CROSSOVER IN THE LAND - DAY 6

There is nothing like walking around in Jerusalem and seeing this wonderful city. Today we started the day with a perfect panoramic view of Old Jerusalem and the temple mount from the top of the Mount of Olives. Gilla showed us all the Biblically significant sites from the south to the North. This included David’s city, Caiaphas the High Priest’s house, the Southern steps to the temple, the temple mount, the Herodian palaces, the three valleys that form the letter Shin representing God’s ownership of this holy mountain, and many other sites.

We then, walked down the Palm Sunday route as Jesus would have when he descended the Mount of Olives stopping half way to weep over the city of Jerusalem. We took some time to trace his route. Then, we had the blessing of hearing from Scott as he shared why he and Wendy are going on an extra trip extension at the end of our tour. It all has to do with the Israelites escaping the coming destruction in the tribulation and going to Petra (or Bozrah) in Jordan. He made some amazing connections about the route that they will take and why all this will happen. It was so cool to see Scott verify his convictions based on the Geography. He and Terry then talked about the Olivet Discourse and the implications of a compromised state to our church age today.
From there we went to the Garden of Gethsemane where we had some time to sit among the ancient olive trees to pray and reflect on Jesus’ agonizing in this place of “pressing”. Wow, it was so incredible to sit and reflect on the depth of Jesus’ love for us knowing that He would experience that temporary separation from the Father on the Cross. This was a meaningful time for all.

We ate lunch in a cafeteria at the world famous Hebrew University. It was good to get an espresso and/or cappuccino (some got the kind with ice cream in it, but I won’t say who). After a brief stop in a beautiful olive wood carving shop, we headed for the Museum of Israel. Everyone absolutely loved the 1/50 scaled model of the city of old Jerusalem. It really helped put everything in context. Some of the ladies were just so thrilled to make some connections from a recent Beth Moore Bible study they did about the Psalms of Ascents. I love it!!!

The last stop was the Shrine of the Book where the Dead Sea Scroll parchments are on display. It was a real treat for a group that is full of people who love Scripture. The day ended a little early for some much needed rest. Tomorrow holds some very powerful experiences for us. Stay tuned…