Seek the Peace of the City

 A recap of Dwayne Cline’s message at the 2005 TrueCity Conference

One of the last places most of us would want to live in is the urban core of a large city.  We do not understand how to relate to the city and so we move out of the down town area as quickly as we can. 

 

Jerusalem had recently been destroyed by the Babylonians.  The Jewish people had been taken captive into Babylon.  The Babylonians were smart.  They knew that if they enslaved or beat down their captives that the captives would eventually rebel against them.  The Babylonians decided to assimilate their captives.  The Jews would be offered a great place to live, education for them and their children and employment. 

 

The Jews wanted nothing to do with Babylon.  Babylon was a wicked city.  The Jews wanted to keep their bags packed to wait for God’s deliverance.  They were ready for God to take them out of Babylon as soon as possible.

 

Here’s God’s Word to the Jews found in Jeremiah 29:

4 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease.”

Stay in the City

God commands the Jews to stay in Babylon.  He wants them to build houses…to settle down…to plant gardens.  God is calling His people to unpack their bags and stay in Babylon.  In fact, God tells His people to have children and grand children in Babylon.  That is a difficult command.  We guard our children.  We want what is best for them.  We don’t want them growing up in a difficult area.   

Peter Wright was the pastor of Hughson St. Baptist Church for four years before I was called to pastor the church.  Peter and his wife Darlene have five children and they lived in our church manse the entire time Peter was here.  All five of their grown children love the Lord and are following Him faithfully.

God has given my wife and I the responsibility to raise our children in the North End of Hamilton.  We are to share God’s love with them. 

Some people won’t live in the city because purchasing a home in a down town neighbourhood is not a good investment.  There is no greater investment a Christian can make with the money God intrusts to her than to invest in the calling God has placed on her life.

 

Bring Good to the City

 7 Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”

Peace cannot simply be defined as being free from hostility or having an inner calm.  Tim Keller defines peace as, “a total flourishing in every dimension…socially…physically…spiritually…economically.”We must seek the peace of the city socially.  Christians are called to break down barriers between classes of people.  We are called to break down cultural barriers. 

We must seek the peace of the city by caring for the poor.  God commands us to “look after” the orphans and widows and not simply “look at” them. 

We must seek the peace of the city institutionally.  Christians are called to bless our hospitals, schools, prisons and health care centres with the presence of Christ. 

We must seek the peace of the city economically.  God calls us to be concerned about the prosperity of the city.  We should care for the businesses who have stayed in the city core when others have left.  We must thank business owners who have employed our neighbours when no one else would. 

We must seek the peace of the city spiritually.  God calls us to be His city within a city.  We are salt on the earth, light to the word and His city on a hill.  We lovingly and boldly share the gospel as our Savour is the Prince of Peace. 

This isn’t the word the Jews expected to hear from God.  They expected God to reveal His deliverance plan to them and instead He called them to stay in the city and bring good to the city.  Today we need God to awaken His people to stay in the city and bring it good.