None but the Lonely Heart, Part 1

Few things are more shocking than watching the Regis and violent riots in our city streets. The destruction of public property. The abject defiance against police officers in senseless violence.

It all breaks her heart today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues his brand-new study in the book of Lamentations. It's called Jeremiah's journal "in this neck study we find Jeremiah kicking through the rubble of Jerusalem after the Babylonians had ransacked the city he loved. It's a pitiful scene of disappointment and lament check title. Today's message none but the lonely heart so grateful that we have an anchor for our souls into most times all we have the word of God to feed on to feed our soldiers. Jeremiah said your words were found and not eat them generally said that you wrote that. And it's right here in in in his book and your words run to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart, for I am called by your name or Lord of hosts. He may have been a weeping prophet and indeed he was, but there was something about knowing he had in the word of God and thank her for his life and direction in the midst of disobedient rebellious people among whom we lived for 40 years and then watch them marched off into exile he could have thought that his whole ministry was was fruitless and and in many ways worthless. On the contrary, the Lord gave him his message and Jeremiah faithfully declared and when he had the opportunity to reflect on the Lord's message.

He said your words were like food to me when I found your word. I assimilated them and took them into my life and I fed on them and they gave me joy rejoicing for my heart. We turn to God's word today in the book of Lamentations. Please find that if you will just be along the long book of Jeremiah, just before the law. All prophecy of Ezekiel where to stand here is like a few pages from the prophets.

Journal that he completed while while witnessing the backwash of the People's disobedience, and as he saw them leave on their way to the Babylonian exile.

He wrote this of these Lamentations 5 chapters. You remember that that form of very elaborate polling. Each of the first four chapters is a very attractive polling in the original language designed to help people commit it to memory.

So they would never forget.

I'm reading from the new living translation.

Excerpt from this first chapter written because we respect the Lord our God and we honor his word we stand when we read it together so please stand. He begins Jerusalem.

What's so full of people is now deserted.

She was once great among the nations now sits alone like a widow.

Once the queen of all the earth. She's now a sleeve she sobs through the night.

Tears streamed down her cheeks among all her lovers.

There is no one left to comfort her. All her friends had betrayed her and become her enemies. Judah has been led away into captivity oppressed with cruel slavery.

She lives among foreign nations and has no place of rest.

Her enemies have chased her down. She is nowhere to turn. Verse six, all the majesty, a beautiful Jerusalem has been stripped away her princes are like starving dear searching for pasture there too weak to run from the pursuing enemy verse 14 he wove my sins into ropes to hitch me to a yoke of captivity, the Lord sapped my strength and turned me over to my enemies. I am helpless in their hands.

The Lord is treated my mighty men with contempt in his command. A great army is, to crush my young warriors. The Lord is trampled his beloved city like grapes are trampled in a wine press for all these things.

I weep tears flowed down my cheeks. No one is here to comfort me any you might encourage me or far away my children have no future.

Verse 21 others heard my groans, but no one turned to comfort me when my enemies heard about my troubles.

They were happy to see what you had done all bring the day you promised when they will suffer as I have suffered. Look at all their evil deeds. Lord punish them as you have punish me for all my sins. My groans were many and I'm sick at heart to search the Scriptures with Chuck Swindoll.

Be sure to download his searching the Scriptures. Studies going to Insight world.org/studies and other message titled, none but the lonely heart Peter Tchaikovsky was a lonely genius.

It was the first Russian born composer to be known internationally and what a composer and what a lonely, depressed man, sort of like Edgar Allen Poe, who seemed to do his best work in the pit.

Tchaikovsky just turned out one piece after another after another, even though he was depressed to the point some filter losing his mind lonely anguished depressed. Interestingly, he didn't really began to compose music until he was about in the middle of his years and he only lived to be 53 but he left and his legacy of magnificent repertoire of music that will musicians have played and sung for years when things were so bad he made a disastrous mistake in marrying the wrong woman. It lasted but a few weeks really only three or four and he plunged deeper into despair.

