OUR ENDING FAITHFULNESS VS. GOD’S UNENDING FAITHFULNESS
Lamentations 3:1-40
It is great to be back at AIT. I remember attending our 42nd anniversary. To think we would flooded out soon never crossed my mind. I know many of you have lost much and I have been praying for you continually. Our still being able to meet at Calvary Baptist Church and back here today is a testimony to God’s faithfulness.
During the last few months, when many of you had to relocate did you ever question God’s faithfulness? It’s ok if you have. Did you ever feel He was through blessing you? Like you would never experience His favor in your life again? Have you ever asked these questions? Is there any hope? Because the one thing that keeps us going when everything else has failed is hope. It has been said man can live 40 days without food, 3 days without water, 8 minutes without air, but only 1 second without hope. If you are without hope it is like being in a black hole.
I want us to look today at God’s faithfulness even when we are faithless. That hope should make anyone who has strayed from God return. Our passage is Lamentations 3:1-40.
There is a lot here. It was most likely written by Jeremiah in 586 BC when the Southern Kingdom, Judah was taken into Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah was allowed to remain in Jerusalem. And as he saw the ruins, which were brought on by his people refusing to repent before God, he lamented. It is not a happy passage. Maybe you might be able to identify with what he is feeling. But remember, there is hope. I promise I will end on a good note.
As I read it, listen and read along, and see if you can enter into what Jeremiah is experiencing.
Let me give you some background. Israel had many kings. That was not God’s plan. They were His people and He wanted them to live under His Kingship instead of a human king. But they insisted and in 1 Samuel 8 and 9 Israel got what they wanted and Saul was anointed as King. Saul did not have a heart for God and he was replaced by David; a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 16:7). David did have a heart for God, but as we all know, one night he was where he shouldn’t be, seeing what he shouldn’t see and doing what he shouldn’t do. We all know the results of that (2 Sam 11, 12).
David’s son Solomon succeeded him. Solomon was a man of much wisdom, as seen when he became king (1 Kings 3) but he had 700 wives and 300 concubines who turned his heart away from God (1 Kings 11). And because of this, Solomon was told that the kingdom would be torn away from him, but for the sake of God’s covenant with David and for Jerusalem, he would not lose the whole kingdom. Thus 10 tribes made up the Northern Kingdom, with the tribes of Judah and Benjamin making up the Southern Kingdom.
The Northern Kingdom, because of their disobedience to God was carried off into Assyrian Captivity in 722 BC.
God, in His mercy and justice sent prophets to warn the people of their errant ways. Although there were several, the message was for the people to repent and return to God, and experience His blessing, or to continue to disobey and experience His judgment. Following this, there was a succession of kings; some good, but most of them were bad.
Jeremiah was sent to prophesy to the Southern Kingdom. Manasseh had been king for 58 years and his reign was an evil reign. Josiah became king at age 12 and he was a good king. He discovered the Mosaic Law in the temple and tried to get the people to return to it. Yet, because of problems and alliances with Egypt, he died at age 39. His 3 sons succeeded him; they were all wicked kings. The Assyrians pretty much lost their power and the Babylonians were increasing in power. In 597 BC they attacked Jerusalem. In 586 BC they besieged Jerusalem and over 1 million people were killed. The temple was destroyed, and those remaining were deported to Babylon. It was during that time that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations.
Jeremiah was known as “The Weeping Prophet.” Although most people looked down on him, and rejected his message, he was obedient to God’s call on his life. His life was one of martyrdom, as he did not have a family and was denied many of the other pleasures of life. Yet he faithfully carried out his mission.
There are some questions we need to ask when we read the prophets. First, how does God look at a culture that knows Him but turns Him away? Even more convicting is on the individual level; how does God look at one of His children who knows Him but turns away? How do we deal with God’s justice versus His love? And how do we reconcile God’s sovereignty with man’s free will. I once shared with a friend that you cannot reconcile these two. He wanted me to show him a verse that shows God is in control of everything. I explained that you don’t build your doctrine or theology on one verse of Scripture. Instead, you look at all the verses that speak on this. The Bible tells us in many places of God’s control of all the events that happen. Yet they also tell us that man is responsible before God. How do you put them together? I don’t know. And neither do you.
Lamentations is not a pretty book. It is not a book of comfort like Philippians, Romans or 1 Thessalonians. It is a series of laments by Jeremiah as he sees the ruins of Jerusalem. I think this Lamentations and Job identify with suffering more than any other books, because they take you into the heart of the one who is suffering.
Suffering may be personal. It may be corporate. It may be because of your sins. It may be for nothing you have done at all. But it does attack the very heart of us and if there is anything that will make us question God, it is suffering. Let’s face it, when things are going well do you cry out to God why? Or if you have everything you need, do you still sense dependence on God from day to day?
In the case of any of the OT Prophets, rejection of their message resulted in their punishment. Had Israel repented and returned to God we probably would not have Lamentations. And here we see both corporate and personal suffering. The people of Judah are suffering because of their disobedience to God. Jeremiah was obedient to God, but he still had to suffer; being rejected and now weeping over the ruins of Jerusalem.
We will look at adversity today from both sides; as we see it and as God sees it. We shall also see that there is hope.
In these first 20 verses, lets see if we can identify with the sufferings of Jeremiah. I promise you, as bad as it looks, it will get better. We will end our time together on a good note! Trust me on this one.
Have you ever felt that God has turned His hand against you? Have you experienced His blessing at one time in your life and now you feel like He has completely reversed His attitudes and actions? That’s what we see in verses 1-3. God has completely turned His hand against Jeremiah. Instead of walking in the light, he is now walking in darkness. You know what I call that? A black hole. And if you are in a black hole, you might wish you were dead.
In John’s gospel He writes in chapter 1 how light overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. I remember as a boy, going to camp, visiting a cavern in Virginia. Have you ever been to a cavern before? I know they have them in the Philippines; do they have them in Thailand? At one point in the tour, the guide turns off the lights. It is completely dark. You cannot see your hand if you put it in front of your face. Complete blackness. Do you remember being scared of the dark when you were little? I was and my parents had a night light in the room. Then I wasn’t scared anymore. Why? Because light always overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. Jeremiah is walking in darkness.
Next, he is suffering in both body and spirit. Look at verse 4-6. He feels like one who is dead. Pretty depressing, isn’t it? Shall I stop here? If I do, we won’t get to the good part.
Jeremiah’s health suffered; physically and spiritually. He was broken, both in body and in spirit. He suffered inwardly and outwardly.
