Skip to content How to Lament Well: Biblical Insights and Practical Steps || Pastor Adam Mesa Jun 30 · 49 min ...more
How to Lament Well: Biblical Insights and Practical Steps || Pastor Adam Mesa
June 30, 2024 · 49 min
Series Patria Sermons June 30, 2024 · 49 min · Patria Sermons
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Adam Mesa is Lead Pastor of Patria Church and speaks to a congregation of 12,000 about how the gospel of Jesus Christ brings purpose to every life. Patria
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Understanding Lamentations 0:08 Business. I'm excited to jump in the word with you this morning. And then and then and then and then and then and then, I'm excited to jump in the word with you this morning. And then and then, maybe you've never even0:19 spent any time in, but we will spend a little time in. And that's the book of Lamentations. That's what we're going to talk about.1:08 Scripture. So it's not very long at all, but it's You know, Lamentations is known as It helps give you1:20 words to the pain that you're feeling.1:42 Well. It's God's desire that when you and I experience painful times in our lives, that God would help us find the words and find the attitude to connect with God, so that we1:53 can go through it not in a way where we're complaining, but in a way where you're and if we're gonna walk in our faith, guess what? Lamenting well is a part of the because2:05 Lamentations, if you don't do it well, either 1, it turns into complaining very fast, or 2, it turns into pain. Very. So, yeah. Lamentations 3,2:17 ready. Could you stand for the honor of reading God's word? Embark to share a little bit about this poetry literature today? It says in2:29 Lamentations 3 19 to 36, Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall. My soul continually remembers it is what it is and is bowed2:41 down. But this I call to mind and therefore I have hope that steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end.3:05 It is good that 1 should wait quietly for the salvation of the it is good for a man that he beareth yoke in his youth. Let him sit alone in silence when it3:17 is laid on him. Let him put his mouth in the dust. There may be yet hope. Let him give his cheek to the 1 who strikes and let him be filled with in. And3:30 so will not cast off forever, but though he caused of his steadfast love. For he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children3:42 of men. To crush underfoot all the prisoners of the earth, to deny a man justice in the presence of the most high, to subvert a man in his lawsuit. The Lord does not approve.3:54 Let's pray today. Lord, we just lay at your altar today, Father God, as we sung earlier good. I just thank you so much, God, that you are. And through painful4:06 times and through doubting times and through questioning times, and through questioning Yeah. You have given us a voice, and you have given us space to air our grief, to air our la minute. And so God, I pray if there's4:16 any 1 here to It's a It's a it's any form of lament, whether they're online or in this room, may you speak to us today. And, jeez,4:37 there's some questions we have to ask ourselves and that are commonly asked by everybody. Express. Other books in Isaiah and other New Testament4:49 passages like the Help us to discover a common person has, whether they identify following or not. It's this and5:01 I'm in real question that you may ask or everyone may ask, whether they recognize who jesus5:20 we ask the question, is God a5:25 about5:32 the pain? When something is out of your control, how can you control it? It helps us discover the question, what happens when I'm in a broken place? What happens when I'm in a state of pain or shock? Do I5:44 get mad at do I get even with people? Do I cut off the world around me? Lamentations helps you and I explore the right attitude to have when you are you and I are going through5:56 something. And that may be you today, but I'll promise you, and it's not me saying that something's around the corner. But it is very improbable that you'll go the rest of your life without any issues.6:11 Hopefully, Lamentations will give you some hope that should something happen in the future, you and I know how to approach what this is. I'll just simply give you here's the definition of lamenting or lamentation.6:24 Passionate, demonstrated expression of Greek. It's also a poetic action of lamenting. And so the point of this and what's beautiful, if you think about what6:36 it means to follow, So there is an6:48 outward expression that as you and I share our sin, share our grief with God, restoration that God can take place. Well, to a Jewish audience, that wouldn't be uncommon7:00 because the Book of Lamentations is all about God's desire that you vocally share what you're going through.7:12 Going through. A lot of times we're really good at just kind of passively, aggressively sharing it amongst a family member or a friend.7:33 Speak forward. Now I know that's uncommon for some church people who we've been raised with this idea that every single day someone asks you how you're doing, you're supposed to say, well, I'm blessed. I'm7:45 blessed. Man, I'm in pain. I have doubts. I7:57 have questions. And then we think to ourselves, but I can't bring that to God. Yes, you can. Lamentation poetry is all about you bringing it to God.8:09 And so there's some steps it encourages us to do. And if you like this conversation of Lamentations, here's some Psalms if you wanna go and read these during your own prayer life. I wanna share with you Psalms 10. I'm8:21 not gonna read them. You can read them on your own, but Psalms 10 63, 69, 74, and 79 are all about Lamentations Psalms. Most of them written by King David, but it's how King8:33 David outwardly we can leave it back on real quick. I'll read it 1 more time. I see people with their phones out still taking pictures. Psalms 10,8:48 But if you go read these, you'll find that there's an aspect where David is going through David is going through David is going through9:00 David is going through David is going through David is going through And he is outwardly through all these expressions.9:12 That's why the Bible says, how can how can it helps us process this question. How can David have so many short coms, so many sins, but still be considered a man after God's own heart?9:24 Well, because he knew how to lament. He knew how to bring his burden and his sins and his break downs to God. He knew how to do that. And Lamentations gives you permission9:36 to do that. Eugene Peterson, the pastor and author, said this. Lamentations trains us to enter in and be present to the brokenness of life. And in doing so, to encounter the9:48 presence of God, who heals, and restores. And so the And so the book of Lamentations is only 5 chapters. It's very short read and it's read as a poem. This type of10:00 poetry that's used, is what it does is it does alphabetical poetry. And so chapter 1 of Lamentations, every10:11 sentence is a letter in the alphabet. So sentence 1 starts