Jeremiah and His Message

Transcript

GR 461
4/15/1984
Jeremiah and His Message
Jeremiah 11:1-23
Gil Rugh

The historical setting of the Book of Jeremiah is the anticipation of the Babylonian Captivity. Jeremiah’s message and ministry takes place in the shadow of that captivity as he addresses the Southern Kingdom, often called Judah, and warns them of coming judgment. The Northern Kingdom, the ten tribes of the north, have already been carried away into captivity in 722 B.C. by the Assyrians. Jeremiah’s ministry is anticipating the Babylonian Captivity, which took place in 586 B.C. By the time we get to the end of the book, the captivity will have begun. Jeremiah is warning the nation of the coming judgment and is exhorting them to turn back to God.

While Jeremiah prophesies, the people of Israel are in trouble. The material of his prophecy is very pertinent even to what is going on today for the nation Israel. There are similarities in what God prophesied for Israel as He applied the pressure and disciplined them in those days with what awaits the nation Israel today for their unfaithfulness to Him. The Bible tells us that in what we know as the Tribulation, God is going to again discipline the nation. You ought to be reading with interest what is going on in Israel today as you view significant changes taking place in the attitude of the nation.

During the Tribulation God is going to judge Israel by outside powers bringing persecution to the nation. During the last half of the Tribulation, Russia and the western powers under the leadership of the anti-Christ will torment Israel, attempting to annihilate her. But this is part of God’s refining program to drive Israel to its knees and ultimately to acknowledge and submit to Jesus Christ as the Savior and the Messiah. The Book of Revelation tells us that God will raise up two prophets during the Tribulation who will prophesy and preach to the nation Israel. They will receive no better acceptance than Jeremiah received in his day. Jeremiah’s purpose was to announce to the nation that because of unfaithfulness God was going to judge them.

Chapters 11 through 20 of the Book of Jeremiah are very personal, almost autobiographical in nature. Jeremiah is revealing something of himself in these chapters. This section is sometimes called the confessions of Jeremiah because of the glimpses and insights into his own personal feelings as he ministers to people who are unresponsive to the Word of God. Since the people are closed to what God desires of them, Jeremiah has to announce judgment upon them, but they will not listen to him. Jeremiah becomes discouraged and frustrated more than any of the other prophets. These chapters are important insights into the life of Jeremiah.

Chapter 11 opens with a pointed reminder that God is the One who is speaking: “The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord” (Jeremiah 11:1). Jeremiah was the spokesman, but the message was from God. Peter tells us in the New Testament that these prophets, holy men of old, “moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God” (2 Peter 1:21). So Jeremiah’s message was not his message, it was God’s message to Jeremiah to the people. The response of the people to Jeremiah was really the response of the people to God. They did not like what Jeremiah was saying, and he was saying what God had told him to say. So the attitude of the people toward Jeremiah the prophet was a reflection of their attitude toward God and of the deteriorated spiritual condition of the nation.

God instructs Jeremiah in verse 2, “Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.” Note the order of God’s instructions: hear, or listen, and speak. First, Jeremiah was to listen to what God said. Then he was to speak what God said to the people. That order is consistent throughout God’s Word. We could also look at passages in the New Testament where the emphasis is on hearing the message and then believing it. The hearing that is described here is a submissive hearing, a responsive hearing, an obedient hearing. Then after he had heard, Jeremiah was to proclaim the Word of God to the people. The message was from God, and Jeremiah was to proclaim it to the people of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem in particular.

Jeremiah was to hear the word of covenant, referring to the Mosaic Covenant that had been lost and rediscovered in the days of Josiah. During Josiah’s reign Israel experienced a mini-revival. We referred to it in our last study as we saw how the Word of God had been lost and then rediscovered. Most of the copies of God’s Word had been destroyed, perhaps under Manasseh, the godless king. The people of Israel had lost contact with the Word of God until they found a copy of it as they were renovating the temple. Now they were being called back to that covenant. Jeremiah was to listen to the covenant, to familiarize himself with it again, and then proclaim its provisions and truths to the people. He was also to inform them of the consequences of failing to obey. That was the unpleasant task Jeremiah had been given by God.

