Getting to Know God – Jehovah Tsidkenu – The Lord our Righteousness, Jer 23:1-6
Let’s pause and pray . Lord, it is amazing that you are a such a holy God, who is interested in having a relationship with us. This is such a radical concept that you would seek us out and make a way for us to be right with you. Lord for what you have done through Christ, we thank you yet we ask that you help us to understand this concept a bit clearer today.
One of the finest steamers afloat on Lake Champlain in Vermont, USA was the steamer "Champlain.’’ Cheer after cheer went up when she slid from her moorings on the dry-dock into the waters of the lake. Her machinery was perfect, her crew well trained, and the passengers on her for her maiden voyage were enthusiastic. Then suddenly something seemed to be wrong with the steamer’s engine’s machinery and a stop was ordered so that the fault might be found and fixed. The captain ordered them to let down the anchor because there was a strong wind blowing and she was drifting rapidly towards the rocks. The captain shouted again, "Down with the anchor." and the sailors responded that the order had been previously obeyed. The anchor was down, but she continued to drift. At last, the fault in the engine was found and the engine started which prevented the new steamer ending up on the rocks. Then it was found that while the anchor had been cast out, the chain was three feet too short to touch the bottom of the lake. Yes they had an anchor that would do the job, but a miscalculation meant that it was useless. It fell short of what was required to anchor the boat securely.
This is exactly what it is like for people who claim to be righteous apart from Jesus’ death and resurrection. They think they have it all under control – They have their anchor, they have all they need to keep themselves safe from an eternity in hell. They do lots of good things, but they have miscalculated. The things which they are relying on to gain righteousness before God are not enough. They have fallen short and will end up on the rocks.
Okay, let’s just hold it there. Before I go any further, I need to define this term Righteousness because we’ll be using it a lot today. By righteousness, we mean living a holy and upright lifestyle. It comes from a word that means “straightness.” So it has connotations of a lifestyle that conforms with some authoritative and absolute standard – God’s moral standard. But it means so much more than obeying a moral code. It also has a legal and a relational meaning.In regards to relationships, righteous action is action that promotes the peace and well-being of the people in the relationship. When this relates to our relationship with God, we return to the concept of a holy and upright lifestyle. The only thing that can bring peace with God is to measure up to his standard. We need to be perfect in order to have a relationship with a perfect God. In regards to the legal meaning, a righteous decision requires that justice must be done. God must act righteously in his dealings with us whether this means he rewards us or punishes us and this is decided on the basis of our observance of his moral standards.
Back to those people who have a problem with their anchor. They seek to be righteous – to be in line with the standard which they believe will gain them eternal life. Sometimes this is God’s standard, sometimes it is a standard they have decided for themselves. They hope that they can please God by the things they do. And yes they do good things and these things please God, but it falls short of what is required to do the job. Just like the short anchor - it is not enough to become right with God and never can be. And as a result, God judges them.
There was a church which once ran a competition to find the most high-principled, sober, well-behaved local citizen.
Among the entries came one which read: “I don’t smoke. I don’t touch intoxicants. I don’t gamble. I am faithful to my wife and never ever look at another woman. I am hard-working, quiet and obedient. I never go to the movies or the theatre, and I go to bed early every night and rise with the dawn. I attend chapel regularly every Sunday without fail. I’ve been like this for the past three years. But just wait till they let me out of here!”
Righteousness as defined by a set of good actions can be quite misleading. We are not able to live up to God’s perfect standards, not one of us. And so in relation to our relationship with God, righteousness is this ever illusive almost mythical state of affairs. So what is the solution? How can we be found righteous? The prophet Jeremiah had the answer. He pointed the people to God. He recommended that they get to know God as Jehovah Tsidkenu, the Lord who is our righteousness.
If you’ve got your bibles, please open them up to Jer 23:1-6
Jeremiah lived during the destruction of Judah. Some of you may remember this diagram I showed at night a couple of weeks back. It the history of the Nation of Israel and Judah. You may remember that after the reign of Solomon, Israel split into a Northern kingdom (called Israel) and a Southern kingdom (called Judah). This diagram shows 3 lines indicating what was happening in the Empires to the North of Israel (Assyria, Babylon and Persia), in Israel (the northern kingdom) and Judah (the southern kingdoem. Each kingdom had their own kings – shown by the crowns – I haven’t labeled them for clarity. I’ve also shown each of the prophets and where they were preaching. Amos and Hosea were proclaiming in Israel prior to their capture. Ezekiel and Daniel, were prophesying from Babylon and the rest were in the Southern Kingdom of Judah.
The prophets’ period of ministry is shown by the arrows. Jeremiah who we are looking at today was prophesying in the Southern kingdom when the Babylonians were carrying the people of Judah off into captivity in three campaigns. First in 607BC when Daniel and his friends were taken. Next in 597BC when King Jehoiachin rebelled against the oppression of Babylonians and was himself carted off into slavery and finally in 587BC when Jerusalem was finally destroyed.
Jeremiah lived during this turbulent period and was constantly calling the kings of Judah and the people in general to repent and live righteous lives.
Let’s read some of Jer 23:1-4 … This is written between the second and third invasions. Somewhere between 597 and 587BC.
