Press the arrow to listen to “Still” by Hillsong.

Scripture
It is the city of our God;
he will make it safe forever.
Go, inspect the city of Jerusalem.
Walk around and count the many towers.
Take note of the fortified walls,
and tour all the citadels,
that you may describe them
to future generations.
For that is what God is like. Psalm 48:8 & 12-14

Observation
The most secure place to be is in the city of God. Because it is his city, he will defend it. Because it is his city, it looks like him.

Over the past 6,000 years, Jerusalem has been destroyed twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured and recaptured 44 times according to Wikipedia. Yet today the city still stands as one of the oldest in the world. That is a visible reminder to us of God’s commitment to his city.

Jerusalem the city is within driving distance of all. How so? Because God’s city is also to be found in the local church. If God was so faithful to sustain Jerusalem through thousands of years of destruction and construction, will he not also bolster his local church as well?

It is the city of our God; he will make it safe forever. For that is what God is like.” (Psalm 48:8 & 14) Now there is a comforting thought. Because the city is his city, God will make it a safe place to be. Because the city is his city, he will make it to look like himself.

Application
The safest place for me to be in the middle of life’s storms is close to the city of God. For where the city is, God is also. There is a panic reaction in crisis to run from the city to the safety of our own homes. We pull out of community and into self-preserving isolation. But there is no promise of security in solitary confinement. The promise is that God will be with us best when we are in the city of God.

Prayer
Father, today, I choose to stay close to your hometown, the local church. Make our churches safe places. Build the church so that if anyone wonders what you are like, they need look only to the people who gather around your throne. The local church is bigger than any of us and its foundations are deeper than any one person, other than Jesus. Help your church to prevail, just as Jerusalem prevails. Amen.