Temple Days of Service

Zechariah the Priest looked forward to serving the Lord at the Temple each time the opportunity afforded itself, which was about five weeks per year. The journals in the book Advent Journeys attempts to share Zechariah’s passion and dedication for the Lord’s work.

Scrolls inscribed by a Sofer

The scripture relates to us as background the manner in which Israel’s priesthood is organized. At first, in the days of Moses, there were four divisions created in order to setup, tear down and carry the Tabernacle as it traveled across the wilderness. Once the Tabernacle became a permanent fixture in Shiloh, the priests were not needed for transportation. We can almost sense in 1 Samuel that common priests ceased to serve in the Tabernacle under Eli and his sons.

Temple Mount with Mount of Olives behind

In the establishment of the Temple in Jerusalem by King David, the orders of Priesthood were reestablished, and increased to twenty-four orders. The names of each of these orders can be seen in 1 Chronicles 24-26.

Home of one of the High Priests

King David assigned some priests as gate-keepers: some to give the offering, some to cook meals and some for administration. David also organized Temple musicians, who shared their gift of music for generations.

Home of one of the High Priests

As the population of Israel grew, so did the priesthood. With the establishment of a permanent structure, all priests were not needed every week, so a system of rotation called Mishmarot and Ma’amadot was set up. All priests would serve during the three harvest festivals, and then in rotation once every twenty-four weeks. The scripture tells us Zechariah was a Priest of the order of Abijah.

Zechariah in the Temple

The Temple of the first century is a fascinating place! The Temple itself was the center of activity, serving thousands of people each day. The plaza around the Temple was a meeting place of pilgrims who came from long distances to bring an offering and merchants who were selling the offering to the pilgrims. It was a place of contention for Sadducees, Pharisees, Essenes, Herodians, Zealots, and others who came to argue politics and religion. It was also a place for locals, who came to watch the commotion.

The Robinson Arch entrance to the Temple

The Temple itself was a modern building, having been totally reconstructed by King Herod the Great. The magnificent Sanctuary was a hundred cubits square and a hundred cubits in height. The Temple Mount measured five hundred cubits by five hundred cubits. Its largest open space was to the south, the next largest to the east, the third largest to the north, and its smallest was to the west. The King had erected the monstrous edifice in order to claim bragging rights (it was a third larger than Solomon’s Temple) and hopefully to appease the Jews who could be a rebellious and obstinate people.

Jerusalem at the time of Jesus

Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist and the subject of this week’s readings in Advent Journeys, was of the generation of priests who had served in both the old Temple and the new facility. The priests enjoyed the spaciousness and modernalities of the new superstructure. The priests enjoyed the tables of marble upon which the sacrifices were prepared. They talked about parading down the colonnades on the east and west of the Temple itself early in the morning. They bragged about the wooden device which Ben Katin had made for the laver. They knew that no expense had been spared in the construction of the new Temple.

Underground tour shows large stones of Temple Mount

The magnificence and wonder of the construction can still be seen on the underground tour of the Western Walls. If you would like to see and touch the stone structure, please accept this as an invitation to join our family on a June 2018 tour of the Holy Land. More information can be found on our website.

Marker for location closest to Holy of Holies

Around the Temple were service buildings constructed to facilitate every portion of the work. There were six chambers in the Temple Court, three to the north and three to the south. Those to the north were the Salt Chamber, the Parwah Chamber, and the Rinsing Chamber. To the south were the Wood Chamber, the Golah Chamber, and the Chamber of Hewn Stone. There were seven gates to the Temple Court: three to the north, three to the south, and one to the east. Those to the south were the Kindling Gate, next to it the Gate of the Firstlings, and the third was the Water Gate. The one to the east was the Nicanor Gate, beside which were two Chambers, one to the right and one to the left; the one was the Chamber of Phineas, the keeper of the vestments, and the other the chamber of them that made the Baken Cakes.

Archaeological finds south of original Temple Mount

The new Temple was in every way a stark contrast to the Temple built under the leadership of Ezra, Joshua, Zerubbabel and Nehemiah. Zechariah approached the Temple with a sense of awe each week of his service.

Elizabeth at Home

In writing the words of Advent Journeys I came to thoroughly enjoy taking walks with the Biblical characters themselves. One of the couples I enjoyed visiting with the most was Elizabeth and Zechariah, the parents of John the Baptist. By tradition this couple lives in Beth Hakkerem (then Jer. 6:1; Neh. 3:14), or Ein Karem (today).

