Our
Plight: Who Will May
Know It!
Jeremiah 1:16-17
Lamentations 1:12
Matthew 11:20-24
II
Corinthians 5:1-11
Psalm 81:8-16
Isaiah 48:16-19
September 3, 2023
The
Observation of Suffering (Lamentations 1:12)
12 Is it nothing to
you, all ye that pass by? and see if there be any
sorrow like
unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith
the Lord hath afflicted
me in the day of His fierce anger.
Prophetic certitude: when something is projected in the future
is spoken of as in the past.
Jeremiah’s
lament over the city he had done his best to save.
Lamentation: weeping, wailing, crying, sobbing,moaning
Plight we are in:
21 With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the
flattering of her lips she forced him.
22 He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth
to the slaughter, or
as a fool to the correction of the stocks;
23 Till a dart
strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the
snare,
and knoweth not that
it is for his life.
I. A SEEMINGLY UNREASONABLE COMPLAINT. “Is it nothing to
you, all
ye that pass by?” So speaks
of
the weeping widow, with the tears on her cheeks and the beauty faded,
deprived of all her pleasant things, and left in solitude so far as
her familiar
supports and consolations are concerned. She sits, as it were, by
the
highway, and the crowd passes on, taking no notice. Why, indeed,
should it
take notice? The spectacle of a conquered nation and a pillaged capital was
not
a rare thing. The nations asked to sympathize had been through the
same experience themselves. We are all prompted to say, “Surely no
trouble has been like
our trouble;” and yet, as our observation
of human
affairs enlarges, we see how human nature, in every individual
instance, is
made to know its extraordinary capacity for suffering. Nevertheless, the
piteous appeal here is not a baseless one. The trouble of the
children of
were peculiar in constitution, privileges, and history. If only there had
been
eyes to see it, there was something very significant to demand attention.
But the thing to
be seen did not lie on the surface, nor was it to be
discovered save by faculties specially illuminated. The
downfall and the
sufferings of
subsequent history, belong to the things that are to be spiritually
discerned.
Therefore this complaint., while superficially it may be called
unreasonable,
is yet reasonable
enough, if we only consider the position and mission of
Israel, and the
work which, even in her degradation, she has done for the
world.
II. THE NEED THERE IS TO MARK JEHOVAH’S SURE
VISITATIONS
ON THE DISOBEDIENT. This is the
critical element in
the
appeal that a widow like
as the greatest illustration
of the certainty with which Jehovah punishes
those who rebel against
Him.” We must, of course, beware of the
conclusion that suffering always means punishment; but where we can
see
that it is punishment we must mark it as such, so that we ourselves may be
admonished and may also more effectually admonish others. Here was a
nation that in obedience might have rested confidently and
happily in
Jehovah’s promise. The power behind that promise was more than all the
armies of the great empires round about. But when the power
was
withdrawn it meant not
merely suffering; the withdrawing had in it the
nature of a judicial,
solemn sentence from JEHOVAH HIMSELF!
(Jeremiah 11:16-17)
16 The Lord called thy name, A green
olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit,
with the noise of a great tumult He hath kindled
fire upon it, and the brances
of it are broken.
17 For the Lord of hosts, that planted thee, hath
pronounced evil against
thee, for the evil of the house of
done against themselves to provoke me to anger
in offering incense unto Baal.
The
First Last
Many, indeed, are the instances in which those who were
placed first in
opportunity have been found last in attainment. Privilege, favor,
education,
help of all kinds, have been at their disposal, and yet the results which
had
been designed for them, and which so surely should have been theirs, they
have missed (compare Matthew 11:20-24)
20 Then
began He to upbraid the cities wherein most of His mighty
works were done, because they repented not:
21 Woe
unto thee, Chorazin! woe
unto thee,
mighty works, which were done in you, had been
done in
22 But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for
the day of judgment, than for you.
23 And
thou,
brought down to hell: for if the mighty works,
which have been
done in thee, had been done in
until this day.
24 But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the
land of
Sodom in the day of judgment, than for
thee.
For
unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much is required.
(Luke 12:48)
1 For we
know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were
dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not
made with
hands, eternal in the heavens.
2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon
with our
house which is from heaven:
3 If so be
that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened:
not for
that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon,
that mortality might
be swallowed up of life.
5 Now He
that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who
also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
6
Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at
home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
7 (For we walk by
faith, not by sight:)
8 We are
confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the
body, and to be present with the Lord.
9
Wherefore we labor, that, whether present or absent, we may be
accepted of Him.
