|
|
 he Western Wall, also called the Wailing Wall, is one of the most famous places on earth, but not because of all that happened there. The Wall is famous because of how close it is to something else. To find out what it's near, and what's goes on there every day and why, take a look at this minute and twenty second video. Then read on to find out how you can do the same thing they're doing at the Western Wall every day, wherever you are on the face of the planet. Lesson 19: What's happening at the Western Wall?by Eric Elder The Western Wall, also called the Wailing Wall, is one of the most famous places on earth, but not because of all that happened there. The Wall is famous because of how close it is to something else. To find out what it's near, and what goes on there every day and why, take a look at this minute-and-twenty second video. Then read on to find out how you can do the same thing they're doing at the Western Wall every day, wherever you are on the face of the planet. Here's the video... So what's happening at the Western Wall? People are praying. They come here to pray from all over Jerusalem, from all over Israel, and from all over the world. I was visiting a friend in New York just before my first trip to Israel. The man I was visiting said, "When you get to the Western Wall, will you say a prayer for me?" I said I would, even though I knew I could pray for him just as well right there in New York, which I did. But I knew why he wanted me to pray for him there, in that spot: because the Western Wall is the closest spot to the Holy of Holies, the place where God chose out of all the earth for His Name to dwell. You may have heard this famous quote from the Bible before: "...if My people, who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14).But you may not remember the context in which those words were spoken. The context in this case was just after Solomon had finished building the Temple in Jerusalem, as a place for God's name to dwell. Here's what God said to Solomon when the temple was completed: "When Solomon had finished the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the LORD and in his own palace, the LORD appeared to him at night and said:'I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a temple for sacrifices. When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among My people, if My people, who are called by My Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that My Name may be there forever. My eyes and My heart will always be there' " (2 Chronicles 7:11-16). So it's easy to see why people would want to go to the Temple Mount to pray still today. God promised that His eyes would be open and His ears attentive to the prayers offered in this special place. And it's easy to see why the Temple Mount is still such a sought after property in the world: people want to be as close to God as they can get. They want Him to hear their prayers. They want Him to pay attention to their needs. People want God to answer their prayers, so they still try to get as close to the Temple Mount as they can to pray. And that brings us to why the Western Wall is so important. The Temple Mount has changed hands many times over the years. Solomon's Temple was destroyed and rebuilt again, only to be destroyed again in 70 A.D. The domed building that now stands above the rock of Abraham was at one time a Christian church, with a cross atop the dome. There was also a time when an Israeli flag flew upon the Temple Mount. The dome is now adorned with a golden crescent, the symbol of the Muslims who control the Temple Mount today. And as the third holiest site in Islam, it is forbidden for Jews or Christians to pray anywhere upon it, and if they are found to be praying, they are asked to leave. So today, the closest spot to the place where the Holy of Holies once was, and where Jews can pray, and Christians as well, for that matter, is the Western Wall, a 187 foot expanse of the wall that can be seen on the southwestern edge of the Temple Mount (the walls of the Temple Mount are not to be confused with the city walls that encircle the entire old city of Jerusalem, which Nehemiah rebuilt, and which are are further out). But what many people don't realize is that the Western Wall extends along the full length of the Temple Mount, and can be visited today by descending into the rabbinical tunnels, an extensive network of tunnels that are said to exist underneath the entire Temple Mount. Those along the Western Wall have been excavated in recent years, and you can go down underground and walk along the entire length of the Western Wall, down to what would have been the street level during the time of Jesus! It is spectacular to walk along this massive wall at its base, with its huge foundation stones, and there is one spot along the wall that garners particular attention: the spot that is said to be directly across from where the Holy of Holies once sat, the place where the Ark of the Covenant was located (and shown in the picture and video above). It is remarkable to stand and imagine that this is the closest we can get to this place where God chose for His name to dwell. Having said all of that, there is a closer spot still where God has since chosen for His name to dwell: within the hearts of all those who have put their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. As the apostle Paul told the Ephesians: "I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" (Ephesians 3:16-17).If you've put your faith in Christ, God's Spirit lives within you, just as Jesus told the disciples He would: "If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever--the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you" (John 14:15-16).We all long to be close to God. We want to be with Him and know that He is close enough to hear our prayers. A new worship song by Dennis Jernigan, called "Breathe," expresses this strong desire for intimacy with God by saying: "Lean so close that I feel You breathe Imagine, leaning so close to God that you could feel Him breathe! The good news is that if you want to be this close to God, to talk to Him and to be sure that His eyes are upon you and His ears are attentive to your prayers, all you need to do is to put your faith in Christ. If you've already done that, you need look no further than within your own heart to find the place where the Spirit of God Himself now dwells. Lean close to God today. Feel his breath on your cheek. Let Him whisper the words He longs to tell you, the words you're probably longing to hear from Him as well: "My child, I love you." Then respond to that love with a few words of your own. Let's pray: Father, thank You for coming to dwell among us, both at the Holy of Holies and now within the temple of our own hearts. Lean close to us so we can hear You, see You, feel You and touch You, and thank You for being there so we can lean upon You as well. In Jesus' name, Amen.If you've never heard of Dennis Jernigan, I'd love for you to hear his music and visit his website at www.dennisjernigan.com. I recently had a chance to spend a weekend at his home with a small group of fellow worshippers, and we were able to pour out our hearts to God in prayer and praise. While there, I also saw his wife Melinda's beautiful jewelry collection...unique pieces she has made over the years and now makes available to others who would like them. One of her most popular pieces is a bracelet of genuine Swarovski crystals made to match the colors of the twelve gemstones mentioned in the book of Revelation that will one day adorn the city walls around the New Jerusalem. I'd love to send you one of Melinda's hand-crafted bracelets as a thank you for your donation to our ministry this month of $40 or more. I'll also send you a CD with one of Dennis' songs on it called "You Are Beautiful." The bracelet and the CD make a great gift as a reminder of God's love. Feel free to keep it yourself or give it away to someone special! We would really appreciate your support, and we would love to send you this gift as our thank you for a donation of $40 or more. Just click this link: And for those who would like to hear more about getting as close as possible to God in your daily life, join me for our live Internet broadcast tonight, Sunday, August 15th, at 8 p.m. Central Time (-5 GMT). Just click the link below to watch, worship, or chat: To read more from this series, "Israel: Lessons from the Holy Land," click here: And to get more inspiring books or music like this, please visit: To subscribe to or unsubscribe from this newsletter, click here: |
