Once the bus was loaded, we set out for Jericho. As we approached the city, excitement filled my heart, and when I saw the rubble, I was amazed. (All I wanted to do was jump out of the bus and walk around the whole city 7 times!) To think, that we were actually at the place where Joshua and his army overtook the city of Jericho. God gave them victory, and the great walls fell at their command. (Awesome!)
We hiked up the mountain of ruins, and once at the top, we were able to see for miles. It was there that Saad pointed out Mount Nebo. The place where Moses beheld The Promised Land. The place where he breathed his last breath. The place where The Lord Himself buried him. "Since then, no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face." Deuteronomy 34:10
Wow...we could see it all! Story after story, happening after happening, location after location, the Bible definitely came alive on top of the Jericho ruins today.
Our next stop was Khirbet Qumran. Located 9 miles south of Jericho, it is the lowest place on earth, where the sun beats down fiercely, and where the Dead Sea Scrolls were written and hidden. I walked through the excavation site and was completely blown away. There was a library, a bath area, a kitchen, a couple of sleeping rooms, and a reflection area. The stones were etched and placed with precision; however, none of that is what amazed me the most. It was what happened between those walls, so very long ago, that made me stand in awe. Scholars devoted their lives to the copying of the Scriptures. And when danger arose, they took the completed manuscripts and hid them in the surrounding caves; believing that God would reveal the hidden scrolls at the exact time they were to be revealed. The scholars gave their lives to this monotonous task, to this lonely quest, to this hidden ministry; and by doing so, their beautiful purpose was fulfilled.
Next, we traveled into Bethlehem. The birthplace of Jesus. I wasn't sure what I thought it was going to look like, but what I saw definitely wasn't it. There was trash and graffiti everywhere. There was also an uneasiness that I couldn't explain.
We began our time in the city by doing a little shopping and I was amazed at the olive wood carvings. (So pretty!) We then made our way to the Church of the Nativity. We walked through the immaculate cathedral and then descended down into the cave that is believed to have been the "stable" where Mary and Joseph stayed the night there were no rooms in the Inn. The place where Jesus was born. Where he took His first breath. I was expecting a great spiritual moment when I reached the bottom; however, what I came upon instead was a crowd of people. People from all over the world and from all religions were there to see the place where the "holy child" was born. I looked around and I was confused, disturbed, and to be quite honest, claustrophobic. I shut my eyes tight and tried to imagine what it must have been like for Mary and Joseph to enter this place, after traveling for so long, and to hear their Savior's cry for the very first time. But, it was a struggle to concentrate. I inched my way around to the back of the cave and it was then that I saw the shrine. Made in honor of the man who devoted his life to the translating of the Bible into the King James Version. He lived in that cave for 53 years and translated and wrote and translated and wrote. His life, he gave, to the furtherance of the Gospel. The Bible. The Word of God. Jesus. What a beautiful purpose.
My Savior was indeed born in Bethlehem, in a cave on the outskirts of the city. If it wasn't for His birth, He would have never lived, and if He had never lived, He would have never died. Had He never died, He would have never rose, and had He never rose, our lives would be purposeless.
His life gives our life purpose.
To know Him, to love Him, to enjoy Him, to glorify Him, and to share Him.
A beautiful purpose.
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