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ;
that
every one may receive
the things done in his body, according to
that he hath done,
whether it be good or bad.
11 Knowing
therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we
are made manifest unto God; and I trust also
are made manifest in
your consciences. (II
Corinthians 5:1-11)
“Woe unto thee Chorazin!...
And in ordinary life, as well as in the records
of the Bible, may we learn how
frequently, not the strong and mighty, but “the lame take the prey.” (Isaiah 33:23)
The first are last and the last first.
Now, of such sad and shameful failures these verses
supply a notable instance. Under the imagery of a green olive
tree,
fair and of goodly
fruit, the prophet pictures the condition and prospects of the
people of God when He
first planted them. No similitude could more strikingly convey to the
mind of the
inhabitant of
the
prophet portrays a far different scene — that same tree,
but black and charred,
its
trunk riven, its fruit and foliage all gone, and its
branches broken down; for
the thunderbolt and the scathing lightning, the wild tempest
and the fierce
wind, have all done their deadly work upon it, and now it stands a mere
blackened stump, instead of the beauteous and fruitful tree it once
was.
From that height
of favor to that depth of disaster were
I. THEY WERE FIRST. The imagery employed by the prophet tells in
what respects.
1. In the favor
of God. The olive was a favorite tree, held in highest esteem
by the people of the lands where it grew; hence it is used
here and
elsewhere as an emblem of those whom God favors and has pleasure in
(compare
“I
am like a green olive tree in the house of my God,” Psalm 52:8).
The Bible seems to love the
tree. It is the first named of any known tree
(Genesis 8:11), and is the
subject of the first parable (Judges 9:8).
It is everywhere spoken of as
precious; hence, when
are thus named, we regard it as a name of endearment, telling how precious
they were in God’s sight. This is borne out by direct
statements and by the
recorded deeds of God, which show the esteem in
which He held them.
2. In beauty.
No doubt the beauty of the olive tree exists partly in the eyes
of the beholder, who looks upon it with affection for all the
service it
renders him. But to others also there is unquestionable beauty in
the olive
which, with its “noble groves, covered with foliage the whole
year round,
spreading like a silver sea along the base of the hills and climbing
their
ascending terraces, speaks loudly of peace and plenty, food and
gladness”
(see
Ruskin,’ Stones of Venice,’ vol. 3. pp. 175-177). And without doubt it
was beautiful in the eyes of those to whom the prophet wrote. But there is
a moral beauty as well as that which is material, and of
which the material
is a fit symbol. And, compared with the disorder, the violence, the
foulness,
the wickedness of all kinds, in which the rest of the world
was sunk,
was as a garden of the Lord — a green olive tree, “fair” and comely to
look upon. In them that which was lovely and of good report, that which
had virtue and praise, were found as nowhere else. Love to God and
love
to man, justice, truth, and piety were held in esteem amongst
them as
amongst none others.
3. In usefulness. The olive tree was
not merely fair, but “of goodly fruit.”
From that fruit came one of the
commonest and most essential articles of
the Eastern’s food. Its oil was
employed in connection with almost
everything that they ate. Its berries gave flavor to the peasant’s
bread. The
evening lamp was kindled with the oil pressed from it. And that
same oil
was used to anoint their priests and kings, for the lamp in
the holy place,
and to mingle with many of their sacrifices. To
“anoint the head with oil”
was deemed most delightful and refreshing (Psalm 23). Wounds
were
dressed with it (Luke 10:34), and the sick were anointed with it
(Mark 6:13; James 5:4). The wood
of the tree was employed in the
sacred furniture of the temple, and there seemed to be no part of
the tree
which did not in some way render service to man. Now, such was
the
purpose of God in regard to His people, that in
them “should
all the nations
of the earth be blest.” They were to be the channel of blessing to all people.
Through them God’s “saving health” should be known “amongst all
nations.” (Psalm 67:2)
4. And in
permanence. Their blessedness was to abide. The “greenness” of
the tree spoken of here refers to its perpetuity and strength.
The olive is
known to live to a great age. It is not improbable (see Kitto) that some of
the olive trees now on the
Lord. The tax paid on them is
that which was assigned to such trees when
first the Turks became masters of
taxed far more heavily. But
of the great age to which the olive tree attains
there can be no doubt. It brings forth fruit in old age, and
its leaf doth not
wither (Psalm 1). It was, therefore, a fit emblem of permanent prosperity
and strength. Such was the Divine intent in regard to His people. Their
blessedness was to abide. (Let us think out
loud. What do you think that
the will of God was for Adam and Eve? CY - 2023)
Psalm
81:8-16
8 Hear, O
my people, and I will testify unto thee: O
wilt hearken unto me;
9There
shall no strange God be in thee; neither shalt thou
worship
any strange God.
