Sunday Service - 8 May 1956

The prophet Jeremiah prophesied in Jerusalem immediately before the siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. There is a stirring incident in his life when he was under arrest as a fifth columnist during the siege of Jerusalem. From the time the news about the invasion of the country by the Babylonians reached Jerusalem, Jeremiah’s message to his own people of Judea was that the Babylonians were sure to capture the city and take the people as captives to Babylon. For about 70 years they would have to live in Babylon as captives; but God was sure to redeem them from captivity and bring them back to the promised land. Immediately there was no hope for the Jews; they were sure to be defeated whatever they did. But God had not deserted them. He would bring them back to their native country. When the Kingdom of Judah was preparing to meet the invading army, this message from the prophet was not welcome at all. So he was put in prison by the government as a possible ally of the enemy.

While Jeremiah was in prison a cousin of his, Hananiah, came to him with an offer to sell his ancestral property in Anathoth. Anathoth was a village, four miles from Jerusalem, occupied solely by the priests and the Levites. According to the Mosaic Law the lands occupied by the Levites could not be sold to anyone outside the Levitical household. Any Levite wanting to sell a portion of his lands must sell it only to another Levite. Accordingly Hananiah appealed to his cousin Jeremiah, as the nearest heir of the ecclesiastical patrimony, to buy the land. It was a strange proposal because the whole land was soon passing into the hands of the enemy, and the people were going to be taken as captives to Babylon. Who would part with money at such a time to buy property? And what is land worth at such a time? But Jeremiah did not hesitate to accept the offer. Not only did he buy the land, but he paid the full price for it. He could easily have bargained and got the land very cheap. But Jeremiah paid the full price and effected the transfer by a proper notarial deed.

It must have looked foolish to the onlookers, but Jeremiah had a purpose in doing this. God had said to him over and over again that though the Israelites must go and remain as captives in Babylon for 70 years, eventually he would bring them back to that land and restore them to old privileges. Jeremiah had preached that doctrine up and down the land for years, but the people had not believed him. Now when this offer came he decided to accept it to show the people how much he believed in what he preached. He paid full price for the land and got it transferred to him, because he was sure that ultimately the Israelites would come to their own land and he or his heirs would claim the property. He was so sure of God’s promises about the return of Israel to their own country that he was prepared to pay a good price and register property in his name. By this act he made it plain that while he surrendered hope for the immediate future, he was confident that the impending disaster would not be final, and that the life of the nation in town and country would be renewed.

There are times when men find themselves driven like the prophet to admit that the immediate prospect is dark indeed. Let me give you some examples. Again and again attempts are made to bring together the divided nations of the world, but with what success? Don’t we often feel that the gulf between the East and West is so great that it can never be bridged. Does there seem to be any prospect of Washington and Moscow to understand each other. Coming nearer to our own country, the racial barriers that have disrupted our national life appear to be more and more hard to break through. The Tamils everywhere seem to be in a state of despair, and the immediate prospect for them, particularly for the Christians appears to be gloomy. The questions to which all of us should give serious consideration at this time is this: What should be the attitude of those who have faith in God in the face of such situations? The future well being of our people will be determined to a great extent by the correct attitude that we have in this matter. If we have the correct attitude we can exert considerable influence on the country through our pupils. As men who have faith in God, what should our attitude be in the present situation?

Firstly, I would say that while we accept the situation as it is, we refuse to believe that all is lost. Though the present is dark and gloomy, the future holds possibilities beyond those that can be present in the present. As men who have faith in God, we leave the future in his hands. We believe that God is actively present in the world and is working his purposes out. Though for a time the forces of evil may appear to triumph, ultimately God will triumph. A man who has faith in God is not without hope. Hope commits its cause to God confident that the forces at his disposal will in the end prevail, though for a time they may appear to be ineffective. A man who has faith in God never loses hope however dark the present may be. Secondly, a man who has this hope does not expect that such a victory will come about of itself without any effort on his part. He knows that his own fidelity is one of the means God employs to ensure that the distant future shall bring about what the immediate future denies. A man who has this hope will naturally dedicate himself to work on the side of God to bring about the victory. His hope is not mere wishful thinking, because it commits him to action in the present.

To summarise what I have just been saying: a man who has faith in God never loses hope however dark the present may be, and this hope commits him to action in the present.

One can give instances from history to show that such hope is reasonable. Consider for example the people from whom Jeremiah sprang – the Jewish nation. It was in AD 70 that the Jewish nation was utterly destroyed by the Roman army and the Jews lost all their liberties and were scattered all over the world. After 2000 years God has enabled them to come back to their native land and to set themselves up as a nation. What is it that has helped them to set themselves up as a nation again? It was their hope that sustained the people through persecution and calamity and exile. The distant future did in the end yield them that for which they worked and prayed.

The News Bulletin from the Study Department of the NCC has given a correct estimate of the political situation in our country. You might have read extracts of it in the daily papers. There are today two groups of people in the island. One is a small middle class group of people whose way of life and thought have largely been determined by western culture. There are in the group a large number of Buddhists, Hindus and Christians. In fact most of the Christians belong to this group. Then we have a larger group of Swabasha [national languages] speaking peasants and labourers outnumbering the first group in the proportion of 13 to 1. They are almost entirely Buddhists and Hindus. Socially there is a big gulf between the two groups. No doubt those in the first group are the most influential and the government of the country has been in their hands. What has happened now is that the power has passed onto the second group – the Swabasha speaking peasants. The Sinhalese being the majority, the power remains now entirely with the Sinhalese peasants. We must accept the situation remembering that the change that has taken place in Ceylon is not peculiar to the island. Similar changes have been taking place in almost every country in South East Asia.

Such changes are inevitable if we are working towards democracy. For a time power has to remain with those who will not know how to use power. A great deal of levelling up has must take place and this deep division in the social life of the nation must disappear. We must learn the art of self government through a long and possibly painful process as other nations have learnt.

Jeremiah was certain that though the immediate future was dark for his people, ultimately they would return to their country as a free people. It is that hope that should be ours and should carry us through these difficult days. This hope will stir us up to greater activity. The present situation challenges us to a higher standard of work and conduct. By our industry and integrity, by our honest labour and clean living we must show our excellence as a people. These are, no doubt, critical days for the Church. If the Christian faith means anything to us we may be called upon to pay the price for it.

We are certainly entering into a new world of experience. It calls for the best in us. Let us never lose hope and get into despair. The future is certainly brighter than what the present events indicate. But we must work hard and cooperate with God. Let us therefore dedicate ourselves afresh as we begin another term’s work.