4. Death in the city

Restoring justice to a damaged world

28 February 2010

Luke 13: 31-35

We continue our thinking on Restoring Justice to a Damaged World. Luke’s Gospel reminds us that Jesus is on a journey which eventually will lead to Jerusalem. He is making this journey via the towns and villages of the Galilee and is teaching as he goes (v.22). He gathers disciples around him on the way and answers their questions (v.23). People wonder if there are going to be just a few who will be part of the kingdom – or whether there will be many!

The reply of Jesus to their questions informs his audience and causes them to think deeply about their allegiance to him. One writer says, “As ever Jesus isn’t interested in tackling theoretical issues. He says the questioner should be striving to get in now…”

This short passage in Luke can be considered one of the most difficult in the New Testament and yet, at the same time, it is very intriguing… for it gives us a behind-the-scenes insight into the life of Jesus. We are also given a sense of destiny on this momentous journey to Jerusalem.

Jesus is warned by some friendly Pharisees that he must leave the region because of Herod’s intention to kill him. The passage is peculiar to Luke and provides a helpful background to what will follow. In passing, it is more than a little important to note that not all Pharisees were hostile to Jesus. It was already well recognised that there were good and bad Pharisees and Jesus’ relationship with some of the good Pharisees is underlined by their willingness to warn him of the dangers that lay ahead.

Herod clearly intended to do Jesus harm and these Pharisees had his safety at heart. We are not absolutely sure where Jesus was at this time, but he is obviously a distance from Jerusalem, and it is from this place that Jesus sets his direction clearly for the city.

Jerusalem had a far from good reputation and many of the prophets had suffered in the city … so, as the place where Jesus would eventually die, it is being true to its obstinate history.

When Stephen, in the Acts of the Apostles, speaks of the city, he says, “You always resist the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 7:51)

The rejection is as important to understand as the crucifixion – for one clearly leads to the other. Having said all of this, you would have to reflect that Jesus is very direct in his response to Herod. The reply of Jesus in v. 32 to the warning of the Pharisees is direct, “Go tell that fox…” The reply suggests that Herod was making his position clear and the Pharisees were merely articulating it.

Jerusalem represents the great city of the time. Although very much smaller than our modern cities, it illustrates that cities have a distinctive character of their own.

Today, we talk about urbanisation and have become familiar with the big, powerful, secular cities, which stand like giants in many countries of the world. We are having discussions here in Australia about what our cities will look like in 2050. Although our country is huge geographically, our population is centred in but a handful of cities. On a broader map, there are increasing numbers of cities in the world that will soon have populations greater than the total number of people in Australia.

Many the great cities of the world are becoming surrounded by enormous areas where those people who have gravitated to the cities in search of employment have found vacant land and have gradually become established. You only have to look at Bangkok, Manila, Calcutta (Kolkata), Mumbai, Mexico City and so on… to see such communities. One writer called them "slums of hope"… suggesting they are places where people have come in search of something better.

Cities have a distinctive way of calling us to understand the world. People can feel lost in such places and yet, at the same time, cities reflect influence and power! However, we must not see them as merely sociological phenomenon or results of the evolutionary process of need and growth. Cities are places which reflect not only the urbanisation which is sweeping the world, but a context of care which can make an enormous difference.

The city of Jerusalem is the place where Jesus will challenge the authorities and bring hope to the world.

We hear the words of Jesus, as he considers that his journey must take him to the city:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who killed the prophets and stoned those sent to you, how often have I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” (Luke 13:34)

The repetition of the word ‘Jerusalem’ draws the readers’ attention to the city of Jesus’ destiny. Our text points to the fact that it is not only to be the place where Jesus will die, but it is also the unwilling object of his love.

We remind ourselves that, early in Luke, Jesus visited the city as a boy (2:41-50) and it will be where he completes his final act of love in the cross. Luke mentions the city of Jerusalem ninety times by comparison to forty-nine in the rest of the New Testament. It is an urban gospel.

The substance of our text occurs in all four gospels as he enters the city… but here it reminds us of the special affection that Jesus had for the city of Jerusalem. Yet, as Eduard Schweizer puts it, “Jesus will not only die in, but at the hands of Jerusalem."

