UNCEASING TEARS

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“You have covered Yourself with anger and pursued us; You have slain without pity. You have covered Yourself with a cloud so that no prayer can get through. You have made us scum and refuse among the nations.”

“All our enemies have opened their mouths wide against us. We have suffered terror and pitfalls, ruin and destruction. Streams of tears flow from my eyes because my people are destroyed.My eyes will flow unceasingly, without relief, until the Lord looks down from heaven and sees. ”

Lamentations 3:43-50

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Think about the saddest moment you have ever had. Remember how hard it was to find joy in the midst of your sorrow as the dark storm clouds of life’s difficulties gathered overhead. Recall the many tears you shed and the need for comfort you felt.

It certainly wasn’t a time you would ever want to go through again nor wish for anyone else to have to go through. And yet, even that saddest moment in your worldly life will pale in comparison to the grief and distress you will feel if you ever find yourself in the midst of God’s judgment.

What does that heartache look like?

We see a glimpse of it in today’s scripture passage as we continue to study from Lamentations, Chapter 3. Look again at these words here:

“You have covered Yourself with anger and pursued us; You have slain without pity. You have covered Yourself with a cloud so that no prayer can get through. You have made us scum and refuse among the nations.”

“All our enemies have opened their mouths wide against us. We have suffered terror and pitfalls, ruin and destruction. Streams of tears flow from my eyes because my people are destroyed.”  Lamentations 3:43-50

Imagine this judgment scene for a moment.

You have angered the Lord through your sinful living to the point where He has had enough and chooses to send His punishment upon you and others in your population. It isn’t just a slap-on-the-wrist kind of penalty but the death sentence in some instances as the Lord killed those He was punishing without any pity. He also chose to completely demolish everything that you held dear, leaving nothing but ruin and destruction. Sending up prayers to Him, asking for relief and mercy, was fruitless as the Lord had made sure that no petitions would make it to Him. It was a time of terror for you and your fellow people.

In fact, the harsh punishment was so bad that your once proud and respected nation was now looked at as scum when compared to other countries. Your nation was now a mockery in the world picture, the recipient of humiliating insults from those who were considered enemies as they had no reason to fear your country anymore.

It’s not a pretty picture by any means and look at the emotional impact it had on the Israelites who were the people at the heart of our scripture verses:

“Streams of tears flow from my eyes because my people are destroyed.”

Note here that we aren’t talking about a few random sobs in response to having fallen out of God’s favor. Rather, a torrent of tears came and fell hard from the eyes of the Israelite people. Such will always be the case when anyone finds God opposing them.

So why should we be concerned with this passage today?

Because it shows us a place we should never want to be, specifically in the midst of God’s judgment. For when it comes, we will find ourselves in a place of misery and melancholy like we have never experienced before, a place where we, like the Israelites, will end up crying unceasing tears.

Frankly, let’s do ourselves a favor and just be fully obedient to God, living in a way that is pleasing in His sight, a way that brings His blessings instead of His consequences, a way that ensure we can live in joy and peace each day without having to worry about experiencing God’s punishment.

Amen

In Christ,

Mark
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