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Across the field from our residence in Jerusalem is Har Homa (Jabal Abu Ghneim in Arabic), the mountain that has caused so much conflict over the status of Jerusalem. On Easter morning 1997 we stood on the roof of our residence for a sunrise service. As the sun rose over the mountain, we celebrated the Resurrection with Scripture, song, and prayer.

Several days later we watched with pain as bulldozers cut a swath around the mountain, preparing the way for housing construction. Israelis insist this area is part of southeastern Jerusalem and that they have a right to expand there. Palestinians from the adjacent Christian towns of Bethlehem and Beit Sahour see this unilateral act as infringement on their right to expand their cities.

Jerusalem, the "City of Peace," is a source of conflict and disharmony. Israelis insist that Jerusalem should remain the unified and eternal capital of Israel under the absolute sovereignty of Israel. Palestinians, native to East Jerusalem, are critical of the Israeli claim to sovereignty; they want East Jerusalem to be the capital of a Palestinian state. Jerusalem elicits the best and the worst in people, and it is being marred by those who claim to love her.

Just as Jerusalem incites the passions of three great religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—it also inspires pilgrims. As we approach the year 2000, there is a lot of euphoria concerning Jerusalem. Some Christians are enamored with Jerusalem because they anticipate the restoration of Jerusalem when the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled. Hence, they uncritically defend Jewish control of Jerusalem because it fits their end-times theories. Christian pilgrims are flocking to see the sites where they anticipate these end-times events will happen. Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert recently has even suggested setting up tent camps to accommodate the many Christian pilgrims.

I've been asked what I know about the Mount of Olives beginning to split (Zech. 14:4). Frankly, I've seen no evidence of that, nor is it my consuming passion. Some seem more interested in whether the mountain is beginning to divide than in the division of people living within the shadow of that mountain. Others seem more fascinated with the reconstruction of a third temple than with Jesus as temple or the believing community as temple. Groups of Christians have even contributed money for the rebuilding of the temple.

Several years ago in the Old City of Jerusalem I visited a Jewish group that is preparing for the eventual rebuilding of the temple. The man I interviewed was armed. The group was very guarded—literally and figuratively! This group does not indicate when or how the temple will be rebuilt, an assertion much too volatile. But they insist it is their task to prepare the ceremonial garments and utensils for that certain future event. Are groups like these the Christians' allies in Jerusalem?

Many Christians seem to have an Old Testament view of land, Jerusalem, and the temple rather than a New Testament view. The New Testament is positive toward Jerusalem and the temple: Jerusalem is a "holy city" (Matt. 4:5; 27:53), the "city of the great King" (Matt. 5:35), and the temple is a "holy place" (Matt. 24:15). Yet Jesus and the New Testament have a radically new perspective on Jerusalem and the temple. As the temple needed to be seen in the light of Jesus (John 2), so did Jerusalem (John 4). And Jesus predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple because of the religious and moral failure of the people (Luke 19:41-44; 21:20-24). He called Jerusalem to repentance. A center of unbelief, Jerusalem killed its religious leaders (Matt. 23:29-24:2) and acted against the purposes of God (Luke 13:34). Because Jerusalem was using God for its own aggrandizement, it could no longer claim holiness.

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October 5 1998, Vol. 42, No. 11