10 I am
the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of
11 But my
people would not hearken to my voice; and
none of me.
12 So I
gave them up unto their own hearts’ lust: and they walked in
their own counsels.
13 Oh that
my people had hearkened unto me, and
in my ways!
14 I
should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand
against their adversaries.
15 The
haters of the LORD should have submitted themselves unto
him: but their time should have endured for
ever.
16 He should
have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and
with honey out of the rock should I have
satisfied thee.
Isaiah
48:
12 Hearken
unto me, O Jacob and
first, I also am the last.
13 Mine
hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right
hand hath spanned the heavens: when I call unto
them, they stand
up together.
14All ye,
assemble yourselves, and hear; which among them hath
declared these things? The LORD hath loved him: he
will do his
pleasure on
15 I, even
I, have spoken; yea, I have called him: I have brought him,
and he shall make his way prosperous.
16 Come ye
near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret
from the beginning; from the time that it was,
there am I: and now
the Lord GOD, and His Spirit, hath sent me.
17 Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of
the LORD thy
God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth
thee by the way that
thou shouldest go.
18 O that
thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy
peace been as a
river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the
sea:
19 Thy
seed also had been as the sand, and the offspring of thy bowels
like the gravel thereof; his name should not have
been cut off nor
destroyed from before me.
Thus in all these and yet other
ways were they first. But:
II. THEY BECAME LAST. See the terrible similitude employed — the
charred and shattered tree. But not more
terrible than true. (Contrast what
has
happened in
The smoldering ruins, the devastated city, the desolate
land, which a few years
afterwards the prophet looked upon, showed how true his word had
been. They
had
become last indeed. Exalted to heaven, they had been thrust down to hell.
(Compare Matthew 11:20-24)
None can avoid inquiring:
III. THE CAUSE OF ALL THIS. It is declared to be threefold.
1. The evil of
the people themselves. (v. 17.) Their persistence in
idolatry in spite of all remonstrance, warning, and every
inducement which
should have withdrawn them from their sin. “Do not the abominable thing
which I hate” had in every
variety of manner been said to them by God,
but
in vain. He hated it
because it was the root of so many other sins, and the
destroyer of all the good He had purposed both for and through them.
(
In seeking the usual reference of the above, I expected to be led to a
Bible verse but instead this showed up!
AMERICA’S
CHRISTIAN HERITAGE – APOSTOLIC INFORMATION SERVICE
May 13, 2009
James Miller
For over 200
years, from 1690-1900, a primary reading textbook entitled
The New England
Primer was used in every
used to teach
children in
But, this book
would be comparable to first grade level curriculum. The first lessons
contain
the alphabet, then come the learning syllables and words. About a quarter
of the
way through the book the children were taught to memorize a different phrase
attached
to each letter of the alphabet. Here are some of the examples:
·
A is for “A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish son is the
heaviness of his mother.
·
B is for “Better is a little
with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure
and trouble therewith.”
·
C is for “Come unto Christ
all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and
He
will give you rest.
·
D is for “Do not the
abominable thing, which I hate saith the Lord.”
·
E is for “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the
Above I
mentioned that we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ
and
receive for the things we have done. There
will be some pleasant things
in the
Judgment - “Well done good and faithful servant. Thou hast been
faithful
over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things. Enter thou
into the joy of thy Lord. (Matthew 25:23)
It goes on and
on like this. This was the primary reading textbook in
for over
200 years. Notice one of the lessons contained in the textbook: “Who is the
first man?
Who is the
first woman? Who is the first murderer?
(quite a contrast to the curriculum of
today -
but this is what produced
Who is the
first martyr? Who is the first translated? Who is the oldest man? Who built the
ark?
Who is the most
faithful man? Who is
the meekest man? Who is the most patient?” Etc… T
his
sounds like a Sunday school lesson!
No, it was the
primary reading textbook in
would get
into the back of the book it contained questions such as (remember this is
1st grade
level): “What is the fifth commandment? What is the forbidden in the fifth
commandment?
What is the reason annexed to the fifth commandment? What is the
sixth
commandment? What is required in the sixth commandment? What is forbidden
in the sixth
commandment?” Now that was the foundation for
over 200
years!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the type of education that John Quincy
Adams received. He served
as
President, 18 years in the House of Representatives, Secretary of State, and
many more
positions.
