Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. Jeremiah is generally referred
to as the weeping prophet. The message of Jeremiah falls
on completely deaf ears to a generation which has been lulled to sleep
by those who preach peace, peace, when there is no peace. The present
generation, for the most part, would define Jeremiah as ineffective
and out of touch, since they have been taught to believe that
one should only entertain positive thoughts and promote inspirational
teaching, which is designed to uplift the hearers rather than
convict of sin. Most churches today are more
interested in making folks feel good about themselves and keeping
them entertained than in delivering the stark and naked truth of
God. Jeremiah faced much the same thing in his own day as
the religious leaders of his time promoted idolatry and assured
the inhabitants of Jerusalem that brighter days were ahead.
Jeremiah could clearly see the certainty of approaching judgment
as the Lord told him that there was no doubt that the Chaldeans
under Nebuchadnezzar were going to completely destroy their city.
The prophets of false peace ridiculed his negativity and scoffed at
such a sourpuss. Paul said we are saved by hope,
yet it is hope that we have not yet completely obtained nor observed
in a tangible way. We yet wait for that which we
hope for, though at the present time we can't see it, nor can
we say we possess it. Even as Paul said, brethren,
I count not myself to have apprehended. This is the very conflict of
hope which is present in those sheep whom the Lord has awakened
and calls to believe the gospel. Now faith is the substance of
things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Jeremiah
expressed this very conflict in Lamentations 3.18 when he
says, my strength and my hope is perished from the Lord. He
was stripped naked and bare and was convinced of the folly of
trusting in anything he could either see or call his own. Yet
he goes on to declare in verse 24 of the same chapter, The Lord
is my portion, saith my soul, therefore will I hope in him.
He expresses that though he has no hope which can be seen, yet
he has great hope in him whose mercy is new every morning, whose
compassions fail not. The modern-day soul winners have
reduced salvation to a formula, which if a man follows and fills
in the blanks, he can know that he has saved beyond a shadow
of a doubt. Many of these converts can tell you the day and the
hour when they were saved. This type of assurance is fine
for those who are free from the conflict of hope and who are
content to base their salvation upon some activity which they
have performed. Such assurance is of no value
at all, however, to the man who is convinced that salvation is
of the Lord. When told to believe, he confesses
with tears like the man with the lunatic son, Lord, I believe,
help thou mine unbelief. He doesn't claim to have the
answers, but he is certain who the one is who does possess both
the questions and their answers. Even as Peter confessed, Lord,
to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal
life, and we believe and are sure that Thou art that Christ,
the Son of the living God. This is a hope which is not seen,
but is nonetheless that which those who have been given the
gift of faith by the Spirit of God wait for with patience, and
cannot be deterred. O sweet conflict which can occur
only by the operation of him whose mercy is new every morning,
and whose compassions fail not! Great is thy faithfulness! It
is so sweetly true as Jeremiah declared, the Lord is good unto
them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is
good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation
of the Lord. This is the patience of the saints.
To whom else can they turn? Upon what else can they be made
to trust? And now, Lord, what wait I for?
My hope is in thee. I wait for the Lord, my soul
doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the
Lord more than they that watch for the morning. I say more than
they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord there is great mercy, and with him is plenteous
redemption. Our Jesus is the God of hope.
He works it by his power. It holds the weak believer up
in the distressing hour. The darkest cloud hope pierces
through and waits upon the Lord, expects to prove that all is
true throughout the sacred word. True hope looks out for blessing
great, and though they're long delayed, yet hope's determined
still to wait until they are conveyed. The outwardly religious
man can never be satisfied with a hope that is not seen, and
the man who is awakened by the Lord cannot find satisfaction
in one which is. While the man of religion is
bold in all of his assertions concerning faith, the little
child of grace is often viewed as timid and weak, and thusly
despised by the wise and prudent moralists. What is your hope? If you would like a free transcript
of this broadcast, email us at forthepoor at windstream.net.