Rejoice in your new life at Gordon's Calvary and the Garden Tomb

From the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, we travel to Gordon's Calvary and the Garden Tomb. If Jesus did not die and return to life where the Church stands today, this location is the most likely alternative. 

In 1883, Major General Charles Gordon noticed this prominent rocky outcropping a few hundred feet away, which appeared to him to resemble a skull. In 1869, a number of ancient tombs had been discovered nearby; Gordon determined that one could be the tomb of Christ. While the evidence is inconclusive for this being the site where Jesus died, many facts point to the possibility that it's where he was buried. 

In 1869, several ancient Jewish tombs were discovered in the area of Gordon's Calvary. In 1874, a Swiss archaeologist named Conrad Schick did the first detailed investigation of the one now called the "Garden Tomb." Byzantine crosses painted in the interior of the tomb offer evidence that this was used as a worship site for early Christians. A cross inscribed on the outer wall of the tomb was originally an anchor and was later extended and changed into a cross. The anchor was a very early Christian symbol and may indicate a first-century veneration of the tomb.

What is your confession of faith?

This place is among my favorite locations in all of Israel. 

It points to the most important event in all of history, the means by which God purchased our eternal salvation. 

It calls us to both rejoice in the new life offered by Christ and to share that life with everyone we meet. 

So, as we conclude our journey through the Holy Land and head into Easter morning, let's close with one of my favorite confessions of faith. 

A young man from Rwanda wrote it the night before he died for refusing to recant his faith. May we mirror his commitment today.

"I won't give up, shut up, let up, or slow up until I've preached up, prayed up, paid up, stored up, and stayed up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go until he comes, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until he stops. And when he comes to get his own, he'll have no problems recognizing me—my colors will be clear."

Photo: The Garden Tomb commemorating the resurrection of Christ. © Denison Ministries