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All the nations will ask: \u201cWhy has the Lord done this to this land? Why this fierce, burning anger?\u201d And they will hear the answer, \u201cIt\u2019s because the people living there have broken the covenant of the Lord. (Deuteronomy 29:24-25).

\u201cA city set on a hill cannot be hidden.\u201d God established Israel as a city on a hill that cannot be hidden. This principle runs from the Old Testament into the New. Like Israel, the church is a city on a hill that cannot be hidden.

In Deuteronomy 4, Moses shows Israel\u2019s publicity in a positive light. Israel, obeying the laws and commands of God, will cause the nations to say, \u201cSurely this great nation is a wise and understanding people\u201d (6). In Psalm 67, this publicity becomes a prayer for God\u2019s blessing upon Israel. It is not a selfish prayer. His people desire that the nations will sing God\u2019s praise and He will rule the nations with justice and shalom. As Jesus taught us to pray, \u201cyour kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven\u201d (Matthew 6:10).

This is the positive side of God\u2019s people being on display. There is also a negative possibility. That is where are text lands. Israel, and the church, can become \u201can object of scorn and ridicule to all the nations\u201d because of the judgments that befall them (us) in their (our) disobedience. It was easy for the nations to see this because Israel was a nation. In the end, her disobedience caused her to be banished from the land of promise and exiled in Babylon.

Because the church lives as scattered communities, God\u2019s judgement may not be as easy to discern. Yet, I wonder if Paul was thinking about texts such as ours when he wrote, \u201cWhoever eats and drinks must recognize the body of Christ. If they don\u2019t, judgment will come upon them. That is why many of you are weak and sick. That is why a number of you have fallen asleep. We should think more carefully about what we are doing. Then we would not be found guilty for this. When the Lord judges us in this way, he corrects us\u201d (1 Corinthians 11:29-32).

Deuteronomy is structured around this framework of Israel\u2019s publicity. It was her mission, as it is now the church\u2019s mission; we are God\u2019s priesthood among the nations. The very name of God is invested in our fulfillment of that mission. Success will make God\u2019s name known as a matter of admiration; failure will drag his name to the depths of profanity.

Ezekiel saw and felt this keenly, standing amidst the smoldering wreckage after the judgment had fallen. But Ezekiel also sees the seeds of hope, for God will always act for the vindication of his own name (Ezek. 36:16-36); Israel will be rebuilt. This is our hope. After judgement will come restoration. God\u2019s name will be vindicated.

Many Christians are discouraged by the church. Lots have left because so many churchgoers act in ungodly ways. We have seen the public disgrace of many church leaders. We may wonder if there is any hope for the church.

If you wonder, remember that God\u2019s judgement is not primarily destructive but redemptive, purifying. When the prophets of Israel warned of God\u2019s coming judgement, there was always that seed of hope. God would preserve a remnant. Jesus, who took our disobedience onto himself, also said, \u201cI will build my church.\u201d That is our hope. Let\u2019s hang on to it as the Spirit leads us in the way of obedience.