REFLECTIONS

Journey to the Cross–Places Jesus Walked

Halfway down the grassy slope of Mount of Beatitudes offers a panoramic view of the Sea of Galilee. Today though maybe we can use our imaginations to visit there and a few other places Jesus walked to experience some of the many lives he touched. Capernaum is a place not far away from that grassy slope. Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law there. He also healed a paralytic at Capernaum; and there he answered the plea of a grieving ruler. When Jesus entered the ruler’s house and saw…the noisy crowd, he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” After the crowd [was gone], he…took the girl by the hand, and she got up. (Matthew 9:23-26)

Rolling white caps on the Sea of Galilee stir images of Jesus’ walking on the water to join his disciples on their way to Decapolis, the region on the other side of the lake. When their boat landed the next morning a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet them. Jesus chased demons from him into a herd of pigs that then stampeded down the steep bank into the lake and drowned. Then the man began to tell in Decapolis all Jesus had done. (Mark 5:1-18)

Rugged countryside surrounds the small Samarian town called Sychar. Nearby is Jacob’s well. Jesus met a Samaritan woman there when she came to draw water. Knowing the burden of her sinful life, he said, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.” (John 4:13-14)

Near the center of downtown Jericho there’s a large sycamore-fig tree like the one Zacchaeus, the tax collector, climbed so he could see Jesus when he came through town. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.”  Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” (Luke 19:5-10)

Then at the temple court, Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery, Jesus said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” When they went away, Jesus asked her, “Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” (John 8:1-11)

Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written. (John 21:25)

You are the light of the world,

Richard +

www.reflectingthesavior.org

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