Jeremiah chapter 2. I'm going
to read the first 13 verses together. Jeremiah chapter 2. Moreover,
the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Go and cry in the
ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the Lord, I remember thee,
the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when
thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was
not sown. Israel was holiness unto the
Lord, and the firstfruits of his increase. All that devour
him shall offend, evil shall come upon them, saith the Lord. Hear ye the word of the Lord,
O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel.
Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity have your fathers found in me,
that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity,
and are become vain. Neither, said they, where is
the Lord that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led
us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits,
through a land of drought and of the shadow of death, through
a land that no man passed through and where no man dwelt? And I
brought you into a political country to eat the fruit thereof
and the goodness thereof, but when you entered it, ye defiled
my land, and made mine heritage an abomination. The priests said
not, Where is the Lord? And they that handled the law
knew me not. The pastors also transgressed
against me, and the prophets prophesied by bail, and walked
after things that do not profit. Wherefore, I will yet plead with
you, saith the Lord, and with your children's children will
I plead." or pass over the isles of june and see and sit down
the key dirt and consider diligently and see if there be such a thing
hath the nation changed their gods which are yet no gods but
my people have changed their glory from that which does not
profit be astonished holy heavens at this and be horribly afraid
be very desolate saith the lord For my people have committed
two evils. They have forsaken me, the fountain
of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns,
that can hold the water." Our Father, we come to you in
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is our only hope, our only
right. our only redemption, our only
sanctification, our only wisdom, our only love. Thank you father
for Jesus Christ your son. Oh how you must have loved us
from eternity to give us your son to do what he did for us
as the godman died for us. How unloved and ungodly we are
to know that You loved your people and you provided for your people. And the Holy Spirit is here to
make effectual what you have done for your people. This morning
we give you honor, glory, praise, blessing that only we as in these
finite mortal bodies can. Looking for that day when without
sin and in Jesus Christ we stand before you and be able to give
you that praise and glory and honor that is due your worthy
name. Lord, we pray that you would
bless us here this morning. May your word be effectual to
us. Give us hearing ears to hear. Take me, who is so unworthy,
and use me to speak to us the very word of God, the gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Those of our church family who
will be traveling today and tomorrow, we pray that you would safety
be your weapon on the highways we pray father for those of our
congregation who have special ailments diseases discomforts
lord that you might meet their need might be their strength
and their comfort for we realize that you're all blessed this
morning service in every part of it we pray father that you
would accept our praise or magnification of your name this day. In Jesus'
name we pray. Amen. Turn with me again please to
Jeremiah chapter 2, I want to direct your attention to one
statement in the verses that I read in Jeremiah chapter 2. To me, it is an amazing statement
that God would ask such questions. Jeremiah chapter 2, and look
at it in verse 5. Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity
have your fathers found in me? that they are gone far from me,
and have walked after vanity, and have become vain. For what
iniquity have your fathers found in me?" An unusual question. When we think about the question,
we wonder why God would even ask such a question. If you'll
remember, Adam and Eve, in the garden after they fell, sewed
fig leaves together to cover themselves, which was not a covering
from from God, they were in their nakedness before God and hid
in the trees. And God's voice came in the garden,
they hid themselves, and the Lord said, where art thou? Don't
you think the Lord knew where they were? He certainly did.
Don't you think the Lord knows the answer to this question that
we're reading before us? He certainly does. This question
is, I hope to show you in a little bit, This question is full of
grace, God's grace. You don't see it right off. You
have to think about it a little bit. And unless God reveals it
to you, you'll never see it. But there's grace in these words. What iniquity have your fathers
found in me? Now, the book of Jeremiah from
chapter two through a major part of the first section of Jeremiah
is a scathing review against the sins of a nation. God's chosen
nation from back in the book of Exodus. It's a scathing rebuke
of their sins. But we know that not all Israel
is Israel. Let me show that to you. Turn
with me to Romans chapter 9. Romans chapter 9. Hold your place. We'll come back here in a jiffy
or two. Romans chapter 9. Romans chapter 9, look down at
verse 6, Romans 9. Not as though the word of God
had taken none of that, for they are not all Israel which are
of Israel, neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they
all children, but in Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is,
they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the
children of God. But the children of the promise
are counted for the seed. There is an Israel, Jacob, Israel,
whatever you want to call them. There is an Israel that is a
national Israel. There is an Israel that is a
spiritual Israel. And the spiritual Israel, is
talked about actually in verses 2 and 3 of Jeremiah 2. Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem,
saying, Thus saith the Lord, I remember thee, the kindness
of thy youth, the love of thy espousals, when thou wentest
after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not sown. Israel
was holiness unto the Lord, and the firstfruits of his increase. There's spiritual Israel. There's
what God has done for men. To them were given, according
to Paul, the oracles of God. But because of the hardness of
their heart, because they were stick-necked, because they were
unbelieving, they refused and rejected God's word. And how did this play out? Well,
in Jeremiah 2 verse 13, here's what they did. For my people
have committed two evils. They have forsaken me, the fountain
of living waters, and have hewed at them out cisterns, broken
cisterns, that can hold no waters. Either they were following, coming
to and following the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the fountain of
living waters, or they have hewed themselves out cisterns, trying
to hold some water, but they're broken cisterns, and they can't
hold any water. That's man. That's man in general. We've used the south cisterns.
