May it please Almighty God to
bless us together this evening as we meditate in His Holy Word. Let's turn to the prophecy of
Jeremiah and we'll read chapter 31 and verse 18. So the prophecy of Jeremiah chapter
31 and reading verse 18. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning
himself thus. Thou hast chastised me, and I
was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke. Turn thou me, and
I shall be turned, for thou art the Lord my God. Jeremiah was a faithful prophet
he lived in a difficult time he lived in a time when Israel
were warned many times about their disobedience and what the result of their
disobedience would be they would go down into Babylon which was
a long way away from Jerusalem and spend 70 years there well
they heard the message but they failed to obey it and as a result
as we read through the Kings and the Chronicles we will find
that Nebuchadnezzar came up and took the city and carried the
people down and the kings down to Babylon. And there they found
themselves for all those many years with no temple to worship
in. It was indeed a dark time. And yet the Lord was gracious
and the Lord brought them back. The Lord turned kings to change
their mind and help and encourage Israel to return. We see the
goodness and the mercy of God. therefore we have Jeremiah who
prophesied before he lived during the first part of the occupation
down in Babylon but we read what he was able to say and speak
and testify And so we have this 18th verse which says, I have
surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus. Ephraim represents
Israel. It's spoken in the singular but
in actual fact it refers to the plural, to Israel. And here we
clearly see that the Lord is speaking. He heard Ephraim bemoaning
himself thus. Why was Abraham bemoaning himself? Why was Israel bemoaning themselves? It was because they had turned
away from God. It was because they were pleasing
themselves. Because they were ignoring the
words of the prophets not only Jeremiah of course we know there
was also Isaiah and Ezekiel and then the minor prophets and yet
how obstinate and hard-hearted and rebellious they were and
they confessed they confessed thou hast chastised me and I
was chastised Again, it's good if we recognize when God's hand
is against us. It would be good if our nation
recognized that God's hand was out against us because of our
rebellion, because of our sins as a nation. And yet, you see,
we read that they were chastised they've been chastised and he
tells us as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke that was the situation
they didn't receive it it didn't do a lot of good for them we
know what bullocks are like and when they're being broken in
they're very awkward animals they're very stubborn animals
and they don't like to be told what to do And it's just like,
really, the people of God. We don't like to be told what
to do. We're just like this, a bullock
unaccustomed to the yoke. Well, God knows our heart, doesn't
he? We can look back in our lives,
can't we, and see whether we were in that position. And whether
God has been mindful of us and whether God has touched our hearts.
Because we come down to the end of this verse which is the part
which is really on my spirit and the prophet says, turn thou
me and I shall be turned for thou art the Lord my God. Another verse in this same prophecy
says, heal me O Lord, and I shall be healed. You see, if God works,
if God does things, we can be sure it will be accomplished. What a mercy, then, if God comes
and turns us, if we're walking contrary to him. God knows our
heart. God knows what we really think.
And therefore we read this desire, turn thou me and I shall be turned. Because what God does is done. What change God brings about
is carried out. And a poor, weak and sinful man
sometimes tries to resist the work of God. tries to carry on
ignoring what God is doing in their heart and yet you see we're
told very clearly turn thou me and I shall be turned and he
tells us the reason for thou art the Lord my God It's a wonderful
truth, isn't it? It's a wonderful favour, isn't
it? To know this, that the Lord is our God, my God. Jehovah, the Lord, my God. He it is. He's the one who will
turn us. He's the one who will look upon
us and have mercy upon us. even though we try and resist
that which He has done and is doing for us. It's because we're
unaccustomed to the yoke and we don't want to have it placed
on us. And yet, you know, the glorious
Gospel tells us, in Matthew's Gospel, where the Lord speaks,
come unto me, he says, all ye that labour and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn
of me, for I am meek and lowly of heart, and you shall find
rest unto your souls. How often we are rebellious. The Lord says here, come unto
me, it's a gracious glorious invitation come unto me all ye
that labor and are heavy laden we may be laboring we may be
heavy laden and we don't want to hear God's voice speaking
