Will there ever be peace in Jerusalem?
Meditation for the week of August 28, 2011
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you.” (Psalms 122:6)
Jerusalem is a very important city as far as God is concerned. Melchizedek was King of Salem or Jerusalem long before it was established as the capital of Israel. He was also priest of the God Most High (Genesis 14:18). Jews think this is where God created the earth. However, it is best known as the city that rejected Christ and crucified Him outside it’s city gates.
Jerusalem doesn’t appear to be part of the conflict that Abraham was involved in during Melchizedek’s reign. The city probably had peace at that time. It certainly had peace when Solomon reigned. There is going to be a future peace when the Lord sets up His Kingdom and the True Prince of Peace reigns. But right now, at this point in history, there is no peace in Jerusalem. There is constant conflict in that city. The jews are certain that it is theirs by Biblical decree, and the Muslims are certain that Allah wants them to control it (and to kick the Jews out). So why are we to pray for the peace of Jerusalem? Because when peace comes there, the Savior will have come to set things right in this world and there will be world wide peace. No matter how many wars are fought and no matter how many leaders promise peace, there will be no lasting peace until the Lord comes. Jerusalem is an object lesson of how the Lord works. When we truly worship the Lord, when we honor Him and His name, we have peace When we turn away from Him there is nothing but turmoil.
Sinners cannot have true peace until they have turned from sin and self-will to the Savior. They cannot know what it is like to have the burden of sin lifted until they trust the Lord. Jerusalem has experienced that same thing. When they were worshiping Jehovah, they were blessed and were at peace. When they turned away from Him as a nation, God turned away from them and sent them into captivity. The last dispersion was in 70 A.D. when the Roman general Titus destroyed the temple and the city. Until today, Israel, as a nation, has never acknowledged that they have crucified the Messiah. God calls them rebellious children in Isaiah 1:2. Blessing is associated with the Jews since the Lord was a Jew and was the descendent of Abraham. Abraham was promised that his seed would bless the earth, yet the Jews today are not at peace because they have not repented and believed in their own Messiah. They will not be at peace until they do.
Christians sometimes act as though the present Jews in Israel are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, just like Christians. While individual Jews are believers in Christ, the Jews leading the nation, for the most part, are not. They are not the friend of Christ, and they are not the friend of Christians at the present time. The nation must repent of its sin of rejecting Christ before God can come and establish Himself with the nation. They have not done that yet, but they will. Isaiah 53:5 may very well be the confession of the nation when they have lost every battle and are about to be overrun by their enemies at the end of the tribulation period. When all is lost and the Lord comes on the white horse and wins the last battle for them, it will be because the nation has confessed, “Why He was wounded for our transgressions!” That is the same confession that sinners make when they are truly repentant and ready to accept the Lord on His terms.
Yes we pray for the peace of Jerusalem because that means we are praying for the Lord’s return. But while events in the world tell us that time is short, we can’t rush God’s time table either. The Jews have not yet repented. They are not yet ready for the Lord to reestablish His kingdom with them.
The more important question is, “Have we truly been humbled and made to see that as sinners we cannot save ourselves?” Have we ever come to the point where we realize we are lost? Any attempt to bring people to faith in Christ before that point is reached in their lives is fruitless. Salvation is urgent, but again, we cannot rush the work of the Holy Spirit when it comes to seeing people saved. The work must be done in God’s time and in God’s way.
Bruce Collins