Alright, let's open our Bibles
to Jeremiah 14. Title of the message tonight
is Physical and Spiritual Famine. Physical and Spiritual Famine. These next two chapters of Jeremiah's
prophecy, chapters 14 and 15, are really one message. one message concerning a terrible,
terrible drought and famine coming to the land of Judah. And it's
coming because of their sin. It's a punishment from God Almighty
for their sins. It's part of the curses that
were set forth in the book of Deuteronomy of the broken covenant. The people living in this land
in disobedience, in unbelief, and in idolatry. And God says,
I'm going to send you a great dearth. That's the term he uses. Look at verse 1. The word of
the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth. And that
dearth has to do with the word restraint. which means that God's
going to restrain the rain. There's not going to be any rain.
There's not going to be any flourishing of the land. And of course we
know that droughts, for example, were God's judgments against
Israel and their history for their sins and their unbelief
and their idolatry. But as we go through this chapter
and as we consider the lesson that's here For the people of
this day and the people for our day, I want you to understand
that the greatest and most terrible judgment that God has brought
down on this people, and I believe upon the people of the day, this
day, is not a physical drought, that's bad enough. Physical droughts
are bad. No crops, no water, but the greatest
judgment that God has brought down upon His people is as the
book of Amos chapter 8 and verse 11 described it in His prophecy.
And it goes like this, it says, Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine
of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the
Lord. a famine of the Word of God. That's the worst. That's the
worst. You see, this is God's judgment. And he starts off and he shows
how God's curse will fill the whole land, not just part of
the land. This is God's judgment against
all of Judah. He shows that this famine, this
physical famine, and this spiritual famine of the Word of God, Now,
they had the word in Jeremiah and a few other prophets, but
it was so small compared to the words of the false prophets.
There was so much false prophecy, false religion in the land. There
was very, very little preaching of the truth that it was a famine. And he says that famine would
touch the city, Look at it. He says in verse 2, he says,
Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish. The gates of
the city he's talking about. They are black unto the ground.
He's talking about people they're wearing black because they're
in mourning and sorrow. He says, and the cry of Jerusalem
is gone up. Verse 3, it says they're nobles.
Their nobles, their princes, have sent their little ones to
the waters, their servants, to go get water, go fetch water.
And they came to the pits and they found no water. They returned
with their vessels empty. They were ashamed and confounded
and covered their heads." What a great dearth. What a drought. What a picture
of spiritual dearth, spiritual drought, no water. You see the
Bible teaches us that the word of God that leads us to Christ
is the water of life. Christ is the bread of life.
Where Christ is absent there is no water and people go away
empty. You remember he talked to the
woman at the well in John chapter 4 about the water, the fountain
of living waters. Remember back in Jeremiah chapter
2. that the people, it said in verse 13, they had committed
two great evils. They forsaken me, the Lord God,
the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns,
broken cisterns that can hold no water. That's what's happening
here. Not just physically now. This
is indicative of the spiritual health or state of that nation.
There's no health here. This dearth in the land, this
drought in the land, there's no gospel. And I tell you, it
reminds me of our day today, and I'm not just up here trying
to be negative about it. You know, I would love, I would
love to say that you could walk into any religious place in this
city, in this state, in this country, in this world, and hear
the gospel preached, but you can't. There's so much religion
There's so much ceremony. There's so much sincerity even. But there's no gospel. There's
no Christ preached. The concept and the truth of
righteousness has totally been abandoned. People don't understand
the issues of the salvation of a sinner. How God can be just
and justify the ungodly. And they go in and they find
no water. And they walk away empty. They
may feel good emotionally. They may feel good about themselves.
They may have heard a lot of psychology, a lot of morality,
and a lot of positive thinking, but there's no water. There's
no gospel. There's no salvation. That's
the problem. Here it touches the city. Look
at verse 4. This famine touches the ground. It says, because the ground is
chapped. The ground is cracked and dried.
