The
steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning, great is your
faithfulness. Lamentations 3.22,23 NRSV
The prophet Jeremiah wrote these
words when Israel was taken into captivity.
This was at a time of their darkest hour, there would be no deliverance
and it would be 70 years of captivity before a remnant would be allowed to go
back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and inhabit the burned and broken city.
In spite of what had happened
Jeremiah, the weeping prophet proclaimed three aspects of the character of God
that would sustain him and his people during this difficult time.
The first was
the steadfast love of the Lord.
I think most of the people during
this time felt as though they had been abandoned by God that he no longer loved
them and had rejected them as his people.
Yet Jeremiah could state confidently that this was not true. Because God loved them he had to discipline
them. For many people this is hard to
understand but it is the sign of true love when you discipline someone in order
to prevent them from continuing to do the wrong things that will lead to their
destruction. His unquenchable love will always be toward his people. They could always count on his love to be
there. As much as they rebelled against him and angered him by their worship of
idols, his love would not be shut off.
He would continue to extend his love to them with the hope that they
would repent and return to him.
Love is a powerful force. It is
infallible. When you know you are loved you are
empowered. Paul said true God kind of
love will never fail (1 Cor. 13.8). It
will accomplish its mission. The love of
God would prevail over his people.
Eventually they would return to him as he drew them with cords of his
love.
Human love will fail. We see its failures every day in broken
relationships, adultery and selfishness.
There comes a point in these relationships based in human love, where
the love ends and separation or divorce usually results.
God in his nature is love. His love is immeasurable and we are the
objects of God's love that he lavishes upon us.
This is the true nature of love, the giving of oneself to another person
whether they reciprocate the love or not.
God's love has no ending point, it is an eternal love.
God's love is a transforming love.
When we enter into his love it changes us to be like him. When we have his love
in us we desire to share this love with others.
When God created Adam he did not have anyone he could love in his human
flesh. God knew this and stated that it was not good for man to be alone
(Genesis 2.8). God created the perfect
match for him in Eve. Together they would
grow in this love and enjoy the life God had given them. The apostle John understood very well that
the reason we can love is because God first loved us (1 John 4.19). He is the
originator and the source of our ability to truly love. When we have the same God kind of love it
will be like his love for us, steadfast and unceasing. The challenge we face is
to let that love continue when everything seems to turn against us and we are
hated by others and persecuted by them for our beliefs. There is a story of a man who was hated by a
woman. Every day he walked by her house,
she cursed him and threw things at him.
But one day the woman was not waiting for him. For most of us we would be relieved to not
have to face the unkind words and actions of a person who was filled with
hatred. But this man stopped at her
house because he thought something must have happened to her and he wanted to
help her. She was sick and he was able
to help her. His actions changed her
attitude toward him. One of the greatest tests of love is how we treat our
enemies. Jesus said that we are to love
them and pray for them. It does not mean we do not hold them accountable but it
does determine how we treat them as a human being created in God’s image and
likeness.
The news of late is a great example
of what happens when people are not treated with love. The offensive cartoons that had no basis of
love motivating their drawings was reacted to by those offended not in love but
in violence and destruction. These
groups are devoid of the love of God and their actions are true to their
character.
As believers we have the opportunity
to show God’s love to mankind in ways that are completely opposite to the ways
of the fallen world.
The second
thing Jeremiah noted was the mercy of God.
He noted that God’s mercy would never end. Israel was his chosen people, his special
possession, through whom he chose to bring the Messiah to the world. The nation was being punished for their sins
of rebellion, idolatry, abuse, oppression of the poor and failure to keep the
covenant God had made with them. Yet
Jeremiah could see the mercy of God in spite of what they were
experiencing.
Some have defined mercy as not
receiving what you deserve. So how could
Jeremiah state this when the nation was getting exactly what God had told them
would happen?
Perhaps Jeremiah was looking at the
captivity as a way that God would turn the nation back to himself. He could
have completely abandoned them yet he was merciful in executing his punishment
because it would have a positive effect in the end. Had he spared them they probably would have
returned to their sinful practices.
I think Jeremiah was also looking to
the future when God would demonstrate his mercy to them. His mercies would not come to an end there
would be mercy extended to them daily in different ways but the punishment
would not be lifted.
Mercy is one of God's attributes
that always amazes me. It is God's
kindness, compassion, pity and his favor that are synonymous with mercy. The
word mercy is use 622 times in the NRSV of the Bible. It is obviously a major emphasis.
His mercy is demonstrated often when
he does not give us what we deserve or he spares us from something bad or evil
that will happen to us.
The first time the word mercy is
used in the story of Lot and his family when they were rescued from the
judgment God was going to execute upon Sodom and Gomorrah. Gen. 19.15-16
15 As dawn was breaking, the angels
urged Lot on, saying, “On your way! Take with you your wife and your two daughters
who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.”
16 When he hesitated, the men, by the
LORD’S mercy, seized his hand and the hands of his wife and his two daughters
and led them to safety outside the city.
