Time To Weep

“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,” (Lu 19:41 AV)

 

Jerusalem had a sordid history.  It was the glory of Israel for a few hundred years.  But it was also the city that slew the prophets and killed our Savior.  Jerusalem was the city of the great Temple of Solomon.  It was a masterpiece of God’s design meant to attract neighboring Gentile nations to the glory of God.  This it did.  A few generations.  Then the Temple became a stumbling block.   Pride in its workmanship by the Hebrews, and rejection of it by neighboring nations, led Israel down a path of idolatry.  When Jesus beheld the city of Jerusalem, He beheld it in the condition of which it was.  A rebellious city filled with religious tradition that separated itself from God their Creator.  When Jesus wept over Jerusalem, He wept over their spiritual condition as one of doom and in need of a redeemer.  He wept over the city because there was a great need and they could not see it.  He wept over the city because within its walls were tens of thousands of people who wanted nothing to do with their own salvation.  They would reject Christ and the city would be destroyed less than forty years later.

There are a few cities built in precarious places.  There are those built in flood plains and we wonder why?  Why does anyone choose to live there?  Anytime there is a hurricane, homes and whole neighborhoods are destroyed.  Some choose to live in areas with frequent mud or rock slides.  Why?  The nightly news shows pictures of homes being swept out to sea because rain softened the earth beneath.  Or, there are those cities built along a fault line.  These cities are in the news quite often.  Each time there are tremors great than five, the news relays the unfortunate loss of life.  We watch these news stories and it is hard to summon grief over the tremendous losses others face because our human nature feels if someone knowingly put themselves in harm's way or was not wise in planning out their lives, then empathy is not that easily offered.  We can even look at our own cities and find ourselves a little complacent at the plight of those who suffer within.  In our callous and human way of thinking, we would simply ask why those people still live there?  Or, as I have heard some unthinking and uncaring messengers (I think of 9/11) state a city deserves what it gets because of the multitude of sin within.  But this is not what Jesus did.  He wept over a city that did not deserve God’s grace, much less a tear shed over its condition.

I live in a rather large city.  1.4 million in our county.  That is a lot of people.  Like any large city, we have our share of problems.  However, if one were to do a little research, per capita, our large city is no different than the suburbs.  When we look out our windows or mingle among the public, what do we see?  Do we see a drunk who is inconveniencing us and displaying behavior our children don’t need to see?  Or, do we see a soul for whom Christ died?  When we go shopping, what do we see?  Do we see rude fellow shoppers who cut us off or won’t let us grab an item off the shelf?  Or do we see people whose lives revolve around the temporal with no concern for their eternal soul?  When we drive the roads and are forced to avert our eyes from a girl or lady dressed like a street-walker, do we react in disgust or anger?  Or do we feel pity for that soul because she is missing out on a blessed life she could have with Jesus as her Savior?  What of the drug addict?  What of the gang member?  What of the school-age children who have nothing better to do than to cause trouble?  What do we see and how do we react?  Jesus wept over it.  He was moved to sorrow at the condition of His beloved capital city.  He loved it so much He was willing to die for it.