IN THE HEART OF THE CITY

Scripture: Psalm 46; Revelation 21:1-5, 22:1-7

INTRODUCTION

From the beginning of the book of Genesis (Gen. 4:17) on through to the end of Revelation (Rev. 22:19), the Bible refers to the city more than 600 times. Some references are obscure, while other passages are crystal clear, indicating that across more than 4000 years of biblical history and nearly 2000 years of Christianity, God has been identified with, concerned about and alive and at work in the city.

In the Old Testament, Genesis, chapter 11:4-6 says – Then they (the ancient people) said “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower with its top in the heavens”…the Lord came down to see the city and the tower…and said “Look, they are one people, and they have all one language; and this is only the beginning of what they will do..”

Numbers 35:9 – The Lord spoke to Moses, saying…”When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, then you shall select the cities to be cities of refuge for you…”

Isaiah 65:19 – The Lord said, “I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and delight in my people.”

Psalm 122:6-7 – Pray for the peace of Jerusalem…peace be within your walls.

Psalm 127:1 – Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.

On into the New Testament, Jesus spoke these words, recorded in the gospel of Luke 13:34: - Jerusalem, Jerusalem…how often have I desired to gather your children together…

Luke 19:41 – As Jesus came near and saw the city (of Jerusalem), He wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace!”

And finally, John’s vision in Revelation 21: I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

The Presbyterian pastor, John Wimberly, Jr., from Washington, D.C., has written that “From the very beginning, there has been a God-inspired synergy between the church and the city. The early centers of the church were located in Alexandria, Antioch, Corinth and Jerusalem. The Roman Catholic Church found its home in Rome. The Reformed Tradition traces its roots to John Calvin’s Geneva (in Switzerland).” (“Christianity and the City,” an article in The Living Pulpit, April-June, 2002, by John Wimberly, Jr., pastor of Western Presbyterian Church, Washington, D.C., page 40)

And we can say that the Presbyterian foundations in America were laid more than 250 years ago by our Scots-Irish forbears in cities along the eastern coast stretching from Philadelphia (1706) all the way down through Virginia and the Carolinas to Savannah, Georgia (1755). (From “The Presbyterians” by Randall Balmer and John R. Fitzmier, Praeger Publishers, 1994, page 24, and “The Story of Southern Presbyterians” by T. Watson Street, Marshall C. Dendy Publishers, 1960, page 23).

This congregation was founded in 1848 in downtown Atlanta, and when we moved to our present location in 1915, who could have envisioned that the city would eventually push out its boundaries to surround us with skyscrapers, urban neighborhoods, the MARTA station and the Woodruff Arts Center next door? Perhaps only God knew what was in store for this church at the corner of 16^th and Peachtree. But the truth is that today we are centered, as we were at our beginning, in The Heart of This City, which is exactly, and I believe providentially, where the Lord wants us to be.

Some years ago, the Westminster Bookstore in Philadelphia carried a book entitled “Seekers After God.” A Presbyterian pastor wrote to the bookstore and asked for a copy. He received this reply: “No ‘Seekers After God’ in Philadelphia. Try New York.”

Well, every Sunday and all during the week, a wide spectrum of people come to this church in the heart of the city, and it is God whom we seek. Our members and visitors come from nearby and far away – singles and couples, straight and gay, and a growing number of families seeking a deeper faith; young and old, rich and poor and many more in between who are looking for a closer walk with the Lord; conservative and liberal, African-American, Hispanic and Caucasian, and a whole host of international people who have found a home in this congregation; and every Sunday morning, there’s a steady stream of homeless men, women and sometimes children who come to this church, where they are welcomed, one and all, with open arms and the love of Jesus Christ at our prayer breakfast in Fifield Hall.

Now, what all of those people from across Metropolitan Atlanta, including every one of us in this sanctuary today, what we can discover as we enter those doors looking for God, is that God is here waiting for us, seeking to embrace us with His love and grace. But in order for that to happen, we need to make the decision Sunday after Sunday to show up and put ourselves in the place where God can make contact with us.

Years ago, a Nashville, Tennessee newspaper carried a story about Mrs. Lila Craig, a faithful church member in her early 80’s who hadn’t missed attending church in 1,040 Sundays. The article began this way:

“Mrs. Lila Craig, 82 years old, has been sitting in her regular pew for 1,040 Sundays in a row. It makes a person wonder, ‘What’s the matter with Mrs. Craig?’ Doesn’t it ever rain or snow in her town on Sunday? Doesn’t she ever have unexpected company? How is it that she doesn’t go anywhere on Saturday night so that she’s too tired to get up on Sunday morning? Doesn’t she ever beg off to attend family picnics or reunions, or have headaches or colds, nervous spells or influenza? Hasn’t she ever become angry at the preacher or had her feelings hurt by another church member, or felt justified in staying home to hear a good sermon on television or radio? What’s the matter with Mrs. Craig, anyway?”