We've got our ways about us. We've got our ways that are against
the Lord. There is a way that seems right
unto a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death. They committed
these two evils. They complained ten times, the
Lord says in Numbers 14 verse 22. Ten times you have complained,
you have walked in unbelief before me, and for those ten times you're
going to march around in this wilderness and every one of you
are going to die before you get to the promised land but two,
Joshua and Caleb. They made them gods of stone,
wood, and metal. They did what was right in their
own eyes. I think this might be the best
way to come to the Lord. I have my own way. This place
has their own way. Their twelve steps, their ten
steps, their three steps, and on and on they go. And they hew
out their own cisterns, which are broken. And they did that
which was right in their own eyes. They rejected the rule
of God over them. When they got into the land,
they said, give us a king like all the other countries. And
the Lord said, I'll be your king. He told Samuel to tell them that.
I'll be your king. No, we want somebody on the throne
here where we can see him and he can lead us in and out to
battle. They rejected him from being
king. But the true Israelites, Those
to whom God's grace, God's knowledge, God's love, God's salvation was
revealed to the true Israelites, they saw a sovereign electing
God. They saw their need of a savior. They saw their sacrifice. Every
time they brought a sacrifice, sacrificial lamb or gold or bull,
to the Lord, they didn't see just an animal whose blood was
shed and was carved up and put on the brazen and burning altar. They saw salvation was of God. They saw that there would be
a substitute that would take care of all their sins, that
God's wrath of fire would consume They saw that their Redeemer
that paid for all their sins, they saw the satisfaction that
God, it was a sweet smelling savor to the Lord, every one
of these sacrifices. These true Israelites, they love
the grace and mercy of the Lord. These true Israelites have the
Lord God as their king right now. Not someday as for many
years I preached that there will be a millennial kingdom in which
he would reign as a king. No such thing. He is king right
now. This is his millennial kingdom. This is his kingdom, his church,
his people. Right now he is reigning. and they love the fountain of
living waters. Are you thirsting? There's a
fountain of living waters from which you can drink that'll satisfy
your soul because he has already satisfied God the Father. Why would the Lord ask such a
question? Why would men turn their backs
to the Lord? Look at Jeremiah 2 27. Jeremiah 2 verse 27, these people
were saying to a stock, thou art my father, to a stone, thou
hast brought me forth. For they have turned their back
unto me, and not their face. But in time of their trouble
they will say, arise and save us. And if you read on, you'll
find out the Lord says they're not going to be able to save
you. They can't heal, they can't talk. They can't move unless
you move. These gods of the people, they've
turned their backs on the Lord. What would make a man think that
his way is better than God's way? Where's the wisdom of God
in that? You see, man in his own wisdom
has built up his own plan, his own ideas and ideals. What would make a man think that
the Lord is not worthy of any attention? Thus saith the Lord. What iniquity have your fathers
found in me that they are gone far from me? What would make
a man think that the Lord was not worthy of his attention?
