The Birthmark

Do you have a birthmark?  No one talks about birthmarks very much, but it's not unusual for people to have them.  It's not uncommon for parents &

children or siblings to share a common birthmark.  I don't think I have one, but wouldn't it be something to learn I did after all these years!

 

A beautiful part of Israel is the Caesarean coastline.  There are naturally scattered dunes, which are actually deposits of sand washed from the Nile Delta across the Mediterranean Sea.  Halfway between Tel Aviv and Haifa along the Mediterranean coastline are the ruins of ancient Caesarea.  Herod the Great built Caesarea [by the sea] in 20 B.C., and it flourished as a world class sea port.  For almost 600 years Caesarea was the official capital of what the Romans called "Provincia Judea."  The excavation of ancient Caesarea is extensive: a large theatre, a Crusader moat, once beautiful Roman statues, and a water aqueduct.  The first Christian community was located in Caesarea. This is the city Peter preached to the Centurion Cornelius in Acts 10 and Paul was imprisoned here in Acts 26. Pontius Pilate was stationed at Caesarea as Governor until he was moved to Jerusalem for the Passover, at which time he sentenced Jesus to death by crucifixion.  An inscribed stone dedicated to Pilate found among the ruins is evidence of Pilate's place in Caesarean & Roman history.  What about the evidence of Christ in our lives?  Is there evidence of commitment, of dedication, a connection to Christ?  At work I sometimes wear a name tag identifying who I am and what my responsibilities are. Believers need not wear a sign, but the birthmark of Christ should be evident in every move we make – what we do & don't do, what we say & don't say, where we go & don't go, what we wear & don't wear, what we read & don't read, who we hang with & who we do not, what we watch & don't watch, what we listen to & don't listen to.  We bear His mark -- it is inscribed in who we are, and it is the Mark dedicated to Christ.  Don't be afraid to show your birthmark -- wear it proudly!