The message Jeremiah was to give to the people is recorded in verses 3 through 5: “‘And say to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Cursed is the man who does not heed the words of this covenant which I commanded your forefathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, “Listen to My voice, and do according to all which I command you; so you shall be My people, and I will be your God,” in order to confirm the oath which I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day.’”’ Then I answered and said, ‘Amen, O Lord.’”

Jeremiah’s message was a call to the covenant and a call to faithfulness. He called on the people to heed the covenant. If they did not, the people would be under a curse. The message in its simplicity was either obey or be punished. God was calling Israel back to the agreement they had with Him. The basic command of the covenant was obedience. This is what God required of His people. God gave them His Word and told them to submit themselves to it.

Those instructions seem simple enough, but we know the pattern of the nation Israel. The Northern Kingdom was nonexistent when Jeremiah prophesied, because they had refused to submit themselves to the covenant God had established. The Southern Kingdom was on the brink of going into captivity because they had refused to submit themselves to the Word of God.

Israel even today is destined for great tragedy, a time of suffering which Matthew 24 describes. If Jesus Christ did not eventually intervene, there would not be a person alive on the face of the earth. The program is geared for the annihilation of Israel in particular. Lawlessness will begin to cause the world to come apart at the seams all because the people will refuse to submit to the Word of God.

This message is nothing new. God has been telling Israel this ever since the days of the covenant through Moses around 1500 years before Christ. Almost a thousand years after the covenant was given, Jeremiah was reiterating the fact that this is God’s Word and the people must obey it. Israel was still having problems with that. It seems so simple, yet it is so difficult. This is the same problem we have today as God calls us to obey His Word. It seems so simple, yet we have such problems obeying it.

God gave the covenant at Sinai in Exodus 19:5: “Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine.” The emphasis is “obey My voice and keep My covenant.” If the people would do that, God said they would be a special possession to Him. At that point the covenant was established between God and Israel. God promised to bless the people if they would submit to His Word and honor Him through obedience. We have lost sight of the fact that the prime factor in the Mosaic Covenant was obedience.

Samuel is addressing Saul concerning his disobedience in 1 Samuel 15:22: “Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.” What God demanded above all else in this covenant was obedience. That was more important than the sacrifices. In Jeremiah’s day the people were carrying on a sacrificial system, but were not being obedient to the Word. The religious activity continued, but obedience and submission to the Word of God had stopped long ago.

The principle has not changed a bit down to today. People continue in their religious activity. Multitudes of millions of people observe holidays like Christmas and Easter and are very religious in their conduct, but they are disobedient to the Word of God. Obedience is what God demands above all else. You must understand that God promised something for obedience—blessing. He also promised something for disobedience—a curse. God is always true to His Word.

In the Book of Deuteronomy, the Law is reiterated for Israel. Deuteronomy means the second law. God tells the people in Deuteronomy 11:26-28: “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today; and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, by following other gods which you have not known.” The instructions are very simple: obedience brings blessing, and disobedience brings a curse.

Deuteronomy 27:26 says, “‘Cursed is he who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’” Then notice God’s discussion in the next chapter: “But it shall come about, if you will not obey the Lord your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you” (Deuteronomy 28:15). If you read the remainder of this chapter, you will see that God repeats the curses He will bring on Israel for disobedience.

Israel is not in danger of judgment because of ignorance. They are in danger of judgment because they have refused to believe and submit to the Word of God. That is what God is talking about in Jeremiah 11. He said, “Cursed is the man who does not heed the words of this covenant” (v. 3). He is referring to the words that were given when God brought Israel out of Egypt under Moses. Egypt is called “the iron furnace,” an expression used to describe Egypt in Deuteronomy 4:20. It was referred to as the iron furnace because it was the testing place for Israel. The people of Israel were in the furnace of trial when they were in Egypt, and God brought them out of that refinery to a land flowing with milk and honey, a prosperous and fertile land. This was for their enjoyment, but it was dependent upon obedience.

God’s instructions to Jeremiah continue in Jeremiah 11:6: “And the Lord said to me, ‘Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying, “Hear the words of this covenant and do them,”’” Notice the importance of hearing and doing. That reminds us of James’ emphasis in his book that we are not to be merely hearers of the Word but doers of it. The people of Jeremiah’s day heard the Word because Jeremiah proclaimed it, but they refused to do it.