What would make a man ignore the things of God? What would
make a man trust in himself rather than God? foolish if you think
about it how foolish that is to think of yourself and trust
in yourself rather than trusting God Almighty what would make
a man accused of God not being fair y'all talk about that election
over there well that's unfair God chose some what about the
others well God didn't have to choose anybody as a matter of
fact everybody is concluded under seen There's none righteous,
no, not one. There's none that doeth good. And if God gave every man what
he deserved, man would die and be damned forever. But that can
be very fast. God the Father, God the Son formed
a covenant. And in that covenant, God chose
the people. The Son of God came to be the
representative of those peoples, and to save his people from their
sin. The spirit of God today is making
that effectual in every one of God's people. Why would a man
think that God is such a wonderful God? Why would the clay speak
back against the powder? Because men bring God down to
their level and think that he's just, he thinks like us, he walks
like us, he talks like us, and so on. But when you read God's
word, and you read it carefully, you'll find out his ways are
not our ways, and his thoughts are not our thoughts. As high
as the heaven is above, so are his thoughts above our thoughts,
and his ways above our ways. Why would the Lord ask such a
question? Verse 5 of Jeremiah 2, Thus saith the Lord, What
iniquity have your fathers found in me? Now the Lord answers his
own question here. The word says, well they've gone
far from me. Your sins are separated between
you and your God, that he will not hear. The Lord Jesus said
to the Jews in the temple in John chapter 5, they will not
come to me that they might have life. They've gone far from me. They walked after vanity, after
empty things, things that don't last, things that don't matter. A husband and wife can get into
a spat. Most of the time, not all the time, but most of the
time, it's over things that really don't matter because two or three
days later, it didn't matter in the first place. Man walks
in his own vanity, the Lord says. He goes after empty, temporal
things. He sets up his gods. But John
said the world passes away and the lusts thereof. This world
is going to be folded up like a piece of clothing. one of these
days as a matter of fact the lord warned them as he as he
speaks here a little bit later he said i brought you into this
land and uh let me see if i can find it again here in chapter
two we just read verse seven and i brought you into a plentiful
country to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof but
when you entered you defiled my land and made my heritage
an abomination. When they were filled, they forsook
the world. They walked away from the world.
When they were filled with all this goodness, they were warned
of this by Moses in Deuteronomy chapter 31. They were warned
of this. We got so filled with the things
of the world. We got so filled with things.
They were like the man who built these barns because his old barns
couldn't handle it all. So he built these barns and filled
them up and then he sat back on his, doesn't say this, but
I think about it, sat back on his rocker on the porch and rocking
back and forth, looking over everything and saying, so take
thy knees. Thou hast much goods stored up
for thee. The Lord came to him that night
and said, this night thy soul, not your goods, thy soul is required
of thee. Then who shall these things be? They became empty. What he says
here in verse 5, they walked in after vanity and they became
vain. They were empty. There was nothing
in them. They were totally depraved. There
was the total inability even to come to the Lord because all
they sought was their things and their darkness and their
ways. And the Lord had said in verse 6, neither said they, where
is the Lord? that brought thee out of the
land of Egypt. They didn't say it. The fathers
didn't say it. The priests didn't say it down
in verse 8. The priests said not. Where is
the Lord? When I think of that phrase,
I think of two prophets walking together. One's going to be taken
up in the glory and said, if you see me go, you can have the
power that you ask for. As they were walking along, that
one prophet, Elijah, took off his mantle, his coat, and laid
it down against the river. The river parted and they walked
across on dry ground. When they got to the other side,
the Lord came down in a fiery chariot, a whirlwind, and whisked
Elijah away into glory. The mantle was laying there.
God didn't take the clothes. God clothed Elijah with His own
righteousness. A white robe he was wearing. Elijah picks up that mantle And
he goes back to the river and he says, where is the Lord God
of Elijah? And he threw the coat down and
the river parted. Where is the Lord that brought
us out of the land of Egypt? Where is the Lord that brought
us out of the land of darkness and evil? Where is the Lord?
And they were asking that question that wasn't on their mind. They
didn't care. They didn't consider it. They
didn't teach their children. and their children's children
the truth of the grace of God that redeemed us from the hand
of the enemy and brought us into the glorious light of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. Where is the Lord? Teach the
children. Overheard in one of our conferences
was a young man that said, I don't know if I really like coming
to all these services because every time I come they say the
same things. Hallelujah. That's all I want
to hear is the grace of God, don't you? It's all I want to
hear is about my Lord. It's all I want to hear is about
what Jesus Christ has done for me, yea brethren, what he did
for the Father so that I can be reconciled unto God. They didn't tell that story.
And you know, the story of them coming out of Egypt is one of
the most told stories in all Scripture. Why is that? Because it's a story of salvation.
It's a story of redemption. It's a story of deliverance.
It teaches us what our Lord did. He brought them out with a strong
arm. He led them with the Shekinah
glory, the cloud by day, the pillar of fire by night. He divided
the Red Sea. He chose their leaders. He provided
food and water for them in the wilderness, even though they
complained. He brought the people to the
promised land. He stopped the River Jordan one
time. He flattened Jericho. He defeated the evil inhabitants
of the land. And he divided the inheritance
among them. But it was a stiff neck, repeatedly
complaining, unbelieving people. And they proved that time and
time. And we say how awful that is.
over my life a little bit, you know what I see? A stiff neck,
repent, complain, unclutter, and I have to repent. Oh, Father,
forgive me, I just don't trust you like I should. Oh, the pride
and arrogance of those who will not come to nor follow our Lord
Jesus Christ. Pride goes before destruction,
haughty spirit goes before a fall, the writer of Proverbs said.
