practical things but miss special moments with the Lord. We must be careful of busyness!

Jesus loved both Mary and Martha and both types of characteristics are required in our spiritual lives. Martha was dependable and task orientated whilst Mary was a free spirited woman, spiritually sensitive and wept freely. It was Mary that poured expensive perfumed ointment on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. These sisters were very different and so are we all.

Mary and Martha had a characteristic in common and that was Faith. When their brother became sick they both called for Jesus knowing that he could make things right. Jesus did not come straight away and Lazarus died. When Jesus arrived in Bethany, Martha knew that even then, whatever Jesus asked for God would grant it to Him. Jesus called Lazarus forth and he rose from the dead.

God makes room for so many personalities and we need to embrace the way God made us. There are times when we need to be busy but we must also have those quiet times with Jesus. There will be times when extravagance is necessary (such as Mary’s use of expensive ointment) but God will also lead us to frugality. Loving and serving God is the most important thing.

Leap for Joy

In Jerusalem Rev. Taylor and Pamela highlighted the faithfulness of Mary (Mother of Jesus) and Elizabeth her cousin who had been barren for many years but remained faithful in serving God.

Mary and Elizabeth had a special relationship and are great examples of women celebrating each other. They were both pregnant and although Elizabeth had been barren for years, she displayed no resentment towards her teenaged cousin but was honoured to have the Saviour’s mother in her house. The baby even leaped in Elizabeth’s womb, when she heard Mary’s salutation.

We were all encouraged to keep having faith and celebrate the answers to each other’s prayers even if we are still waiting for ours. With God nothing is impossible.

Taking Refuge Under God’s Wings

Before retiring to the hotel in Jerusalem we journeyed to Bethlehem where we recounted the life of Ruth. Pamela explained that In order to understand the town of Bethlehem we had to look at the features that create the word Bethlehem, which means the ‘House of Bread’ or ‘House of Fruitfulness’. Pamela then showed us an opening blossom of an olive tree with wheat growing all around. Pressed olives and wheat are used to make bread and so the landscape itself was a physical representation of the meaning of the area. The biblical diet was grain, wine and oil and that is what Bethlehem is all about, a fertile place where wheat and olive trees grow. The way that Bethlehem is set up on limestone terraces is that the oil trees are planted with wheat growing in between.

In the book of Ruth we see that a man named Elimelech of Bethlehem Judah went to live in Moab because there was a famine in Bethlehem (no wheat and oil). As we read this, we could actually see the hills of Moab in the distance. Elimelech and his wife Naomi had sons in Moab, who married two Moabite women Ruth and Orpah. Both sons and the Father died. Naomi journeyed back to Bethlehem with Ruth as she had heard that the Lord had “visited his people by giving them bread”.

Ruth had a great capacity for love; she shows this by leaving her homeland and sojourning with Naomi. In Bethlehem Ruth gleans in the field and builds up a good reputation. She chooses the God of Naomi and looks after Naomi, carrying herself in a humble and respectful way. Boaz, the owner of the field in which she gleans notices Ruth for her great character. He comments on how she has left her own land to take refuge under the Lord’s wings. Eventually he marries her. They have a child and he is the grandfather of King David who is in the ancestral line of Jesus.

Ruth’s life shows us that if we give up everything for God he will honour us and we will see the glory of God in our lives.