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Israel Familiarization Trip
January 7-17, 2015
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Renewed Vision
Our day began overlooking the Sea of Galilee at sunrise. Today was our last morning in Galilee, and after a quick breakfast we began the journey from the North to our final destination of the trip – Jerusalem.
Rich led our morning devotions on the Eastern shore of the Sea with a reflection on Mark 6 and 7. Nothing illuminates these stories like standing in the areas in which they happened. He conducted us quickly through Jesus calming the storm and his hostile encounter with Legion (or Crazy Larry as he likes to call him) on the shore. After casting Larry’s demons into a herd of pigs the locals send Jesus away. Larry wants to follow but Jesus leaves him behind to share his story with his surrounding community.
Later Jesus will return to the area and find 4,000 spellbound listeners, eager to hear his teaching. Crazy Larry made an impact in his community by sharing his crazy Jesus story. I know for me this was a reminder that this pilgrimage is a round trip journey. As ministry leaders we are here to visit, glean as much as we can in this fascinating land, and with renewed vision to bring the story of Jesus home to our communities.
From Galilee we drove South along the Jordan to the important trading junction of Beth She’an. We ascended to the Acropolis to look over ruins of an Egyptian palace, and after summiting looked down over an ancient Roman city. Complete with giant pillars, a gymnasium, Roman baths, and a massive ampitheatre, the comparative opulence of this city to the others we’ve seen was astonishing.
Beth Shean
Located 17 miles (27 km) south of the Sea of Galilee, Beth Shean is situated at the strategic junction of the Harod and Jordan Valleys. The fertility of the land and the abundance of water led the Jewish sages to say, “If the Garden of Eden is in the land of Israel, then its gate is Beth Shean.” It is no surprise then that the site has been almost continuously settled from the Chalcolithic period to the present.
Continuing South we returned briefly to the Dead Sea region to explore Qumran, the discovery site of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Rich pointed out the sovereignty of God in the preservation of the scrolls and their discovery at a time when the inspiration of Scripture and the Israeli claim to the land were in question.
Qumran
10 miles south of Jericho, Qumran was on a “dead-end street” and provided a perfect location for the isolationist sect of the Essenes to live.
The site was excavated by Catholic priest Roland deVaux from 1953-56. More recent excavations of the site have taken place under the direction of Hanan Eshel.
After late lunch in Jericho we piled back into the bus to head to our home base for the final days of the tour. We’ve seen and learned so much and yet the most important city of all comes next. Jerusalem here we come.
Jeff Clark
Middle School Pastor
Calvary Church Los Gatos
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