Are we in a position to listen?

I want to make a second visit to Joppa today. Peter is at the center of this visit. As we talk about Peter in Joppa I want to ask us the question are we in a position to listen.


We begin in Acts 9:32 with Peter traveling and visiting the saints. He is visiting the saints in Lydda. He says Jesus Christ heals you to a paralytic. Tabitha, a disciple in Joppa becomes sick and dies. When the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda they sent for him to come immediately. Peter listened to their request and went to Joppa at once. A great miracle took place. Peter stays in Joppa for some time at the house of Simon the tanner.

While Peter is staying in Joppa a man named Cornelius in Caesarea heard from God. Send to Joppa and bring back a man named Peter who is staying with Simon the tanner in a house by the sea. The next day as Cornelius’ men are preparing to enter Joppa Peter goes on the roof top of the house he is staying at to pray. It is about lunch time and Peter is starting to get hungry. He sees an amazing vision that confuses him. While he is thinking about this vision the men sent by Cornelius knock on the door of Simon the tanner looking for Peter. These men said Peter God spoke to Cornelius and told him to send for you. That was not allowed to happen because Peter was a Jew and Cornelius was a Gentile. However Peter was in a position to listen and the vision on the roof top spoke to him that God wanted him to go. Great things happened in that household when Peter arrived and spoke the Word to them. Peter’s visit with Cornelius is recorded in Acts 10.

Very simply there was a whole lot of listening going on in these verses bringing Peter to Joppa and taking Peter from Joppa to the house of Cornelius. Great things took place because of this listening.

Are you in a position to listen? Let’s have ears to hear and place ourselves in a position to listen. When we do great things will happen. Listen and be blessed.

A Visit To Joppa

I visited Joppa in our messages yesterday at the church in Hollentown. I would like to share those visits with you today and tomorrow. The current name of that city is Jaffa. We enjoyed our visit there. The look out across the sea was beautiful. Joppa was a very important port and station on the ancient trade route of “Via Maris” which connected Egypt with Mesopotamia and the north.


Let’s talk about some activity that took place in the Old Testament at this sea port. We read in II Chronicles 2:1-18 that Solomon, who has taken over as king in place of his father David is preparing to build the Temple. Solomon sends a message to Hiram King of Tyre asking him to send cedar logs for him to use to build the temple. King Hiram replied “we will cut all the logs from Lebanon that you need and will float them in rafts by sea down to Joppa. You can take them up to Jerusalem.” (Vs. 16) Similar events happened in Ezra 3:1-13 with the rebuilding of the Temple after Israel‘s captivity. Verse 7 says “Then they gave money to the masons and carpenters, and gave food and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre, so that they would bring cedar logs by sea from Lebanon to Joppa, as authorized by Cyrus king of Persia.”

I want to move to Jonah 1:1-17 and reflect on that seaport activity in Joppa. Jonah was given a command from the Lord to go to Nineveh and preach against that wicked city. He choose to go to Joppa, buy a ticket, and board a boat for Tarshish instead of obeying the Lord. That was not a good move. We know the story about the big storm and the big fish.

I am going to draw a conclusion that Joppa became a good point of entry and a bad point of escape. I like the picture of those logs for the building of the Temple, floating into Joppa on the rafts. I don’t like the picture of Jonah getting on a boat in Joppa and sailing away from the will of God.

My question to us is this. Are we going to take the wisdom and knowledge that God gives us, like he gave to Solomon, and use Joppa as a good point of entry to build the Temple? Or are we going to reject the plan of God like Jonah and use Joppa as a bad point of escape? My challenge is this. I don’t want to see any boats leaving Joppa for Tarshish but I want to see rafts with cedars on to build the Temple floating into Joppa.

Processing Holy Land Tour - 3

We visited many churches on our tour of the Holy Land. There was the church at the Shepherds field, the church of the Nativity, the tear drop church, the church of the Holy Sepulcher, and St. Anne church to name a few. Some were very old and dark, others were very beautiful. Some had great acoustics and some were decorated with amazing painting and pictures. All of them commemorated a place or a time in the life and ministry of Jesus or an event in the Word.

Many of these churches are full of religion and religious activities. I saw many people who were very attached to religious practices. I saw the kissing of stones, pictures, and icons as well as many lit candles.