There was no rain in the earth. The plowmen were ashamed. That's
the farmers. They covered their heads. It
touched the farms. Verses 5 and 6, the famine touched
the open country, even outside the city. Yea, the hind, that's
the deer, also calved in the field and forsook it. The deer
forsook their calves because there was no grass. And the wild
asses did stand in high places. They snuffed up the wind like
dragons, like lizards. and their eyes did fail because
there was no grass. This is a great picture of the
cursed earth under sin falling in Adam. You know, when Adam
fell, the whole earth was cursed, wasn't it? And that's indicative
of the state of the whole nation in Jeremiah's time. And you know,
we know that by the grace of God, in giving the water of life,
the bread of life, Christ and Him crucified and risen, salvation
by His grace, that salvation is likened unto a fruitful land. And I thought about when I was
reading this how it's opposite in God's land. It's opposite
in God's spiritual nation. And I think about the 23rd Psalm,
the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not lack, I shall not want. Now we have no, in Christ we
have no want, no lack of water, the water of life. In Christ
we have no lack of the bread of life. In Christ we have no
lack of spiritual health. We read about that in Psalm 63,
that fatness. You know, when the Bible speaks
of fatness, you know what it's talking about, don't you? It's
talking about health. That's what it means, health. In Christ,
we have everything that we need or could ever want. He said He
makes us lie down in green pastures. That's a flourishing thing, you
see. The Bible speaks of the salvation
that God freely provides His people, sinners, saved by the
grace of God, as that they flourish like the palm tree. They flourish
like the tree, their leaf doesn't fade, you see. We have all that
we need. We have the blood of Christ to
wash away our sins. We have the righteousness of
Christ to give us a complete, eternal acceptance and right
standing with God. And we don't lack anything. But
here there's nothing. This is man in sin right here.
This is man without God. It's man without grace. It's
man without Christ and without truth. And so what happens here
is the prophet begins to beg. Look at verse 7. Here's the prophet's
plea. And you know there's a point
in Jeremiah's prophecy where he really believed the wrath
of God could be turned back if the people would repent. Now
God tells him they won't repent. But his prayer here, listen to
how he prays in verse 7. He says, Oh Lord, though our
iniquities testify against us, Now what is that? That's a confession
of sin. Now this is Jeremiah's plea now. This is not the people's
and the nation's confession. They wouldn't confess. But our
iniquities, our inequities testify against us. We're sinners. In
other words, what Jeremiah's saying, we know that we're getting
exactly what we deserve. We know we're getting exactly
what we've earned. We have no claim. upon any of
the blessings of God. My friend, that's our state too,
by nature. If God were to give any of us
what we deserve and what we've earned, it would be what? Spiritually
speaking, this dearth. This drought, it would be eternal
damnation. That's what it would be. And
how do you know that? Well, our iniquities testify
against us. What is iniquity? That's inequity. We'll see that in just a moment
here at the end of the chapter. That means there's none righteous. No, not one. There's none that
doeth good. No, not one. If there's righteousness
to be had, it's not going to come from the earth. It's not
going to come from man. It must come from God. It must
come from above. That's why he told the people
in Isaiah's day. He said, you stiff necked. He
says, you proud and unrighteous people. He said, I bring near
my righteousness. It shall not be far off. What's
that talking about? That's a prophecy of Christ and
how God would save his people through him. Aren't you glad? Now you think about this. Aren't you glad? that in Christ,
your iniquities cannot and will not testify against you. I'm
glad of that. Because without Christ, I'd be
in the same boat here. Our iniquities testifying against
us. But they cannot testify against
us. Why? Because they testified against
Christ. He was made sin. He who knew
no sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of
God in him. Like I said this morning, God cannot charge his
people with their sins because he's already charged them to
Christ. And they cannot testify against it. But now listen to
his plea here, verse 7, O Lord, though our iniquities testify
against us, do thou it for thy name's sake. For our backslidings
are many, we have sinned against thee. In other words, the prophet's
plea here to God is not on the basis of their worthiness, but
on the basis of God's glory, God's character, thy name's sake. I want you to look over in Ezekiel
with me. Ezekiel chapter 36. And this
is said so often in the scripture, I can't go to all the various
passages. But when you think about God's
pity, God's compassion, God's grace and God's mercy, it is
never It is never given on the basis of the worthiness of any
person. It is never given even based
on the state of any person, no matter how pitiful we are. But
it's given on one basis. And look here in verse 21 of
Ezekiel 36. He says in Ezekiel 36, 21. Now
he's talking about Israel who had profaned his name among the
nations. And he says, but I had pity for
mine holy name. Now what is his name? That's
his glory. God's name is not just a label.
