Jeremiah's prophecy and the Book of Lamentations serve as a profound call to repentance, highlighting God's unfailing mercies and faithfulness even amidst judgment. The sermon emphasizes that sin's consequences, though severe, are met with God's enduring compassion, illustrated by the manna in the wilderness and the ultimate sacrifice of Christ. It urges listeners to examine their lives, drawing parallels between ancient Israel's unfaithfulness and modern societal issues, and concludes that true hope and completeness are found only in turning to the Lord and experiencing His new mercies each morning.
Restored with Diffio
Audio restored with Diffio. Diffio processed the original archive recording to reduce noise and produce a cleaner listening version; the original stays available.
Speech quality score (model-estimated, SCOREQ): before 2.05 → restored 4.47
Let's look to the Lord in a word of prayer. Our Father, we thank you in the name of thy dear Son, that we have a complete revelation of who you are. For our Lord Jesus could say, He that has seen me, has seen the Father. We thank you that He could say, I am the way, the truth, and the light. No man cometh unto the Father but by me. And we rejoice this morning that we've come. We have tasted. We have seen that the Lord is gracious. And we can therefore say to others, Blessed is the man who trusts in him.
Now, Father, we ask you to abundantly bless every heart gathered before you. Give us something from yourself. Challenge us from your word. Cause thy name to be glorified upon our list. And may it please you, our Father, to speak to each heart. For we pray in the name and for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. I am an American. And I love this country. I have a deep affection for our country.
This land is a land of my birth. I witness for the Lord far more in America than any other place I've ever been. My desire is to see America prosper in every area of her existence, in every way. Jeremiah the Prophet toward Israel like I feel toward America. Jeremiah the prophet loved the land of Israel and he loved the city of Jerusalem. Jeremiah told Israel the truth concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
But they didn't believe him. The religious leaders rejected Jeremiah. and they threw Jeremiah into the pit. They put him in prison. They persecuted the prophet. The Book of Lamentations is a mournful proscript to the Book of Jeremiah. Through the use of five dirges, a dirge is a funeral lament. The writer, Jeremiah, grieved over the faith of Jerusalem because of her sin. But this book contains more than just a backward glance of a vindicated prophet.
Nowhere in the book of Lamentations does the prophet say, I told you so. You never hear him saying that in the book of Lamentations, but rather the book of Lamentations is a mute reminder that sin is in spite of all its allurement and in spite of the barrenness and pain. The Book of Lamentations stands as a warning to us of the other side of the coin.
The one side of the coin says, eat, drink, and be merry. The other side of the coin says, pay day, someday. And the book of Lamentations is a mute reminder of that truth. A.T. Pearson in his work, he speaks of a place where there's a grotto called the Grotto of Jeremiah, where tradition places him on a hill. to the west of Jerusalem outside the city and there he's weeping over it. Jews for years have gone every Sabbath day to the wailing wall and have at the wailing wall they go over the five dirges of the Book of Lamentations.
I had a cup of coffee with a preacher yesterday. I said to him, did you ever preach on the prophet, on the book of Lamentations? He said, never. I agree with him. I've never heard a Bible conference on the book of Lamentations. And I doubt whether you have. But when we come to the destruction of Jerusalem, which is foretold in the prophecy of Jeremiah, and what is foretold in the prophecy of Ezekiel, in its graphic detail, you must come to the book of lamentations which is sandwiched between Jeremiah and Ezekiel and there you see the heart of a man who loved his country who loved his country dearly who warned them of the consequences of their sin but they would not listen so this morning we want to turn to the book of lamentations and we want to read few verses from chapter one and then we're going to read a few verses from chapter three and we're going to meditate on the verses from chapter three there are five dirges each one in a chapter but
the middle chapter to me gives the key to the heart of the prophet lamentations chapter one verse one how does the city sit solitary that was full of people How is she become as a widow, she that was great among the nations, and princes among the provinces? How is she become tributaries? She weep a sore in the night, and our tears are on her cheeks. Among all her lovers, she hath none to comfort her. All her friends have dealt treacherously with her. They are become her enemies. Judah is gone into captivity.
because of affliction and because of great servitude. She dwells among the heathens. She findeth no rest. All her persecutors overlook her between the straits. The ways of Zion do mourn because none come to the solemn peace. All her gates are desolate. Her priests sigh. Her virgins are afflicted. She is in bitterness. Turn to chapter three please in verse twenty two. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed because his compassion fail not.