The warning in God’s Word against disobedience is persistent. God told Jeremiah how He had even warned the fathers of the people of his day about this judgment: “For I solemnly warned your fathers in the day that I brought them up from the land of Egypt, even to this day, warning persistently, saying, ‘Listen to My voice’” (v. 7). The word translated “persistently” in the above verse means, literally, rising early and warning. The emphasis is on a sense of urgency, taking great pains to do something because it is urgent that it be carried out. It is a proverbial type of expression. This expression is used at least seven or eight times in the Book of Jeremiah. Rising early and warning was a way of indicating urgency, of taking great pains to see that something was done. Jeremiah repeatedly used this phrase as God directed him. God has dealt with Israel in this way. There was urgency about the message, so Jeremiah took great effort to reach the people, but Israel was indifferent. From God’s perspective there was urgency in the message. God had gone to great effort to deliver this message to the people.

People today are just as indifferent as they were in Jeremiah’s day. They think God could not send people to hell, but God has given us an urgent message concerning judgment. However, people do not want to hear about judgment. That is the way people were in Jeremiah’s day. The amazing thing is that they already have a clear example of God’s judgment for disobedience. About a hundred years earlier, the Northern Kingdom was taken into captivity by the Assyrians and deported to Assyria. That fulfilled what God had promised in the Law in Leviticus 18:28; 20:22 and Deuteronomy 29:28. God told the people that if they failed to obey Him, He would spew them out of the land. What happened to the ten northern tribes? They disobeyed God, and God spewed them out of the land. They were deported to Assyria in judgment. You would think the Southern Kingdom would have been a little nervous about this, but they were not. The same thing would happen to them. People always think judgment happens only to other people. They think it could never happen to them. But the warning in these passages is so clear—judgment is coming.

Jeremiah 11:7 tells us how God had solemnly warned the people regarding their sin. Unfortunately, the warning was to no avail: “Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked, each one, in the stubbornness of his evil heart; therefore I brought on them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not” (v. 8). God honors His Word. He had promised to bless them if they would obey and curse them if they did not. They failed to obey, and God honored His Word. He did exactly what He said He would do.

It is important for us to realize that God will be true to His Word in judgment. Jesus said that in the day judgment is carried out, His Word will judge the people. There will not be any surprises. It has all been laid out in black and white, but people do not listen.

God continues these instructions to Jeremiah in verses 9 through 11: “Then the Lord said to me, ‘A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. They have turned back to the iniquities of their ancestors who refused to hear My words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.’ Therefore thus says the Lord, ‘Behold I am bringing disaster on them which they will not be able to escape; though they will cry to Me, yet I will not listen to them.’” An important principle is in view here. The people refused to listen to God, so God refused to listen to the people. Many people cry out when tragedy strikes. God is supposed to immediately intervene, but they have been closed to Him all along. When judgment comes, it is often too late to cry out to God. For Judah, it was too late to cry for God’s help. When Babylon finally came knocking on the door, it was too late to ask God to deliver them. Judgment had arrived.

The results are recorded in verses 12 and 13: “Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they burn incense, but they surely will not save them in the time of their disaster. For your gods are as many as your cities, O Judah; and as many as the streets of Jerusalem are the altars you have set up to the shameful thing.” The identity of the “shameful thing” is given in the next statement of verse 13: “altars to burn incense to Baal.” This passage is very similar to Jeremiah 2:28 which indicates that the people of Israel had multiplied their gods. When tragedy came, the people called on those gods, but such gods would not intervene because there was no one there to listen.

As we review these verses in chapter 11, we see that verses 6 through 8 give the historical example of what happened to the fathers. Then verses 9 through 13 tell them that the same thing will happen to them. God is fair and true to His Word. Those who refuse to believe and to submit to Him come under judgment. Unfortunately, many refuse to heed. They fail to learn lessons from those who have gone before, so the tragedy continues.

