Church – something there in the midst of the gruesome turmoil and upheaval which is still called culture and civilization. Church – in the midst of haughtiness and self-focus, in the midst of self-assertion and unpredictability, in the midst of an obvous ethical breakdown. Church – something there in the midst of it all, which cannot be shaken. Church – in the midst of that which will come to terrible shakings under the hand of the Lord.
Church, the genuine Church, that Church which cannot be shaken, reflects her moments of arrival, beginning and fullness at every possible moment: “You have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem”. She has become the City which God builds. She has become that which pilgrims and prophets has been seeking after since Abraham decided to leave the cities of Babel, leave for a journey into that which always lies beyond.
The prophets of old were sent, carrying words regarding impending judgment and approaching shakings, to most of these cities – hardly any of the population centers reacted and repented. These were power centers which, each according to its own definition, aspired for recognition – to be recognized as the first and foremost. They all gathered identity and motivation from master minds of disorder and pretention. The powers ruling each and every mind were slave-masters, excelling in the art inducing fear and torment. All of them disregarded, even mocked and despised, that which was weak and defenceless. These powers provided cultural patterns and identity by means of cultic ecstasy and sacrifice, oftentimes in its cruellest form.
Our cities are strongholds of arrogance, of intimidation and of self-aggrandizement. Our cities have embarked on a highway heading towards a complete freedom of expression. The comprehensive city has embraced the right to count absolutes as obsolete. Self-proclaimed spokesmen, modern principalities, issue mandate and authority to do away with beauty and dignity. All we find in its place is beastliness and cruelty. The best show, that which brings home the finest awards on Broadway and elsewhere – that which is regarded as the first and foremost – often holds the most brutal assault on godliness. But, the words from the Lord regarding shakings and heavy dealings still stand.
Babylon, the spiritual matrix of inadequate living, is everywhere. Babylon, the comprehensive city, is everywhere. Babylon, the spiritual matrix of opposition against eternal values and the beauty of holiness is everywhere. Her flattery, her conceited views, her projections and hype attract nothing but shakings form the realm where true authority rests. Her despising that which belongs to godliness, even weakness, is her undoing. The Cross of Christ is indeed an apocalyptic turning point. The preaching of the Cross will cause her to tremble and, then, in the end, to disappear forever.
The comprehensive city, the sum of all cities, will be brought forth for judgment. Her darkness will be confronted by a city on a hill, full of light. Her depravity will be counter-measured by a people who still know saltiness. Her position as the first in rank, as the truly emancipated city, will be taken from her by a company of committed who never aspired for position, never had anything to offer, never was counted among the learned – a people who was regarded as nothing in the eyes of the privileged.
The company of committed, the genuine Church, does not engage in battle according to carnal measures. Weapons to be directed against the comprehensive city are weapons brought from an arsenal, which is not to be found in this world. That which is despised is genuinely operative against the one who despises. That which is nothing works well indeed against that which regards itself among the first and foremost. That which is truly spiritual is effectual indeed against that which gathers force in the earthly realm.
The Lord gathers his people in these final days, preparing them for final shakings. That which cannot be shaken holds proper testimony. The Church which cannot be shaken, will secure a rescue platform in the final hours for cities which dare to act, as Nineveh once, in corporate repentance. In this we will fulfill our role as Zion, the city which God has prepared.
Lars Widerberg
Reading: Hebr 12:22, 11:10, 16, 1 Cor 1:27-29.
An excerpt from the notes to a Church in the City, the Big Apple – to Bronx, one of the five Burroughs of New York City.