They are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion saith my soul. Therefore I will hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. May the Lord bless the reading of his word. There are things that we should ever keep before us whenever we think of the nation of Israel. We should think of the call of Abraham, how God called Abraham in Genesis chapter twelve, verses one and two, where he says to Abraham, get thee out of thy country, from thy kindred and from thy father's house.
into a land that I will give thee. And then he describes that land. And what a blessing it is when we think of the call of Abraham. But in relation to Israel, we should also think of the city of Jerusalem. The city of Jerusalem is called the Holy City. In Hebrews chapter eleven and verse ten, it is written of Abraham that Abraham looked for a city that has foundations whose builder and maker is God. And when God's redeemed dwell with him, they're going to dwell in that city called, according to Revelation chapter twenty-one and chapter twenty-two, the new Jerusalem.
But also in Hebrews chapter eleven, verse sixteen, when speaking of Abraham and Sarah, we read that now they desire a better country that is unheavenly. Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, and he hath built for them or prepared for them a city. But also we must remember concerning the nation of Israel, the great catastrophe. Today Israel is out of the land, and they're out of the land because they rejected their Messiah. In Matthew chapter twenty three, the closing verse, our Lord said to the people that were gathered around him, you will not see me henceforth until until ye say blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord and even today while Israel is a nation the Jewish people the Hebrews are scattered abroad throughout the whole earth when our Lord was here on earth he was rejected he was their Messiah as their Messiah he was rejected they
said we will not have this man to reign over us in spite of all his words for never man spake like this man in spite of all his works never man never did anyone do the miracles that he did and you remember the opening words of that man of whom we sang this morning you know a ruler once came to Jesus by night and asked him the way of salvation and life Our Lord, he said to the Lord, no man can do the miracles that you do, except God be with him. It is to him that our Lord said, you need a new heart, for you need to have a second birth, a birth from above, a birth from heaven.
But our Lord, having been rejected by the nation, he wept over the city. He said, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and you stone them that were sent unto you. How often would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chicks under her wings, but ye would not. Our Lord wept over Jerusalem. Jeremiah the prophet wept over Jerusalem. and the greatest tribute to Jeremiah the prophet was given during the days of our Lord in Matthew sixteen.
In Matthew sixteen our Lord had his disciples around him and he said, Whom do men say that I the Son of Man am? Who do they say I am? And he said, Some of them say you're Elijah and some say you're Jeremiah. In other words, The thing that taught standing in Jeremiah's life, he was like the person of Christ. When you read through the book of the Lamentations, there are two great lessons that we must remember. Lesson number one, God's chastening cannot be despised.
Time and again during the days of Jeremiah, God chastened the nation of Israel. before we finally took them into captivity. The second lesson is the theme of the prophecy or the book of the Lamentations. Its theme is the constancy of Jehovah's Law. And you have that in particular in those verses we read from chapter three. In verses twenty two and twenty three we read it is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed. They are new every morning.
His compassion fail not. Great is his faith only. When we think of the mercies of God, and that's what we want to consider this morning, for this is basically, as we're going to show from chapter three, a call to repentance. A call to repentance, even though Israel is in captivity, there is a call from God to repentance. And first of all, we notice the great mercies of God. The mercy of the Lord is available to us under our present trial, no matter what that trial may be. That trial may be to spend almost a month in the hospital, as Mrs.
Mann has been there. Can you imagine almost a month? It's hard to imagine that she's been there that long, but she has. All she's been home in between. I tell you, it's a trial. But the mercies of God are new every morning. His compassion fail not. But the mercies of God are real, whether it's loneliness or bereavement. It can be enough very difficult for many. The mercies of God are there, whether we're suffering because of illness.
And the mercies of God are there, even if there are setbacks in business, or if there's a case of despondency. You see, God's mercies, they never fail. They are new every morning, like the manna that lay upon the dew that Israel took up in the wilderness. It was there. Every morning, the faithfulness of God. But you see, the mercies of God are wonderful because they are not dependent upon our failing characters. Oh, how we fail, but His mercies never do.
God is not like a child. If you're naughty, Daddy will not love you. That's not the God of the Bible. The God of the Bible says, is known for the constancy of his love. His love is a constant thing. And the proof of God's unfailing compassion is the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. We must remember that it was God who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. It was God who so loved the world and gave his Son to be pierced and to be crucified. This is a demonstration of the love and the mercy of God.
When Nicodemus said to the Lord in John chapter three, after our Lord told him, you must be born from above. You must have a second birth to enter the kingdom of God. And he said, how can these things be? The Lord Jesus pointed to the cross. And he said, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. And it was the Lord Jesus who said to his own disciples, Greater love hath no man than this, than a man laid down his life for his friends.
