Seek the Peace of your CIty

It was “interesting times.” The cream of Jewish society was in exile in Babylon. The city of Jerusalem was under siege by Nebuchadnezzar. In Babylon, prophets urged the Jews to keep their bags packed. Any day now God was going to return them to Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, prophets urged the people to keep up a heroic resistance against the besieging army.

Against all this came the counsel of Jeremiah to the Jewish exiles in Babylon: seek the peace of the city where you live. Get married, take care of business. Get on with life—in Babylon.

Jeremiah was confident that God would eventually act for the deliverance of his people. They would return to the promised land. IN THE MEANTIME, they were to be good citizens of Babylon.

I think this applies to us. As Christians and Adventists we look forward to the Promised Land of Revelation 21 and 22. However, our primary responsibility now is to be good citizens here. Protecting the environment, working for quality public education, participating in the creation of effective civic and commercial infrastructure—we ought not leave all the doing and thinking about these things to people who are unaware of Jesus and heaven. If we believe God cares enough about this world to eventually redeem it, it makes sense to model God’s care in our own lives.

So get involved. Make a difference. Not just by doing “evangelism,” but by seeking the peace and prosperity of your city. Jeremiah 29:7.