"Hope in despair" - Lamentations 3

[Music]

Are we on now? Yep, that's great. Well,

good morning everybody. Um, if you want

to take your seats, that would be great.

Uh we do miss our little introduction

there just to give us the the heads up

that we're starting. But it's it's good

to see you in church. I know that there

aren't so many today uh because there

are 40,000 people running in the streets

of Dublin at this present time and and

we wish them well and uh we hope that

they all finish and that there are no

major injuries as well. So it's good to

see uh people enjoying the city at this

time again. Uh good to see you as well.

You've obviously navigated getting the

clocks changed and getting here in time.

Um in my previous church because we had

to keep the service straight to an R. It

was amazing how the number of families

that came in after the R was over and

they thought we were singing the first

hymn uh which was their normal way of

coming in and then they realized that

the service was just over because they

had forgotten to change their clock. So,

you've done well and that is great and

I'm very conscious that maybe more

people are watching online and and we're

glad that you're able to do that. Uh we

want to welcome you. We want to say that

uh it's good to have you and we pray

that God will bless us as we do so. So,

we're going to continue our series on

lamentations today. And I suppose it is

a slightly unfortunate that it's fallen

on this bank holiday weekend as we're

looking at that central chapter of

chapter 3. Uh I've called it hope and

despair. Uh and as you will see, the

hope of course is based primarily and

only really in the Lord God himself.

It's because of God that we have hope.

So that is my call to worship. Oh,

right. We do we have the translator app

today. So if you are struggling with the

English and you want to hear the service

in your own language through the phone

or iPad or something then we if you have

the translator Microsoft translator app

that's the code for today. Uh and if you

put that code in uh then you can um hear

what we're saying here at the front.

So this is an experience where Moses

meets God. The language is quite

incredible.

And the question is, well, if you meet

God, what is he like?

It's interesting, isn't it? So, if you

meet somebody new and somebody is

interested in that person, or if you

meet somebody famous, and you say, I met

this famous person, this famous

footballer, I met Erling Holland, for

example, Manchester City's player, by

the way. You might say, well, what's he

like? And that's what you would want to

do with God. And so in verse five just

before this it says then the Lord came

down in the cloud and stood there with

him. That's interesting language because

God is spirit but he's standing there as

it were with Moses and he proclaimed his

name his character the Lord. And then it

says this, "And he passed in front of

Moses, proclaiming the Lord," that's my

name, "the compassionate and gracious

God, slow to anger, abounding in love

and faithfulness, maintaining love to

thousands.

That is who our God is."

And then he says, "And forgiving

wickedness, rebellion, and sin, yet he

does not leave the guilty unpunished. He

punishes the children and their children

for the sin of the parents to the third

and fourth generation.

So God is mercy. God is gracious. God is

faithful and God is love. And that's who

we come to worship this morning in our

service in the center of Dublin on this

bank holiday. And I pray that as we do

that we will experience as Moses did the

nearness of this God and that we might

truly enjoy his presence. So we're going

to sing two songs now. Uh I think we're

starting with a scribe greatness which

talks about who God is justness, his

perfection and then a song that we know

well. Great is thy faithfulness which is

based of course in Lamentations 3. So

two songs that worship God for who he

is. So, let's stand when we're ready to

sing.

[Music]

Greatness to our God. His heart is

perfect and all his ways are just

[Music]

great.

His work is perfect and all his ways are

just

God

faithfulness

without

heal

[Music]

faithfulness

without injustice.

What

might is he

[Music]

greatness to our God

is for his perfect and all his ways are

just

[Music]

greatness to our God.

His work is perfect and all his ways are

just

[Music]

faithfulness

without

[Music]

a God of faithfulness

without injustice.

Good

is he

the God of faithfulness

without injustice.

Good and bright is he.

A God of faithfulness

without injustice.

Good.

[Music]

[Music]

Great is thy faithfulness,

oh God, my father.

There is no shadow

walker

with thee.

Thou changes love

[Music]

God

as thou has been th

will be.

Praise is thy faithfulness.

Praise is thy faithfulness.

Morning.

Your mercies

I see.

For I have

thy hand.

Great is thy faithfulness

for all to me.

Some

[Music]

great times

and stars in their hores.

[Music]

Joy with all

faithful witness

to thy great faithfulness,

mercy and love.

Praise thy faithfulness.

Praise thy faithfulness.

Morning

by morning,

new mercies I see.

All I have

is thy heaven.

Great is thy faithfulness,

Lord to me.

[Music]

God of mercy

and peace that endures

to Heaven to God.

Strength for today

and my hope for tomorrow.

Blessings

with

[Music]

great is thy faithfulness.

Great is thy faithfulness.

Morning

by morning.

You mercies I see.

All I have

thy hand has proided.

Great is thy faithfulness,

Lord to me.

Great is thy faithfulness.

Great is thy faithfulness.

Morning by morning, new mercies I see.

All I have,

thy handid.

Praise thy faithfulness,

Lord to me.

Great. Well, please take your seats and

uh we're going to continue in worship

just as we talk to God now in prayer.

So, let's bow our heads. Let's

remember that we're talking to him and

he is present with us.

Father, all that I have needed, thy hand

hath provided. Great is thy

faithfulness.

And so we simply bow in your presence

this morning. And we thank you that

we've been able to sing of who you are.

