You’re Invited! Leviticus Introduction

Posted on July 19, 2025 by dkoop

You’re invited to our new series in Leviticus: Lambs, Levites and Laws.

Description:  Leviticus is one of the most controversial and misunderstood books of the bible. Leviticus is a book about how God’s people can be holy or set apart.  Because the book is full of so many laws we have to consider, should we follow all these laws today?  And if not, why don’t we follow them?  What does it mean to live a life that is “set apart” for God?  We will examine these issues in our series “Lambs, Laws and Levites”

Dates Titles            Scriptures                                                                

July 20 – Which O.T. Laws Apply Today? (intro & overview)

July 27 – Holy, Holy, Holy (Lev. 11, 19 and various)                     

Aug. 3 – Understanding the Feasts and Festivals (Lev. 23)

Aug. 10– Love Your Neighbor as Yourself (Lev. 19)

Introduction: 

“God seems so far away … if only I could see or hear him.” Have you ever felt this way—struggling with loneliness, burdened by despair, riddled with sin, overwhelmed by problems? Made in God’s image, we were created to have a close relationship with him; thus, when fellowship is broken, we are incomplete and need restoration. Communion with the living God is the essence of worship. It is vital, touching the very core of our lives. Perhaps this is why a whole book of the Bible is dedicated to worship. After Israel’s dramatic exit from Egypt, the nation was camped at the foot of Mount Sinai for two years to listen to God (Exodus 19 to Numbers 10). It was a time of resting, teaching, building, and meeting with him face to face. Redemption in Exodus is the foundation for cleansing, worship, and service in Leviticus.
The overwhelming message of Leviticus is the holiness of God—“You must be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy” (19:2). But how can unholy people approach a holy God? The answer—first sin must be dealt with. Thus the opening chapters of Leviticus give detailed instructions for offering sacrifices, which were the active symbols of repentance and obedience. Whether bulls, grain, goats, or sheep, the sacrificial offerings had to be perfect, with no defects or bruises—pictures of the ultimate sacrifice to come, Jesus, the Lamb of God. Jesus has come and opened the way to God by giving up his life as the final sacrifice in our place. True worship and oneness with God begin as we confess our sin and accept Christ as the only one who can redeem us from sin and help us approach God.
In Leviticus, sacrifices, priests, and the sacred Day of Atonement opened the way for the Israelites to come to God. God’s people were also to worship him with their lives. Thus we read of purity laws (chapters 11–15) and rules for daily living, concerning family responsibilities, sexual conduct, relationships, worldliness (chapters 18–20), and vows (chapter 27). These instructions involve one’s holy walk with God, and the patterns of spiritual living still apply today. Worship, therefore, has a horizontal aspect—that is, God is honored by our lives as we relate to others.
The final emphasis in Leviticus is celebration. The book gives instructions for the festivals. These were special, regular, and corporate occasions for remembering what God had done, giving thanks to him, and rededicating lives to his service (chapter 23). Our Christian traditions and holidays are different, but they are necessary ingredients of worship. We, too, need special days of worship and celebration with our spiritual brothers and sisters to remember God’s goodness in our lives.
As you read Leviticus, rededicate yourself to holiness, worshiping God in private confession, public service, and group celebration.

Vital Statistics

Purpose: A handbook for the priests and Levites outlining their duties in worship, and a guidebook of holy living for the Hebrews

Author: Moses

Original Audience: The people of Israel

Date Written:  1450–1410 B.C.

Where Written: In the wilderness during Israel’s wanderings, somewhere in the Sinai peninsula

Setting: At the foot of Mount Sinai. God is teaching the Israelites how to live as holy people.

Key Verse: “You must be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy” (19:2).

Key People: Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, Ithamar

Key Place: Mount Sinai

Special Feature:
Holiness is mentioned more times (152) than in any other book of the Bible.

Outline: 

A. WORSHIPING A HOLY GOD (1:1–17:16)
1. Instructions for the offerings
2. Instructions for the priests
3. Instructions for the people
4. Instructions for the altar
God provided specific directions for the kind of worship that would be pleasing to him. These instructions teach us about the nature of God and can help us develop a right attitude toward worship. Through the offerings we learn of the seriousness of sin and the importance of bringing our sins to God for forgiveness.

