Saturday, 10-17-09

Our day began with a drive to Tel Dan, a beautiful Nature Reserve in northern Israel near the border of Lebanon. We took a hike through a canopied forest, with the Dan River flowing along side of us. We stopped for a short devotional in which we read Psalm 42, and our spirits were refreshed. We then proceeded up to "The High Place," which was an area of ruins from a pagan temple and altar built by King Jeroboam. Pastor Steve led a teaching from 1 Kings, ch. 11-12, in which he focused on the origins of idolatry. We were reminded that idolatry begins when other things steal our hearts away from our God. King Jeroboam was fearful that he would lose what God had given him (the 10 tribes of the northern kingdom) and tried to secure the loyalty of the people by giving to them what was popular at the time… a golden calf to worship, and a temple for the worship, ceremonies & rituals of other pagan gods.

Devotions at Tel Dan                                                            "The High Place" built by King Jeroboam

From there we continued on to “Abraham’s Gate,” a recent discovery. It is thought that Abraham entered through this gate to rescue Lot (Gen. 14). The arch shaped lintel is one of the oldest known complete arches in the world. We concluded our time in Tel Dan with a visit to an impressive Israeli gate thought to be from the First Temple period. We could see the thick walled gate, sacrifical altars and the seat upon which the judges & elders sat at the city gates.

Abraham's Gate                                                                         Seat of the elders/judges at the city gate

From there we went to Caesarea Philippi. There we began with a devotion from Matthew, ch 16:13, in which we recognized that all of us must answer the question of 'Who is this Son of Man'? We also remembered Randy Barnaby's great teaching about this location, which highlighted the intense satanic stronghold and pagan influence in this culture. We were reminded to “lift up” our hearts and lives to God, and to lay down anything that could be idols or hinderances to our relationship with God.

Caesarea Philippi                                                                       The "Sanctuary of Pan"

After this, we went on to “Nimrod’s Fortress.” This was a very interesting castle like fortress built around 1230, which overlooks the valley between Galilee and Damascus. It was thought to be a crusader fortress, but more recently it is believed that the Muslims built it to protect the road to Damascus. We enjoyed exploring many of the passages and learning about the history and architecture of this massive, ancient structure. While we were there resting in one of the castle’s large open rooms, Larry Oswell led us in a devotional time centered on 1 Cor. 13: 11-13, challenging us to ‘grow up’ in our Christian walk.

Next we traveled into the Golan Heights and learned about it’s history. We visited an Israeli bunker on Mt. Bental. We marveled as we learned how God miraculously protected the Israeli land when the Syrians attacked them by surprise on Yom Kippur in 1973. We discussed the current political climate, and were surprised to learn that the current majority of Israeli people are in favor of returning the Golan to the Syrians. The loss of lives, and the costliness of war has caused many to be in favor of peace.

Praise the Lord for another day of seeing this Holy Land and remembering God's grace and faithfulness to His people!