Faith Looks Forward

Jeremiah 31.31-34

Unlike the song that my generation knows so well, Jeremiah was no bullfrog. He was more like a horned toad. Jeremiah was a bit of a troublemaker. Jeremiah’s relationship with his fellow Israelites is probably best described as a wee bit volatile. From Jeremiah’s lips came some of the most severe language ever directed at Israel — words of anger that made the people drive Jeremiah away, hard words that made the king toss Jeremiah in jail.

Jeremiah held nothing back. Israel had broken faith with the covenant made at Mt. Sinai, and such actions have consequences. God’s response would be severe; exile would be Israel’s price for its sinfulness.

But Jeremiah also loved Israel; the way a parent loves a rebellious child. Yes, Jeremiah spoke words of anger, but there were other words spoken by Jeremiah, words that must have made Israel’s heart sing and its hopes soar.

It’s been said that you can’t drive forward if you’re looking in the rearview mirror. That’s what Jeremiah is telling the Israelites in this passage of scripture: Faith looks forward.

The people of God are told, time and time again, to remember what God has done for them in the past — and we certainly should remember. But faith looks forward. Just as a safe driver looks in the rearview mirror from time to time, we need to remember the past. However, we don’t need to dwell on the past too much.

Jeremiah tells the Israelites, “The days are surely coming.” Jeremiah helps his people look forward to a time when their conditions would improve. Jeremiah promises a new covenant, a covenant that would face the people forward and help them to live life as it came toward them.

Scholars have pointed out that the life of Jeremiah bears a striking resemblance to the life of Jesus. Both Jeremiah and Jesus spent long hours in solitude; both drew strength from prayer. Each of them struggled with hostility in their hometowns; both spoke out against the religious leaders of their day. Both Jeremiah and Jesus wept over what they saw coming for Israel as the result of sin; and they each warned the people against placing too much confidence in the temple.

Jeremiah anticipated the Gospel – the Good News – in his teachings about the new covenant. Jesus, in the upper room, was clearly referring to Jeremiah’s prophecy when he told the disciples to “drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant.” The writer of the book of Hebrews quotes this very passage from Jeremiah in its entirety as the central argument that in Jesus all things have become new. Jeremiah was granted a vision unlike any other outside the New Testament – a vision of the perfect relationship between God and humankind.

Jeremiah teaches Israel that there is a faith that will carry them, as opposed to a religion that they will have to carry. Jeremiah’s words illustrate for the Israelites – and for us, today – the difference between law and grace, between works and faith. And, more importantly, Jeremiah is pointing to a faith that is personal. “No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord.”

The day is surely coming when the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be the God of every person, personally known and personally experienced. No longer will the people have to ask the priests to do their praying for them, as they have from the days of Moses and the law. God is going to set aside the old covenant. In its place God will give a new covenant, a covenant whose foundations will not be based on written laws and regulations. The Lord’s Spirit will be put directly into the hearts of people. The new covenant will be based on God’s nearness, on God’s love.

God’s love. Love is the most powerful thing in the universe. Love affects us in positive ways, while the lack of love affects us in negative ways. 1st John 4.16 says, “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” God loves us, and God chooses to be near to those who accept God’s love. The new covenant is based on the love of God. The new covenant helps us to have faith that looks forward, because the love of God abides in us.

The new covenant described by Jeremiah is inviting and natural. People don’t have to work hard to know God; instead, they know God naturally, internally. Now, that doesn’t mean that disciplined study of the Bible and other religious matters is useless. It simply means that God wants to be known by people everywhere, regardless of their background or education. The knowledge of God has been given to everyone. In our Wesleyan tradition we call this “prevenient grace,” God’s grace working within us before we are even aware of God’s presence.

As we develop faith, and give ourselves to God through Christ Jesus, our knowledge of God grows inside of us, and we feel the desire to study and learn more and more about God. Knowing God through faith grounds us and strengthens us. In times of trouble we already have a relationship with God that we can rely on.

One of Aesop’s fables goes like this: A wild boar was busily sharpening his tusks against a tree when a fox came by. “Why are you wasting your time in this manner?” asked the fox. “Neither a hunter nor a hound is in sight, and no danger is at hand.” “True enough,” replied the boar. “But when danger does arise, I’ll have better things to do than to sharpen my weapons.”

When danger arises, when trouble strikes, that’s not the time to develop a relationship with God. The new covenant helps us to have a faith that looks forward, because we already have a relationship with God, through Jesus Christ.

Verse 34 is one of the most comforting sentences in all of scripture: “For I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.” Gaining God’s forgiveness isn’t a matter of following a bunch of nitpicky rules or cumbersome laws. It’s a matter of knowing and trusting God – a matter of faith.

And by the way, forgiveness is something that is absolutely necessary. Unless our sins are forgiven, we cannot be in our proper relationship with God. Under the old covenant, a sacrifice had to be made in order for forgiveness to be granted. But under the new covenant, the sacrifice is made for us. Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice, for the sins of the whole world. Let me repeat that: for the sins of the whole world. Not just the sins of his disciples; everybody’s sins.

The new covenant helps us to have a faith that looks forward, because the sacrifice has already been made. The offer of forgiveness is already on the table. All that is required of us is to accept the gift from God – the gift of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. Accept Christ into your heart, and God will be your God, and you will be a part of God’s people.

Jeremiah said, “The days are surely coming.” Jesus told the woman at the well, “The hour is coming, and is now here.” The new covenant that Jeremiah spoke about has arrived. God has made the new covenant, in the form of God’s only Son, Jesus Christ. No longer do we need to look back, at the old covenant. The new covenant gives us faith that looks forward. The new covenant gives us a God who is personally known and personally experienced. Why is this so important?

There’s a story about a survey that was done. Three people – a college professor who is a confirmed bachelor, a 9 year old boy, and a teenager who has just kissed his girlfriend for the very first time – these three people are asked if they believe in romantic love.

The college professor says, “Yes, I believe in romantic love. It is a phenomenon between two persons that leads to the propagation of the species.” This is evidence by way of scientific observation. We might compare this professor to the Pharisees, who knew the scriptures inside out.

The 9 year old boy says, “Yes, I believe in romantic love, because my sister is in love, and she acts all funny and weird.” This is evidence by way of relational observance. We could compare this boy to the people who witnessed Jesus’ miracles and heard Jesus speak.

The teenager who has just kissed his girlfriend says, “Do I believe in romantic love? Oh, boy, you bet I do!” This is evidence by way of experience – like the disciples on the day of Pentecost; Paul on the road to Damascus, John Wesley at the chapel on Aldersgate Street. The professor knew the chemical reactions of love; the 9 year old boy knew what love did to other people; but neither of them really knew love, because they had never felt it.

Faith looks forward. Jeremiah looked forward and saw a relationship with God that could be experienced, be felt. Jesus came to earth – God in the flesh, the God with skin on – so that we might experience, feel, first-hand the depths of God’s love for us.

Faith looks forward. Jeremiah looked forward and saw a time when all God’s children would look to the future with hope. Jesus told us that he would return for us, that he would be with us always, and that if we would only believe in him we would be able to live with him for all eternity.

Faith looks forward. Jeremiah looked forward, and saw hope. Jesus gives us that hope. Jeremiah looked forward, and saw a new covenant. Jesus came to earth, and delivered it.