Page 42 - Holyland Magazine - 2022 Edition

The Land

and People of Israel

Interpreting the gospels

prophetically fulfilled before our eyes. Finally, and blessings transports us back to Jesus’
it is the land where Messiah will rule from. I Shabbat meals with His friends and family.
warmly invite you to visit the Land of Israel Attending a synagogue service transports us
with Bridges for Peace. to imagine Jesus as a guest rabbi being asked
to speak. It also helps us understand how
Rev. Peter Fast (National Director, Bridges for upsetting it might have been for some to see
Peace Canada)
the service interrupted by a healing. Meeting
The Sixth Gospel a baker in Efrat near Bethlehem and smelling
Have you ever wished you could have been the warm, fresh sourdough bread makes
one of the disciples: to travel with Jesus, Bethlehem, the House of Bread, come alive.
eat with Him, and maybe even work in the Friendships and lively discussions with Jewish
carpenter shop? Living life with Jesus would friends gives us a glimpse into the interaction
certainly give us insight into His teachings of those first disciples.
and stories beyond what we can gather by
reading alone; but those days are past, and Truly, as the Land of Israel is aptly known as
Jesus no longer walks the Land of Israel. the Fifth Gospel, experiencing the people of
Worshipping in the Negev. However, His family still lives. Although Israel could be called the “Sixth Gospel,” both
Photo: Alina Tuck much has changed over the centuries, a wonderfully highlighting and amplifying the
surprising amount remains similar. written text.

The Fifth Gospel Joining a Jewish family for a Friday night Rev. Jim Solberg (National Director, Bridges for
Three hundred years after Jesus, a man Shabbat meal and hearing the prayers Peace United States)
known as St. Jerome in church history,
described the Land of Israel as the “Fifth
Gospel”. This was because the land is Streams in the desert flow to Ein Gedi. Photo: Daniel Kirchhevel Olive grove on the way to
Bethlehem. Photo: Angela Storer
central to the Bible’s Story. God promised
the land to Abraham’s descendants, and
it was the LORD who proclaimed that He
had placed His Name in the land. The
importance of the land is also evident by
the fact that most biblical events occurred
within the boundaries of today’s modern
State of Israel.

Even events that took place in other
regions, such as Babylon, Nineveh or
Rome, all featured Jewish men from the
Land of Israel (i.e., Daniel, Jonah, Paul).
The Land of Israel is central to God’s
plan. It is the land of the patriarchs, kings,
and prophets. It’s the land of Jesus, the
disciples, and apostles. It was the land
of the Kingdom of David and Solomon
and the birth of the early church. It is
the land God promised to regather the
Jewish people back to, which is being

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