And we do want to ascribe greatness to

you because you are the God who has made

us. And we are fearfully and wonderfully

made.

As we celebrate uh children, as we think

of how we are able to do uh our jobs, as

we think of the abilities that we have

in music or in art or in other fields of

life, Father, we do marvel

that we are made in your image, that

we're creative, that we communicate,

that we're able to worship.

And Father, we thank you that you are

also in character good, that you are

faithful, that you are kind, that you

persevere.

I've just been reading, as you know, the

the story of Hosea,

who was to marry a lady who didn't love

him and who ran away with others, and

yet he was to have her back because it's

a picture of you. It's a picture of love

that is not of us. It's an agapee love.

It's a love that forgives. It's a love

that gives a second chance and a third

chance and a fourth chance. It's a love

that never fails. It's a love that we

can depend upon.

It's a love that is true.

And Father, so we simply just quieten

our hearts before you and we bow before

our great and faithful God this morning.

And Father, in that stillness, we

remember the brokenness of our world. Uh

we think of the wars that are around us

that we hear about every day.

We think of the violence that we've seen

on our streets against the immigrants

and the hatred in hearts.

We think of the sins that we are many in

the lives of others and in ours. And

father, we think, I think particularly

of how we feel to believe.

Fail to believe that you're present.

Feel to believe that you are speaking.

fail to believe that you are all that

you say you are. We want to run our own

lives. We want to do our own things and

we actually think that we know better.

Father, forgive us for our rebellion.

Forgive us for our sin. Help us to see

it in the light and the glory of who you

are.

And again, it is something that is to

draw us to you. It's not to push us

away.

It's to humble ourselves and to be quiet

and to wait upon you and to say, "Lord,

we have sinned."

And we thank you that you're faithful

and just to forgive us our sins and to

purify us from all unrighteous. So we

pray for that purifying righteousness of

the cross of Jesus Christ and of his

shed blood. And we pray that as we put

our hope and trust in him that we might

know the freedom and the joy of

relationship and of eternal life.

Father, we thank you for your word and

how it speaks so clearly into the

brokenness of our lives and of the

world. And we pray that as we think uh

about Lamentations chapter 3, that you

would help us to understand it well. And

so, Father, we thank you for again for

this time to worship and to engage with

you. And we pray your blessing in Jesus

name. Amen.

Well, we're going to uh read or have our

reading now. I I would encourage you to

open Lamentations because you'll need

it, I think, later on in the sermon as

well. This, of course, is the best known

of the chapters in Lamentations.

Um it is the most hopeful and it is uh

the very center the very center verse of

course of lamentations is verse 33. For

he does not willingly bring affliction

or grief to the children of men.

And that is who our God is. He's loving.

That's the very heart of the book of

Lamentations. So I think Charlie and

Abraham are going to come and read this

uh because it's a long reading. We're

going to read as far as verse 39. I

don't know who's starting, but I'll let

them come and sort it out. Okay. Um,

so Lamentations

3 verse 1-39.

I am the man who has seen affliction by

the rod of his wrath. He has driven me

away and made me walk in darkness rather

than light. Indeed, he has turned his

hand against me again and again all day

long. He has made my skin and my flesh

grow old and has broken my bones. He has

besieged me and surrounded me with

bitterness and hardship. He has made me

dwell in darkness like those long dead.

He has wor me in so I cannot escape. He

has weighed me down with chains. Even

when I call out or cry for help, he

shuts He shuts out my prayer. He has

barred me my way with blocks of stone.

He has made my path crooked

like a bear lying in weight like a lion

in hiding. He dragged me from the pass

and mangled me and left me without help.

He drew his bow and made me the target

for his arrows. He pierced my heart with

arrows from his quiver. I became the

laughingstock of all my people. They

mocked me in song all day long. He has

filled me with bitter herbs and sated me

with gold. He has broken my teeth with

gravel. He has trembled me in the dust.

I have been deprived of peace. I have

forgotten what prosperity is. So I say,

my splendor is gone and all that I had

hoped from the Lord. I remember my

affliction and my wondering, the

bitterness and the goal. I well remember

them, and my soul is downcast within me.

Yet this I call to mind, and therefore I

had hope.

Because of Lord's great love, we are not

consumed. For his compassions never

fail. They are new every morning. Great

is your faithfulness.

I say to myself, "The Lord is my

portion. Therefore, I will wait for

him." The Lord is good to those whose

hope is in him. to the one who seeks

him. It is good to wait quietly for the

salvation of the God.

It is good for a man to bear the yoke

while he is young. Let him sit alone in

silence, for the Lord has laid it on

him. Let him bury his face in the dust.

There may yet be hope. Let him offer his

cheek to one who would strike him, and

let him be filled with disgrace.

For no one is cast off by the Lord

forever. Though he brings grief, he will

show compassion. So great is his

unfailing love. For he does not

willingly bring affliction or grief to

anyone to crush underfoot all prisoners

in the land. To deny people their rights

before the most high. to deprive them of

justice. Would not the Lord see such

things? Who can speak and have it happen

if the Lord has not decreed it? Is it

not from the mouth of most high that

both calamities and good things come?

Why should the living complain when

punished for their sins? This is the

word of the Lord.

>> Well, thank you, gentlemen. Um, boys and

girls, if you want to come to the front,

and I'm glad to see a few of you here.

