Author: kezha1

The Book of Lamentations is Jeremiah’s cry of woe as a eye witness to the fall and destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians…. its loss of glory… and the Lord’s great anger against her. But it’s not like God suddenly sprang this on Jerusalem…in Deuteronomy 28:15-45, God gave Moses the warnings and curses of disobedience, and foretold of His wrath for rebellion against Him. We need to remember then that God’s plan and purpose will always be accomplished and carried out in the face of disobedience by His people. (Jeremiah 39:16)

As Romans 10:17 reminds us, “Faith comes from hearing the Message and the Message is heard through the Word of Christ.” We are to bear fruit for God in Christian service by sharing the Gospel Message with others. In speaking to His disciples, (and I might add to us also), Jesus said, “I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last.” (John 15:16) So it’s quite simple…as a result of what God has done in us, we are to share that Good News with others…and thus bearing good fruit in service to Him…so that the Gospel Message will be taken all over the world…for our good and His glory.

From the very beginning God has been our Sovereign Deliverer. In Genesis 15:1 as God and Abraham came into a covenantal agreement, God said, ” Do not be afraid I am your shield, your very great reward.” And this promise is still for us today. Our Savior is Jesus Christ, who will rescue, bestow glory, and lift up our heads, (Psalm 3:3) as we do what is right in His sight in obedience, wisdom, and discernment…giving us victory as we exchange our will for His Will.

Earlier in Chapter 13, Barnabas and Paul had been called and set apart in their Ministry of declaring the Good News of the Gospel Message. While the original Apostles were witnesses to the actual work of Jesus…accompanying Him during His three years on earth and bearing witness to His crucifixion, death, and resurrection. Paul and Barnabas had the indwelling Holy Spirit to guide them unto all Truth. But all of them had the promises of God that He would rescue His people through Jesus Christ as written in Isaiah 40:9 & 52:7.

Standing firm in our faith means knowing God’s promises, agreeing to them intellectually, and trusting God to keep them. Elsewhere in Isaiah it says, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the Word of our God stands forever.” And we must acknowledge this foundational truth first and foremost. For it’s our faith, trust and obedience in them that allows us then to confidently stand firm and watch the Lord work on our behalf. Or as king Jehoshaphat assured the people right before battle, “Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be established; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.” (II Chronicles 20:20)

These three Divine requirements cover relationships with others, an individual’s inner attachment to the standards of our covenant with God, and a lifestyle that gives due acknowledgement to God in every aspect of our conduct. And it’s not like God has hidden what is good, pleasing and morally right from us…we only need to just open His Word! Psalm 37:30,Proverbs 12:5, and Jeremiah 22:3 tell us to come against injustice and protect the powerless. We should also at all times desire and delight in mercy, kindness, and loving one another. (Matthew 9:13, Mathew 23:23) Finally, our lifestyle and continuing relationship with God needs to be filled with humility…loving Him with all our our heart, mind, and strength. (Mark 12:33)

Jeremiah 31:34 reminds us that God said… “I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” And so it would do us well if we followed God’s lead on forgetting our past. There are numerous places in Scriptures where it is written that when God forgives, our sins are completely removed because of His vast mercy. (Isaiah 38:17, Isaiah 38:17, Psalm 103:12) Paul wrote about this to the Philippians in Chapter 3, verses 13-14…”Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. And if you think about it, Paul had quite the checkered past…but he refused to allow his past to color his future…instead striving towards Salvation in all its fullness in Christ. The past is in the past…so instead, like Paul, today set your eyes on what’s ahead and forget what can’t be changed.

Slipping from the grip of fear is hard…and it’s even harder without the Lord’s help. That’s because so many times our logical truth clashes with past experiential knowledge …and rational thinking collides with what’s happened to us in the past. These are what they call triggers…sounds, sights, smells, or thoughts that remind you of fearful traumatic encounters in the past. And when they hit, you may experience flashbacks, anxiety, or even panic attacks. But what I’ve found the best to combat triggers is memorized Scripture. Start with Psalm 23, “I will fear no evil.” Next add Proverbs 1:33, “Be at ease without fear of harm,” when you listen to God’s voice. Isaiah has many verses to memorize such as Isaiah 35:4, “Be strong, do not fear for you will be delivered.” and Isaiah 41:10. “Do not fear, for I am with you.” Finally, memorize I John 4:18, ” There is no fear in love, but perfect love (from God) drives out fear.” So remember, God’s Word is readily available to encourage, uplift, and deliver us from fear.

, uplift, and deliver us from fear.

Isaiah 28:16 says to us today, ” See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed.” Jesus is that cornerstone or capstone…establishing a foundation that can never be moved. From this we can then establish for ourselves what we would call a foundational faith in Christ. A developing stone by stone…experience by experience… of confidence and trust that Jesus is truly the only sure refuge in the day of distress. And with that firm foundation established within, nothing will be able to move us either.

Matthew 16:24 tells us, “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.” A giving up of self is explained three different ways in this verse. First, we are to deny self. That’s because we’re not the god of our life, thus, we must get off the throne and acknowledge the one true God as the rightful owner. Jesus’ call to discipleship here demands that we completely abandon our natural desire to seek comfort, fame, and power…or even the basic instinct to preserve one’s own life at all costs. But biggest culprit hindering this is selfish pride, which still wants to sit on the throne. Next, condemned prisoners of that time were made to carry the crossbar of their cross to the site of execution. So daily, we are to pick up our “cross” of suffering, rejection, and difficult life circumstances and persevere….renouncing selfish ambitions and all rights to self. Finally, we are to follow Jesus…knowing from the start that the path isn’t an easy one to follow. But we can rest assured that Jesus has gone before us, remains beside us, and follows up behind us all the way.