25 Hope is (Lamentations 3:19-26)

Sermon Outline

1. Introduction
   1. So why do people plan, build and risk for false hopes that can’t provide?
      1. we don’t believe that God is enough
      2. Jeremiah was struggling with this very thing until Lam 3:24
   2. False Hope is rooted in the idea that our circumstances will improve
2. Lamentations
   1. Summary –
      1. The book was written in the middle of Israel’s greatest tragedy
      2. It is a dark hour full of dark cries.(Lam 1:1-2, 3:1, 14, 17-18)
   2. Remember my affliction (Lam 3:19-20, 3:15, Amos 5:7, 6:12)
   3. How to deal with the hardships and struggles of life?
      1. First, admit it, cry it out, don’t sugar coat it
      2. Second, focus on God’s character (Heb 12:1-2, Lam 3:21-22)
   4. Hope is also translated as waiting, enduring, longing for in the OT –
      1. Hope means that we persevere because we know who God is
      2. Hope gives us the expectation that we are growing in the love of God.
      3. Hope is waiting for everything the Son of God has to give
      4. Our hope is set on the world to come and the one who is making the world new. (Rom 12:12, Lam 3:25)