Cities? Who Cares?

Several years ago my friend Darrel Brandon wrote about how it feels to minister in an urban area, using the book of Jonah as an illustration. His outline of Jonah goes like this:

Chapter One: "No, I won't go." The Lord instructed Jonah to preach in Nineveh, but the prophet wanted to stay away from the capital city of Israel's arch-enemy, Assyria. However, after sloshing around in a fish's belly for three days, Jonah had a change of heart.

Chapter Two: "OK, I'll go." Now repentant, Jonah committed himself to obey the Lord and go to Nineveh after all.

Chapter Three: "OK, I'm here." Jonah went to the city and went to work, and the response to God's message was remarkably positive. Even the king of Nineveh was deeply moved and called upon the city's residents to fast and change their ways.

Chapter Four: "I wish I hadn't come." Despite the positive results, Jonah struggled with his own attitude toward the people God had called him to serve. Angry and dejected, he sat down and whined until the Lord reminded him in the closing words of the book, "Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?" (Jonah 4:11).

Many of us can relate to Jonah's hesitation. We would rather avoid the concrete jungles. Or we simply feel too overwhelmed to know where to begin. However, there are compelling reasons why Christians must never turn our backs on the cities.

The Numbers

Worldwide, there are roughly 438 metropolitan areas ("agglomerations") containing a population of at least one million. It's not surprising that the largest cities in the world include Mexico City, Seoul, New York, Los Angeles, Jakarta, and Calcutta. However, among the top 25 most populated cities are some that most Americans would have difficulty locating on a map, including Karachi (in Pakistan), Dhaka (in Bangladesh), Lagos (in Nigeria), and Tianjin (in China).

China alone is home to more than 50 metropolitan areas with a population of at least one million. If we are serious about reaching people for Christ, we cannot ignore the impoverished and fast-growing urban areas of Asia and Africa, or the social, racial, and educational problems that plague cities in our own hemisphere.

The Need

Jesus looked upon the crowds of Jerusalem with so much compassion that he was moved to tears (Luke 19:41). How must he look at Tokyo, located in a nation where only about one percent of the entire population professes faith in Christ? How does he view the teeming throngs of Mumbai (Bombay), Shanghai, and Sao Paulo?

Can a harvest grow in a concrete jungle? Yes, by the power of God.

The Nudge

Firmly nudged by the Holy Spirit, the apostle Paul ventured into urban centers like Corinth, Ephesus, and Athens. Brian and Allison Moll have felt the nudge. Last year they led in planting a church called Forefront in the heart of New York City. Troy and Amanda Jackson responded to the nudge. For the last 12 years they have chosen to live in an urban neighborhood in Cincinnati, where Troy serves as senior minister with University Christian Church. Each summer Christ In Youth (CIY) responds to the nudge by sponsoring Know Sweat, a dynamic program that sends hundreds of young students into urban neighborhoods to do community service in Jesus' name.

The Lord's nudge to Jonah is hard to ignore. "Shouldn't I be concerned about that great city?"

Yes, I should.