Before and After

Lamentations 4:1-12
November 8, 2020
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

Before-and-after pictures can be very fun and remarkable. There are before-and-after pictures of people who get fit and see dramatic transformation in their bodies. There are before-and-after pictures of home remodeling projects that give old kitchens and dull bathrooms a fresh new look. And there are before-and-after pictures of lifelong marriages - husbands and wives who grow old together but still take the same pictures in the same locations with the same smiles as when they first began.

But there are other before-and-after pictures that can be very sad and heartbreaking. There are before-and-after pictures of cities and landscapes that see widespread destruction and catastrophic loss from natural disasters. There are before-and-after pictures of people and places that have been ruined and changed forever by war. And there are before-and-after pictures of people who suffer the consequences for the poor choices that they made and the wrong things that they did in their lives.

These kinds of pictures do something simple but profound. They show change. They tell a story. And they make us think. Today’s passage is a before-and-after picture of the fall and exile of Jerusalem. And today the Lord is doing something simple but profound. He wants you to see how much has changed. He wants you to know the story behind all of it. And he wants you to think about who you are, where you are at, and what you are doing in your life right now.

First, see how much has changed in the fall and exile of Jerusalem.

Food and water were gone. In the aftermath, those who once feasted on delicacies perished in the streets. Those who were brought up in purple, those who were foodies, embraced ash heaps like dumpster-divers. Children begged for food. And nursing infants were so dehydrated that their saliva thickened, their mouths became dry, and their tongues stuck against the roofs of their mouths. Starvation was a slow and terrible way to die. Happier were the victims of the sword than the victims of hunger, who wasted away, pierced by lack of the fruits of the field. Food and water were gone.

Beauty and radiance were also gone. In the aftermath, those who were purer than snow and whiter than milk had faces that were blacker than soot and unrecognizable in the streets. Those who had complexions that were flush and glowing and rosy like red-colored coral gemstones, and those who had bodies that were beautiful in form like well-shaped and highly-durable sapphire gemstones, had skin that was shriveled on their bones and dry as wood. You would have been unable to unsee the ugliness. Beauty and radiance were also gone.

But perhaps most important of all, righteousness and honor were also gone. In the aftermath, people were brutal, cruel, and dark. The children begged for food, but no one gave them anything. They were less than human and more like animal - like wild ostriches who were known for abandoning their eggs and attacking their children without any care (Job 39:13-17). They were worse than even the jackals - the wild and unclean dogs of ruin and desolation. And perhaps worst of all, women who were once compassionate did the unthinkable. They boiled their own children for food. How can they do such a thing? Those who were worth their weight in fine gold were regarded as earthen pots that were ordinary and of no value or esteem. Righteousness and honor were also gone.

Second, know the story behind all of it.

The opening line of poetry in today’s passage masterfully tell the grand story in the fewest of words. How the gold has grown dim. Gold does not lose its shine and grow dim on its own. As the most noble of the noble metals in the periodic table of elements, gold is the least reactive metal towards atoms or molecules at the interface with a gas or a liquid. In other words, gold doesn’t change on its own. So then how did the gold in Lamentations 4 lose its shine and grow dim? It lost its shine and grew dim because whatever light that was hitting it and reflecting off of it was now gone.

And so with just that, you have the entire story of the fall and exile of Jerusalem. The gold in Lamentations 4 was the gold that made up the temple. The temple was the place where the Lord dwelled with his people of old. The Lord’s dwelling place was illumined by a lampstand that gave light to all the gold around it. The gold grew dim because the Lord gave full vent to his wrath; he poured out his hot anger, and he kindled a fire in Zion that consumed its foundations. In other words, the temple was gone. The light of the lampstand was gone. The Lord disciplined his people of old. It was a reminder of the fall and exile of Adam. It was a teaching moment about sin. It was a foreshadowing of the final judgment and the ultimate punishment of hell. It was a wakeup call for the saints of old to take more seriously the covenant of grace and their covenant relationship with the Lord. And so the gold grew dim.