to us perhaps God's voice chastising us because we've been awkward
because we've been obstinate because we've walk contrary to
God, and the Word of God tells us very solemnly, if you walk
contrary to me, I will walk contrary to you. Just to ponder that,
to think, if we don't do God's will, if we walk in an opposite
direction, he says he'll walk contrary to us. That's a very
sad and very solemn and very strong statement. And what a
mercy, therefore, if God enables us to come to him. I think that's a very lovely
verse. The Lord's gracious invitation
to those who labour and are heavy laden and a wonderful promise. And I will give you rest. we may be very restless you know if we disobey God we can be very
restless there's no peace there's no peace in going our own way
there's only peace in doing God's will and so what a mercy if we
hear that gracious invitation coming to me all ye that labour
and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. I'll be longing
for rest. Sometimes we long for natural
rest. I'll be longing for spiritual
rest. I'll be longing to have the Saviour
come and take us by the hand and lead us on safely lead us
through all the difficulties of our little life, and to take
possession of our hearts and minds, and that's why we read
this, turn thou me, and I shall be turned. God comes and takes
us by our hand, and there we are walking the wrong way, and he turns us round, Why does
He turn us round? Because of His love toward us. Yes, what a mercy it is. Because
this then comes to pass and I shall be turned. We are turned. We can't resist the power of
Almighty God. We've been awkward. He's chastised
us. Hasn't had any real effect. We've
been unaccustomed to the yoke, we've kicked and struggled, and
yet the Lord says, turn thou me, and I shall be turned. And if God does come and turn
us, it's because, as Jeremiah says, for thou art the Lord my
God. Thou art the Lord my God We come
really to back to the beginning I've surely heard Ephraim bemoaning
himself thus I was chastised it means that God made us aware
of our sin made us aware of our waywardness and the effect was
to bemoan ourselves to weep really often just because we're sorry
for ourselves just because we're sorry because things aren't quite
working out as we anticipated it's God looking upon us that's
why he gives us this illustration of a bullock being unruly and
likening ourselves to that unruly Wouldn't it be much easier if
we were blessed with this wonderful effect of being turned? And I shall be turned, for thou
art the Lord my God. You see, there was a hope, wasn't
there? There was a hope. He wasn't destitute. There was
a hope because he said, for thou art the Lord my God. So there
was, in actual fact, a humble confidence. Although he'd walked
contrary to God, a humble confidence that God would come and turn
him and change him round. That means really to go in the
opposite direction. to be made winning in the day
of God's power. Well, what a mercy if you and
I have known something of the power of God in our little lives. The power of God in turning us,
in turning us to Him. You may remember that Jeremiah,
of course, is followed by Lamentation, Lamentations really are the spiritual
sighing and groaning and moaning of Jeremiah. And he tells us in the Lamentations,
in the last chapter, it's only a short book, he says, wherefore
dost thou forget us for ever? Sometimes it may seem like that.
We may be crying and shouting. It seems he shuts out all our
prayer. Well, dost thou forget us for
ever? May be the enquiry, may be the
desire, and forsake us for so long? Does it seem that God's
forgotten us? Does it seem that God's forsaken
us? Does it seem that God doesn't
hear us? The result is we're lonely and
solitary, and we find we bemoan ourselves. Well, Jeremiah then,
having made that confession, he then asks, turn. Turn thou
us unto Thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned. Again, it's
a repetition of what we have here in this 31st chapter of
Jeremiah. But clearly, the prophet had
a confidence in the power of God to make a change. To make a change. What a blessing
if you and I know what that change has been. if we can look back
in our lives and realise yes, God it is who has gloriously
turned me turned me from my own way turned me from my hard heart
and has come and softened my heart you know the next verse
goes on to encourage us in this path because the Prophet says
after Surely after that I was turned. He's been turned and
now as he's facing the other way, now he has good desires,
what will you say? After that I was turned, I repented. Every true believer repents. But repentance is not something
that you and I take easily. It's because we are really rebellious
against God. But what a blessing if we do
repent. And he tells us this, therefore,
surely We can say it's without any doubt, surely after that
I was turned, well again, it's good to trace our other lives
and see whether God has come to us and turned us. It's the work of the Holy Spirit.