Over this wall we see the valley through which Joseph traveled

I first met this couple on Joseph’s trip (which occurs in the book on Week 2, but I wrote it first) as Mary came to visit her cousin when she finds out she is pregnant. As Joseph and Mary travel to Bethlehem, they visit Zechariah and Elizabeth along the way. Ein Karem is one of the Levitical cities located about five miles from Jerusalem.

The map of Joseph & Mary's route on right

Ein Karem is on the west side of a mountain which separates it from Jerusalem proper. In order to get there from Jerusalem on our travels in Israel, we took the light rail to the top of Mt. Herzl, and then transferred to a bus which took us down a long descent into the village. From the village we could see the ancient travel paths through a valley from the north and a valley which extended west, then south and finally to the east on the other side of the mountain. The terrain around the village is mountainous.

In front of Church of the Visitation in Ein Karem

The village today is small (considering its location as a suburb of Jerusalem), with a population of about 2,000 people. In the days of Zechariah and Elizabeth, there would have been less than 200 people.

Today it is said Ein Karem hosts about three million visitors per year. They come to see the village where John the Baptist grew up. They visit the spring where Elizabeth came out to greet Mary. They enter the Church of the Visitation, the Church of St. John the Baptist, the monastery of Les Soeurs de Notre-Dam de Sion, and the Moscobia Convent. The churches are very beautiful, and the small village descending from the spring into the valley speaks of the rural setting of John the Baptist’s nativity.

Mary's Well in Ein Karem

After ascending to the Church of the Visitation we stopped in a grocery to buy soft drinks and watch the pilgrims parading through the streets from one church to another. But through the crowds we could enjoy the quietness of what this village was in the days of Zechariah and Elizabeth, Mary and Joseph, and the two boys who every once in a while played on the dirt roads and in the spring.

December Family Nights

Each week when my family was young (preschool, elementary school and even high school-aged), our family set one night a week aside as a family night. These ideas, with a calendar are included on my website under the Advent tab. Please feel free to use these ideas with your family.

Family nights on my website are set around the following weekly themes: 1) Prophecy; 2) The Journey of Joseph & Mary; 3) The Shepherds; 4) The Magi. Family nights include: a special meal, an opportunity to read a portion of the Christmas story, times of singing, and surprises.

During the week of November 28, I try to share with my family how God told us about the birth of Jesus even before He came. To reinforce this children can help bake bread. What starts as dry ingredients turns into a lump, which rises, and then with baking becomes the bread we eat. In a similar fashion, the Gospel began as an idea, as God shared parts of his plan through the Old Testament, where we can began to understand the idea. Then Jesus was born in Bethlehem. We read scripture from Luke 1:1-4 with a focus on the prophets.

We set up the tree this day; the evergreen is a promise of eternal life. We set out Nativity sets, which tell the story of Christmas. We will eat the bread as part of our dinner, and sing Christmas carols. We will also look at pictures of former Christmases, and talk about what we want to see happen this year.

During the week of December 5, I share with my family how God announced the birth of Jesus to Joseph and Mary. In response, the couple traveled to Bethlehem where Jesus was born (a “journal” of this trip can be found in the book Advent Journeys). We bake a Birthday Cake in order to tell the story of Christmas from Luke 2:1-7. We sing songs, and then eat dinner as a picnic by the Christmas tree. Joseph and Mary ate picnic lunches as they traveled. We sing songs during this celebration.

During the week of December 12, I share with my family the story of the shepherds. During the week I try to take them to see a pasture with sheep in it. For supper on Shepherd week, I build a fire in the fireplace. We roast hot dogs, and can have s'mores. The shepherds cooked their meal over a real fire. We tell the story of the Shepherds from Luke 2:8-20. We string popcorn on the Christmas tree. We also prepare Christmas cards. As the angels announced the Birth of Jesus to the shepherds, we tell our friends of our love for Jesus.

During the week of December 19, I will tell the story of the Magi. Our special foods are sugar cookies and eggnog because the Magi lived such rich lives. We might eat steak, or a similar meal. Or we go out (if not planned for another night) to burger king, where we wear crowns, and talk about the Kings. We read the story from Matthew 2:1-12. We also look at the decorations on our tree.