B. LIVING A HOLY LIFE (18:1–27:34)
1. Standards for the people
2. Rules for priests
3. Seasons and festivals
4. Receiving God’s blessing
God gave clear standards to the Israelites for living a holy life. They were to be separate and distinct from the pagan nations around them. In the same way, all believers should be separated from sin and dedicated to God. God still wants to remove sin from the lives of his people.

Main Ideas:

Sacrifice/Offering
There are five kinds of offerings that fulfill two main purposes: one to show praise, thankfulness, and devotion; the other for atonement, the covering and removal of guilt and sin. Animal offerings demonstrated that the person was giving his or her life to God by means of the life of the animal.
The sacrifices (offerings) were for worship and forgiveness of sin. Through them we learn about the cost of sin, for we see that we cannot forgive ourselves. God’s system says that a life must be given for a life. In the Old Testament, an animal’s life was given to save the life of a person. But this was only a temporary measure until Jesus’ death paid the penalty of sin for all people forever.

Worship
Seven festivals were designated as religious and national holidays. They were often celebrated in family settings. These events teach us much about worshiping God in both celebration and quiet dedication.
God’s rules about worship set up an orderly, regular pattern of fellowship with him. They allowed times for celebration and thanksgiving as well as for reverence and rededication. Our worship should demonstrate our deep devotion.

Health
Civil rules for handling food, disease, and sex were taught. In these physical principles, many spiritual principles were suggested. Israel was to be different from the surrounding nations. God was preserving Israel from disease and community health problems.
We are to be different morally and spiritually from the unbelievers around us. Principles for healthy living are as important today as in Moses’ time. A healthy environment and a healthy body make our service to God more effective.

Holiness
Holy means “separated” or “devoted.” God removed his people from Egypt; now he was removing Egypt from the people. He was showing them how to exchange Egyptian ways of living and thinking for his ways.
We must devote every area of life to God. God desires absolute obedience in motives as well as practices. Though we do not observe all the worship practices of Israel, we are to have the same spirit of preparation and devotion.

Levites
The Levites and priests instructed the people in their worship. They were the ministers of their day. They also regulated the moral, civil, and ceremonial laws and supervised the health, justice, and welfare of the nation.
The Levites were servants who showed Israel the way to God. They provide the historical backdrop for Christ, who is our High Priest and yet our Servant. God’s true servants care for all the needs of their people.

www.Upwards.Church

Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/leander-campus/watch-now-message-videos

Watch Messages: YouTube-Upwards Church

Facebook: Upwards Church

Read Along Daily Bible Reading: YouVersion (https://www.bible.com/organizations/370f8a6e-16bc-464f-8c43-0b7623fd2952)

Source: Life Application Bible Notes (Tyndale, 2007), 158–159.

Posted in Leviticus - Lambs, Levites and Laws | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

God is Sovereign – Lamentations 4-5

Posted on July 16, 2025 by dkoop

A high calling flouted by low living results in deep suffering. Lamentations gives us a portrait of the bitter suffering the people of Jerusalem experienced when sin caught up with them and God brought judgment on them. Every material goal they had lived for collapsed. But although God disciplined them because of their sin, he did not abandon them—that was their great hope. Despite their sinful past, God would restore them if they returned to him. Hope is found only in the Lord. Our grief should turn us toward him, not away from him.

  1. Our Grief should turn us To Him, not away from Him.

Lamentations 4 is a powerful chapter that depicts the devastating consequences of sin and God’s judgment on Jerusalem.  We see the types of suffering they endured, roles that are reversed, the rich are now poor, respected are disrespected, etc. and and the need for repentance.

11The Lord has fulfilled His fury, He has poured out His fierce anger. He kindled a fire in Zion, And it has devoured its foundations. Lamentations 4:11 (NKJV)

What is your foundations? Money, job, family, hobbies, health?  Jesus reminded us that He is our foundation or “rock” from life’s storms.  God may shake our foundation to let us see that we’ve been trusting in the wrong things for security.

