WEBVTT 00:00:00.760 --> 00:00:05.759 In November, we're going to be looking at different spots in our Bibles, five sermons 00:00:05.759 --> 00:00:11.120 on hardship, holiness, and our loving Heavenly Father. 00:00:11.259 --> 00:00:15.439 And this morning, we're going to start in Lamentations, Lamentations 3. 00:00:16.379 --> 00:00:22.100 If you're pulling out a pew Bible right now, the Dark Bible, this is going to be on page 00:00:22.100 --> 00:00:27.519 1,278, and that Light Bible, page 582. 00:00:27.519 --> 00:00:29.899 So, Lamentations 3. 00:00:35.359 --> 00:00:44.120 When we encounter hardship, we must call to mind our God. 00:00:45.500 --> 00:00:53.480 When we are faced with hardship, we must call to mind who our God is and His posture towards 00:00:53.480 --> 00:00:54.659 us in Christ. 00:00:57.520 --> 00:01:03.820 Jerusalem was the city of David, the capital of Judah. 00:01:04.359 --> 00:01:12.000 It was the center of commerce for Israel, the center of society, social things, political 00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:15.740 things, and of course, religion. 00:01:15.739 --> 00:01:22.699 Jerusalem was the location where and which the temple of God was. 00:01:22.879 --> 00:01:29.359 And it was believed that God Himself dwelt with His people in a unique way in His temple 00:01:29.359 --> 00:01:30.560 in Jerusalem. 00:01:30.560 --> 00:01:31.560 Jerusalem. 00:01:31.560 --> 00:01:40.000 Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar. 00:01:42.219 --> 00:01:48.200 Jerusalem fell after a siege of about a year and a half. 00:01:49.340 --> 00:01:54.240 And in that year and a half, the inhabitants of Jerusalem suffered affliction after affliction. 00:01:54.239 --> 00:01:54.319 Jerusalem. 00:01:55.519 --> 00:01:59.019 Forced to go to extreme measures just to stay alive. 00:01:59.140 --> 00:02:04.079 And by the end of the besiegement, mothers had resorted to the unthinkable. 00:02:06.419 --> 00:02:13.459 In Lamentations 4.10, we read that some mothers were boiling their own children for food. 00:02:13.460 --> 00:02:15.820 It was horrific. 00:02:17.900 --> 00:02:20.420 It was devastating. 00:02:21.080 --> 00:02:23.240 It was an extreme hardship. 00:02:25.420 --> 00:02:33.020 And as a result of the fall of Jerusalem, the book of Lamentations was written. 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:40.319 The book of Lamentations is an eyewitness account of what took place in Jerusalem. 00:02:40.319 --> 00:02:44.840 Someone who saw firsthand the destruction of Jerusalem. 00:02:45.799 --> 00:02:48.939 He lived through the affliction and extreme hardship. 00:02:50.099 --> 00:02:52.799 His name is Jeremiah, the prophet. 00:02:54.299 --> 00:02:58.359 And the book of Lamentations consists of five laments. 00:03:00.299 --> 00:03:05.500 A lament is an emotional outpouring of one's heart to God. 00:03:06.579 --> 00:03:08.280 Sometimes they're very raw. 00:03:08.280 --> 00:03:12.640 They're in response to traumatic experiences. 00:03:14.520 --> 00:03:18.240 Biblical laments are emotional grievings to God. 00:03:19.939 --> 00:03:21.920 We see them throughout the Scriptures. 00:03:22.800 --> 00:03:23.819 Psalms in particular. 00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:26.560 Laments are messy. 00:03:26.759 --> 00:03:30.020 They cry out to God in the midst of pain, turmoil, and confusion. 00:03:30.300 --> 00:03:34.319 They are cries of help to God to make sense of things. 00:03:34.319 --> 00:03:39.759 They're also very instructive. 00:03:43.699 --> 00:03:49.560 This morning we're going to focus on the lament found in the middle of Lamentations. 00:03:49.879 --> 00:03:50.759 Lamentations 3. 00:03:52.060 --> 00:03:53.299 There are five laments. 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:55.459 Each chapter in Lamentations is a lament. 00:03:55.460 --> 00:04:01.760 And Lamentations 3 is at the center of Lamentations for a reason. 00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:04.840 It was very purposefully placed there. 00:04:05.420 --> 00:04:09.439 If you just look over Lamentations, you'll see that Lamentations 1 is 22 verses. 00:04:09.640 --> 00:04:11.080 Lamentations 2 is 22 verses. 00:04:11.240 --> 00:04:12.819 Lamentations 4 is 22 verses. 00:04:13.240 --> 00:04:14.780 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:15.159 --> 00:04:17.220 Lamentations 3 is 66 verses. 00:04:17.220 --> 00:04:47.200 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:47.199 --> 00:04:48.199 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:48.199 --> 00:04:50.199 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:50.199 --> 00:04:50.680 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:50.680 --> 00:04:51.199 Lamentations 5 is 22 verses. 