And it's amazing that the hardest rebel can be turned by the love
of God. The love of Christ constraineth
us. Does that mean anything? The
love of Christ constraineth us. By that, I believe it means this. As we ponder and consider what
Christ has done in order to redeem our souls, It has an effect. The love of
Christ in going to the cross, in passing through all those
agonising scenes because of his love to such unworthy sinners. Turn thou me and I shall be turned
for thou art the Lord my God surely. After that I was turned. I repented. The love of Christ
constrains us. I wonder if the Lord has graciously
come to us and revealed himself to us as a wonderful saviour. A saviour who was willing to
endure All that condemnation. All the enemies came against
him. The hiding of his father's face,
which he'd never had to endure before through eternity. Again,
a truth which is impossible for our minds to absorb. But nonetheless,
to think Christ's love was so great. Surely after that I was
turned, I repented. If we've been turned to view
Christ, if we've been turned to view his love, if we've been
turned to realize the cost of our salvation, do we then fall
down before God and repent? After that I was turned, I repented. Didn't say before, did it? It
said after. Yes, after we were turned, we
repented. And after that, I was instructed. And we have this exclamation,
I smote upon my thigh. Very similar really to that account
of the Pharisee and the Publican. And we read there about the Publican,
he smote upon his breast. And here we have this person
smiting his thigh, and he tells us, I was ashamed, yea, even
confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth. Well, no doubt we can look back,
most of us, if not all of us, to our youth and realize there
were things which were ashamed of and even confounded and to
realise there was the reproach which the Lord Jesus Christ suffered
on our behalf. Again, it's good if you and I
have been ashamed of the deeds of our youth. When we walked
to please ourselves, when we did those things which were contrary
to God's law and against his amazing love to such an unworthy
sinners. Well, says the prophet then,
after that I was turned, I repented. Again, it's good to be able to
trace out in our life a time when we were truly sorry for
our sins. Truly sorry for that which we've
done in offending God because sin is an offence against God. How solemn it is to think that
we often willfully have sinned against God. Surely after that I was turned,
I repented and after that I was instructed I smote upon my thigh. What had occurred was God, as
it were, drawn alongside. He'd come alongside. Just like we spoke when we quoted
that verse in Matthew, come unto me, all ye that labour and are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you
and learn of me. Learn of me. What a blessing it is to learn
of the Saviour, to learn what He endured, to learn what He
passed through. It was no easy path, was it? It was no easy path. And yet
how wonderful it is to think that the Saviour did take our
sins upon us, all our rebellion, and to bring us to that place
of repentance. It's the gift of God, the goodness
of God, we're told in the Romans, leads us to repentance. And again, I wonder whether that
finds an echo in your heart. If you meditate upon the Lord's
dealings with you, and you realise his goodness, unworthily received. The goodness of God leads us
to repentance. Well, what a mercy that is, isn't
it? If God's goodness has done that.
It breaks down the hardness of our heart. It makes us willing
in the day of His power to take up our cross and to follow Him. What a great blessing it is to
be found in that condition. What a great and wonderful mercy
to have such a Saviour then, who looks upon us and loves us. Indeed, as we read in this third
verse, Yea, I love thee. with an everlasting love and
therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee. I wonder whether
you and I have been drawn to the Saviour because of what he's
done for us. We realise, amazed, we stand
and view that almighty God was willing to take our sin upon
himself and in exchange to give to us that great and glorious
robe of his righteousness to cover our nakedness do we not come and say what a
saviour we have what a great and glorious saviour we have
and how thankful we should have you know the one of the minor
prophets Micah speaks to us in very similar similar words he
says this he will turn again we may think we've sinned against
light and knowledge sinned against light and knowledge and yet he
will turn again and he will have compassion because if he's loved
us with everlasting love that love can't be removed he will
turn again he will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities
that's an encouraging statement isn't it? because we do have
iniquities, we do have sins sometimes they're referred to as besetting
sins we're not to glory in besetting sins we're not to make excuses
of besetting sins but nonetheless sometimes they are there subdue
our iniquities to think that God can and does graciously subdue
us subdue our iniquities subdue the evil in our heart what a
blessing that is when we've been blessed with repentance when
we've fallen and when we've offended God and we've come to this place
and we've moaned before God because of our sin and God has come and
turned us and turned us like this he's turned us to view himself
There is compassion. He knows what sore temptations
are, for he has endured and faced the same. This is the God who
we have to deal with, not a stranger, not someone who doesn't understand
us, but someone who does understand us. He's endured all the temptations,
that you and I endure. We don't have a God who doesn't
understand. And that's why the wonder of
it is that we can come to Him as He's touched our hearts and