I appreciated seeing the churches, their great architecture, and the many furnishings. However my heart was not stirred by these places built by man, nor was my heart stirred by the religious practices of many. My heart was stirred by the reality that the Word of God had come alive in the person and work of Jesus Christ in this area, near to these places. I was reminded once more that it is not about religion but it is about a relationship. Not just any relationship but a relationship with Jesus Christ. I pray that you have a relationship with the Lord and that you are constantly working on making that relationship better.

Processing Holy Land Tour-2

It was amazing what we saw, where we walked, what we observed, and what we heard. We visited many churches and saw many ruins of ancient cities, buildings and the like.

As I continue to process this trip in my mind and heart I am reminded of two words that we heard quite often by our guide on our tour “tradition says”. Let me give you a couple of examples of where we heard those words. We were leaving the Mount of Olives for Jerusalem and we stopped at a garden and church complex. That was what they called the teardrop church. Tradition says this is where Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem. We traveled on to Gethsemane. There is a large garden of stately old olive trees. A beautiful church was erected in this garden. This church was built around a large rock in the back corner where tradition says that Jesus knelt and prayed at the rock asking the Father to remove this cup of suffering from Him. There were numerous other places where we heard those two words.

Do those words add to or take away from what we saw? They don’t add to because they reveal the uncertainty that this is the exact place where Jesus said this or prayed that. Neither do they take away from the experience. We were certainly in the land and the area and did not have to be at the exact spot to reflect on these many events in the life and ministry of our Savior Jesus Christ. Being so close just made the Scriptures that we read come alive all the more. I did not expect nor desire tradition to come alive but I did expect and desire the Scriptures to come alive. Let the Word of God be alive in you today and always.

Processing Trip To Israel-1

I have appreciated getting some good rest the past two nights after a long journey back across the ocean. I am going to process what I saw, heard, and experienced over the next few days. My goal is to share some of that processing with you on this blog.
We walked in many places, many areas where Jesus walked. That was a very beautiful and powerful experience. My desire is to do more than walk where Jesus walked but to walk in the footsteps of Jesus everyday of my life. That thought brings to mind the words of the hymn Stepping In The Light.

Let the words of that song speak to your heart as you read through it.

Chorus 1
How beautiful to walk
In the steps of the Savior
Stepping in the light
Stepping in the light
How beautiful to walk
In the steps of the Savior
Led in paths of light

Verse 1
Trying to walk in the steps of the Savior
Trying to follow our Savior and King
Shaping our lives by His blessed Example
Happy how happy the songs that we bring

Verse 2
Pressing more closely to Him Who is leading
When we are tempted to turn from the way
Trusting the Arm that is strong to defend us
Happy how happy our praises each day

Verse 3
Walking in footsteps of gentle Forbearance
Footsteps of Faithfulness Mercy and Love
Looking to Him for the Grace freely promised
Happy how happy our journey above

Verse 4
Trying to walk in the steps of the Savior
Upward still upward we'll follow our Guide
When we shall see Him the King in His Beauty
Happy how happy our place at His Side

Read these two beautiful Scriptures that connect so well this hymn.
I Peter 2:21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
Psalms 89:15 Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O LORD.
Peter challenges us to follow our Master’s steps and the Psalmist says blessed are those who walk in the light of our Lord’s presence. Let’s do that today and always.

COMMENTS WELCOME

Wailing Wall and Garden Tomb

Day 8 began a little later than most days. We left the hotel at 9:00 am We traveled to the city of David visiting the Gihon Spring and the pool of Siloam where Jesus healed the man born blind by spitting on the ground, making mud, and putting it on the eyes of the blind man. He sent the man to the pool to wash. He was healed. We toured some ruins there and I bought a special souvenir for me, an oil lamp found in the ruins from Jesus day. We traveled a little further to the Temple mount and visited the wailing wall. That was a very interesting experience. There were a number of Bar Mitzah's going on in the area at at the wailing wall. That was very interesting to see. I prayed a short time at the wall for the peace of Jerusalem, that the eyes of the blinded would be open to see Jesus. I also prayed for the coming of the Lord. We visited the old city. Had lunch there and spent some time in the shops.


