View from the Mount over the Sea of Galilee…

Biblical Moment No. 20 of Andy’s Spiritual Journey to Israel & Palestine needs no explanation, needs no content, or introduction. Only a prayer that the Holy Spirit is alive within and manifesting Itself as your Splendid Spiritual Self in this world!

The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12)

When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

“Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The Beatitudes (Luke 6:20-38)

And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say,

“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.

Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.

Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.

But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full.

Woe to you who are well-fed now, for you shall be hungry.

Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.

Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.

But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either.

Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back.

Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.

If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.

If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount.

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men.

Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned.

Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over.

For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”

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The Temple at Capernaum…

Biblical Moment No. 21 of Andy’s Spiritual Journey to Israel & Palestine was simply magnificent to me! Mind you it took place on the very first day of the year 2019 and two days after I was baptized in the Jordan River at Qasr el Yahud. In between was a visit to the Mount of Beatitudes. Most of Jesus’ three-year ministry was done near Capernaum on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. I could have easily spent the whole month on my journey here instead of the cumulative week of three visits that I did…

This Biblical Moment is the Temple at Capernaum. It is referenced directly in John’s Gospel—“These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.” (John 6:59 NASB)—and a temple built in the 3^rd century is still partially standing with other artifacts from the original temple!

What he said in this temple really was the heart of his ministry—that Jesus is the everlasting bread of life—the Will of God is for each one of us to have eternal life—and a foretelling of his resurrection!

Here are the words of Jesus from Scriptures that he spoke in the Temple at Capernaum:

Temple entrance from the East, from the Sea of Galilee side…

²⁶ Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. ²⁷ Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.”    (John 6:26-27)

²⁹ Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.”   (John 6:29)

³² Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.”   (John 6:32-33)

³⁵ Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. ³⁷ All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. ³⁹ This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. ⁴⁰ For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”   (John 6:35-40)

A doorway to enter the Temple…

⁴³ Jesus answered and said to them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. ⁴⁴ No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught of God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me. ⁴⁶ Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father. ⁴⁷ Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. ⁵⁰ This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.”   (John 6:43-51)

⁵³ So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. ⁵⁴ He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. ⁵⁵ For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever.”   (John 6:53-58)

⁵⁹ These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.   (John 6:59)

⁶⁰ Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?” ⁶¹ But Jesus, conscious that His disciples grumbled at this, said to them, “Does this cause you to stumble? ⁶² What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before? ⁶³ It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. ⁶⁴ But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him. ⁶⁵ And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”   (John 6:60-65)

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Biblical Moment No. 22 of Andy’s Spiritual Journey to Israel & Palestine was a simple one, yet painful and meaningful. On the eve of Orthodox Christmas, I sat on a bench in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher reading Mark Chapter 15 in my family Bible about the Way of the Cross; Via Dolorosa; or the Stations of the Cross. Then walking the Stations backwards (the last five are in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher) and then forward returning to Calvary; Golgotha. Subsequently, never ever has life and the Lenten Season been so vivid, precious, and meaningful. Here in pictures is the experience being there and walking where Jesus walked. Where He fell three times on the Via Dolorosa in the Old City of Jerusalem. Where he was crucified, died, and was buried…

Mark Chapter 15:

Jesus Before Pilate. ¹ As soon as morning came, the chief priests with the elders and the scribes, that is, the whole Sanhedrin, held a council. They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. ² Pilate questioned him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” He said to him in reply, “You say so.” ³ The chief priests accused him of many things. ⁴ Again Pilate questioned him, “Have you no answer? See how many things they accuse you of.” ⁵ Jesus gave him no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

The Sentence of Death. ⁶ Now on the occasion of the feast he used to release to them one prisoner whom they requested. ⁷ A man called Barabbas was then in prison along with the rebels who had committed murder in a rebellion. ⁸ The crowd came forward and began to ask him to do for them as he was accustomed. ⁹ Pilate answered, “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?” ¹⁰ For he knew that it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed him over. ¹¹ But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release Barabbas for them instead. ¹² Pilate again said to them in reply, “Then what [do you want] me to do with [the man you call] the king of the Jews?” ¹³ They shouted again, “Crucify him.” ¹⁴ Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?” They only shouted the louder, “Crucify him.” ¹⁵ So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas to them and, after he had Jesus scourged, handed him over to be crucified.