That's great. We'll have a we chat.

That's great. Lovely.

Super.

Right. Come on up, girls. That's good.

Well, I That's brilliant. Yeah. Good. We

have got a How did you get in today? Did

you come? Did you walk? Who walked? You

did. Anybody come in the Lewis? Good.

And some bus or car?

>> I walked in.

>> You walked in. Great.

>> Brilliant. Okay. Very good. And you've

got your boots cuz it was raining. That

is great. Well, I'm going to tell you a

story. Okay. I'm going to tell you a

story that's connected to what was read

and it's about a man and his name was

Jeremiah. You need to look up here

because I've just got pictures today.

Okay? So Jeremiah was a prophet.

And what a prophet does is that he

speaks God's words.

Okay? And he was a very important

prophet uh a way back many many years

ago. and he got to speak

to the king. It's a different picture,

but this is the prophet in the gray and

the king. It's him sitting with his type

of crown on there and on and he's

listening. You can see you thinking, I'm

I'm listening to you, Jeremiah, what are

you saying?

And what Jeremiah was saying to Keen,

that's his name up there, Zedekiah.

That was the keen of the day. And

Jeremiah was saying, "Look, this army is

coming. These are the Babylonians." And

in those days, look at the big shield

they had. They had spears. They had

swords and actually very they had armor.

And that was very unusual. They were

very strong. They were really, in fact,

they were really bad. They were a big

bad army. And what Jeremiah was telling

Zedekiah was he said, 'Look, this army

is coming and you can't fight them. What

I want you to do is surrender.

I want you to march out of the city with

your hands up and I want to I want you

to say we are not fighting you.

So the king thought about that and the

king said no.

And actually Jeremiah was then

put in prison

because they thought he was a traitor.

There's a very famous TV program on at

the moment in Ireland called Traitors

and that's where people tell lies and

try to do things that are wrong. And

Jeremiah was thought to be a traitor

because he had told the people that they

should surrender to the army and not

fight. He was thought not to be a very

good Jew. And in fact, he actually went

out to look at his land and they thought

he was trying to escape and they put him

in a very bad prison.

So Jeremiah wasn't because he told the

truth because he told God's word, he

ended up in prison. And that was what

happened at that time.

And so he was um eventually he was let

out of prison and he was allowed to stay

within the area where the guards were

like he was kind of in where the guards

were all there. And he still kept saying

the same thing. He said, "Look, this

army is strong. They're going to defeat

you. You should surrender and you should

move."

And they got even more angry with him.

Know what they've got here. Let's see.

Is there another slide there?

Yeah. So, not only did they put him in

prison, but people came and they threw

him down a well

and they put him in a big well where

they got their water out of. But this

this well had no water.

And he went into it and he went into mud

and he got stuck.

So imagine him. He's in the well. He's

in mud. I don't know where to, but let's

say he went into mud up to here and he

can't get out

and he can't drink and he's got no food.

What's going to happen to him?

He's going to die. It's a very sad

situation, a very difficult situation,

and he's absolutely stuck and can do

nothing about it. And in the passage

that was read today, in fact, we didn't

get to that part. Let me read to this,

read you this. It says, "I called on

your name, O Lord, from the depths of

the pit." So, he's in the pit. I called

on your name, O Lord, from the depths of

the pit. You heard my plea.

Do not close your ears for my cry for

relief. He wants to be released.

You came near when I called to you and

you said, "Do not fear."

Wow.

And

this is what I want to say. Because he

had he's stuck. He can do nothing. He's

going to die. But he believed in God and

he said a prayer to God and he had hope.

And amazingly,

there was a there was one person who

came from another country who worked in

the court and he told the king, he said,

"Keen, look, they've thrown Jeremiah in

here." And the king said, because the

king actually liked Jeremiah, he sent 30

men. And you know what he said? He said,

"Bring some coats with you and old rags

and put them under his armpits because

if you have to get dragged out of mud,

it would pull your arms off." So he had

to put the things under his arm, put the

ropes in his arm, and they pulled

Jeremiah up.

And the Babylonians did come and they

did destroy the city. But the man who

helped Jeremiah and Jeremiah himself

were not taken captive and were able to

stay because God heard his prayer and

God was his only hope. And I want you to

know that that God is our only hope and

we have our hope in the Lord Jesus

today. And that's what this whole book

of Lamentations is about because it's a

book of hope in the midst of difficulty

and despair. So that's a good story.

It's from Jeremiah, I think chapter 38.

I should have remembered that. And you

can read it for yourselves at home as

well. I think that's all I had there in

that. Yes, we're going to sing now. and

we're going to sing a song and it is uh

I'm special because God has loved me

because that is in is in the message. So

God loved Jeremiah and he loves us and

that's why he's given us Jesus as well.

So let's sing this together. Um I don't

have any shakers today. I see. Oh,

they're there. Will we use them? Why

not? If you want. That's great. There

you go. If you want one.

That's great. That's good. Shalom. Good.

Brilliant.

Okay, Nicholas, you're getting two.

That's good. There's plenty.

[Music]

God has long before he gave the rest

to save me.

Awesome. Jesus

to take the blame for all the bad things

I have done.

Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord for

loving me so much. I know I don't

deserve anything.

Help me feel your love right now to know

deep in my heart that I'm your special

friend

[Music]

because

he gave the blessing that We had to save

Jesus

on Jesus.

