God’s people had been taken captive into Babylon. Psalms 137:1-3 tells how they wept when they remembered Zion. It says, “We hung our harps upon the willows in the midst of it. For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song… How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?” While they were in Babylon, God sent Ezekiel to speak to His people.
Ezekiel’s name means, “God strengthens.” God began giving Ezekiel visions and dreams of His plans to come to the aid of His people. Ezekiel was declaring God’s promise to exiles on the hostile streets of Babylon. The exiles were hundreds of miles away from the Promised Land and the Temple. Although they were captive in a foreign land, God was giving them a message of hope and comfort. Ezekiel was given visions of the way things will be when the Lord God establishes His kingdom on earth. He saw the kingdom of Christ and the glory of the Temple of God. When He saw the Holy City he said, “Jehovah—Shammah.”
Ezekiel 48:35 NKJV All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE.
The words “The Lord is there” is the interpretation of Jehovah Shammah.
Only once in the Bible is God called Jehovah—Shammah.
- When we watch what is happening in our world, is there any hope?
- When you see the rockets and destruction in Israel and Palestine, is there any hope?
- When you see thousands of people dying in India, is there any hope?
- When you look at the cancer and heart centers, is there any hope?
- When you look at the divorce courts, is there any hope?
- When you see the immorality and cancel culture in our nation, is there any hope?
- When you hear about the financial status of our nation and the world, is there any hope?
Is there any hope?
- Is there any hope when the doctor gives the results of our tests?
- Is there any hope at the bedside a gravely ill loved one?
- Is there any hope when that child is missing.
- Is there any hope when our child is in trouble or sick?
- Is there any hope when counseling has failed?
We need hope in difficult times! Is there any hope? How can God intervene when situations are bad?
You need to know that God knows how to intervene when we face our deepest needs. God can give you hope when it appears that all hope is gone. God invites us to look to Him for hope.
Romans 15:13 NKJV Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
You need to know that the God of all hope is a very present help in the time of trouble.
David said that we can find hope in God’s name!
Psalms 52:9 NIV “In your name I will hope, for your name is good.”
I want to remind you of the names of God and what God is able to do. When you know Who He is, you will have hope.
In Genesis 22 – God proved to Abraham that He is “Jehovah Jireh,” the God who meets all our needs. Abraham told his son Isaac, Jehovah Jireh — “The LORD Will Provide, Genesis 22:14.
God uses other names to reveal how He intervenes in our lives.
In Ezekiel 48:35, God showed His people that He is “Jehovah Shammah,” the God who is always there.
God is always there. He was present in your past and He is with you today. Not only is He present with you today, He will be there in your future. He will be there in good times and in bad times. Even when you feel He has abandoned you — God is always there for you!
This means that there is hope!
Since God is “Jehovah Shammah”…always there, we have at least three reasons for hope.
First, We have the hope we need, because…His presence is watching over us.
We can look to God for the hope we need because His presence is watching over us. The older I grow, the more I know that my life is not out of control…but beyond my control. No matter how well I plan for the future, I don’t know what is going to happen. I don’t know who is going to be with me.
Isaiah 41:10 NCV God says: “So don’t worry, because I am with you. Don’t be afraid, because I am your God. I will make you strong and will help you; I will support you with my right hand that saves you.”
That is good news!
No matter what happens in our lives, we never have to go through it alone. God is always there.
- People may leave us.
- Friends and family may move away.
- People we love may die or leave us.
- People we have depended on may become ill.
- They may stop being what they used to be.
How do you feel when people leave you?
- Do you feel forsaken or abandoned?
- Do you feel lonely?
- Do you feel hurt?
Being and feeling abandoned is a major cause of hopelessness. Hopelessness brings uncertainty.
Have you ever considered “what if?”
- What if my parents die?
- What if my spouse leaves me to live alone?
- What if my kids are not there when I am old?
- What if life is not fair?
- What if my health fails?
There is no “what if” with “Jehovah Shammah”!
He will always be there for you. He is there to watch over you. He is a very present help in your time of need.
Psalm 32:8 NLT The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.”
Pay close attention to those two words: guide and advise. We don’t know what is going to happen. We cannot control what may happen. We do the best we can and still don’t know what to expect. But God does…and God can. God knows and controls the future. He is available to show us the way we should take. God has made this wonderful promise for you. What He said in His word is faithful and true.
Romans 15:4 NLT Everything was “written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us” and “give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises.”
When you look into the Word of God, He will show you what you need to know. He will tell you where your life is going. You will find the hope you need. He will direct you into paths of peace and safety. Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that we might have hope.
