That's just our opening text. There'll be many others that'll
come before us today. But here we have these words,
Lamentation 3, 22 and 23. It is of the Lord's mercies that
we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. What a passage of scripture. Now, let me begin by saying this
is another case. This is another example. where
the text will be much clearer in our mind if we consider two
things. Number one, consider the book
in which it is found, and then consider its context in that
book that we have read from this morning. It is called Lamentation,
the book of Lamentation. And it is not questioned that
the author is the prophet Jeremiah. That Jeremiah is the author of
this book called Lamentation. And you notice that it is placed
in the scripture following the book of Jeremiah. Now the name, the name itself,
lamentation is understood by expositors in two ways. By some, it is understood to
signify the word how. How? And they do that because
of the opening verse. Chapter 1 and verse 1, how does
the city sit solitary that was full of people? How is she become
a widow She that was great among the nations. But more commonly
is the book referred to under the title of Lamentation. And as they say, from the subject
material that is found in it. Lamentation. And what was the
situation and the condition that the prophet looked out upon? Well, the answer is it was the
awful and the dreadful condition of their city at the hand of
the army of the Chaldean, that Jeremiah laments the state, both
of the civil and of the ecclesiastical situation in his day. when he
saw, quote, the state of Zion, unquote. The solemn feasts that
God had ordained were not kept. The priests were inactive as
to their duty. The gates of the city were broken
down and lay in disrepair. The Sabbath days were not observed
as they ought to be, and the former glory of the city and
of the nation had faded, and their temple that they so revered
was polluted by the hands of the enemy. Matthew Henry, who
was a commentator of centuries gone by, called lamentation the
funeral of Jerusalem. For not only was it a sad sight
for the prophet of God to behold, but to know that it was on account
of the sin and the rebellion of the people. The city sat in
ruin, but it was as a judgment for the sin and the rebellion
of the people. There's that passage in Psalm
137 and verse 1, when they were in captivity and they cried and
they lamented. Yea, we sat by the rivers of
Babylon, sat we down. Yea, we wept when we remembered
Zion." Unquote. It is sad. It is sad to see the
old paths forsaken wherein is the good way as Jeremiah reminded
us in chapter 6 and verse 16. yet only they who remember the
old ways pine for the old ways when they are gone. I think we
could make a parallel here just for a minute. A somewhat similar
situation exists drawn from the state of our beloved nation of
America today. How she too has left the old
paths of the father, how Christianity is eaten up with deism in our
day, most that is called Christianity is little better than deism,
and how it has been invaded by the anti-Christian religion of
the world. Churches today are embracing
Islam instead of the gospel of our Lord. And the preachers and
the politicians are so many of them corrupt, yea, and we weep
when we see how far she has fallen. And yet, so many are denying
that the hand of God's judgment is heavy and upon us. And they would echo, I think,
the people of our nation, would echo the impudence of those in
Malachi. When charged, they said, wherein
have we despised thy name? Wherein have we polluted thy
table and thine altar? Wherein have we robbed thee? Wherein have we spoken so many
stout things against thee? And so we see a parallel. But if we might make a connection
between the two writings, the book of Jeremiah and that of
Lamentation, that in Jeremiah, as you read through it very carefully,
there are to be found the prophet again and again, charging the
people with the guilt of their transgression and their sin,
and predicting unto them a coming calamity upon their city and
upon their temple and upon their commonwealth, and predicting
their captivity in the place of Babylon. John Gill, another
old-timer, noted that a prophet of God, Jeremiah, actually lived
to see the fulfillment of that prophecy of the carrying away
into captivity. And some good expositors say
that Jeremiah himself was carried away among the captive down in
the land of Babylon. But now coming to our text and
the third chapter where the prophet of God actually tempers his stern
rebukes and his strong censures of them with reminders of the
mercy and the faithfulness of their covenant God who had called
them and established them. And he reminds them of how they
ought to make use of that situation, that God is merciful, that he
is faithful in all things, and they ought to consider the providence
of God in so dealing with them. This is something people do not
do much today. They do not consider the providence
or the hand of God in the matters of family, individual, nation,
and such like. But coming then to verse 22 and
verse 23. We will take note here of some
of the grounds of comfort, then we will go make some general
applications of the matter of God's dealing, and then we will
come back again to consider the words of the prophet in our text. We notice first of all that he
mentions three things here in this passage that we have read.