What is Jeremiah to do with people like this? There is an awfulness about God’s instructions to Jeremiah in the next section. Jeremiah is forbidden even to pray for these people. This command indicates the seriousness of the situation. We are always to pray according to the will of God as we submit to the Spirit of God. In this particular situation, God had determined judgment. There was nothing that could change God’s mind regarding this judgment.

If I have a friend who refuses to believe in Jesus Christ as his Savior, there is no need for me to ask God not to send my friend to hell. I may pray that the Spirit of God will work in his heart. I can pray that he will be exposed to the gospel and by the grace of God will come to believe. But if he refuses to believe in Jesus Christ, there is no point in my praying that God will not send him to hell.

In verse 14 Jeremiah is commanded, “Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not listen when they call to Me because of their disaster.” Two things are involved in this verse. First, God was not going to allow Jeremiah to pray for them. Secondly, God would not be listening to the people when they cried out to Him. When disaster had come and tragedy had struck, they would call out to Him, but He would not listen.

Jeremiah had been forbidden previously to pray for these people. “As for you, do not pray for this people, and do not lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with Me; for I do not hear you” (Jeremiah 7:16). Judgment had been determined, so there was nothing to pray about. Jeremiah received the same instructions in verse 11 of chapter 14: “So the Lord said to me, ‘Do not pray for the welfare of this people.’” These three times Jeremiah was forbidden to pray for them. It must have been a terrible burden to him to have to preach to a people who were so unresponsive that he was not even allowed to pray for them. Yet he still had to go and proclaim the Word of God to them.

We have an example of this same kind of instruction in the New Testament. There is a time when we are not to pray even for fellow Christians. The Apostle John wrote, “If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this” (1 John 5:16). If God is intervening in discipline and judgment in the life of a believer, we should not pray that God will remove that discipline and judgment. If by the character and pattern of his life he has persisted in sin, the command is for us not to intervene on his behalf. In such cases it is clear that God has determined to bring discipline and judgment into that believer’s life.

The picture of Israel in Jeremiah 11:15,16 is a very sad picture. These verses show us what God intended for Israel to be and what Israel actually ended up being. God intended beautiful and lovely things for Israel. He intended for Israel to be His own special possession, unique among all the peoples of the earth. But Israel is a tragedy. “What right has My beloved in My house when she has done many vile deeds? Can the sacrificial flesh take away from you your disaster, so that you can rejoice?” (v. 15).

Israel had lost any right to be in the house of God. They thought that their activity of offering the sacrifices could nullify their sins. It is important to notice that these people were carrying out the sacrifices, but they had failed in their obedience. They were going through religious activity, but they had missed the heart of the matter. They had forgotten that obedience is better than sacrifice. By their actions God said they had lost the right to His house.

The next verse tells us what God intended for them to be: “The Lord called your name, ‘A green olive tree, beautiful in fruit and form’” (v. 16). When God planted Israel, He intended that the nation should be a beautiful fruit-bearing tree. The last half of the verse gives the end result: “With the noise of a great tumult He has kindled fire on it, and its branches are worthless” (v. 16). Israel had become of no value to God. The people no longer honored Him or glorified Him.

The results are seen in verse 17: “And the Lord of hosts who planted you, has pronounced evil against you because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done to provoke Me by offering up sacrifices to Baal.” It is amazing that the more rebellious and unbiblical people become, the more religious they often become. As Israel turned from God, they became more religious, not less religious. They multiplied the altars throughout Israel; they multiplied the number of gods they worshiped. They became more ungodly because their religion was not founded upon the revelation that God had given of Himself.

To tell people that their increased religious activity is ungodly is a strong message. It does not win friends and influence people! Jeremiah did not become popular because he told people the truth. That is also a good reminder for us. We want so badly to fit in with society around us. Surely Jeremiah wanted to fit into his society as well. Do you think he liked being the one on the outside?

Jeremiah preached a strong message, and in this is a message of encouragement. Israel could still submit themselves to God, cry out to Him for mercy and trust Him to preserve them, but they were unwilling to do that.

As a result of this message preached by Jeremiah, a plot was devised in his hometown of Anathoth to execute him and to annihilate any memory of his prophecy. The people felt they had to get rid of this man and of his memory. That shows you how antagonistic people can be to the Word of God. These Jews were so antagonized by the truth that whatever it took, they wanted to be rid of Jeremiah. They were even willing to plot his murder in order to get rid of him.