Well, I suspect the answer to that question is this: Mrs. Craig has been touched by the power of the living God, and she knows where to find the source of that power, Sunday after Sunday, as God reaches out to find her in worship.

So it can be for you and for me and for anyone and everyone who comes here seeking God. That is why, at the beginning of this new church year, that I encourage you to make worship a non-negotiable priority in your life. And as you come to this place, Sunday after Sunday, invite someone else to join you – a family member or a friend, a neighbor or a colleague at work, a fellow student or perhaps a person you know who is struggling right now and needs help. Tell them that you have discovered where to find God in the heart of this city, and they will soon discover for themselves that God is here, waiting for them.

II.

During the last year, people all over American have found out that is true. Immediately after the terrorist attacks on September 11, a steady stream of shocked and stunned human beings began to pour into houses of worship across this land.

Many of you will remember the Friday of that week when a multitude of more than 2500 attended our prayer service, packed into the sanctuary and chapel and hallways and spilling out onto the sidewalks, here In the Heart of the City. They came looking for help and for hope, and as we sang the great hymns of the church, we heard the word of the Lord, echoing, echoing down through the centuries of time: God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth should change and the mountains shake…for there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God…God is in the midst of the city, and the city shall not be moved (Psalm 46:1-2, 4-5).

That passage of scripture from the 46^th Psalm was read in prayer services throughout this nation, and those ancient words of hope and courage and consolation still speak to us today.

I heard those words echoing, echoing in my ears this past August when Barbara and I and our daughter Aly went down to Ground Zero in New York City. Looking through the chain link fence at the gaping hole which once was the foundation of the World Trade Center Towers, I could hear the words of that Psalm saying to all of us there, God is our refuge and strength…Therefore, we will not fear.

I heard those same words again as we went into Trinity Episcopal Church near Wall Street, a congregation, like many others in Manhattan, that have reached out to thousands of hurting and traumatized people, binding their wounds and offering them hope to go on instead of giving up: God is our refuge and strength…Therefore, we will not fear.

And I found those words in a Life Magazine commemorative book I bought at Ground Zero, with photographs that to this day are still incomprehensible to me, and a quote from the former Mayor and courageous leader Rudy Giuliani:

“This terrorist attack was intended to break our spirit. It has utterly failed. Our hearts are broken, but they continue to beat, and the spirit of our city has never been stronger…Every day, we provide living proof that Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus and Buddhists can live side by side and thrive in one city…in a spirit of mutual respect…And as we begin the process of rebuilding our lives and our skyline, we should heed the words…that I have heard repeated at the many memorial services I have attended…’Be not afraid!’”

(From “In the Land of the Free: September 11-and After,” Life Magazine Commemorative, Time, Inc., November 12, 2001)

And those are the words which we need to proclaim in the heart of this city, especially next Wednesday, September 11, as we gather here for services of remembrance at Noon and 6:30 in the evening, and as the entire city is invited to the interfaith service at Ebenezer Baptist Church that morning at 8:30…God is our refuge and strength…Therefore, we will not fear!

CONCLUSION

It was that same vision and hope which John wrote about in the last chapters of the book of Revelation. Jews and Christians were suffering under the persecution of the Roman Emperor Domitian (reigned from A.D. 81-96), and as they cried out for help and deliverance, John the exile on the Island of Patmos, had a vision.

Somehow I think he must have remembered those words from the 46^th Psalm: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble…Therefore, we will not fear…For there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God. And looking toward the future, John wrote: I saw the Holy City, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God…And I heard a great voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the swelling of God…is with His people…And He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away…Behold, I make all things new!” (Revelation 21)

Then, as if he could see into what was yet to be, John concluded: God showed me the river of life…flowing through the middle of the street of the city…and the tree of life on either side, with its leaves for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:1-2).

My friends, as we draw near to the first anniversary of September 11, God has given us through the 46^th Psalm and the book of Revelation a message which we as Christians have all been called to share with the world. It is the same message which Jesus Christ proclaimed through His life and teaching, His death and resurrection. And it is a message which we can declare and share with people of every other race, color and creed on the face of this earth: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble…Therefore we will not fear…for the river which flows through the city of God…And the trees on either side, especially one tree, the cross of Jesus Christ, offers hope and healing and forgiveness and reconciliation to all the nations of this world.

That has been our message in this congregation since 1848, and so it still is today: God is our refuge and our strength – Therefore, we will not fear – for God is with us right here, right now, In the Heart of the City.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.