00:04:51.199 --> 00:04:51.759 Lamentations 5 is 23 verses. 00:04:51.759 --> 00:04:52.899 Something happens there. 00:04:53.939 --> 00:04:56.699 Incredibly instructive for us when we face hardship. 00:04:59.959 --> 00:05:01.240 It gives hope. 00:05:03.339 --> 00:05:08.500 This morning what I want you to see from Lamentations 3 is this. 00:05:08.599 --> 00:05:15.199 When we encounter hardship, we must call to mind our great God. 00:05:15.199 --> 00:05:19.819 Our great covenant making God. 00:05:21.659 --> 00:05:28.019 When we call Him to mind, hope is soon to follow. 00:05:29.480 --> 00:05:33.180 And what we're going to see in Lamentations 3 is this played out in four moves. 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:35.180 We're going to see a hope lost. 00:05:35.180 --> 00:05:36.000 Hope lost. 00:05:36.000 --> 00:05:39.019 And then hope remembered. 00:05:40.019 --> 00:05:42.180 And then hope rekindled. 00:05:43.060 --> 00:05:45.100 And then hope restored. 00:05:46.360 --> 00:05:53.600 Jeremiah in these 66 verses moves from a hope lost to a hope restored. 00:05:53.600 --> 00:06:00.560 When we encounter hardship, we must call to mind our God and help. 00:06:01.260 --> 00:06:03.480 Hope is soon to follow. 00:06:03.600 --> 00:06:05.320 So let's look at this first point. 00:06:05.400 --> 00:06:06.040 Point one. 00:06:06.520 --> 00:06:07.600 Hope lost. 00:06:07.720 --> 00:06:10.840 Would you look at Lamentations 3 starting in verse 1? 00:06:10.839 --> 00:06:14.639 And I'm going to skim this and help you to see something. 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:21.759 Jeremiah says, I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God's wrath. 00:06:21.959 --> 00:06:25.060 God, He has driven and brought me into darkness without any light. 00:06:25.479 --> 00:06:28.859 Verse 4, He, God, has made my flesh and my skin waste away. 00:06:29.159 --> 00:06:31.259 He, God, has broken my bones. 00:06:31.259 --> 00:06:34.399 Five, He, God, has besieged and enveloped me. 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:38.599 Six, He, God, has made me dwell in darkness like the dead of long ago. 00:06:39.000 --> 00:06:41.719 Seven, He has walled me about so that I cannot escape. 00:06:42.019 --> 00:06:43.240 He has made my chains heavy. 00:06:43.360 --> 00:06:46.219 Verse 9, He has blocked my ways with blocks of stone. 00:06:46.599 --> 00:06:48.560 He's made my paths crooked. 00:06:49.079 --> 00:06:54.300 Ten, He is a bear lying in wait for me, a lion in hiding. 00:06:54.420 --> 00:06:56.899 He turned aside my steps and tore me to pieces. 00:06:57.379 --> 00:06:58.579 He's made me desolate. 00:06:58.579 --> 00:07:01.419 He bent His bow and set me as a target for His arrow. 00:07:01.519 --> 00:07:03.879 He drove into my kidneys the arrows of His quiver. 00:07:04.319 --> 00:07:07.479 Fifteen, He's filled me with bitterness and He sated me with wormwood. 00:07:07.620 --> 00:07:12.779 Sixteen, He's made my teeth grind on gravel and made me cower in the ashes. 00:07:12.979 --> 00:07:14.240 What's going on, Jeremiah? 00:07:17.560 --> 00:07:18.979 Remember, we're reading a lament. 00:07:22.279 --> 00:07:27.259 He's in pain because the harshness of the affliction He's experiencing. 00:07:28.579 --> 00:07:32.019 This is a very honest crying out to God. 00:07:32.159 --> 00:07:38.399 And He's focused at this moment on the pain and the difficulty of the judgment that God has brought on Jerusalem. 00:07:38.959 --> 00:07:39.759 And God brought it. 00:07:40.500 --> 00:07:46.579 We learn from Deuteronomy 27 and 28, a great passage on blessing and curses for God's people. 00:07:46.579 --> 00:07:51.620 If God's people would just obey God's voice, God would bless them and live long in the land. 00:07:51.959 --> 00:07:58.620 But if God's people would persist in not hearing and obeying God's voice, God would curse them. 00:07:59.319 --> 00:08:02.219 And He would send them to the nations. 00:08:04.299 --> 00:08:06.159 That's what we see happening here. 00:08:07.639 --> 00:08:12.180 God's curse befalling His people because they would not obey Him. 00:08:12.180 --> 00:08:17.060 Right now, Jeremiah sees God as an enemy. 00:08:17.439 --> 00:08:21.660 But what we're going to see is that this is a severe mercy. 00:08:23.240 --> 00:08:26.259 God wants His people to return to Him. 00:08:26.780 --> 00:08:28.800 He wants to restore them. 00:08:31.000 --> 00:08:36.340 So in this section, Jeremiah is overwhelmed by the harshness and difficulty of his circumstances. 00:08:36.340 --> 00:08:39.680 He knows that God has brought the calamity. 