At the age of 14, he received a congressional diplomatic appointment overseas
to the
court of Catherine the Great in Russia Can you imagine sending a 14-year-old
overseas
as a
diplomat to
foundation
they received. John Quincy Adams said, “The highest glory of the American
Revolution was
this: it connected, in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil
government
with the principles of Christianity. ” Today we hear that it is supposed
to be
separated and that our founding fathers wanted it that way! John Jay, first
Chief Justice
of the United States Supreme Court, one of the men most responsible
for our
Constitution said, “
rulers,
and it is the duty as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian
nation
to select
and prefer Christians for their rulers.” How long has it been since we heard
anyone on
the Supreme Court say, “now make sure you elect Christians as your leaders”?
In the earlier
history textbooks students were taught that George Washington’s farewell
address
was the most significant political speech ever given to the nation. Why not?
He is the
“Father of the nation. ” He spent 45 years of his life
in public service: everything
from
Commander in Chief, through two terms as president. He was president of the
convention
that gave us the Constitution. He was the one who called for the
1st Amendment Bill of Rights. In his farewell speech he was saying, “This is what
brought
Yet, that
farewell speech has not been seen in textbooks for nearly 40 years. Why not,
does
George Washington have nothing to say anymore? No, the problem is what he says
in the
last half of his speech; he goes into great detail about something: “Of all the
habits
and
dispositions which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are
indispensable
supports.
In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to
subvert
these
great pillars! ” We don’t hear these kind of
statements anymore. But, these are the men
that gave
us the greatest form of government on earth.
different
governments, and
ideas for
a government that could last so long when other nations can’t last?
felt that
if they could look back at some of the writings of the founding fathers and
see whom
they quoted, they would know the answer. They collected 15,000 writings
of the founding
fathers. From that they boiled it down to 3,154 writings that they felt had
significant
impact on the founding of
three
most quoted men were Blackstone, Montesquie, and John
Locke. Now that is a
tribute
to these three men, but what they found and did not expect to find was that
four
times
more than Montesquie twelve times more than
Blackstone, and sixteen times more
than John
Locke the founding fathers quoted from the Bible! 34% of all quotes of the
founding
fathers came out of the Bible. Another 60% came from men that used the Bible
to draw
up their conclusions. 94% of quotes used by our founding fathers were based on
Bible Scripture. 34% came directly from the Bible, and 60% were from men that used
the
Bible to draw
up their conclusions! Blackstone ‘s Commentaries on
the Law was the book
that a
person couldn’t go to law school without knowing. Charles Finney, who during
his
time was
like Billy Graham of our day, had gone to law school to become a lawyer before
ever
aspiring to be a preacher. In the process of studying Blackstone’s writings on
the law
in which
Blackstone gave Bible verses that supported the reason for each law, Finney
became a
Christian. He became a Christian by studying the law! The idea of three
branches of
government with separation of powers didn’t copy any other government.
This idea came
from Isaiah 33:22 “For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver,
he Lord
is our king; he will save us. ” The idea for “separation of powers” came from
Jeremiah 17. The idea of “tax exemption for churches” came from Ezra 7:24
“Also we
certify
you, that, touching any of the priests and Levites, singers, porters, Nethinums,
or ministers
of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose toll, tribute, or
custom,
upon
them.” It is amazing how many times
Congressmen would come to the floor of the
House or Senate
with Bible in hand saying, “look what I found in the Bible! ”
Others would
then say,
“If it is in the Bible, that is what we want. ” They would vote on it and make
it law.
The Bible book
quoted more often than any other was Deuteronomy. This lets us know that
they were
students of the Bible, because not many people today are that familiar with
Deuteronomy. Let us pray that God will bring
God please
bless
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PERSECUTION
OF CHRISTIANS GROWING IN THE UNITED STATES →
2. Their evil
returning upon themselves. v. 17, “The evil.., which they
have done against themselves.” This is ever the way of sin “But he that
sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate
me love
death.” (Proverbs 8:36). It wrongs our entire nature. What a man
sows he
reaps:
(a)
The reason is debased,
(b) the conscience trampled
on,
(c)
the power of will prostrated,
(d)
the soul imprisoned,
(e)
the affections perverted,
(f)
the imagination defiled,
(g)
the body often diseased,
(h)
character ruined,
(i) substance wasted, and
(j) all the true springs of happiness poisoned or stopped.
He has sown to the flesh, and
of the flesh he has reaped corruption.
Yes, sin is ever done against ourselves.
