Jesus Wept Over Jerusalem
This morning our men met for a special holiday version of our Monday Bible study. We meet later, and we have breakfast on Monday holidays. We had a wonderful time of fellowship and Bible study this morning. We examined the passage in Luke 19:39-44 where Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem.
This passage gives us a glimpse into the heart of God. He went to every extreme to reveal Himself to the people of Israel from the very beginning. Jesus came to earth as a Jew after the long history of God's revelation of Himself in the Old Testament time. Jesus came "to the Jew first." He did miracles, and spoke the truth with authority. Still the majority of the Jewish people rejected Him as the Messiah sent from God. They preferred to look for another who met their expectations and desires. They missed their opportunity to follow God's plan, so they have suffered many things in the last 2,000 years.
These facts caused Jesus to weep. He was broken hearted over their rejection. He did not like to think of the consequences of their sins. He was deeply touched that He had done everything He could do, but they still did not believe. They did not enter a personal relationship with Him. That is true for Jerusalem and the Jewish people, but it is true for every single person who rejects Christ. He has revealed Himself to them over and over, but they have failed to recognize the day of their visitation. It breaks the heart of God to think of the consequences of their sins. This is the same heart that Jesus wants us to have for those around us who do not know Him. We cannot be neutral. We need to weep over our cities and over America before we have to suffer even more consequences of our sins.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 16-18.
This passage gives us a glimpse into the heart of God. He went to every extreme to reveal Himself to the people of Israel from the very beginning. Jesus came to earth as a Jew after the long history of God's revelation of Himself in the Old Testament time. Jesus came "to the Jew first." He did miracles, and spoke the truth with authority. Still the majority of the Jewish people rejected Him as the Messiah sent from God. They preferred to look for another who met their expectations and desires. They missed their opportunity to follow God's plan, so they have suffered many things in the last 2,000 years.
These facts caused Jesus to weep. He was broken hearted over their rejection. He did not like to think of the consequences of their sins. He was deeply touched that He had done everything He could do, but they still did not believe. They did not enter a personal relationship with Him. That is true for Jerusalem and the Jewish people, but it is true for every single person who rejects Christ. He has revealed Himself to them over and over, but they have failed to recognize the day of their visitation. It breaks the heart of God to think of the consequences of their sins. This is the same heart that Jesus wants us to have for those around us who do not know Him. We cannot be neutral. We need to weep over our cities and over America before we have to suffer even more consequences of our sins.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Psalms 16-18.