God's name is that which identifies and distinguishes him as the
God of grace, the God who is sovereign, the God of this earth,
the God of the universe. He said, I had pity for mine
holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the
heathen, whether they went. Therefore say unto the house
of Israel, thus say the Lord God, I do not this for your sakes. Now hear that, O house of Israel,
but for mine holy namesake, which you have profaned among the heathen,
whether you went. And then he begins this prophecy
of the new covenant. And he says, look at verse 23,
he says, I will sanctify my great name. I'm going to set my name
apart. In other words, God's saying, I'm not doing this to
make a name for you. I'm doing this to set my name
apart. He says, My great name, which
was profaned among the heathen, which you have profaned in the
midst of them, and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord.
God's going to identify himself. He says, Saith the Lord God,
when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. That's
in Judah's deliverance from the captivity. And what we have there
is a picture of the salvation of God's spiritual Israel. When
God saves one of His elect people, when God saves a sinner, He sanctifies
his name. Look at it, verse 24. I'll take
you from among the heathen, I'll gather you out of all countries,
I'll bring you into your own land, and then will I sprinkle
clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your
filthiness and from all your idols will I cleanse you. Now
how are we cleansed? in such a way so as to glorify
God's name. We're cleansed by the blood of
Christ. Cleansed from all our sins. That's
why I say in the cross, Christ and Him crucified, You see every
attribute of God honored and magnified and manifested right
there in that experience in time. That's amazing, isn't it? And
then he says a new heart I'll give you. A new spirit will I
put within you. That's the new birth. That's
regeneration and conversion. In other words, when he brings
you out of that darkness and into the light of his glorious
son. What does he do? He glorifies
himself. He doesn't glorify you. You see,
salvation is nothing that we can stand up and brag about ourselves
in. God forbid that I should glory
save in the cross. It's all about God's name. Look
back at chapter 14. Now, how do you know that's connected
to all this? Well, look at it. Verse 8. And
here in verse 8, You see, our sins testify against us, shouting,
guilty, guilty. But in verse eight, listen to
what he says. He identifies himself under two
of his covenant titles. Listen to that. Oh, the hope
of Israel. There it is. Who is the hope
of Israel? God Almighty, the Lord Jesus
Christ. That's the same thing. You remember
old Simeon in Luke chapter 2 when he lifted up the Christ child
and he said, he said, mine eyes have seen thy salvation. You
remember how he identified the Messiah before that? How it was
said that he was thinking about the Messiah? Called him what? The consolation of Israel. The
same thing here. The hope of Israel. That refers
to the Lord as the God of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. Who's that? That's the God of
grace. That's the God who justifies the ungodly. That's the God who
is what? Here's the second title. Oh,
the hope of Israel, the Savior. The Savior. That was his common
title. Thereof in time of trouble, why
shouldst thou be as a stranger in the land and as a wayfaring
man that turneth aside to Terry for a night? Jeremiah is describing
how God had become to the people, like a stranger, like someone
who just walked through a wayfaring stranger in the night, stayed
the night, and then left. And he said in verse 9, Why shouldst
thou be as a man astonished, or astonished as a mighty man
that cannot say, Yet thou, O Lord, art in the midst of us, and we're
called by thy name, leave us not." Now they were God's people
under that old covenant in a temporal, ceremonial, civil way. But they
didn't know the Lord. And that's the indication here.
