Israel is a very new country, in comparison to the people's history. These people have been occupied and ruled over for most of their existence. But on May 14, 1948, Israel declared their Independence. Still, much of the land that is now Israel was occupied and controlled by Jordan. Then during the "6 Day War" in 1967, Israel took control over all of Jerusalem.
For many years history has been covered by layers of soil. Periods of time, hidden by dirt and rocks. Possessions and tools of people long ago - waiting to be found. Finally, once inhabited caves and ancient villages that lay in ruins are now consistently being discovered by archeologists.
Just a few years ago a cave was discovered in Jerusalem. On the edge of a bluff, in a highly populated, modern part of the New City - somehow, someone found something ancient. I'm sure there is much in Jerusalem that has yet to be excavated - but in this certain cave artifacts were found dating back 2600 years. That is a long time.
The Israelites had just come home from exile in Babylon. The second temple was rebuilt, but it was small in comparison to what Herod would build hundreds of years later. 2600 years ago was the time period of the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel. It was 600 years before Jesus walked the streets of Jerusalem. That is a long time ago.
In this cave, among other things, was found a charm that would have been worn around a woman's neck. Inside the charm was a scroll and on the 2600 year old scroll was written these words (see if they sound familiar):
"The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace."
These are the words of Numbers 6:24-26. These words are spoken as a benediction most Sundays by my Pastor at the end of worship. This is the blessing I encourage parents to use to bless their children. These are the words I use to bless my children before they go to sleep. These are the words spoken and cherished by a woman 2600 years ago.
When we read Scripture, very rarely do we think about its history - we don't stop to consider how ancient the words are. Do you know who spoke these words? I didn't. These are the words that the Lord told Moses to speak to Aaron and his sons. It's called "The Priestly Benediction." These are actually God's words. Spoken to Moses for Aaron. Spoken to a woman living in a cave outside of Jerusalem. Spoken to you and to me thousands of years later.
How beautiful are the words of Scripture. I've always known that the Bible is sacred, holy, inspired, wonderful...but I think I've taken it for granted. Scripture is messy. Sometimes it is really hard to understand. It was written to and for and by people long ago. But it is alive, reaching across time and space, finding its way into our hearts. Sometimes finding us in a new way and changing our world forever. And that's what makes it so beautiful.
Today I removed a paragraph from this blog post. Not because I'm ashamed of what it said, but because this blog is not meant to cause further conflict for my congregation. Sadly, I thought I could say what I wanted to say on MY blog. I am just trying like everyone else to figure things out for myself. However, I will refrain from any further mention of the heartache affecting my church.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: I am sure that I have cried far more tears over what has happened to our church than you. I have mourned every loss of our congregation. This isn't the path that I would have chosen and I continue to struggle with it every day. But I continue on, following Him who I have been called to serve - because that's all I can do.