Leviticus 7:28-9:6, Mark 3:31-4:25, Psalm 37:12-29, Proverbs 10:5
Today is the 19th day of February, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today, gathered around the Global Campfire, wherever we may be. I am coming to you once again from the city of Jerusalem. We will be departing for Tel Aviv and boarding a giant airplane and flying across oceans, back to our home in the United States. Today, we concluded our tour of the land of the Bible for 2023 last evening, beautiful, beautiful time that was, a beautiful day. What a hard day. But what a beautiful day, we’ll talk about that in a bit. But we are here to take the next step forward in the Scriptures and the next step forward will lead us back into the book of Leviticus, got a brand-new week, so we will read from the New Living Translation this week and today, Leviticus chapter 7 verse 28 through 9 verse 6.
Prayer:
Father, we thank You for Your word, and we thank You for bringing us into another shiny, sparkly, new week. A week of transition back for us who are here in Israel, transitioning back into different time zones, in different parts of the earth, different cities, and different homes, and different contexts. And we thank You for everything, Father, we thank You for everything. All that we’ve been able to see and experience here and all that we get to see and experience every day in Your word. So, we just pray over all of the travel, all of the flights, all of the different journeys that go all of the different places back. We also pray over the entire community because we are all on a journey together, the journey through this year, the journey through the Bible and so, wherever we are on our journey, thank You for leading us and directing us and guiding us and being patient with us, and loving us. We love You, we worship You and we pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Announcements:
Okay so, our final day on our journey here in the land of the Bible, was centered in Jerusalem and was really centered around the final days of Jesus in Jerusalem. And of course, we know what those final days looked like. And so, we were visiting the different places that represent those final days, immersing ourselves in the story of our salvation and allowing it to become real to us in the places that it happened. So, we were able to visit the upper room, a place that has been commemorated and…and visited for well for millennia, nearly millennia, for about 1750 years. And the room that…that’s there now definitely from like crusader era, it has crusader architecture, but they have like at the bedrock of this building may have found Christian graffiti, so it goes way, way back. So, we visited the upper room certainly a place where it is believed Jesus and his disciples probably had their last supper together. Also, the place where they were gathering and waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit. So, pretty remarkable place to visit in and of itself. It’s always kind of busy, but visiting that, seeing that, appreciating what that represents very, very important. We also went into the quarters of the high priest that have been discovered here in Jerusalem and there’s, a lot of these places are…are guarded by different churches and have been for a, well, for millennia, they have been for a very, very long time. And so, there is a church there. Because of course, if the high priest represents in the story of Jesus last days, Jesus losing his freedom, being bound in in the garden of Gethsemane and carried back across the well, walking back across the Kedron Valley and then up into the quarters the high priest where he was questioned and ridiculed and mocked and spit upon and abused. And the dungeons below, cause there’s many layers, archaeology is always layers. So, if you start at the top where you are now and some of these places you go down into the different layers of the different existences of whatever the building was, and so, the storage areas and cisterns and stuff are still…are still viewable, even, you can go down into them and that is, that’s tough. That’s a tough place for me. Like on paper, it doesn’t then there’s other places that could be more challenging or whatever, but that place is hard for me personally because I just. Jesus, the man who had been abandoned by everybody, being tied up downstairs, while all of the planning and stuff with the Romans, like how they’re gonna pull this off and get rid of Jesus. And just thinking of him sitting there silently, waiting praying waiting, knowing what’s coming. That’s as difficult, and then being able to go out and the ancient steps kind of leading up into that complex, they’re still there and they’re from the time of Jesus. And Jesus would have come up the Kedron Valley tied up and had to walk up those stairs into these, well into the complex with a high priest. That’s, that’s remarkable, remarkable to think Jesus walked here but He didn’t just walk here, like He walked here on His way to the cross. That’s, that’s powerful. We also moved to the walls of Jerusalem. There are a number of places that scholars over, over time have been kind of trying to re-piece back together ancient Jerusalem in the time Jesus. That’s a job because it’s been built up since then. And so, to get back to that era things have to be destroyed and it’s a big, bustling, crowded, congested, tense city, but lots of things have been discovered and reconstructed and so, we were able to go outside the walls and just view the…the steps that are likely the ones that…that Jesus not only went up but came back down, having been sentenced to die, having been beaten, having been sentenced to