That's just my introduction. Get us ready for three thoughts
from Jeremiah 2 and verse 5. What iniquity have your fathers
found in me? What iniquity have you found
in me? Well the obvious answer to me
as I read that and I think about my Lord, what iniquity have you
found in me? I find none. Nobody found any. There was nothing wrong with
him. Everything was wrong with me. But there was nothing wrong
with my Lord. He was heartless. He was faultless. There was no shadow of turning
with him. He is sinless. Who knew no sin,
Paul said. What iniquity have you found
in me? You won't find any iniquity in him. He's perfect. He's sovereign,
he's holy, he's just, he's the Lord of Righteousness. He mows the clay after his own
purpose. He has his way in everything,
in the armies of heaven, the inhabitants of the earth, and
he has his way in the whirlwinds. He will do as he purposed. He
will do as he pleases. Look at Ephesians chapter 1.
Ephesians chapter 1. After the Lord had revealed to
me the truth of the gospel, I read Ephesians chapter 1 and
I sat there and I thanked him and thanked him and thanked him.
Bless his name for what he said to you. Verse 3. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. according as he hath chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before him in love, having predestinated
us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself according
to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of
his grace, where it is made us accepted in the Lord. Nothing wrong with him. He was
solemn, holy, and just. He's perfect. He's complete.
In him were all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. He's perfect. Everything about him is perfect.
You can't find anything wrong with him. No one of the fathers
spoke from heaven, this is my beloved son, in whom I am well
pleased. And the scripture says he went
about doing good. All his life, that's all he ever
did, was good. What iniquity have I done? Have
you found in me, he asked. There are none. And he did that
in what even Pilate, when examining Jesus, the Jews wanted him to
be crucified. And Pilate cried out to the Jews,
why? What evil has he done? I cannot
find any cause of evil in this man. But God's in his love because
God is love. John says all of God's love is
wrapped up in his son. If you come to God you come in
his son because it's his son that he loves and we get the
benefit of that love through his son. God is love. So because
God is love, God so loved that he gave. And what did he give? His only begotten son. He's the righteous one. He's
the glorious one. He's the holy one. He's the perfect
one who provided a perfect salvation. So now we can say God loves the
ungodly son. But that's all we are. When he
went about seeking whom he may save, what did he find? Good
people? People that are trying their
best? People that are working their way to heaven? No, what
he found was sinners like you and me. God loves the sinner.
The obvious answer is to this question, there's no sin in the
Lord, but there's an exception to that. There's an exception
to that. There on the cross, in Matthew
chapter 27, we'll read it in just a minute. There on the cross,
God turned the lights out for three hours. Matthew chapter
27, turn there with me. The obvious answer, the first
answer we come to is that no iniquity, no sin at all in our
Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew chapter 27 verse 45. This is while Jesus our Lord
is hanging on the cross. Now on the sixth hour there was
darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. That's three
hours. At about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice
saying, That is to say, my God, my God,
why hast thou forsaken me? Glory to Paul in 1 Corinthians
chapter 5 verse 21, he had made him to be sin for us who knew
no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. When we think about it, that
brings even deeper meaning to it, to us. Those who know Jesus Christ,
whom Jesus Christ has been revealed, they see with a space of three
hours, he became every sin that I ever committed, every one that
I would ever commit. He became it all. The Lord made
him to be my sin. for the space of three hours,
and God the Father condemned and judged and pulled out his
wrath on his only begotten son, so much so that the son turns
around and says, my God, my God, why have you seconded me? Because
he was bearing the sins of all his people. He was made a curse
for us, for cursed is every man that hangeth on the tree. He
bore the wrath of God on our sin. And Paul says, this is amazing,
how he died for our sin according to the Scripture. He is the Savior. He is the Deliverer for his people. There he reconciled us to the
Father. He made peace with God. Those
sins of which I have committed and that sin of whom I am, who
I am, Jesus was made to be. God does punish sin, punishes
sin on his own son. He paid the penalty. He's my
redeemer. He bought with his own blood
there on the cross. Now when God looks at me, he
sees his son and looking upon his son, he sees himself. He
sees no path that he can pull out. There's no double jeopardy
with God. Sins are invaluable. Salvation
is done. It's not an offer. It's done. It's not a partnership. It's
done. Jesus Christ did it all for you
and me. What iniquity have you found
in me? He was sinned, who became sin for us. And then I ask the
question, that goes a little bit farther than this, and that
is, I ask the Lord, what iniquity do you find in me? I know who
I am. You get to know me a little bit,
you'll know something of who I am. But God knows me completely. He knows everything about me.
