“Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace.” So says Jesus about His beloved but rebellious city of Jerusalem in our reading from Luke 19 today. And as I often say in these devotions, there’s more than a touch of irony here. The pharisees and chief priests and scribes think they know the things that make for peace. And on the surface, they’re right. They’re right that the blood of Jesus can give them peace. But they’re wrong about how. They think the blood will rid them of meddlesomeness, that it will finally give them back the glory and honor that He’s been taking from them. Likewise, they think putting Jesus to death will stop the people from clamoring to make Jesus their king, which will erase the threat of the Romans coming in and tearing their city to pieces.
But what they don’t understand is, when you get the blood of Jesus without faith in Jesus, it doesn’t give you peace. It gives you war, misery, death and destruction. In response to trying to get rid of His Son, God will get rid of their city. In a generation, Jerusalem will be torn to pieces, the temple will be destroyed, and the glory of these faithless men will perish forever.
And yet, despite all of this, Jesus loves them. He weeps for them. He hungers for their repentance. He wants to give them peace with God through the very blood they will spill. This is the love that Jesus has for His bitterest enemies, which means you can always know He has this love for you.
Go to the foot of the cross. And there you will find the things that make for peace. As the blood of your Savior pours down, rejoice to know that all your sins have been forgiven. All your iniquities have been pardoned. All your acts of war against your God have been forgiven. Trust in Christ and the blood that brought destruction to Jerusalem will bring eternal peace to your soul.
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