crucifixion and He would’ve picked up his cross and carried it. So, being in a place where this is happening and understanding that He carried his cross from here on His way to Golgotha. Yeah, it’s hard. I’m struggling even now to describe it. Part of that is, just the fatigue of the trip, but part of it is, how do you put that into words. It’s some of the things, you can describe them, but they are beyond words as they settle in…into…into our hearts. This is a place like that for me. We had lunch in the markets, but we also visited the church of the holy sepulcher and so, the likely tomb of Jesus. A lot is contained within that church, and it is a bit overwhelming and there are pilgrims there from all over the world. Also reaching for the experience of the moment because it’s a tomb that’s empty, it’s a tomb that…that the person that was laid in that tomb didn’t stay dead. So, we’re talking about the most important event in human history and how to represent that and how to display it and how to approach it and just seeing all the artwork and all the ornate, like so many things don’t feel like a personal thing but they, it’s the artwork of the ages, trying to explain like to trying to reach and touch this moment. This moment of resurrection that represents the salvation of everyone, it’s powerful, powerful stuff if you approach it that way. And it’s also off-putting and disruptive in another way because it’s just such a mixture of people and their experiences from so many cultures over such a long period of time. But…but great, just fantastic to be back and able to witness it again and tell the story once again. We also went up on top of the Mount of Olives and made our way down. We got a picture up there. It’s the quintessential view of Jerusalem and so important, such an important biblical landmark, such an important location that we know Jesus was. So, we walked down the Mount of Olives. We went to Dominus Flevit, this is a place really that well, Jesus stopped on the Mount of Olives and He looked down on the city and the temple was there and it was beautiful, and He wept over Jerusalem that…that they of all people should have known the way to peace but that they were not willing. And how He longed to gather them like a hen gathers her chicks, but they were willing and it’s just a heartbreaking moment where it just wasn’t how it was supposed to be and Jesus wept over…over the situation and then did something about it, by stepping through and drinking the cup and dying for us. So, we looked at that and spent a few minutes there, moved down to the garden of Gethsemane, where we had an opportunity to have a…have a moment, have some quiet moments in the middle of a really, really bustling, busy area, that all kinds of people are trying to. Just have a few minutes to consider these olive trees and consider our Lord coming into the garden and praying and centering himself, and such humanity, asking God, like is…is there another way, asking His friends to stay awake and terry with Him. And then just imagining the mob, some kind of torches and rattling and chains and talking and looking for Jesus. And then Jesus betrayed with a kiss and His freedom was taken from Him there and never to be given back. He would, He would walk all the way through until the cross and that is…that is special as well. All of these places, my words are failing me, special is an understatement, by far. We also went to end our journey to another more…more picturesque place called Gordon’s Calvary, the garden tomb. It’s a view that we see mostly on postcards and stuff like that and that is also a beautiful place to go because it really does give us the feeling that…that we’re looking for, the a sense of awe and the magnitude. There’s also some space there for us just to be, just discuss our final stop and discuss what we’ve been through together and to participate in communion together and end, end our journey together. So, moving, it’s so bittersweet. We’ve been through so much together and it’s hard to end, even though it’s time. It’s hard and then from there to our farewell dinner, where we were able to have it, a meal together of really beautiful, lovely setting, beautiful meal together and just to hear from one another and to relive some of the experiences through each other’s eyes and just hear each other’s hearts as we prepared to end. And from there, a number of…of us were straight to the airport, while others of us are…are moving in that direction, now and today. So, we’re all kind of in between and will be for the next several days. But thank you for your prayers over the immediate travels, so many people going so many places on so many flights to get back to all of our cities and arrive back at all of our homes. Thank you for your prayers as we travel home. We love you; we appreciate that, we appreciate covering this in prayer and we thank you for just coming along with virtually being here with us. I wish that were possible that we could all be here and just wish it could, but we can do it the way that we can do it. And so, thank you for being along on this journey. I’ve got you safe in my suitcase and we’ll all get home safely, if we pray and let’s, let’s do that. A lot of things to say, north, south, east, west and right down the middle, we toured the land and saw it again and it’s a beautiful land. It’s a land where God revealed himself and the Scriptures happened. It’s been really, really beautiful to be here and the next step forward is to come home and come home full and live what we had have learned. And so that is, that is it for today. I am Brian, I love you and I will be waiting for you here, tomorrow.
