Walking Where Jesus Walked

We began this day on the Mount of Olives.  The camel was ready to 

transport anyone down who needed a lift...but we walked.

The view of the city from the Mount of Olives is beautiful.  It looks 

directly onto the temple mount where Solomon's temple would have

stood.  We stopped and gazed upon Jerusalem in the same spot it is

believed Jesus stopped, when he mourned over the city, saying,

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem.... 

How often would I have gathered thy 

children together, even as a  hen gathereth 

her chickens under her wing, and ye would not."

Matthew 23:37

Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.

The hill itself is mainly a Jewish cemetery dating back to biblical times

and is still in use today.

As a memorial the Jewish people put rocks on the graves instead of flowers

because they last longer. As they place the stone they say, "May the Lord 

watch between me and thee as we part."   I thought that was beautiful.

After Jesus descended the mount, he entered Jerusalem through the

Golden Gate.  

"And a very great multitude spread their garments

in the way; others cut down branches from the

trees, and strawed them in the way.  And the multitudes

that went before, and that followed, cried, saying,

Hosanna to the Son of David; Blessed is he that

cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest."

Matthew 21:8-9

We saw many olive trees on our way down the mount.  This tree

was said to be thousands of years old and is located in the Garden

of Gethsemane which is at the base of the mountain.

We were here during the harvest season of the olives.  I've never

seen olive trees before and I thought they were beautiful.

Upon entering Jerusalem, Jesus cleansed the temple and continued

to teach the people through parables. In Matthew 23, it says Jesus

departed from the temple and as he sat upon the mount of Olives,

his disciples came to him and inquired about the second coming and

the destruction of Jerusalem.  Jesus spent much time on the Mount

of Olives the last week of his life.  

Jesus and his disciples gathered in the home of Mark's family to 

partake of the passover and the Last Supper.  We visited a church

which has been built on the site believed to be this home and as

a group sang the hymn, "I Stand All Amazed".   On this sacred

evening Christ instituted the sacrament.

"And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and 

blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples,

and said, Take, eat; this is my body.  And he took

the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying,

Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new 

testament, which is shed for many for the remission

of sins....And when they had sung a hymn, they went

out into the mount of Olives."

Matthew 26:26-28, 30

After the passover meal, Jesus went back to the Mount of Olives.  

One of the things that I appreciated by being in these locations, was to

get a feel for the distance between the places where Jesus spent his time. 

It is quite a walk from the home in which he ate his passover meal to the

mount of Olives. 

"Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called

Gethsemane, and saith unto his disciples, Sit ye here,

while I go and pray yonder.

And he went a little further, and fell on his face,

and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible,

let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as

I will, but as thou wilt."

Matthew 26:36, 39

In John's account we read that Christ shed great drops of blood as he took

upon himself the sins of the world.  His great atoning sacrifice began here 

and was completed on the cross.   It was a beautiful and somber place to

be, although not as I had expected in some ways.  The garden is near a busy

road and I found the noise from the traffic to be distracting.  I wanted to walk

out in that street and say, "Stop!  Be quiet and reverent.  Don't you know

what happened here?" 

 Jesus was arrested in the garden and taken to the house of the high priest

Caiphas.  He was kept overnight in the dungeon before being taken

to Pilate.

This path led to Caiphas home from the city and Christ would have

walked this path no less than five times as he was taken back and forth

during the arrest and trial.

These steps date back to 188 BC and Jesus would've walked up 

and down them as he was taken to the prison.

There are Old Testament prophesies that state Jesus would be lowered into

the dungeon by a rope.  I never realized that when he was imprisoned he 

was put in a pit, like this.

From the prison, Christ was taken to the judgement seat on the stone pavement.

In this place, on the stone pavement, Debi read the account from

John about Jesus trial before Pilate.  There was not a dry eye in the

room. 

" Pilate said saith unto them,

 Shall I crucify your King?

Then delivered he him therefore unto

them to be crucified.  And they took

Jesus and led him away."

John 19:15 -16

As I walked this path, our guide told us, "today you are walking

where Jesus walked."  I can't explain the feelings this caused

in my heart.  I was walking where Jesus carried his cross to 

be crucified....for me.

"And he bearing his cross went forth

into a place called the place of a skull,

which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha."

John 19:17

From a distance this looks very much like a skull and is believed

to be the location of Christ's crucifixion. It was a place of darkness

and death as many Jewish executions took place here. It is part of

a big hill and I always imagined that Christ would have been on top

of that hill when he was crucified.  Our guide explained that it most 

certainly  would have happened at the base of the hill, because the

Romans always crucified people on main roads and places that were 

easily accessible.  They wanted to draw a crowd to teach others by

example not to break Roman law.  

If this were the end of the story, it would be a tragedy.   But it's not.

(Photo credit: Debi Sager)

"And the angel said unto the women,

Fear not, for I know that ye seek Jesus,

which was crucified.  He is not here; for he

is risen, as he said."

Matthew 28:5-6

The Garden Tomb was beautiful and peaceful and exactly as I 

hoped it would be.  There is sufficient evidence to suggest this could 

have been the tomb of Joseph of Arimethea which he generously

gave as the burial place for Christ's body when he was taken from the 

cross.  President Kimball, when visiting this site, said he felt quiet

certain that this was the place.  Our guide's wise words were "The 

most important thing is not where it happened, but that it happened." 

We sat together and sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" and

talked about the Savior and his life of love and  sacrifice.  We were

reminded that as we partake of the Sacrament each week, we could

remember how we felt at the Garden Tomb and we could recommit

ourselves to always remember Him.  That's the challenge we face.

I walked where Jesus walked and as I did so,  I felt his love for me in

an overwhelming way.  He is the way, the truth and the life.  He is

my Savior and my Redeemer and my very best friend.  More than ever,

I want to "stand as a witness for him at all times and in all things, and 

in all places that I may be in." (Mosiah 18:9 )   I pray that it may be so.

*MYOF Goal #25 - Visit Israel.