made us willing in the day of His power to repent and He's
instructed us and we've been brought to that position where
Perhaps we've smote upon our thigh, we've been ashamed of
what we've done and what we've thought, and we've glorified
in what the glorious Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ has done
in order to redeem our souls. He paid for every sin. for every sin. What an amazing
Saviour we have. To think of your sin and my sin,
the Lord Jesus Christ didn't back away from it. He did pray
to his Father and said, if it be possible, let this cut pass
from me, but nevertheless, not my will but thine be done. It
was the Father's will that his only beloved Son should suffer
and die in order to be granted that great and glorious forgiveness
of all our sins. You see, Michael goes on to say,
and they will cast all their sins into the depth of the sea. To be remembered no more. No more. What a mercy that is,
isn't it? We have to say, don't we, what
a saviour that should pay the price so fully, so completely,
so those sins would never resurface. No, they're in the depth of the
sea. because the payment was completely
adequate, completely sufficient. There was nothing lacking. But
let us never underestimate the reality of that great transaction. The Lord Jesus was charged by
his Father to complete this work that he was given to do. And
although it was a most painful work, and although his flesh
turned away from it, we see the willingness of the Saviour, nevertheless,
not my will, but thine be done, submission to the will of God. And my friends, what a blessing
if you and I are given submission to take up our cross and to follow
our great and glorious Saviour in true heartfelt thankfulness
for the enormous debt that was paid on our behalf. maybe not come and say praise
God from whom all blessings flow yes we have such a Savior well
here we have then these comments and the Prophet goes on then
to say set the way marks make the high heaps record these
blessings record them way marks So you'll know and remember what
God has done. Set the upway marks. Make the
high heaps, not little heaps. They're great heaps when you
and I receive the wonderful forgiveness of all our sins. Set thine heart
toward the highway. even the way which thou wentest. And turn again, O Virgin of Israel,
turn again to these, thy cities. Well, what a mercy, again, as
God enables us to turn again. The Lord's very compassionate,
very merciful, very wonderful. that we have such a God and he
comes and tells us thus saith the Lord of hosts the God of
Israel this is not man's word man was used to write it but
it was God's word and it's God's word to the children of God it's
God's word to the household of faith. It's not always easy.
Jeremiah is not an easy book to understand, but we can pray
over it and we can pray that God will give us a right understanding
so that we see the beauty and the glory of it and truly thank
him for all that he has done. so that we might indeed hear
his word. You know, earlier in this chapter,
he says, hear the word of the Lord. Again, repeating, it's
not man's word. Hear the word of the Lord, O
ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say,
he that scattered Israel will gather them, and keep him as
a shepherd doth his flock, for The Lord hath redeemed Jacob
and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than
he. Don't underestimate the devil.
The devil is very strong. But my friends to think that
we as Israel, spiritual Israel, have been redeemed and have been
ransomed from such person from such an individual that great
adversary the devil and he says he goes on therefore they shall
come And if we have the evidence of God's mercy and goodness toward
us, if we have the evidence of what he's done for our never
dying souls, therefore they shall come and sing in the height of
Zion and shall follow together to the goodness of the Lord for
wheat and for wine and for oil and for the young of the flock
and of the herd and their soul. shall be as a watered garden
and they shall not sorrow any more at all. The compassion of
our God. What a mercy then to enjoy such
favours and such privileges and we should thank God that we have
a record of these things. in this prophecy of Jeremiah
to encourage us in our day and age in which we live because
we shouldn't think we're any better than the Israelites were
when they disobeyed the prophets again and again and at last were
taken down to Babylon sometimes we may feel we're in Babylon
because of our sins we remember Israel were delivered out of
Babylon Yes, and God delivers his children out of spiritual
Babylon. He brings them safely back to
their true home, Jerusalem, where the Saviour dwells, to be encouraged
and strengthened and taught. and to know that we have a God
who hasn't dealt with us unfaithfully. We've got a very faithful, kind
and gracious God. So this evening, may we recognise
what we've read here. I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning
himself. Yes, he's heard us. Thou hast
chastised me And I was chastised, didn't have much effect, as a
bullock unaccustomed to the yoke. Then he pleads, turn thou me,
and I shall be turned. For thou art the Lord my God. Well, we have to answer before
God when He's come and turned us, changed us, turned us. And we come and said, surely
after that I was turned, I repented, and after that I was instructed,
I smote upon my thigh, I was ashamed, yea, even confounded,
because I did bear the reproach of my youth. Well, tonight, can
we thank God that we have such a great and glorious Saviour
and to just close With repeating these words in the third verse,
the Lord hath appeared of all unto me, saying, Yea, I have
loved thee with an everlasting love. Therefore with lovingkindness
have I drawn thee. Amen.