A couple who decided to choose the holiday of a lifetime by throwing a dart at a world map spent two weeks at home, the dart hit the ironing board. That light-hearted scene opens a reflection on Psalm 122, the song of a pilgrim standing at the gates of Jerusalem, and the question of whether our destination really matters. The sermon unfolds the three things Israel kept returning to that city for, safety, unity and a place where life makes sense, and leads to the moment Jesus weeps over a Jerusalem that failed to recognise its peace. Listen, and check what destination is currently set in your own life.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- Psalm 122 opens with joy: "Let us go to the house of the Lord." What did it mean for Israelite pilgrims to finally stand within the gates of Jerusalem after a long journey?
- In Psalm 122:3-5 the psalmist gives three reasons Jerusalem is special: walls that make it secure, the unity of the tribes, and the thrones of judgment. What does each of these say about what people look for in God?
- The sermon sets Emerson's idea that the journey matters more than the destination against this pilgrim psalm. How does where you are ultimately heading shape the way you live today?
- The word "religion" was explained as something that binds life back together. What holds your life together right now, and what, like the log in the goat story, is dragging you down?
- Jesus wept over Jerusalem because it did not recognize what would bring peace or the time of God's coming. What does it mean to you that Jesus is the new temple and the giver of true peace?
- In Hebrew every verse of the psalm ends with the word shalom, and the psalmist prays for peace for his brothers and friends. Who specifically will you pray peace over this week, and how can you seek their good?
