Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Thoughts on Israel... #1

So while I was in Israel, I wrote a few posts working through my thoughts. I thought I would post these articles and see if perhaps they can speak to you as well.  I pray you will be blessed...

BLOG #1


This morning, as I write this, it is 5:49 in the morning and I am sitting next to the Sea of Galilee. I have been here only 3 days and yet this experience has been very surreal for me. I have seen where Peter was restored by Jesus after he denied Jesus 3 times.  I have seen where Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build My church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” I have seen architecture that would be a modern day miracle let alone the fact that it was built 2,000 years ago. I have seen where Jesus spoke about being poor in spirit, meek, and full of mercy.  I have even seen a city gate and the steps up to that city gate that they believe Abraham walked on. That is 3,800 – 4,000 years ago!

I am overwhelmed.

These are things that I have read about my whole life and I have seen pictures but it is truly an experience all its own to put your hands on these faith shaping places.  These are places where conversations were had that changed the course of history.  Whether or not you are a believer, this place has had a profound impact on your life in ways that very few places have.
And yet, there is something plaguing me… Today, tomorrow, and for the next 10 days I am going to go and see more and more and more amazing archeology. I will see things that Solomon himself built.  I will be able to put my hands on things that people who lived at the time of Christ would have considered old. It is dazzling. 

But, to what end?

I mean, so what? Why does this matter so much? What is the big deal? What if all I ever did after being here is just go home with some amazing pictures and neat stories? What if I could connect the stories of the Bible to real places in my mind but I couldn’t relate them to my life? Would it matter that I had even been here?
I am wrestling with the question of – what do I do with all this? And my fear is that like Moses returning to Egypt in Exodus 4, I will find myself a man between covenants – unsure of where I stand or what I live for or how I connect to the scripture.
Here is the deal: more than ever, I am convinced that to divorce the text from its Jewishness is foolish at every level. To try to interpret Scripture without a firm grasp of its historical context and the conversations that have been going on around this book for millennia already would be to miss the meaning entirely. Geography, tradition, political intrigue, trade, religious influence; these all had a profound impact on the scripture that we read today. I think that perhaps rather than trying to decide what the text says before we ever understand any of that historical context, we must first understand as much of the context as we can. Then, and only then, can we begin to get at the heart of what is being said.
I don’t want to be more aware of what I already know.  I want to be transformed by this experience. I want to see deeper and better nuances of the text. And so far, it has been just that.

So, may we all be inspired to know the text from its context.  May we be changed by the reality of real people in a real place at a real time.  And may we always be aware of our deep interconnectedness with Israel, its people, and its God.

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