Reply To: Jeremiah & Lamentations

[Richard Vara]

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NLT) 31 “The day is coming,” says the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the LORD. 33 “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day,” says the LORD. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the LORD.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the LORD. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”

It’s amazing to me how God reveals the secrets of our future, especially when we have a heart that is truly seeking after Him. God did this for Jeremiah in chapter 31:31-34; He revealed the New Covenant over 600 years prior to the crucifixion of Christ. I believe Jeremiah was exposed to this because of his heart for God’s people.
As I walk in this new life, I must continuously evaluate my heart to make sure it is pleasing to the Lord. This is challenging sometimes (maybe most of the time). This challenge can be too difficult for some causing them to fall away from the promises of God – succumbing to the traps of sin. Think of Jeremiah, his people were conquered, his town destroyed – how easy would it have been for him to give up? Without faith, it’s too easy for the enemy to creep in and destroy you.
Psalms 9:9-10 (NLT) 9 The LORD is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. 10 Those who know your name trust in you, for you, O LORD, do not abandon those who search for you.
Jeremiah expressed his concerns to God in a time of trouble and the Lord gave him a revelation of what was to come. Was it instantaneous? No, but a promise – this, my friend, is the HOPE we have in Christ Jesus…
Deuteronomy 31:6 (NLT) So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”