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Israel Study Tour with Bridges for Peace, Central Life Church, Lighthouse Christian Church, Village Bible Church
June 18-29, 2017
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Teaching on the shoreline!
Today we ventured out onto the waters of the Sea of Galilee, with a boat ride from our hotel on the eastern shore, to a kibbutz called Nof Ginosar on the western shore. We shared our testimonies with one another, prayed for each other, heard a lesson on renewal and following Jesus, and danced!
At Nof Ginosar we saw the famous first century boat, and learned about boating and fishing in the time of Jesus and the disciples. What an incredible image to help us better picture first century boats in the stories in the Gospels!
Next, we enjoyed a tour through a more recent find, the ancient city of Magdala, or Mary Magedalene fame. There we observed an active archeological dig and saw a well preserved first century synagogue.
Magdala
Magdala, the birthplace of Mary Magdalene, was a prosperous fishing village at the time Jesus was active in this region. The ruins of this Roman village is now enclosed within a wall. The archaeologists uncovered the remains of the village dating from the time of Jesus, and a Byzantine monastery. A mosaic floor featuring a fisherman's boat was found at the place.
After a great falafel lunch we headed back up Mt. Arbel, but this time on the bus. Pastors Randy and Ron talked to us about the importance of solitude and prayer, and gave us time to put it into practice with a quiet time overlooking the lake!
Mount Arbel
Mount Arbel (Hebrew: הר ארבל, Har Arbel) is a mountain in The Lower Galilee near Tiberias in Israel, with high cliffs, views of Mount Hermon in the Golan Heights, trails to a cave-fortress, and ruins of an ancient synagogue. Mt. Arbel sits across from Mount Nitai; their cliffs were created as a result of the Jordan Rift Valley and the geological faults that produced the valleys.
We finished our day with stops at neighboring shoreline cities, Tabgha and Capernaum. At Tabgha I was able to teach on Jesus’ restoration of Peter on the beach from John 21. How kind of our Lord to display his tenderness toward us, even in our betrayals and failures. At Capernaum we soaked up the history and background of the town synagogue from our guide Ronen. Then, we sat inside the synagogue to hear from Randy about Hebraic roots and his own story of encounters with Jewish people and their way of looking at the Bible. We were able to explore Capernaum and visualize Jesus’ home base during his ministry.
Capernaum
Jesus made Capernaum his home during the years of his ministry: “Leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum” (Matt 4:13).
Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen living in the village. Matthew the tax collector also dwelt here.
Capernaum is one of the three cities cursed by Jesus for its lack of faith.
We headed back to Ein Gev to enjoy a relaxing evening of food, swimming and fellowship. Thank you for your prayers and we can’t wait to get back and share more with you!
Written by Pastor Andrew Gilmore
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