Prayer and Encouragements:
Hello this is Rob from British Columbia. I’m just us thinking and praying for Webster in Tennessee who shared on February 8th that he would consider himself to be a logical person but looked around and seemed to be surrounded by people with faith and that he had prayed for several years to have a deeper faith and a relationship was God. I myself wished for that more would move from my head to my heart. And so, Webster I want to thank you for that.
Hello, my name is Steve, I’m from Northern California and I just heard a prayer request from a woman who I don’t believe she left her name but said she was in southern Florida. I just wanted to reach out to you because you talked about your daughter Sarah who’s 34 years old, single, living alone and struggling. Your prayer request really hit me because I also have a daughter. My wife and I work with her off and on and she now lives with us. She is married and has some kids, and overall is doing very well, but she’s had several breakdowns over the years and symptoms which you described are very similar. I just want to let you know you’re not alone, that we can relate to what you’re going through and that we will be praying for you, and we pray for Sarah and the best thing I can think of is get her into therapy. That’s what we’re doing with our daughter. And I think that could help tremendously to get to the bottom of what’s going on, so please know again, that you’re not alone and that we will be praying for you.
Hi Daily Audio Bible family. I just want to say to thank you everybody for everything, for the prayers that you prayed for other people and even the prayers for me, I appreciate it. I think his name is Daniel in South Carolina. I really appreciate him, thank you for your prayers for me. And I just thank you for what you wrote too. That was amazing, praise God. But yeah, I hope you guys are having a blessed day and just remember, I’m always praying for you guys. God bless you, love you.
Hi everybody, this is His Sojourner here. Just first I was happy to hear but alas it’s 38 and I hope you guys are doing so well. Quick update. So, I’m back in with my mom, following her kind of health scare in Autumn. She’s doing much better. And I’m so grateful to be able to support her. And more specifically, I’m really calling today to ask you to pray for my ex-house mate. He grew up as a Christian but then kind of lost his way in his teens, early twenties. And from conversations with him, his viewpoint is that Jesus was a real person but was killed rather than sacrificed choosing the evil nature of mankind. Really just praying that his heart will be softened that his, the scales would be removed from his eyes and that he would have a personal encounter with God that cannot be denied. Really hoping that he would have an experience even as Paul did, and his life would change. And even, my house mate who’s in his early thirties, I really want to extend this prayer point to just young people, you know, young adults who have gone, even gone astray from God, from childhood, or didn’t know God in the first place. I pray, really praying that these individuals across the world will find themselves in the country they’re in, that they will have a personal encounter with God. That they would be able to see the beauty of God, even as the Book of Romans talks about that, you know, relations speak of God, that young adults around the world would be able to see God and surrender to Him. And let them ask for Him, even as we know, it’s not just about this life, but also eternity. So, thank you guys so much, God Bless, and see you soon. Bye for now.
Good morning Daily Audio Bible, this is Loral-Lee in Boynton Beach. Many of you have heard me call in about a woman named Katherine. She came to stay with me last May. God led me to her in the woods, an extreme alcoholic, extreme. She’s drinking hand sanitizer now in copious amounts. She left and is hospitalized regularly. I brought her home with me in December, she yearned and was thirsty for God. I believed she was saved in May. I could be wrong but Lord, I just pray she’s out there somewhere again and hospitalized within a week of being out of anywhere. Lord, I don’t know what your plans are, but I know they’re good. She cried out to you in May, I believe you made her Your child. Only You know the future. Her body is in great bondage Lord, but You have freed her, and, in Your mercy, I do not know what You’re up to, but I know it’s good. So, Lord, I just pray for her family. They live in New Zealand. If you have any New Zealander’s listening, please pray for Katherine Brown. Mary and John Kubit and Sarah Wright. Those are her family who are so far away and so used to this but I haven’t given up hope. In Jesus name. Amen.