Our last stop on tour today was the garden tomb. It was a very beautiful quiet place. Our guide there shared with us the story of the Crucifixion. This could have been the place of the skull. They showed us an empty tomb on that sight. That was very interesting. The most powerful part of that visit was a private communion service in the garden. The presence of the Lord was so strong. The presence of God has been so real so much of this trip.

We visited another one of Julie's close friends. We had desert there before we came to the hotel for dinner. We enjoyed dinner and called it a day.

Continuing on

We did a lot of traveling today.  We left Nazareth for the Golan Heights area.  We visited Caesarea Philippi looking at some of the ruins of the city reading about our Lord's ministry there.  We went up to the Hermon springs.  It is one of the three springs that feeds the Jordan river its water.  There were some ruins from the mythology time period there. 
We drove into the Jezreel valley and up to Megiddo.  There is where we believe that Armegeddon will take place.  What a massive valley you see before you from Megiddo. We viewed some ruins from King Solomon's time.  We ended our tour there decending into the cave to see the water system set up to supply water for that ancient city.  Water is such an important part of Life. 
I have drank a lot of water this week.  It is very refreshing in the hot sunshine.  I am also being refreshed and renewed at the Springs of Living Water.  True satisfaction for the soul comes when we drink at the Springs of Living Water.  Take a drink today and be refreshed.

An amazing day

We visited numerous sights in the Galilee area. This was one of the most powerful days of our trip. Our first stop was the Annunciation church in Nazareth built to commemorate the angels announcement to Mary that she was going to give birth to a son our Savior, Jesus Christ. After boarding the bus we proceeded to the mount of the Beatitudes. Again there was a beautiful church built and gardens to commemorate the sermon on the mount and the beatitudes. We sat in the grove and read from Matthew 5 and prayed. We visited the church of multiplication in the area where Jesus fed the 5,000 with 5 loaves of bread and 2 small fish. We found a quiet spot and read that great miracle. It was time for lunch at St Peter’s restaurant by the

Sea of Galilee. Our deep fried fish came to us head and all. It was very good tasting but there wasn’t much fish on them bon es.

It was time for perhaps the best part of the day. We boarded a boat, our group alone on the boat and headed across the Sea of Galilee. What a powerful time it was as we sang, read Scriptures and prayed. Let me just say the Spirit fell on that boat and our guide said that he had never seen such a powerful Spiritual experience in any of the groups he had ever taken. Before we left the sea we took our shoes off and walked in the sea for a bit. No none of us walked on the water. Our Lord spent much time in and around the sea.

Our last stop of the day wasn’t any less blessed. We visited the Jordan river stepping in the water that our Lord was baptized in by John The Baptist. We watched many being baptized. It was a great time to reflect.

The Holy Spirit certainly descended on us today. What a great blessing it is to walk in the power and blessing of the Spirit. Walk in the Spirit today and allow him to calm the storms that you may be facing in life today.

A Journey North

We checked out of our hotel in Bethlehem this morning and will return to the hotel there on Wednesday evening. We began a journey north along the coastal plains and along the Mediterranean Sea. We stopped at many interesting places.

Our first stop was Jaffa, the Biblical city of Joppa. It was a beautiful picture out across the sea. We reflected on Peter raising Tabitha from the dead as well as Peter’s vision while at the house of Simon the tanner in Joppa by the sea. That vision opened the door of his heart to take the Gospel to the Gentiles.

Our next stop was Caesarea Martima where Herod the great had built a palace, and fortress by the Sea. We walked along the sea and saw the ruins of this massive complex.



We visited Mount Carmel where we had lunch at a small shop. We reflected on the prophet Elijah’s fleeing to the cave from Jezebel and Ahab. We visited a church built onto a cave on Mount Carmel that tradition says was the cave that Elijah hid in. We looked from the top of Mount Carmel over the city of Haifa again out into the sea. That was a breath taking view.

We finished our journey for the day into Nazareth for our stay at the Hamayan Hotel. We checked into our rooms, had dinner, and spent some down time chatting and relaxing.

My reflection today is on the refreshing and the strength for the journey that God provided for the prophet Elijah while hiding out in that cave. Don’t let the battles you face wear you down. Daily allow the Lord to refresh and strengthen you.