Lot was lingering when he should
have been running. God is his mercy had
the angels grab his hand to pull him and his family out of a situation that
would have ended his life. God's mercy
rescued Lot and his family.
I think there are many times in our
life that God extends his mercy to us when we are unaware of what is happening
or what is going to happen. He changes
circumstances, diverts people with evil intentions or intervenes to cause something
to happen to spare us from experiencing something horrible.
God honored the intercession of Abraham
to spare Lot and his family from the destruction. God's mercy is at times the answer to
someone's prayer for us. I think we will
be surprised when we get to heaven and God reveals to us how many times He
intervened in his mercy and in response to the prayers someone has prayed for
us.
I know in my own life God in his
mercy spared me from accidents that could have led to my death. You probably have stories you can tell as
well of how God extended mercy to you to keep you from harm. The following testimony is an example of God
intervening in a life to spare them from eternal damnation.
Darrel Hall's testimony "Heaven
& Hell Are For Real!" on 11/08/2014, 1:57pm...
I became a real believer in June of 2008 when in a bar, a very haggard
and angry looking man told me my drinking has led me to a doorway of heaven or
hell, then he showed me that one more step in the same direction and what lays
beyond. Whoever this man was did not appear to enjoy suffering fools like
myself. He was dressed in sackcloth or perhaps burlap like John the Baptist. As
he motioned downwards my gaze was led to a hole or passage in the floor that
led straight to hell. What I saw next sent me reeling out of the bar. The
grisly detailed view of suffering below was shocking and caused me to windmill
my arms and fall backwards out of the bar's front door. What I saw was no
hallucination nor did it look like a picture - it was real! …
What drove me to drink was the knowledge of the evil of this world
without the knowledge of why. I have spent years researching the evil in this
world but got much more than I bargained for. That was my last drink - I prayed
to have the obsession for alcohol removed from me and Jesus Christ made it very
easy for me to stop and has really changed my entire selfish personality to
something much better than what it was. Heaven and Hell are for real. This is a
true story.
Just as the angels reached out and
grabbed Lot and his family's hands God reached out to this man to spare him
from an eternity in hell which is exactly where he was headed.
God revealed himself to Abraham as a
God of mercy not only in Lot's life but also in his own.
God’s mercy shown to Abraham.
When he and his beautiful wife Sarah
were traveling in Egypt, he was afraid that she would be taken and he would be
killed. In order to spare his life he
asked her to identify herself as his sister.
I call this story "Beauty and the Beast" as Abraham's actions
were less than noble and almost animal like in self-preservation at the expense
of his wife. God had mercy on both of
them by intervening in a dream that King Abimelech had.
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream
one night and said to him, “You are about to die because of the woman you have
taken, for she has a husband.”
4 Abimelech, who had not approached
her, said: “O Lord, would you slay a man even though he is innocent?
5 He himself told me, ‘She is my
sister,’ and she herself also stated, ‘He is my brother.’ I did it in good
faith and with clean hands.”
6 God answered him in the dream: “Yes,
I know you did it in good faith. In fact, it was I who kept you from sinning
against me; that is why I did not let you touch her.
7 Therefore, return the man’s wife—as
a spokesman he will intercede for you—that your life may be saved. If you do
not return her, you can be sure that you and all who are yours will certainly
die.” Gen. 20.3-8 NAB
God intervened to keep all parties
from experiencing a painful and disastrous situation. In his love for Abraham
and Sarah and because of his covenant promise to them he preserved them for his
purposes. King Abimelech was also shown
mercy through the dream that enabled him to remain innocent even though he was
acting in good faith.
We have many examples in the
Scriptures of God demonstrating his mercy toward his chosen people.
When Jesus taught his followers the
basic core values of his kingdom which we call the "Beatitudes" he
stated. "Blessed are the merciful for they will receive mercy." (Mt.
5.7) We are all recipients of mercy from God for our failures. God could enforce his justice and give the
punishment we deserve yet he holds back and is merciful to us in giving us time
to repent. His mercy triumphs over
judgment. This same mercy he extends to
us is the way he wants us to treat others.
James the brother of Jesus wrote (James 2.13 NRSV)
13 For judgment will be without mercy
to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
We live in a world that often shows
no mercy because they do not understand the mercy God has shown to them. I have been reading a book called the
"Locust Effect" by Gary Haugen who works with the International
Justice Mission. The book recounts many
stories that are difficult to read because they portray humanity acting in ways
that are almost beyond belief. One story
was of a man in Chennai, India who took a job working in a brick factory. The owner gave him a loan of $10 to help him
with some of his expenses and debts he had incurred from not having sufficient
income in his previous job. But this loan became a way for the owner to make
him his slave. His salary was only a
dollar or two per day to support his family and this was not enough so there
was no extra money to pay off the debt.
In addition the only food he could buy was the food provided by the
owner who charged more money than what could be purchased in the market. His debt grew greater and the owner had no
mercy whatsoever upon the man. When the man asked if he could leave the factory
to find wood to sell to make more money to pay off his debt he was denied. There was no way out for this man and there
was no help from the police to be able to get away and report what was
happening because the police were being paid by the owner to come to the
factory and beat anyone who tried to leave.
