Never Say It's Hopeless - Jeremiah 16 - 20

Just after Katrina hit New Orleans, thousands thought things for them was hopeless. The city is thriving today even more than it was before the flood and many people are better off than they were before the hurricane. In the early 1940’s the Germans had become so successful that most of the citizens in England and France [Europe] thought their countries were doomed; then American troops landed on the Normandy Beach Head, and the rest is history. Twelve disciples gave up their home life, their jobs and professions, and followed Christ to the Garden where he prayed with them and explained that he would be crucified; He hung on the cross the next day and they suddenly felt hopeless and went fishing. They thought their hopes were gone; life became hopeless, only to become revived again three days later. Our American way of life is in jeopardy but you and I still have the freedom to vote for NEW MANAGEMENT. We must never say that life is hopeless; Christ gave his life to prevent that from happening. As long as we are alive there is always hope for a brighter tomorrow.

Have you ever battled the feelings of hopelessness? If so, what was the change factor that helped you to enjoy a better day? I have been there; done that; and can tell you that it sometimes takes a huge effort and much time to be able to look back and see that God had a hand in establishing peace and confidence in the future. Time and experience makes it possible for us to see that there were many incidents, many of which were unpleasant, that God use to change hopelessness to an optimistic attitude regarding the future. His unfailing promise to “Never leave or forsake me” was one of my greatest spiritual catalysts.

Have you thought about the great number of ‘makeover’ programs that are popular on television today? Some have to do with ‘a new home,’ ‘remodeling of present home,’ ‘new furniture’, ‘hair style for women,’ ‘skin care,” ‘losing weight,” and I like the one that answers the wishes of some fatally ill child with a ‘trip to Disney World.’ Why are these programs so popular? In most cases it is because these programs represent a ‘dream come true’ to a hopeless person or persons that had actually given up their dream of ever being what they wanted to be, owning things they desired to have, or going places they wanted to go. There is good news; God wants to help us move beyond our past failures into a useful life for Him. A broken life in God’s pottery house can become a new vessel. Broken and failing hope can be renewed; however it requires repentance and rededication. It definitely requires the inclusion of God in the lives of both men and in any nation. The government’s present plan to remove the name of God from our money, our pledge of allegiance, and from public view is a sure way to invoke God’s wrath upon a wayward nation. Please God, help us to pray and work to keep You in our personal lives and the life of the United States.

America is a land of broken lives today, extremely indicative of the people of Judah that Jeremiah wrote about in these five chapters in our lesson today. He both warned and encouraged the people of Judah to return to the Lord. I hope and pray that as a teacher of the Word, I will be able to do the same for those that read and think upon these writings. Let us pray that God will replace our complacency with overt action; and renew our dependency on our Creator, Friend and Savior.

You who are older will remember that before the typewriter and computer when people wrote a document that they did not want to fade, they would use an indelible pencil whose markings were difficult to erase. In chapter 17, God stated that Judah’s sins were indelibly “Written with an iron stylus, on the tablet of their hearts and on the horns of their altars.” God knew that it would be difficult for them to erase their mistakes, because of their unwillingness to repent and become humble. We must repent, humble ourselves and pray in order for God to hear and answer our prayers and heal our land, restoring America to one nation Under-God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

The last nine verses of chapter 17 are dealing with sins that God considered to be of great importance. Judah was guilty. America is guilty today. Two commandments were being broken. They were instructed again to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy, and were told that their failure to comply would bring sure destruction. The Sabbath was set aside to be used in worship and praise and failure to comply always breaks the first commandment which is to “Have no other Gods before Me.” Many of our church pews are empty at Sunday morning worship, while professing Christians exhibit their love for rest, recreation and other preferred activities.

There is no doubt; living a Christian life has never been easy, and has always required some sacrifice. God is a loving deity; but He is also a jealous God, and because of his monumental sacrifice for us, He expects our commitment to Him to precede any other love or concerns we have. Regular attendance at your church indicates your commitment to Him. Your frequent and continued absence indicates that you have other Gods [interests] that come before your creator, The Lord, Jesus Christ. Allow me to be very specific; young people you must not put pleasure first, before God in your life—first attend church and then go play. Parents and grand parents if you truly love your children take them to church first and then go watch them water-skiing, playing ball, or competing in their favorite game or sport. “Bring your children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and then you have God’s promise “In their latter years they will not depart from God.”

Young people; think and remember—your teachers, deacons, pastor, and other leaders in the church are growing older and will soon leave these positions to you. You soon will be expected to accept these responsibilities and therefore you need to be in church and Sunday school where you study God’s Word and learn how to be a Christian leader. Think again, you attend school six to eight hours a day, five days a week to learn how to live, work and pursue your chosen profession—and you only have two to five or six hours each week to learn how to handle your Christian obligations. Man’s law says you must attend school; but only YOU are responsible for your Christian education.

There are great lessons for all of us being taught at the Potter’s House in {Jer. 18: 1-25}. Read about it now. The first lesson concerns judgment and repentance, and the other deals with the relationship between God and man; His sovereignty and our freedom. God sent Jeremiah to the Potter’s house where he was taught a lesson that he never forgot; and where he received his instructions to pass on to us. It is obvious that in this story the potter represents God and the clay represents people. We are in the hands of God being molded each day of our lives. The noun “potter” comes from a verb called “yatsar” which means ‘to shape’ ‘to form’ or ‘to fashion’ and this is what God does with all willing people whom he created.

In this story the clay being used became flawed and the vessel being made became useless so the potter reclaimed the clay from the wheel and he re-made the vessel into a beautiful and usable container. Jeremiah reminds us that this is what God does for each of us on a regular basis when we are willing to submit our lives into his hands. We are His creation, he made us and therefore He has the sovereign right to re-mold our flawed lives into a useful vessel for Him.

Israel was in the hands of God, just like the clay in the potter’s hand. They were ‘flawed’ and sin abounded and so God told them that they could both repent and yield their lives to Him or be destroyed. Please note in verses 7 to 10 that his order extends to other nations…even America. Please remember that man’s history repeats itself and often throughout Biblical history God has allowed evil nations to prevail over his people when they became disobedient and failed to repent and turn to Him. God has limits that only He knows, beyond which he will not go. Farmers reap what they sow. Both Christians and nonbelievers will do the same, and wild oats sometimes multiply rapidly. What kind of crop will you gather