Ancient Paths

I invite you to turn your word or copy the word God to Jeremiah chapter 6, verse 16 was be looking at this one versus evening Jeremiah chapter 6, verse 16. Thus says the Lord, stand by the roads and look and ask for the ancient paths were the good wages and walk in it and find rest for your souls. But they said we will not walk in it. Please be seated for score Lord in prayer. Heavenly father we come to you in the name of your son, the Lord Jesus Christ who by his ministry on this earth gave us the light of the gospel. He was the light of the world that shined in a dark place and we who were deaf and blind to the truth. You gave us eyes to see and ears to hear, and we found our Savior.

We found the one who gives us eternal life.

We just asked that we would follow follow in the footsteps of our Lord.

And as we are born again by the power of the Holy Spirit that we would follow the sun to be with you one day our heavenly father for an eternity blessed this time together. Pray that we would see in your word. The great grace that you extend to us through your son, your son's name we pray on was a great privilege to be with you again. I appreciate the opportunity from the session to bring the word of God to you this evening.

As I said, will be looking only at verse 16 here, but I feel like is enough here to work with really dive into the text here but Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet. He is came from a long line of priestly lineage hailed from Benjamin, a Levitical city a few miles from Jerusalem. It was the plan of God before the foundation of the world to set him aside to be a prophet to reach out to the southern kingdom of Judah will go back to chapter 1 I'll give us a little bit of context here. Chapter 1 verse five tells us before I formed you in the womb I knew you in before you were born I consecrated you, I appointed you a prophet to the nations. There was a path set for Jeremiah and his path was to warn the southern kingdom of Judah and their judgment is prophesied here in verse 13 the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, what do you see I see a boiling pot facing away from the north is boiling pot facing away from the north to be toward the south meaning that judgment was to come from the northern territories down upon the southern kingdom. In other words, they've already learned from their neighbors to the north, Israel had already been taken over by the Assyrians.

The 12 the 10 tribes in the northern kingdom had already endured this judgment, but now it was time for the southern kingdom, Judah to make a decision to decide if they were going to walk in the old paths, and God sets Jeremiah aside and says that you should be a fortified city and iron pillar and bronze walls against the whole land he was there to stay to witness against the kings of Judah. It's officials and priests and people that had rejected God's ways and Jeremiah here is pleading with them to turn from their idolatry to turn from the worshiping of false gods that on the altars that they had built they commit themselves only further to their idolatry. But it gets worse they get indignant with their idolatry. They are known as being covetous, oppressive, from pre-prophet Depriest everyone is greedy of unjust gain and everyone deals falsely and so their hearts were hardened against the Lord, led by the desires and vices of their hard Jeremiah here is pleading with them. He is pleading with them as God is a father to Israel. Jeremiah is pleading with them. In chapter 3 return O faithless children.

If there is one fateful in the city or two from the family.

I will bring you design a bring you to heaven to be with me but is pleading with them to turn from their rebellion and to come back come back to God, but they have no repentance. Matthew Henry says those that are shameless or graceless, and in their case plus and so it is a dark time in the southern kingdom of Judah where they are openly rebelling against the ways of God. But we see that every time there is this announcement of judgment and God's word God gives them an out, God gives them one last opportunity and he pleads with them to repent of their sin and repent of their idolatry and to turn back to him. These promises of returning them to Zion to be with him are extended but we see that they continue in their rebellion, God allows the enemies of God the Babylonians to come down from the northern areas the territories there in the Babylonians are now at the gates God gives this one last final plea to the prophet Jeremiah to stand by the roads calls him to stand. He says to wait a moment there in outright rebellion and turning away and going away from God and he says to to stand for a second to pause and wait basis stand and look where you are and look look around, see where you stand today where you stand in light of God's revealed will. What is God's word tell you about your actions. You have to know first that your lost for you even realize what it is to be found or what direction to go or what path to take.

