Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

The Grounds For Our Plea

JEREMIAH 14:7-9 – Though our iniquities testify against us, act, O LORD, for your name’s sake; for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against you. O you hope of Israel, its savior in time of trouble, why should you be like a stranger in the land, like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night? Why should you be like a man confused, like a mighty warrior who cannot save? Yet you, O LORD, are in the midst of us, and we are called by your name; do not leave us.”

 

THEME OF THE DAY:  THE GROUNDS FOR OUR PLEA.  In today’s scripture, there are many lessons to be learned from the pleas coming from the heart of the prophet Jeremiah. We may learn more about ourselves.  We also are taught much about the character and heart of God.

 

First, a couple of lessons about ourselves.  Jeremiah knew the total depravity of man.  In just a few chapters following this one, a familiar verse affirms his understanding – The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9). In reading what he shares in today’s passage, he confesses two things within the heart of every human being; iniquities and sin.  They are not the same. Iniquity refers to our nature by birth; hostile against God and His Word.  Iniquity is not what we do but it directs what we do.  We are fallen by nature.  We are sinners not first because of what we do but what we are by nature.  Here is a simple illustration, “Dogs bark because its in their nature to bark.”  People sin because iniquity (hostility) against God produces what they do.  When it comes to sin, the standard Biblical answer is “missing the mark” or “falling short of God’s standards.”  A common illustration for sin is “shooting an arrow at a target always missing the bullseye.”

 

Jeremiah also teaches us our iniquities and sin are about God not us.  He confesses “for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against you.” We must always see sin, not as mistakes we make or about us, but offenses against God. Or as R.C. Sproul once said, “Holy treason against God.”  We won’t know forgiveness until we own our guilt against our holy God.

 

Next, we learn much about our God, and a key glorious lesson is His mercy.  This truth is not stated, but strongly implied.  Spend time as you read the grounds Jeremiah pleads to God for mercy; “for His name’s sake”, “You hope of Israel, its savior in time of trouble, O Lord, You are in the midst of us, we are called by Your Name.”  These are the very grounds we plead for mercy too!  We come to God with no merit of our own, only pleas for His mercy and that for His sake!

 

Lessons from the weeping prophet – may we learn more of ourselves and the mercy of God through Jeremiah’s words and experience.

 

PRAYER: “Father, I praise You for being my God of mercy when I need mercy.”

 

QUOTE: “God is glorified as we come to Him desperate and relying on His mercy only.”

 

In the affection of Christ Jesus,

 

Pastor Jim