Carpenter Diem (Because Jesus Was a Carpenter and Is Now Preparing a Home for His People)
The resurrection of God the Son, Jesus Christ, is crucial to the Christian faith. In Luke 24:13-35, we read of the resurrected Savior walking the road to Emmaus. This specific geographical reference reminds us of the absolute accuracy of God’s Word in all areas. In verse 27, Jesus begins to teach from the Old Testament; He not only walked the talk but also talked the walk! This passage does not reveal the exact Scriptures Jesus employed to teach these journeying believers, but we do know that He fulfilled the entire Old Testament (Matthew 5:17,18). Fulfilled prophecy is one of the major reasons that we can be certain that our faith in Jesus is not misplaced. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
As the title suggests, the book of Lamentations is a lament. The prophet Jeremiah predicted the fall of Jerusalem and then saw that sad prophecy come to pass. As a man of God, he did not gloat but rather wept. In the middle of what seems to be a hopeless situation, we find that God is faithful. Lamentations 3:22-23 is a genuine gleam of light in the midst of the great gloom of sorrow. (As a bonus thought, read verse 25 and remember our lengthy theodicy odyssey of Sunday morning sermons in the past months.) Some would scoff at the idea of God’s faithfulness; they would ask where God was when the people were taken captive into Babylon. Of course, God had warned them that this grievous outcome would occur if they persisted in idolatry. He was faithful to His promise and faithful to His people, for He promised that they would be cured of their fascination with idols (they were – Israel has never returned to idolatry) and that they would return to their homeland (they did).
No one could reasonably dispute the faithfulness of God the Son to us. In Revelation 19:11, Jesus is called “Faithful and True” as He fulfills the promise of His Second Coming. This faithful Savior Who gave His life for us on the Cross will fulfill all promises, including Hebrews 13:5b: “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”