Seeking the Ultimate City

Dr. Michael Youssef: If you have submitted your life to the lordship of Jesus Christ, we live in the cities, but we have to abandon the values of the city in order to grasp the values of the ultimate city. We may have to reject the values of the cities in order to be accepted by the ultimate city. We may have to be called fools, be called all kinds of names for Jesus' sake in the city, but we are called wise by God.
Guest (Male): Welcome to Leading The Way with the author of more than 50 books, Dr. Michael Youssef. You can visit ltw.org or you can call us and speak with a ministry representative at 866-626-4356. You can learn about and order available titles. Jim Elliot was killed while evangelizing to the Huaorani Indians in Ecuador, and he's often quoted as saying, "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." Today on Leading The Way, Dr. Youssef highlights powerful words in Hebrews chapter 13, offering a pointed challenge to live like Jim Elliot with eternity as our priority. So let's get right to today's life-changing message: Seeking the Ultimate City.
Dr. Michael Youssef: For we have not here an abiding city, but we seek after the city that is to come. In the last message, I dealt primarily with the first half of that verse: that we have no here an abiding city. And we looked at the beginning, the Genesis of cities and building of cities in the scripture. Today, I want to study the second half of the verse: but we seek after the city which is to come. Now, the "we" here that the writer is referring to, being dictated by the Holy Spirit to him, is referring to the men and women of faith that the list he mentions there early on. And then he puts himself in the loop, and then he adds all the believers that are to come for the many generations, and he says: we, men and women of faith, have no here an abiding city, but we are seeking the city that is yet to come. Those who live by faith, those who walk by faith, those who practice faith, those who have a vision of God's ultimate victory in human history. We have here no abiding city, but we seek after the city that is going to come, that is yet to come. You know, the letter to the Hebrews is a letter that has been deeply concerned about apostasy in the church, apostasy among those believers. And it's saying that God has never left Himself without a witness, without a testimony at any time of history. And therefore his opening remarks say: In the past, God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son. Hebrews 1:1. In the last message, you remember we saw that God wanted us to be in a garden. He wanted humanity to live in a garden in fellowship with God. But Cain chose the city. He wanted us to be in a pure garden, but Cain went out and built a city. Still today, God is holding out a garden to the masses of people who reject Him every day. Still today, He's holding a garden out to men and women in the thousands inside the walls of the churches who are hooked on religion but do not know the Lord Jesus Christ in a personal way. He's handing them a garden through what Jesus Christ did on the cross and He said, "Come, leave the city, come to the garden." And yet, millions choose the city, turn the garden down. But listen, God is a very gracious God. He's a patient God. He's an overruling God. He overrules again and again. He overrules our foolishness. He overrules our ignorance. He overrules our rejection of Him. It was the very purpose of building the city that Cain wanted out to rebel against God. He wanted his own way. He wanted to be in charge. He wanted to be in control. He wanted to serve the self. And ever since that time, the cities are being founded on these principles. But God could have destroyed him then. God could have banished him then if He wanted to, but He didn't. He so lovingly overruled. He's so merciful. And down the road, He promised Abraham and He said, "Abraham, they want a city, I'll give you a city. But not like Cain's city, not like Babylon's city, not like Sodom's city." He said, "I will give you a city that is not built with hand." And Abraham looked forward to it, and from that day on, all the men and women of faith looked forward to that city. And we too look forward to that city. A city that is so beautiful, that is adorned by the presence of God. We have no here an abiding city, but we seek after the city that is yet to come. Isn't that wonderful, the character of God and the way He deals with you and the way He deals with me? You may reject Him, you may neglect Him, you may defy Him, you may ignore Him, and yet He overrules again and again in your life. He overrules, He stands out and He holds that garden. He could snatch your life away. He could withhold your breath. He could withhold His hand of providence, but He doesn't. He wants to speak to you. He wants to forgive you. He wants to bless you. And He turns those foolish, those defiant, those rebellious streaks in us and He brings good out of them. What a marvelous God. You don't say amen to God like that? Thank you. You see, we live between the garden on the one hand and the ultimate city on the other. And living between the garden and the ultimate city, we are beset with sin. We're beset with total rebellion. We're beset with total failure. We're beset with hopelessness. Yet that period between the garden and the ultimate city, we see God overruling. He's overruling, leading us toward the ultimate goal, working His purposes out. Between the garden and the city, there've been a large number of pilgrims who have traveled along the road, along the way. Men and women of faith. Some who have been called foolish by the world, yet they're called wise by God. And these pilgrims may be living in earthly cities, working in earthly cities, ministering in earthly cities, yet they're always seeking after that which is to come. You and I, if you have submitted your life to the lordship of Jesus Christ, we