Mockery by the Soldiers. ¹⁶ The soldiers led him away inside the palace, that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole cohort. ¹⁷ They clothed him in purple and, weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on him. ¹⁸ They began to salute him with, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ¹⁹ and kept striking his head with a reed and spitting upon him. They knelt before him in homage. ²⁰ And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, dressed him in his own clothes, and led him out to crucify him.

The Way of the Cross. ²¹ They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.

The Crucifixion. ²² They brought him to the place of Golgotha (which is translated Place of the Skull). ²³ They gave him wine drugged with myrrh, but he did not take it. ²⁴ Then they crucified him and divided his garments by casting lots for them to see what each should take. ²⁵ It was nine o’clock in the morning^[j] when they crucified him. ²⁶ The inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” ²⁷ With him they crucified two revolutionaries, one on his right and one on his left. ²⁹Those passing by reviled him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, ³⁰ save yourself by coming down from the cross.” ³¹ Likewise the chief priests, with the scribes, mocked him among themselves and said, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. ³² Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also kept abusing him.

The Death of Jesus. ³³ At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ³⁴ And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” ³⁵ Some of the bystanders who heard it said, “Look, he is calling Elijah.” ³⁶ One of them ran, soaked a sponge with wine, put it on a reed, and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.” ³⁷ Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. ³⁸ The veil of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ When the centurion who stood facing him saw how he breathed his last he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” ⁴⁰ There were also women looking on from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of the younger James and of Joses, and Salome. ⁴¹ These women had followed him when he was in Galilee and ministered to him. There were also many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.

The Burial of Jesus. ⁴² When it was already evening, since it was the day of preparation, the day before the sabbath, ⁴³ Joseph of Arimathea, a distinguished member of the council, who was himself awaiting the kingdom of God, came and courageously went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁴⁴ Pilate was amazed that he was already dead. He summoned the centurion and asked him if Jesus had already died. ⁴⁵ And when he learned of it from the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. ⁴⁶ Having bought a linen cloth, he took him down, wrapped him in the linen cloth and laid him in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb. ⁴⁷ Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses watched where he was laid.

The Way of the Cross; Via Dolorosa from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke:

“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus inside the praetorium and gathered the whole cohort around Him. They stripped off His Clothes and threw a scarlet military cloak about Him. Weaving a crown out of thorns, they placed it on His Head, and a reed in His right hand. And kneeling before Him, they mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat upon Him and took the reed and kept striking Him on the head. And when they had mocked Him, they stripped Him of the cloak, dressed Him in His own clothes, and led Him off to crucify him. As they were going out, they met a Cyrenian named Simon; this man they pressed into service to carry His Cross.”—Matthew 27:27-32

“The soldiers led Jesus away inside the palace, that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole cohort. They clothed Him in purple and, weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on Him. They began to salute Him with, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and kept striking His Head with a reed and spitting upon Him. They knelt before Him in homage. And when they had mocked Him, they stripped Him of the purple cloak, dressed Him in His own clothes, and led Him out to crucify Him. They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry His Cross.”—Mark 15:16-21

“As they led Jesus away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus. A large crowd of people followed Jesus, including many women who mourned and lamented Him. Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me; weep instead for yourselves and for your children, for indeed, the days are coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed.’ At that time people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall upon us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ for if these things are done when the wood is green what will happen when it is dry?” Now two others, both criminals, were led away with Him to be executed.”—Luke 23:26-32

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