Our text, at least in part, is one of the most affectionate in the gospels… well, at least in the way Jesus speaks of his longing for her as a city. Some writers put the emphasis upon the bitter agony of rejected love, but I believe that it is better interpreted in terms of the love that flows from a grieved heart. The words indicate Jesus has made other visits to the city and has made numerous attempts to win them over. It concludes with what T W Mansen described as ‘Jesus’ last word to Jerusalem.’

The city was the focal point and climax of Jesus' ministry

The journeying motif in this mid-section in Luke helps to reinforce the importance of Jerusalem in the ministry of Jesus. In a teeming city like Sydney, we are conscious of how important it is to be alive to the issues of justice and righteousness. The modern city presents us with particular challenges:-

Responding to new ways of living.
Reacting to the challenges to community living.
Reorganising life to face continual redevelopment.

Hardly a week goes by without our noticing another major change to our city life, skyline and community. Even at the time of Jesus, the city of Jerusalem was very different from the localised communities around the Galilee.

Jesus’ ministry is not a parochial Galilean ministry

You could argue that if Jesus had remained in the Galilee, whilst his impact would still have been great, it would not have reached the same climax. By leaving the Galilee and heading for the city, he was bound on a journey that would:-

Challenge the power brokers of the day.
Turn upside-down the tables of the religious leaders.
Demonstrate the real values of his kingdom.

Jesus’ ministry was predominantly that of story-telling and yet it will be as he enters the city of Jerusalem that the greatest stir will be identified. Jesus’ ministry is then expressed in an acted parable which demonstrates what he is about.

Luke’s gospel portrays Jesus Christ as the compassionate Son of Man, seeking out the lost, caring for the sick and the broken-hearted from amidst the city streets and, as a shepherd, bringing them back. You could conclude that Luke’s whole gospel is written from a unique perspective… and that this gospel most clearly relates to the marginalised and those living on the edge!

Jerusalem will be the ultimate context for his sufferings

When studying the gospels, you become conscious of how important the last week in the ministry of Jesus really was. In Mark’s Gospel, the last week takes up half of the gospel.

Whilst not minimising the importance of his ministry outside the city, it does remind us that we must be serious about our understanding of Jerusalem:-

A city which demonstrates the rejection of Jesus.
A city which will be the scene of his sufferings.
A city outside whose walls he would be crucified.

Jesus is given clear warnings about what might lie ahead, but he makes the decision to continue his journey. He was under a clear sense of direction... and the sly fox Herod is not going to knock him off his track.

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote: "To know what you prefer instead of humbly saying 'Amen' to what the world tells you you ought to prefer is to have kept your soul alive." In his poignant lamentation, Jesus demonstrates a sad acceptance that there will be those who will not accept the kingdom he came to bring.

This city will reveal who Jesus is

As we move though Lent, we too are on a journey… and yet we know that the journey of Jesus is to confront the powers of the day.
Jesus sends a message to Herod Antipas who was out to stop him. He called him a fox… a really strong description. Barclay drew attention to the fact that a fox was the slyest of animals; a most destructive animal and a symbol at the time of a worthless and insignificant person. What a title to give Herod!

It could be true that it takes a brave person to challenge a king. Hugh Latimer was once preaching in Westminster Abbey when the king was in the congregation. In the pulpit Latimer pondered aloud, "Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The King of England is here!"

Then he went on, "Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The King of Kings is here!" Latimer held true to his position and was eventually burnt at the stake, becoming one of the three Oxford Anglican Martyrs.

People show their true character when under pressure. The city will experience hardness of heart in its response to Jesus as it fails to accept what it is he is offering.

Jesus will come to the city with compassion

These words of lament portray the extent of Jesus’ affection for this city. Yet it is a love which is not understood and is spurned. Unrequited love is one of the saddest experiences in life; one of life’s bitterest tragedies … and this is what happened to the love Jesus offered to the city of Jerusalem.

Jesus will face the consequences of his ministry by suffering

You can’t really study the person of Jesus without becoming aware of the consequences that follow his way of love. Throughout Lent and through our focus in Holy Week, we cannot avoid the suffering of Jesus.