00:08:41.720 --> 00:08:43.759 And right now, he just sees judgment. 00:08:43.920 --> 00:08:45.259 He does not see God's goodness. 00:08:47.019 --> 00:08:47.940 He's no hope. 00:08:49.680 --> 00:08:52.060 He's more aware of the harshness than the hope. 00:08:54.280 --> 00:08:55.820 This feels like God is His enemy. 00:08:56.300 --> 00:09:00.080 And then verses 17 and 18, it's like the summary of where he's at. 00:09:02.340 --> 00:09:02.920 He says, 00:09:02.919 --> 00:09:04.379 My soul is bereft of peace. 00:09:04.439 --> 00:09:05.899 I have forgotten what happiness is. 00:09:05.959 --> 00:09:06.559 So I say, 00:09:06.959 --> 00:09:08.219 My endurance has perished. 00:09:08.299 --> 00:09:09.679 So my hope from the Lord. 00:09:10.019 --> 00:09:11.399 Maybe you can relate with this. 00:09:11.839 --> 00:09:12.559 Here's what he's saying. 00:09:12.659 --> 00:09:13.639 I've got no peace. 00:09:13.839 --> 00:09:15.019 I've got no happiness. 00:09:15.360 --> 00:09:16.479 I have no more strength. 00:09:16.599 --> 00:09:17.699 I've got no more hope. 00:09:18.939 --> 00:09:19.659 No peace. 00:09:20.219 --> 00:09:21.699 You know how we experience that? 00:09:23.120 --> 00:09:25.919 You know when you don't want to go to bed at night because you don't want to go to sleep? 00:09:26.179 --> 00:09:29.000 Because if you go to sleep, you're just going to lie in bed thinking about hard stuff. 00:09:29.000 --> 00:09:36.620 And so you stay up and you kind of turn on replay after replay of dual survivor or man versus wild. 00:09:36.899 --> 00:09:38.539 And you're just kind of putting off the inevitable. 00:09:39.559 --> 00:09:40.840 You don't have any peace. 00:09:43.240 --> 00:09:44.419 No happiness. 00:09:45.019 --> 00:09:47.480 Literally, the Hebrew is no good. 00:09:47.480 --> 00:09:55.279 When you think about good times, they're in the past. 00:09:56.220 --> 00:09:59.259 Find yourself saying, I forgot what happiness is. 00:10:02.460 --> 00:10:03.740 No more strength. 00:10:06.180 --> 00:10:09.920 I'm not sure if Jeremiah, when he wrote this, was sleep deprived and anxious. 00:10:10.420 --> 00:10:13.379 But we all know what it means to be sleep deprived and anxious. 00:10:13.379 --> 00:10:18.439 It eats at your strength. 00:10:20.720 --> 00:10:24.779 And then he says, his hope has perished. 00:10:24.860 --> 00:10:29.299 He's no hope, no confidence of a good outcome. 00:10:30.240 --> 00:10:31.980 He's ready to throw in the towel. 00:10:32.840 --> 00:10:34.939 He doesn't see how God's going to work here. 00:10:35.179 --> 00:10:39.379 He's just more aware of these harsh circumstances than his holy God. 00:10:43.379 --> 00:10:44.879 Can anybody relate with Jeremiah? 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:51.519 Can anybody identify with his state of soul? 00:10:52.939 --> 00:10:54.000 His state of mind? 00:10:59.159 --> 00:11:01.740 When things get hard in your life, where do you turn? 00:11:03.679 --> 00:11:04.840 Where do you look for comfort? 00:11:08.240 --> 00:11:09.279 Where do you look for hope? 00:11:09.279 --> 00:11:18.740 When we encounter hardship, we must call to mind our God. 00:11:18.819 --> 00:11:20.379 We've looked at a hope lost. 00:11:21.799 --> 00:11:23.279 Now let's look at hope remembered. 00:11:27.779 --> 00:11:31.100 Aren't you glad that Lamentations 3 doesn't end in verse 18? 00:11:33.220 --> 00:11:34.199 I'm so glad. 00:11:34.200 --> 00:11:40.379 In verse 19, he starts talking about, he starts using remember language. 00:11:41.020 --> 00:11:42.040 Remember my affliction. 00:11:43.160 --> 00:11:50.140 In verse 20, he says that my soul continually remembers it, my affliction, the hardship. 00:11:52.840 --> 00:11:58.420 Seems as though that this hardship and misery that Jeremiah is experiencing is all that he's thinking about. 00:11:58.420 --> 00:12:03.379 It seems as though he's meditating on the mess and he's miserable. 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:06.200 No peace. 00:12:06.420 --> 00:12:07.100 No happiness. 00:12:07.440 --> 00:12:08.200 No strength. 00:12:08.440 --> 00:12:09.200 No hope. 00:12:09.980 --> 00:12:12.820 The darkness of despair has set in. 00:12:14.660 --> 00:12:19.500 But in verse 21, something happens and it's like it comes out of nowhere. 00:12:21.560 --> 00:12:23.379 Verse 21, we read this. 00:12:23.379 --> 00:12:42.120 Verse 21 is where this lament turns in its focus. 00:12:42.120 --> 00:12:49.700 It turns in its focus from circumstance and hard ones at that and turns to God. 00:12:50.700 --> 00:12:53.100 A crying out to God. 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:55.620 A remembering of God. 00:12:55.720 --> 00:12:56.799 Of God's character. 00:12:57.440 --> 00:12:59.159 And hope soon follows. 