3. The woe which
comes from the provoked anger of God. Besides these
natural results of sin — the reaping which is according to the
sowing, and
which are terrible enough in themselves — there come the
punitive
inflictions of the wrath of God. History as well as the Bible is full of proofs
of this on a large scale, and so are the experiences of
individual
transgressors, though in more limited form. And wherever sin, the primary
cause, is found, there sooner
or later will come these other causes which
together work so dread a doom.
·
CONCLUSION. What effect should the contemplation of
facts like these
— and they are written and wrought for our learning (I
Corinthians 10:11)
— have upon us?
Should they not cause us to reject at once and forever all
those
suggestions which Satan is ever plying us with —
Ø that sin will not be punished, and
Ø the transgressor may, after all, go free?
In view of
facts like these, how can that be believed? And should
they not
lead us
to offer as our daily prayer the petition, “Give us a heart to love
and dread thee, and diligently to live after
thy commandments”?
And not only to
dread and deprecate the wrath
which sin provokes,
but
to desire and seek after that preoccupation of the
heart
with the love of God which will bar out sin.
“Guard my
first springs of thought and will,
And with thyself my spirit fill
Apostasy an
Anomalous (abnormal and aberrant) and Incalculable Thing
(Jeremiah
8:4-7)
4 Moreover
thou shalt say unto them, Thus
saith the LORD; Shall
they fall, and not arise? shall
he turn away, and not return?
5 Why then
is this people of
backsliding? they hold fast
deceit, they refuse to return.
6 I
hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no
man repented
him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned
to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
7 Yea, the
stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and
the
turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the
time of their
coming; but my people know not the judgment of
the LORD.
I. THE ANALOGIES OR COMMON SENSE AND
INSTINCT ARE
FALSIFIED. (vs.
4-6.) If a man fall, he will rise again to
his feet; if he
has made a mistake or gone in a wrong direction, and discovers it, he
will
turn again, unless he be absolutely
bereft of his senses. One might expect
similar behavior in spiritual matters. But
in the wickedness and defection of
are taught
by instinct when to return. The season of their coming again is
almost as
calculable as that of their going. But the departure of the sinner is
incomprehensible,
and his return cannot with certainty be expected. Nay,
the likelihood
is he will continue in his sin, and pursue his own destruction
to the hitter end. In this, as in many other instances, the
career of the sinner
can only be explained on
the score of infatuation. His moral sense is
perverted or
destroyed. In place of that quick response which conscience
ought to
make to the voice of duty, there comes over his spirit an
insensibility to
moral considerations, and A GROWING
IGNORANCE
of things
Divine gradually
deepening into OUTER DARKNESS.
II. IT IS UNMOVED BY THE
CONSIDERATIONS THAT OUGHT
TO AFFECT IT. (v. 5.) The growing misery and
unhappiness which it
occasions are
not strong enough to check the tendency to sin, if indeed
their connection
with it is clearly perceived or acknowledged. The cravings
of the spiritual nature have to give place
to “the lust of the flesh, the lust of
the eye,
and the pride of life.” By-and-by they are stilled, not by being
satisfied, but by being stifled;
and a curious heedlessness, which is deaf to
all the voices of
prophetic warning and entreaty, increasingly characterizes
it. Under such circumstances it
is difficult to discover any common point of
contact or argument that shall be valid to both
parties. When reason is left
behind, it is not to higher, but to lower,
susceptibilities that appeal has to
be made.
III. THE CONCERN, THE CLAIMS, AND THE GRACIOUS
PROVISION OF GOD ARE AS
NOTHING. (v. 6.) The saint in the
times of his calamity calls upon God to
incline His ear. In the fearful
condition and moral
insensibility of His people to
their wickedness and
danger God is represented as of Himself inclining H is
ear and listening
attentively for the lightest sigh of repentance. He calls, but no
notice is
taken. The means of salvation He has
provided are neglected, or abused.
The
form of godliness is cultivated when the spirit has fled and the
exercises of religion are the
chief foes to its reality. What can be the
conclusion to all
this? THEY ARE SPIRITUALLY DEAD! There is
neither power nor inclination to seek for better things. Nothing but
supernatural grace and long-suffering love can avail to save
them.
Poet Natasha Trethewey served two terms as the 19th Poet
Laureate of
the
The
Way Home (v. 6)
The
text suggests much concerning this way from the far country of sin to
the home of our Father and God. The Lord is here
lamenting that none of
the people of
I. THE STAGES OF THE WAY.
1. Realization of the ruin wrought by
our sin. The soul is represented as
contemplating this ruin, and asking, “What have I done?” This is the first
stage.