He knows my heart. He knows all about me. And there's
enough evidence in me to condemn the whole earth. to sentence
me to death. Lord, what iniquity have you
found in me?" The children of Israel were traveling through
the wilderness. Balaam, a false mercenary prophet, was called
upon by Balak to prophesy against the children of Israel that were
moving to the sky. So he knew at first, and then
he offered him quite a bit of money, evidently, because he
said, well, I know. So Balak, Balak said, prophesy
against the children of Israel for me. So he said, well I'll
go out and do my sacrifices and then the Lord will talk to me.
You know what the Lord said to him? Turn with me to Numbers
23. Numbers 23. The Lord is speaking
to this false mercenary prophet about Israel. Numbers 23. Numbers 23, verse 21. Now, David said in verse 20, I can't
go past the commandment of the Lord. I can't bless or curse
unless he says so. Verse 21. He hath not beheld
iniquity in Jacob. Well, that's that same group
of Israelites that have complained and complained And some, the
earth opened up and swallowed right into hell. This is that
same group of Israelites that couldn't, that complained and
said it would be better off if we were back in Egypt, eating
those onions, garlics and leeks, than be out here starving in
a wilderness. It was that same group of people. And the Lord
said to Philem, this false mercenary prophet, to tell Philak, I'm
not bound to do anything to any of you people. I said that to
you. Paul said it this way, Romans
chapter 8 verse 1. There is therefore now no condemnation
to them that are in Christ. Where are iniquities not found? In Christ Jesus. Nowhere. Nowhere in Christ Jesus. Isaiah 53 and I believe it's
verse 6. As all we like sheep have gone
astray, we've turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord
hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. Christ came to the sins of his
people. Who is he, Paul says, that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea,
brethren, that is raised again. Who's going to condemn God's
people? Who out there is going to be
able to do it? When God says there's no condemnation,
when God says I find no evil in them, who's going to come
around and condemn them? Jesus Christ paid for the sins
of all his people. His name was called Jesus, for
he shall save his people from their sins. He put away, he purged,
he pardoned our sins. He appeared, according to Hebrews
chapter 9 verse 26, He appeared to put away our sins. Our sins
are under the blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we have forgiveness
of sins. Our sins will never be remembered
against us again. Back in Jeremiah, it is written,
31, 34, and in Hebrews chapter 10, verse 17, I will remember
thy sins. These sins, our sins are cast
as far as the east is from the west, where there is no evening. Our sins have been blotted out
as a thick cloud. Our sins have been cast behind
his back. Four men brought the palsy man
to Jesus. There were so many people outside
the house, they couldn't get in. So these four men climbed
up on the roof, took the roofing apart, and lured this man right
in front of Jesus. Jesus saw their faith, but Jesus
looked at the man, one of his own children, and he said, Thy
sins be forgiven. Ladies and gentlemen, we are
in Jesus Christ. We stand before Him. Who shall
stand before the Lord? God's people. They'll stand before
Him. I want to read a couple of verses
in clothing. What iniquity have you found
in me? In Jesus Christ he sent us. He
was made to be sent for us. Those that are in Jesus Christ
are sent before God. In terms of 2 Timothy, a very
familiar portion of scriptures I want to read. 2 Timothy chapter
1. 2 Timothy 1, verses 9 and 10. Speaking of Jesus Christ, who
has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according
to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which
was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is
now made manifest by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who
has abolished death and has brought life and immortality to life
through the gospel. That's what our Lord has done
for us. Now look at Romans chapter 10. Romans chapter 10, beginning
with verse 9. How do I get to be in Christ
Jesus? How does this come to me? Well,
the word is 90, verse 8. even in thy mouth and in thine
heart, that is, the word of faith which we preach, that if thou
shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe
in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever
believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference
between a Jew and a Greek. For the same Lord over all is
rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they
call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they
believe in him in whom they have not heard? And how shall they
hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sinned? As it is written, How beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace. and bring
glad tidings of good things. By God's grace, that's what I
want you to do this morning. I want you to tell us the good
news. Our Lord and Savior died. And He was the Savior of all
those people. Thank God that He asked the question. What an equity. Our Father, we thank you again
for your work, how precious it is, and especially the person,
Jesus Christ our Lord, how precious he is. And Lord, we call upon
you, oh Lord, if I am not saved, save me now. I need your mercy,
I need your grace, and I know it's all thanks to you. We trust you, we believe in you. In Jesus' name.