Suffering is not a pretty thing to talk about. We would rather not have to face it, right? It is here, I must take issue with those who believe it is not God’s will for us to suffer. How I wish it were God’s will for us not to suffer. That is how the world was created. But Adam’s choice to disobey God affected the entire human race. We live in a fallen world. Don’t believe me? Read the newspaper today. Is it filled with good news? Just yesterday, when I woke up I read from one of my friends on Facebook who is a pastor, that he and several others were having a lockdown in their church and there was a gunman outside. He asked for prayer. Fortunately our prayers were answered as the Dallas Police finally caught the gunman. The pastor responded by asking us to pray for the gunman’s family. He was going to try to minister to them next week.
While we might experience suffering in our lifetime, there will come a time when we will no longer experience suffering. I might have shared this before, but when my mother was in the hospital, and we knew she would soon draw her last breath, my sisters asked about heaven. Have you ever heard of Gideons International? They give out free Bibles on university campuses, hospitals, prisons, hotels and to US military personnel. The Bibles are always free. There was one in our hospital room and I read from Revelation 21 and 22. We are told God will wipe away every tear; there will be no more crying, no more death, no more curse. This will happen. But not until we are with Jesus in the new heavens and earth.
Have you ever been in a situation where you can see no way out of? You pray and God doesn’t seem to answer? That’s what we see in verses 7-9. AITCF is a church of prayer. I appreciate how we spend time in prayer as a church. I appreciate getting the weekly prayer updates in my email. God always answers prayer, doesn’t He? In this case, He is not answering Jeremiah’s prayer. Have you ever tried talking to someone and they are not listening? It is like God is not listening. Jeremiah’s prayers are unheard and unanswered. I grew up before we had answering machines, voicemail and cell phones. And when I called someone and there was no answer it was frustrating. I would keep trying, but no answer. We sometimes feel God does that when we pray.
Jeremiah felt shut in. They don’t do this anymore, but before I was born, when prisoners were sent outside to work, a ball and chain was attached to their leg. The ball was very heavy, and it was very difficult if not impossible to go anywhere. Have you ever felt prisoned in? Maybe you are in a job you don’t like and you pray and try to find something else. Nothing else is opening and you feel chained in. Hopefully no one can say that about their marriage!
It’s like God refuses to acknowledge our prayers for help and all avenues of escape are blocked off. This is what the Babylonians did to Jerusalem; they walled it in and no one could escape.
It gets worse. In verses 10-13 Jeremiah feels like God has singled him out, like a lion or bear waiting for its prey. Have any of you been to Kenya or Tanzania, to the Serengeti? The wildebeests and zebras are plant eating animals and they need to go somewhere there is grass to graze on. So they have to migrate every year; millions of animals. Lions are meat eating animals, and guess where they get their meat? I have seen pictures and videos of this. The lions wait quietly waiting for unsuspecting wildebeests and zebras to come their way. Then when they are in range, they explode and usually capture several of them. You should watch them devour the animals. They are eating like it is their last meal.
I had a bad weekend sometime ago, where everything was going wrong. I lost my reading glasses, the air conditioning on my car was not working, my computer was not cooperating and I really felt like God had turned his hand against me. I was a target for the arrows of His wrath.
Let’s finish up on suffering before you kick me out of here and ask me not to come back. In verses 14-18 we see Jeremiah’s suffering described very vividly. People laugh at him, he is bitter, God has given him stones instead of bread, he is without happiness and there is no hope. We see wormwood and gall which are very bitter. Remember when Jesus was on the cross and He said, “I thirst?” A sponge of sour wine and gall was offered to Him, but He refused it. When I get really thirsty, there are two things I can think of; water or Coca Cola. Pepsi is ok too. Just drinking an ice cold drink really quenches my thirst.
I think Jeremiah is as low as he can go. Have you ever felt this way before? Can you identify with him? This is not a pleasant place to be, believe me. In verses 19,20 he asks God to remember what he is going through. It’s like God doesn’t care; He doesn’t even notice what we are going through. If you are suffering affliction like Jeremiah did, there is a message of hope. This is the good part. We have looked at how we see adversity, now let’s see how God sees it, and better what He does about it.
In verses 21-23 Jeremiah starts to remember something he knows about God. And this is where he begins to see light at the end of the tunnel.
We are reminded of something very important when we are in a hopeless situation. We may be down, but not out if we remember this.
Even though Israel had sinned, they were still God’s people. And while God disciplined them, it was for the purpose of restoring them to Him. If you have children and you discipline them it is always for the purpose of reminding them that certain behaviors have consequences, and it is always to restore them.
In verse 21 Jeremiah starts to have hope when He remembers what we will see in the next 2 verses. And when you are in a hopeless situation, remember these as well.
I’m going to have verse 22 in several translations. I’m also going to give you a Hebrew word. That Hebrew word is hesed. Let me give you a little lesson in how to pronounce hesed, ok? This word encompasses many things, but it refers to God’s loyal and steadfast love. God’s discipline on Israel was done in love. Love was always behind it. When you discipline your children, hopefully love is the guiding force behind it. I encourage you to always show your children that you do love them, and never to discipline them in anger. Your children do need to know you love them and you are looking out for their well being.
God’s hesed is a loyal and steadfast love for us, that no matter what we do, no matter what we are going through, is always there. It never runs dry. You might have a bank account with so much money in it. If you spend it all, it will run out. Or if you are driving somewhere, don’t forget to put gas in your tank. Why? Because you will run out of gas. Have you ever wanted to go back for seconds on food, only to find there is no more left? I always like pot luck dinners because I have noticed that there is always enough for everyone. Nobody leaves hungry! When I was at my church in Japan we often had church pot luck lunches. And we would play Rock, Paper and Scissors to see which side goes first. I was usually asked to be one of the two persons playing because I always won! For a while I always won. I remember one time, there were so many there we had to have 3 groups. And my group lost and had to go last! I still didn’t go to bed hungry!
God’s hesed never ceases. Why? Because His compassions never fail. Do you believe God is a compassionate God? We often answer that depending on our circumstances. But I am reminded we need to base it on what God’s word says, and not our emotions. Because our emotions do change. You might be feeling happy one day and sad the next. God is not like that. He is always compassionate. Stop and think about someone who has gone through a severe time of testing or is going through one. I remember a friend who worked as head custodian at my former church in Dallas. He was trimming bushes with an electric saw one day and he slipped and cut his left arm so badly, he almost lost it. He was rushed to the hospital, and the doctors were able to save his arm in a 9 hour operation. I was shocked when I heard about it. This was a man who loved God. I went to visit him in the hospital, and it was hard to understand why God allowed this to happen to him. I could not understand why him. Do you know what his response was? Why not me? He was grateful to God for His hesed and compassion. That’s what hesed and compassion do.
