AMMAN, JORDAN (FBW)-I'm not much for international travel, but one of the places I have always wanted to visit is the "Holy Land" to personally observe where my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ ministered, as well as the prophets of the Old Testament and the apostles who built the New Testament church.

In my mind, the modern-day borders of Israel were the extent of my less careful thinking about the Holy Land. That changed on a 10-day tour of Jordan with nine other Baptist newspaper editors in late September.

Sponsored by the Jordan Tourism Board and the Royal Institute of Inter-Faith Studies, our hosts sought to expand the horizons of Christian pilgrims as they think of travel to the Holy Land to include sites east of the Jordan River, the demarcation today for Israel and the West Bank controlled by the Palestinian Authority from the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

In fact, many events of biblical history actually occurred in what is modern day Jordan-the land of Old Testament times known as Edom, Moab and Ammon, and during New Testament times known as Nabatea, Perea and the Decapolis.

Modern day Jordan is the land where critical biblical figures, including Abraham, Ruth, Job, Elijah spent pivotal time and where important biblical history took place, including the destruction of the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and the place where Jacob wrestled with the Angel of God and his name was changed to Israel.

No discussion of travel to Jordan can exclude the breathtaking site of Petra, known as the "red-rose capital" of the Nabateans. Most famous for its part in the Hollywood blockbuster, "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," Petra's elaborately chiseled edifices carved out of mountains were actually tombs for important leaders of the Nabatean kingdom, most prominently, the so-called "Treasury" featured in "Indiana Jones."

There appear to be several biblical references to Petra (or Sela/Joktheel: Judg. 1:36; Is. 16:1; 42:11) and tradition holds that Moses' striking of the rock that brought forth water (Num. 20;10-11) during the wilderness wanderings of the children of Israel took place near Petra. Some scholars believe Petra could be the location where Israel will flee during the end times' tribulation (Matt. 24:15-16; Rev. 12:6).

During our travels in Jordan, three sites of biblical significance were of particular interest to me-Gadara, the disputed location of Jesus' healing of the Gaderene demoniac; Mount Nebo, the place where God allowed Moses to view the Promise Land he would not be permitted to enter; and, most significantly, Bethany beyond the Jordan, the possible location of Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist.

Gadara

Umm Qays-biblical Gadara-is one of the cities of the Decapolis with Graeco/Roman ruins is located in extreme northern Jordan from which one can view the Sea of Galilee to the northwest and the area today known as the Golan Heights, contested territory between Israel and Syria. There is scholarly debate about whether this city is the location of the healing of the demoniac (Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-17; Luke 8:26-37) or whether Gergesa, a city directly on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, is the proper location.

Looking northwest from Umm Qays - biblical Gadara - the Sea of Galilee around which much of Jesus' ministry took place can be seen about six miles away. Although there is scholarly debate about the precise location, Jesus' healing of the Gadarene demoniac may have taken place in this extreme northern region of modern day Jordan. Photo by James A. Smith Sr.

New Testament scholars are divided on which location is the most likely place of the miracle since the names used by the Gospel writers were not the same, owning to the differences in how the original audiences of the Gospels would have understood regional names.

The argument for Umm Qays/Gadara is built in part on the name itself, but also on the fact that a 4th century Byzantine basilica's location suggests that faithful believers of that era believed this city to be the location of the miracle. The distance of the Sea of Galilee from the site-some six miles-causes me to wonder whether the location directly on the Sea of Galilee seems more likely since the swine into which the demons were cast by Jesus ran off a cliff into the Sea of Galilee. Our tour guide answered that it's impossible to know how much larger the Sea may have been in Jesus' day.

Like many sites in the Holy Land, certainty is probably not within reach, until further evidence can settle the matter. Of course, the exact location of the miracle does not call into question the historical reality of Jesus' healing of the demoniac.

Mount Nebo

Although it's impossible to know precisely where Moses stood to look into the Promise Land he was not permitted to enter, there's no disputing that the area identified today as Mount Nebo is very close to the vantage point Moses viewed the Dead Sea and Jordan River Valley.

Located on the Northeast end of the Dead Sea, Deut. 34:1 records, "Now Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land ... ." The Bible reports that God Himself buried Moses in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor "but no man knows his burial place to this day" (34:6).

A sign at Mount Nebo shows the distance and direction of important sites in Israel, including Jerusalem/Mount of Olives, Jericho and Bethlehe. Photo by James A. Smith Sr.

The hazy day we stood on Mount Nebo did not permit us to see very much-although I understand that on a clear day it's possible to see far into Israel. One can imagine what Moses would have thought as he viewed the Promised Land that the children of Israel would soon enter, fulfilling the promise God made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

West of the Dead Sea lies the ancient cities of Jericho (16 miles), Bethlehem (31 miles), and, of course, Jerusalem (28 miles). The site has long been recognized by Christian pilgrims and includes a church which was originally built in the 4th century with later additions in the following two centuries.

Bethany beyond the Jordan

The site I was most interested in seeing was saved for last-Bethany beyond the Jordan, what some scholars believe Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. As with Gadara, there is some dispute among scholars.

John 1:28 reports, "These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing," and John 10:40 records, "And [Jesus] went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing."

Our tour of the baptism site was personally guided by Rustom Mkhjian, the assistant director of the Baptism Site Commission of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. This was a special treat because Mkhjian has played an integral role in the recent excavation of the site. As a self-professed Armenian Christian, Mkhjian clearly had the passion of not just a professional scholar, but of a personal follower of Christ.

Although some scholars believe Jesus was baptized much further north, the Baptism Commission has excavated the site opposite Jericho on the east side of the Jordan since 1996, making a number of archeological finds which seems to strongly point to its validity as the place where John the Baptist baptized Jesus, with close links to the ministry of the prophet Elijah.

Mkhjian told our group that he used four factors to validate the findings: what the Gospel accounts record, what later Christian pilgrims recognized, archeological work, and the 6th century mosaic map of the Holy Land in Madaba (located only 10 minutes by car from Mount Nebo).

What was most striking to me about the site was how modest the Jordan River is-at the observation deck it was probably less than ten yards across to the Israeli side. Unlike some pilgrims, I did not take the occasion of being baptized in the Jordan, since I do not believe there is any thing spiritually significant about the water and since I believe baptism is a one-time event of one's public profession of faith.

The Jordan River at Bethany beyond the Jordan is the approximate location of Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist. The river at this point is barely ten yards wide and separates Israel, to the left, and Jordan, to the right. Photo by James A. Smith Sr.

Still, it was inspiring to know that I was at the river where Jesus was baptized-no matter what precise location was. Thankfully, one does not have to go to the "Holy Land" to find God; but also, thankfully, the fact that the biblical sites exist provide encouragement to faithful followers of Christ today.

One day, I hope that I will be able to visit the rest of the Holy Land-west of the Jordan, but my tour of Jordan was an invigorating encouragement of the historical reality of what the Bible teaches us about God's plan of redemption. In the person of Jesus Christ His Son, God invaded time and space in the place we call the Holy Land so that human beings could be reconciled to Him.

"And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:18). Hallelujah, what a Savior!

For more information on sites of biblical interest in Jordan, see www.visitjordan.com and www.Baptismsite.com.