God’s Faithfulness (Part 2 of 2)

You probably heard somebody say God is good all the time. What happens when life really is tough today on Truth for Life.

Alastair Beck explains the importance of relying on what we know about God's faithfulness, particularly when trouble strikes.

Our study picks up in the book of Lamentations chapter 3. That usually goes along with the faithfulness of God is a message that is not really Church of the Bible and is definitely not true to human life and it doesn't actually work well with people who are able to identify with language that says I am bereft of peace and I have forgotten what happiness is and I don't think I'm going to be of the make it through another day. They don't need a message about Jesus puts a smile on your face that even a dentist can erase the need to find out if there is reality in this theology. If there is substance in this state. Is there anybody here who understands. So for example when you go amongst the delegates of northern India that the lowest of the untouchable class of northern India.

You want to go in there the way crazy people do from North America with a gay Train of Mercedes-Benz's and driving around Delhi to let them know that here is Christianity is come to Delhi if you embrace Jesus to be successful. Like I and you will have all of these things. How does that play to somebody who is an untouchable in the street. It doesn't play at all.

But if you tell them that Jesus Christ was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief and he was one from whom people hid their faces he was despised, and people did not esteem him. Now the Untouchables of northern India say I would like to meet this fellow I like to know this man is busy is not a high school quarterback. He's not a chair is not a cheerleader, where the end of about 50 or hundred years of American approach to Christianity is going to be able to do this we just bring the CEO and we just bring the cheerleader and we just bring the guy in the next guy and expect and wish you all the stuff to these people while I was gone now have to do a far better job in developing a theology of suffering a theology of suffering so that we can articulate the people that the story of the Bible is the good the bad the new, the perfect God made it good syndrome in the bad in Jesus. It becomes new, but only ultimately that will become perfect, but we still live with sin. We still live with sadness.

We still live with disappointment. We still live with these things to say that we don't is not to be is to be untruthful is to be faithful because the faithfulness of God and is what I'm trying to press home to you. The faithfulness of God is said within this context. So you go through all of that gravel wasting in every house and then he just said I was. As part of a song they would like to say yes. Why was Ingrid's faithfulness.

The people you talk about great is thy faithfulness emulates standing up in Auschwitz in the middle of all the devastation sick.

Why don't we all just all hands together and sing great is thy faithfulness, but in actual fact, we could and an actual fight. We should, and it is in that context that the people are then standing to say great is thy faithfulness because what the messages is in simple terms is this life is hard. God is life.

This God is good. No notice to transition how do you get to verse 22 from verse 18 by going through verses 19, 20 and 21 obviously all right sources remember my afflictions, my wanderings, the one with in the gall. My soul continually remembers in his bow down within the race as if I'm going to continue just to focus on this. I'm going to be a problem to myself and everybody else note, the answer is not to deny the reality of C is not really as bad as you think is not is not really that bad in honors on the bed looking for your below reservoir sonic is a nice balloon look here is on the good things tomorrow will be your best life now.

Every day is a Friday is – they don't worry about anything is one year beyond spine is you say no way saying all this is reality. This is people leaving their children. The gates are gone. The law is gone. The vision is gone. The Kings are gone I am wrong then indeed darkness.

I am in the bleakness of this experience I am living in a place with no lights on at all, but this I call to mind, but this I called to mind. What is he doing. He's not saying this isn't a reality and I can cover it over by some other kind of reality we saying this is a reality.

But this I called to mind. In other words, I'm going to bring all that I know of God to bear upon all that I know of my circumstances because in the transition against us in verse 22. Nothing is actually changed is just as bleak as it was before. Nothing looked hopeful. Nothing look possible. Nothing look worthwhile. Nothing looked comforting. See the guy that wrote a rose garden passed away in the last few days I forget his name now but you know you remember the song, I beg your pardon. I never promised you a Rose Garden along with the sunshine. There's going to be a little rain sometimes if you read the piece in the Wall Street on the guy what was most telling to me once it says that his brother who was a drummer committed suicide in 1971 on this songwriter really dropped into obscurity since then. It's kinda like it was a sort of funny little country song recorded by go: Anderson, but the pathos of it ran clearly much deeper songwriters recognizing this whole thing is not all moons and Junes and Ferris wheels and the dizzy dancing way it feels when every fairy tale comes real this life. He sent himself as this and send in the clowns here. This I called to mind. In other words, it's what the person knows about God that must be brought to bear upon what the person knows about life.