C S Lewis suggested, "God whispers in our pleasures but shouts in our pains." So much is evident as we reflect upon Jesus’ final journey to the cross. Even following Pentecost, when the Christian community was empowered by the Holy Spirit, we are conscious that it will always be vitally important to declare the way of the cross. Jean Paul Richter strikes a challenging note: "There is a purity which only suffering can impart; the stream of life becomes snow white when it dashes against the rocks."

The city remains a resting context in which to follow Jesus and be a Christian community

From the earliest days, Wesley Mission (and the communities that have gone before to make us what we are) has sought to engage with what we mean by ‘city’. A city has all the dominant characteristics of an environment shaped by being the commercial, retail, civic, leisure and judicial centre of a community. Alongside such classic definitions, we note that a city will often have a population that is transient and where the extremes of power and powerlessness, wealth and poverty, are always present.

Our task in such a place is to demonstrate the love of God as we discover it in Jesus and to offer the kind of care that makes sense of the city.

Not only do we seek to minister in a city, but in the city centre… and this encompasses both opportunities and demands. How our city of Sydney has changed down the years! In the film we use to introduce new staff members to Wesley Mission, we have shots of the floating city of Sydney and the construction of the Harbour Bridge… and many other aspects of the city’s development. Some Christian communities see the city as a place to work that is merely like the suburbs but larger… such a definition will never satisfy.

There are many perplexities about the city which are difficult for folks to grasp:-

It has a large population – yet people are highly mobile.
Poverty and wealth live cheek by jowl.
Planning problems are a constant pain.
Stress, violence and fear inhabit people’s living.
Positive values – vigour, resilience and social experiment exist.
The Christian Church has often retreated from the city.

It has distinctive, dominant characteristics

Cities have distinctive features. In the days of Jesus’ earthly ministry, the Galilee was certainly crowded, but its life was characterised in a way that was different from the city of Jerusalem. In responding to the characteristics of a city, and as a Christian community, we have more than a sociological enquiry, but a missiological one… helping to determine how we approach our challenge today.

Loneliness and isolation are dominant.
The privileged lifestyle of the few is obvious to the many.
The city changes when day becomes night.

If we are to be serious about reaching people in our modern city, we cannot avoid the characteristics that define it. Far too many people in our modern city feel they are merely cogs in a vast machine. Decisions that affect them are taken with little consultation or consent. A disposable people with feelings removed from reality describe how it is for many who live in our city.

It requires a community willing to respond to its challenges in a unique and positive way

We want a new vision of the city which is constantly emerging. As we move towards a bicentenary here at Wesley Mission, we recognise the city has changed greatly over that period of time and we have continually reshaped our work to serve the people of Sydney.

As a Christian community, we cannot force our picture of life upon others, nor prevent others from being who they are … but we need to have confidence to enter into serious debate with others about our vision for the city. We cannot bury our heads in the sand and ignore our culture.

Ian Coffey concluded that "One of the reasons the early church grew as quickly as it did is that for 200 years they had no church buildings. Unable to gather in a ghetto, the Christian life and witness had to be earthed in the community in which they lived."
Above all, our vision must be guided by that love which "compels or constrains us" (see 2 Corinthians 5:14).

Clifford Hill moved to Newham in the early 1970s and began a Christian/Social community development program which sought to reinvigorate some largely forgotten parts of the East End of London. They took over many properties, including an old redundant church. The shrinking congregation had, for many years, retreated into a hall and then to a smaller room.

In the vestry was a huge iron safe that clearly had not been used for years. A key was eventually found to open the door which swung open to reveal its sole contents – a great leather-bound Bible. That which should have liberated was locked away!

If we are to be helpful in the shaping of mission, we will need to blow off the dust and rediscover a vibrant theology of mission for the city. Jesus had the city on his heart! Jerusalem will always attract the attention of the world. Three major world religions – Christianity, Judaism and Islam – all hold Jerusalem as of supreme importance. For those who live out their discipleship in Jesus Christ, it will be a place where ‘the way of the cross’ was not only a pattern of living but whose origin is in an event that will forever stand at the centre of history.

Christian Life