Week 39: God of This City

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“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

Matthew 5:14-16 (ESV)

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The city is a broken place. One does not have to look much farther than the streets of the city to see all the brokenness, pain, and sin in the world. We see homeless people, displaced from somewhere they once called home. We see swindlers and pickpockets, who know of no other livelihood to pursue. We see racial tension, anger, and hatred. We see the sex industry completely corrupting everything good that God intended for human sexuality. In parts of the world, we see abortion clinics, in open rebellion against the sanctity of life. We see politicians abusing the people they are supposed to serve. We see the pain in each passerby’s eyes.

And yet, the city is not a godless place. We know that God is still working amidst all of the darkness. He is working through His church, and through His people.

When we think of missions, we often think of missionaries going across the entire world to reach some unreached tribe in Africa. Truly, praise the Lord for His servants who do that! At the same time, what about those of us left behind? What about those with family ties, health concerns, or various other things keeping them home?

Still, the mission is not over. No! Whether we still live in the home we have grown up in for the past four decades, or we just moved to a new apartment closer to our new job, the mission field is all around us!

The reason we do not see a mission field in our own city is not because of its invisibility but because of our own blindness. We refuse to open our eyes to the pain all around us. Or alternatively, we see the pain and brokenness and decide to do nothing about it. We would much rather go home and rant about our broken politics on social media.

Let it not be so! How are we to be the light of the world if we refuse to go into the darkness? How are we to be a city on a hill when we refuse to take a stand even in our own physical city? The people all around us are crying for help! They need physical sustenance and spiritual nourishment. They need the living water of Christ!

And know that in this mission, we are not alone. No, indeed, even if the city seems dark and bleak, it is not a godless place. Before any of us were born, God had already been working. He has been present and active, never once forsaking His people. And when we fulfill our mission to be light in the city, we are not alone; on the contrary, we are partaking in something bigger than any of us could imagine.

So pray for your city. Pray that the God of glory will reveal himself clearly to everyone. Yearn for something greater. Work for something greater. May the dawn of God break in glorious light over the darkness of our cities.

God is the God of Manila. God is the God of the Philippines. God is the God of the world.