2. Repentance. Each one is to
repent of “his wickedness.” We are not to
lose ourselves in a general confession of sin, as too many do, but to
think
of our own sin apart from that of other people, and to think of what
is
especially our sin. Thus personal and particular, our repentance
is the more
likely to be genuine and godly.
3. Confession. “These
that have sinned, these and these only speak aright
when they speak of repenting, and it is sad when they who have so much
work for repentance do not say a word of repenting.” But confession is
this
“speaking aright” which God desires to hear from us.
Now, this confession
is so
acceptable to God because it glorifies His holiness and His love. His
holiness; for the sinner has come to see sin as God
sees it, and hence to
hate and abhor it. He is of one mind with God about it as
he never was
before. And his love; for confession
casts itself in faith upon a love that is
deeper than its sin. Deep as is God’s abhorrence of sin, the sinner in
confession appeals
to and lays hold on a love that is deeper still. Hence,
when the sinner makes his sincere confession before God, he is at once
right out of “the
far country,” and home in
the heart of God. The robe, the
ring, the shoes, are put upon him; the feast is prepared, and the
merrymaking,
the joy in the presence of the angels of God, at once
begins. (see Luke 15)
II. THE ATTENTIVE
OBSERVER OF THOSE WHO TRAVEL BY
THIS WAY. It is God who is
represented as bending down his ear,
hearkening to what is said, listening for any
words of confession, and ready
to hear them if spoken. The text is the language of gracious
expectation
and desire on the part of God. It calls to
mind the father’s waiting for the
prodigal’s return. How often had he looked with
longing, loving gaze
down the road along which his returning son must
come, if ever indeed he
would come! He had looked so often that a speck in
the far distance
would at once be discerned by him.
Hence, “when a great
way off,” the
father saw him. And so here God is
represented as thus waiting for his
guilty people’s return. And how much there is to confirm our faith
in this
Divine solicitude for the sinner’s salvation! Look at the very constitution
of
our nature. That, as Bishop Butler has shown, is
evidently on the side of
virtue, that is, of obedience to God, and against the
disobedient. “Who will
harm you, if ye be doers of that which
is good? “ — thus the apostle
appeals to the universally recognized fact,
that the constitution of man’s
nature is such as to favor the good. And, on
the other hand, the declaration
that “the way of transgressors is hard” (Proverbs 13:15), is based on another like
fact of universal experience. Such is one evidence of “the care” with which, as
George Herbert
sings, “Lord, with what care thou hast begirt us round?
Then the
revelation of His truth is yet
further in evidence. That
truth, as
ministered to us by the written Word or by the
lips of prophets, apostles,
pastors, teachers — it matters not — is a
perpetual proof of the Divine
solicitude for our eternal
good. And His
providence, making it to be well
with the righteous and ill with the
unrighteous. Well and ill with each
respectively in mind, body, and estate. And His Spirit. That Spirit
speaking
to us in conscience and in the powerful pleadings of
His grace in our hearts,
of which we are all so often conscious.
And, last of all, God has shown us
this loving care of His for us in his
Son. He has shown Himself in a
manner
adapted to touch and move all
hearts, and to draw all men unto Him. Now,
all this mass of evidence is in keeping with
that solicitude which this verse
and so many other portions of God’s Word
reveal as felt by Him towards
sinful men. (SOLICIT - ask for, crave, beg,
request) And if it be asked
“What moves this
solicitude?” the character of God furnishes the answer.
The holiness of God. “Good and upright is the Lord, therefore will He
teach sinners in the way.” (Psalm 25:8) And we
are bidden“Give thanks at
the remembrance of his holiness.” (ibid. ch. 30:4) It is the nature of
holiness to be distressed at all that
contradicts it and is unlike itself. It rests
not until it has assimilated all around it
to itself. Here, then, is one reason
of God’s perpetual appeals to sinful men.
· His wisdom also. It is the
characteristic of God’s wisdom to adjust
means to ends. How wonderfully and beautifully this is
seen in all
departments of nature! But for the fulfilling of the
high purposes
of His grace, what
instrument can He find more fit
than the regenerated,
redeemed soul? Even
now and here we see this. A soul aglow with love
and faith towards God, what will not that soul do for God? Hence to the
principalities and powers in heaven shall be made known by the one
Church —
the company of the redeemed shall evidence it —
THE MANIFOLD WISDOM OF GOD!
· His love also. If the beholding of scenes of distress touch
our hearts
and make
us eager to render help, can we imagine that He who made
us is less willing than ourselves to show pity and
render help?