Three things that are intended to be a source of comfort unto
the captives and they that moan under the heavy load of Babylon. Number one, look at verse 22. Mercies, the first thing that
are mentioned, mercies. The Lord's mercy. I know there's
some that would render it loving kindnesses. The loving kindnesses
or the mercy of God. And something about this word
mercy as it is used in the Old Testament and that repeatedly. Here it is in the plural form
if we might notice it. the mercies of God. Not mercy, but mercies of God. And it would call to mind the
multiple mercy that God had showered upon them in the course of their
history. I found a footnote in the Geneva
Bible at Genesis chapter 36 and verse 5 that it calls mercy a
special word in the Hebrew. In the Hebrew this word mercy
is a special word signifying that loving devotion in which
God binds himself unto his people. The mercies of God the loving-kindness
and especially that he binds himself toward his covenant people. And this word mercy is so frequent
and common particularly in the Psalms as you might notice in
reading. Now the second thing that we
notice here is is the word compassion. His compassion. They fail not. They never fail. Neither from
purpose or from time do the compassions of our God fail. And the word
might be rendered or expressed to compassionate that God does
compassionate upon those that are his people. He has compassion
upon them. And then the third thing that
we might notice is faithfulness. The faithfulness of God. Great
is thy faithfulness. Now, in looking up this word,
you will find that it has such meanings as established, it has
the meaning of firmness, it has the meaning of stability. How stable, how firm. is the faithfulness of our great
God. Now, I know that these are but
part, these three things, of the many benefits which are showered
upon the people that the Lord delights to show His favor. And again, especially and particularly
the covenant people of God. Now I'd like to go to the New
Testament for a little bit and consider there the great attributes
and blessings of God that are toward those that are in Christ
Jesus. We notice in Ephesians 1 and
verse 7 how Paul expresses it. the riches of his grace, the
richness of the grace of God. In Ephesians 3 and verse 8, the
unsearchable riches of Christ. Notice how he embellishes that. The unsearchable, the past finding
out riches of Christ. Back in Ephesians 1-6, the glory
of his grace. But I would like for us to part
for a bit at Romans chapter 11 and verse 33, along in there. Romans 11 and verse 33. Oh, the depths of the riches
of the wisdom and the knowledge of God, how unsearchable are
his judgments and his ways past finding out. Now, something here
in Romans chapter 11, for just a bit, let us take a look. And let us isolate those few
words that we read or referred to, how unsearchable his judgments. Now think about that and let
it soak in. How unsearchable are his judgments? And the trailing words that follow
that, and his ways past finding out. Look at it. Oh, don't let
it escape. How unsearchable is the judgment
of God and his ways past finding out. Now let's ask ourselves
the question, what is Paul saying here? And why is he saying it? Well, to answer that, it is here
that Paul is closing out the doctrinal section of the Roman
epistle. And it is here that he will transition
to the practical duty and behavior of those that are called in accordance
with the purpose of God. Now before leaving the doctrinal
section, however, he puts forth here in this verse a short doxology. Now a doxology, of course, is
a short song or poem of hymn or praise or thanksgiving unto
God. as he would have his readers
now to stop and to contemplate the things said earlier in the
parts of this grand Roman epistle, which are thee, the manner of
justification, my, the work of God in justification. And Paul has discussed it at
length in this epistle. He discusses those somber doctrines
of election and reprobation. He lays before them the sovereignty
of God. He lays before them chapters
9, 10, and 11, God's special dealing with the Jew and the
Gentile, how one is cut off and the other is grafted in, contrary
unto nature, and yet God is able to graft them in again. And Paul
would have them to look upon these things and say, how unsearchable
are his judgment and his ways past finding out. And then look
at the text, Romans 11. Paul uses such phrases as the
deepness of the divine wisdom and knowledge of God. His unsearchable
judgment and his ways that are past finding out. It is as if
the apostle were overwhelmed with the truth that he had set
forth as he stops to contemplate and meditate upon them. His mind is filled with wonder
at the wisdom and the knowledge with which God has guided his
purpose. and the ordering of his providence
so that it fulfills the purpose that God has purposed in himself
before the world. And Paul puts forth such questions
as these. Look at verse 34 then and verse
35. Who has known the mind of the
Lord? Now in thinking of that, I would
