A View of the City II

Background to passage: the conclusion to Jesus’s confrontation with the Pharisees. A seemingly complete turnaround. The parallel is the rejection of the Pharisees and the rejection of Israel

Matthew 23:37–39 ESV

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”

Opening illustration : me looking over the city of Jerusalem in 2000 on my trip.

Main thought: This morning we will examine the final words in his public confrontation during the last week of his life where he says he will leave the people of Israel and return in judgment.

1) Abandonment of Jesus (v. 38)

Matthew 23:38 ESV

See, your house is left to you desolate.

1) Abandonment of Jesus (v. 38)

Explanation: This remark means that Jesus will leave the people of Israel. Jesus declares that he would abandon the people of Israel upon this rejection. Their house, was not His house anymore. He was leaving the building empty, similar to what he did in Ezekiel’s day. Israel had seen and felt the loving hand of God reaching, desiring, warning them, and as they rejected, he left the temple.

This was the reason that set apart the temple from every other place in the world. God’s presence was continually with the people in the temple. So this was a monumental statement, a monumental truth.

Ephesians 1:14 ESV

who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

1 Corinthians 6:19 ESV

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own,

Hebrews 13:5–6 ESV

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

2 Timothy 2:13 ESV

if we are faithless, he remains faithful— for he cannot deny himself.

Illustration: The church at New River was destroyed by at least once by a tornado and another time by a fire. Where did the house of God go? It walked outside and worshipped there. The Church of Christ has a unique way to communicate this: the church of Christ meets here.

Application: For us, God still does not dwell in a temple or some central church. Go doesn’t dwell in some central, holy figure or person, he “indwells” us all. He is our down payment and guarantee for salvation individually. He also dwells within us as a body. 1) God doesn’t live in this building, except when we are in it. The church is the dwelling place of the Spirit. We say we believe that, but do we? Think about how we speak about the church and the building and the house of God.

2) The other major application for us is that we are not Israel. Jesus promises never to leave us or forsake us. He promises to go with us to the ends of the earth. The Good Shepherd will never leave his sheep. We can trust our Lord. We are his body, we are his bride. You can trust the Lord always. It is always a lie if the enemy tells you that the Lord has left you. Some of you need to trust Jesus for salvation, and some for sanctification and sustenance.

2) The Justice of Jesus (v. 39)

Matthew 23:39 ESV

For I tell you, you will not see me again, until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”

2) The Justice of Jesus (v. 39)

Explanation: God’s patience does have it’s boundaries, self-appointed ones, just ones, but just as much a part of God’s person and character is wrath as love. Jesus said they wouldn’t see him again until he comes again. Even though the people shouted this quotation from Psalm 118 at the triumphal entry at the beginning of chapter 21, Jesus wasn’t talking about that.

Context is king, and Jesus was talking about his return after he has left the building. He references judgment here. The picture is Rev 6 of the 6th seal, what we read in Rev 15, what is mentioned over and over as “the Day of the Lord” in the OT and NT. All wrongs will be righted. Punishment is not toward the church and genuine believers, because that happened on the cross. The remainder of sin not punished on the cross will be punished in hell.

2 Chronicles 36:15–16 ESV

The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, until there was no remedy.

Revelation 19:11–16 ESV

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

Philippians 2:10–11 ESV

so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Illustration: In a mountain valley stood a massive dam, holding back millions of gallons of water. For years it stood strong, and people built homes and farms just downstream. Life went on as usual — no one thought much about the dam anymore.

Then one day, engineers noticed a thin crack running along its face. They warned the people below that if the crack widened, the dam would fail. But the people shrugged. “It’s held for generations,” they said. “It’ll hold a little longer.”

Days turned into weeks, and the crack slowly deepened. Behind that concrete wall, an unimaginable pressure was building — silent but unstoppable. And then, in a single moment, the dam burst. The water that had been restrained for so long roared through the valley, sweeping away everything in its path.

That’s what God’s judgment is like. For now, His mercy holds it back. The world grows comfortable beneath the shadow of His patience. But Scripture tells us there’s coming a day when that patience will end — when the righteous Judge, Jesus Christ, will no longer hold back His wrath against sin.

“The vague and tenuous hope that God is too kind to punish the ungodly has become a deadly opiate for the consciences of millions. It hushes their fears and allows them to practice all pleasant forms of iniquity while death draws every day nearer and the command to repent goes unregarded.” -Tozer

Application: 1. All rebellion will be punished eventually. All justice will be rendered one day on the earth or in hell. The Lord never abandons his people completely. There will always be a remnant. This predicted long ago rejection would bring about salvation for the world, however 2. predicted doesn’t mean that there was no personal accountability. People would be held responsible.

3. The day will come when Jesus splits the sky to return on a white horse with a white robe dipped in blood, with eyes like fire and wearing many crowns, he will descend with the armies of heaven to strike with the sword of his mouth and rule the nations with a rod of iron treading the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God.

4. There will be those with him and those that will be trampled by him. Which one will you be? We are in an age of grace, but it will not extend forever. Christ is coming and it could be anytime. The joy we find in him and in the gospel is astronomical, but great will be the suffering for those that reject this grace.

Closing illustration: In a small town in Kentucky, there once stood a beautiful little white church that had been the heart of the community for nearly a century. But over time, people stopped coming. The singing stopped, the preaching stopped, and eventually, the doors were locked. Years later, a photographer passed through the area and took a haunting picture of that same church — steeple leaning, windows broken, grass growing through the steps.

On the door, barely visible beneath the weathered paint, were the faded words: “House of God.”

It struck him — the sign still claimed it was God’s house, but God hadn’t met there in a long time. It was just a shell. His people were gone. His Spirit was gone. The presence was gone.

That’s what Jesus meant when He said, “Your house is left to you desolate.” When the people reject the presence of God, mission to make disciples, the pursuit of Christ — all of it becomes empty and hollow. This can even happen to church will people in the pews. But one day, the doors will open again — not for worshippers coming to God, but for the King coming in judgment.

B. Recap