Title: Considerest
Thou Not?
Text: Jer 33: 24
Date: November 17,
2019
Place: SGBC, NJ
Jeremiah 33: 23: Moreover the word of the LORD came to
Jeremiah, saying, 24: Considerest thou not what this people have spoken,
saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them
off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation
before them.
At this time Babylon had besieged Jerusalem. The children of Judah and Israel were
captive, starving, dying of disease—so they were very cast down. Here is God’s question to Jeremiah, “Considerest
thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD
hath chosen, he hath even cast them off?”
Who was saying that God had cast off his chosen people? One, reprobate unbelievers were saying this. Two, God’s elect overcome with unbelief due
to God’s chastening hand.
Who are these two families that God chose? In the verse before, the LORD says the house
of David and the house of Levi. Prior to
that, God speaks of Judah and Israel. But
this prophecy is only for God’s spiritual Israel, not for the natural sons of
Abraham
Romans 11: 1: 2: God
hath not cast away HIS people, WHICH HE FOREKNEW.
God’s Israel are
those “which he foreknew”—those God elected by grace and foreordained to
eternal life from among Jew and Gentile.
God’s grace is keeping grace.
Romans 9: 6: It is
not as though the word of God hath taken none effect; for they are not all
[God’s] Israel which are of Israel: 7: Neither, because they are the [natural
children] of Abraham, are they all children [of God],
Only those God
foreordained to eternal life by his sovereign, electing, predestinating,
adopting grace, are counted as “God’s Israel.”
Title: Considerest Thou Not?
Proposition: When we experience God’s chastening hand, in order to
not be cast down, then there are four things we need to consider.
CONSIDER GOD FORMED
AND ESTABLISHED HIS CHURCH
Jeremiah 33: 1: Moreover
the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut
up in the court of the prison, saying, 2: Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof,
the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name; 3: Call
unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which
thou knowest not.
The LORD is the maker
of his church, the LORD formed it, Christ established his church in
righteousness by his shed blood. After Isaiah declared Christ’s victory at
Calvary, the next chapter says,
Isaiah 54:5: thy
Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the
Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.
In times of trial and
chastening, our place is not to murmur against God, but to come to Christ in
submission, crying for mercy—"Call unto me, and I will answer
thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”
CONSIDER IT IS FOR
OUR GOOD
Jeremiah 33: 4: For
thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and
concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the
mounts, and by the sword; 5: They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it
is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine
anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this
city. 6: Behold, I will bring it health
and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of
peace and truth. 7: And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity
of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. 8: And I will
cleanse them from ALL their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I
will pardon ALL their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they
have transgressed against me. 9: And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise
and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good
that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and
for all the prosperity that I procure unto it.
Peter said, “God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to
the humble.” (1 Pet 5:5) The proud
reprobate tries to fight his own battles but doing so he fights against God. So God’s fierce anger and fury falls upon him. King Zedekiah of Judah and a host of the children Israel went out to fight the king of Babylon when God warned them not to. But as they had done from the beginning they disobeyed God. God said, "whom
I have slain in mine anger and in my fury.”
But by the same
trial, our heavenly Father chastens and cures his elect church and delivers us from our
sin—"Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and
will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.” Grace and peace came by Jesus Christ. God cures his people of the diseases of sin
through the blood of the Messiah, who arose with healing in his wings; that is,
with remission of sin, which is often meant by healing in scripture.
God says, “And
I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will
build them, as at the first.” Our
conquering Savior led captivity captive.
So God says, “And I
will cleanse them from ALL their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me;
and I will pardon ALL their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby
they have transgressed against me.” It is only God’s elect that the LORD cleanses
and pardons of ALL iniquity. John Gill
said, “Mention being made of the return of the captivity of Israel,…as well as
that of Judah, shows that this prophecy does not relate to the return of the
Jews from their seventy years’ captivity in Babylon; but is to be understood
spiritually, of a release of the mystical and spiritual Israel of God from the
captivity of sin, Satan, and the law, by the Messiah” Notice this is all of God’s grace because we
sinned against God himself. Amazing
grace! The very God we have sinned
against, cleanses us of all our iniquity and forgives us of all our sin.
God says, “and
will build them as at the first.”
God did this at the beginning of the latter days, at the first times of
the Gospel. That is when the temple of
the Lord was built by Christ; that is when Christ became the foundation of the
apostles and prophets; being the chief corner stone; that is when the church
was built up a habitation for God through the Spirit. In the end of the latter days, God says the church will become cast down again. But God promises to "build them as at the first" of the latter days.
By God’s great
forgiveness of our many sins, God makes a name unto his people—"And it
shall be to me a name of joy, a [name of] praise and an [name of] honour before
all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them:
and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity
that I procure unto it.” It is God’s
forgiveness and goodness that makes his people repent and fear God.
Psalm 130: 3 If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O
Lord, who shall stand? 4: But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest
be feared.
Brethren, I am preaching to myself because I fail in this. But Christ teaches us to be children like our
Father in forgiving one another’s sins, without limit and by being fervent in
love for one another—"And above all things have fervent charity among
yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins” (1 Pet 4:8). We are sinners. Therefore, we will hurt one another at
times. It is no excuse, just fact! Expect it and try not to be disappointed by
it. But consider how God says to us, “I
remember your sins no more”—that is how we keep love fervent—forgive and forget
the sins of our brethren.