that you make a reference or jot down Job 15 verse 8 and Isaiah
chapter 40 verse 13 and verse 14 that you might study along
this line. And then the question, who has
been his counselor? Who Counsel the Lord in all of
these things and in all of these ways. And the answer expected,
of course, is none. Nobody. No creature whatsoever. None can know his mind. None can become his counselor
or his advisor. He sought not the counsel of
any, neither of angel or of men, in determining his purpose. Now
there are two sorts of the things of God that we want to distinguish
and keep in our mind concerning His way, His truth, and His essence. First of all, according to Deuteronomy
chapter 29 and verse 29, the secret things belong unto the
Lord our God, but those things revealed belong unto us and our
children forever that we may do all the works of thy law,
unquote. Now, note if you would, secret
things in that passage. Those secret things. And on the
other hand, those things that are revealed. Those things that
are secret, not revealed. And those things that are revealed. None can know more of God than
he reveals. And none can know more of the
way of God than he revealed. And some things, according to
Moses, are secret. And some things about God are
so unfathomable and beyond our comprehension, and they lay forever
the mind of God and cannot be known or found out by any other
but again how unsearchable his judgment back at Romans 11 and
verse 33 Now, the word judgment here, which is translated in
our scripture, I understand, is the word crema, his ways past
finding out, where the word ways is the word, I think, hados,
like a road or a route, a distance, a highway, a way to travel. And you may see it translated
in the New Testament as highway and as journey, occasionally,
at least in the King James version of the scripture. His way, his
journey, or his highway, or past finding out. The word crema may
be used in a two-fold sense, I believe, from studying and
from researching it. First of all, as judgment, condemnation
or judgment. And secondly, the word may be
used as a decision or to distinguish or to decide or to decree. On this, I received the counsel
of some men of old that I often read, John Brown, John Murray,
John Gill, among others, that his judgment and his ways here
may refer to the decisions and the determination and to his
providential guiding and dealing with the human family. John Murray
put it like this, the diverse providences by which his decorative
will is executed, unquote, his judgments or determination from
his eternal decisions or determination. Literally, God's plan of procedure
that he has formulated. Those things that are hidden,
but determined in himself, but hidden also in himself. They hid in his own mind the
manifold wisdom of God, which he purposed in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 3, verse 10 and 11. And the point could well be made.
The judgments of God are unsearchable. His ways pass finding out. And listen to me, not just from
our ignorance or from our cornality, though it is a factor in it,
of course. But his ways are past finding
out. And as John Brown said, the idea
of any created intelligent comprehending the variety and the extent of
the divine design is past our finding out, unquote. In Job 26 and verse 14, The man said, these are but part
of his way. How little a portion of him is
heard. The thunder of his power, who
can understand? Men have contemplated this great
question from of old. Again, in Job 11 and verse 7
through verse 9, we find there that Zophar, one of Job's friends,
taunts Job. He taunts Job saying, can you
by searching find out God? Can you find out the Almighty
unto perfection? It is higher than the heaven.
What can you do? It is deeper than hell. What then can you know? In Psalm 139 and verse 6, when
David considered the omniscience and the omnipresence of God as
they related to himself, David, the man, he exclaimed this. Such knowledge is too wonderful
for me. It is too high. I cannot attain
unto it." The words of David in contemplating the way and
the work of God. David, in effect, says, like
Paul, this overwhelms me. It is beyond my comprehension. It's too lofty for my understanding. It taxes my imagination to the
very end. Spurgeon said this of the words
of King David, quote, it seems to be above me, even if I soar
into the loftiest regions of my spiritual thought. David is
having that feeling and that thought. Let us remember also,
this is not in the form of a complaint from David on his part whatsoever. And such a God as cannot be found
out is not a detriment to us but is a benefit and a blessing. David is not complaining and
he's not saying that it is a detriment, that he cannot understand all
of God's way. It was a man called James W. Alexander who wrote in 1860,
quote, a religion without mystery would be a religion without God,
unquote. A religion without mystery would
be a religion without God. If you could figure it all out,
it would not be a mystery and he would not be the great God.