22The punishment of your iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; He will no longer send you into captivity. Lamentations 4:22 (NKJV)

Despite the grim picture, Lamentations 4 hints at a glimmer of hope. The very act of lamenting and acknowledging sin can be a step towards restoration. Ultimately, the hope for restoration lies in God’s mercy and faithfulness. Lamentations 4  challenges us to examine  own lives, recognize the destructive power of sin, and turn to God for forgiveness and restoration. It can also serve as a reminder that true hope is found in God, not in worldly things

2.  Hope is found only in the LORD.

“Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us.” (Lamentations 5:1)

The words ‘us’ and ‘our’ and ‘we’ are all over this chapter. Here, for the first time in the book of Lamentations, the grieving people begin to speak.

Scholars debate how many ‘voices’ there are in the book of Lamentations. Lamentations is like a great drama with different voices – the voice of the city, the voice of the prophet, and now the voice of the people. But there is only one voice that ultimately matters.

For the first three chapters, the people have been sitting in silence. Someone has been speaking for them. Someone has been speaking to them.  Some call this person the Counselor, we are introduced to Him in Chapter 3, “I am the Man,” Jesus.

What happens in this remarkable book is that a counselor comes alongside these grieving people and ministers to them in their sorrow and loss.

Here is the fruit of the Counselor’s ministry: He brings them from a place where they are unable to speak (2:10), to a place where for the very first time since the trauma they have suffered that they are able to speak to God for themselves. The Counselor brings them to a place where they can pray.

As you would expect, the prayer comes out of tremendous agony and pain. That reminds us of something important – you don’t have to be in a composed frame of mind, filled with a wonderful sense of peace before you can pray. If you have to have it all sorted out before you can pray, most of us are never going to get there.

When Hanna prayed, she was deeply distressed and wept bitterly (1 Sam. 1:10). When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, his soul was overwhelmed with sorrow. You don’t have to be calm, confident, and clear-minded before you can pray. You come as you are to God. You come, not because you have, but in order to receive. There’s more.

But you, O LORD, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations. (Lamentations 5:18-19)

Through the ministry of the Counselor, the people finally get to the place where they are able to pray.  They lay their sorrow before the Lord. The sum of it is found in verses 17 and 18: “For this our heart has become sick, for these things our eyes have grown dim, for Mount Zion which lies desolate. But…” What is the ‘but’ for? “But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations” (3:19).

This is like Ephesians 2 where Paul lays out the full extent of the human problem: “You were dead in… trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). “But God, being rich in mercy… made us alive together with Christ” (Eph. 2:4, 5).

They are looking at the ruined city, but the Wonderful Counselor has brought them to the place where they can see that God doesn’t depend on a city. He has brought them to a place of faith: “You, O Lord, reign forever: your throne endures to all generations.”

 3. The LORD Restores us, when we Return to Him.

 Turn us back to You, O Lord, and we will be restored; Renew our days as of old, Lamentations 5:21 (NKJV)

God is honored here in this expression of hope: “Lord, restore us to yourself! Lord, if we have you, we know we can face anything. Whatever happens, there is hope for us, so long as we have you!” .

There is a Wonderful Counselor who can bring you to a place where you can pray.  He can establish you in faith. He can restore your hope.

Lamentations ends with God’s people waiting in hope, sustained by the ministry of the Counselor who was yet to come.

The good news of the gospel is that this Wonderful Counselor has come. God became “the Man,” and when he did, he went to the lowest point and the darkest place. But that was not the end for him. He passed through the lowest place, and he came out of it in the triumph of his resurrection.

www.Upwards.Church

Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/leander-campus/watch-now-message-videos

Watch Messages: YouTube-Upwards Church

Facebook: Upwards Church

Read Along Daily Bible Reading: YouVersion (https://www.bible.com/organizations/370f8a6e-16bc-464f-8c43-0b7623fd2952)

Sources:

Life Application Bible Notes (Tyndale, 2007), 1305.

Open the Bible, Prayer and Praise, Lamentations 5

Posted in Grace in Grief - Lamentations | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

God is Merciful – Lamentations 3

Posted on July 8, 2025 by dkoop

I don’t know about you, but I love to find references to Jesus in the Old Testament.  Like a kid in candy store or a miner panning for gold, when I uncover and discover passages that reveal our Savior; it is a real treasure to me.  I don’t know how I missed this passage in Lamentations 3, all these years.  Maybe I was rushing to get to verses 22-23, one of favorite passages.  But there,  jumping off the page in in verse 1, Jesus appears.