Second, we find the hope we need in God, because His purpose is working in me.
In Jehovah Shammah – the God who is there – we can find the hope we need. We have hope not only because His presence is watching over us, but also because His purpose is working in us.
You have heard it said, “Bad things happen to good people. We want to know why. Why do bad things happen to good people? If we could make some sense out of bad situations, we could have hope. When life seems out of control, we feel rather hopeless.
God tells us that whatever happens in our lives, even if it is good, bad, or ugly, He is there and at work. He is working out His purpose for our lives.
Romans 8:28 NIV84And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.
You have heard this promise many times. Have you grasped its significance for your life? Try to understand what it means. God does not say, “Everything will work out the way you want it to.” He does not say, “All things have a happy ending.”
Many of you have had unhappy endings. You didn’t get straight A’s. You were not captain of the team. Your marriage was not happily ever after. All patients don’t get well.
Even when all things are not good, God has made a promise to intervene in our lives.You need to know that God has a plan. He has a plan for the universe and He has a plan for you.
God says that we can “know that He causes all things to work together for good.”
- What does “all things” include?
- Does it include sickness and death?
- Does it include abandonment and divorce?
- Does it include strange or fatal accidents?
- Does it include the bad decisions and mistakes we made?
The answer is “Yes”!
God does not say, “all things are good” and He does not tell us that He “causes all things.” God is not the cause of sinful activities. He does not cause rape and murder, war and fighting. He does not cause poverty and prejudice. People are responsible for those evils.
God does say that He “causes all things to work together for good for those who love Him.”God is able to make all things work together for good.
Do any of you know how to make a cake from scratch? When you bake a cake, you use all kinds of ingredients. You take some sugar, salt, baking power, dark chocolate, powdered chocolate, eggs, and vegetable shortening. Have you ever tried to eat flour…a raw egg…vegetable shortening? Some things, like sugar, are sweet. Most, however, do not taste very good. But blend them together…add a little heat, and you have a cake!
What happens in most of our lives is often difficult to swallow. When God intervenes in our lives, He causes all things to work together for good. He can make the most bitter experience work together for good.
This is quite a promise, isn’t it? But it’s not for everybody. God says He “causes all things to work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” [Romans 8:28]
If God is not the love of your life… you cannot hold to this promise. If you are not living according to His plan and purpose, you have no guarantee that all things will work for good in your life. This works for those who love God. This works for those who seek to follow God’s grand plan for their lives.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV84 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
- How do we know that God can deliver?
- How do we know that He can keep this promise?
- Do you know anyone that God has changed?
- Have you seen God turn something very bad into something very good?
If you want proof that God can turn the bad around for good, look at the cross of Christ. On the cross, God turned the punishment that Jesus suffered for sin into pardon for sinners. On the cross, God transformed the death of His one Son Jesus into life for all His children. Therefore, we can have hope. This is why we can know that God causes all things to work together for good.
Third, we find the hope we need in God, because He has prepared a place for us.
We can have hope because Jehovah—Shammah – the God who is always there – has a place waiting for us.
No matter how good or bad life gets, this world is not our destiny. This life is only a journey toward our final destination. Our hope and future is not in this world.
1 Corinthians 15:19 NLT And if we have hope in Christ only for this life, we are the most miserable people in the world.
We don’t have to be the most miserable and sad people in the world. God has a special place waiting for us.
John 14:1–2 NIV84 Jesus said: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”
The Father’s house is not some place in this world. Jesus has gone into the presence of the Father in heaven to prepare a place for you. Heaven is like no other place.
In Revelation 21:4, God says: “He will wipe away all tears from (our) eyes, and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, nor pain. All of that has gone forever.”
Because there is a place called heaven, Peter said we have a “lively hope” [1 Peter 1:3].
Our hope is based on what Jesus did.He arose out of the grave because death could not hold him. Because He lives, we have this hope. This is a hope that can get us through life and death. Even death cannot destroy this hope.
I have attended all kind of funerals. I have seen despair in people’s eyes and have heard cries of people who have no hope. They did not know the God who prepares a place for His people. There is a major difference in people who have hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. We know there is a place waiting for us there.
Many years ago the whole world came crashing down around a man named Jeremiah.He described his feelings in Lamentations. As he sat in the middle of the ashes of his life, he looked to the Lord and wrote these words:
Lamentations 3:21-23 “I have hope when I think of this: the Lord’s love never ends; His mercies never stop. They are new every morning.”
There is still hope. He is “Jehovah Shammah”…the God who is always there.
His love never ends and His mercies never stop. Every day He is still with you. He is still working things out for you. He is preparing a place for you.