Dear Highland, I hope you see how much has changed. And I hope you know the story behind it. But now, I ask you to think about who you are, where you are at, and what you are doing in your life right now.

Many centuries before the fall and exile of Jerusalem, there was another city that was destroyed by the Lord. That city was Sodom. Because the outcry against Sodom was great and because their sin was very grave, the Lord destroyed the city by raining down sulfur and fire out of heaven. The smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.

The narrator of Lamentations bemoaned the thought that the fall and exile of Jerusalem was greater than the punishment of Sodom. And just like the saints of old, we deserve more than the punishment of Sodom for our sins.

Dear Highland, we deserve everything to grow dim. We deserve justice for having done things that are unthinkable. We deserve our skin to be shriveled on our bones and dry as wood and then set on fire in hell. We deserve the slowest and most terrible way to die.

But thanks be to God that there is a before-and-after picture for us. A before-and-after picture for those who repent of their sins and believe in Jesus. The Lord has said to you these wonderful and glorious words: “Do not fear!” The Lord has redeemed you with his blood. The Lord has graciously invited you to return to him. The Lord endured all of his humiliation in order to save you. The Lord suffered for you. The Lord suffered for you with steadfast love. The Lord kept his promise of salvation and his covenant of grace. The Lord is the prophet, priest, and king that you need. The Lord who ought to give judgment on you has instead taken away judgment from you. The Lord provided salvation. And his salvation came with lamentation.

Dear Highland, see how much has changed because of the salvation of your Lord Jesus Christ.

Righteousness and honor were once gone. But much has changed. In Christ, you have been covered and credited with the righteousness of Christ. There is now no more condemnation for all the unthinkable things that you have done. You are a new creation. You are now no longer like jackals or ostriches. You will be exalted. You are now a child of God, an heir of God and a fellow heir with Christ, and you will be glorified with the Lord. This is our before-and-after picture in the Lord.

Beauty and radiance were also once gone. But much has changed. In Christ, the church is now the beautiful bride of the bridegroom. We are now being sanctified and cleansed, and we will be presented in splendor without spot or wrinkle or blemish. The church will be the New Jerusalem described in the book of Revelation. We will be a city with infinite radiance. You will be recognizable in the streets. You will be brought up in perfect purple. This is our before-and-after picture in the Lord.

Finally, food and water were once gone. But much has changed. In Christ, you have the spiritual food and drink of his body and blood. And when the Lord returns with his kingdom in the new heavens and new earth, you will have a seat at his royal banqueting table. You will eat the choicest of delicacies and you will drink from the best fruits of the field. It will be a feast. This is our before-and-after picture in the Lord.

Much has changed.

Dear Highland, this is the only story that really matters. What is the story that you are trying to show and tell? For some right now, they just want to get fit and see dramatic transformation in their bodies. For others right now, they are just looking forward to giving an old kitchen or a dull bathroom a fresh new look. And for many right now, they are just looking forward to having and enjoying lifelong marriages. Everyone has a bunch of their own before-and-after pictures.

But our story is the best story. We are the temple of God. We have a relationship with him. The light and the presence of the Lord, his steadfast love that comes with his covenant of grace, will always hit us and always reflect off of us. And so the gold will never ever again grow dim. The Lord is our God. We are his people. There is nothing better than this. This is our story.

Dear Highland, think about who you are, where you are at, and what you are doing in your life right now. As you grow in love for Jesus and obedience to him, as you take off the old and put on the new, take sin more and more seriously. There is great misery and cost that comes with sin. Consider this a wake up call. Do not underestimate sin in your life. Compassionate women ate their children. Remember the big picture. Scoffers will come in the last days and they will say, “Where is the promise of his coming?” But the Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise. The day of the Lord will come. Are you waiting and preparing for that day? Do not be complacent in your life and just be happy taking pictures of your own story. Everyone has a bunch of their own before-and-after pictures. But all of our before-and-after pictures will end. Everyone will have an ultimate and final picture with nothing after it. What will be your last picture? What will your final picture look like?

Soli Deo Gloria