Anthology 2-Journey
Everyone is on a journey
“Its not the destination that’s important, its what happens along the way”
Ask your kids and they will differ “Are we there yet?”
Our journey is important.
It makes us who we are. Each place we’ve been has its own culture and values. Similar but different.
Sydney is similar but different to Southland, Auckland is similar but different to Gore.
Each time we visit or spend time in a place part of that culture rubs off on us and us on it.
Every place we have been to, we have left our impression on it.
People will remember you for something.
People would lay down memorial stones to remind them each time they passed that way what happened. We do the same today with our cenotaphs. They are there to remind us of the cost to a safe journey.
Bible is full of people who were on a journey.
Some travelled to far away lands others their journey was from insignificance to prominence and vice versa.
- Adam & Eve made the greatest journey when they travelled out of Gods Presence.
- Noah made a journey to the peaks of Mount Ararat
- Abraham packed up his family and travelled to Egypt and back
- Jacob travelled 1000kms to escape his brother Esau to live with Laban in Haran.
- Joseph is taken from Jerusalem to Egypt followed by the whole family.
- Israel leaves Egypt to journey in the desert 40 years
- Joshua journeys into the Promised Land. Fighting battles along the way
- Israel taken captive and exiled to Babylon.
- Israel’s return to Jerusalem
Jesus spent his ministry moving around from village to village.
Our journey is important
Listen to Paul
2 Corinthians 11
23-27I’ve worked much harder, been jailed more often, beaten up more times than I can count, and at death’s door time after time. I’ve been flogged five times with the Jews’ thirty-nine lashes, beaten by Roman rods three times, pummeled with rocks once. I’ve been shipwrecked three times, and immersed in the open sea for a night and a day. In hard traveling year in and year out, I’ve had to ford rivers, fend off robbers, struggle with friends, struggle with foes. I’ve been at risk in the city, at risk in the country, endangered by desert sun and sea storm, and betrayed by those I thought were my brothers. I’ve known drudgery and hard labor, many a long and lonely night without sleep, many a missed meal, blasted by the cold, naked to the weather.
Try telling Paul his journeys were insignificant!
You would think he would give up!
Jailed, beaten, flogged, beaten with rods, stoned, shipwrecked, lost friends, betrayed
Not Paul
Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me”
Our journey is important to remember. It helps build faith to release our future.
The Bible is a book of true stories of men and women who took journeys. Some big and some small.
All significant
Some so big it involved millions of people moving through treacherous lands to get to a place they would call home.
Some it was simply a journey of faith to see a man named Jesus, who by getting close enough would produce a healing and a complete change of life.
Location & Geography is important because we always need to know where we have come from, where we are going and so we can find the way home.
Prodigal son went an a journey away from his fathers house and when he came to his senses he said ‘I will journey home”
Why are locations important-because they are places of meaning, safety & security, danger and distress.
The son learned on his journey where not to be.
He remembered that the best place for him was in his father’s house.
Jesus had made a journey to Jerusalem with his parents. On the return home His parents found he was not with them. They finally caught up with him and found Him teaching in the temple courts.
Luke 2:49 “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”
Jesus knew where home was.
Do you know where home is?
Do you know of others needing/looking for home?
Bodies of Water
Mediterranean Sea
- Enter from the Atlantic Straits of Gibraltar and exit via Suez Cannel.
- Bible times the Mediterranean Sea was the world and trade wars and city’s were all around it.
Sea of Galilee
- 21 km long, and 13 km wide. total area of 166 km2
- Just bigger than Manapouri or Hawea
Jordan River
- 251 km long and drops into the Dead Sea. 150km straight line
- 33 m wide. Size of the Mataura.
- Abraham & Lot separate here
- Israelites cross over on dry land
- Elijah & Elisha divide it and cross
- Naaman is healed in it
- John Baptized Jesus in it
- Mentioned 180 times OT, 15 NT
- Currently Boarder of Israel and Jordan
Dead Sea
- 423m below sea level
- 1020 km2 Nearly twice as big as Lake Taupo.
- Jordan flows in but nothing flows out so it
Nile River
- 6,650km. Runs through Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.
Tigris & Euphrates Rivers
- Tigris flows from Turkey through Iraq. 1800km
- Mentioned in Genesis and in Daniel
Euphrates-2800km runs through Syria and Iraq
- Home of the city of Nineveh
- Mentioned in Genesis and Revelation 9 & 16
Persian Gulf
- Hot Seat of the middle east
- Borders Iran, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq.
- Named by King Darius 500BC
- Time of Daniel
Main Locations
Garden of Eden
- Exact location is unknown but is at the convergance of 4 rivers, two are the Euphrates and the Tigris.
Canaan/Israel/Palestine
- Crazyest piece of realestate in the world. It has no oil but everyone wants it.
- Changes its name through the bible. In Genesis its Canaan. When Joshua enters it its called Isreal. When Jesus is there its called Palestine.
Jerusalem
- Capital of the nation of Isreal
- King David made it the capital of Isreal
- Jesus was crucifed there Friday april 3, 33
- During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times.
Egypt
- Abraham, Moses, Aaron, Exodus
Assyria
- Major super power seeking world domination
- Israel made treaty’s with them against Gods advice
- Overthrown by Babylonian Empire
Babylonia
- Modern day Iraq
- Several Kings most famous was Nebuchadnezzar
- Destroyed Jerusalem in 586BC and exiled its people to Babylon
- Daniel, Ezekiel, Habakkuk, Obadiah prophets
Persia (Iran)
- Conquered the know world under King Cyrus
- Allowed the return of Israel to build the temple of God. 500BC
