Monday Morning Devotion-March 31, 2014
Jerusalem
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the Holy city, the new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven….Revelation 21:1-2.
The bus loaded with Pilgrims, otherwise known as tourists, was headed to the holiest city in the world. Our tour guide had just
started playing the song “Jerusalem” over the intercom. The words washed over us as we looked out the windows eagerly awaiting a
view of what we had traveled almost 7,000 miles to see.
“Last night I lay a-sleeping, there came a dream so fair
I stood in old Jerusalem, beside the temple there
I heard the children singing and ever as they sang
Me thought the voice of angels from heaven in answer rang”
The bus was going up a hill and through a tunnel. The bus driver, for effect, slowed the bus down until we got to the top of
the hill and rounded the bend, then, with perfect timing…the words rang out:
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, lift up your gates and sing,
Hosannah, in the highest, hosanna to the king.”
There it was covering the whole horizon. The Holy City of Jerusalem. There was dead silence on the bus. I’ve had chill
bumps before when something dramatically affected me. But, this one topped it all. Looking out at the panoramic view of Jerusalem
was truly breathtaking.
In Jesus day there were approximately 150 residents of Jerusalem. Of course the population would swell greatly at Passover
and other religious occasions when the pilgrimages to the Holy City were made by people living all over Israel. Today there are over
one-million residents and multiple religions are represented. Both the Israelites and Palestinians claim it as their capitol.
This amazing city has been inhabited for 5,000 years and there is not another city that has been the cause of so many armed
conflicts. (“The Holy Land: The Land of Jesus”).
Having grown up being immersed in the stories of the Bible it was a great thrill for me to finally ride through and walk the
streets of Jerusalem.
“Thus saith the Lord God this is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.” Ezekiel 5:5
That verse of scripture lays out the reason that underlies the importance of Jerusalem. It’s location. At first glance you
wouldn’t think so. It is not on the water. It’s many miles inland from the sea. It’s not on top of a mountain, rather it is located on a
plateau in the mountains between the Mediterranean and Dead Sea.
King David captured Jerusalem in 1,000 BC and transformed it into the political and religious capital of the Jews. His son,
King Solomon built the First Temple there and it truly became a center of pilgrimage.
So imagine little old Jim, the barefoot boy from Georgia who grew up going to Sunday School, Worship Services and Prayer
Meetings, now all grown up and walking among these historic places.
Standing on the Mount of Olives looking down on the great city was a thrill. It was here when Jesus was on his way to
Jerusalem he would pass through the mountain which was covered with Olive trees until the Roman soldiers later “cut them down to
build the rampart” for the siege of the city in 70 AD.”
Jesus taught his disciples on this mountain overlooking the city. He prophesied it’s destruction and wept for Jerusalem and in
the Garden of Gethsemane on the Mount he was taken captive.
There are five stone steps going down the Mount of Olives where our guide said they are the only place where you can be
guaranteed that Jesus walked in that exact spot. TLS and I walked down those steps and had our picture taken there. So now we can
truly say we walked where Jesus walked. We stepped in His footsteps.
I write all this to emphasize that the Holy Land has changed a lot since Jesus was present there in the flesh. Of course,
spiritually his reign still holds fast in this place. Five different religions have built their own temples
In the Christian quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem is found the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Herein is found the hill of
Golgotha or Calvary. It is here where Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. Although there are many who feel like he was
buried in and resurrected at the Garden Tomb, nearby.
The church of the Holy Sepulcher is maintained by the Roman Catholics, the Greek Orthodox and the Armenians.
So, after we walked those five steps where Jesus walked, then we walked the painful, tortuous walk that Jesus made bearing
the heavy cross on his shoulders. He had been badly beaten, was bleeding from the crown of thorns and before that had been put in a
harness and lowered into a cistern that served as his prison until he was forced to carry his cross to his crucifixion.
One cannot visit these places, walk the walk and picture in your mind the way it was when Jesus was there without being
deeply moved. It is truly an amazing experience.
If you can focus your mind on the times and what Jesus experienced and how his teachings impacted the people of the day
then your life will be changed. It requires filtering out the noise and ignoring the tourists and sellers of souvenirs.
But when this mental focus is achieved, then it comes through clearly just how much Jesus loved you and still does. The
children’s song says:
“Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
The Bible has been telling me so for many years, but now that I have been there, where Jesus walked, I am more certain than
ever that it is true.
Monday Prayer: Thank you Lord Jesus for all you suffered for us. No greater love could be found anywhere. Amen.
***author’s note: This week do some deep-thinking about then and now and what the Lord is saying to you through it all.