At that point. Some wondered if he would normally not be able to go on but ever write music again. It seemed to spur them on as a matter of fact, any wrote some of his best pieces beyond that time. Talk about prolific eight Symphony's 11 operas, 13 concertos, not to mention instrumental music for orchestral arrangements that covered about a page and 1/2 in my notes as I took them down doing the research, among them the Nutcracker sleeping beauty.

The fantasy overture.

Romeo and Juliet, the 1812 overture with Canon of this magnificent please send Tchaikovsky's work sort of stands alone when you hear it you know which is not even mention those pieces he wrote for voice and piano those those pieces just go on and on and on.

Among them was one of his favorites.

We know it today is none but the lonely heart can feel this anguish. He titled it open six sounds like a genius. Title doesn't open six none but the lonely heart what it means so much to them because it was his heart, John Bongard 30 years earlier and written about none but the weary heart to know this anguish, but Tchaikovsky felt it was the lonely heart that could really feel anguish if you're lonely today.

You don't need any convincing as an anguish all to itself among the lonely, especially if you can't see anything in the future.

It's all dark. Few people could understand better than the prophet Jeremiah. Think of 40 years. Think of 40 years for consecutive decades.

Warnings preachings predictions only to be met with resistance, pushback, persecution, even the even imprisonment shoved him aside and acted as though he was nothing rejected him, for he years. I feel bad when one sermon doesn't go well for God 40 years of them and could not name lives that were changed or hearts that were refrained. None but the lonely heart can feel such anguish close years he lived in his beloved Jerusalem lordly sneer there and he would often be in the city and while in the city. He took it is the opportunity to warn the people. It will not always be beautiful like this, you will not always have the festivals like you now enjoy you continuing these idolatrous ways you will know judgment from God is coming. They want to hear that they gagged him everywhere.

They could they could, but it never silences message interesting than the name Jeremiah never appears in the book of Lamentations. Never once the Septuagint which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Lamentations does state this is prefix it came to pass after Israel was taken captive and Jerusalem made desolate Jeremiah said, weeping, and lamented this lamentation over Jerusalem the Latin Vulgate adds to that in bitterness of heart with sighing and crying. Tradition has it that the prophet set and wept in a cave on the western side of the city. Remember the people related to exile, toward the east toward Babylon. He said far away from that is, it could couldn't bear the sight of watching so many strong and capable men and women pushed out of the city treated like cattle their children beside them disillusioned hollowed eyes as they're making their way toward what who knew a landed never been to the spoken language.

They didn't know, representing a culture that was foreign to them all because they refuse to hear and heed Jeremiah's warnings, I think is interesting that God left him in Jerusalem, along with a few other outcasts theory is never married, never knowing the joys of children around them. Growing up, to affirm him and encourage him never never really a hold like you and I enjoy stood firm to his convictions and yet none of them were heated as heartbreaking stuff.

That said, but that's exactly what transpired.

And so the Lord led him. Interestingly, not simply to sit in the cave and cry, but to take note of lessons learned in the backwash of disobedience. It's called in our Bibles. Lamentations article of another book that is like this when among the 66 that framed the books of the Bible. This is a record one chapter after another.

In this elegant acrostic piece of poetry that records the consequences of sin. Oh, I know we talk about it we wouldn't quote the wages of sin is that these are the wages. This is the result of following other gods listening to ancestors who were wrong.

Following in the pattern of parents who get bad counsel forming habits that will hurt you know it doesn't just go away. It bears consequences is still the job of the preacher to remind men and women of the consequences of wrongdoing and those reminders fit my life just as they fit yours I do wrong, I suffer consequences in my message today is because they did wrong. They too suffered the consequences. I don't want us to ever forget it. I don't want us to cease telling our children walk in obedience.

Otherwise is a heavy price you will make a good marriage partner. You will be a good parent. You won't even be a good friend Chris are moving in the wrong direction that is against what God wants for you and what will it be like.

