Jeremiah 9 - 22

Hi everyone,

It's been a little while since I posted, but I am reading Jeremiah! And I am challenged by this book. Like I posted last time, I have read the book before, but I am seeing the verses with a new refreshment and I am enjoying being challenged.

What I am most gaining from reading Jeremiah is his heart for a lost and broken nation. These people completely disregard what he has to tell them from God, and yet, he still cries out for them to return to God and be healed. He despises their rebellion, but he does not want their destruction. He sincerely loves these people though they reject him.

It's got me thinking - how do I love the people I'm around? In my city? In my neighborhood?

Do I love like this?

Truthfully, I don't. I lament where our nation is going and I hate what so many young people have to go through. But I hate it from a distance.

Jeremiah didn't do this. He was right in the heart of the action and spoke truth. He had an audience that rejected him, but he still stepped out in obedience. And that's what God asked of him. Am I willing to do this?

In these chapters, there have been a few passages that I want to point out. The first is Jeremiah 10:23 - 25. This is Jeremiah's prayer and I love it. It says:

"I know, O Lord, that a man's life is not his own;
it is not for a man to direct his steps.
Correct me, Lord, but only with justice -
not in your anger,
lest you reduce me to nothing.
Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you,
on the people who do not call on your name.
For they have devoured Jacob;
they have devoured him completely and destroyed his homeland."

What I love about this prayer is Jeremiah's humility and acknowledgment that the whole world revolves around the sovereignty of God. It is His plan that is being accomplished in all our lives and it is His ways that will come to fruition. We have a spot in that, but ultimately, He lets succeed what He wants. Jeremiah surely praises the sovereignty of God in all situations.

Do we look at God the way Jeremiah does? When the world around us is going down the toilet, do we believe that God's sovereign hand is upholding His children? I do. Even as I think of the United States right now, I firmly believe that we are not going through anything that God has not ordained for us. He has challenged us to seek Him and be obedient to Him. In this, He promises blessing. But it's for full obedience - not half-hearted obedience.

This is a call to Christians in America. Have you been fully obedient to God? Have you submitted to His will and plans for your life, or have you only given Him a piece? If we've only been going about giving Him a piece, then we rightly deserve what we're getting. We're not fully obeying God. We're making our own way and fitting God to our idea of what's supposed to happen. In this, we're really not letting God be our God, but rather, we're making ourselves God and calling on God to acquiesce to us. How shameful of us! Christian America - REPENT! REPENT! REPENT! We are not God - God is God! He is sovereign, we are not! He is Holy and His plans are always righteous and good. Not ours.

And this brings me to the second section of Jeremiah I wanted to bring about. Chapters 18 and 19 are some of my favorite in the whole book; chapter 18 possibly being one of my favorite in the whole Bible because of how greatly it challenges what I've thought about God and how I view others. In chapter 18, God tells Jeremiah to go to the potter's house and look at the pots. When Jeremiah gets there, he sees the potter reshaping a pot because it didn't turn out just the way he wanted. The potter creates the pot to his liking, not the pot's.

This chapter tells of how God is sovereign. He does what pleases him. Now, some of us might look at these verses and think of how wrathful God is. It's true, God's wrathful character against sin is being displayed. But consider this point - if God hadn't reshaped Israel, we wouldn't be allowed to know God. If He hadn't opened up a way for Jesus to be for more than just the nation of Israel, we Gentiles would not know salvation. In His reshaping, we've been brought the opportunity to know Jesus and have a relationship with God.

God has created every person for noble purposes and for destruction. We never know who is created for what purposes, but isn't that a scary thing to think of? When I examine these verses, I see that there are possibly people around me that God has created to be separated from Him. That's very sad, but it's also His plan and purpose. Though He yearns for every person to come to salvation, He is also omnipotent to see how sin has clouded and dissuaded these persons. We must not forget that not everyone is saved. This should move us to care about them knowing the Gospel of Jesus! We should be sharing and being obedient in sharing truth. God longs for our obedience! Let's give it to Him!

Lastly, I just want to mention one passage. Being obedient to God is not easy. But we have to continue to push after it. And God will work. His Holy Spirit will burn within us! Jeremiah writes in chapter 20:8 - 9:

"Whenever I speak out, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction.
So the world of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long.
But if I say, 'I will not mention him
or speak any more in his name,'
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot."

God will not let us go! If we pursue after Him and fully surrender in obedience, He will not let us go down to eternal destruction. He will uphold us and defend us!

If you're pressing into Him, but having a hard time understanding, DON'T GIVE UP! DON'T GIVE UP! Strength will rise as you wait for Him! And let these words that Jeremiah declares about our God flood your soul with praise:

"But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior;
so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;
their dishonor will never be forgotten.
O Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous
and probe the heart and mind,
let me see your vengeance upon them
for to you I have committed my cause.

Sing to the Lord!
Give praise to the Lord!
He rescues the life of the needy
from the hands of the wicked." (Jeremiah 21:11-13)

God is fighting for you! He love you and yearns for you to lovingly follow after Him! Draw near to Him and let Him work mightily!

Love you all,

Brandon