The Devastation of Separation from God

Biblical Text: Lamentations 1:1-6 ,3:21-24

Rev. M .D. Rogers

Judah is in captivity and Jerusalem lay desolate and violated. The weeping prophet Jeremiah is surveying the landscape and has a lot to cry about.
The picture he paints in the first six verses is just a sampling of his pain; read on if you can bear it!

The ruined condition of Jerusalem turned Jeremiah's thoughts to the misery and suffering of the entire nation of Judah and all its citizens.

The temple in Zion (Jerusalem) were deserted. Worship of the One True and Living God had come to a halt.
· All the gates of Jerusalem were desolate.
· All the priests were mourning
· All the young women were grieving.
· All Judah and Jerusalem were in deep anguish, weeping bitterly.


The great nation of Judah had become the servants of her enemies and her enemies' gods.

I'm sure there were many who asked the question, "Why did God do this to us?" That's usually the first thing that comes out of our mouth when we suffer.

Seldom do we point our fingers in the right direction. For Judah, the finger should have been pointed at SELF. The people had sinned. They had turned away from God. They had separated themselves from their Creator, preferring instead to pander to the sin all around them. So God withdrew His hand of protection, and the nation of Judah was soon destroyed, its capital lay desolate, its' citizens were enslaved, not just by Babylon, but also by sin.
· All the splendor and glory of Jerusalem was lost.
· All the leaders had fled like cowards.
· All of King Zedekiah's royal court had turned chicken and run when the Babylonian army broke through the wall of Jerusalem.
· Judah found out that when you hit rock bottom, there are seldom any friends around to throw you a rope.
That's what happens when you find yourself being crushed by the devastation of separation from God. Your mind instinctively thinks back...back to a time when things were better...a time when you knew who you were and WHOSE you were...a time when you lived within the framework of fellowship with the Father.
A time when you put God first.
A time when you knew better than to disobey God.
A time when your life centered around the One who KEPT you centered.


But there is hope. There is hope still for Israel, and there is hope for all mankind. Jesus is that hope.
He is the hope of the world;
He is the head of the church;
He is peace for your mind,
Joy for your heart,
And rest for the weary.

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”