Admittedly, this is not the totality of life. This is a period of life. This is an experience of life. But what he saying is that when I encounter these things then I need to bring the knowledge of God. God is his character to bear upon my circumstances.

If you like what he's doing, is he flying the instruments when you when you fly especially back East. You have so many nice days out here. You don't get so much of it but often when you fly back east within 800 feet you're enveloped in cloud and sometimes the cloud level is so deep that you may never get out of it. Even if you fly at 2951 or 32,008.

So you are entirely engulfed in cloud the hallway and so you hope desperately that the pilot of the copilot are not relying on looking out of the wind, because all he can see if they look out of the window, is that which would jeopardize the safety of themselves and everybody else because how would you be able to maintain any kind of equilibrium.

How would you know what was what I would you know where you are spatially in this past fall dancers you find instruments in the Christian life is actually about flying the instruments is not is not ultimately about whether whatever the pump upon feelings. It's about whether were prepared to trust God and so that's what he does what he says I will call this to mind and therefore I have hope. Where's the hope it's in the steadfast love of the Lord that stuck has love of God which ones the whole way through the Old Testament the covenant love of God that might was talking about last night that God is entered into a covenant with his people.

An unbreakable bond and so he says I know that God has shown himself in this devastating way and all that. I've never encountered, but I needed the same time to call to mind the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases doesn't seem to fit because how does this fit with the steadfast love of the Lord.

He says will I don't know how it fits.

Life is really hard but the steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. He keeps his covenant and his mercies never come to an end. His mercies, I grew up with those of King James version language but it always intrigued me. I never knew what journeying mercies were my father used to pray about it all the time. The garbage grinders journeying mercies. It took me a while to realize what he was actually trying to say was helpless together without crashing the car. All right, but then I then I grew a little older again. I said no and help us together without crashing the car doesn't really convey the vastness of the work conveys the vastness of it all is that your steadfast love is expressed in your mercies and your mercies in marriage from your compassion and your compassionate love is seen in your faithfulness.

So the real test of an understanding of the faithfulness of God is not when you're at a men's conference and it's all you know the steadfast love of the Lord never sees as well.

It's when you get a blood test back is when you get a pink slip is when you face to face with the reality of the hardness of life. The toughness of life, then I will call to mind. In other words, it is a volitional thing is not an emotional thing.

I call this to mind another was. He says I'm going to have to I will have to bring my my life under the jurisdiction of God under the nature of his character under who he is, because this stuff is about to completely overwhelm me. Nothing seems worthwhile. Nothing seems fixable. Nothing. But I called us to mind his love never ceases and the proof that God has graciously loved his people was seen in the fight that they weren't consumed. It's amazing isn't his mercies never come to an end. Steadfast love never ceases, the Lord is my portion, because of his goodness that we are not actually overwhelmed LME drugs are close. In this way the mercy of God, both here and throughout Scripture is finally seen in the fact that God does not give us what we deserve. When people say I just want to be treated the way I deserve to be treated. I am, I just want justice, you know that's the guy the CEOs having his photograph taken for the annual report and he has the photographer come in, get his best suit on and everything and he's very officious with the girl only sister you know I want this photograph to do me justice and she remarks to her assistant who setting up the lights. What this guy needs his mercy nor justice.

And I don't of the land is good enough to make him look good steadfast love the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end are new every morning great is your faithfulness that brings relief to the heart of the good news doesn't brings us to the heart of the fight that the Lord Jesus Christ suffered as no one else suffered member here. I remember my affliction and my wanderings in the wormwood and the gall. The gall should trigger a thought in your mind was not gall that we offer Jesus yes that's right.

And they offered him wine mingled with gall, but he refused to drink. Whether were really offering him was a form of anesthesia and anesthetic portion so that he could be dialed in the experience of the brutality that was before him and yet he refused because he was going to embrace suffering and all of its unmitigated reality.

He was the prophet who bore the sufferings of the people and because he was prepared to do that because he remained if you like alert and that experience. Remember, he was able then to care for the needs of his mother. He was able to say that the disciple look after my mother and to say to his mother, and he's your boy.

It was because he was prepared to endure suffering. In that way that his years were open to the words that were spoken on either side of them.

When those fellows were railing against him, until finally the lights went on for one fellow. Remember, and he says to his friend. I don't think we should continue saying this because and here's his language.

He says we are up here on the cross we are up here getting what our sins deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.

So what kind of thing is going on on that little cross. Why is he there why die to show us how much he loves us with that answer that question in part but if I jumped off a high tower to show my wife how much I loved her.