We to

all the death.

Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord for

loving me so much. I know I don't

deserve anything. Help

me feel your love right now to know deep

in my heart that I'm your special

friend.

Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord for

loving me so much. I know I don't

deserve anything.

Feel your love right now to go deep in

my heart that I'm your God special.

[Music]

[Music]

>> I'll take those in a moment or two. you

just sit down because I just want you to

know that God is your special friend and

I want to pray about that. Father, we

thank you for the story of Jeremiah and

how you were his special friend and he

did what was right but was punished for

it. And thank you that you were able to

rescue him. And Father, that we thank

you that we are your special friends and

that when we do what was wrong, you are

able to save us through Jesus. And we

thank you that that shows the depth of

your love. So I pray that we would know

it and that we would enjoy it and that

we would be able to live well because of

it. And I pray that for each of the boys

and girls and for everybody else here as

well. I pray in Jesus name. Amen. Well,

because it's a bank holiday, boys and

girls, there's no Sunday special, so you

have to stay in church, but we have some

coloring in. I think if uh I think Karen

had those or those are there. Some

people already have them. So, you're

very welcome to stay. There is the crash

upstairs if you uh anybody wants to go

up there at any stage, but do stay.

You're very welcome to stay uh as well

with us.

Well, let's uh keep going and uh we'll

do the announcements next. That's great.

Thank you. Let me just pray and thank

thank God for this.

Father, again we are thankful that uh we

have been given a new day and that this

is the day that the Lord has made. Let

us rejoice and be glad in it. And

Father, it's not just any day. It is a

Sunday and it's when we remember the

resurrection of our Lord and Savior. And

so we thank you for your love in him.

Father, you've blessed us with many

blessings, and we simply pray that our

offering given here and in other means

will be used for your honor and glory,

both in this church and in this city and

around the world. We pray in his name.

Amen.

Well, folks, just let's work through

these announcements. Um, so next week is

the beginning of November, uh, first

Sunday of the month. We're going to look

at Lamentations 4. Um and we're going to

um God willing baptize uh the third

child of the Slovac, Patrick. And also

because it's the first Sunday of the

month, uh we meet afterwards um for

prayer at 1:00 here at the front of the

church. So lots happening next week. Uh

this has become a little bit of a

tradition um that uh people who are free

and uh it can be for all ages uh the

knit and natter in the months. So, the

project is to knit hats for the

homeless. Um, and we're meeting every

Thursday in November at 10:00 a.m. to

12:00 p.m. in the months, and that's the

post code there. And everybody's welcome

if you've got a couple of hours free at

that time uh every Thursday in November.

So, we were talking about connect group.

Obvious connect groups are where we meet

uh in uh you know in smaller groups to

uh for fellowship, for prayer, and to

look again at the sermon or or some

other passage of scripture. And so we're

going to try and meet as a connect group

in the church. I'm going to start this

at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesdays uh starting

in November. So that the first Wednesday

in November is the 5th of November. And

uh what I think we'll do, I need to

check with others to see if it's

available, but we'll probably meet down

in the basement so people can come in

round the back, just go to the basement.

Uh we'll have a cup of tea at 6 if

you're coming from work. Uh and we'll

start at half six and we'll finish by

half 7 or so and then you can go home.

So, anybody who's free working in the

city, uh you're very welcome to come and

I will lead that and we'll do it for

four weeks and we'll see what the

response is and we'll we'll go from

there. So, that's going to be happening

in November as well. International Cafe

is still on. Um and it's a really good

event and we just want to encourage as

many people as possible to come on

Fridays at 700 p.m. Next one. Um yeah,

then Mark is going to uh starting in

November as well uh after the service

we're going to have a three-week

discussion series um and uh that is

looking at these big questions. What

does it mean to be human? What's wrong

with the world? And is there hope and

Mark's here today so you can talk to him

about that as well.

Uh the Tim Chal's uh seminar on loss

from the equip to care, you need to

register from that. That's on the 13th

of November at 7:30 and we want to

encourage as many people as possible to

do that.

A prayer ministry after the service here

um which you know about um and then tea

and coffee. I assume there is tea and

coffee upstairs. Yeah. Okay. That's

great Tommy afterwards as well. So do

stay. It's nice that there won't be so

many of us and maybe we could all go up

and and get to know one another and have

a good chat up there as well. So I think

those are all the announcements and then

Morgan is going to come and lead us in

our prayers for others. Thanks Morgan.

Father God, you promise to hear our

prayers offered in Jesus' name. We

therefore humbly come before you

trusting in your word, not forgetful of

our sinfulness, but confident of the

salvation won for us by the death of

your son on the cross, his resurrection

on the third day, and his ascension to

sit at your right hand, seeking mercy

for us in heaven. Being thankful of all

goodness we have received from you, we

beg for the grace to willingly share it

with those in need. Recalling your words

in Deuteronomy 10, you are to love those

who are foreigners. For you yourselves

were foreigners, foreigners in Egypt, we

stand firm against those powers of

darkness within our society which are

contrary to all we stand for as

followers of Christ. We extend the

welcoming hand of Christian love to

those who are needy, oppressed, and

persecuted. May our actions bear witness

to Jesus' love in all our dealings with

those who have not yet committed their

lives to him. May we bring them the

gospel message and bring to you a rich

harvest by your spirit working through

us. Beloved heavenly father, we bring

before you this church, this

congregation and those online,

commending them to your care. We think

now of those who are suffering physical

pain or spiritual anguish. Recalling

that Jesus suffered for us so that we

might be your people through the great

counselor whom he sent to us. We pause

for a moment to present our private

prayers for those in our minds who are

worthy of your divine grace.