They looked upon God as somebody who was astonished, that could
not save, who was taken... You know, it's like the God of
today that's being preached. He's always surprised. He's always
taken by surprise. He's always got to have a backup
plan. He's always making counter moves
to your move. You see, He's not the God of... the sovereign God of the Bible,
identified as the one who, according to His purpose and His grace,
saves whom He will. Our God, you see, this is the
way they looked upon Him, because they didn't know Him. That's
why Jeremiah said over in Jeremiah 31, in relating the new covenant,
he said that all of his people under the new covenant, they
shall all know God, from the least of them to the greatest.
Well, the Lord gives a response to Jeremiah. Here's the word
of God. And what he does in this response is he exposes the depravity
of man. We talked about that last time.
That's what chapter 13 was all about. The depravity of man. And here's what he says, look
at verse 10. He says, thus saith the Lord unto this people, thus
have they loved to wander. It's not just that they wandered,
and wandering means lost. That's what he's talking about.
But they loved it. This is what they wanted. Now
you say, well, I don't understand how anybody could want to be
lost. Have you ever been lost on a trip? You didn't want to
be that way. But see, this is the natural
man in his own false self-righteous ways. He doesn't know he's lost. He thinks he's found the way.
But like Isaiah said in Isaiah 53, all we like sheep have gone
astray. We've gone, we're out of the
way, we've gone our own way. We've done that and by nature
we love it. And that's what God's exposing
there. Not only are we wandering by nature, but they love it.
Man loves to be deceived. And of course, if he knew he
was deceived, he wouldn't be deceived, would he? Men love
darkness and hate the light. But go on. It says, they have
not refrained their feet. Now there's man's will right
there. Man will not refrain his feet. Refrain it from what? You know
over in Romans chapter 3 and verse 15 when it's talking about
the depravity of man there, it says their feet are swift to
shed blood. And really what that's talking
about is religion, those who are coming to sacrifice. They're
swift to do that. It's not talking about people
wanting to kill people. Now, there are people who do
that. Don't get me wrong. And that's depravity, and that's
sin, and that deserves damnation. But what he's talking about there
is those Jews who were swift to bring those sacrifices. They
were swift to do that. You give sinners something to
do, and they'll do it. But you tell them that salvation
is totally 100% all of grace, free, unconditional, based on
the righteousness of another. I don't want that. Give me something
to do. Let me get baptized. Let me join
the church. Let me walk an aisle. Let me
give. Let me do this in order to attain or maintain salvation.
And they would not refrain their feet. He says in verse 10, therefore
the Lord doth not accept them. Well, the Lord cannot accept
them. Why not? Because everything they do is
evil. Everything they do is iniquity. There's only one way that the
Lord, the God of all grace, the God who is holy, can accept sinners. And you know what that is. That's
accepted in the beloved. You see, without Christ, we're
not accepted of God. Nothing we are and nothing we
do is accepted. We've got to be washed in his
blood and clothed in his righteousness. We must be found in him or there's
no acceptance. And then it says this, listen,
verse 10. He will now, this is a judgment here now. He will
now remember their iniquity and visit their sins. He will remember
their iniquity. Now hold that thought and turn
to Hebrews chapter 10. Most of you know exactly where
I'm going on that. It is eternal damnation for the
Lord to remember our iniquities in this way. That's equivalent
to eternal damnation. Now I want you to think, what
does it mean He will remember their iniquities? What it means,
literally, is that He will hold their iniquities against them.
Now, I want to make this distinction. The Lord knows our iniquities,
and He doesn't forget them, like wipe them out of His mind. If
He did that, you'd have a mutable God. But what it means when it
says He remembers or does not remember, it means He either
does or does not hold them against us. by way of charging. Now, let me show you what I mean.