People say that's kind of foolish. I jumped into the Pacific in order to rescue.

They might say that was an act of valor. This man has done nothing wrong and then he says, Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.

Jesus is today. You'll be with me I can do better than today. You'll be with me in paradise.

And if you imagine now today that thief in the glorified presence of Jesus. It is possible for people to ask you in a what was it like getting in here you can imagine him saying it was unbelievable because when I showed up at the gates and Angel said you know what it what you doing and I said what I'm doing this. It was not the way supposed to be immune if you come in and you know something where you justified by faith cases are not as far as I know so will have you been engaged in your local church.

My local what the entrances will hang on. I want to get one of my supervisor so he hears us supervising Angel Pierce on the supervisor said, and eventually to get it sorted out because the fellow says, look, the only reason I'm up here is because the man in the middle cross said I could come and he bore the punishment and the suffering that I deserve and took it all in himself in order that I might be set free because he was faithful to the point of death, because he was faithful through and Fran in Revelation 19. You have a picture of the ascended Christ seated on a horse.

What is it that is emblazoned across the horse or across his chest one more faithful faithful so let me encourage you fellows if everything is plain sailing for you today then remember Lamentations 3 because there's going to come a day when you needed it here in a Lamentations 3 experience today then take it seriously acknowledge it and bring to mind what you know of God because the issues of what we know is this hymn writer says it's what I know of the my Lord and God that fills my heart with praise my lips with song.

It's what I know about have to operate on the strength of what you have revealed of yourself.

It says that you are a faithful God you're faithful to all your promises that you will execute all of your warnings that you are so faithful you cannot deny yourself and when I can finally get it all put together in my thinking.

I turned my gaze upon your son, the Lord Jesus Christ and I say to myself there's not a friend like the lowly. Jesus no not one, not one standing somewhere in the shadows, you'll find Jesus and he's the only one who cares and understands. And somewhere in the shadows you will find him and you will know by the nail prints in his eyes. Why would we have a suffering Christ without a suffering church without the reality of life in heart, and the equal reality of God always be in good express in his patients and his jealousy and his faithfulness in the reality of his first it is comforting to know when life gets hard. Having good and faithful God understands our pain listing to a message titled God's faithfulness on Truth for Life with Alastair Bragg. Alastair will be back in just a minute to close with prayer so we stay with us or the more time we spend studying the Bible, the more we learn about the attributes of God, not the least of which is his great faithfulness in Scripture. God reveals both his nature and his love for us so that we can grow in our knowledge of him and our relationship with him.

That's why a Truth for Life. We teach every day directly from the Bible affect our mission the Truth for Life is to teach the Bible with clarity and relevance. We do this, knowing that when the word of God is heard. His spirit works in the lives of those who listen to convert unbelievers to establish believers more deeply in their faith and to strengthen both members and pastors in the local church. This is the mission you're supporting when you pray for Truth for Life and when you give to this ministry were grateful for your prayers and if you're able to support us today with the donation.

We are grateful for that as well. Would like to say thank you by inviting you to request the book with all your heart, which you may have heard me mention over the past few days. This is a book that helps us center our thinking and our emotions more fully on honoring Jesus. In fact, that's the description. The subtitle of this book gives us orienting your mind desires and will toward Christ. The book with all your heart guides you to think in line with the will of God to set your desires on things that honor Christ requester copy online Truth for Life.org/donate or you can request by using the mobile app if you prefer you can call us at 888-588-7884. Now let's join Alastair for a closing word of prayer father, thank you for the opportunity to think along these lines is unsettling for us in many ways. We tend to think in familiar categories and to try and reinforce ourselves in thought forms that are often challenged when we are prepared to allow the Bible just stand up and speak to us.

Forgive us Lord when we present to our unbelieving friends, a picture that somehow or another suggests that once you turn to Jesus you get removed from all of these things that there's nothing anyone should really be concerned or worried about what we know that we shouldn't ultimately be worried about it, but it doesn't change the fact the reality of it. Our loved one still die. Our children still wonder our body still break down our country finds itself under the malaise of immorality and idolatry.

In many ways we find ourselves saying, surely the walls are breaking down the King is gone implicitly of life is eroding. But this I call to mind steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to. They are new every morning great is your faithfulness. But a faithful God, you are blessed. Praise you in the name of your son, about the pain. Thanks for joining us please listen again tomorrow as we turn to the book of Proverbs learn about the qualities that make someone a great friend kicking off a new series titled wise words.

The Bible teaching of Alastair Bragg is furnished by Truth for Life learning is prolific