God promised His people that because of His hesed, He would restore them. Do you remember that famous passage in Jeremiah 29? He wants the people in captivity go live their lives as normal and pray for the welfare of the city they are in. Because He promised to fulfill His good purposes and bring them out of captivity. There is a message of hope even in the midst of our darkest hour. There was for Jeremiah. And there is for us.
Look at verse 23. Every morning God’s hesed and compassion are new. He is faithful. There is a well known hymn that comes from these verses. Can anyone tell me what it is?
Remind yourself of this when you wake up every morning. No matter how dark it may be God’s hesed and compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
The reason Jeremiah’s hope was in God and ours too is because He is our portion. Look at verse 24. He compares portion to an allotment or piece of land given to us. God is our allotment. Are you content with Him? If so then you can be hopeful. If you are placing your hope in something other than God you will not be content, even if you have it. God needs to be your portion.
See, God was going to bring about restoration for His people and He wants to bring about restoration for you too, but we need to have the proper perspective.
We need to wait. In verses 25 and 26 is the promise that the Lord is good to those who wait for Him; who wait for His deliverance. Are you waiting for God to do something in your life? Are you waiting for Him to deliver you from a difficult or unpleasant situation? Do not try to push Him to do something. Wait in silence for Him. He is good to those who wait for Him. All through the Bible we are admonished to wait on the Lord. But He promises to reward us when we wait on Him.
In verses 27-30 let’s accept what God is doing. I will come to this more later, I remember when I was in the Navy, I had to go through Boot Camp as a new recruit. And for the next 3 months I would always have someone telling me where to go and what to do. And as long as I did that, I was fine. If I disobeyed an order, which I never did, I would be in trouble. We were told that if we ever receive punishment in the Navy, to take it like a man and learn from what we did. The officers who punished us are only doing their job which they would not have had to do if we had done our job. Think about what you did and what the consequences are. God’s hesed and compassion are still there. But sometimes we have to suffer for our disobedience. But there is hope in verses 31 and 32.
God’s rejection of His people is not forever. And if we are believers in Christ this applies to us as well. As a matter of fact, if you haven’t read this, read Romans 9-11. Paul talks about God’s plan for His people, Israel. God has not rejected His people, and there is a future day of restoration when Israel will turn to Jesus as their Messiah.
Grief is always followed by compassion. Think of it this way. Suffering is only for a time. It is never forever. Have you ever had an operation? The doctor goes in and does what he has to do, then he closes you back up. When he has fixed what needs to be fixed, he is done. Now I remember being scared of the doctor when I was little, and I’m sure most of us were because we were always afraid we would get a shot. But as I grew older, I learned that the doctor is my friend, and anything he does is done out of compassion, to help me. Same with God. His compassion is based on His hesed; His loyal steadfast love for us. Because God does not afflict us willingly. He does not do it to be mean to us. If we look at verses 33-36, God does not approve of injustice. If you think you are ever treated unjustly, just remember, in the end God will avenge all injustice. Don’t believe me? Read about the Great White Throne Judgment in Revelation 20. Believe me, this is not a place you want to be. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and you will not be present at this judgment. Because this is when all who have rejected God’s gift of eternal life through His Son, Jesus Christ will be cast into the Lake of Fire. Trust me, you do not want to be at this judgment.
Earlier, I shared that I cannot reconcile the fact that God is sovereign and yet we are responsible. But I do take comfort in that nothing happens that He does not allow to happen. If we go through adversity, it is because God has allowed it. But we also need to remember He is full of hesed and compassion. He is also a God of justice and love.
Now if you read verses 37 and 38 I know you will ask the question how can a God of love permit evil? As we see here, it is Israel’s disobedience that has resulted in her being exiled. But other than that, I don’t know why God allows both good and evil. I wish He allowed good only. But if we remember He is a compassionate God, we can accept good and evil.
Let’s close with this in verses 39 and 40. If you are going through adversity now, examine your ways. Is it something you did? As I shared earlier, if you are suffering because of sin, you really have nothing to complain about. And if you are suffering like Jeremiah did, also examine your ways. But either way, return to the Lord. He is full of abundant mercy and hesed. He is always willing to forgive you. In Luke 15 there are 3 parables that illustrate this; the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin and probably, well known to all of us, the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Examine your ways and return to the Lord. He is always willing to receive anyone who strays from Him. I’ll close with the verse that Jeremiah reminds Judah in captivity.
Jeremiah 29:11 'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
Let’s pray.
OUR ENDING FAITHFULNESS VS. GOD’S UNENDING FAITHFULNESS
Lamentations 3:1-40
It is great to be back at AIT. I remember attending our 42nd anniversary. To think we would flooded out soon never crossed my mind. I know many of you have lost much and I have been praying for you continually. Our still being able to meet at Calvary Baptist Church and back here today is a testimony to God’s faithfulness.
During the last few months, when many of you had to relocate did you ever question God’s faithfulness? It’s ok if you have. Did you ever feel He was through blessing you? Like you would never experience His favor in your life again? Have you ever asked these questions? Is there any hope? Because the one thing that keeps us going when everything else has failed is hope. It has been said man can live 40 days without food, 3 days without water, 8 minutes without air, but only 1 second without hope. If you are without hope it is like being in a black hole.
I want us to look today at God’s faithfulness even when we are faithless. That hope should make anyone who has strayed from God return. Our passage is Lamentations 3:1-40.
There is a lot here. It was most likely written by Jeremiah in 586 BC when the Southern Kingdom, Judah was taken into Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah was allowed to remain in Jerusalem. And as he saw the ruins, which were brought on by his people refusing to repent before God, he lamented. It is not a happy passage. Maybe you might be able to identify with what he is feeling. But remember, there is hope. I promise I will end on a good note.
As I read it, listen and read along, and see if you can enter into what Jeremiah is experiencing.
Let me give you some background. Israel had many kings. That was not God’s plan. They were His people and He wanted them to live under His Kingship instead of a human king. But they insisted and in 1 Samuel 8 and 9 Israel got what they wanted and Saul was anointed as King. Saul did not have a heart for God and he was replaced by David; a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 16:7). David did have a heart for God, but as we all know, one night he was where he shouldn’t be, seeing what he shouldn’t see and doing what he shouldn’t do. We all know the results of that (2 Sam 11, 12).
David’s son Solomon succeeded him. Solomon was a man of much wisdom, as seen when he became king (1 Kings 3) but he had 700 wives and 300 concubines who turned his heart away from God (1 Kings 11). And because of this, Solomon was told that the kingdom would be torn away from him, but for the sake of God’s covenant with David and for Jerusalem, he would not lose the whole kingdom. Thus 10 tribes made up the Northern Kingdom, with the tribes of Judah and Benjamin making up the Southern Kingdom.