Will that brings us to the opening elegy of Lamentations. This is as though the city who was speaking, you remember is testifying at her own funeral. She stands to speak. She speaks through the parent of the prophet look at the three stark contrasts that pack verse one Jerusalem wants full of people is now deserted.

The wants is back then the now is here. Now.

So that's the contrast once full of people busy people laughing, people involved people in one another's lives marrying you going to festivals having parties planning their lives together. Busy with life working in the marketplace selling and buying, but is now deserted. Once busy once full of people now deserted. Look at the second month she was once great among the nations. What the people looked at the flag flying over Jerusalem, the Star of David, the envy of other nations and they saw hers great contact to get that history look at that flag now sits alone like a widow once great but now alone. Once the queen of all the earth, but now asleep, asleep. A sleep all of those people who left the city left the sleeves of the heartbreak that what makes Jeremiah cry, it need not have been at the bar right this is the bitterest of all to know that suffering may not have been. That is the harvest of one's own rearing that is the result of indiscretion and inconsistency in neglect that the vaulter which feeds on the vitals is a nestling of one's own rearing me this is pain. In other words, it need not have been not have's had gone into Babylon as captives.

If you would only acknowledge the wrong of your way and repented and turned back to God. But you not only followed other gods you taught your children to do that and they taught their children to do that. Of course we do is were taught unless revival happens, she sobs through the night. Tears streamed down her cheeks about older lovers.

There's no one left to comfort her. All her friends betrayed her and become her enemies. Judah has been led away into captivity oppressed with. He says it again cruel slavery has no place of rest you know this reminds me of of the let's take the individual who has broken the law and that this person finds himself or herself in the courtroom. The jury has found that person guilty and the judge has sentenced the individual two years in prison.

This individual is sitting there no one to take away the tears.

No one to offer comfort. No one to defend no one to rescue no one to bring relief no one to bring celebration enjoy no one to sing songs and then is told to stand up here the sentence marched out the door alone transported to the place of incarceration are bars open. The person gets in the bars close the window was barred because it is hard. It's a stark room and you drop onto the cot and this is how you feel.

I take my time with this because this is not written to prisoners. This is written to people who were free, who had known the blessing and the pleasure of God, but they close their ears to the prophets words he had been sent toward them, along with a couple of other very faithful prophets will have nothing to do with it.

Even their priests had no place for the living God in their preaching and in their ministry. It's the Lamentations of a broken hearted man who must've said to himself every night. It need not have been Chuck Swindoll has called the book of Lamentations's Jeremiah's Journal of wolves. It's a fitting title because of the obvious grief Jeremiah displayed over the rebellion of his people will a study from Chuck was originally presented at Stone Breyer community church. Only a few weeks ago. That's remarkable to see the relevance of this ancient book. As Jeremiah wept over the severe consequences of God's wrath you're invited to download the free study notes for this series by going to inside world.org/studies.

In light of our times. Perhaps you looking to engage in conversations that have nothing to do with the coronavirus were the open rebellion around the world. Maybe a touch of levity would be welcome. Chuck wrote a classic book on joy that arose from his study of Paul's letter to the Philippians is called laugh again experience outrageous joy and to find all the information on how to receive a copy of laugh again by going to Insight.org/store and then I like to conclude with an encouraging word from one of our listeners was very grateful to those who give generously to support Insight for living this person at the comment that said yesterday what you posted on forgiveness minister to me so much. I did what I needed to do said what I needed to say and praying the prayer of forgiveness today. I've had pure joy. That's what we need is pure joy, the joy of the Lord is our strength. Thank you, but it's so encouraging to hear how God uses this program to inspire forgiveness, joy is made possible by people like you are monthly companions, and anyone who gives voluntary donations to give a gift today because listening in the United States dial one 800-7788 88 again at 1-800-772-8888 or go online to insight.more. Join us again tomorrow when Chuck Swindoll continues to describe Jeremiah's Journal of low right here on Insight for living.

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