Through reading this book, I became aware of the rural blinders I had been wearing when reading and preaching the Word. I could easily relate to Bakke’s personal story, having made the move myself from rural to urban. Yet, my 18 years of living and serving in Amsterdam and Hanoi, I had never studied Scripture to understand God’s perspective on the city.
God’s story starts in a garden and ends in a city. Cities are an integral part of God’s design: they are not evil, as some Christians fear, and they are not places to “conquer” or “take” for Christ. A city is “an organic, dynamic series of relationships” (p. 63). God loves cities and God loves the people that make up the cities.
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The church runs the same risk of running a religious show that is disconnected from God’s heart and concern for the cities of the world. Bakke challenged me to not only develop a theology of the city, but also for the people of the city. My Biblical perspective must be big enough to answer the questions that cities and citizens raise.
Inspired by Bakke, I have developed and preached a 10-week sermon series titled “God of the City.” I explored the origin, intention, rise, and fall of cities throughout the Bible, focused on the stories of urban characters, and encouraged our congregation to adopt the early church’s global urban missional strategy. We have printed promotional products with “I ♥ Hanoi.” This year, we are launching an initiative called “Love Hanoi” that Lord willing will become a city-wide movement. This is why I have enrolled at BGU to help me lead this effort, and it started with reading Bakke’s book.