the word starts with an a. Sentence 2, the word starts with a b. And so on and so forth, all the way till it gets to the end.10:23 Now, they don't have our exact same alphabet, but all the way till it gets to the end of their So as to say, from your a to z, God is involved or God is seeing your pain.10:36 It sees your pain. So therefore, there is not a painful thing you can go through that God is unaware of. That's why it gives us an alphabetical statements or alphabetical poetry. But by the end, chapter10:47 5, it's non alphabetical. The alphabet is there, but it's disordered, which means there are sometimes you may not have answers to everything.10:59 And chapter 5 ends with, but God is still there. And so God is there in your perfectly constructed life. God is also there in your chaotic life. Lamentations11:11 helps us process that pain, but it also helps us process the responsibility Israel had to have in the pain that they were going through in the. This book, this letter and poetry is written during 500 BC.11:23 During this time, the kingdom of Israel has split into 2 natures. Israel and the southern tribe and southern kingdom of Jira has just been infiltrated by the Babylonians11:35 and they've ransacked their they've ransacked their streets. They put people on display. They've raped women and children. They have murdered people. It says that kings are now taken11:47 off to slavery. It says priests have been brought into poverty. So what it says is this their idea that Israel is going through it, but it's clear to us, the picture is, that that was11:59 not part of God's desire. That it was part of God's desire should Israel consistently be obedient to following God, God would be their protector.12:12 But because Israel in the Bible talks about it a lot in Deuteronomy and other places, God would say Israel, why are you divorcing Why are you cheating on me? And so12:24 eventually, God is Israel's husband takes off his hand of protection and provision. And every time the world around Israel was trying to succumb them,12:36 God would create a barrier for them. But Lamentations is all about God removes this protection to get Israel to wake up and realize how good they have it under12:47 God's care. Lord. And so there's 2 big processes if you read the book of Lamentations that you have to see. Number12:59 1, Jeremiah the author is first recognizing individual responsibility for the hell that he's experienced. And he steps into a space a few13:11 chapters later, where he realizes as a community, how they have gotten themselves into this. And so what we're going to see today with a few notes, if you want to join us, we're going to see13:22 3 aspects of the Lamenter. And 1 of these 3 could be you today. We see that lamenting is for number 1, the rebellious person. Lamenting is for the restless person.13:35 And also, lamenting is for the reconciled person. Let's first talk about the rebellious person. Lamentations chapter 1 verse 18 starts with the13:47 it's a it's a it's a13:48 it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's13:49 a it's a it's a it's a it's a14:02 says, I rebelled against God. He starts taking personal responsibility. He says, listen all you peoples, look on my suffering. My young men and young women have gone14:14 into exile. The Babylonians have taken them off to slavery. And Jeremiah begins to reflect and say, not that he's taking responsibility for everyone in the nation, but he's saying in his14:26 state, how can he take responsibility on how he helped get Israel to where they're at?14:32 How did his rebelliousness get to the point of disconnect from God?14:34 So in get to the point of disconnect from God? So immediately what he starts to do is reflect upon his own sin.14:46 Now I know that it's not very attractive because we like to wake up and we like to think we're perfect. Act like we've never made a mistake. We like to wait for everyone else to say their sorr.14:58 We like to say everyone else first to say thank you. We want everyone else to get the door for us on the way. And we don't ever sit though and think how often as I said thank you.15:11 How often have I forgave someone? How often have I said sorry first. Or going deeper, how often has I15:38 as sinners because of Adam and Eve. And so as angelic you think your baby is, just go hang around a 2 year old for a couple15:48 hours and you will15:48 see how absolutely selfish absolutely selfish they are. 1 of the first things they'll learn, 1 of the first words that you won't even teach them will be the word, mine.16:05 Heart goes. Mine. Mine. Everything's mine. Everything mine. Everything should work out for me and my benefits. So the first thing Jeremiah does say, how did my own rebelliousness towards16:16 God trouble, not because the enemy did it, not because Satan did it, because you gave yourself your own indiscretion. That is sometimes16:28 why we are in particular predicament. We repeat things over and over and over. Why? Because we are and and and they're16:42 like, why and it's and16:42 it's and it's and17:17 sports and stuff. And, I was working with, professional football. And, he had a and then he he kind of got reduced to the17:29 second string. They tried to hold him if you just we might be able to move you to first string or recommend you to another team if you just17:41 when you get signed and you get signed with a contract even though it's a set17:44 it's a very nice pay for a it's a very nice pay for a it's a very nice pay for a it's a very nice pay for a it's a very nice pay for a17:44 it's a very nice pay for a it's a very nice pay for a for a it's a very nice pay for a Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Very great Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Very great Yeah. So what does he do with that good pay? What does he do17:55 with that good opportunities? Well, he starts picking up some habits. He's going out He's and, you know, when you're in, you know, when you're18:07 mostly in football, you have to watch And so he's coming in, and you have to watch the other team that you're gonna play in a couple weeks, and watch how their tactics are and stuff.18:57 To play that entire season. Because he was19:14 a because you can all day blame someone else. You can all day, well that coach was hard on me or they19:26 but I showed up, but regardless,19:28 you were rebellious. Regardless, you19:28 did your own thing. Regardless, you did your own thing. Regardless, you made your own decisions. Regardless, you made your bed. You gotta sleep in that. Is19:40 God forgiving? 100 percent. But because God forgives, does that mean that that separates you from consequences of your sin? No. No. It does not separate you consequences from your19:51 sin. And so what happens is, Lamentations chapter 1 is all about first thing is going, God, I accept the consequences. That's the first step to Lamentations. To say, God, if I gotShow more In this video 0:00 Understanding Lamentations19:59 The Process of Lamenting
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