Our Lord’s argument is, “If ye, evil though ye be, know how”
— and we do know how — “to give good gifts to your children, how
much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to
those that
ask Him? (Matthew 7:11) Humanity, as it has been well said, is the
heavenly Father’s sick child. Will not the Father’s love,
therefore,
be all the more called
forth to that child?
· And His compassion also. For this life is the critical period of
that
child’s malady.
It is the time when the great question of its life or death
is being
determined. Terrible forces are against it, and the struggle is
now at
its most momentous hour. This fact would cause the Father’s love
to go
forth, as it has gone and is going forth, in active compassion, in open
manifestation of
its solicitude.
Such are some of the considerations which lead to our Father’s attentive
observance of all those who travel by this
homeward way.
III. THE END OF THE
WAY. They who come
there will find:
· restoration to the Father’s
love,
· the implantation of a
new nature,
· the complete pardon
of the past,
· power to live as God’s
dear child for the future, and ultimately
· the everlasting
dwelling in the very presence and home of God.
IV. BROOKS BY THE
WAY. It is said, “He shall drink of the brook by
the way, therefore shall he lift up
the head.” We may apply these
words to
the travelers in the way we are speaking
of; for they need, in the weary and
often most difficult journey, the refreshments WHICH GOD ALONE CAN
SUPPLY! Such aids are
given in the promises of God, the fellowship of God, the
communion of fellow-travelers on the way, and
in the service and worship
of God.
V. THE SOLITARINESS OF THE WAY. It is
but “here and there a
traveler” that is found. The way is not
thronged. This verse
is God’s lament
that scarce any are found willing to go along
this road; for it is not
the way
of worldly advantage. They who “are given
to covetousness” (v.
10) will
never choose this way. They
have persuaded themselves that they are as
well off and better
where they are. They are
deceived, and, what is worse,
are willing to be deceived: “They hold
fast deceit, and so refuse to return.”
(v. 5) We should have thought that surely it would
be otherwise.
1. Reason bids
them return (v. 4).
If a man have fallen, he will not lie
content on the earth, but will arise. If in an
ordinary journey he have missed
his way, he will at once retrace his
steps. Reason rules in such cases, but
not here.
2. Conscience bids
them return. They could not but know that their sin had
done them
sore harm; but none of them
asked, “What have I done?”
however loudly conscience might summon them to
such repentance.
3. God’s Word bade
then return (v.
8), but
lo! certainly in vain He made
it.
4. Providences bade
them. The events that
had taken place were all
admonitions of God; but though the birds of the air
marked and obeyed the
providence of God, sinful man “knew
not the judgment of the Lord” (v.
7).
(And like the people
of Noah’s day, at the time of the Flood “....were eating
and drinking, marrying and giving in
marriage, until the day that Noah
entered into the ark, And knew not until
the Flood came, and took them all
away...” (Matthew 24:38-39 - I hope this doesn’t sound
like a fairy tale to
you - Christ doesn’t do fairy
tales. CY - 2023) Hence the
way is solitary.
· CONCLUSION. But the question for us is, “Are we in this way?” Let us
bless God if we are, and press on therein. Let us note how short the day
is
in which we can travel, how its few fleeting hours are lessening, lest
when
we would start on the way we have to exclaim (Jeremiah 6:4), “Woe
unto us I for the day goeth away, for the
shadows of the evening are
stretched out.”
Ecclesiastes 12
man goeth to his long home
Oh how I want to go
home
Backsliding
in Its Worst Forms (vs. 4-11)
All departures from
God are evil, but some are only temporary, and
are
quickly followed by repentance, return, and
restoration. There are
others,
however, of a far more serious kind, and we have in these
verses a great
deal told us concerning them. We are told of
some of:
I. THEIR CHARACTERISTICS.
1. So contrary
to men’s wonted ways. For when men find that they have
brought evil on themselves, they will at once seek to undo such evil
(v..4).
If a man fall, he win not lie
still in the mire or in the road, but will get
up again
as speedily as may be. If he have mistaken his path and got on a
wrong track,
wilt he not, as soon as he discovers his mistake, quickly
retrace his steps
that he may get into the right way? That is how men act
in
the common affairs of life. But, though
they had
fallen, yet they showed no desire to rise, and though they could
not but
know they were altogether out of the right way, they showed no
willingness to
return.
2. Resists the strivings of God’s
Spirit and all his drawings of them to
Himself. V. 7
implies such God-implanted instincts in men’s souls, but
declares that, unlike the ever-obedient birds, man resists and
refuses the
call of God.
3. Becomes shameless. (vs. 6,12.) This feature we have had noticed
before (compare ch.6:15); it
arrested the prophet’s attention as being
evil exceedingly.