When I was in the Boy Scouts, they would sometimes put us out in the middle of the woods. They give us a map and they give us a compass and they just wave us and tell us to get back to camp and so were sitting there, panicking, but we have a map and we have some landmarks around there's a lake over there and we got the compass so we can start directing ourselves and orienting the map with the direction that we ought to go. It's a pretty soon because we know that this compass will direct us in the right direction. We can start walking in the right path.

We can start going back north around the lake back to the campsite where we can find rest from all this lost in the woods being we have nowhere to go unless we start to first look at ourselves and orient our direction.

What is the right way to go but first that's the thing Jeremiah has to show them their need. He has to show them first that they are lost.

But again there they don't know what they don't have eyes to see, they cry out that peace. Peace.

But there is no peace within their deceived even worse. Their self deceived. They don't realize how lost they truly are. And though they have the example of the northern kingdoms being taken over and given over to the enemies of God, they still will not admit their guilt. God's word is there the whole time has word Paul tells us in Proverbs 2 that God is a shield to those who walk in integrity protects those that belong to him and he continues to tell us that God regards the path of the justice of peasant justice and watches over his saints, and then you and I we learn verse nine, we will understand righteousness and justice and equity in every good path for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. We see that God's word clarifies what is the right way.

What is wisdom what is righteousness that we we might walk in it and so it's a call to you and I today to stand for a moment and to look out and consider where we are in our lives what direction are we going are we deceived are we self deceived duty to be honest with ourselves with our sin with our rebellion. Must we stop for a moment and re-examine ourselves and to make sure that we walk in the right way.

David we know all about David in his life and his many follies as many sins. He tells us in Psalm 139 verse 23 and 24 search me oh God, and know my heart try me and know my thoughts and see if there is any grievous way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.

He's asking for the right past the ancient paths. The old paths that they would be a guidance to him and again those that are standing are those that a lot of those that are looking out have her willing eyes to see by the spirit of God gives us clarity to know this is the right way or the wrong way we can now look out and see that these are the pathways of faith that God has established. Throughout history, often times were faced with a big decision we have to decide what way to go in is usually a practical question. Will I go to college, what kind of job do I take, and you know big college students in RUF and I was in college was always was the will of what's God's will for my life and it's not that complicated when you get to the actual example, what are you good at what you interested in doing can you do something that honors the Lord and then after that, once you've crossed off those boxes. Do it to the glory of God.

But still, we see that we can go back to God's word and he can give us clarity as to what our the right ways. The faithful ways that he has established and we just simply have to ask God tells us in his word that if we ask if we go to him. He will tell us the ancient paths ancient ways. As for the ancient paths in with the good way is an walk in it and find rest for your souls. Again, ancient paths in the good way are one of the same fear on that path. It's the good way the right way that goes to the greatest destination.

They go back to the foundation of the world going back to the Garden of Eden. We were given paradise on earth is paths go back to even. Adams stepping off the path. But God again gives us this promise, he promises that there will be one to come that will the seed of the woman that will crush the head of the serpent God recalculates his pack know sometimes you driving down the road and you have actually got out of the parking lot and turned the wrong way and it starts to recalculate so it starts to direct you into a different way. But again, it's not the way you wanted to go but because of your turning the wrong way. It's going to readjust. It's gonna recalculate thank God for recalculation's the story of Christianity as a store story of Adam when he fell into sin. God established his covenant of grace that it was the plan of God that he would send Christ into the world and that through his work on the cross that we would be redirected on the path psalmist says in Psalm 119 verse 105 your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path is Spirit empowered faith that advances the Christian down the path of ancient paths to same spirit that led Moses and Isaiah, Jeremiah, going back to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. All of these men is godly men in this line have all walked in those same paths.