According to Jeremiah, the designated shepherds of the flock were not being very shepherdly. A Good shepherd takes care of their flock. They provide for them, they protect them, they lead the helpless sheep. They were authority figures who were supposed to lead the sheep in the right paths. They couldn’t make the people righteous, I know, but they could point the way to God and therefore encourage and uphold righteousness as a thing to be sought. But here, Jeremiah was condemning King Zedekiah and his advisors for not being good shepherds. They were entrusted with God’s flock and they were not living up to their charge. Instead of protecting the people and encouraging them to live in righteous obedience to God’s laws, they were leading the people astray. They were not just leading them astray, though, they were destroying them and scattering them. Imagine that, a shepherd destroying and scattering the flock. The complete opposite of what a shepherd was meant to do.
You see not all the kings of Judah were good. Many were down right awful and led the people into sin and idolatry. Here is a bit of schematic of the roller coaster that the nation of Judah found themselves in. It shows the different kings from Saul to the last king, Zedekiah. And it shows how they rated on the scale of righteousness. You can see there were some good kings, but also some evil kings. The last 3 kings, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin and Zedekiah were evil kings. This passage is written during Zedekiah’s reign and the sad thing was that Zedekiah’s name meant Yahweh is (my) righteousness, but he was not pointing the way to God. He was leading the people into sin and away from the righteousness that is found in God. We read in 2 Chron 36:12 … He did evil in the eyes of the LORD his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the LORD. … He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the LORD, the God of Israel. Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices of the nations and defiling the temple of the LORD, which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
What an amazing responsibility being a shepherd is. We are probably not like the kings of Judah, shepherding the whole nation of Judah, but as I look out among you, I see many shepherds sitting in the pews out there. Some are school teachers, directing young lives in the way they should live. Some of you are brigade leaders or KOGS leaders or Children’s church leaders, teaching children about Jesus and his righteousness. Some of you are leaders of homegroups, of Squeals on Wheels or craft group and point people towards Jesus and his saving grace. And many of you are parents, shepherding your children.
Many of you are shepherds – Probably most of you actually. And I want you to think about how God would describe your shepherding work. Would you be condemned with Zedekiah, or would you be commended for your work tending the flock he has entrusted you with. To be commended, we need to be caring for our flock and showing them how to be right with God.
Do you see the deep significance of Jeremiah’s description here of the shepherd. The sheep are scattered. They have been driven away. There is only a remnant left. Remember that Jeremiah is speaking between the second and third invasions of the Babylonians. A remnant remained, but for all others, there was this promise - that God would raise up new shepherds to care for them. He would replace the failed shepherds with new shepherds, ones who would lead them in the paths of Righteousness.
But that was just the beginning of it. Lets keep reading Jer 23:5-6. There would come a time when God would raise up the ultimate king who would be the ultimate shepherd. A King that will not just point the way to righteous living, but will be able to make us righteous. Who is this King? Have we got any clues?
Jeremiah gives us a few clues …
1) He is a direct descendant of David.
2) He will be a King.
3) He will act justly and rightly
4) He will save Judah
5) He will be called the Lord our Righteousness.
Any ideas who it is? It is a picture of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let me show you …
1) Christ was a direct descendent of David (Matt 1:1-16)
2)Christ was a king. Even Pilate recognised it (Matt 27:37, Rev 17:14 - They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.)
3)Christ regularly condemned the religious leaders of the day because of their lack of justice. (Matt 23:23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former”.)
4)Jesus himself declared that salvation was his mission (Luke 19:9 Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.)
5)Jesus is the source of righteousness … (Rom 3:21 But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. )
The perfect shepherd, Jesus Christ goes by the name of the LORD our righteousness. Isn’t this an amazing name. Hear it. The LORD our righteousness. It’s a name you need to get to know.
Here is a prophecy of the Messiah. AND he is given the same name as God. The word LORD used in this title is the name Yahweh, God’s covenant name. But here it is applied to Christ. It is equivalent to saying that Christ is God. What an important passage for Jews and Muslims to understand.
Not just that, but this LORD is OUR righteousness. This is the crux of the matter. Jesus wasn’t a righteous shepherd and king just to show us up as the unrighteous sinners that we are. Jesus is OUR righteousness. We don’t have to achieve perfection in our lives. We don’t have to strive to keep a series of laws, because our righteousness doesn’t depend on us. Our Righteousness comes from this righteous Branch from David’s line. It is like a rider in an equestrian event. They need to live on a strict diet and train hard, but in the heat of competition, it is the power of the horse (not the rider) that carries him to victory. We need to live holy lives, but it is through God’s righteousness that we are found acceptable to God.
Think of it this way, if God says, "Did you keep the first commandment? Did you give me the glory only in your life? Did you love me with your heart and soul and mind?" You can say, "No, Lord, I didn’t. I must confess my sins. I cannot hide them from you. But Jesus did. He always honored you. Even when he was dying on the cross and you had to forsake him and punish him, he still honored you. Right? Lord, it says right here that Jesus did that for me. He is the LORD our righteousness. So if you asked if I kept the first commandment, I would have to say, "yes." Jesus kept it for me!"
It has been said that
If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator;
If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist;
If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist;
If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer;
But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.
God sent his Son, the Lord Our Righteousness, to be our Savior so that we could be right with Him. We have a God who demands righteousness from us, but at the same time, our Lord is our righteousness. Justice and grace wrapped up in one. Get to know this God – the Lord our Righteousness – it will be everything you hoped for and more.