Let’s take a look.

  • “I am the man (3:1a)  “I am?”  Remember all the I am statements in John’s gospel?
  • “the man” (3:1a) Not only was the title, “Son of Man” most used by Jesus to refer to himself, but at the crucifixion, notice what Pilate calls Jesus, 5 Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!”
  • “who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath” (3:1b).  Surely He has turned His hand against me… 5 He has besieged me And surrounded me with bitterness and [a]woe. (3:2-5)  That’s what happened to Jesus on the cross – he bore the divine wrath for us.  Much like Psalm 22 or Isaiah 53, Can you hear these words in the mouth of Jesus?
  • “He has set me in dark places”  (3:6)  On the cross, what happened?  It got very dark,45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. Matthew 27:45
  • Though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer (3:8). That was the experience of Jesus when he cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” At the cross, God brings grief and loss to Jesus, and he brings compassion through Jesus.
  • “Like a lion in [b]ambush. He has turned aside my ways and torn me in pieces; He has made me desolate. 12 He has bent His bow And set me up as a target for the arrow.”  (3: 10-12)   The lion comment and being torn to pieces are more references to Psalm 22:13-17
  • He has filled me with bitterness, He has made me drink wormwood (or gall) 16 He has also broken my teeth with gravel, And [e]covered me with ashes. (3:15-16)  A sponge of  bitter drink was what Jesus was given on the cross.  The reference to “covered me with ashes” refers to being buried. 
  • I have become the laughingstock of all peoples, the object of their taunts all day long (3:14). You hear the mocking crowd as Jesus hangs on the cross. This is what happened to him.
  • Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes (3:30). That’s what Jesus did.

When we look at all that Jesus did for us, we cannot help but see God’s great mercy to us!

Christ suffered humiliation and darkness so that God’s mercy should reach us and God’s love should hold us, even in our greatest loss. In Christ we have the hope of God’s ultimate purpose, and the hope of God’s immediate presence.

In the previous posts, we saw that tears are a gift from God; God gave you tear ducts for a reason. The entire book of Lamentations puts sorrow into words. We have a Savior, the Man of Sorrows, to whom we can come in our sorrow.

The third poem in Lamentations is the pinnacle of the mountain of this book. You will notice that there are 66 verses instead of the 22 verses that the other poems in this book have. This third poem is still an acrostic, but there are three lines that begin with each successive letter of the alphabet, rather than one line like the previous two poems.

Life Application from Lamentations 3

 19 Remember my affliction and roaming, The wormwood and the gall. 20 My soul still remembers And sinks within me.21 This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope.   Lamentations 3:19-21(NKJV)

Look at verse 21 because what Jeremiah does here is very important for handling our times of deep despair and grief. “But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope.” Notice Jeremiah commits to an act of the will, rather than acting on his emotions and feelings. He does not say that all is hopeless and therefore he will give up in his hopeless despair. Not at all! He says that he will put something in his mind while he is in this state of pain and grief. He is going to put hope in his heart because he is going to put his mind on something in particular.

Verses 22-24 record what he is going to think about. Essentially, the author is going to preach to himself in his time of despair. Here is what he preaches to himself:

 1. The LORD is Faithful and Offers Mercy

 22 Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. 23They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.  Lamentations 3:22-23 (NKJV)

 The first thing he preaches to himself is that the steadfast love of the Lord never ends. God’s faithful, covenant love never stops. His compassion and his mercies never come to an end. They never fail. The author recalls the multiple proofs of God’s faithful love. He calls to mind how God’s love never ends. Think about how God has been faithful to you. Think about how God has done good for you repeatedly in the past. His love never fails toward you. This is the knowledge we have to help us in our time of grief and despair.

Second, Jeremiah preaches to himself that the steadfast love and mercies of the Lord are renewed every morning. Every day presents a new opportunity to experience a fresh outpouring of God’s great love and compassion! Each day offers new hope for the compassion of God to be on display in your life. While the future looks dark and all seems hopeless, each day is another day to see the steadfast love of the Lord.  Jeremiah is calling upon himself to live one day at a time. Just see the mercy of God for today. Do not worry about tomorrow’s difficulties and issues. Live in the compassion and mercy of God today. Great is the faithfulness of God! He will get you through today. God is faithful toward us each and every day.

