I’m loaning my blog to Michael Schroeder www.michaelschroeder.com because his blog posts about the Holy Land deserve your reading and on the current website www.rgsrecords.com you can’t comment. Mike doesn’t know I am doing this. But he asked me to teach him WordPress before he left and then we never got around to it. But friends help friends, so enjoy a rare opportunity to see Israel in the context of a Christian’s first trip. He is filled with wonder at things he could have only imagined before. I am sure he is also writing new songs at least in his head as he is there. He told me once that there is always the beginnings of new songs in every experience he has and I am sure that this experience is filling him with music.
April 18th
Morning comes and keeps me moving to catch breakfast and gather my things in time to catch the bus to the North side of the sea of Galilee. Let me just say before I continue that my camera and this photographer don’t even come close to doing justice to what it is actually like to view these locations. More importantly, and I say this with my deepest sincerity,……my words can not do justice to what is here. The meaning, the evidence, the reality of the life of Jesus is every where here…….not in stories …..but in reality,…..where He stayed,….performed miracles….and did much of his ministry. My heart is tender and I am already moved beyond what words express of what I had already known,…..of what I have seen,……and by grace through faith,…. will come to see in my relationship with a God who more than loves,….but IS love as it says in His Word.
Boat on the Sea of Galilee
traveling north along the west bank of the Sea of Galilee I stop in Tiberius to hop a boat ride that takes me further north on this Sea of Galilee. The body of water that Jesus calmed the winds and storm and walked on water found below from Matthew 14:22-34
Jesus Walks on the Water – Matthew 14:22-34
22Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24but the boat was already a considerable distance[a] from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
25During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
27But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
28″Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29″Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
32And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
34When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. 35And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him 36and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.
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The boat ride ends as we dock on the north shores of the Sea of Galilee, an area rich in so much history found in the Bible and other historical writings. These shores where Jesus called some of his disciples, the Mount of Beatitudes, Capernaum where Jesus stayed after leaving Nazareth and performed miracles here, the area of the feeding of the 5000 nearby, Chorazin and more are all here on the north shores of Galilee.
Jesus made Capernaum his home during the years of his ministry: “Leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum” (Matt 4:13). Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen living in the village. Matthew the tax collector also lived here. Capernaum is one of the three cities cursed by Jesus for its lack of faith.
Jesus was confronted by a demoniac while teaching here (Mark 1:21-27).
In Capernaum, Jesus healed the servant of the centurion. This Roman official was credited with building the synagogue (Luke 7:3).
In this synagogue, Jesus gave sermon on the bread of life (John 6:35-59).
The Synagogue
The Synagogue
The Synagogue pictured is of a later date with the one of Jesus time discovered beneath it. Jewish Law carries that the only thing that could be built on the land of a synagogue when it has run it’s course is another Synagogue making often the layers of time and history on top of each other.
The House of Peter
The Picture below shows part of the house of Peter in Capernaum. It is roped off of course to protect the site, but I accidentally dropped my camera over the walls edge and had to enter the area of Peters house to retrieve my camera. The joke now is how many other Holy sites do I have to throw my camera into just to get inside the site itself!
Julie again… I will work on translating more of the Michael Schroeder blog to my blog but feel free to comment. Mike and I should be connected by e-mail and I will let him know that I am letting him share my space and point him to your comments.