Here in Hebrews 10, what is his subject? Well, listen to what
he's talking about. Look back up at verse 10 of Hebrews
10. Now, see what his subject is. He's talking about by the
which will, that is the will of God from the beginning, we
are sanctified, set apart through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all. Now, there's his subject, the
death of Christ. Offered as a substitute and surety
of his people to put away our sins and Then he says in verse
11 every high every priest standeth daily ministry and often offering
oftentimes the same Sacrifices which can never take away sin
talking about the priesthood of Aaron and Levi that that old
covenant priesthood the blood of animals That was a picture. That was a type. It could never
really take away sins It was only a picture and a type But
he says in verse 12, but this man, Jesus Christ, after he had
offered one sacrifice for sins, that is, he's the substitute
now, he's the surety, having our sins laid to his charge,
he was made sin, forever, one sacrifice for sins forever, not
many sacrifices, but one, he sat down at the right hand of
God. That means the work was finished. Those old covenant
priests, they never sat down. their work was never finished.
And then he says in verse 13 from henceforth expecting till
his enemies be made his footstool for by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified. Now don't you love that verse?
By one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Now that's the one sacrifice
of Christ. that finished the transgression,
made an end of sin, brought in everlasting righteousness, there's
no more to be done, it's done, it's finished, sins are put away. But now look at verse fifteen.
whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us. Now, if you
want to talk about the work of the Holy Spirit, the testimony
of the Holy Spirit, this is what it is. This is what the Holy
Spirit testifies to, that Christ, the God-man, put away our sins. And it says, for after that he
had said before, this is the covenant that I will make with
them after those days, said the Lord. Now, he's talking about
the new covenant. And he quotes from Jeremiah 31
here. He says, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in
their minds will I write them, and their sins and iniquities
will I remember no more. I won't hold it against them.
I will not charge them with their sin. That's salvation. That's justification before a
holy God. Over here in Jeremiah 14, he
says, I will now remember their iniquities. That's damnation.
That's condemnation. That's getting what we deserve.
When he says, I will remember their iniquities no more, that's
justification. That's salvation. Now what's
it based on? By one offering. He hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified. We're in Christ. And God will
remember our iniquities no more. Now these people back here, they
had rejected Christ. Look at verse 11. He says in verse 11, he says,
then said the Lord unto me, pray not for this people for their
good. Don't pray for them. I think
this is the third time that God commanded Jeremiah not to pray
for them. Not to intercede for them. Why would God say something
like that? He's making a point. And it's
the most important point that we could ever hear or learn. And that's this, without Christ,
without His blood, without His righteousness, without Him as
our mediator, God will not hear that prayer. God will not hear
that cry, no matter how pitiful it is. God will not hear that
plea. And here the longsuffering of
God has run out. Do you know there will come a
time when the longsuffering of God runs out? Look at verse 12. He says, when they fast, I will
not hear their cry. Fasting won't get the job done.
You know what fasting was all about? You know what fasting
is? It's when you stop eating. You
deny this flesh. And fasting was to teach a spirit.
Fasting was never an act. You know, there was only one
time that they were commanded to fast. I think it was right
around the Day of Atonement or right before or right after.
I can't remember. But then there were voluntary fasts. But fasting
was never a ceremony given to them by God so that they could
say, well, if I fast, I'll be righteous before God. I'll be
accepted. I'll make myself worthy. No. It never was. Fasting was
all about one thing, denying self, drawing near to God, and
learning to depend on Him and His grace. That's what it was
all about. So he says, when they fast, I
will not hear their cry. Fasting will not put away sin.
What will put away my sin? What will wash away my sin? Nothing
but the blood of Jesus. Fasting won't do it. He said,
when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept
them. The blood of bulls and goats will not put away sin,
only the blood of Christ. He said, but I will consume them
by the sword and by the famine and by the pestilence. Those
are the three curses connected with the broken coven. Sword,
meaning captivity and conquering, conquering and captivity. Famine,
that's the dearth that they're going through. And then pestilence,
which he sins. You see, all of these things
that he mentions here, fast, burnt offering, what was burnt
offering to be? It was to be a confession of
sin that would lead them to Christ, the Lamb of God, the Messiah.