00:12:59.259 --> 00:13:00.259 We'll see it played out. 00:13:02.259 --> 00:13:05.580 But this I call to mind and therefore I have hope. 00:13:05.580 --> 00:13:12.940 Jeremiah is taking a faith-filled stand against an awful monster called despair. 00:13:15.440 --> 00:13:17.860 Do you guys remember Fellowship of the Rings? 00:13:18.860 --> 00:13:22.060 Early on, it's like ancient now. 00:13:24.240 --> 00:13:30.520 Gandalf and the Fellowship, they're running through the dark mines of Moria. 00:13:30.519 --> 00:13:40.519 They're being pursued by a growing horde of goblins and this particularly nasty thing called a balrok. 00:13:42.379 --> 00:13:43.980 I just like saying balrok. 00:13:46.480 --> 00:13:49.480 This balrok is like the embodiment of despair. 00:13:49.939 --> 00:13:50.759 It's imposing. 00:13:51.439 --> 00:13:52.579 It's horned. 00:13:52.659 --> 00:13:53.759 It breathes fire. 00:13:54.019 --> 00:13:55.220 It's bent on destruction. 00:13:56.379 --> 00:13:57.559 And lives in darkness. 00:13:57.559 --> 00:14:03.479 Well, Gandalf and the Fellowship reach a narrow bridge. 00:14:03.579 --> 00:14:05.239 The Fellowship moves ahead of him. 00:14:05.419 --> 00:14:06.279 Gandalf follows. 00:14:06.479 --> 00:14:08.479 He turns around and faces the balrok. 00:14:09.919 --> 00:14:11.000 Remember what he does? 00:14:12.099 --> 00:14:13.919 Throws down his staff and says, 00:14:14.399 --> 00:14:16.139 You shall not pass! 00:14:19.079 --> 00:14:21.839 Lamentations 3.21 is Jeremiah saying, 00:14:22.599 --> 00:14:23.639 You shall not pass. 00:14:23.639 --> 00:14:28.699 Jeremiah turned to face despair. 00:14:29.980 --> 00:14:34.319 No peace, no happiness, no strength, no hope, no more. 00:14:35.639 --> 00:14:37.899 You shall not pass. 00:14:38.480 --> 00:14:40.120 But this I call to mind. 00:14:40.299 --> 00:14:43.120 And therefore, I'm not going to spare. 00:14:43.419 --> 00:14:44.819 I'm going to have hope. 00:14:44.820 --> 00:14:54.000 But this I call to mind. 00:14:54.120 --> 00:14:58.400 Whatever this is, hope is soon to follow. 00:14:59.040 --> 00:15:00.640 And so we need to ask the question, 00:15:00.860 --> 00:15:02.340 What is this? 00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:09.740 What does Jeremiah call to mind that gives him hope in the midst of such devastating hardship? 00:15:10.040 --> 00:15:11.860 What creates hope in a Christian? 00:15:11.860 --> 00:15:14.919 What gives us strength to move on? 00:15:15.740 --> 00:15:16.399 What is it? 00:15:18.000 --> 00:15:19.500 Well, in this passage, it's very clear. 00:15:20.360 --> 00:15:21.620 It's who God is. 00:15:22.779 --> 00:15:25.120 And his posture towards us. 00:15:28.379 --> 00:15:30.060 If you look at verses 22. 00:15:30.519 --> 00:15:31.180 21 says, 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:33.100 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope. 00:15:33.759 --> 00:15:36.120 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. 00:15:37.279 --> 00:15:38.899 His mercies never come to an end. 00:15:38.980 --> 00:15:39.940 They are new every morning. 00:15:39.940 --> 00:15:41.980 Great is your faithfulness. 00:15:43.820 --> 00:15:48.520 Who is this God that Jeremiah calls to mind? 00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:50.040 It's his covenant making God. 00:15:50.540 --> 00:15:52.240 A God of steadfast love. 00:15:52.900 --> 00:15:54.360 Steadfast love of the Lord. 00:15:54.440 --> 00:15:55.580 The great I am. 00:15:56.140 --> 00:16:02.420 And the steadfast love is a deep, rich loyalty towards Jeremiah. 00:16:03.380 --> 00:16:04.920 Deep and rich. 00:16:04.919 --> 00:16:14.019 This steadfast love of the Lord is a love that seeks to do good for those he loves. 00:16:14.019 --> 00:16:14.139 He loves. 00:16:19.519 --> 00:16:22.319 Mercies or compassions in the NIV. 00:16:24.319 --> 00:16:27.639 Mercies never, never ceasing. 00:16:27.639 --> 00:16:31.799 Never come to an end. 00:16:32.259 --> 00:16:33.419 New every morning. 00:16:35.360 --> 00:16:39.980 The mercies that Jeremiah has in mind here is not just judgment and then you're done. 00:16:40.819 --> 00:16:46.919 The mercies that Jeremiah has in mind here is judgment, yes, but restoration after. 00:16:48.159 --> 00:16:49.279 God is merciful. 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:54.039 He doesn't leave us there. 00:16:57.000 --> 00:17:00.659 Then he says, great is your faithfulness. 00:17:00.879 --> 00:17:04.839 Do you remember all the he's at the beginning of Lamentations 3? 00:17:05.160 --> 00:17:05.740 He did this. 00:17:05.799 --> 00:17:06.220 He did this. 00:17:06.279 --> 00:17:06.720 He did this. 00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:07.220 He did this. 