The Northern Kingdom, because of their disobedience to God was carried off into Assyrian Captivity in 722 BC.
God, in His mercy and justice sent prophets to warn the people of their errant ways. Although there were several, the message was for the people to repent and return to God, and experience His blessing, or to continue to disobey and experience His judgment. Following this, there was a succession of kings; some good, but most of them were bad.
Jeremiah was sent to prophesy to the Southern Kingdom. Manasseh had been king for 58 years and his reign was an evil reign. Josiah became king at age 12 and he was a good king. He discovered the Mosaic Law in the temple and tried to get the people to return to it. Yet, because of problems and alliances with Egypt, he died at age 39. His 3 sons succeeded him; they were all wicked kings. The Assyrians pretty much lost their power and the Babylonians were increasing in power. In 597 BC they attacked Jerusalem. In 586 BC they besieged Jerusalem and over 1 million people were killed. The temple was destroyed, and those remaining were deported to Babylon. It was during that time that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations.
Jeremiah was known as “The Weeping Prophet.” Although most people looked down on him, and rejected his message, he was obedient to God’s call on his life. His life was one of martyrdom, as he did not have a family and was denied many of the other pleasures of life. Yet he faithfully carried out his mission.
There are some questions we need to ask when we read the prophets. First, how does God look at a culture that knows Him but turns Him away? Even more convicting is on the individual level; how does God look at one of His children who knows Him but turns away? How do we deal with God’s justice versus His love? And how do we reconcile God’s sovereignty with man’s free will. I once shared with a friend that you cannot reconcile these two. He wanted me to show him a verse that shows God is in control of everything. I explained that you don’t build your doctrine or theology on one verse of Scripture. Instead, you look at all the verses that speak on this. The Bible tells us in many places of God’s control of all the events that happen. Yet they also tell us that man is responsible before God. How do you put them together? I don’t know. And neither do you.
Lamentations is not a pretty book. It is not a book of comfort like Philippians, Romans or 1 Thessalonians. It is a series of laments by Jeremiah as he sees the ruins of Jerusalem. I think this Lamentations and Job identify with suffering more than any other books, because they take you into the heart of the one who is suffering.
Suffering may be personal. It may be corporate. It may be because of your sins. It may be for nothing you have done at all. But it does attack the very heart of us and if there is anything that will make us question God, it is suffering. Let’s face it, when things are going well do you cry out to God why? Or if you have everything you need, do you still sense dependence on God from day to day?
In the case of any of the OT Prophets, rejection of their message resulted in their punishment. Had Israel repented and returned to God we probably would not have Lamentations. And here we see both corporate and personal suffering. The people of Judah are suffering because of their disobedience to God. Jeremiah was obedient to God, but he still had to suffer; being rejected and now weeping over the ruins of Jerusalem.
We will look at adversity today from both sides; as we see it and as God sees it. We shall also see that there is hope.
In these first 20 verses, lets see if we can identify with the sufferings of Jeremiah. I promise you, as bad as it looks, it will get better. We will end our time together on a good note! Trust me on this one.
Have you ever felt that God has turned His hand against you? Have you experienced His blessing at one time in your life and now you feel like He has completely reversed His attitudes and actions? That’s what we see in verses 1-3. God has completely turned His hand against Jeremiah. Instead of walking in the light, he is now walking in darkness. You know what I call that? A black hole. And if you are in a black hole, you might wish you were dead.
In John’s gospel He writes in chapter 1 how light overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. I remember as a boy, going to camp, visiting a cavern in Virginia. Have you ever been to a cavern before? I know they have them in the Philippines; do they have them in Thailand? At one point in the tour, the guide turns off the lights. It is completely dark. You cannot see your hand if you put it in front of your face. Complete blackness. Do you remember being scared of the dark when you were little? I was and my parents had a night light in the room. Then I wasn’t scared anymore. Why? Because light always overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. Jeremiah is walking in darkness.
Next, he is suffering in both body and spirit. Look at verse 4-6. He feels like one who is dead. Pretty depressing, isn’t it? Shall I stop here? If I do, we won’t get to the good part.
Jeremiah’s health suffered; physically and spiritually. He was broken, both in body and in spirit. He suffered inwardly and outwardly.
Suffering is not a pretty thing to talk about. We would rather not have to face it, right? It is here, I must take issue with those who believe it is not God’s will for us to suffer. How I wish it were God’s will for us not to suffer. That is how the world was created. But Adam’s choice to disobey God affected the entire human race. We live in a fallen world. Don’t believe me? Read the newspaper today. Is it filled with good news? Just yesterday, when I woke up I read from one of my friends on Facebook who is a pastor, that he and several others were having a lockdown in their church and there was a gunman outside. He asked for prayer. Fortunately our prayers were answered as the Dallas Police finally caught the gunman. The pastor responded by asking us to pray for the gunman’s family. He was going to try to minister to them next week.
While we might experience suffering in our lifetime, there will come a time when we will no longer experience suffering. I might have shared this before, but when my mother was in the hospital, and we knew she would soon draw her last breath, my sisters asked about heaven. Have you ever heard of Gideons International? They give out free Bibles on university campuses, hospitals, prisons, hotels and to US military personnel. The Bibles are always free. There was one in our hospital room and I read from Revelation 21 and 22. We are told God will wipe away every tear; there will be no more crying, no more death, no more curse. This will happen. But not until we are with Jesus in the new heavens and earth.
Have you ever been in a situation where you can see no way out of? You pray and God doesn’t seem to answer? That’s what we see in verses 7-9. AITCF is a church of prayer. I appreciate how we spend time in prayer as a church. I appreciate getting the weekly prayer updates in my email. God always answers prayer, doesn’t He? In this case, He is not answering Jeremiah’s prayer. Have you ever tried talking to someone and they are not listening? It is like God is not listening. Jeremiah’s prayers are unheard and unanswered. I grew up before we had answering machines, voicemail and cell phones. And when I called someone and there was no answer it was frustrating. I would keep trying, but no answer. We sometimes feel God does that when we pray.
Jeremiah felt shut in. They don’t do this anymore, but before I was born, when prisoners were sent outside to work, a ball and chain was attached to their leg. The ball was very heavy, and it was very difficult if not impossible to go anywhere. Have you ever felt prisoned in? Maybe you are in a job you don’t like and you pray and try to find something else. Nothing else is opening and you feel chained in. Hopefully no one can say that about their marriage!
It’s like God refuses to acknowledge our prayers for help and all avenues of escape are blocked off. This is what the Babylonians did to Jerusalem; they walled it in and no one could escape.
