The last week of Jesus’ life

As we started our last day here in Jerusalem there was a heaviness that hung about. Maybe it was sadness about the trip coming to an end but I think it was mostly the journey we knew was ahead of us today. By the end of the day we would have walked through the last week of Jesus’ life.

So we walked, single file shuffling, through the Old City in the Jewish Quarter towards the Mount of Olives. As we walked up yet another hill, some wondered aloud “Why did Jesus come up here? Why walk all the way up here?” And sure enough, as we are all learning on this trip, there was a reason. God’s Word has such purpose and He has been working His plan of redemption since the beginning of time!

Mount of Olives is a king-making hill, it is a place where men become king and are anointed with oil. King David himself came to this hill. In speaking of the Messiah, Zech. 14:4 says “On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives, that lies before Jerusalem.”

On that same hill, a small walk away, is Gethsemane, which means “olive press”. As we walked into the garden we could hear roosters crowing in the distance and smell the wild rosemary plants blowing in the wind. This is the place where Jesus brings His disciples to pray after the Passover meal. When Jesus comes here He is heavy, as if something is crushing Him. He prays to the Father knowing there is one more cup to drink, the cup of wrath. In Matt. 26:39 He prays “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

As we know, it was not the Fathers will that the cup should pass, but rather Jesus drank the cup for us. In just a days time the sin of the whole world, past, present, future, would be laid on Him. We ended our time in Gethsemane with communion, drinking the blood that Jesus shed and eating the body that was broken for us. We spent time reflecting on all that His sacrifice means.

Will we let Him be king of our lives? Are there areas that we haven’t laid before Him?

And so yes, the day was heavy, but in a way t hat brought us closer to God and closer to His story.

As we prepare for our journey home we have thoughts of this land, the land God loves, in our minds. We have spent our time here in four main regions and we have learned different lessons from each.

Shephelah is where we live out the kingdom.

Desert is where we get to know the king of the universe.

Galilee is where we learn to walk the path.

Jerusalem is where we hear the message of the kingdom.

We are eager to return to our “Shephelah” and to live out the kingdom, to bring peace and living water to those in need through Christ.

- Dani Buchanan