  1. The LORD Good to those who Hope in Him

 24   “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!” 25   The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him.  Lamentations 3:24–25 (NKJV)

Next, you will notice that Jeremiah speaks to himself again in verse 24. His soul says, “The Lord is my portion.” A portion relates to the land allotted by God to each Israelite. Notice that Jeremiah says the Lord is his portion. He declares his dependence on the Lord for his provisions and his survival. God will take care of me is what he is preaching to himself; his conclusion is: “Therefore I will hope in him.” We have a saying in our culture: “Hope springs eternal.” If you have been in sorrow and grief then you will know that this is not the case. What is true is this, if we can modify the saying: Hope springs eternal only when hope is focused on the Lord. This is how we give ourselves the hope and courage we need in times of pain and grief.

Parents discipline children to produce right behavior. God disciplined Judah to produce right living and genuine worship. We must not complain about corrective or instructive discipline in our lives but learn from it, trusting God and being willing to change. We must allow God’s correction to bring about the kind of behavior in our life that pleases him

  1. The LORD is worthy of our Worship

39Why should a living man complain, A man for the punishment of his sins? 40Let us search out and examine our ways, And turn back to the Lord; 41Let us lift our hearts and hands To God in heaven. Lamentations 3:39-41 (NKJV)

Who are we to complain against God? We are the ones who are full of sins! God is in the right. God is always just. God is pure and holy. We are only getting what we rightfully deserve. In fact, we are not receiving what we should for our sins because of the steadfast love of the Lord toward us. This keeps our minds in the right frame of mind. This keeps us in humility when we see that we deserve nothing and everything we have in life is a grace poured out from God.

Lastly, Jeremiah reminds us that we need examine our ways, pray and worship the Lord. Any time we examine ourselves and look at our lives honestly, it should cause us to pray because we know that we have woefully fallen short of God’s glory. So we turn to the Lord, tearing our hearts before our God (Joel 2:13). 

 As God’s people, we recognize that our lives are not determined by some cold, impersonal fate or destiny. Our lives are in the hands of the living God, who is good, who hears our cries, and will act for his people. Our praise and hope are motivated by the knowledge of this truth: the Lord is good and the Lord is faithful. God’s goodness is intrinsic to his glory (cf. Exodus 34:6-7; Mark 10:18).  This is Jeremiah’s hope, and ours Even though he feels that all hope is lost, he is able to tell himself and others that God’s faithfulness is great and his mercies are new every day.

www.Upwards.Church

Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/leander-campus/watch-now-message-videos

Watch Messages: YouTube-Upwards Church

Facebook: Upwards Church

Read Along Daily Bible Reading: YouVersion (https://www.bible.com/organizations/370f8a6e-16bc-464f-8c43-0b7623fd2952)

Sources:

Albert N. Martin, Grieving, Hope and Solace: When a Loved One Died in Christ, Cruciform Press, 2011.

Brent Kercheville, Great is Your Faithfulness, Lamentations 3

Christopher Wright, The Message of Lamentations,  IVP Academic, 2015.

Life Application Bible Notes (Tyndale, 2007), 1301.

Openthebible.org Hope and Healing

 

Posted in Grace in Grief - Lamentations | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Good Grief – Lamentations 2

Posted on July 2, 2025 by dkoop

Have you ever thought about how many tears you have cried?  If you were to collect them, how many would there be?   That’s a great question.  As we continue in Lamentations chapter 2, we’re reminded that this is a book of lament, sorrow, tears and grief.   Not only, does God knows the number of hairs on your head; God also knows the number of tears you have cried. I love this passage in Psalms that describes God’s care and knowledge of us.

8 You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book. Psalms 56:8

Every single tear you have cried matters to God.  Tears matter to God, our grief matters.  Some people think that tears are bad.  We have many misconceptions about grief and tears.