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:10.660 And now he's saying, great is your faithfulness. 00:17:11.000 --> 00:17:11.899 He's gone worship. 00:17:11.900 --> 00:17:15.240 He's gone exaltation. 00:17:16.360 --> 00:17:22.480 He's called to mind his God and he is thinking about the great faithfulness of his God. 00:17:22.580 --> 00:17:23.720 That God is reliable. 00:17:24.220 --> 00:17:25.220 That God is trustworthy. 00:17:25.820 --> 00:17:26.840 That God is steady. 00:17:27.040 --> 00:17:28.700 That God is the rock. 00:17:34.540 --> 00:17:37.960 And then he says, the Lord is my portion. 00:17:37.960 --> 00:17:42.940 And then, Billy touched on this last week. 00:17:43.480 --> 00:17:45.039 The Lord is our inheritance. 00:17:46.360 --> 00:17:48.940 He's bound himself to us. 00:17:49.980 --> 00:17:52.700 That's what Jeremiah is calling to mind right now. 00:17:53.759 --> 00:17:55.720 Do you know what all these characters have in common? 00:17:56.200 --> 00:17:59.180 Steadfast love, mercy, faithfulness. 00:17:59.799 --> 00:18:06.000 These are attributes of God that have to deal, that get highlighted when he makes a covenant 00:18:06.000 --> 00:18:07.440 with his people. 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:10.460 When he binds himself to a people. 00:18:11.160 --> 00:18:12.360 These things pop. 00:18:12.840 --> 00:18:14.580 Exodus 34, 6-7. 00:18:14.700 --> 00:18:16.759 God reveals himself to Moses. 00:18:17.380 --> 00:18:23.759 When the covenant is renewed, that he is a God of steadfast love, mercy, and faithfulness. 00:18:28.180 --> 00:18:34.240 Jeremiah is calling to mind who God is and his posture towards him. 00:18:34.240 --> 00:18:37.859 God has bound himself to Jeremiah. 00:18:37.859 --> 00:18:41.380 God is for him. 00:18:42.380 --> 00:18:45.000 Therefore, his hope is in the Lord. 00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:54.240 Now, the covenant that Jeremiah has in mind, he's talking about the Mosaic covenant. 00:18:55.579 --> 00:18:58.200 The covenant that God established through Moses. 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:03.079 And that is a covenant that has to do with sacrifices and a priesthood. 00:19:03.079 --> 00:19:09.619 And so, the sacrifices of the Mosaic covenant were the shedding of blood of bulls and goats. 00:19:09.939 --> 00:19:11.899 And it had to happen a lot. 00:19:12.399 --> 00:19:20.059 Because we know from Hebrews that it's impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to put away sin. 00:19:20.059 --> 00:19:23.220 And so, it was repeated over and over and over again. 00:19:23.419 --> 00:19:25.659 It was a bloody mess at the temple in Jerusalem. 00:19:26.720 --> 00:19:28.139 Over and over and over again. 00:19:28.279 --> 00:19:29.279 There was so much sin. 00:19:29.519 --> 00:19:30.519 There was so much blood. 00:19:30.700 --> 00:19:32.779 Sacrifice after sacrifice after sacrifice. 00:19:33.559 --> 00:19:34.819 It was only temporary. 00:19:35.339 --> 00:19:36.679 It was only a temporary sacrifice. 00:19:36.680 --> 00:19:44.539 And then the priesthood under the Mosaic law was sinful men who needed sacrificing for. 00:19:45.000 --> 00:19:46.340 And then they would die. 00:19:46.480 --> 00:19:48.400 And then they would need to get more priests. 00:19:50.960 --> 00:19:52.180 You know what Hebrews said? 00:19:52.700 --> 00:19:53.700 The book of Hebrews says? 00:19:54.680 --> 00:19:59.940 That covenant has been made obsolete with the coming of Jesus and the new covenant. 00:20:01.660 --> 00:20:06.440 God has bound himself to us in Christ in a new and better way. 00:20:06.680 --> 00:20:07.160 God has been made. 00:20:08.060 --> 00:20:08.660 Sacrifice. 00:20:08.880 --> 00:20:10.299 Not the blood of bulls and goats. 00:20:10.460 --> 00:20:13.960 It's the blood of the God man Jesus shed for us. 00:20:14.440 --> 00:20:21.259 And that one shedding of his blood accomplished an eternal redemption that's been secured. 00:20:21.480 --> 00:20:22.180 It's done. 00:20:23.640 --> 00:20:24.880 It's a better sacrifice. 00:20:25.960 --> 00:20:27.580 And a better priesthood. 00:20:28.680 --> 00:20:30.000 Jesus is our great high priest. 00:20:31.039 --> 00:20:34.120 He doesn't need blood to be shed for him. 00:20:34.120 --> 00:20:34.980 He is perfect. 00:20:34.980 --> 00:20:35.980 He is eternal. 00:20:35.980 --> 00:20:37.940 And he's eternal. 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:41.319 He's alive today. 00:20:43.799 --> 00:20:45.339 You know why I'm telling you this? 00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:52.860 Jeremiah took hope in the covenant making God with the Mosaic covenant. 