We are in Jerusalem.
Our Israel adventure took us up the Mediterranean, over to the Sea of Galilee area, and down through the Jezreel Valley to the Dead Sea and Masada. Now we are wrapping our time up not just with biblical-era history, but also with layers of history. As our guide, Shmulik, shares what we are seeing, we hear about the biblical application and significance of the sites and also about the more recent history of this tiny nation. It is not just two-dimensional; God’s fingerprints, God’s heart, and God’s hope for Israel is evident everywhere.
For me, one site visit that made Scripture much more meaningful was at the remains of the Temple of Pan, at Caesarea Philippi. Jesus and the disciples arrived there right after He preached the Beatitudes and fed 5,000 at a location across the sea.
Caesarea Philippi was an area known to be thick with pagan worship. In fact, it was known to be the heart of worship for Pan, the horned half-goat, half-man god who was said to guide the dead into Hades. (This is the god who “inspired” the horned-devil imagery.)
There is a deep cave in the side of the mountain where Pan was said to have guided souls to Hades through a gate. “As a result, the association between Pan and the evil spirits of the underworld led to Pan’s identification with Satan among Christians. …” It was a dark place. Full of lewd acts and sexual sin in appealing to their god Pan.
Interesting that Jesus comes right into the heart of an area known for worshipping false gods and asks his disciples: “… Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:13–16).
Not intimidated by the idol worshippers or their practices, Jesus brought his disciples into the midst to bid them to speak the truth — to be salt and light. And when Peter gets the answer right, this was Jesus’ response:
“… Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:17–19).
Those words, which were not lost on me, were in contrast to what they were seeing before them — no “gate of hell” would prevail!
I thought of the increasingly pagan culture we are living in today. Jesus didn’t fold in the face of evil or steer clear of the idol worshippers, but He confronted them head-on with the truth of who He is. We do not need to be fearful in our increasingly and shockingly coarse culture. Run to the mountain — the answer is Jesus.