THE CRY OF MY PEOPLE
Text: Jeremiah 8:18 thru 22
This past week I was handed a brochure that was produced by an Assembly of God church down in Winter Park, FL.
The church was celebrating their 50th Anniversary & had published a brochure entitled, “Fifty Years of Changed Lives”. The reason why I was interested in this brochure is because this was the church where I had given my heart to the Lord 36 years ago. My wife met and married there.
There were pictures and stories of how this wonderful church was founded and blessed over these many years.
Perhaps (at first) I was sentimental with the wonderful memories of days gone by.
I was blessed by their growth and success in ministering there in Central Florida.
In 1968 I gave my heart to Jesus Christ. That was during the days that were called the “Charismatic Renewal Days.”
Great memories.
Looking at this brochure, my heart began to sink thinking about how (at the time)
I was convinced
· Our nation was truly experiencing (what many have called) the Last Great Revival/Outpouring.
· People were giving their hearts to Christ everywhere and there would soon be an end to sin and disbelief.
· At the rate of this revival, our nation would once again become the God fearing nation it once was.
· The devastations of drugs, alcohol, racism, etc., would soon vanish.
Unfortunately, the world is still lost and living in the darkness of sin and disbelief.
As I remember those days, I must admit I feel (in my heart) much the same way the Prophet Jeremiah did.
“I would comfort myself in sorrow;
My heart is faint in me.” (vs. 18)
This morning, I have a great sorrow for my friends and family members who still are not saved. The years are slipping away.
Jeremiah spoke of the nation of Israel and went on to say in vs. 20,
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
For those of us who have loved and served God for a long period of time, we want to know why it is that many friends and relatives are still not saved. A word of caution to us all. Time is running out!
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
Do you sense what Jeremiah did? Is your heart broken for those who are still lost?
The saints of God should never become so sentimental over the past that we forget how to grieve for lost souls.
It is often hard for us to express how much it hurts that souls are dieing and are being sent to an everlasting judgment.
Do you grieve for the lost souls?
Or have many of us become disconnected from the desperation of the sin and wickedness in this world?
Jeremiah is known to Bible Scholars as the “weeping prophet”. He described the heaviness of his heart in chapter 9:1
Oh, that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
Strong words from a very broken man.
Consider this. If there were anyone who should not weep over sin, it would surely be the consecrated prophets of God. Jeremiah was the messenger (sent from God), not the sinner when he said.
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
If you are saved and sanctified by the blood of the Lamb, you may not feel that you need to weep because of sin.
Nevertheless the more we know God, the more we should lament and weep for the spiritual well being of others. Amen?
Some saints will mourn over the sins of a nation, while others (who call themselves righteous) will only complain of how bad things have become.
There is something I have noticed over the years. The righteous men and women of God will often feel more concern for the souls of their loved ones than their loved ones will feel for themselves.
Illustration:
When I consider the fate of sinners without Christ, I have this picture of a convicted felon who waits for his verdict from the judge. His loved ones are gathered there in the courtroom (that day) weeping for his fate of judgment. The convicted felon only laughs.
My friend – this world has become painfully indifferent to the thought of the wrath and fury of God.
The world will often mock and laugh at the reality of God’s judgment.
Regardless of the countless warnings, the convicted sinner will often stand and laugh at the fate of their judgment.
This makes me weep as Jeremiah did.
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
These truly are the most terrifying words a person can ever say of themselves.
This morning - If you are not saved,
Ø You will not see the glorious heaven.
Ø You will be judged to spend an eternity in a devil’s hell.
Ø You will be cast into outer darkness, where there shall be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Ø You must listen to these words,
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
We may have sat under a whole host of preachers, Sunday School teachers and evangelists, and still not be saved.
That is because the message will not save us. Only the Savior, Jesus Christ, will.
We may be like the woman with the issue of blood who (before going to Jesus) went to every doctor and spent every dime she had, but still was not saved from her infirmity. Try as hard as she did, she still was not healed. She only got worse.