For who by searching can find out God. So Paul also is overwhelmed
by the thought of the greatness of the magnitude of God Almighty
and the unsearchableness of his being and of his works. Now if
we might go back to the book of Lamentation chapter 3 verse
22 and verse 23 where in all of the gloom and the misery the
suffering and the agony of their then present situation in captivity
the prophet or rather God by the prophet allows a ray of light
to shine through. A break in the gloom and a sunbeam
is seen. That is bad as things were. They were not as bad as they
might be, nor were they as bad as their sins deserved to be
upon them. They were not consumed. God did not make an end of them
and the fountain of his mercy was not shut off altogether. He might have cast them away.
He might have cast them off completely. if only their sin was to be considered
in the matter. But God, says the prophet, is
faithful to his word, to his promise, and to his covenant. He is faithful that promised,
the author of Hebrews said, chapter 10 and verse 20. He is faithful
that has promised. And even then, as their city
lay in ruin and they were under oppression. Yet the mercy of
God toward them was not at an end. When God cuts them off,
it would not change his purpose if he did, but would be according
to his eternal purpose, which he purposed in Christ Jesus before
the foundation of the world. Again, why were they not consumed? Why were they not consumed, and
why comforting words were sent? God's mercy, God's compassion,
and God's faithfulness. Was it because they were obedient
and faithful unto God? Was it because they had repented
and put away their old days? Was it because they honored the
Lord and walked in His way? Nay, no, nada. It is of the Lord's mercies that
we are not consumed. They are or were indeed consumable,
that is, the people and the nation were. They were not indestructible
as to their being. And our God is a consuming fire,
we remember from Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 29. But by his mercy
were they not consumed. Now, many perished during that
time, but not everyone and not all. They were not consumed,
utterly destroyed by God's judgment upon them. Now, I think to bring
this matter home to our own heart and to our own time and situation,
I think that there are many of God's people, those who call
themselves God's people and say they are of a Christian persuasion
that are surprised that America, in all of her sin, has not been
more harshly judged or consumed. I think that we are right for
judgment. Our cup of iniquity is certainly full. And indeed,
some of us see the hand of God's judgment upon our nation. But these are things which the
secularists among us attribute to other causes. They do not
attribute them to the judgment of God or the hand of God. They attribute them to other
causes. Or they call it Mother Nature.
Or they say it's because of overpopulation. Or it's because of global warming. Or it's because we have abused
Mother Earth and such like. Plus, the humanistic and the
deistic portion of Christianity who are saying, God is not a
vengeful God. God takes no hand in the affairs
of men, nor pours out his judgment upon the object of his love. But in God's sovereign mercy,
there is still some gospel truth to be heard in our land. Thank God for it. Even though
much of the opposition to the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
comes from our own house. A man's enemy shall be they of
his own house. Others who claim that they are
Christian, some of them are the biggest enemies of the gospel
of our Lord. Let's go to Isaiah's time, chapter
1, and the prophet declares the extent and the incorrigibility
of the people in their sin. You'll find that, chapter 1,
verses 1 through 8 then in verse 9 chapter 1 of Isaiah Isaiah
said except the Lord had left us a remnant we should have been
as Sodom and Gomorrah except the Lord had had kept a remnant
among us, we should be in like Sodom and Gomorrah, destroyed,
reduced, down unto nothing. Ah yes, a remnant, as in Noah's
ark. A remnant was preserved. A remnant
was taken out before the flood came. A remnant was snatched
out of Sodom before the fire and the brimstone destroyed it. A remnant on the cross as one
of those thieves was saved. A remnant in Elijah's time. I have reserved 7,000 that have
not bowed the knee unto Baal. A remnant of Jews in Paul's day,
a remnant in our time, a few among the mixed multitude, by
the riches of his mercy, who have not bowed the knee to Baal
or kissed an idol, have been reserved unto God. Can we hear