Lord, look on the nations not in anger

but with compassion. We pray for the

successful outcome of efforts for peace

in Gaza. Knowing that peace in is our

wish and your promise. We are surrounded

by a world broken through our s

sinfulness. Seeing human limited wisdom

applied to destruction, especially in

Ukraine, we ask that your infinite

wisdom may prevail, and that those

making military decisions, may be made

aware that the power, honor, and glory

are only yours. May your redeemed

people, the grafted vine, be a bright

light in a darkened world. Dear Father,

may your presence be known to all who

feel isolated, who are in distress due

to age, through diminished physical or

mental ability. Give them dignity

through your peace, and give them the

grace to seek and accept any help they

may need. May they find through prayer

the infinite consolation of Jesus

comfort and love. We pray for those

lonely,

frightened,

bererieved,

homeless, unemployed or exploited.

Lord, bring them security, comfort, and

material needs so that they may live in

awe of your mercy and power.

We recall how Augustine addressed you,

saying, "Go, turning from you is to

fail. turning to you is to rise and

standing with you is to abide forever.

Grant us your help in all our actions,

your guidance in our confusion, your

help in danger, and in all our sorrows,

your peace. And we pray these words in

the sacred name of your son, Lord Jesus

Christ. Amen.

>> Amen.

>> Very much, Morgan. That's great. Well,

folks, if you do have your Bibles, I

think it would be helpful if you can

open them and uh because we're going to

try and work through this chapter. And

as you will see, there's 66 verses in

it. It actually is the same length as

the others uh because uh each verse has

just one line in Hebrew as opposed to

the three of the others. So that's 22

Hebrew uh word uh letters that start

each of these uh three uh verses

together. So

So the first thing is uh

hope lost. And I keep putting this

picture of Gaza up really because it

again for me this is what kind of

stimulated this uh sort of series in

that way. So we're looking in chapter

3:es 1 to8.

So folks, the news of the reality of the

world and our life does often cause

despair. At times it seems unrelenting

and without cure in its complexity and

depravity. And I could tell lots of

stories, but I was conscious that the

children are here. So we just let you

think about those for yourself.

And we hear those la stories of tragic

loss. We think of the devastation in

Gaza, the ongoing bombardment and death

in Ukraine. And we see evil and uh power

flourish. Evil power flourish. And in a

sense there is no light and there is no

good news and all hope is lost. That's

often how we feel. And in Lamentations,

the poet has spoken through the voice of

a grieving widow in chapters 1 and two

of the terrible suffering and plight of

his pe of her people and the destruction

of uh by the Babylonian army of the

Jerusalem and the temple in 587 BC. It

would have been a scene similar to this

absolute and total destruction.

And we saw of course the awfulness of

war and its crimes, the terrible

suffering as you if you remember of

women and of and of children and the

abandonment that they felt of God and

this heavy hand of his judgment upon

them.

But if you see in verse one there, the

voice changes and the voice now is a

man. I am a man

who has seen affliction.

And the content is most likely Jeremiah.

That's that's what I've sat sat with.

Some people argue that it isn't and it

doesn't really matter. Uh but if it's a

man who's been in the situation and who

can speak like this and knows God, well

then it is, I think, Jeremiah. Lady Zion

is now silent and no longer speaks. It's

probable that she's overwhelmed, though

she is in a sense a fictional character.

But I think the point is that she can

say no more. And so the poet takes up

her lament. And he takes it up because

he wants to confirm that what she said

was true. And so for the next 18 verses,

he pours out complaint at what God has

done to him and his people.

So he personifies it. What has happened

to Jeremiah or to the man is what has

happened to the city and what has

happened to the city has happened to the

people. So when you read this, you're

reading this collective experience of

the people at this time because of the

devastation of war and of the war crimes

of the Babylonian army. You see in the

first verse there he says I am. So it's

in the first person. He talks in the

second verse he has driven me away.

verse. Then the third verse, his hand is

against me. So he's talking about his

own suffering and what he has seen. And

of course that misery is compounded,

isn't it? Because he believes in God. He

believes in a sovereign good God, but he

can't understand why this is happened.

And so really, this is the voice and the

experience of God's people in verses one

and two. But let's note this complaint.

We're going to just rattle through

these. Um, I'm not going to spend a lot

of time in this. If you look in verses 1

to six and you read them, you see that

he's been beaten in verse one. His bones

are broken in verse four. He's full of

bitterness and has experienced hardship

in verse five, darkness and death in

verse six. And all of this has been

inflicted by the Babylonians.

And we need to know that it's real. They

were brutal.

They were awful. But he attributes it to

God because he knows that it's God's

punishment and God is sovereign and

control of everything. If you want a

picture to hold on to, it's the picture

of a bad shepherd.

That's where the rod image comes from.

You remember the shepherd carried the

rod to to get a to take the enemies of

God's people away. But in this

situation, he's saying the shepherd has

taken the rod and beaten the sheep.

