Heading to Roma

Today is our last day in Turkey. We left Izmir this morning and drove to Sardis. As we drove to Sardis, we got in groups on the bus to discuss Acts 14:8-28. In this section Barnabas and Paul are mistaken for Zeus and Hermes. We read and discussed this passage keeping the historical context that we have been learning about in mind. What struck me in this passage was just how deeply the idea of the gods were in this time, to the point that Barnabas and Paul would have been called gods. It was also amazing to see that they turned down this status for the truth of the one true God. Also we see that Paul is willing to be persecuted for his beliefs, stoned even, but he still willing returns to the city to continue to spread his message. His faith in the midst of persecution is amazing, and it is also amazing that people still turned to Christ knowing that the reality of this persecution. As we see in chapter 16 Timothy was from Lystra, this same town where Paul was stoned.

Sardis is one of the seven churches mentioned in the beginning of the book of Revelation. The church here is criticized as being dead despite its reputation for being alive. Sardis was a wealthy city on the edge of a trade route. The wealth of the city could be seen in the buildings. At the center of the city were the ruins of the ancient gymnasium; it was larger than a football field. The back wall of the gymnasium was fully restored. The columns and the designs were absolutely stunning. The inscriptions below the capitals of the columns were of praise of the emperor. The words that were used to describe the emperor were also words that we use to describe Christ, all powerful and divine for example. We went into the ancient synagogue that shared a wall with the gymnasium. It was a beautiful building covered in mosaics, indicating that there must have been a substantial Jewish community here that could keep up such a building.
A few hundred yards from these buildings we found the temple to Artemis. The temple was huge! Large than a football field with columns so large that you would need more than four people to wrap their arms all the way around it. On the side of the temple was a small Christian chapel that could maybe hold 100 people. The chapel was built in the fourth century, after earthquakes had partially destroyed the temple and as Christianity grew in the area. It was such a neat contrast to stand in this small chapel and look out through the windows and see the ruins of the massive temple go on across the site and to see the gigantic columns above you. Even though the temple was much more impressive than the chapel, today most of us would dismiss the beliefs held by those who used the temple as myth, and Christianity still is strong.
We are flying back to Greece today. From Izmir to Istanbul and then back to Athens, where we will stay for the next few days before traveling to Rome.