The next two verses inform us of the plot. “Moreover, the Lord made it known to me and I knew it; then Thou didst show me their deeds. But I was like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter; and I did not know that they had devised plots against me” (vv. 18,19). God revealed this plot to Jeremiah who was totally unsuspecting of what was going on. While he was prophesying, the people of his hometown, even his own family according to 12:6, were plotting his execution.

Their plans are revealed in verse 19: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that His name be remembered no more.” To “destroy the tree with its fruit” is a picture of utter annihilation and destruction. Chapter 16 informs us that Jeremiah was unmarried, so he had no children. The people felt that if they destroyed Jeremiah at that time, they would be destroying the tree with its fruit, another proverbial expression indicating utter obliteration of any memory of Jeremiah. They wanted to get rid of him totally, to cut him off from the land of the living. His name would be remembered no more. They did not want to even be bothered with memories of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah’s response in verse 20 comes across a bit harsh: “But, O Lord of hosts, who judges righteously, who tries the feelings and the heart, let me see Thy vengeance on them, for to Thee have I committed my cause.” These people had planned to destroy Jeremiah, so he prayed to God to bring vengeance on them.

Our first response may be to wonder if it is right for Jeremiah to pray this way. It is right for two reasons. First, Jeremiah did not attempt to take personal vengeance himself. He committed his cause to God for the vengeance. Secondly, he recognized that their attitude toward him was their attitude toward God, and for this they deserved judgment. As hard as it was, Jeremiah realized it was right for him to pray this way. He was not seeking personal vengeance. He committed his cause to God and realized that the right thing for those people was vengeance. They had not rejected Jeremiah, but they had rejected God. They wanted to kill Jeremiah because he kept telling them what God said, and that message was a continual source of irritation to them. Jeremiah realized that they were not rejecting him, but God, and for that they deserved punishment.

The solution proposed by the men of Anathoth was for Jeremiah to stop telling them what God said. If he would stop, he would live. “Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, that you might not die at our hand.” (v. 21).

The problem with Jeremiah was not a personality conflict. Sometimes we share the Word with people and they reject it. Then we become introspective, thinking we might not be very effective in confronting people with the gospel or they would respond positively. We go on and on with our introspection. That is not the problem. The problem is that those who refuse to believe the Word become antagonistic toward it.

We are often challenged with the same kind of compromise the men of Anathoth brought to Jeremiah. People tell us that if we will quit talking about Jesus Christ, everyone will like us. We are told that if we no longer confront people with the truth of the Word, they will think we are great. That is the kind of compromise the world demands. They tell us that if we keep God and His Word out of the discussion, everything will be all right. But that is not an option the believer has. Neither was it an option for Jeremiah.

Jeremiah’s hometown was Anathoth. That is one place he would surely want to belong, but that is where they were plotting his execution. Jeremiah cried out to God to bring vengeance on them, and God promised to do exactly that.

God’s judgment on these men is described in verse 22: “Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold, I am about to punish them! The young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters will die by famine.’” The young men would go out to be destroyed in battle. There was no hope for their victory. The women and children who were left behind would die by famine. Eventually the city would be surrounded and the food supply cut off. Before it was all over, the parents would be eating their children for survival. It is awful how Israel was reduced to such a low estate by their own sinfulness.

The people of Anathoth wanted to destroy Jeremiah, but the judgment would be turned back upon them. These men who plotted his destruction would themselves be destroyed. Verse 23 says, “And a remnant will not be left to them, for I will bring disaster on the men of Anathoth—the year of their punishment.” Disaster was coming. Jeremiah would survive, but the men of Anathoth would not. The judgment was directed particularly to those men who were opposing Jeremiah at Anathoth. At the close of the seventy years of the Babylonian Captivity, Ezra 2:23 informs us that 128 men from this town did return from the Babylonian Captivity. But all those who opposed Jeremiah and resisted his ministry died in the conflict or in the famine. God was true to His Word.

