The Holy Land--a Pictoral View of Where Christ Walked in His Final Days

Just on the other side of this hill, (The Mount of Olives) is Bethany. In Bethany the Savior found friendship, comfort and loving support during the final week of His ministry in the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus.

Each morning during His final days, He would descend the Mount of Olives, (where this next picture was taken) pass through or near the Garden of Gethsemane, cross the Kidron Valley, also known as the Valley of the Dead, and ascend to the Temple Mount where He would teach the people.


On His final night, His journey would not only take Him through Gethsemane, but He would stop there as well. Here in a grove of olive trees, Christ would take upon Himself the sins, suffering, sickness and imperfections of all mankind.

On Friday morning, following an illegal trial where He was sentenced to death, Christ was taken to Golgotha, where He would offer His life as a sacrifice for each of us.

“Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.
And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.” (Mark 14:14-15)

And they [brought] him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.
And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. (Mark 15: 22.25)



Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. (John 19:41)



They took the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury. (John 19:40)
And laid His body in the garden tomb.

"Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they (the women) came unto the sepulchre. . . . And they found the stone rolled away. . . .

And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus . . . .

And it came to pass . . . [that] two men stood by them in shining garments . . .and they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?

He is not here, but is risen. . . "

(Luke 24:1-6)

And so it was on that first Easter morning that Jesus Christ was resurrected. He suffered that we might overcome, He died that we might live.

It is interesting to note that each day of the last week of His life bore testimony of His divine mission.

Symbolically, mountain tops and temples are representative of Heaven. Christ descending the Mount of Olives each day was symbolic of His descending to earth. Here on earth His journey would take Him through the suffering of Gethsemane to His death on the cross.

And yet, on the third day, He would cross the gulf of death (Valley of the Dead) and ascend back to His Heavenly Father (symbolized by his ascension to the temple mount).

Because He suffered for all our pains---physical, emotional, and spiritual--all our wounds and heartaches can be healed.

Because He lives again, so can we.

And because He has shown us the way to return to our Father in Heaven, so may we return to His presence, if we follow the path He trod.

And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives !
For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only begotten of the Father—
That by him and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.

(Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-24)

HAPPY EASTER!

The Healing Power of the Atonement

I posted the song used in this video a couple months ago, but liked this version much better so I am posting it again. It really is worth your time to watch it.

And for two beautiful blog entries dealing with trials and difficulties in a positive way please go to Scripture Mom and Momza's House. I loved both of these.

As a Hen Gathereth Her Chickens . . . A Poignant True Life Story

I was recently reminded of this story which I found years ago in Meridian Magazine. I saved it, but neglected to document who wrote it. I believe it was Phillip Allred. I loved the story then and still love it now so I wanted to share it with you. I hope it will touch you as well.

“As a Hen Gathereth Her Chickens Under Her Wings”

"A few years ago, a colleague of mine at Idaho State University related one of his student’s experiences that help illustrate this mother hen symbolism. The student, a young man, had been helping inspect some fire damage just outside of town from a recent blaze. As he and the other volunteers were assisting one of the inspectors, they noticed several smoldering mounds across the scorched earth. Intrigued, he asked the inspector what these were. The inspector replied that he should kick one of the piles. He did. To his great surprise several baby chicks ran out from under the upturned mound.

He was fascinated. How ingenious he thought, these little chicks had known to run underneath this refuge. The young man asked the inspector how the chicks knew about this natural shelter. To his amazement, the inspector replied that they were not natural at all; instead this smoldering heap was none other than the remains of their mother. The inspector continued to explain that when a fire breaks out the mother hen calls out to her young ones and stretches out her arm so that they can run inside to her protective embrace.

How fitting that the Lord would personify the mother hen in His words to the Nephites and Lamanites. How perfect is this example for us today! 'Oh ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather ye as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings.' For it is through His embrace we may be protected and through His death that we may be saved."