and salvation by him, and not by their works. Now beginning
in verse 13, he gives his judgment against the prophets and the
people. Now listen to this. It says in verse 13, now this
Jeremiah, he says, then said, I, all Lord God, behold, the
prophets say unto them, you shall not see the sword, neither shall
you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place. In other words, Jeremiah is saying,
but God, it's the prophet's fault. talking about the false preachers
of that day. It's their fault, Lord. They
told them that you won't see the sword, that the enemy's not
coming to conquer, you won't see famine, and you'll have assured
peace. Peace, peace, when there is no
peace. But it says, and listen, Jeremiah, they said it's the
prophet's fault. And God says, well, that's true,
but that's no excuse for the people. Look at verse 14. Then
the Lord said unto me, the prophets prophesy lies in my name. That's
right. They preach a false gospel. I
sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake I unto them.
They prophesy unto you a false vision, divination, that is,
their feelings, their dreams, and a thing of naught, in other
words, that's nothing, and the deceit of their heart, that is,
what they think, their opinions. And verse 15, therefore thus
saith the Lord concerning the prophets that prophesied my name,
and I sent them not, yet they say sword and famine shall not
be in this land. They have a false message. You
see, the only way you're going to have peace with God is through
Christ. Any prophet or preacher who tells you otherwise, God
didn't send them. And he says, by the sword and
famine shall those prophets be consumed. So he says, Jeremiah,
you're right. And those prophets preached a
false message, they're going to be consumed, but now look
at verse 16. And the people to whom they prophesied
shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine
and the sword, and they shall have none to bury them, their
wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters, for I will pour their
wickedness upon them. Yes, you're right, the prophets
prophesied lives, they're going to be destroyed, but so are the
people who listen to them. There's no excuse. Why is there
no excuse? Turn back to Jeremiah five. Now my friend, false preachers
are to be held accountable. And that's why I tell you over
and over again, don't believe it just because I say it or any
preacher says it. I've heard people say, well,
I know so and so wouldn't lie to me. Now, how do you know that?
There's only one person I can tell you who will never, never,
never lie to you. And that's the Lord Jesus Christ
in his word. I hope and pray that I don't
lie to you. I hope and pray that he keeps
me close to the word of God and in this word, and I'm to be held
accountable. But you're to be held accountable
too. I'll show you why in a moment. But here's what God's telling
Jeremiah. Look at Jeremiah 5 and verse
30. He says, a wonderful and horrible
thing is committed in the Lamb. The prophets prophesy falsely,
and the priests bear rule by their means, and my people love
to have it so. And what will you do in the end
there? The prophets only spoke what the people wanted to hear.
So that's the first thing God says that, yeah, the prophets
will be destroyed, they deserve, but the people who listen to
them deserve it too. And here's the second reason
I want you to turn back to Deuteronomy. Turn back to Deuteronomy 13.
Here's a commandment of the law of the covenant. Right here in
Deuteronomy 13. And listen to what he says here. Verse 1 of Deuteronomy 13. He says, If there arise among
you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign
or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof
he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which
thou hast not known and let us serve them, thou shalt not hearken
unto the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for
the Lord your God proveth you, he's testing you, that's what
he's saying, to know whether you love the Lord your God with
all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the
Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey
his voice and you shall serve him and cleave unto him. That's
why I say cling to Christ no matter what. You'll never go
wrong clinging to Christ. You'll never go wrong clinging
to his word. He says in verse 5, And that
prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death, because
he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God, which
brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of
the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the
Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in, so shalt thou put the
evil away from the midst of thee. Don't listen to him. And I'll
tell you what, That's for us under the new covenant, isn't
it? Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing.