What a beautiful Lord's Day

Our day began a little latter than most days. We had a leisure breakfast then went to church at 11:00 AM in Ben Jalla, the church that Julie attended most of the time that she lived here. That was a very precious and powerful experience worshiping with this small group of Palestine believers. I had an opportunity to great the church and share briefly with them. The political situation between Israel and Palestine makes life so very hard for these believers. Pray for these brothers and sisters in Christ. We enjoyed dinner with them at a local restaurant. Our worshipping with them touched their hearts because very few pilgrims worship with the local believers.

We spent the afternoon visiting Herodion, the remains of the palace of Herod the great on Herodion mountain. We also visited what they call Solomon’s pools. They have nothing to do with King Solomon but are a part of the water system.

This is a quick morning because we are leaving this area at 8:00 am for the Sea of Galilee area staying in Nazareth the next two nights.

Israel Trip Day 3

We had an amazing day for our first full day in Bethlehem. It was long and tiring but worth every step. We jumped in our bus and traveled about 6 miles to the Mount of Olives. We looked across the Kidron valley to the other hillside at the city of Jerusalem. What an amazing view. Then our journey began. We began our decent at an angle to the right. We stopped at the tear drop church commemorating the place where Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem. We read from Luke 19 about Jesus weeping about Jerusalem, and Revelation 21 about the new heaven, the new earth, and the new Jerusalem. Proceeding down the hill we visited the Garden of Gethsemane, the garden grove where Jesus prayed Lord if it be possible let this cup pass from me. Walking onto the city of Jerusalem. We visited the pool of Bethesada. We walked the Via Dolorosa, the way of suffering stopping at all of the stations of the cross. visited Mount Calvary and the church of the Holy Sepulcher. We visited the upper room before we left Jerusalem.


We returned to our hotel, freshened up a bit then went and did a little shopping. Ate a late dinner at the hotel and called it a day.

I sense in my heart at so many of these sights much religion and tradition. Large church complexes have been built at so many of these sights. They are very old and very large but also hold so much tradition. I pray Lord let there be a relationship here with the one we are honoring at these places.

Today we are visiting the Palestinian church to worship with them. This is the church that Julie was a part of during her stay here in Bethlehem. It is small church but the people are so excited to be meeting us. Pray for me because I have been invited to share a brief thought, testimony with them. Psalms 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.”

Be blessed this Lord’s day.

A journey to the Holy Land days 1 &2

Wow! We are here.  We had a very long but safe and uneventful journey.  I didn't sleep much Wed. before we left and just a few minutes on the plane so I am about spent.  It is noon at home and 7:00 pm here.  We are about to have dinner here at the hotel then call it a day.  We have a very long day planned for tomorrow. 

My heart is so wide open to receive from the Lord on this trip. Julie our host encouraged us to ask God to open our hearts to what He desires to teach us.  My openness is from two sides.  I want to walk where Jesus walked and learn what the Lord desires to teach me.  It is going to be so amazing to see where so much of the Bible unfolded. My heart is open to the missions aspect of this trip as well. There is such a mission field in the Holy Land.   Our guide told us today that there is only 1.4 % of the Palestinians that are believers. What a mission field.  Where will my greatest inspiration come from walking where Jesus walked or seeing a whitened harvest field?  Lord Bless I pray.  

Anticipation

All that I can say is that today is a day of anticipation. I will be taking care of a few small errands.  The majority of the day will be packing and checking lists.  Trusting God for a wonderful Bible Study tonight at the church with the folks who were so kind and generous to us by helping us with the cost of this trip. About 40 hours from now we will be landing in Tel Aviv, Israel.  Lord this amazing trip is in your hands.

The Lord's Supper

I am still rejoicing because of the powerful presence of the Lord in our communion service yesterday. It is such a joy to celebrate the Lord’s Supper remembering the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for my sins. I am so glad that He was nailed to the cross for me, that He was willing to die that I might live.

Julie, our tour host has ask me to lead our group in communion when we visit the upper room. Wow! I am getting so excited to be a part of such an awesome experience. "I know He rescued my soul, His blood has covered my sin, I believe.... My Redeemer lives."