Christmas is for sharing; please consider sharing the book Advent Journeys this year with others. A reading each day will enhance this season and make it more meaningful than other years. As you read, share your readings with others to encourage them. I have been amazed as people shared with me the blessing they found in reading this book. Several non-believers and skeptics were given this book, were captured by the first chapter and read the book, discovering for the first time the real meaning of the Christmas story. Pray about who you know who would benefit by reading Advent Journeys ... and then order copies (so you will have them to give to friends on Thanksgiving Day). The publisher’s website (CreateSpace owned by Amazon.com) is listed here: Order the book through CreateSpace. When you give Advent Journeys to others as a gift, you will reap the blessing of having them share from their perspectives the discoveries and joys they receive from the book.

Parts of a Christmas Plan

The Christmas season ... Christmas day ... each of these hold more meaning when pre-planning takes place. Today, I want to share the parts of a good Christmas plan and a tool which will help make sure the plan falls into place (and is not consumed by the business of the Christmas Season).

The first part of the plan is to establish spiritual themes. I give each week of Advent (beginning the Sunday after Thanksgiving, November 27 this year) a theme. On my website these are: 1) Prophecy; 2) The Journey of Joseph & Mary; 3) The Shepherds; 4) The Magi. Then, each day I mark in the calendar two verses (an Old Testament and a New Testament) verse to share. These can be found in a calendar on my website under the tab for Advent.

The second thing I do is to take a look at my personal calendar. Days when work demands my attention need to be more self-directed; days (weekends) when I am less consumed will become valuable family times because I plan them (early, now) for my family. Long ago I decided if I do not have three days (worship at church, a family night, and an activity day) for my family, I am too busy. The Bible commands us to pass our faith on to the next generation. If I cannot successfully pass on my faith to my children, I have failed.

Next I look at community calendars. Many great things are happening in our community that are worth sharing with my family. Churches have musicals and family days. Museums and towns themselves offer special events and concerts linked to Christmas. Many communities have live Nativities and walk through dramas, such as Walk Through Bethlehem in our community. These events share ideas and fun far beyond what we could provide for our families individually. The events also help children understand that others also feel the spiritual element of Christmas is important.

After unmovable work events and community events are logged on my calendar, I set a family night each week in order to re-tell parts of the Christmas story in a fun way. I place these days as unmovable events on our family calendar. These events (I will share more tomorrow, and each Monday) include a special meal, an opportunity to read a portion of the Christmas story, times of singing, and surprises.

With the calendar planned, I produce a tool which will make sure no day is forgotten during the Christmas rush. This tool is the simple paper chain we made as children. On the outside of each link I place the date (like November 27). On the inside I place the two Bible verses to be read, and the activities I have planned for each day. My children make sure I take off the link for the day each morning. With the promise given in print each day, there is no going back.

These ideas are contained on my website, and linked to the book Advent Journeys.

NOT NOW! It’s too soon for Christmas!

Many books have a presence in the cyber world on Amazon.com. My books are in the company of those of 5,000,000 other authors! The problem with being an author in the United States is that people are reading less and less. I learned while in Israel that per capita more books are printed in Israel than any other country in the world. I need to get my book translated to Hebrew!

I have written books to be read. It takes work to write a book. Although at times the material for the book pops out, and goes on the page easily, it is not in presentable format. Sarah can tell you from proofing my books when I write the tenses I use get all messed up, so what was written needs improvement. The author of a book goes through the book seven or more times to make sure what was written is accurate, to correct spelling and punctuation errors, and to remedy other issues.

I write books because there are things I desire to share, and things that need to be shared. I want people to understand the world of Biblical times. I desire to open doors for people to understand the Jewishness of the New Testament. I want the world to see the reality and truthfulness of scripture. It takes hard work to write a book, and harder work to market a book.

Because Christmas is now only two months away, it is time to recommend my book Advent Journeys to those who are reading this blog. Advent Journeys is enjoyable to read, for yourself or as a gift for you to give. In the pages of this book Sarah and I have worked to bring out the real meaning of Christmas.

Each week during the Christmas season, Advent Journeys invites people to walk with men and women of the Christmas story. The first week, readers will join Zechariah in the Temple. The second week, the reader will walk alongside Joseph and Mary as they journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. On the third week, a shepherd shares what life is like in the fields. During the fourth week, the reader will journey with the Magi from Persia to Bethlehem. The fifth week contains Joseph’s journals from the day he leaves Bethlehem until the time he settles with his family back in Nazareth. The fifth week is shared to help people get ready for the New Year. The book includes a bonus Chanukah week, written through the experiences of a Maccabee. Each day’s presentation includes a short journal and three or four thought ideas and questions.

The books, especially (at this time of year) Advent Journeys, are great reads. Advent Journeys can actually bring someone (if read) a better Christmas.