And if you think if you contrast it with

the good shepherd of Psalm 23,

uh this is a shepherd that causes death

and injury rather than binding up

wounds. It is a shepherd who in verse

six leads us to dwell in darkness and

among the dead rather than in green

pastures and eternal life. His

experience of God is the opposite of the

good shepherd. His experiences of God,

this is how he describes God in this

situation.

In verses 7 to9, he's imprisoned. Did

you see that? He's walled in. He's

chained. He's blocked without freedom.

And it's a picture of him not being able

to reach God. His prayers are

unanswered.

In verse 11 to13, he is hunted. His

enemy is like a wild animal mauling him.

Of course, this is the Babylonians, but

he senses that it's God as well. He's

been targeted. He's been shot as an

enemy archer with his bows and his arms.

And if you go to verses 14 to 18, you'll

see that he is mocked. He is driven to

despair. life is bittered, bitter,

tortured. He's been trampled. He is

without peace or shalom. And he is

without happiness. And I have forgotten

what prosperity is. That word probably

means happiness and uh goodness, but the

NIV translates it prosperity. So he is

and I think the end of it is this is I

think this comes up. This is the end.

This is what he summarizes it. My

splendor is gone and all that I had

hoped from the Lord. He is utterly

without hope. The word for splendor by

the way can also mean endurance.

So what I think he's saying is I have

lost everything.

I cannot keep going. All my hope is

vanished and my hope is gone. There is

no future.

and you have brought me to this point.

This is the lowest point in the whole of

Lamentations.

He cannot go on because of what he feels

that God has done.

And folks, I I don't know what to do

with that in some ways, but I want you

to to hear it. I want you to sit with it

for a moment.

I want you to think of times when in

your own lives you have been desparing

or you look at a life that's messed up

because of poor decisions or sin or to s

you know to look at the anger in our

society

and to just sit with it

and to allow it to weigh upon you.

And you may feel that because you have

sinned and you've been caught out or

you've just seen the mess that you've

made of your life. Or you may see it

because of the sin that has been done to

you and you are a sufferer.

And you see that people don't care about

you. They're corrupt or lazy and you're

in a bad place. Or you may not know why

you are like this. It just may just be

the the mystery of suffering in the

world.

and you're grieving and you're sad or

you're sick or you're facing death and

you don't know what to do. That is what

we are to feel in these verses. And

lament of course is articulating or

complaining to God about that. If you're

disappointed by him, if he's brought you

to despair, then cry out even if you

feel that all hope is lost.

But I would be wrong to leave it there

because in the end of the day, there is

hope here in verse 18.

And where is it? It's in the very last

word

because there is a Lord.

He believes it.

He doesn't see it. He doesn't experience

it, but he knows it's true. My splendor

is gone and all that I had hoped from

the Lord. So, there's some hope in that.

He goes on to talk about hope remembered

in verses 19 to39.

Uh and again the idea of remembering

what's happened in the past and thinking

about the future. I have told this story

before but I I know that many times you

don't remember it but I was amazed and

this is an interesting little story. So

I at university in medicine we had to

cut up a human body and there were seven

of us at this. There were four lads from

another school, all from the one school

in one side and there was me and two

other lads and we're all from different

schools on this side. And you might be

surprised. It's a good thing to do by

the way. You do learn a lot of anatomy

by cutting up bodies. But do you know

what we did? And I surprised me. I

didn't I mean I was kind of quite shy.

But for from Monday to Wednesday as

we're cutting up this body, what did we

do? We talked about the week that had

gone the weekend. So what parties they'd

been at, who they'd met, what they'd

done, all of that. Sometimes I might try

and talk about church and all of those

kind of things. But that's what we did.

And then for some reason on Wednesday,

it changed and we talked about what

we're going to do the next weekend and

who we're going to see and what sport we

were playing and all of those things. So

we were remembering the past and we were

thinking about the future. And we do

that. That's a natural human thing to

do. And that is what Israel did. Israel

did that because they had a tremendous

past.

They had this amazing these amazing

stories of a God who parted the Red Sea,

of a God who led them through the

wilderness, a God who gave them mana, a

God who was with them in many ways.

And they did often remember that. And

they actually had a glorious future.

They believed in a Messiah. They

believed that someone was going to come

and rescue them and make them the nation

of the world.

And so in this act of remembering

they were it was essential in terms of

coping with the present. So they could

remember the past and the good in it.

They could look to the future and think

of the good that was to come and that

was to help them in the present. That's

what they're doing here.

The mention of the Lord's name and as it

were seems to trigger him thinking about

the Lord. So again, if you go through

this u we'll go through it quickly just

to see that that's what it's being said.

You see in verses 19 uh or verses 16, no

verses 19 to 20, he's talking about bad

memories. He remembers the trauma of the

war. We might call that PTSD nowadays.

The the thoughts come to him unaded. He

doesn't want them as it were. And of

course it leads to despondency. I well

remember them. Verse 20, and my soul is

downcast within me. And yet in verses 21

to 24, he remembers, isn't it? It's an

act of the will. It's hard to do. And it

may require the help of another person.

And the contrast with verse 18 is

incredible.

You see that verse, yet this I call to

mind, and therefore I have hope.