We may have been born into a godly family who has brought us to the House of God time and time again.
We know those wonderful saints of God have been saved from their sins.
But your family’s convictions and commitment to Christ will not save you.
We may have attended church all our lives & done all that was expected of us. But unless you have been washed in the Blood of the Lamb, you are not saved!
My friend, the years are slipping away.
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
There are other reasons why some are not saved but don’t know it. Verse 19 -
“Why have they provoked Me to anger
With their carved images—
With foreign idols?”
If you are living a life of sin and rebellion, then you must also reckon yourself to what Jeremiah has said:
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
What am I trying to say? There are some who have provoked and angered God with their disobedience and rebellion.
God will not tolerate this lifestyle.
I have met those who claim salvation and yet live a life of permissiveness and drunkenness. They speak lies & discord, they murmur & gossip, they disrupt, they will even curse God. To you I say -
God will not allow this kind of rebellion & disobedience into His holy heaven.
There are some churchgoers who are more cautious about how they live. They hide their sin well. But their sins are not hidden from God. They are lovers of this world and lovers of their own sins.
Unless they repent, they will one day say:
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
God save us from our own iniquity!
Jesus did not come to this world to pacify the heart of the wicked. He came only to heal and to save that which was lost.
Listen. God is gracious to the humble and even to those who are foolish or ignorant to His Holy Word. But He is not tolerant of those who live in rebellion.
I am convinced there are some who do not understand what salvation is.
Isn’t salvation more than just a ticket to get out of hell? Salvation means many things, but surely it also means we are delivered from our love for sin and evil.
A sinner saved by grace knows that –
Ø He/she is saved from the pit of Hell.
Ø He/she has also been purified from living with evil in their lives.
Allow me (for a moment) to go back to the illustration I used earlier:
As you might imagine, the convicted felon who is sentenced to death does not want to be sentenced to death. This hardened criminal will (no doubt) regret having to face the penalty of death. But he will seldom regret the crime of his sins.
That unforgiven felon will have to say,
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
On the other hand - A forgiven sinner will be thankful he/she has been excused from being judged for their sins.
The forgiven sinner knows without any doubt they are saved from judgment.
Consider this:
Jeremiah went on to say in verse 22,
Is there no balm in Gilead,
The “balm in Gilead” Jeremiah was referring to was an ointment used (at that time) for healing all kinds of wounds.
What Jeremiah is asking is,
“Is there Anyone who can save us?”
The answer is Yes! His name is Jesus.
He will save and deliverer us of our sins.
God’s salvation -
1. Causes us to know what true forgiveness is.
2. Makes us aware of what holiness is
3. Keeps us from wanting to live in sin
4. Creates a desire to study and know God’s Holy Word.
After God saves us, studying His Word will become a staple to our lives. We will naturally desire to become a devout and consecrated child of the King.
If we are ever to become the man/woman that God wants us to be, we must study, pray and practice what we know to be true.
I wonder how many of us have become diligent to the study of God’s Word?
There are those who once committed their lives to Christ but no longer are serve God. Are they still saved?
We should –
· Grieve for these lost souls.
· Pray & believe for God to save them.
Close:
(Only Pat and Beverly come forward.)
Prayer:
Many good people are no longer saved because they never were attracted to or were fed the Word of God.
Jesus said that He is “the Bread of Life”.
There are some folks who were never fed the “Bread of Life”. At one time (in their lives) they wanted to be saved from the judgment of an eternal fire.
But after many years have gone by, they have to admit to themselves,
“The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”
I have to ask everyone here this question: Is this message for you?
Do you remember a time in your life when you loved God more than anything or anyone else?
Perhaps you have asked yourself,
“How did it ever come to this? Things are not good. I have some real problems. How did this ever happen to me?
I used to love my life.
I used to love being in church and spending time with other Christians.”
Has your life passed you by? Have you seen many harvest times come and go? But now the summer is ended and you are not sure you are saved.
My friend your decision to live for God is the most important decision you will ever make. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Surrender your life completely to Christ this morning.