Jeremiah preached the Word of God to these people. They hated him for it and opposed him, but they could not stem the tide of the Word of God. It was too powerful for them to resist. Here we are, two thousand years after the time of Christ, reading what Jeremiah prophesized six hundred years before Christ. The people of Jeremiah’s day thought they would annihilate Jeremiah and all memory of him.

Who were the men of Anathoth? Who were the priests of that town? Name a few of them if you can! Nobody knows who any of them were, but everyone knows who Jeremiah was. Who survived? Jeremiah did! Who was the winner? Jeremiah! This helps us see how powerful the Word of God is. No matter what people do or how they oppose it, the Word of God continues on as God stands behind it.

God had made some promises to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 1:18,19: “‘Now behold, I have made you today as a fortified city, and as a pillar of iron and as walls of bronze against the whole land, to the kings of Judah, to its princes, to its priests and to the people of the land. And they will fight against you, but they will not overcome you, for I am with you to deliver you,’ declares the Lord.” That is the hope Jeremiah could cling to. He had to keep his attention focused on that promise. He was going to preach and be opposed in his preaching, but the people could not overcome him because God was with him.

The Book of Proverbs provides some important reminders for believers. Proverbs 21:30 says, “There is no wisdom and no understanding and no counsel against the Lord.” No one can stand against God. No group of people can devise a plan that will be successful against Him. Men will oppose Him, but there is no counsel, no wisdom or no brilliance that can be successful in opposing God. The next verse is very encouraging: “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord” (v. 31).

The life of Jeremiah is a tremendous encouragement to us when we see his faithfulness. God gave him a message to proclaim, and he proclaimed it even though people did not want to hear it. That reminds us that it does not matter what people want to hear, we must give them the Word of God. If they like it, fine; if they do not like it, fine. Our success depends upon our obedience to God.

We sometimes get concerned about whether people will like us if we tell them salvation is found in no other person but in Jesus Christ. It really does not matter whether they like us or not. We do not need to get mired down in things that are not our responsibility. Jeremiah was not called to deal with the refusal of the people. He was called to deal with the Word of God. Personal pressures may arise, but as we see in the life of Jeremiah, the ministry is the same—to proclaim the Word of God. God promises to honor His Word and to protect His servants.

Our ministries today are not that much different from Jeremiah’s. We are still called to proclaim the Word of God in the midst of sinful people who, by and large, have rejected that Word. We sometimes are intimidated from boldly proclaiming the Word because we know that people are not going to like it.

How many people would you have talked to about Christ and salvation in Him this past week if you knew that everyone you talked to was going to be positive and excited about what they heard? What difference would their response have made? Would you have talked to more people than you did if you had known in advance their response would have been positive? As I personally consider this question, I have to conclude that I probably would have talked to more people. That indicates that I am afraid.

I must remind myself that the Word of God stands true. God has called me to proclaim it. I am to proclaim it in love, but I must proclaim it. The fact that people do not want to hear it is not the issue. What they do with what I tell them and how they respond to it is between them and God. Only God can take that Word and use it in their hearts to change them.

We ought to be encouraged. God has promised to honor His Word. That does not mean we will not face difficulties or pressures. It does not mean we will not have opposition. But it means we cannot be defeated, because we are using His Word. Heaven and earth may pass away, but God’s Word stands true. That is what we are privileged to proclaim.

That is what the local church is all about. We are not a social organization, not a place with all kinds of programs for everything and everybody. We are called to be a place where the Word of God is faithfully and honorably proclaimed so that believers can be nourished and built up in their relationship with Jesus Christ. As a result, we can then go and proclaim this message to a world that needs to know that they are lost in sin and hopelessly destined for judgment unless in faith they cast themselves upon the mercy of God and believe in His Son, Jesus Christ.

What a message we have to proclaim! We have the same message Jeremiah had. We must tell people that they are sinners and that judgment is coming. We also have the privilege to tell them that by the grace of God they can have salvation. But this salvation is available through no one else but God’s Son, Jesus Christ. May God give us the courage and boldness to be reminded that we have a message from God and that we need not be ashamed of it. We can be proud to proclaim with boldness the message that God will use to penetrate the hearts and minds of men and women so they may experience His salvation and escape the judgment that is coming upon all who refuse to believe.