Day 09 - The Center of the Story

Ezekiel 5:5 declares that Jerusalem stands at the center of the nations. While geography may depend on where one is standing, history tells us this much is true: for nearly three thousand years, Jerusalem has been a gravitational center of faith, longing, conflict, prayer, and promise. Spirituality, religious tradition, and politics have all converged here, generation after generation.

We began our day walking atop the Temple Mount, expanded by Herod the Great from the first century BC into the first century AD. Covering roughly thirty five acres, the platform spans the equivalent of about 26.9 American soccer fields. It remains one of the greatest architectural achievements of the ancient world.

Below us, along an exposed portion of the Western Wall, Jewish worshipers still gather in prayer, believing this to be the closest accessible place to the Holy of Holies. The stones themselves preach. One Herodian block alone weighs an estimated 570 tons. Each step along the wall bears witness to Herod’s unmatched ambition and engineering brilliance. He built what no one before him had built, and what no one since has replicated.

In the afternoon, we followed this Herodian thread south to the Herodium, the desert palace fortress built by Herod roughly six miles from Jerusalem, near the hills of Bethlehem. Here stood towers, pools, and courtyards. An artificial mountain raised where no mountain existed. Herod conquered land and reshaped geography itself. He ruled through power, spectacle, and fear.

Yet, in the shadow of this monument to human dominance, a very different kind of King was born.

Not in a palace.

Not on a throne.

Not with armies or walls.

We ended our day at the Church of the Nativity, the traditional site of Christ’s birth. Here, we were reminded that the kingdom of God does not advance through force, but through incarnation. Salvation did not arrive with banners and battalions, but with humility, vulnerability, and promise.

This birth was not quiet in meaning. It was a declaration. A confrontation. A line drawn against death, hell, and the grave. From this place, hope entered the world, and a kingdom was set in motion that would never end.

Jerusalem may be called the center of the world. But, today reminded us that the true center of history is not power built by human hands, but a King who came to set humanity free and invite us into relationship with Him.

The kingdom has come.

Salvation has begun.

And, the King of Kings still reigns.

Our evening ended in Bethlehem around a table, sharing a meal with our dear friend Johnny Canavati and his family. What began as dinner became celebration. Traditional Palestinian dancers filled the restaurant with rhythm, movement, and joy, and before long they invited our group to join them. Laughter followed. Hands linked. Cultures met not in debate, but in dance.

It was a fitting way to end the day. After walking through empires, fortresses, and kings, we were reminded again that the story of this land is not only written in stone and Scripture, but also in people, hospitality, and shared joy. In Bethlehem, the city where the King of Peace was born, we tasted something of that peace together.

Jerrell