Israel Study Tour - Indiana Wesleyan Univ

June 18 - July 7, 2014

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Testimonies Get Heated

By Evan Hoekzema

What an incredible end to an incredible day!! Today was a very special day as it was our first Sabbath in country. We were lucky enough to worship with two differing congregations, one in the day and one in the night, both of which were on almost opposite sides of the spectrum. The first church we attended was Christ’s Church located within the Old City. It is the oldest Protestant church within Jerusalem and had a very beautiful liturgical service. We followed along on a brightly colored church bulletin, and it turned out to be the most lively and most engaging liturgical service that I have attended yet.

The congregation was extremely international. We had two Korean students in front of us who were studying in America and had internships here in Israel for the summer. We heard a little of what they were doing, and it revolved around the same Israeli-Palestinian conflict that we have been studying. It was encouraging to hear our common interests and how both of our groups were seeking to find similar solutions to the same problem. The church service itself was incredible. The pastors were from Ireland and Australia, and they gave a message about how as Christians we do not have to live in sin anymore but can live in the “newness of life” (Romans 6). Their congregation was very welcoming and invited us to take part in Communion with them.

We then had some free time to shop and eat before meeting up to go to the Tower of David Museum in which Dr. Bernius walked us through most of the exhibit explaining many of the diagrams and models. These exhibits portrayed what the city of Jerusalem would have looked like at many of its different stages as it passed from hand to hand and nation to nation. We were able to clearly see the topography and the rise and fall of civilization according to the history of this ancient city.

Last on our stop was a second church visit to the King of Kings church in modern Jerusalem. Surprisingly we came on a night in which the pastor had invited his friend who was a missionary in the Middle East. His message, along with his wife and their friend Sophia brought me to tears. It was a story of reconciliation and forgiveness as their traditionally Muslim friend Sophia ultimately found Christ and learned to forgive the Jewish people she was once taught to hate. The elephant in the room was the large group of Jewish Christians or Messianic Jews, along with their Christian brothers and sisters who live in Israel. This was a heavy topic that affected all in the room, a very touchy topic, and yet heart strings were pulled as we listened to Sophia’s amazing testimony of how God rescued her from darkness and brought her into the marvelous light.

After the church service, many in our group had strong opinions about the topic that had been discussed which led to a fantastic discussion with our whole group. We had parties on both sides, those who called for a more respectful presentation, and those who overlooked the obvious blunders in light of the overall heart of the message. In my opinion I saw our group travel a unique journey together in which many personal testimonies were heard and an overall understanding was reached. At the end we stood up, held hands, and thanked God for his providence!! An incredible day!!

http://twitter.com/AdamMunshaw/status/480635742918426625

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