live in the cities. But we have to abandon the values of the city in order to grasp the values of the ultimate city. We may have to reject the values of the cities in order to be accepted by the ultimate city. We have to abandon the temporary order in order we grasp the permanent. We may have to be called fools, be called all kinds of names for Jesus' sake in the city, but we are called wise by God. And like Abraham, we are leaving Ur in our way to the Chaldees. Amen? We are leaving what the world calls tangible for what God calls tangible. We have not here a city, an abiding city, a permanent city, an ongoing city. Why? Because we have another one which we seek, which we're heading toward. Think about it. Jesus was crucified in a garden in order that He may restore the garden in your heart, that garden of a relationship between the Father and you, between the Father and me. He died in a garden. He was buried in the garden. He rose again from that garden in order that anyone may come to the lordship of Jesus Christ surrendering to Him, and he will receive a garden in his heart, in her heart. We have no here an abiding city, but we seek after the city that's to come. The keyword in this verse is the word seek. You know, everyone is seeking after something. There are some people seeking after fame and fortune, some are seeking after a husband or a wife, some are seeking after power and prestige, some are seeking after earthly securities, some are still seeking after utopia. But according to the word of God in Hebrews 13:14, the men and women of faith seek after the city that is yet to come. What does it mean? Does it mean I just wait and hope to die and get there somehow? No, a thousand no. That word seek here is the same word that the Lord Jesus used when He spoke to His disciples. You remember when He said the Father takes care of the birds of the air, He takes care of the flowers of the field, and if He does so for them, how much more will He do for you? And then He goes on to say to them: But you, seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Now most people misunderstand that. You know what all these things are? Not what you think you want, not what you think you need, but what God thinks you need. He'll provide them for you. But seek first the righteousness of God. Seek first to make Him known. Seek first to glorify Him in your life, in your decision making, and in everything you do. Seek Him first. In the same word, the writer to the Hebrews says: We seek after the city that is not built with hand. We seek after the city that is to come. Now seeking does not mean a just going on with the hope that we might be finding it sometime. No. Seek does not mean just remembering it every now and then. No. Seek does not mean that on some special occasions when you come to church, you'll nod in an agreement with biblical doctrine. No. Seek means that all of my life's goals and all of my life's plans, that all of my life's motivations, that all of my life's purpose, that all of my life is dedicated to seeking after that city that is yet to come. That's what seeking means. The way I plan my future, the way I write my will, the way I train my children, the way that I live my life, the way I seek to testify to the Lord Jesus Christ, all underline by seeking, seeking, seeking the city that is yet to come. All of my life is committed, all that I do is colored by my sight toward that city. I thought of the story of the college student who walked into a photographer's studio with a framed picture of his fiancee. And he gave it to the studio owner and he said, "I want to duplicate it." And the studio owner, in order to duplicate the picture, he had to take it out of the frame. And as he took it out of the frame, he found the following inscription on the back of the picture: My dearest Tom, I love you with all my heart. I love you more and more each day. I will love you forever and ever. I am yours for all eternity. Signed Diane. Then there's a P.S. If we ever break up, I want this picture back. Isn't that the way our generation is living today? No commitment. If it doesn't work, I'll get out. Now single people, please hear me right, I love you, I pray for you. But I can tell you that the number one problem that people are not married is because they don't want to commit. They don't want to commit to anything. What can I get out of the church? What can I get out of a relationship? What can I get out of God? Yet with the men and women of faith who seek after the city which is yet to come, it can be no P.S. You have to abandon yourself to the lordship of Jesus Christ. Our seeking after the city which is to come is not a wish, it's not a faint hope. Our seeking after the city is not just a wandering aimlessly and hoping that somehow, sometime, somewhere we're going to get there, we're going to discover it. No. We seek after the city. It motivates me when I wake up in the morning. It motivates me when I am bogged down with a problem. It motivates me when I'm dealing with family. It motivates me when I'm dealing with colleagues. It motivates all my problem solving. My eyes are focused on the city as I seek it. Yet we have here no abiding city, but we seek after the city which is to come. Along the way as we're heading toward the city, along the way as we're heading toward home, you and I and all the men of faith will experience difficulties. Yes, we'll experience pain. Yes, we'll experience illness, we'll experience insult, we'll experience criticism. And yes, some of us will experience persecution. We'll experience bereavement, we'll experience separation. We may experience monetary loss and the loss of our possessions. Whatever it may be, I can guarantee you one thing: that these difficulties along the way, whatever they may be, they're going to be huge mountains if your eyes are not in the seeking of the city. You would see these things as high mountains, impassable mountains, if