It gets worse. In verses 10-13 Jeremiah feels like God has singled him out, like a lion or bear waiting for its prey. Have any of you been to Kenya or Tanzania, to the Serengeti? The wildebeests and zebras are plant eating animals and they need to go somewhere there is grass to graze on. So they have to migrate every year; millions of animals. Lions are meat eating animals, and guess where they get their meat? I have seen pictures and videos of this. The lions wait quietly waiting for unsuspecting wildebeests and zebras to come their way. Then when they are in range, they explode and usually capture several of them. You should watch them devour the animals. They are eating like it is their last meal.
I had a bad weekend sometime ago, where everything was going wrong. I lost my reading glasses, the air conditioning on my car was not working, my computer was not cooperating and I really felt like God had turned his hand against me. I was a target for the arrows of His wrath.
Let’s finish up on suffering before you kick me out of here and ask me not to come back. In verses 14-18 we see Jeremiah’s suffering described very vividly. People laugh at him, he is bitter, God has given him stones instead of bread, he is without happiness and there is no hope. We see wormwood and gall which are very bitter. Remember when Jesus was on the cross and He said, “I thirst?” A sponge of sour wine and gall was offered to Him, but He refused it. When I get really thirsty, there are two things I can think of; water or Coca Cola. Pepsi is ok too. Just drinking an ice cold drink really quenches my thirst.
I think Jeremiah is as low as he can go. Have you ever felt this way before? Can you identify with him? This is not a pleasant place to be, believe me. In verses 19,20 he asks God to remember what he is going through. It’s like God doesn’t care; He doesn’t even notice what we are going through. If you are suffering affliction like Jeremiah did, there is a message of hope. This is the good part. We have looked at how we see adversity, now let’s see how God sees it, and better what He does about it.
In verses 21-23 Jeremiah starts to remember something he knows about God. And this is where he begins to see light at the end of the tunnel.
We are reminded of something very important when we are in a hopeless situation. We may be down, but not out if we remember this.
Even though Israel had sinned, they were still God’s people. And while God disciplined them, it was for the purpose of restoring them to Him. If you have children and you discipline them it is always for the purpose of reminding them that certain behaviors have consequences, and it is always to restore them.
In verse 21 Jeremiah starts to have hope when He remembers what we will see in the next 2 verses. And when you are in a hopeless situation, remember these as well.
I’m going to have verse 22 in several translations. I’m also going to give you a Hebrew word. That Hebrew word is hesed. Let me give you a little lesson in how to pronounce hesed, ok? This word encompasses many things, but it refers to God’s loyal and steadfast love. God’s discipline on Israel was done in love. Love was always behind it. When you discipline your children, hopefully love is the guiding force behind it. I encourage you to always show your children that you do love them, and never to discipline them in anger. Your children do need to know you love them and you are looking out for their well being.
God’s hesed is a loyal and steadfast love for us, that no matter what we do, no matter what we are going through, is always there. It never runs dry. You might have a bank account with so much money in it. If you spend it all, it will run out. Or if you are driving somewhere, don’t forget to put gas in your tank. Why? Because you will run out of gas. Have you ever wanted to go back for seconds on food, only to find there is no more left? I always like pot luck dinners because I have noticed that there is always enough for everyone. Nobody leaves hungry! When I was at my church in Japan we often had church pot luck lunches. And we would play Rock, Paper and Scissors to see which side goes first. I was usually asked to be one of the two persons playing because I always won! For a while I always won. I remember one time, there were so many there we had to have 3 groups. And my group lost and had to go last! I still didn’t go to bed hungry!
God’s hesed never ceases. Why? Because His compassions never fail. Do you believe God is a compassionate God? We often answer that depending on our circumstances. But I am reminded we need to base it on what God’s word says, and not our emotions. Because our emotions do change. You might be feeling happy one day and sad the next. God is not like that. He is always compassionate. Stop and think about someone who has gone through a severe time of testing or is going through one. I remember a friend who worked as head custodian at my former church in Dallas. He was trimming bushes with an electric saw one day and he slipped and cut his left arm so badly, he almost lost it. He was rushed to the hospital, and the doctors were able to save his arm in a 9 hour operation. I was shocked when I heard about it. This was a man who loved God. I went to visit him in the hospital, and it was hard to understand why God allowed this to happen to him. I could not understand why him. Do you know what his response was? Why not me? He was grateful to God for His hesed and compassion. That’s what hesed and compassion do.
God promised His people that because of His hesed, He would restore them. Do you remember that famous passage in Jeremiah 29? He wants the people in captivity go live their lives as normal and pray for the welfare of the city they are in. Because He promised to fulfill His good purposes and bring them out of captivity. There is a message of hope even in the midst of our darkest hour. There was for Jeremiah. And there is for us.
Look at verse 23. Every morning God’s hesed and compassion are new. He is faithful. There is a well known hymn that comes from these verses. Can anyone tell me what it is?
Remind yourself of this when you wake up every morning. No matter how dark it may be God’s hesed and compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
The reason Jeremiah’s hope was in God and ours too is because He is our portion. Look at verse 24. He compares portion to an allotment or piece of land given to us. God is our allotment. Are you content with Him? If so then you can be hopeful. If you are placing your hope in something other than God you will not be content, even if you have it. God needs to be your portion.
See, God was going to bring about restoration for His people and He wants to bring about restoration for you too, but we need to have the proper perspective.
We need to wait. In verses 25 and 26 is the promise that the Lord is good to those who wait for Him; who wait for His deliverance. Are you waiting for God to do something in your life? Are you waiting for Him to deliver you from a difficult or unpleasant situation? Do not try to push Him to do something. Wait in silence for Him. He is good to those who wait for Him. All through the Bible we are admonished to wait on the Lord. But He promises to reward us when we wait on Him.
In verses 27-30 let’s accept what God is doing. I will come to this more later, I remember when I was in the Navy, I had to go through Boot Camp as a new recruit. And for the next 3 months I would always have someone telling me where to go and what to do. And as long as I did that, I was fine. If I disobeyed an order, which I never did, I would be in trouble. We were told that if we ever receive punishment in the Navy, to take it like a man and learn from what we did. The officers who punished us are only doing their job which they would not have had to do if we had done our job. Think about what you did and what the consequences are. God’s hesed and compassion are still there. But sometimes we have to suffer for our disobedience. But there is hope in verses 31 and 32.
God’s rejection of His people is not forever. And if we are believers in Christ this applies to us as well. As a matter of fact, if you haven’t read this, read Romans 9-11. Paul talks about God’s plan for His people, Israel. God has not rejected His people, and there is a future day of restoration when Israel will turn to Jesus as their Messiah.
