As God’s people, we must understand His heart for the city and understand what cities need from His people. Our response as Christians to the needs and troubles of the people in the city will reflect what is most on the heart of Jesus.
In Nehemiah’s day, the wall of Jerusalem burned down and the people lived in disgrace. As then, the people in our cities have been neglected and our cities have deteriorated to very troubling levels. (*) Listening to the troubling voices in our cities will help us determine how love should respond. Allowing God to burden us will lead the Church of Jesus to make the most loving and impactful contribution we possibly can. (Allow. Seek. Take Initiative. Plan. Mobilize. Cast Vision: 141 years called normal!) God burdened him and he responded beyond the norm.
Missional leaders should focus on cities, because God is causing the global tribe of mankind to move into cities. Cities are both the present and the future missionary challenge, expanding the definition of “the ends of the earth.”
Every year, 70 million people around the globe move from rural areas and villages to urban areas. That’s equivalent to the population cities the size of Chicago, Singapore or the Bay Area beginning every month.
UN Population Division’s study on World Population suggests that by 2050 68.7% of global population will be urban; 86.2% (in more developed regions) 6 billion will live in cities by 2045. To see movements everywhere, so that everyone knows someone who truly follows Christ, Kingdom
leaders should, with great resolve, go after these centers of influence.
To understand God’s heart for cities, we have to look below the surface as to what a city actually is. My thoughts: a city is a concentration of people and the culture they create in community – schools, businesses, institutions, art, structures, food industry, entertainment – where the values and needs of the group are met and what the group reveres is amplified, places of refuge and opportunity. So, God loves them:
1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
whom he has redeemed from trouble
3 and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
4 Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5 hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
6 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way
till they reached a city to dwell in.
8 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
9 For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.
Jesus reveals how love responds in his first sermon. At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus went to Nazareth, and entered the synagogue. A scroll was given to Him. He purposefully turned to Isaiah 61.
1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor;
he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion—
to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;
that they may be called oaks of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
4 They shall build up the ancient ruins;
they shall raise up the former devastations;
they shall repair the ruined cities,
the devastations of many generations.
5 Strangers shall stand and tend your flocks;
foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers;
6 but you shall be called the priests of the Lord;
they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God;
you shall eat the wealth of the nations,
and in their glory you shall boast.
7 Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion;
instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot;
therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion;
they shall have everlasting joy.
8 For I the Lord love justice;
I hate robbery and wrong;
I will faithfully give them their recompense,
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their offspring shall be known among the nations,
and their descendants in the midst of the peoples;
all who see them shall acknowledge them,
that they are an offspring the Lord has blessed.
10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to sprout up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise
to sprout up before all the nations.
.
He chose it because it defines and describes not only His mission, but the mission of those who follow Him.
After reading it, He said, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” He means for us to understand that the time of the great work of redemption had come. And this prophecy will be fulfilled and carried out by His disciples as well!
This passage reveals …
Isa 61:1b-4 “…the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor (the afflicted). He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
2 … to comfort all who mourn,
3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion —
…that love responds by proclaiming and demonstrating the Gospel. These verses show both a verbal message and a lifestyle of love are needed! E. Swanson says “the Gospel flies on the wings of good news and good deeds…” They combine to magnify Christ! It takes both to reach …what love
aims to do.
3 “and provide for those who grieve in Zion — to bestow on them a crown of beauty insteadof ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair (fainting).”
7 you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you
with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;
4 … they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations”!
The Theology of Life in the City (an explorer tool) answers, “What is God’s vision for people and cities?” He wants to transform people from head to toe and for cities to be made new; for the whole gospel to be shared (good news told, good deeds done). God desires a city to be characterized by the following (the coming new heaven and new earth show what life in the city will be like):
Read Isaiah 65:17-25
17 “For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever
in that which I create;
for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy,
and her people to be a gladness.
19 I will rejoice in Jerusalem
and be glad in my people;
no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping
and the cry of distress.
20 No more shall there be in it
an infant who lives but a few days,
or an old man who does not fill out his days,
for the young man shall die a hundred years old,
and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 They shall build houses and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit;
they shall not plant and another eat;
for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain
or bear children for calamity,
for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord,
and their descendants with them.
24 Before they call I will answer;
while they are yet speaking I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall graze together;
the lion shall eat straw like the ox,
and dust shall be the serpent's food.
They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain,”
says the Lord.
Other texts to consider:
1 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: 4 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, 9 for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.
10 “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.
V. 18 – The city is a delight. Ask one from audience something they take delight in re: the city they are from? All in the city love it - find it to be a place of beauty. It’s not utilitarian only. It is a place of gladness, fun and celebration. God values beauty. His creatures can enjoy that beauty he created! Genesis 2:9
9 And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
– God made trees to be “pleasing to the sight and good for food.” So, from the very beginning God was not only a God of the useful (food) but a God of the beautiful.
V. 19, 20 – The people in my city are satisfied/content/healthy/free from distress. Joy replaces sorrow and anxiety gives way to peace – perpetually! (Impossible without the Messiah’s atoning sacrifice on the cross):
V. 21-22 – A life that flourishes; where people enjoy the work of their hands without fear of plunder or loss (the homes they build, they themselves will live in – without invasion, take overs or insecurity - the grapes they themselves have planted); a life of significance (impact, permanence, endures); along with meaningful work. The housing situation in my city is more than adequate (consider homelessness, rentals, homeownership options, costs, etc.). We have great food available to enjoy (in schools, via community gardens and grocery stores, etc.) and good food-rescue operations for the poor.
Food anxiety is low.
There is justice for all in our city. i.e. – those living in the margins, suffering from sorrow and those who are poor are supported, given options and empowered in my city. Racism, prejudice, injustice and bigotry are fading issues in my city.
V. 23 – People are hopeful about the future; not bearing children for calamity (trouble) instead have well-being, peace, and family support is strong (for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord, and their descendants with them).
v. 25 they are safe. Hurtful things cease.
V. 24, 25 – People enjoy a relationship with God and experience His answers, guidance, confidence and peace. They enjoy an intimate relationship with God experience His readiness to answer them and desire to provide perfect peace.
“Prayer that is the Lord’s delight can only arise from the enjoyment of close fellowship with Him” (A.W. Pink).
The Church must pursue: mobilizing a growing number of believers with a Prayer-Care-Share lifestyle that are having significant gospel conversations as a way of life where they live, work and play!
Ready for offline use
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