It was a hopeless situation for the man and his family as there was no
mercy extended to him. Eventually he was
rescued by IJM but it was a very difficult process. There are many similar cases like this
throughout the world where people become the slaves of owners who are corrupt
and have zero compassion and mercy for their slaves. God's kingdom of mercy has not come to these
people but as Jesus stated they will not receive mercy in their day of judgment
We
are to be merciful, to hold back our judgment to give people an opportunity to
change their ways. We are often quick to
judge and quick to sentence someone to punishment but showing mercy can often
produce a change in behavior that may not have been accomplished through
judgment.
I
remember when I was taking a motorcycle trip with a club I belonged to and
something fell off the back of my motorcycle.
I turned around to get it but the group kept going so by the time I
picked up the falling article they were a ways ahead. At that time the speed limit was 55 mph and
in order to catch up with them I had to do a different version of 55 mph. The highway patrol was coming toward me and
he turned around when I passes him. His
lights were on and I knew I was in trouble.
I did not make any excuses but was surprised when the patrol man said,
“you need to slow down and have a good weekend!” It was not what I expected but it was an act
of mercy that I will never forget. And I rode more slowly after that.
The final
attribute that Jeremiah noted in this verse was the faithfulness of God.
God is always faithful to act according to his character. He is faithful to be just as he has said he
would be. He was a God of mercy and he was faithful to show these mercies every
day. His faithfulness was not
dependent upon ours. If we are unfaithful
he remains faithful because he cannot deny himself (2 Tim 2.13 NRSV)
13 if we are faithless, he remains
faithful— for he cannot deny himself.
God is also faithful to keep his
covenant. The covenant he made with
Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David was never rescinded. Hebrews 11.11-12 gives this information
regarding Abraham:
11 By faith he received power
of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because
he considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one person,
and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, “as many as the stars of
heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.”
God kept his covenant with Moses to
bring his people to the Promised Land.
He kept his covenant with David to always have a descendent upon his
throne through which the Messiah would be born.
Jeremiah knew that God would be
faithful to his covenant he had made with his people even thought they had been
so unfaithful to him. The covenant God
had made with them would be honored and that gave him hope. They were still
God's chosen people, he had not completely rejected them. The promise of the Messiah would still come
through his people. God would honor the
covenant he made with them. You will be
my people and I will be your God was still how God would operate. (Ex 6:7)
7 I will take you as my people, and I
will be your God. You shall know that I am the Lord
your God, who has freed you from the burdens of the Egyptians.
God demonstrates his faithfulness to
us not only in his character and covenant but also in his help he gives us.
God is faithful to us in our daily
walk with him. The following verses
confirm his faithfulness toward us in specific areas.
He is faithful to strengthen us (1
Cor. 1:8-9 NRSV)
8 He will also strengthen you to the
end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God
is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus
Christ our Lord.
He is faithful to now allow us to be
tempted beyond what we can take and provide the escape route (1 Cor 10.13 NRSV)
13 No testing has overtaken you that is
not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested
beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so
that you may be able to endure it.
He will be faithful to sanctify us
until the day of Christ's return (1 Thes. 5.23-24 NRSV)
23 May the God of peace himself
sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and
blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one
who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.
He is faithful to strengthen us and
guard us from the evil one (2 Thes. 3:2-3 NRSV)
3 But the Lord is faithful; he will
strengthen you and guard you from the evil one
He is faithful to us in our times of
suffering (1 Peter 4.19 NRSV)
19 Therefore, let those suffering in
accordance with God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator, while
continuing to do good.
Faithful to forgive us (1 John 1.9
NRSV)
9 If we confess our sins, he who is
faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
Faithful to fulfill the hope he has
promised to us of eternal life.(Heb 10:23 NRSV)
23 Let us hold fast to the confession
of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.
We are exhorted to be faithful in
our steadfast devotion to the Lord (Ac 11:23)
23 When he came and saw the grace of
God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with
steadfast devotion;
Faithful in our duties as ministers
(Eph 6:21)
21 So that you also may know how I am
and what I am doing, Tychicus will tell you everything. He is a dear brother
and a faithful minister in the Lord.
Faithful to walk in the truth (3 Jn
3)
3 I was overjoyed when some of the
friends arrived and testified to your faithfulness to the truth, namely how you
walk in the truth.
Be faithful in times of persecution
even until our death. (Re 2:10)
10 Do not fear what you are about to
suffer. Beware, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison so that you
may be tested, and for ten days you will have affliction. Be faithful until
death, and I will give you the crown of life.
In Israel’s darkest hour, Jeremiah
knew God as a loving, merciful and faithful God. These attributes of God give us a solid
foundation in our relationship with him that will sustain us in times of
difficulty or adversity. These same
attributes should also bear witness in how we live our daily lives before God
and our fellow man.