Grief is always followed by compassion. Think of it this way. Suffering is only for a time. It is never forever. Have you ever had an operation? The doctor goes in and does what he has to do, then he closes you back up. When he has fixed what needs to be fixed, he is done. Now I remember being scared of the doctor when I was little, and I’m sure most of us were because we were always afraid we would get a shot. But as I grew older, I learned that the doctor is my friend, and anything he does is done out of compassion, to help me. Same with God. His compassion is based on His hesed; His loyal steadfast love for us. Because God does not afflict us willingly. He does not do it to be mean to us. If we look at verses 33-36, God does not approve of injustice. If you think you are ever treated unjustly, just remember, in the end God will avenge all injustice. Don’t believe me? Read about the Great White Throne Judgment in Revelation 20. Believe me, this is not a place you want to be. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and you will not be present at this judgment. Because this is when all who have rejected God’s gift of eternal life through His Son, Jesus Christ will be cast into the Lake of Fire. Trust me, you do not want to be at this judgment.
Earlier, I shared that I cannot reconcile the fact that God is sovereign and yet we are responsible. But I do take comfort in that nothing happens that He does not allow to happen. If we go through adversity, it is because God has allowed it. But we also need to remember He is full of hesed and compassion. He is also a God of justice and love.
Now if you read verses 37 and 38 I know you will ask the question how can a God of love permit evil? As we see here, it is Israel’s disobedience that has resulted in her being exiled. But other than that, I don’t know why God allows both good and evil. I wish He allowed good only. But if we remember He is a compassionate God, we can accept good and evil.
Let’s close with this in verses 39 and 40. If you are going through adversity now, examine your ways. Is it something you did? As I shared earlier, if you are suffering because of sin, you really have nothing to complain about. And if you are suffering like Jeremiah did, also examine your ways. But either way, return to the Lord. He is full of abundant mercy and hesed. He is always willing to forgive you. In Luke 15 there are 3 parables that illustrate this; the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin and probably, well known to all of us, the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Examine your ways and return to the Lord. He is always willing to receive anyone who strays from Him. I’ll close with the verse that Jeremiah reminds Judah in captivity.
Jeremiah 29:11 'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
Let’s pray.
OUR ENDING FAITHFULNESS VS. GOD’S UNENDING FAITHFULNESS
Lamentations 3:1-40
It is great to be back at AIT. I remember attending our 42nd anniversary. To think we would flooded out soon never crossed my mind. I know many of you have lost much and I have been praying for you continually. Our still being able to meet at Calvary Baptist Church and back here today is a testimony to God’s faithfulness.
During the last few months, when many of you had to relocate did you ever question God’s faithfulness? It’s ok if you have. Did you ever feel He was through blessing you? Like you would never experience His favor in your life again? Have you ever asked these questions? Is there any hope? Because the one thing that keeps us going when everything else has failed is hope. It has been said man can live 40 days without food, 3 days without water, 8 minutes without air, but only 1 second without hope. If you are without hope it is like being in a black hole.
I want us to look today at God’s faithfulness even when we are faithless. That hope should make anyone who has strayed from God return. Our passage is Lamentations 3:1-40.
There is a lot here. It was most likely written by Jeremiah in 586 BC when the Southern Kingdom, Judah was taken into Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah was allowed to remain in Jerusalem. And as he saw the ruins, which were brought on by his people refusing to repent before God, he lamented. It is not a happy passage. Maybe you might be able to identify with what he is feeling. But remember, there is hope. I promise I will end on a good note.
As I read it, listen and read along, and see if you can enter into what Jeremiah is experiencing.
Let me give you some background. Israel had many kings. That was not God’s plan. They were His people and He wanted them to live under His Kingship instead of a human king. But they insisted and in 1 Samuel 8 and 9 Israel got what they wanted and Saul was anointed as King. Saul did not have a heart for God and he was replaced by David; a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 16:7). David did have a heart for God, but as we all know, one night he was where he shouldn’t be, seeing what he shouldn’t see and doing what he shouldn’t do. We all know the results of that (2 Sam 11, 12).
David’s son Solomon succeeded him. Solomon was a man of much wisdom, as seen when he became king (1 Kings 3) but he had 700 wives and 300 concubines who turned his heart away from God (1 Kings 11). And because of this, Solomon was told that the kingdom would be torn away from him, but for the sake of God’s covenant with David and for Jerusalem, he would not lose the whole kingdom. Thus 10 tribes made up the Northern Kingdom, with the tribes of Judah and Benjamin making up the Southern Kingdom.
The Northern Kingdom, because of their disobedience to God was carried off into Assyrian Captivity in 722 BC.
God, in His mercy and justice sent prophets to warn the people of their errant ways. Although there were several, the message was for the people to repent and return to God, and experience His blessing, or to continue to disobey and experience His judgment. Following this, there was a succession of kings; some good, but most of them were bad.
Jeremiah was sent to prophesy to the Southern Kingdom. Manasseh had been king for 58 years and his reign was an evil reign. Josiah became king at age 12 and he was a good king. He discovered the Mosaic Law in the temple and tried to get the people to return to it. Yet, because of problems and alliances with Egypt, he died at age 39. His 3 sons succeeded him; they were all wicked kings. The Assyrians pretty much lost their power and the Babylonians were increasing in power. In 597 BC they attacked Jerusalem. In 586 BC they besieged Jerusalem and over 1 million people were killed. The temple was destroyed, and those remaining were deported to Babylon. It was during that time that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations.
Jeremiah was known as “The Weeping Prophet.” Although most people looked down on him, and rejected his message, he was obedient to God’s call on his life. His life was one of martyrdom, as he did not have a family and was denied many of the other pleasures of life. Yet he faithfully carried out his mission.
There are some questions we need to ask when we read the prophets. First, how does God look at a culture that knows Him but turns Him away? Even more convicting is on the individual level; how does God look at one of His children who knows Him but turns away? How do we deal with God’s justice versus His love? And how do we reconcile God’s sovereignty with man’s free will. I once shared with a friend that you cannot reconcile these two. He wanted me to show him a verse that shows God is in control of everything. I explained that you don’t build your doctrine or theology on one verse of Scripture. Instead, you look at all the verses that speak on this. The Bible tells us in many places of God’s control of all the events that happen. Yet they also tell us that man is responsible before God. How do you put them together? I don’t know. And neither do you.
Lamentations is not a pretty book. It is not a book of comfort like Philippians, Romans or 1 Thessalonians. It is a series of laments by Jeremiah as he sees the ruins of Jerusalem. I think this Lamentations and Job identify with suffering more than any other books, because they take you into the heart of the one who is suffering.