00:20:53.940 --> 00:20:55.339 Do you know what that means for us? 00:20:55.339 --> 00:20:56.339 We have a greater hope. 00:20:56.339 --> 00:20:58.259 We have a greater hope. 00:20:59.220 --> 00:21:02.699 Because God has made a better covenant with us. 00:21:03.519 --> 00:21:05.679 God is for us. 00:21:06.099 --> 00:21:09.259 And he has secured that by the blood of Jesus. 00:21:09.720 --> 00:21:12.339 Who's alive and making intercession for us right now. 00:21:16.740 --> 00:21:18.059 You know what this stuff is? 00:21:18.059 --> 00:21:20.940 This is gospel goodness. 00:21:22.679 --> 00:21:25.940 This is God's kindness and goodness to us in Christ. 00:21:26.039 --> 00:21:28.519 That he's bound himself to us this way. 00:21:29.619 --> 00:21:30.559 And you know what it does? 00:21:30.559 --> 00:21:34.799 It ends up giving us hope. 00:21:36.000 --> 00:21:39.339 Because God is committed to us no matter what happens. 00:21:43.079 --> 00:21:50.019 When we remember who God is and his posture towards us in Christ, new covenant, 00:21:51.700 --> 00:21:54.720 hope will follow. 00:21:54.720 --> 00:22:00.299 In Christ, we know that God is for us. 00:22:01.000 --> 00:22:04.680 That he's a God of steadfast love, mercy, and faithfulness. 00:22:04.779 --> 00:22:05.600 He's our portion. 00:22:06.279 --> 00:22:09.160 And it's been sealed in Jesus for us. 00:22:10.299 --> 00:22:12.920 Even when things get hard and confusing. 00:22:12.920 --> 00:22:20.539 A hope remembered. 00:22:22.220 --> 00:22:26.400 When we remember our God, we will remember hope. 00:22:27.300 --> 00:22:28.120 He's for us. 00:22:28.880 --> 00:22:29.600 For our good. 00:22:30.940 --> 00:22:31.640 Hope lost. 00:22:31.800 --> 00:22:32.420 Hope remembered. 00:22:33.100 --> 00:22:34.240 Hope rekindled. 00:22:35.620 --> 00:22:38.200 In verses 25 through 27, 00:22:38.200 --> 00:22:42.860 we see hope in Jeremiah rekindled. 00:22:42.960 --> 00:22:46.860 The promise of God's goodness and the need to wait. 00:22:47.180 --> 00:22:49.860 Look at verses 25 through 27. 00:22:49.980 --> 00:22:51.539 The Lord is good to those who wait for him. 00:22:51.700 --> 00:22:52.759 To the soul who seeks him. 00:22:52.980 --> 00:22:56.140 It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. 00:22:56.480 --> 00:23:00.460 It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth. 00:23:00.460 --> 00:23:03.559 Did anybody notice a word repeated three times? 00:23:04.940 --> 00:23:06.080 It's the word good. 00:23:07.519 --> 00:23:08.140 Do you know what? 00:23:08.960 --> 00:23:10.539 That's new for Jeremiah. 00:23:10.720 --> 00:23:11.900 Because in verse 17, 00:23:12.200 --> 00:23:14.700 he had forgotten what good was. 00:23:16.080 --> 00:23:18.740 And now that he's reminded himself of who God is, 00:23:19.640 --> 00:23:21.059 he's starting to talk about goodness. 00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:22.940 The Lord's goodness. 00:23:27.259 --> 00:23:31.759 He was warming up to the very idea that God had good for him. 00:23:31.759 --> 00:23:39.700 So here's Jeremiah. 00:23:40.700 --> 00:23:41.339 Who knows? 00:23:41.420 --> 00:23:44.000 Maybe he's standing in the very rubble of Jerusalem. 00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:50.279 And he has the growing confidence that the story is not over. 00:23:50.279 --> 00:23:54.859 God is still good despite the hardness he's in. 00:23:54.859 --> 00:23:59.579 God is good all the time and all the time. 00:23:59.899 --> 00:24:03.599 God is good abounding in steadfast love to us. 00:24:03.599 --> 00:24:05.879 Look at verses 31 through 33. 00:24:05.879 --> 00:24:11.139 For the Lord will not cast off forever, but though he cause grief, 00:24:11.639 --> 00:24:15.059 he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love. 00:24:15.139 --> 00:24:15.939 Think covenant. 00:24:15.940 --> 00:24:20.480 For he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men. 00:24:20.480 --> 00:24:25.120 The hardship that Jeremiah was experiencing, 00:24:25.259 --> 00:24:27.180 and even what we've been experiencing, 00:24:27.819 --> 00:24:29.579 it's for a season. 00:24:29.579 --> 00:24:37.720 God is not being hard on his people because he likes to be hard on his people. 00:24:38.460 --> 00:24:42.159 God doesn't bring affliction because he likes to cause people affliction. 00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:48.879 If and when he afflicts us, it is for our good. 00:24:49.500 --> 00:24:52.879 The destruction of Jerusalem was a severe mercy of God, 00:24:53.439 --> 00:24:56.980 ultimately aimed to bring his people back to himself. 00:24:57.359 --> 00:24:59.059 That's what we see in Deuteronomy 30. 