it again? It is of the Lord's mercy that
we are not consumed. This is true of individuals as
well as it was of the nation of Israel. God made covenant
with Israel. He is peculiar people and He,
their God. He preserved them when they were
like a little newborn baby. Cast out in the open field as
we see that parable in Ezekiel chapter 16 What a wonderful picture
of Israel cast out as a little infant and left there to die
He preserved them. He delivered them when they were
enslaved and the bondage of Egypt and yet they sinned again and
again and again going after strange God and committing spiritual
whoredom. Now as for the human family,
God vowed that he would never again smite every living thing
as he did in the days of the flood. Genesis 8 and verse 21. For then would he be smiting
in every generation because he said man is evil from his youth
up. Every generation is evil. As for Israel, He said it is
of the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed said the prophet
Malachi Malachi chapter 3 and verse 6 I am the Lord the word
is Jehovah I change not Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Now this verse is found as to
its context in Malachi among those many charges made against
the nation of Israel for their sin. both the people and their
religious leader. The prophet speaks of the immutability
of God. Malachi 3, 6, I change not. But not just the immutability
of his nature, though this is a truth, but the immutability
of his purpose, of his decree, of his promise, and such like. Thus, his immutability, his faithfulness
goes beyond being just an essential property of his nature, though
it is certainly an element of his nature being an attribute
of God. But in so many texts, His immutability
is applied not only to his being and to his essence, but also
to those things that he has decreed and that he has promised, that
he will fulfill his purpose and accomplish His will. And in such
things, His immutability stands not alone. For His power and
His wisdom are engaged to serve the immutability of God. The immutability of His purpose,
as well as His providence, is ordered to fulfill and to serve
the will and the purpose of God. Now, there is an appointed or
a fullness of time, Acts 1 and verse 7. The time and the season
which the father hath put in his own hand, and no one is able
to search that out. Now still, in time of trouble,
and perplexity the heart may wonder as did the psalmist. I
want to turn to Psalm 77 and read three verses for our consideration. Psalm chapter 77 and they are
verses 7 through verse 9 of that passage of the scripture. Psalm
77 and verse 7 through verse 9. Will the Lord cast off forever? Will he be favorable no more? Is his mercy clean gone forever? Does his promise fail forevermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his
tender mercies? Selah. Think of that. Pause and
think of it. The psalmist corrects himself
in verse 10 and following. Saying his mercy, no, it is not
clean gone forever. Goodwin the Puritan wrote, any
and everything short of hell is mercy. If one is both out
of Christ and not in hell, it is a mercy, counted as a mercy
of God. Jeremiah said, great is thy faithfulness. He is faithful, that promise. Romans 11 29, the gifts and the
calling of God are without repentance. Now I'd like to close by saying,
I think that moderns, people and preachers in our day, Bible
teachers and such like, err upon two points in regard to God,
man, and the Bible. Number one, they err on the true
extent of human depravity. The half has never been learned
or has never been told. They do not believe that man
is as depraved as he is painted in the scripture. Number two,
they do not believe or preach the inflexible holiness and justice
of God Almighty. They do not have a proper view
of man and they do not have a biblical view of God. I'd like to say
that over. They do not have a biblical view
of man, they do not have a biblical view of God, and therefore it
has tainted everything that they preach about man and that they
preach about God. But like our text said, great
is thy faithfulness, His grace cannot fail. His purposes cannot
fall to the ground. God said, I purposed it. I will
do it in that passage in Isaiah. Thank God in our trouble, our
trial, our sicknesses. Yes, in all the tribulations
of this world, we can say it is of the Lord's mercies. That
is not worse. His compassions fail not. They
are new every morning like the dew from heaven and the rising
of the sun. And great is the faithfulness
of our God. Thank God that it is so.