Jerusalem - Day 1

We kicked off our first full day in Jerusalem by visiting the City of David. The City of David was located outside of what we now see as the “old” city of Jerusalem. Where we stood on this day we could see the Southern Steps that led to the temple. The City of David was an area just south of Mount Mariah and where David’s son King Solomon eventually would build the temple. As we enjoyed the views as we dug into 2 Samuel 11 with David and Bathsheba. We can learn from David and apply it in our lives today; when we as leaders self sabotage and allow whatever allures us to take over our lives then it can ruin us. King David felt that he was entitled because of the work it took to become King; just like leaders today have to work extremely hard and they begin to feel entitled to their position and stature. Pastor Randy compared Satan to a fly fisherman in the way that a fly fisherman creates customized lures and Satan customizes his approach to draw people away from God; like Satan used Bathsheba to lure in King David to sin. The key to avoid these traps is to create healthy margins, have systems in place and accountability in our lives. You can have accountability partners in the form of friends, bible study group and your spouse. Having these guardrails in our lives and having boundaries is the part of a sucessful leader. Remember that just because you are entrusted doesn’t mean that you are entitled.

Our next stop was moving down into the Kidron Valley which is where the largest spring was located that supplied the City of David with its water supply. King Hezekiah knew the only way the city would become a truly independent city was a water source that they controlled. He knew the water supply that they had from the tunnels that the Jezusites built in 4000 BC was not enough; so he had deeper tunnels dug around 2700 BC. Most of us took this opportunity to walk through the narrow tunnels that Hezekiah had built. There were 2 paths; 1 wet and 1 dry. Several of us adventured through the wet tunnel which at the beginning was about 3-4 foot deep though a majority of the 20 minute walk was only about 5-6 inches deep. The wet tunnel was completely dark except for the light of our flash lights. The rest of the group got to explore another tunnel and stay dry throughout the entire path.

Upon the exit of Hezekiah’s Tunnel we ended at the pool of Siloam. This is where Jesus healed the blind man. The blind man didn’t know anything about Jesus other than what his life was like before Jesus, how Jesus saved him and how his life has changed since he met Jesus. We can take a great lesson from this as Christians; many times we think we need to have all of the answers for our faith before we evangelize to others. We just need to share what we were like before, how we came to the cross and what Jesus has done for us since.

Next we headed to The Israel Museum. First we were able to see a model of Jerusalem that was made giving us a view of the city in 70 AD. Within the museum we were able to see the Dead Sea Scrolls which we learned about in Qumran.

After an adventurous morning we headed to the Herodium and enjoyed lunch which today was a special treat. We enjoyed Jerusalem Bagels; which we dipped in cheese with olive oil, cheese with date-honey, and Hashahar Ha’Ole which is a chocolate spread that was enjoyed by most everyone. After lunch we hiked to the top of Herodium. It was built by King Herod around 23 BC and just like everything else he built it was the biggest palace during the time. It was a beautifully clear day so we could see the Dead Sea from the top. As we stood at the top many of us imagined the Wise Men climbing to the top to see King Herod after they had heard of Jesus’s birth. We also could see the valley between the Herodium and Bethlehem which Mary, Joseph and Jesus likely left through as they headed to Egypt in the darkness of night. As we dug into our lesson we learned more of Herod’s goal to build Herodium on this mountain in the Judaean Desert though it was not tall enough. So he had the mountain moved; he moved dirt from below to the top to make the mountain taller. This where Jesus’s lesson from Matthew 17:20 that having faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains. Since Herod had no faith at all and he could move a mountain then you only need a little faith to move any challenge that might come your way if you have Jesus on your side.

Our next stop was in the city of Bethlehem which is a Palestinian town located in the West Bank. Since the primary income for Betlethem is tourism; we visited Johnny’s Shopping Center for jewelry, hand carved olive wood pieces, and more! They are Christian family running their business amongst Muslims. Following our shopping we headed to the Church of the Nativity; the church was built in 325 AD and it was destroyed in 529. It was rebuilt again in 540 AD as it is today. Recently they found beautiful mosaics and marble columns that had been covered under years and years of soot that the oil lamps left. This is the oldest church in the area because when the Persians conquered the area they left the church intact since one of the Wise Men came from Persia; they wanted to respect the place of Jesus’s birth. We made our way into the depths of the church and there was the cave of the birth. They have oral stories from the birth until 325 AD that share the story of Jesus’s birth in this place and then the church was built to protect this sacred place.

It was a beautiful day spent learning and growing!