your eye and if your heart is not seeking after the city that is yet to come. You know, if you're anything like me, by nature we're just stubborn and we're forgetful. And I have to remind myself of this every single passing day. It's easy for me to forget and I get involved and I get on the treadmill. I get in the muddle and think these are all important things. I get myself walking in circles, bury myself in a big hole and unable to see the city or look forward to it. I can't see beyond my current circumstance. And if they're tough and if they're difficult, I think this is it, my world is collapsing around me. Something similar to Jacob. You know Jacob, when the boys went out to Egypt and they wanted to bring grain, and they came back, brought some grain, and they said, "The man in Egypt now wants our younger brother Benjamin to come with us." And that was just much too much for Jacob. He couldn't handle it anymore. He just had enough. And as he tore his clothes and he said, "All this has come upon me. How much more can I take? Joseph is no more, Simeon is no more, and now they're taking Benjamin." These were the circumstances as he saw them. But the reality was that Joseph is sitting on the throne of Egypt and Benjamin is about to go and join the party. But how many times we make judgment before all the facts are in? And we see all the problems and we see all the difficulties and say, "This is it." And how often do we get so stubbornly bogged down in the city? How often do we stubbornly forget about the garden, that ultimate city? How often God tries by all kinds of means to get our attention? He will speak to us again and again, saying, "Listen, My Son did not come to the world and die on a cross, a death of a criminal, so that you can get bogged down in the city 20 hours a day." And you're not responding. You're still not listening. He whispered in your ear so quietly, so gently, and you're still hiding in the city. He reminds you again and again: Look to the garden, look to the ultimate city. Be a salt in the middle of a rotting meat. Be a light in a dark world. But you still insist on becoming part and parcel of the city. You want to become part of the meat. Your light is flickering. And He calls you by name and He says, "I want you to be a light in a city that's set on a hill," and you are determined to be a city in the valley. Finally, He has to get your attention. Have you ever thought why Lot could not save Sodom? Have you ever thought about that? I believe because Sodom knew that Lot's motive for living was just like theirs. He's like the rest of them. It is self-centered. His motive for living was "Gimme, gimme, gimme," and live just like the rest of them. He lost his saltness, his light flickered out, his impact for God became minimal, if any at all. And as I'm going to conclude, I want to leave you with these thoughts. You're probably asking yourself: where do I begin? Where do I begin as I seek toward the city, as I seek after the city that is yet to come? You have to begin in your heart. In your heart and in your mind. When the scripture talks about a heart, it means the mind, the center of your will, the center of your decision making. That's where you have to begin. You have to ask yourself: what is my real motive in life? When you stand all bare before God, what is your real motive in life? Are you living day by day reflecting that city? Can those who are watching you see the difference between you and others? Secondly, you have to be at home. Do your children, your family see you live the way you claim to believe? Or do they see one person in church on Sunday and another person for the rest of the week? Do you personally show your children as well as instruct them of how to belong to that ultimate city? How to look and seek that ultimate city? Thirdly, it's in your community and your surroundings. Do people see you and say, "He, she, they are representatives of holiness. He, she are representing righteousness. He, she are representing purity and godliness"? Listen, they may hate you for it, but they will see it. They may resent you for it, but they'll see it. For these are the characteristics of that ultimate city, our real home, our real citizenship.
Guest (Male): Encouragement from Dr. Michael Youssef to seek the ultimate city in your heart, your home, and your community. Learn more about the broad-reaching ministry of Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading The Way at ltw.org. All right, before we say goodbye, I want to quickly mention a free resource that Leading The Way's making available to encourage you in your walk with Christ. My Devotional is a daily email in which Dr. Youssef looks at a verse or two in the Bible and then he offers some practical words about applying that truth to your life in 2026. My Devotional is also available as an audio podcast. Same great encouragement for those who like their content on the go. The email is perfect to read at the breakfast or dinner table, and it can prompt some reflections and conversation. Sip your coffee and enjoy that, or the podcast. That's a perfect way to listen on your commute or wherever and whenever you consume your favorite content. Also, how do you get on the list for My Devotional? Okay, we're glad you asked. ltw.org, that's where you can sign up. And within just a short time, you'll begin receiving your daily email. Now if the podcast is more your speed, search for My Devotional on whatever app or platform you use for your audio content. Once again, it's called My Devotional. Remember, Leading The Way is a listener-supported media ministry passionately proclaiming uncompromising truth around the world. Tell your representative how you connect when you call us at 866-626-4356. You can order products and support the worldwide ministry. This program is brought to you by Leading The Way with Dr. Michael Youssef. Connect further with audio and video content at ltw.org.