Sermon Central
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Why Jerusalem?
Contributed by Dave Kinney on Dec 30, 2004 (message contributor)
Summary: As Christians, this city of peace is a very important location for prophecy. The amazing events that have already taken place in Jerusalem is incredible - but find out what’s still going to happen there. It’s amazing!
“Why Jerusalem?”
To begin with, there are several points to examine from these verses:
· 2 Chronicles was written about 450 B.C., as the Jews were about to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. Which was first built by Solomon about 950 B.C.
· With the leadership of Ezra, Zerubbabel and Nehemiah, the Jews were able to rekindle hope of peace in Jerusalem again.
· To motivate the Jews, the writer (Ezra by tradition) takes the reader back to the glory days of King David and his son Solomon to remind them just what the possibilities are.
· Notice in 6:6, that God Himself chooses Jerusalem. Fact: no other city in the history can claim such an honor.
· Notice in 7:17, that God says His eyes and heart are in Jerusalem perpetually. Eyes = sight Heart= love
Jeru/salem = city of peace
In Hebrew “shalom” has the root meaning of “wholeness”.
Some facts about this city of peace:
· Its current population is about 620,000.
· The city is only about 12 acres in size.
· Jerusalem and Zion are used over 800 times in the Bible.
· The earliest record reference of Jerusalem is found in Egyptian clay bowls.
· The city was first inhabited by Canaanites about the 12th century B.C.
I ask, what’s so special about this city?
Gershom Gorenberg states, “If Jerusalem wasn’t holy, it’s hard to understand why a city stood there. It’s on the edge of a desert, the soil is rock… and the trade routes cross to the north. You wouldn’t come here for gold, wheat or spices, but only to stand at the gate of heaven.”
Notice that:
1. Jesus Weeps For This City.
Why the tears for this one city? Because He knew the trouble that was in store for this sacred city! He knew the battles that would be fought over it. He knew the blood that would line the streets. He knew every stone that would be thrown on her behalf.
JERUSALEM
Beautiful heights, city of a great King,
From the western coast my desire burns towards thee.
Pity and tenderness burst in me, remembering
Thy former glories, thy temple now broken stones.
I wish I could fly to thee on the wings of an eagle
And mingle my tears with thy dust.I have sought thee, love, though the King is not thereAnd instead of Gilead’s balm, snakes and scorpions.Let me fall on thy broken stones and tenderly kiss themThe taste of thy dust will be sweeter than honey to me. -ROBERT MEZEY
The battle lines are currently being drawn right through the heart of Jerusalem. When Ariel Sharon was recently visiting Israel’s nuclear facility and he said, “Arabs have the oil, but we have the matches.”
Psalm 122:6 “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem...”
Zechariah 8:3 “This is what the Lord says: “I will return to Zion and dwell in Jerusalem.” NIV
It’s no coincidence what Matthew 1:1 says, “A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ the son of David, the son of Abraham.”
Remember David was the first king over Jerusalem! How Jesus in His deity must have known it would be millenniums before He would rule as King in Jerusalem.
2. Satan Wants This City.
Notice that he wants to sit on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
3. Anti Christ Wishes For This City.
Matthew 24:15 “Therefore when you see the “abomination of desolations, spoken by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place…”
This first happened in:
· 168 B.C. when Antiochus Epiphany, king of Syria invaded Jerusalem and entered the Temple and sacrificed pigs on it’s alter. He is not the anti-Christ.
· Some suggest Jesus’ words to have been fulfilled in 70 A.D. when Titus invaded Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple. A 3rd Temple will be built during the Tribulation.
· But that event was not what Jesus predicts. Jesus was looking much further down the scope of prophecy!
2 Thessalonians 2:3,4 “Let no one deceive you by any means, for the Day of the Lord will not come unless the falling away comes first and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or is worshipped, so that he sits as God in the Temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”
4. Arabs War Over This City.
Let’s be very clear on this point:
· The Quran never mentions the city of Jerusalem.
· There is no historical evidence that places Mohammad in this Jewish holy city.
· Islam had no mosque in Jerusalem until after Mohammad’s death.
· Mohammad never considered Jerusalem as a holy city of Islam.
· On February 12, 624, Mohammad forbid Muslims to face Jerusalem and pray.