One of my favorite phrases are heard in seminary is that if it's new, it's not true and if it's true, it's not new, and I love that there's nothing new under the sun. Some ancient paths disrespected because their old there are but that doesn't mean anything. I mean old does not mean it's necessarily true. We see the advances in technologies old things are not always better than new things motivate usually new things are much better than the old and when you go back even to the fourth century back Council of Nicaea, there was debate over Arianism where they negotiated on the person and work of Christ. They said that Jesus was not equal to the father but of like substance. Even back in the fourth century there compromising on the person and work of Christ. Just because it's old does not mean it's necessarily good or true or right. It's it's actually a new path that 1700 years old. It's a wrong path and what they actually need is the oldest path. Most ancient of paths that testify to the historic Orthodox Christian faith that comes only from God's word so we might have to ask, how does my theology match up with the testimony of history. History is a good teacher. There's plenty to learn. We look back at those who have gone before us where war faithful forerunners those in our own reformed tradition. What have they said about these passages of Scripture. We have 2000 years of Christian tradition to look through my elder say about this passage. What is Dr. Oldham or Eugene, or Doug will what we all say about these passive what is the understanding from Scripture so I can get some clarity on these verses, I was a young budding Calvinist, I received a copy of chosen by God. Lectures by RC Sproul just basically goes through and just explains election and predestination. I had come out of the Methodist Church I really needed some clarity on some of those doctrines and he said something that really stuck with me.

They say whenever you look at the doctrine of election and predestination five very prominent men all agree.

Augustine St. Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther and John Calvin and Jonathan Edwards all these men agreed on predestination and election and they could be wrong. Let God be true and every man a liar.

They could absolutely be 100% wrong, but when those five guys get something right gets my attention and that's so true. Where you see a consistency throughout history that testifies to the truth.

It gives us good inclination that it is the right way is the good path now again we must go in and look at the Greek look at the Hebrew see what God's word has to say but we have to go back, stand for a moment, look where we've been and then look forward and see what God's word has to say to us and what we do, we look back and we look at God's word and we see this plan of God where you're converted you're a Christian, then you go into Ephesians wanting to start seeing God explain through Paul how he planned this idea of redemption and saving us from our sin. Paul tells us that before the foundation of the world. The father planned redemption by sending his son into the world and the sun sets aside all the prestige that belongs to him in heaven and he condescends he comes into his own creation. He submits himself to the will father any close himself in human flesh and always God he's mistreated and he's beaten and brutalized and crucified. Doing so, he dies for my sins and he is bearing the just anger and wrath of God. That was due to you and I bears upon himself. He takes he becomes sent on our behalf that in him we might be the righteousness of God that the father looks at the son he sees us with Christ as the bride of Christ unified with Christ.

We know this, we can trust in this because the spirit of God is what regenerates our hearts and makes us all aware of the realities of the promises of God. It applies redemption to our heart that we rest in this truth and therefore on earth and were hearing the gospel in the order kinda goes in reverse are sitting in the congregation you're hearing the word preached.

You don't really expected, but the spirit of God comes in by effectual calling changes hearts.

Ezekiel 3626 tells us that God takes out a heart of stone and gives us a heart of flesh. We don't invite the heart of flesh into our hearts. He gives us a heart of flesh. He gives us faith to believe in him, the spirit of God makes us alive in Christ. He regenerates us and then Christ comes along and says, as he does to the disciples follow me, pick up your cross daily and follow me all those that love me and want to be my disciple.

Follow me, and we follow him all the way one day finally, to be with the father in heaven where he prepares a place for us. We see these promises of God.

This is our destination.

This is our goal. This is our place with communion with God, with the triune God dwells with his people and were numbered among them. That's why Christians walk in these paths would find rest for our souls. Jesus being the three feasting on the bread of life on the way drinking of the well of living water welling up to eternal life. This is true rest that we have communion with our Lord Jesus Christ, and he warned those it tried to rest in themselves. There were Pharisees all along the way that wanted to add salvation by grace through faith in Christ plus something else they wanted add their rules and their loss. In doing so you're now adding a fork in the road you're going down the wrong path and he's warning them not to go down that road to look on the me and believe in the bread of life. The, the well of living water welling up to eternal life or what they would do is take the Christian path and start to restricted to tighten it down when God grants us so much more liberty than Pharisees could ever understand that there's freedom and liberty in Christ, we have to be careful again.

