Lamentations 3:19-39
While it’s important to understand the historical context of the prophets, we should also be able to apply it to today.
V- 7 In the first part, Jeremiah complains or pours his heart out to the Lord. It is a common human experience for us to encounter suffering and cry out to God, but God is not answering. This asks the question of God’s sovereignty.
God’s Sovereignty – to be sovereign you must have the right and power to rule. When God’s power is manifest, it is because He has power to do this. All authority comes from God—there is no authority without God. Even though God has all authority, he does not always exercise his power.
We can come to rest about God allowing evil, when we understand God’s love.
God’s power is also explained in the book of Job. God tells Satan that he may
V19 – God remembers our trials and suffering. One of the fundamental things that God is doing in our affliction, is that God is creating a contest between our trouble and the way our soul is responding to the trouble, and our ability to hope in the Lord.
In 1 Cor 13 we hear that Faith, Hope, and Love are vital. How do we get these?
Faith - Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God
Love - We love, because he first loved us
Hope – This one is not as easy. Hope comes from how we respond to affliction.
Sometimes we realize that some of the things that we want are not good. As we are walking in the spirit and spending time with other Christians, we will learn the things.
When affliction comes, and we have experienced God's refining.
Many times hope is a result of trust. There is a freedom to operate without fear. Something in that process is the working of Christ, which is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Bruce Hempel: Esther 5
Esther’s uncle, Mordechai, told Esther she has to go to the king. The question was whether she could enter the king’s presence. She and the rest of the Jewish people have fasted and prayed. Normally, if one entered the king’s presence without invitation, they would be killed.
We have been granted the opportunity to come before the throne of the King of kings. The king says that he would grant Esther up to half of the kingdom. God has no limit. Who are we praying for?
Esther was a wise and submitted queen. She replaced a queen, Vashti, who as not submitted.
Objects do not have a will of their own (We can pray that the Lord blesses our interactions with objects). But people have free will. We can choose whether or not we obey him. When we submit our will to God’s, it is a blessing to God and us.
Be an intercessor—the Lord is ready to give half his kingdom or more.