00:24:59.579 --> 00:25:05.799 God brings the severe mercy to humble his people so that they repent 00:25:05.799 --> 00:25:07.980 and that he restores them. 00:25:10.539 --> 00:25:12.699 God is being faithful to his word. 00:25:13.220 --> 00:25:14.559 He's good all the time. 00:25:15.579 --> 00:25:21.259 In the words of William Kuyper, a hymn writer who wrote God Moves in Mysterious Ways, 00:25:21.859 --> 00:25:22.579 he says this, 00:25:22.579 --> 00:25:29.099 Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust him for his grace. 00:25:29.099 --> 00:25:34.500 Behind a frowning providence, he hides a smiling face. 00:25:35.319 --> 00:25:39.199 His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour. 00:25:39.699 --> 00:25:46.419 The bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower. 00:25:46.420 --> 00:25:56.880 What William Kuyper is eloquently telling us here is our need to wait upon the Lord in hardship. 00:25:57.720 --> 00:25:59.320 Did you notice the words wait? 00:26:02.820 --> 00:26:05.560 25, the Lord is good to those who wait for him. 00:26:06.259 --> 00:26:09.400 It's good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord. 00:26:09.400 --> 00:26:13.160 It is good for man to bear the yoke in his youth. 00:26:14.040 --> 00:26:15.019 Isn't it hard to wait? 00:26:16.180 --> 00:26:17.220 It's hard to wait. 00:26:17.900 --> 00:26:19.019 It's hard to wait, period. 00:26:19.920 --> 00:26:21.780 And it's really hard to wait when things get hard. 00:26:21.779 --> 00:26:21.859 It's hard. 00:26:24.379 --> 00:26:26.319 It's hard to wait on the goodness of God. 00:26:26.319 --> 00:26:32.160 And instead of waiting on the Lord when we're faced with hardship, 00:26:32.740 --> 00:26:37.879 we can give way to our fight or flight instinct. 00:26:39.559 --> 00:26:44.160 When things get hard, we might want to bow up and look for someone to blame. 00:26:44.160 --> 00:26:49.300 Or we might want to bolt and say, see you later. 00:26:51.759 --> 00:26:58.880 When things get hard, we need to resist the urge to fight or flight, but respond by faith. 00:27:00.460 --> 00:27:03.340 Trusting in our God, looking to him, waiting upon him. 00:27:04.100 --> 00:27:06.200 We wait and bear. 00:27:07.120 --> 00:27:09.779 So what does waiting on the Lord look like? 00:27:09.860 --> 00:27:10.720 What does that involve? 00:27:11.860 --> 00:27:13.540 Well, we've already been told some things here. 00:27:13.539 --> 00:27:15.039 And so very briefly, four things. 00:27:16.240 --> 00:27:17.519 Calling him to mind. 00:27:18.879 --> 00:27:21.019 Chapter 3, verses 21 through 24. 00:27:21.299 --> 00:27:24.539 Calling our God to mind when you're faced with hardship and you're thinking, 00:27:24.720 --> 00:27:27.000 I want to bow up or I want to bolt. 00:27:27.639 --> 00:27:29.500 Call your God to mind. 00:27:31.220 --> 00:27:33.720 God of steadfast love, mercy, and faithfulness. 00:27:35.200 --> 00:27:40.819 In verse 25, we're told to seek him from your soul with your whole heart. 00:27:40.819 --> 00:27:45.019 When things get hard, turn to God with everything you got. 00:27:46.099 --> 00:27:47.659 That might look like a lament. 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:56.619 In verses 40 and 42, what we see is when things get hard, test and examine your ways. 00:27:56.619 --> 00:28:03.339 See if there be any sin in you and confess it to God. 00:28:03.339 --> 00:28:11.019 God uses hardship very uniquely in the life of a Christian to bring about holiness. 00:28:15.959 --> 00:28:21.220 We see as well in verse 41 that when we are faced, what does it mean to wait on the Lord? 00:28:21.699 --> 00:28:24.399 We lift up our hearts and hands to the God in heaven. 00:28:25.059 --> 00:28:27.159 We worship him when things get rough. 00:28:27.160 --> 00:28:32.160 Matt Redman has written a bunch of wonderful songs and we sang one last week, 00:28:32.259 --> 00:28:33.180 Blessed Be Your Name. 00:28:33.480 --> 00:28:34.960 I just pulled this out of it. 00:28:35.480 --> 00:28:38.060 Blessed Be Your Name on the road marked by suffering. 00:28:38.400 --> 00:28:41.300 Though there's pain in the offering, blessed be your name. 00:28:41.900 --> 00:28:44.920 We worship God still when things get hard. 00:28:45.540 --> 00:28:48.000 Though you slay me, yet I will praise you. 00:28:50.820 --> 00:28:52.519 How can we sing such things? 00:28:53.940 --> 00:28:55.380 How can we talk this way? 00:28:55.380 --> 00:28:57.120 Here's why. 00:28:58.200 --> 00:29:00.620 Because God has bound himself to us in Jesus. 00:29:01.820 --> 00:29:04.480 He is for us, even in hardship. 00:29:05.580 --> 00:29:06.960 He's for our good. 