Suffering may be personal. It may be corporate. It may be because of your sins. It may be for nothing you have done at all. But it does attack the very heart of us and if there is anything that will make us question God, it is suffering. Let’s face it, when things are going well do you cry out to God why? Or if you have everything you need, do you still sense dependence on God from day to day?
In the case of any of the OT Prophets, rejection of their message resulted in their punishment. Had Israel repented and returned to God we probably would not have Lamentations. And here we see both corporate and personal suffering. The people of Judah are suffering because of their disobedience to God. Jeremiah was obedient to God, but he still had to suffer; being rejected and now weeping over the ruins of Jerusalem.
We will look at adversity today from both sides; as we see it and as God sees it. We shall also see that there is hope.
In these first 20 verses, lets see if we can identify with the sufferings of Jeremiah. I promise you, as bad as it looks, it will get better. We will end our time together on a good note! Trust me on this one.
Have you ever felt that God has turned His hand against you? Have you experienced His blessing at one time in your life and now you feel like He has completely reversed His attitudes and actions? That’s what we see in verses 1-3. God has completely turned His hand against Jeremiah. Instead of walking in the light, he is now walking in darkness. You know what I call that? A black hole. And if you are in a black hole, you might wish you were dead.
In John’s gospel He writes in chapter 1 how light overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. I remember as a boy, going to camp, visiting a cavern in Virginia. Have you ever been to a cavern before? I know they have them in the Philippines; do they have them in Thailand? At one point in the tour, the guide turns off the lights. It is completely dark. You cannot see your hand if you put it in front of your face. Complete blackness. Do you remember being scared of the dark when you were little? I was and my parents had a night light in the room. Then I wasn’t scared anymore. Why? Because light always overcomes darkness. It is never the other way around. Jeremiah is walking in darkness.
Next, he is suffering in both body and spirit. Look at verse 4-6. He feels like one who is dead. Pretty depressing, isn’t it? Shall I stop here? If I do, we won’t get to the good part.
Jeremiah’s health suffered; physically and spiritually. He was broken, both in body and in spirit. He suffered inwardly and outwardly.
Suffering is not a pretty thing to talk about. We would rather not have to face it, right? It is here, I must take issue with those who believe it is not God’s will for us to suffer. How I wish it were God’s will for us not to suffer. That is how the world was created. But Adam’s choice to disobey God affected the entire human race. We live in a fallen world. Don’t believe me? Read the newspaper today. Is it filled with good news? Just yesterday, when I woke up I read from one of my friends on Facebook who is a pastor, that he and several others were having a lockdown in their church and there was a gunman outside. He asked for prayer. Fortunately our prayers were answered as the Dallas Police finally caught the gunman. The pastor responded by asking us to pray for the gunman’s family. He was going to try to minister to them next week.
While we might experience suffering in our lifetime, there will come a time when we will no longer experience suffering. I might have shared this before, but when my mother was in the hospital, and we knew she would soon draw her last breath, my sisters asked about heaven. Have you ever heard of Gideons International? They give out free Bibles on university campuses, hospitals, prisons, hotels and to US military personnel. The Bibles are always free. There was one in our hospital room and I read from Revelation 21 and 22. We are told God will wipe away every tear; there will be no more crying, no more death, no more curse. This will happen. But not until we are with Jesus in the new heavens and earth.
Have you ever been in a situation where you can see no way out of? You pray and God doesn’t seem to answer? That’s what we see in verses 7-9. AITCF is a church of prayer. I appreciate how we spend time in prayer as a church. I appreciate getting the weekly prayer updates in my email. God always answers prayer, doesn’t He? In this case, He is not answering Jeremiah’s prayer. Have you ever tried talking to someone and they are not listening? It is like God is not listening. Jeremiah’s prayers are unheard and unanswered. I grew up before we had answering machines, voicemail and cell phones. And when I called someone and there was no answer it was frustrating. I would keep trying, but no answer. We sometimes feel God does that when we pray.
Jeremiah felt shut in. They don’t do this anymore, but before I was born, when prisoners were sent outside to work, a ball and chain was attached to their leg. The ball was very heavy, and it was very difficult if not impossible to go anywhere. Have you ever felt prisoned in? Maybe you are in a job you don’t like and you pray and try to find something else. Nothing else is opening and you feel chained in. Hopefully no one can say that about their marriage!
It’s like God refuses to acknowledge our prayers for help and all avenues of escape are blocked off. This is what the Babylonians did to Jerusalem; they walled it in and no one could escape.
It gets worse. In verses 10-13 Jeremiah feels like God has singled him out, like a lion or bear waiting for its prey. Have any of you been to Kenya or Tanzania, to the Serengeti? The wildebeests and zebras are plant eating animals and they need to go somewhere there is grass to graze on. So they have to migrate every year; millions of animals. Lions are meat eating animals, and guess where they get their meat? I have seen pictures and videos of this. The lions wait quietly waiting for unsuspecting wildebeests and zebras to come their way. Then when they are in range, they explode and usually capture several of them. You should watch them devour the animals. They are eating like it is their last meal.
I had a bad weekend sometime ago, where everything was going wrong. I lost my reading glasses, the air conditioning on my car was not working, my computer was not cooperating and I really felt like God had turned his hand against me. I was a target for the arrows of His wrath.
Let’s finish up on suffering before you kick me out of here and ask me not to come back. In verses 14-18 we see Jeremiah’s suffering described very vividly. People laugh at him, he is bitter, God has given him stones instead of bread, he is without happiness and there is no hope. We see wormwood and gall which are very bitter. Remember when Jesus was on the cross and He said, “I thirst?” A sponge of sour wine and gall was offered to Him, but He refused it. When I get really thirsty, there are two things I can think of; water or Coca Cola. Pepsi is ok too. Just drinking an ice cold drink really quenches my thirst.
I think Jeremiah is as low as he can go. Have you ever felt this way before? Can you identify with him? This is not a pleasant place to be, believe me. In verses 19,20 he asks God to remember what he is going through. It’s like God doesn’t care; He doesn’t even notice what we are going through. If you are suffering affliction like Jeremiah did, there is a message of hope. This is the good part. We have looked at how we see adversity, now let’s see how God sees it, and better what He does about it.
In verses 21-23 Jeremiah starts to remember something he knows about God. And this is where he begins to see light at the end of the tunnel.
We are reminded of something very important when we are in a hopeless situation. We may be down, but not out if we remember this.
Even though Israel had sinned, they were still God’s people. And while God disciplined them, it was for the purpose of restoring them to Him. If you have children and you discipline them it is always for the purpose of reminding them that certain behaviors have consequences, and it is always to restore them.