Someone might say, “Preacher, I’m not sure I can do that! They offended me very badly!” It will help if we think on how great our
sins are against God. Then think on the everlasting love and tender mercies
that God has shown you in cleansing and pardoning you of all your sins. Do not dwell on the offenses. It is these things Christ has done for us
that Paul told us to think on.
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are
true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever
things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good
report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise [if you are truly a
child of God], think on these things.
These things make our hearts broken and contrite. And “A broken and a contrite heart, God will
not despise”—he will not regard us with contempt or disdain or scorn—instead if
we confess our sins from a broken and contrite heart, he is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. So when brethren come with a broken and
contrite heart, let us do as our Father in heaven—do not despise them but
forgive and love fervently.
CONSIDER GOD SHALL RETURN JOY
Jeremiah 33: 10: Thus saith the LORD; Again there shall
be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and
without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of
Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without
beast, 11: The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom and the voice of the bride, [when Christ walked in this earth Christ said how can
they mourn when the bridegroom is among them], the voice of them that shall
say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth
for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the
house of the LORD. For I will cause to
return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD. 12: Thus
saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and
without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of
shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. 13: In the cities of the mountains,
in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of
Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall
the flocks pass again under the hands of him [Christ our chief Shepherd]
that telleth [that counteth his elect], saith the LORD. 14:
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing
which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. 15: In
those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow
up unto David and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. [on
Calvary’s cross] 16: In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall
dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The
LORD our righteousness.
Most are looking for a day at the end of the latter days
when Christ will restore Israel as a nation.
But Christ began this work at his first advent, at the first of the latter days, by calling out his elect
from among the Jews first. Christ said, “I
am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” And Christ did not form them into an earthly
nation but into his “holy nation.” (1 Pet 2: 9).
God tells us the precise time Christ began this work—"Behold,
the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have
promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. IN THOSE DAYS, AND
AT THAT TIME, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David and
he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. 16: In those days
shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name
wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.” This work of restoring the lost sheep of
Israel began at the time Christ Jesus came forth as the righteous Branch. The latter days began at Christ’s first
advent—God “hath in these LAST DAYS spoken unto us by his Son” (Heb 1:1-2).
When Christ first came he “performed that good thing God promised” in
our text. He first gathered his lost
sheep from among the Jews then began gathering his elect from among the
Gentiles. He executed judgment and
righteousness on the cross. Therefore, through
faith his regenerated church is called “the LORD our righteousness.”
So, believer, when you are suffering under God’s
chastening hand, remember, God shall return joy even as God returned his lost
sheep in Israel to joy by turning them to Christ our Peace!
CONSIDER GOD’S COVENANT CANNOT BE BROKEN
Jeremiah 33:17: For
thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the
house of Israel; 18: Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me
to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice
continually. 19: And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying, 20: Thus
saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the
night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; 21: Then
may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a
son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.
22: As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea
measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that
minister unto me. 23 Moreover the word
of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, 24
Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two
families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have
despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them. 25: Thus
saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if
I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; 26: Then will I cast
away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any
of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for
I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.
Believer, when you think God has cast you off, consider
that God’s covenant is everlasting. It
cannot be broken. Christ is our eternal
King and eternal High Priest after the order of Melchisedec—without beginning
of days and without end of days! By his
precious blood, he made us kings and priests unto God
Revelation 1:5:…Unto
him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6: And hath
made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Therefore, there shall never be wanting a king upon the
throne of David, nor priests to offer sacrifices of praise. This means God’s covenant to us is as sure as
God’s covenant with the climate. God’s covenant
with the days and seasons shall not change because God uses it to remind his
people that God’s covenant with us is everlasting. Christ made God’s elect Israel a holy nation. Since before the world was made we have never
and shall never cease being a holy nation before God for ever.
1 Peter 2:9: But ye
are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people;
that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of
darkness into his marvellous light:
But who is this Seed
of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and David? If
your Bible says “children” instead of “seed” then throw it away and get a King
James translation that reads “seed.” First,
the seed is Christ. Secondly, the seed
is God’s elect who rest in Christ by faith.
Galatians 3:16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises
made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed,
which is Christ.
Galatians 3:29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s
seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Therefore, God promises us, “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and
harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not
cease” (Ge 8:22). Brethren, when you see
the sun go down and the moon come up, when you feel the change in the seasons,
remember God’s everlasting covenant toward us is sure and everlasting. This was all King David’s salvation. His last words were, “Although my house be
not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in
all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my
desire, although he make it not to grow.” (2Sa 23:5) It is true because all God’s promises are in
Christ and “all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen,
unto the glory of God by us” (2Co 1:18-20).
Therefore God commands us to never cease loving one
another fervently nor cease forgiving one another because God our Father never
ceases to do so. The blood of Christ is
too precious. As brother Augustus
Toplady wrote,
"If
Thou hast my discharge procured,
And freely in my place endured
The whole of wrath divine,
Payment God will not twice demand,
First at my bleeding Surety's hand,
And then again at mine."
Amen!