Test the spirits, for not everyone who comes saying they preach
or speak by the Spirit of God are sin of God. All of these
things, they'll be judged. Look back at Jeremiah 14. Now
here's the prophet's lament all the way down to the end of the
chapter. He says in verse 17, Or look, well, look at verse
15. He says, therefore, thus saith the Lord concerning the
prophets that prophesy in my name, I've sent them not. Yet
they say, sword and famine shall not be in this land. Peace where
there's no peace. By sword and famine shall those
prophets be consumed. And the people to whom they prophesy
shall be cast out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine
and the sword. And they'll have none to bury
them. There's not even gonna be anybody left to bury them. to
hold their funerals, that's what he says, that's how bad it's
gonna be. And their wives nor their sons nor their daughters,
for I will pour their wickedness upon them. Now here's the prophet's
lament, Jeremiah writes, verse 17, therefore thou shalt say
this word unto them, let mine eyes run down with tears night
and day, and let them not cease. For the virgin daughter of my
people is broken with a breach, with a very grievous blow. That's
the title of God's people, the virgin daughter. But you see,
this virgin has been defiled. Defiled by her own adultery,
her own fornication, spiritually speaking. Look at 2 Corinthians
chapter 11. This is the same way that God
looks at His church through Christ. Christ being the husband, and
his church being his wife. And he says in verse 2 of 2 Corinthians
11, listen, and the issue here is false preaching. Hearing and
listening to false preachers. Paul writes in verse 2 of 2 Corinthians
11, For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy. For I have
espoused you to one husband that I may present you as a chaste,
a pure virgin to Christ. but I fear less by any means
as the serpent begot Eve through his subtlety so your mind should
be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. Now that simplicity
has to do with this issue the singularity the singleness you
might say of salvation God's salvation by his free and sovereign
grace in Christ in other words what he's saying that the preacher
who preaches Christ will tell you that everything we are and
everything we have by way of blessedness, salvation, assurance,
peace, glory, everything, life within is all by virtue of one
single person, the Lord Jesus Christ. Not anything else or
anyone else. It's not you plus Christ. It's
not the church plus Christ. It's not your works plus Christ.
It's Christ and Christ alone. Now anybody who seeks to corrupt
your mind away from that is a false preacher. And that's what he
says in verse 4. If he that cometh preacheth another
Jesus whom we've not preached or if you receive another spirit
which you've not received or another gospel which you've not
accepted, you might well bear with me, is what he means there.
That's what it should be. But let me just read these verses.
Look at verse 18 of Jeremiah 14. He said, if I go forth into
the field, then behold the slain with the sword. If I enter into
the city and behold them that are sick with famine, yea, both
the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know
not. The prophet can't save you, the priest can't save you. Religion
can't save you. Hast thou utterly rejected Judah?
Hath thy soul loathed Zion? Why hast thou smitten us, and
there's no healing for us? We look for peace, and there
is no good. And for the time of healing,
behold trouble. You see, this is a people without
Christ, without God. We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness
and the iniquity of our fathers, for we sinned against thee. This
is the prophet's lament now. This is not the people confessing.
This is Jeremiah. And he says, do not abhor us
for thy name's sake. Do not disgrace the throne of
thy glory. Talking about the temple, the
ark of the covenant. Remember, break not thy covenant
with us. Well, God never broke his covenant.
Man breaks the covenant. This is the curses of a broken
covenant, not broken by God. But what Jeremiah is praying
here is God don't leave us. Don't forsake us. In verse 22,
are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause
rain? Are there any of these idols of the Gentiles that can
bring rain, can remedy this situation? Or can the heavens give showers?
Art thou, art not thou he, O Lord our God? God's the only one who
can remedy it. There's only salvation in him.
He says, therefore, we will wait upon thee, for thou has made
all things. In that verse 20, back there,
it says, we acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, there's wickedness,
and the iniquity of our fathers, there's iniquity, for we have
sinned against thee. Every Hebrew word used for sin
is written in that verse right there, wickedness, iniquity,
and sin. And it shows how intense and
how far man will go if left to his own. will go so far. We can't even begin to imagine
how bad it could get. People say, well, man, it's as
worse as it's ever been. We don't even know how much worse
it could get. But that's the point, you see. Without the grace of God in Christ,
that's the only way to go down. But in Christ, there is salvation.