Grief is an emotion every one of us has felt. It is an inevitable hurt because loss or death itself cannot be avoided. Yet it is not something we talk about. It is one of those subjects that we avoid. Our culture begins teaching us to turn away from our grief very early on. Although God gives each of us ways to heal these emotional wounds, most all of us got messages early in life that we should not express those feelings. And it was from then on that many of us got so good at suppressing them, until something happens that forces us to face them.

From our earliest days we were taught that sad, painful or “negative” feelings were to be avoided at all costs. And if we were unable to avoid feeling them, we were not to show them in public. Most all of us have heard words like “Don’t cry, it will be alright.” “Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone.” “Just get over it!” Or maybe even “Stop that crying or I’ll give you something to cry about.” Most all of our tools for handling those kinds of emotions were developed when we were quite young. So we usually are trying to manage the most difficult times in our adult lives with the limited perceptions and skills we learned as children.

Our misperceptions and fears keep us from learning healthier perspectives. That little child in us thinks things like:
· People will think I am weak, or immature, or out of control or crazy if I show my feelings.
· I shouldn’t burden others with my troubles.
· I have to be strong for others.
· I should be over this by now. What’s the matter with me?

God created us with the capacity for the same feelings he has. Our depth of feelings originates from being created like God. The Bible records God’s emotions of sadness and grief.   Grief matters to God because He grieves too.

We look at almost every experience in life from the perspective of , “How does this impact me?” I’m not saying that is altogether wrong- I’m just saying that is usually our frame of reference.

But briefly I want us to think about how God feels.   The Scripture actually has a lot to say about that and in the process of saying it gives us insight as to what God is really like.

For example, in Genesis 6  we are given a powerful glimpse into heart of God.
5 The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. 6 …It broke his heart. Genesis 6:5-6   Then he acted in just judgement.

I hope that when we read verses like this in the Bible we don’t picture a hard, distant deity who is simply hacked off because people won’t cooperate with Him or do what He wants them to do. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Hebrew word used to describe God’s Sorrow in this passage is “Nacham”  means to  “draw the breath forcibly.” It is a deep SIGH of painful sorrow.   Have You ever hurt so bad inside that you could hardly get your breath?

That’s the kind of sorrow God is experiencing here. It’s as if God is saying “Oooh, Oooh…” -such grief that only groans because it is beyond words.   This is the broken heart of God. This is love disappointed & wounded.   This is God experiencing a deep, piercing sorrow  over His loved & lost creation.   Today is the same as in Noah’s day.  For every soul that goes own way and insists upon its own destruction, there is a deep, deep sigh of sorrow in heart of God for that soul.

Why would an omniscient, omnipotent God position Himself to experience such sorrow & grief?  Because love by its very nature Is vulnerable to grief.  Because love by its very nature is impacted by choice of others.   To grant free will is to grant possibility of love.   But, is also to grant capacity to reject love, wound, refuse love.

We see that when God became a person by the name of Jesus and stepped foot on our planet.  He experienced grief.

7 While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears…Hebrews 5:7

Does God care when we hurt? One of Bill Clinton’s famous lines is, “I feel your pain.” Does God feel our pain? Does He understand what we’re going through? Does He care? Or is he just sitting up there in heaven, watching as we suffer and struggle, serenely unmoved and emotionless?

It is a common theme in the Old Testament that when God’s people are suffering, and cry out to Him for help, He hears them and comes to their aid.

Let me ask you a question. Are you suffering? Are you wondering if God cares, if He even knows? Are you wondering if your suffering matters to God, if you matter to God? The answer to that question is “Yes.” You do matter to God. You matter more than you know. God understands what you’re going through, whether it’s physical suffering, or emotional suffering, or mental anguish. Whether your pain is caused by disease, or troubled relationships, or inner turmoil,  or even the hand or judgement of God, He understands. He cares. He cares about your suffering and He cares about you. You matter to God.

Does that mean that God will immediately relieve all of our suffering? No. God can relieve suffering. He can heal bodies, reconcile relationships, change circumstances. But sometimes He doesn’t. Sometimes, for His own good and wise and loving purposes, He allows our suffering to continue. But if that’s the case, it doesn’t mean He doesn’t understand or care. It doesn’t mean He’s abandoned us. It means that He has a purpose for us in that suffering. And He is going to stay with us and walk with us and strengthen us and comfort us as long as He allows that suffering to continue.