Now that were bought with a price.

Now we belong to Christ.

We don't use that liberty to ask excuse sin or to compromise on what God's word tells us we actually must now remember what Paul teaches in Romans six. Six. Shall we sin, that grace may abound by no means grace is not the basis for any sort of license to sin. Grace is something that we delight cost. The on the father.

His only son. It's not something cheap to us. Something we value dearly, but again we've been saved by grace. The law that once condemned us is now guidance to us. It tells us the answer to how then shall we live, the law gives us clarity on Christian living. Jesus tells us in John 1415 if you love me you'll keep my commandments usually preach this morning and he was preaching from Ecclesiastes chapter 12 verse 13 the end of the matter.

All has been her fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of the whole man saved by grace, yes, but now called to be a disciple advancing growing loving Christ third and finally we see that they will not walk in it, how heartbreaking it is to reject God and his ways is not simply his ways that they are rejecting, but they openly are rejecting God. John Calvin. Risa might've otherwise objected and said that they have been deceived but if they had been in time warned they would've obeyed good and wise counsels but no. I said we will not walk in it. People say things like you yet to find your own way and that's their journey. That's what they have to do they have to live their truth, but Christ is coming in and say and I am the truth the journey I I am the way, what you know there is only the way, there is only Christ, and he's the only one that leads us down.

These ancient paths. The paths that Abraham walked on paths that Moses walked on. Sadly, Proverbs 1412 warns us there's a way that seems right to a man, but in the end is the way to death. The journey may lead them to destruction. Remember Jesus in Matthew seven verse 13, 14 inner by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard leads to life, and those who find it are few. So the way is in following Christ. It's not something that we say will help help teach my children Christian principles and maybe they might find their way. No, Christ is coming in and imploring you to raise them in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, show them the way the way, not ways, but the ancient paths that lead to eternal life swimmer going into devotional studies, Bible studies, teaching door families are neighbors we study God's word or studying. Where are the paths what are the ways that God has laid out for us. The saddest verses in the Old Testament there was no king in Israel. Everybody did what was right in their own eyes they had no clarity. They had no understanding had no past that were laid out for them, and then Christ comes along and calls Peter and says follow me and Peter's following him even through John chapter 6 where the message gets more and more difficult and people are dropping like flies.

Everyone's leaving the ministry of Christ, and he turns to Peter and said are you going to go to.

Peter says, to whom shall we go. You have the words of eternal life.

It's unthinkable for Peter to go any other way because for him. There is no other way for you Christian, there is no other way. There's only the way that God has established in the ancient paths, but Judah does not walk in these paths and remember Jeremiah prophesies of their destruction boiling cauldron from the north and you shall break forth on the all the inhabitants of the land I will honor my judgments against them. They have forsaken me, and burned incense toward other gods. Jerusalem is overrun in Jeremiah is weeping in the book of Lamentations over the destruction of Jerusalem. They judge the ways of God, should we be surprised that God might in turn judge the people of Judah. It's an Old Testament warning to you and I that we ought to see this example, see Jeremiah see his heart for the lost people to plead for them to see these ancient paths and walking that you might find rest for your souls that you might find Christ you might find eternal life about you and I I look at this passage I said I get the destruction of Jerusalem. I understand that you deserve and look at you and I will reflect on our own life very encouraged to see that one of God's great attributes is that he is long-suffering. He says it does it have a contrite heart, I will not despise and those that come to him with repentance and faith and ask for the ancient paths.

He will show them he will guide them in paths of righteousness and so finally Jeremiah's cry goes out this evening stand by the roads and look and ask for the ancient paths where the good way is an walk in it and find rest for your souls.

Spring heavenly father we come to you only by the work of Christ only by what he has done on our behalf. It is because the sun humbled himself and came into the world and gave us this message that we would even know of Christ that we would hear of the promises that he extends to all those that look to him by faith I write this, our hearts, let this be an ongoing reality every morning and evening that we would look to you and trust in you, by faith alone in Christ alone in your sins. And we pray, amen