Ruins and Easter

When you think of Petra, you most likely think about Al-Khazneh, which is the most famous part of the ancient city of Petra in southern Jordan. Al-Khazneh makes an appearance in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade as the temple containing the holy grail. I’m fascinated by the grand structures and artwork found at many archaeological sites. Major Roman ruins, which are scattered over many areas of Europe, the Middle East, and northern Africa, are particularly appealing to me. Ruins left from Greek, Etruscan, Egyptian, Inca, Mayan, and other civilizations demonstrate the amazing ability of humans to create intricate structures that are glorious because of their beauty and the engineering prowess they portray. Persepolis makes me want to visit Iran. Pergamon and others draw me to Turkey. There are so many that I can’t list them all. Recently I’ve been enjoying watching a series named Secrets of Archaeology, and I highly recommend it. Of course, some things can be seen in museums, like the Ishtar Gate of Babylon and the reconstructed Pergamon Altar, both of which can be seen at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. The British Museum houses wonderful things like the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles (some of the original sculptures of the Parthenon), and artifacts from Egypt and Assyria. Carla and I were unusually blessed to have been able to visit the British Museum and see these things when we were unexpectedly able to take a trip to London and Scotland in 2016. It was amazing.

It saddens me when I see the destruction of archaeological sites. The remains are mere shadows, and I long to have seen them in their glory. I was deeply grieved when a terrorist organization destroyed significant parts of Palmyra in Syria. Digging deeper, however, shows that one of the things that they destroyed was the Temple of Bel. The title Bel was given to various pagan gods to signify that they were masters, or lords.

God has a very dim view of pagan gods. So much so, in fact, that He told His people Israel to destroy their temples and warned them against worshipping them. Here’s an example:

“You shall tear down their altars and”

smash their sacred pillars and”

burn their Asherim with fire, and you shall”

cut down the engraved images of their gods and”

obliterate their name from that place.”

Deuteronomy 12:3 (NASB)

Asherim refers to either a Phoenician goddess, images of that goddess, or a grove that was considered to be holy by those that set aside the place for worship of the goddess. In the NASB, there are places in Exodus, Deuteronomy, II Kings, II Chronicles, Hosea, and Micah that specifically identify pillars as things that should be destroyed or that were destroyed. The terrorists used explosives to partially destroy the Temple of Bel, and a resident of Palmyra reported, "It is total destruction. The bricks and columns are on the ground.'' What did God think of this? Clearly, from the verses referred to above, He was pleased that remnants of the worship of fakes fabricated by people to be deities were destroyed. Well now, if I want to think like God—and I do—then I’d better be careful about what in archaeological sites I let sadden me. There’s a bigger issue at stake than my personal comfort.

We’re much too sophisticated in our Christianity to be taken in by such pagan trickery, but don’t we fall prey to the more mundane sins? Things like envy, covetousness, jealousy, anger, impatience, lust, narcissism, theft, lying, and so forth are condemned throughout scripture. God tells us, just as He did the nation of Israel, to be different from those that do not know Him:

“As obedient children, do not be conformed to”

the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance,”

but like the Holy One who called you,”

be holy yourselves in all of your behavior;”

because it is written,”

‘YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY.’”

I Peter 1:14-16 (NASB)

In my almost 64 years of life, I have proven to myself empirically that I cannot simply make up my mind to be holy and have it be so. God has proven to me that I cannot do that. The thing about holiness is that it is a pre-requisite to seeing God:

“Follow peace with all men, and holiness,”

without which no man shall see the Lord.”

Hebrews 12:14 (KJV)

We are left with one way, and only one way:

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life,”

No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

John 14:6 (ESV)

He is risen! Hallelujah!