Why We Love the City (pt. 1)

Cities are polarizing. Some people think that cities are wonderful places full of potential, where many professions are centered and cultural trends are started. Others think that cities are crowded, dirty, unsafe, and full of evil. Cities are so polarizing because they are full of people, and so they are full of humanity - in all its beauty and ugliness.

Many people leave the busyness and noise of the city by escaping into the quiet sanctuary of the countryside. And they assume that God is more present in the natural world that is untouched by humanity.

However, the climax of God's creative work is humanity. 

God created us "in his own image" (Genesis 1:26-28). Our privileged purpose is to represent God by ruling over the earth as the stewards of His creation. As beautiful as the natural world can be, it was not created in God's image. As fascinating as animals can be, they were not created in God's image. Only us humans were given this privilege. God cares greatly about people.

God cares greatly about cities because they are full of people.

So shouldn't we? Even though cities are full of evil, they are also full of potential for good because they are full of the image of God. As Timothy Keller has said so well,

Cities, quite literally, have more of the image of God per square inch than any other place on earth. (Center Church, p. 141)

Beyond this, the city has a crucial role to play in the story of God's plan of redemption.

One of the first times we see a city in the Bible is in connection with the Tower of Babel, which represents human rebellion against God (Genesis 11). However, in order to undo the fallenness of this world, God created a people named Israel so that He would bless the whole world through them. He commanded them to build a temple that He would then choose to dwell in. This was to be done in the city of Jerusalem. Out of all the places on the earth, God chose to dwell in a City.

But Israel failed to be the blessing they were supposed to be. So God sent His only Son Jesus Christ to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. He died for us, got up out of the grave for us, and is coming back for us. God will fix all that is wrong in this world. He will create a new heaven and a new earth. And this future redeemed world is portrayed as a City (Revelation 21-22).

In short, we love the city because God does. 

We love Houston because God does. We're fans of this great city. That's why we're starting a church inside its Inner Loop. We want to be a church that works for the good of our city. We're in the process of trying to figure out what that looks like. But we boldly hope that Houston will be a better place because Redemption Church exists.