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:10.560 And we are to wait upon him and look to him. 00:29:18.160 --> 00:29:22.140 Behind a frowning providence, he hides his smiling face. 00:29:22.140 --> 00:29:25.800 Brothers and sisters, he is good for us. 00:29:26.860 --> 00:29:28.540 He is a good God. 00:29:29.040 --> 00:29:31.440 He's bound himself to us in Jesus. 00:29:34.440 --> 00:29:35.560 He's for our good. 00:29:35.559 --> 00:29:39.339 I'm just going to make this last point ever so brief. 00:29:41.679 --> 00:29:43.559 We've looked at a lost hope. 00:29:43.919 --> 00:29:45.179 We've looked at a hope remembered. 00:29:45.599 --> 00:29:47.599 We've looked at hope being rekindled. 00:29:47.740 --> 00:29:48.379 God is good. 00:29:48.480 --> 00:29:50.519 We're to wait upon him in between. 00:29:51.539 --> 00:29:52.919 And now hope restored. 00:29:54.480 --> 00:29:56.879 Do you remember how Jeremiah started Lamentations 3? 00:29:58.000 --> 00:29:59.200 Oh, he's doing this to me. 00:29:59.259 --> 00:30:00.019 He's doing this to me. 00:30:00.059 --> 00:30:00.859 He's doing this to me. 00:30:01.659 --> 00:30:02.619 He's like a bear. 00:30:02.679 --> 00:30:03.379 He's like a lion. 00:30:03.439 --> 00:30:04.439 He's like an archer. 00:30:05.799 --> 00:30:07.179 He doesn't have my good. 00:30:09.899 --> 00:30:13.519 And at the end of Lamentations 3, we read this. 00:30:13.819 --> 00:30:14.799 Look at verse 55. 00:30:16.679 --> 00:30:19.439 I called you on your name, O Lord, from the depths of the pit. 00:30:19.879 --> 00:30:20.319 56. 00:30:20.759 --> 00:30:21.859 You heard my plea. 00:30:22.019 --> 00:30:22.339 57. 00:30:22.639 --> 00:30:23.359 You came near. 00:30:23.740 --> 00:30:24.139 58. 00:30:24.259 --> 00:30:25.779 You have taken up my cause. 00:30:25.899 --> 00:30:26.219 59. 00:30:26.339 --> 00:30:27.779 You have seen the wrong done to me. 00:30:28.079 --> 00:30:28.459 60. 00:30:28.539 --> 00:30:29.659 You have seen all their vengeance. 00:30:29.660 --> 00:30:30.660 61. 00:30:30.900 --> 00:30:32.100 You have heard their taunts. 00:30:32.259 --> 00:30:32.660 64. 00:30:32.860 --> 00:30:33.720 You will repay them. 00:30:33.820 --> 00:30:35.259 You will give them dullness of heart. 00:30:35.640 --> 00:30:37.080 Your curse will be on them. 00:30:37.180 --> 00:30:38.040 You will pursue them. 00:30:38.100 --> 00:30:39.480 Do you see the shift that's taking place? 00:30:40.759 --> 00:30:45.460 At the beginning of Lamentations, Jeremiah was thinking that God is after him. 00:30:45.740 --> 00:30:51.160 At the end of Lamentations, he believes that God is for him, and he's going to deliver him from his enemies. 00:30:51.160 --> 00:30:56.420 It's a major shift. 00:30:56.860 --> 00:30:59.820 Now, the question that we got to count is, what accounts for the shift? 00:31:03.259 --> 00:31:05.340 Jeremiah renewed his mind on who his God was. 00:31:06.340 --> 00:31:14.120 He remembered that God is a God of a covenant that he's made with him, and God is a God of a covenant that he's made with us in Christ. 00:31:14.119 --> 00:31:24.379 The key to this passage is 21 through 24. 00:31:25.219 --> 00:31:32.759 We call to mind who our God is and remember his posture towards us, and hope will follow. 00:31:32.759 --> 00:31:35.519 Can I just add this one piece? 00:31:37.599 --> 00:31:45.180 That when Jeremiah penned these words, Jerusalem lay in ruins. 00:31:47.279 --> 00:31:53.519 But he's a heart of hope that he will see the goodness of God in the land of the living. 00:31:58.480 --> 00:32:00.339 God is for us in Christ Jesus. 00:32:00.339 --> 00:32:04.480 He is as committed to this church as he has ever been. 00:32:05.500 --> 00:32:09.279 We will look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. 00:32:10.220 --> 00:32:12.119 We will wait on the Lord. 00:32:12.659 --> 00:32:14.500 We will be strong and take heart. 00:32:14.659 --> 00:32:16.039 We will wait on the Lord. 00:32:16.500 --> 00:32:26.339 So when we encounter hardship, we must call to him, and we can be confident that hope will soon follow. 00:32:27.059 --> 00:32:28.179 Let me pray for you. 00:32:30.339 --> 00:32:41.779 God, we are so glad you are a God who has revealed yourself to us and bound yourself to us in Christ Jesus, 00:32:42.279 --> 00:32:50.299 that we can be confident that you are for us even in the midst of difficulty, even in the midst of confusion. 00:32:50.299 --> 00:32:52.319 God, we look to you. 00:32:52.919 --> 00:32:54.940 We call you to mind. 00:32:55.740 --> 00:33:03.799 And therefore, we have hope that, God, you are good to us in all things. 00:33:04.519 --> 00:33:06.039 And we pray this in Jesus' name. 00:33:06.779 --> 00:33:07.079 Amen. 00:33:07.079 --> 00:33:07.220 Amen. 00:33:08.259 --> 00:33:08.839 Amen.