And ye are my friends. Isn't that a great statement? The mouth of the Lord Jesus who is God manifest in the flesh, says to those who are his by divine grace, you are my friend. John chapter fifteen, verse thirteen. And in Romans chapter five, verse eight, the apostle, so Paul says to us in that great epistle, God commended his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinner, Christ died for us. Here's the proof of the unfailing compassion of God for us.
His mercies are new every morning. When you examine the opening verses of the book of Lamentations that we read this morning, the picture is dark, the prophet is weeping, it seems there is no hope. And in a condition of no hope, the God of grace and the God of glory reminds us it is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed. Great is his faithfulness. His mercies are new every morning and his compassion fail not. But then, not only are the mercies of God great, think of the quality of the mercies of God.
the quality of them but before you think of the quality of them think of the quantity of them the scripture says they're new every morning think of God is reminded every morning of everything that I need for the day he's reminded every morning of everything you need for the day and he's reminded every morning of everything every other believer needs for the day And the nice part about it, he's able to mean it all. His compassion fail not. You know, there's something you never get tired of.
You never get tired of the mercies of God. You partake of them day by day whether you're aware of it or not. You enjoy the sunshine. You enjoy the air. You enjoy the food. that He provides. All these things are the mercies of God, and we never get tired of them. But the great mercy of God is that mercy He had on poor sinners in giving His dear Son for us. And the necessity of every day, no matter when it is, it brings new needs. It brings new trials. It brings new duties. But the mercies of God are unfailing.
Oh, the quantity. of the mercies of God. They are there for us. But then think of the quality of them. And when we think of the mercies of God, I have this to say, they don't flow from a stagnant pool. They flow from a fresh, glorious fountain. The mercies of God flow from a fountain. God's dealings with Israel in the wilderness is an excellent illustration. When you think of the manna that he provided day by day, it would take a train load of manna, of bread for everybody when you have a camp of about two and a half million people to feed.
And it was there every morning except on the Sabbath day. And the very fact that there was none on the Sabbath day, but twice as much the day before, is simply amazing. And the Scripture says it was there continuously until, in the book of Joshua chapter five, until the day that they ate the old corn of the land, that day the men ceased, and there never was any sin. Now you talk about the mercies of God. What an illustration of the mercies of God. And when our Lord came to earth, when he fed the five thousand with a little boy's lunch of five barley loaves and two fish, he said in the discourse that followed, I am the bread of life.
He that cometh to me shall never hunger. He that believeth on me shall never thirst. I am the bread that came down from heaven. If a man would eat thereof, he will live forever. Oh, the blessedness, a partaking of the mercies of God, great is his faithfulness. But more than that, when you think of God's, for an illustration, when you think of God's dealings with David, when he had a flee from the hand of King Saul, how the mercy of God protected him time and time again until God's purpose for David was ripe to bring him to the throne.
But I want you to think this morning of the inscription that is given to God. It is written, Great is thy faithfulness. You see, the trials that God permits us to have, they prove the reality of his love. They prove the reality of his mercy and they prove the reality of his faithfulness. The God of the Bible is a faithful God. God is faithful to his people in sending them into captivity. He told them he was going to.
He announced it through Jeremiah. He announced to him that the nation is going to be in captivity in Babylon that they and their city are going to be destroyed so I read in Romans four verse twenty one what God promises he is able to perform what God promises he is able to perform Jeremiah in faithfulness experienced the faithfulness of God continually in his lifetime it's interesting when you study the life of Jeremiah reading through his prophecy it's only fifty two chapters and it's easy reading it's delightful reading the way in which God protected Jeremiah you know there's one time and a number of times when God told Jeremiah to hide himself they're going to take him But there was one time that God didn't tell Jeremiah.
And so the scripture says God hid Jeremiah. And I want to tell you when God hides a man, nobody else is going to find him. And we sing occasionally as believers talking about the faithfulness of God. The last stanza of that hymn, hidden in the hollow of his blessed hand, never full consigned. Never trade or stand. Stayed upon Jehovah. Hearts are fully blessed. You see, therefore, in the midst, beloved, of the dirges in this book, the prophet, issues of call to repentance.
In the midst of it all, and I ask you now in chapter three to read with me beginning at verse forty, Elementations chapter three, verse forty, where he says, Let us search and try our ways and turn again to the Lord. You see, the message of Jeremiah didn't change because Jerusalem fell. His message was still the same. His prophecy was a call to repentance. And now as he weeps over the city because of the judgment that has come upon it, His message has not changed. So he says in verse forty, Let us search and try our ways and turn again to the Lord.
Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens. We have transgressed and have rebelled. Thou hast not pardoned. Thou hast covered with anger and persecuted us. Thou hast slain. Thou hast not pity. Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud that our prayer should not pass through. Thou hast made us as the offscarring and refuse in the midst of the people. All our enemies have opened their mouths against us. Fear and a snare has come upon us, desolation and destruction. Mine I runeth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
Mine I tricketh down and ceaseeth not without any intermissions. Till the Lord looks down and beholds from heaven, Mine I affecteth my heart. That's a great text. Mine I affecteth my heart. Because of the daughters of my city. God calls Israel to repent. Let us search and try our ways. That brings us this morning to application number one. And application number one is this.
There are parallels between Jeremiah's day and our day. I love this country. It hurts me to see the direction in which our country is going. And I have to ask myself a question this morning. for our text where we began reading in verse forty says let us search and try our ways and turn again unto the Lord Jeremiah was no different after the destruction came than he was before his message remains the same and therefore in the searching of my own heart I must ask myself the question am I as a believer living as a believer or am I living like the people of the world?
Do my neighbors know what I believe? Would my neighbors expect me to be a person who loves the Word of God and whose life is directed by the Word of God? How am I living? You know it's a very interesting thing. We are living in days when America is acting like Sodom and Gomorrah. But God did not judge Sodom and Gomorrah because of homosexuality. Most people think they did. But the homosexuality of Sodom and Gomorrah was a byproduct of other sins.
Other sins. And I invite you to turn to the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel chapter sixteen. It's the next book in the Old Testament. Ezekiel chapter sixteen. And we'll just begin reading at verse forty-nine. For we read of a number of sins. And I want you to notice them. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom. pride. Fullness of bread.
Plenty to eat. Third, abundance of idleness. There's plenty of idleness in this country. We love our long weekend. What are we doing with our time? Abundance of idleness. Move on. Neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
Do we really care for others? And finally, verse fifty says, And they were haughty and committed abomination. And you see, the committing of abomination is because of the other sins. In my idleness, do I live differently than the world? I love this country. And the only thing that's going to save America, beloved, The only thing is a return to the Lord and a genuine revival. A revival that causes God's people to put first things first and determine their priorities.
Nothing else will do it. That's all that Jeremiah asked of the people. And that would be God's message to us today. Application number two. Jeremiah reminds us, as he calls us, to repent. That God is faithful. And his mercies are new each morning. If you read Ezekiel chapter thirty-five, God says to the nation of Israel, Ezekiel is in the land of Babylon. with the captives by the river Kibar, and he's ministering to them there. And there he says to them, God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked.
But that they turn from their iniquity, turn ye, turn ye, why will you die, saith the Lord. God is a pardoning God. His mercies are new every morning, and his faithfulness is great. I had a friend who was a lot older than me in the city of Lebanon, Pennsylvania. His name was Isaiah M. Klopp. And Mr. Klopp is a believer. He also owned a Lebanon hardware store. And we talked on a number of occasions. And I remember one day he told me that he had been to Ocean City, New Jersey to the Bible Conference there.
And there's a man lived in Ocean City, New Jersey by the name of Thomas O. Chisholm. And if you know anything about music, Thomas O. Chisholm wrote that hymn, Great is thy faithfulness. O God, my Father, there is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not in thy compassion for thee fail not. As thou hast been, thou forever will be. He said, I went over to see you, Mr. Chisholm. And while we were talking together over the things of the Lord, I said to him, You know, I believe that's your greatest hymn.
Well, Chisholm said to him, You know, I think I wrote one that I like better. It's called Only in thee. It's a great hymn. Only in thee, O Savior, mine. Develop my soul in peace, divine. peace that the world, though all combined, never can take for me. Pleasures of earth, so seemingly sweet, fail at the last my longing to meet. Only in thee, my bliss is complete, only, dear Lord, in thee. And I love the last stanza of that hymn, Only in thee, dear Savior slain, losing thy life my own to gain trusting i'm cleansed from every stain thou art my only please now friends the answer is the person of christ god's message remains the same his compassion failed on his mercies are new every morning may
god enable us as these people to so live and demonstrate that we're aware of his mercy and we know something of his faith on us. One question. Is your bliss complete this morning? You'll find only completeness of bliss in the person of God's dear Son. Knowing him as the Lord and Savior, there isn't any other place. Let's pray together. Oh God, our Father, as we come to the close of this meeting this morning, I thank you for thy mercy, thy compassion.
They never fail. And we thank you that you have no pleasure in the death of the wicked. but that the wicked turn and you cry out to men, turn you, turn you. Why will you die? And we ask our God that you will take this word and do what Jeremiah said. Let us search our heart and try our ways. And we pray that this may be the exercise of our heart as we leave today. And now our Father, We commend His company to these and to the word of your grace, that He's able to build them up and give them an inheritance among all that are sanctified through Jesus Christ the Lord.