"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone." - Ephesians 2:19-20
Completing an entry card upon arriving in Beirut airport for our May mission, I wrote down "Minister" as my profession. Officials at the airport assumed that I was a diplomat and sent me to a separate line. There, a woman and two officers looked at my passport, discussed the card I had completed, then one of them asked me, "You were born in Jerusalem. What is your origin?"
I explained that after the Armenian Genocide, 3,000 Armenians were accommodated in Jerusalem, my father being one of them. I was born in the St. James Convent in Old City Jerusalem. They stamped my passport, and welcomed me to Beirut.
Our mission was a tremendous blessing and we were very busy throughout. The question, though, "What is your origin?" stayed in my mind even after the trip. If AEUNA members and pastors are asked this question, what would be the answer?
Our origin is in the only unshakable foundation, Jesus Christ. Our Armenian Evangelical Church's founders believed in Jesus, committed their lives to Jesus, and even sacrificed their lives to die for Jesus and not renounce their origin. Many were martyred, and went on their way to the heavenly Jerusalem.
Every morning my father used to sing, "Oh my heavenly homeland, sweet Jerusalem, your name is so sweet to me!" Even after we moved to Amman, Jordan, he would sing this song.
My spiritual origin takes me from my birthplace in earthly Jerusalem on a journey to the heavenly Jerusalem which will be my last destination, prepared by Jesus Christ for those who love Him and follow Him.
Our origin is in Jesus Christ. The living hope in Christ that we have is the life in heavenly Jerusalem, without war, without Satan, without death. This is the answer we need to have ready!
- Rev. Berdj Djambazian
Minister to the Union