Now, that's a very important verse. It

was a very important verse to me

personally and it is a very important

verse. But what is this

yet? This I call to mind. What's he

thinking about? Well, he goes on to talk

about the covenant faithfulness of the

Lord. It is the history of God's dealing

with history Israel. It's the truth of

the character and action of God, of

God's great love and faithfulness. And

the poet sits in utter destruction and

despair, but he is still alive and God

is there.

I read the testimony this week in

preparation for this of a Rwanda

genocide survivor who said this, "I

never knew Jesus was all I needed until

Jesus was all that I had."

And so he waits in hope. It's good to

wait and consider God that punishment is

not the last word in verse 26. It's good

to wait quietly for the salvation of the

Lord. Folks, this really struck me. This

is, I think, the main point of what I

want to get across. If you go back to

the covenant and you read the covenant

in Deuteronomy chapters 28 and 30, you

are blessed if you obey. You are

punished if you disobey. But it ends

with God saying, "I will restore after I

have punished."

If you take the story of the Lord Jesus

and he was punished on the cross for our

sins, but three days later he rose from

the dead and he ascended into heaven and

lives at the right hand of the father.

He was punished for sins, but that's not

the end because he rose in resurrection.

And we look around us at this world and

we see how it's destroyed

environmentally, how the lives of so

many people are destroyed and there's so

much sin and death. But Jesus says, "I'm

coming back and I'm going to remake this

earth

and I'm going to remake the heavens and

we will dwell forever in glory. There

will be punishment because the old earth

will pass away. But there's a coming

reality."

And folks, if you remember and recall

this, this is the covenant hope. And

it's based in the character of God. And

it's a hope that these folks had, and

it's a hope that we have in Jesus. And

that the salvation is from the Lord. And

that he is our hope.

And folks, this is the very central

message of Lamentations. And you see it

in verses 31 to 33. This is brilliant

poetry. I was never good at English. And

it does sometimes wash over the top of

me. But if you look at that, you can see

that there's two negatives on the

outside in 31. For men are not cast off

by the Lord forever. And then verse 33,

for he does not willingly bring

affliction to the grief or grief to the

children of men. But what does he do in

verse 32 in the center? Though he brings

grief, he will show compassion. So great

is his unfailing love.

That's the reality

that God ultimately and the commentaries

and it's a really good idea if you the

the Exodus passage. God punishes for

three or four generations.

He shows love for thousands of

generations. There is no equation

between God's punishment and his love

and mercy.

That's the reality.

God

in in in Isaiah's

um description of this whenever God

punishes he says this is God's alien

work it is his strange work when we read

this morning when we started our service

that God is slow to anger that he is

abounding in love and we need to hold

that as well and whenever that is all

finished he says at the very end of that

in verse 39 9. And that's why we

finished there. Yet this I call to mind

and therefore I have hope. I think in

the next one I wanted to put that in.

Why should any man complain when

punished for his sins?

He acknowledges that God is good in

that. And there's been a change, isn't

he? He is now there is a sense of hope

there. He is no longer uh he is humbled.

He is just acknowledging his sin in the

light of that. and he's prepared to sit

under that.

And then next there is hope in tears in

verses 40 to 41 or 51.

Folks, I I have to say I've been really

benefiting. I've almost finished Tim

Chalie's book on grief. And I do hope

that many of you will sign up to this

seminar of grief and hope in grief. Um

it's called Seasons of Sorrow. Um, and I

suppose this struck me because uh,

obviously Peter and Bethan have just got

married. Peter is my firstborn son. Uh,

if you remember Tim Chal's only son died

at the age of 20. And he blogs and he

notes the variations in his mood. He

says that some days are more difficult.

And I I suppose this struck me. He tells

the story of the day that when his son

died, not just of that, but on the day

that he was due to be married

and the loss was particularly difficult

on that day uh as you can imagine.

And the day arguably should have been

one of the happiest days of the father's

life and of the son's life. And yet

because of death, it just didn't happen.

And what are you meant to do with that?

That's the reality of what he's

wrestling with in in that book and what

Lamentations

is is sort of wrestling with here. But

what Tim Chalice says and I think is

exactly what we see here is that some

days are better than others.

And you would expect that when this

person, this man has come to terms with

the fact that God is good and a

covenant-keeping God and that there will

be a future that the journey would be

up. But it's not

because he he then goes on in verse 40

onwards to recognize that this is a

difficult day.

And there's a lot of ups and downs in

this situation. And I suppose I want us

to see that as well and lament that even

though things sometimes can feel a bit

better some days, the next day could be

difficult. That grief is hard. And you

see that we'll run through these verses

again. His admission of sin is a

corporate ownership of sin in verses 40

and 42.

They're guilty of breaking the covenant.

He knows that um the sin is owned, but

there's a possibility of not being

forgiven. That's the key point here.

They're not forgiven.

And he feels aresh the distance and

absence of God which is expressed in

strong terms in verses 43 and 44. You

have covered yourself with anger and

pursued us. You have slain us without

pity.

And there they have enemies who hate

them in 45 and 46. And they weep in 48

and 49.

And I suppose I want I I thought this

picture was good, by the way, if you

want to take that in because I see this

as a man weeping. And in that very first

verse, the word for man in this passage

is not Adam, which is the word for man

usually. The word for man in uh chapter

3 and verse one is gear. Geer.

And actually gear means strong man.

And isn't that a powerful picture

because he's saying I am a strong man

but my eyes will flow unceasingly

without relief until the Lord looks down

from heaven and sees.