With this in mind, let’ pick back up in Lamentations 2

5He has destroyed her strongholds, and has increased mourning and lamentation. 11 I have cried until the tears no longer come; my heart is broken. My spirit is poured out in agony as I see the desperate plight of my people. Lamentations 2: 5,11 (NKJV)

  • Sorrow and Sadness are the right Responses to Loss

“Her strongholds?”   The walls of the city, the king, the palace, the temple, and the priests were all brought under judgement.

The people thought they had the temple and therefore they were safe. Jeremiah records what the people were saying in that day.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’ Jeremiah 7:3–4 ESV

“Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? Jeremiah 7:8–10 ESV

The people thought that their sinning was acceptable because they had the temple. God was with them and therefore God was fine with their sins. But we learn that we must never think that God is not wrathful against sin. Listen to what the New Testament says about the wrath of God against sin.

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. John 3:36 ESV

For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Ephesians 5:5–6 ESV

We cannot make the same mistake as them and hold religion or going to church as our good luck charm that we think will cause us to avoid the wrath of God. Just because we are the people of God does not mean, we can sin as much as we want and that the wrath of God will not affect us. This should be the obvious lesson we learn from the nation of Israel in the scriptures. God’s anger is never explosive, unreasonable, or unexplained. We do not begin to understand the restraint and the longsuffering of God. God’s anger is his firm expression of real displeasure with our sins. God is not indifferent toward sin. Even though we experience the benefits of God’s patience (which is not to be confused as apathy or complete indifference), the restraint God shows will finally end when we refuse to change our ways.

When we refuse to change our ways, this grieves God and He will take just action.  forgiveness but the fearful expectation of judgment. As Israel was seeing, God carries out his word. “The Lord has done what he purposed; he has carried out his word, which he commanded long ago” Lamentations 2:17. God said he would bring judgment for this behavior over and over and over again. But the people rejected God’s warning. Listen to what they were saying in the days of Jeremiah.

Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the Lord, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds.’ “But they say, ‘That is in vain! We will follow our own plans, and will every one act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart.’ Jeremiah 18:11–12 ESV

God said disaster was coming. The people said that there was no point to changing their ways. They will follow their own plans and follow their own stubborn hearts. Friends, we must never think that God will not execute judgment.

But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed. Romans 2:5 ESV

But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. 2 Peter 3:7 ESV

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 2 Corinthians 5:10 ESV

Our sins will be judged if we have stubborn, unrepentant hearts. We must turn our hearts back to the Lord. God’s judgment is to bring us to our knees in our sorrow for our sins and the consequences we pay because of what we have done. It is important to see that the author of this poem understands this. He understands that what has happened is because God is right and just and they are deserving because of their sins.

So what are we to do? Notice what the author says to do.

19 “Arise, cry out in the night, At the beginning of the watches; Pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord. Lift your hands toward Him… Lamentations 2:19 (NKJV)

 Cry out to the LORD in Repentance, He will forgive.

Chapter 1 describes Jerusalem’s desolation and the reasons why it happened. Chapter 2 includes a call for God’s people to pour out their hearts in the Lord’s presence. The people must turn from their sins; they must sincerely mourn over their wrongs against God (3:40–42). The people had much to cry about. Because of their stubborn rebellion against God, they had brought great suffering to all, especially to the innocent. Was this suffering God’s fault? No, it was the fault of the wayward people. Sinful people brought destruction on themselves, but tragically, sin’s consequences affected everyone—good and evil alike.

The people’s suffering and sin should have brought them to the Lord, weeping for forgiveness. Only when our prideful, independent hearts are broken over sin can God come to our rescue. Just feeling sorry about experiencing sin’s consequences does not bring forgiveness. But if we cry out to God in repentance, he will forgive us.

www.Upwards.Church

Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/leander-campus/watch-now-message-videos

Watch Messages: YouTube-Upwards Church

Facebook: Upwards Church

Read Along Daily Bible Reading: YouVersion (https://www.bible.com/organizations/370f8a6e-16bc-464f-8c43-0b7623fd2952)

Sources: Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

Life Application Bible Notes (Tyndale, 2007), 1298.

Posted in Grace in Grief - Lamentations | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment