SERMON: HOPE IS KINDLED

HOPE IS KINDLED
29 November 2009

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Jeremiah 33

1. While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD came to him a second time:
2. "This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it--the LORD is his name:
3. `Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'
4. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses in this city and the royal palaces of Judah that have been torn down to be used against the siege ramps and the sword
5. in the fight with the Babylonians : `They will be filled with the dead bodies of the men I will slay in my anger and wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness.
6. "`Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.
7. I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before.
8. I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.
9. Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.'
10. "This is what the LORD says: `You say about this place, "It is a desolate waste, without men or animals." Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither men nor animals, there will be heard once more
11. the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD, saying, "Give thanks to the LORD Almighty, for the LORD is good; his love endures forever." For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the LORD.
12. "This is what the LORD Almighty says: `In this place, desolate and without men or animals--in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.
13. In the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them,' says the LORD. 14. "`The days are coming,' declares the LORD, `when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
15. "`In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; he will do what is just and right in the land.
16. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.'
17. For this is what the LORD says: `David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,
18. nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices.'"

-- it is a terrible thing to have no hope -- such was the case with Michael Oher -- Oher was the son of a crack addict who lived a block from the Mississippi River in west Memphis -- with no help from his mother, Oher and his 12 brothers and sisters survived by begging food from neighbors and hiding from social services -- they had been in and out of foster care their whole lives, and they wanted no part of that any more -- and so they lived on their own the best they could
-- with no one caring for him or making sure he went to school, Oher "spent his days on the basketball courts of Hurt Village, a housing project so dilapidated even the city of Memphis abandoned it" -- and so, by the fall of 2002, at age 15, with no education, no parental support, and really, no home, Oher dreamed that he was going to succeed in life by being the next Michael Jordan -- he was 6-foot-5 -- the only problem was that he also weighed 350 pounds -- but such are the dreams and lives of the hopeless
-- it's dreams and lives like this that fuel our lottery system -- it's dreams and lives like this that feed our criminal courts -- it's dreams and lives like this -- born of despair and lived out of hopelessness -- that define the entire lives of young men and women on the streets of America today -- and Michael Oher was no exception -- despite his dreams of making it as an NBA star, the sad truth was that he was headed down a one-way street towards crime and jail or even worse
-- everyone, it seemed, had abandoned Oher -- until the fateful day before Thanksgiving in that same year when the Tuohys, a wealthy white family who lived there in Memphis, passed by and saw Michael walking down the street in near-freezing temperature without a coat, headed to a nearby gym just to warm up
-- rather than just passing by or writing a check to a relief agency who worked with the homeless in Memphis, Leigh Anne Touhy got involved -- it turned out that Michael was actually enrolled in the same Christian school as her own children -- not for the value of the education, but because the coach needed a football player of Oher's size and skill -- this was the 11th school that Oher had been in, and now, at the age of 15, he could barely read or write
-- when Leigh Anne found out what was going on in Michael's life, she got involved -- she brought him to her own home -- she gave him a place to stay -- she bought him clothes -- she made him part of her family -- she even went so far as to hire the best tutors and worked with him in her kitchen to help him catch up in school -- before the year was out, Leigh Anne and her husband Sean adopted Michael as their own son
-- Leigh Anne didn't sit on the sidelines and let Michael be another statistic -- another casualty of hopelessness in America -- instead, she invested in his life -- both physical and spiritual -- when the Tuohys went to church, Michael did, too -- eventually giving his life to Jesus while he was in high school -- and under her tutelage, Michael succeeded -- graduating from high school and then college -- and going on to star in the NFL for the Baltimore Ravens
-- Michael's story is the subject of the new movie, "Blind Side," that just came out starring Sandra Bullock -- speaking of the movie -- and of her life and experiences with Michael, as well, Leigh Anne Tuohy had this to say:
-- "People call it a fluke, but this is not by chance -- The Lord takes us down paths in our lives that are often hard to understand and we certainly wish we knew where this was all going but it is clear to me that He has a plan for this movie and it is bigger than we are."
-- looking back, it is clear that God not only had a plan for this movie, but also for Michael Oher and Leigh Anne Tuohy -- plans to prosper and not to harm -- plans to give hope and a future to someone whose life was the epitome of hopelessness [Adapted from "All American Adoption Story," by Amy Henry, World Magazine, November 21, 2009]

II. Scripture Lesson (Jeremiah 33:1-18)
-- hopelessness is a plague that infects many in different ways -- sometimes, like in the case of Michael Oher, it comes about through no effort on our part but because of the bad choices that others have made -- other times, though, hopelessness can come about as the consequence of our own bad choices -- of our own wrong decisions
-- such was the situation with the nation of Israel in this passage that we opened up with this morning -- both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah had rejected the Lord and worshiped idols and false gods -- because of their adultery, God had disciplined the nations by allowing them to be conquered and exiled to foreign lands -- first, the northern kingdom had fallen to the Assyrians -- and now, in the time of Jeremiah the prophet, the southern kingdom of Judah had fallen to Babylon -- with the people being sent to live in Babylonia by the successors to the Assyrians
-- the Jewish exiles had lost everything -- their homeland -- their temple -- their possessions -- their family and friends -- their freedom -- their nation -- their hope
-- and now, as this chapter opens, we see the remnant of the Jews who survived the Assyrians and the Babylonians living without hope in a foreign land -- not only had they lost everything, but it appeared that God had abandoned them, too -- The last of the kings of Judah was dead -- the "line of David" that God had promised to sustain appeared to be utterly cut off, leaving nothing but a dead stump and failed hopes and dreams of a brighter future
-- but, in the midst of the Israelite's despair, God spoke words of healing and promise and restoration through the prophet Jeremiah -- words of hope -- not only for the exiled Israelites in Babylon -- but words of hope for the entire world
-- let's look back at this passage in a little more detail

-- verse 1

1. While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD came to him a second time:
2. "This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it--the LORD is his name:
3. `Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'

-- at this time, Jeremiah has been confined in the courtyard of the guard in the royal palace by Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, because Zedekiah did not like the word that Jeremiah proclaimed -- instead of giving out a message of prosperity and wealth like the other prophets, Jeremiah prophesied destruction and calamity because the people had turned from the Lord -- and so Zedekiah had him arrested and bound in the palace courtyard
-- for the second time since he had been bound, the word of the Lord came to him there in that place -- the Lord said, "I am the one who made the earth -- I am the one who formed it and established it -- I am the Creator -- call on Me and I will answer you"
-- in essence, God is reminding Jeremiah of who He is -- that He is the Lord God Almighty -- that He created the heavens and the earth -- and that if He can do that, He can do great and unsearchable things -- He can bring about healing and restoration in the midst of any situation -- if His people will call to Him -- if His people will seek His face and turn from their wicked ways

-- verse 4

4. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses in this city and the royal palaces of Judah that have been torn down to be used against the siege ramps and the sword
5. in the fight with the Babylonians : `They will be filled with the dead bodies of the men I will slay in my anger and wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness.
6. "`Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.
7. I will bring Judah and Israel back from captivity and will rebuild them as they were before.
8. I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.
9. Then this city will bring me renown, joy, praise and honor before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.'


-- the nation of Israel was being punished for their wickedness -- God had allowed Nebuchadnezzer and the Babylonians to come against the city of Jerusalem and lay siege to it -- and God tells Jeremiah that the city will fall because of their sin against Him
-- however, God makes a promise here that is not only for the people of Israel but for all of us -- God promises a day when the city of Jerusalem will be restored -- when peace and security will reign -- when the people will be brought back out of captivity -- when their sins will be cleansed and forgiven through God's grace and mercy

-- as we will see in a few verses, this is actually a Messianic prophecy -- a proclamation of the final days when Jesus will return and establish His kingdom in Jerusalem forever -- in that day, God says that Jerusalem will bring Him renown, joy, praise and honor before all the nations of the earth -- this will only come to pass when Jesus returns
-- God repeats this promise two more times in this passage

-- verse 10

10. "This is what the LORD says: `You say about this place, "It is a desolate waste, without men or animals." Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted, inhabited by neither men nor animals, there will be heard once more
11. the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the LORD, saying, "Give thanks to the LORD Almighty, for the LORD is good; his love endures forever." For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were before,' says the LORD.

-- where we only see desolation -- where we only see devastation and destruction and desertion -- where we see no hope -- God sees restoration and healing
-- God says that joy and gladness will return to the streets that are now silent when the voices of the bride and the bridegroom are heard again and when He is worshiped again in His holy city
-- now, while this passage may be speaking literally of brides and bridegrooms, I think this is also a picture of the end of the age -- when the bride of Christ -- the church -- is joined with Jesus at the heavenly banquet feast
-- until that time, Israel and Jerusalem will know no lasting peace -- until that time, we will know no lasting peace -- but, God promises, there will come a day when joy and gladness -- when peace and prosperity -- come forever

-- verse 12

12. "This is what the LORD Almighty says: `In this place, desolate and without men or animals--in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.
13. In the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand of the one who counts them,' says the LORD.
14. "`The days are coming,' declares the LORD, `when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.

-- "the days are coming," says the Lord, "when I will fulfill My promise" -- although you were faithless, I was faithful -- although you lost hope, I brought hope -- although all looked desolate, I brought healing -- and in those days, you will enter My rest -- you will be kept safe and secure by the Good Shepherd forever

-- verse 15

15. "`In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; he will do what is just and right in the land.
16. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.'

-- in Isaiah 11:1, God had promised that a stem would come the stump of Jesse, David's father -- from his roots, a Branch would bear fruit -- this was a promise of the Messiah -- the promised one who would come from the line of David -- who would bring healing and restoration -- who would deliver the people from their captivity -- who would bring forgiveness for sin -- and who would usher in an endless age of peace and prosperity for the nation of Israel and for all those who believed
-- Jeremiah reiterates that promise here -- he says that a "Branch will sprout from David's line" -- although it appears that the tree of Israel is dead -- although it looks like the tree has been cut down and only a stump remains -- God will bring life and healing through this righteous Branch
-- we know this to be a Messianic prophecy through the name that God gives to the Branch -- His name shall be, "The Lord our righteousness" -- a title of deity -- the name of our King

-- verse 17

17. For this is what the LORD says: `David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,
18. nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices.'"


-- here we see the final description of the Messiah in this passage -- the righteous Branch will be both king and priest -- He will sit on the throne of David -- and He will intercede for us as our High Priest by making sacrifices on our behalf
-- indeed, as the author of the Book of Hebrews points out, Jesus has already the perfect sacrifice
-- in Hebrews 9:24-28 we read, "For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. -- Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. -- Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. -- Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so

Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him."

-- in this passage, God reminded the people of Israel that He was with them and that He had heard their cries for help -- and, just like He did in Egypt, God would deliver them from captivity and bondage once more -- not just the physical bondage of exile in Babylon, but the spiritual bondage of sin and death
-- through the promised Messiah -- the righteous Branch -- healing and restoration would come -- the sound of peace and joy would reverberate through the streets of Jerusalem -- and all would be made new again
-- with these words, hope was kindled in the hearts of the hopeless

III. Closing
-- as I close this message and as we start our season of Advent together and begin preparing our hearts for the coming of the Messiah at Christmas, I wanted to use a physical reminder this year to draw our hearts and our hopes to the Lord
-- this passage is about bringing life to the lifeless -- bringing hope to the hopeless -- it is a promise that the Messiah will come from the line of David -- that a righteous Branch will come from the stump of Jesse
-- so, to remind us of the promise that we celebrate at Christmas, I have put on the altar a Jesse tree -- a Jesse tree starts out at the beginning of Advent dead and lifeless -- nothing but a bare tree and a promise -- but each day, another ornament is added to reflect the promise of the coming Messiah -- until the branches come alive with the symbols of Christ, fully decorated by Christmas morning
-- since we're not going to be here every day during the Advent season, we're going to decorate our Jesse tree each Sunday with another ornament to remind us of the promise that we have in Jesus
-- so, let me hang our first ornament on the tree, and then we'll close with a prayer of thanksgiving for the righteous Branch -- for our blessed hope -- for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ

-- let us pray