This is a strong man weeping

and he wishes to see

that God would see what he sees.

And there is hope in his tears because

we know that God does see what he sees

though he doesn't feel it at the moment.

And lastly, you know, my eyes flow with

unceasing without relief until the Lord

looks down from heaven and sees.

Yes. And lastly, we have this hope in

prayer. Now, that is why I put that

picture up because that's the picture we

we told to the boys and girls.

I wonder if you had a near-death

experience and in a moment prayed and

been saved. I have, but I decided I'll

not share that with you. You can ask me

about it if you want. And and probably

little things, and I know that others

have. They've shared those stories with

me as well. Maybe other things as well.

Somebody somebody in this church fell

asleep at the wheel and uh believe it or

not felt that someone came and drove the

car for a little while.

And whenever that happens, you're

thankful, aren't you?

And you simply acknowledge the grace of

God because if you didn't, you know you

would be dead. And this poet, this man

recalls a time when he experienced the

hatred of enemies and was almost killed

by them. I believe this is most likely

Jeremiah. And those are the verses that

I read to you in 55 to 57.

He's been thrown into a muddy well and

left to die. His prayer was heard and he

was rescued and he heard the words, "Do

not fear." By the way, these are the

only words of God recorded in

Lamentations.

Do not fear.

Can you imagine that? In any grief that

you feel or any of the difficulties that

come to you, you just hear these words.

do not fear.

And the man speaks for the people in the

city. You have seen the picture. You

have seen the injustice done to us in 59

to 56 or 63. And the call is for a

barister as it were to take up the case

and act on our behalf. Defend me. And

then as Lady Zion did, there's a call

for vengeance in 64 to 666

because of the injustice perpetrated

upon them.

So what is the hope folks in this? What

is the hope in prayer? You heard my

plea. Do not fear.

Folks, I suppose I just want to recount

to you what is the big idea here? What

is God saying to us?

Well, if our hope is lost, the Lord is

still there.

When we remember who he is, yet this I

call to mind, and therefore I have hope,

that is where we will find the beginning

of help.

There's hope in tears because my eyes

flow unceasingly without relief until

the Lord looks down from heaven and

sees.

And there's hope in prayer, for you

heard my prayer. Do not fear.

Folks, I do believe that there is hope

in despair if God is believed.

If we have faith in him in whatever

circumstances we're in, we believe that

his word is true, that his character is

as the Bible says, that his actions were

as he as he did, that he sent Jesus.

And if you go to the very central verse

of those 31 to 32 and 33 and you look at

that central verse of that and you say

to yourself and you're in your grief, he

says, "Though he brings grief,

he will show compassion,

so great is his unfailing love."

Learn that verse,

commit it to memory, and believe it

because that is the message of this

passage.

Death on the cross is followed by

resurrection from the tomb. It's Friday,

but Sunday is coming.

So in our lament, whatever it's over,

sadness or sickness or suffering or loss

that we experience, turn to God in

prayer. Complain to him and ask him the

questions. And as an act of the will,

recall who he is in his character and in

his words.

And in that and only in that is our

salvation and our hope.

Amen.

Let me pray.

Father, we do thank you for your word

and for its clarity. We thank you for

the hope that's contained in these words

and of course in the gospel which they

mirror.

And father that we thank you that you

did not leave us as you did not leave

Jeremiah stuck in the mud and unable to

do anything to save our lives. You sent

us Jesus.

And Father, even though it can be tough

in this world and and we live as aliens

as it were in strangers in this world,

Father, we will triumph.

We will dwell with you forever in heaven

and in the glory of this new earth. And

Father, we thank you for that hope. So

make us a people of hope and give us

compassionate hearts for a broken world

and for broken people. And father, I

pray that you would encourage us through

your word today. And we pray it in Jesus

name. Amen. Well, we're going to stand

to finish our final hymn, which of

course is Jes Christ, our hope in life

and death. So, let's stand to sing.

[Music]

Hope in life and death. Christ

is our hope. Holy God.

Let us all give it all who holds

it in his hands for aart from his

will

and all

his hand.

Oh sing hallelu

our heart springs eternal.

Oh, sing hallelujah.

[Music]

God is good. God is good. Release his

face and his home. Be the great tears.

Who our face with his arise? Who stands

above the stormy sh

[Music]

with Christ.

Oh sing hallelu

our praise eternal.

Oh, sing hallelu

now and ever confess.

Christ our hope again.

[Music]

Christ he lives. Christ he lives. The

glory world will ever bring

everlasting

life with

[Music]

the Lord as sin and death will be

destroyed. When we will feast

and destroy

Christ is lost forever.

[Music]

Sing halleluj

[Music]

eternal.

Oh sing hallelu

and ever we confess

Christ our hopeal

[Music]

my hope is eternal.

Oh, sing hallelujah.

Now we confess

Christ our hope in life again.

Now we confess

Christ our hope in life again.

[Music]

Folks, if you will permit me to pray a

blessing over you, I'm going to pray um

in a change uh this doxology from the

book of Jude over you. To him who is

able to keep you from falling and to

present you before his glorious presence

without fault and with great joy. To the

only God our savior be glory, majesty,

power, and authority through Jesus

Christ our Lord before all ages now and

forever more. Amen.

[Music]