4. Determined and defiant. (v. 6.)
5. Is at last perpetual. (v. 5.) They have gone into an evil way, and they
abide in that way, no power of Divine
grace being able to draw them
therefrom. So terrible is this worst form of
backsliding, it is perpetual.
“......they
hold fast deceit.”
Let each wanderer from
God ask himself the question, “What
have I done?”
3. The time for such inquiry is lessening
day by day.
4. “It is a fearful thing” for an unforgiven man “to fall into the
hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 12:29)
Peace,
Peace; When There is No Peace (8:8-12)
The present
condition of the country, why these scandals, miseries, and
impending evils?
I. DIVINE
ILLUMINATION ALONE CAN GIVE TRUE
UNDERSTANDING OF GOD’S WORD. The priests and scribes, because
of familiarity with holy things, claimed
to be wise. They were satisfied with
the spiritual state of
anticipated what took place. The Holy Spirit
alone bestows Divine insight
and foresight.
II. THE DESPISERS
OF DIVINE TRUTH, AND THOSE WHO
FALSELY PRETEND TO ITS CUSTODY, WILL BE PUT TO SHAME.
“Refuges of lies” will be swept away. The judgment, when it comes, will
find them
wholly unprepared and helpless. “Take heed
that the light that is
in thee be not darkness.” “Blind leaders of
the blind,” the sorrowing comes
to them in vain for comfort, or is
deceived to his own hurt; at last the
victim of a
misplaced confidence, to
find himself “of all men
most
miserable.”
The Inveterate (ingrained;
deep-seated) Disobedience of
(v.
28)
All along, from v.
21, this is the theme, viz. the disobedience of
Now, to give full
force to a charge of disobedience there must be the
means of furnishing ample proofs that directions have
first been given —
plain, earnest, and authoritative. And this is
just what we find here. God
refers His people back over the long years in
which, by divers agencies, He
had laid before them his righteous and
beneficent will.
What
he commended was for His glory; for His glory because for His people’s
good; for His people’s good because for His
glory. The present state and
prospects of the people are very humiliating, but
assuredly no part of their
humiliation can be laid to the charge of their
God. The cloudy and the
fiery
pillar was but a symbol of most distinct
guidance for the whole heart. The
people were not suffered to
wander for lack of expostulation and warning.
When
a lad turns out badly, criticizing speech is often directed against the
parents, as if somehow they
must be at fault. They may be at fault indeed,
but there is no must in
the matter. Hasty criticism at such a time, from the
very injustice of it, adds
a cruel intensity to the pain and disappointment
already existing. But hasty criticism cannot be silenced
by merely
deprecating it, and parents at such
moments would do well to remember
that they stand in relations to their disobedient children
not unlike those in
which, as is represented here, Jehovah stood towards
most loving and watchful and patient of
parents never did for his children
NEAR SO MUCH AS JEHOVAH DID FOR
of their wonderful career, in which God
had moved so sublimely among them.
There were the ten commandments, formulated so distinctly, and set in
such a grand historical frame. There were
all the rites and ceremonies filled
with instructing power to those who would
seek to understand them. And
there was also, accumulating generation after
generation, the great mass of
prophetic truth. Man is what he is, not for want of
light, but for want of
disposition to use and obey the
light when it appears. There is an
indisposition to attend to truth and to fidelity in
all duty, until at last the
very feeling of what faithfulness and
righteousness are vanishes from the
breast. But
still the excuse is attempted, and persisted in with shameless
impudence, that the word which professes to come from
God must have in
it something defective, something that effectually
prevents it from being
received. But it is only from the unrenewed mind that
talk of this kind
comes. Those
who have had their eyes opened to the truth of God soon
begin to discern that in that truth there is
no lack of guidance, or
inspiration, or comfort, or any good thing which can
uplift and satisfy the
heart. And we may be sure that God,
who has given this immense and
fruitful body of truth, has
brought it nearer to the individual conscience
than the individual in his perversity will always
acknowledge. Men are
indulged too much in the complaint that nobody
has spoken to them about
their souls. A miserable egotism often lies at the
bottom of such
complaining. If they know by any means whatever —
and it matters not
how slight the hint may be-that there is
something written for the
obedience of all mankind and for their consequent
advantage, then these
complainers are bound to attend to it. Men are not so
foolish in the quest
of worldly gains. Then they will go upon the slightest
hint, and follow it up
discreetly and warily. Why, then, should they be so foolish in the
matter of
spiritual gain? Because “truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.”
.”