Is it just me, or has the world gone crazy? We don’t have to go crazy with the world, but the pain of others can be contagious. When we see someone else hurt, we may hurt with them, feeling their pain in ourselves. This moves beyond sympathy to empathy. Do you ever feel the pain of others?
Baruch must have felt Jeremiah’s pain. Have you ever read the book of Baruch? Baruch does have a book named after him, but we don’t know if it came from him, so it is not in our Bible. It does express the pain of Baruch over the fall of Judah. As the fall of Jerusalem drew near, Baruch must have said something like, “I can’t take this anymore. The Lord has added sorrow to my pain. I am worn out with groaning and find no rest.” This sounds like a really difficult time for Baruch.
Jeremiah answered his friend on behalf of the Lord. “God is uprooting and tearing down the things he built. Is this a time to seek great things for yourself?” Good question! Serving the Lord does not give us an exemption from pain. So what does God give us? Life. God told Baruch: the good news is you are going to live.
Life, itself, is good news. We awakened this morning, still alive with opportunities in front of us. We may weep over the pain of others, but ultimately, we give thanks for God’s good gift of life. The world may go crazy, but God will not. Because God does not go crazy with the world, we do not have to go crazy.
