This year was my 4th time to see the Colosseum and it just never gets old! It is amazing! It is massive! It’s impressive! It’s an icon of the Roman world at it’s height in power and influence. It sits majestically at the end of the Roman Forum which was the hub of Roman life. So this great ancient amphitheater stood as the largest and most famous ever built, accommodating over 50,000 people. The construction is a marvel and is considered as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. It was the host for large entertainment spectacles including blood sports such as gladiator games, and exotic and wild animal fights, and even naval battles when the arena would be flooded with water for the ships to sail. Amazing!
Paul came to Rome in the early to mid 60’s AD and walked the Forum on his way to prison, but he did not see the Colosseum. Why? It was built after his time in Rome. The construction began around the year 70-72 AD. Does the year 70 AD ring a bell to you as it relates to any other significant event in the history of the Jews? An event which would go down in history as one of the worse times in the lives of the Jewish people and for the city of Jerusalem? 70 AD is the year that Titus, under the direction of his father, Emperor Vespasian, entered Jerusalem and utterly destroyed and devastated the city, destroyed the beautiful Jewish Temple, killed over 1 million people and took, possibly, as many as 100,000 as slaves. Those taken as slaves were brought to Rome where they were forced to labor and build this massive project, a symbol of strength and power and victory to Rome.
Just outside the entrance of the Colosseum is the Arch of Titus. It is carved with various scenes of the Jewish people in chains being taken as slaves to Rome as they were dragged through a victory parade down the streets of Rome. Not only did Titus use the Jews as slave labor to build the Colosseum, but also looted and carried off the marble and gold and other precious treasures from the Temple in Jerusalem to use as construction material and to help finance the massive project. The Colosseum became a gruesome killing ground for thousands, including many Jews. It is said that as many as 500,000 people and a million animals died during the 400 years of the arena’s spectacles of entertainment. Now it sits empty and broken. A sliver of the grandeur of days past and a reminder of earth’s temporary glory.
Isn’t it interesting that something so amazing, so beautiful, an engineering marvel can also be a place of such brutality, cruciality, violence and death? The very thing that many helped to build became their own dark, ugly tomb of death. Of course they were forced into labor against their will, but it still makes me wonder. What is the thing that we are striving to build which could become our own downfall, our own place of pain and hurt, our own place of death? What is the thing that the world may think is beautiful and powerful and even impressive (job, career, fame, a name for ourselves, big houses, big bank accounts, etc.), but could be the very thing that could lead us to our very own emptiness and brokenness?
What things are you working to build? What things are you laboring so hard to build in this world which are temporal and will eventually be broken, destroyed and left desolate? These earthly things will always leave you empty.
More importantly, what things are you slaving to build for the kingdom of God? These are the things that really matter. Spiritual things: trusting in Jesus as your Lord and Savior, keeping your eyes and heart on Jesus, being obedient to the call upon your life, telling others about the gospel, living a life for the glory of God. These are the true treasures, the things that matter. The things that will last throughout eternity.
We are all slaves to and for something. The things that we build are either earthly minded or Heavenly minded. Help build for the Kingdom of God. It’s a matter of life or death.