SERMON SNAPSHOT: Sunday, October 25, 2020

Dear Friends in Christ –

Jeremiah was not a popular guy. He was conscripted by Yahweh for a particular purpose: to deliver a message of unrelenting judgement. The people despaired, but they were not moved to repent. Instead they heaped ridicule and contempt on God’s servant Jeremiah. They ridiculed him, beat him, put him in stocks, and dropped him into the mud of a dry well.

But (I love conjunctions!) in the middle of the book, Jeremiah tells of Israel’s restoration – the promise of a new covenant. The passage in our text this Sunday speaks of a new covenant, a reentry into relationship that could only be achieved by God. "The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah" (Jeremiah 31:31).

Guess what – this new covenant isn’t written on tablets of stone, but on the heart of God’s people.

Men and women, who are the prophets who mirror the times – these times? As we saw last week, sometimes the dragon wins no matter how hard we work or how smart we are. But this week we see in the sweep of God’s narrative of love, all the way from the first testament, God’s heart yearns for us ‘while we are yet sinners’ – those who have chosen our own path.

Strong words for this time. Let us worship the God who will not let us go!

Live-streamed or safely distanced here in the house (sanctuary) – Let us seek Jesus, be found by Jesus together.

In anticipation –