In verse 21 Jeremiah starts to have hope when He remembers what we will see in the next 2 verses. And when you are in a hopeless situation, remember these as well.
I’m going to have verse 22 in several translations. I’m also going to give you a Hebrew word. That Hebrew word is hesed. Let me give you a little lesson in how to pronounce hesed, ok? This word encompasses many things, but it refers to God’s loyal and steadfast love. God’s discipline on Israel was done in love. Love was always behind it. When you discipline your children, hopefully love is the guiding force behind it. I encourage you to always show your children that you do love them, and never to discipline them in anger. Your children do need to know you love them and you are looking out for their well being.
God’s hesed is a loyal and steadfast love for us, that no matter what we do, no matter what we are going through, is always there. It never runs dry. You might have a bank account with so much money in it. If you spend it all, it will run out. Or if you are driving somewhere, don’t forget to put gas in your tank. Why? Because you will run out of gas. Have you ever wanted to go back for seconds on food, only to find there is no more left? I always like pot luck dinners because I have noticed that there is always enough for everyone. Nobody leaves hungry! When I was at my church in Japan we often had church pot luck lunches. And we would play Rock, Paper and Scissors to see which side goes first. I was usually asked to be one of the two persons playing because I always won! For a while I always won. I remember one time, there were so many there we had to have 3 groups. And my group lost and had to go last! I still didn’t go to bed hungry!
God’s hesed never ceases. Why? Because His compassions never fail. Do you believe God is a compassionate God? We often answer that depending on our circumstances. But I am reminded we need to base it on what God’s word says, and not our emotions. Because our emotions do change. You might be feeling happy one day and sad the next. God is not like that. He is always compassionate. Stop and think about someone who has gone through a severe time of testing or is going through one. I remember a friend who worked as head custodian at my former church in Dallas. He was trimming bushes with an electric saw one day and he slipped and cut his left arm so badly, he almost lost it. He was rushed to the hospital, and the doctors were able to save his arm in a 9 hour operation. I was shocked when I heard about it. This was a man who loved God. I went to visit him in the hospital, and it was hard to understand why God allowed this to happen to him. I could not understand why him. Do you know what his response was? Why not me? He was grateful to God for His hesed and compassion. That’s what hesed and compassion do.
God promised His people that because of His hesed, He would restore them. Do you remember that famous passage in Jeremiah 29? He wants the people in captivity go live their lives as normal and pray for the welfare of the city they are in. Because He promised to fulfill His good purposes and bring them out of captivity. There is a message of hope even in the midst of our darkest hour. There was for Jeremiah. And there is for us.
Look at verse 23. Every morning God’s hesed and compassion are new. He is faithful. There is a well known hymn that comes from these verses. Can anyone tell me what it is?
Remind yourself of this when you wake up every morning. No matter how dark it may be God’s hesed and compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.
The reason Jeremiah’s hope was in God and ours too is because He is our portion. Look at verse 24. He compares portion to an allotment or piece of land given to us. God is our allotment. Are you content with Him? If so then you can be hopeful. If you are placing your hope in something other than God you will not be content, even if you have it. God needs to be your portion.
See, God was going to bring about restoration for His people and He wants to bring about restoration for you too, but we need to have the proper perspective.
We need to wait. In verses 25 and 26 is the promise that the Lord is good to those who wait for Him; who wait for His deliverance. Are you waiting for God to do something in your life? Are you waiting for Him to deliver you from a difficult or unpleasant situation? Do not try to push Him to do something. Wait in silence for Him. He is good to those who wait for Him. All through the Bible we are admonished to wait on the Lord. But He promises to reward us when we wait on Him.
In verses 27-30 let’s accept what God is doing. I will come to this more later, I remember when I was in the Navy, I had to go through Boot Camp as a new recruit. And for the next 3 months I would always have someone telling me where to go and what to do. And as long as I did that, I was fine. If I disobeyed an order, which I never did, I would be in trouble. We were told that if we ever receive punishment in the Navy, to take it like a man and learn from what we did. The officers who punished us are only doing their job which they would not have had to do if we had done our job. Think about what you did and what the consequences are. God’s hesed and compassion are still there. But sometimes we have to suffer for our disobedience. But there is hope in verses 31 and 32.
God’s rejection of His people is not forever. And if we are believers in Christ this applies to us as well. As a matter of fact, if you haven’t read this, read Romans 9-11. Paul talks about God’s plan for His people, Israel. God has not rejected His people, and there is a future day of restoration when Israel will turn to Jesus as their Messiah.
Grief is always followed by compassion. Think of it this way. Suffering is only for a time. It is never forever. Have you ever had an operation? The doctor goes in and does what he has to do, then he closes you back up. When he has fixed what needs to be fixed, he is done. Now I remember being scared of the doctor when I was little, and I’m sure most of us were because we were always afraid we would get a shot. But as I grew older, I learned that the doctor is my friend, and anything he does is done out of compassion, to help me. Same with God. His compassion is based on His hesed; His loyal steadfast love for us. Because God does not afflict us willingly. He does not do it to be mean to us. If we look at verses 33-36, God does not approve of injustice. If you think you are ever treated unjustly, just remember, in the end God will avenge all injustice. Don’t believe me? Read about the Great White Throne Judgment in Revelation 20. Believe me, this is not a place you want to be. Put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and you will not be present at this judgment. Because this is when all who have rejected God’s gift of eternal life through His Son, Jesus Christ will be cast into the Lake of Fire. Trust me, you do not want to be at this judgment.
Earlier, I shared that I cannot reconcile the fact that God is sovereign and yet we are responsible. But I do take comfort in that nothing happens that He does not allow to happen. If we go through adversity, it is because God has allowed it. But we also need to remember He is full of hesed and compassion. He is also a God of justice and love.
Now if you read verses 37 and 38 I know you will ask the question how can a God of love permit evil? As we see here, it is Israel’s disobedience that has resulted in her being exiled. But other than that, I don’t know why God allows both good and evil. I wish He allowed good only. But if we remember He is a compassionate God, we can accept good and evil.
Let’s close with this in verses 39 and 40. If you are going through adversity now, examine your ways. Is it something you did? As I shared earlier, if you are suffering because of sin, you really have nothing to complain about. And if you are suffering like Jeremiah did, also examine your ways. But either way, return to the Lord. He is full of abundant mercy and hesed. He is always willing to forgive you. In Luke 15 there are 3 parables that illustrate this; the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the Parable of the Lost Coin and probably, well known to all of us, the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Examine your ways and return to the Lord. He is always willing to receive anyone who strays from Him. I’ll close with the verse that Jeremiah reminds Judah in captivity.
Jeremiah 29:11 'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
Let’s pray.
