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Jeremiah: The Weeping Prophet
dawning for his nation (31:1-40). The Call: Creation, Sanctification and Commission Jeremiah 1:4, 5
The phrase, The word of the Lord, occurs more in Jeremiah than any other Bible book. It un- derlines the authoritative nature of his message. This call was not Jeremiah’s doing.
God reminded Jeremiah that he formed him. The word is used to speak of how a potter forms a pot from clay (Jeremiah 18:1- 23). While God uses parents to co-create, ultimately God knits our bones together in the womb (Psalm 139:13).
The second aspect of Jere- miah’s call was his sanctification. God said, “I set you apart.” This is the normal expression for “holi- ness”. To be used by a holy God, one must be holy. God made this decision before Jeremiah was born. Just as God knew you, and your purpose before you were born or even conceived. Did Jere- miah have a choice or was his path predestined? The wording of this passage makes one think the lat- ter. But we realize later that Jere- miah exercised his choice to stay in prophetic ministry (Jeremiah 20:1-9).
The final aspect of Jeremiah’s call was his commission. God ap-
pointed him. This Hebrew word meant “to give, to deliver, or to grant.” God so loved that he gave Jeremiah to the nations. Indeed his prophetic ministry went be- yond Judah (Jeremiah 46–51). Each Christian has a purpose in life, but some are appointed or anointed by God for a specific kind of work. Whatever work you do, should be done for the glory of God.
The Objection: Self Doubt Jeremiah 1:6-8
It is not uncommon for prophets to feel unqualified (Ex- odus 4:10; Amos 7:14, 15). Jer- emiah objected to his call on two bases: First, he did not know how to speak. Second, he felt too young for such a calling (see also 1 Tim- othy 4:12).
God countered Jeremiah’s ob- jections by restating the call and by reminding Jeremiah of his presence and promise of rescue. Jeremiah would not go this alone. The God who is ever near would stay close to Jeremiah (Psalm 139:7-12). God did literally res- cue him—once when he was in a pit (Jeremiah 38:7-13) and fi- nally in escaping to Egypt (Jere- miah 43). Often people struggle with new challenges because they lack self-confidence. But if God gives you a job to do, he WILL pro- vide all you need to do it.
The Task: Reach The World With The Message Jeremiah 1:9, 10
Just as Isaiah had his sins re- moved to be of service for God (Isaiah 6:1-7), so Jeremiah had to have the Lord’s message placed in his mouth to be of service for God. The task was to appoint (lit- erally “set”) Jeremiah over nations and kingdoms. This task was given in six words within three couplets.
Two-thirds of his ministry was negative (uproot, tear down, de- stroy, and overthrow). But to know the truth and not tell people that truth is most unloving. One- third of his ministry was positive (build and plant). To give hope is at the very least kind.
Jeremiah’s famous letter to the exiles (Jeremiah 29) both de- fined reality and cast a vision for the future. Jeremiah used his tears to grow a new future for the peo- ple of God.
The problems we face may not seem as overwhelming as Jere- miah’s, but they are critical to us and may overwhelm us! God’s promise to Jeremiah and to us is that nothing will defeat us com- pletely; he will help us through the most agonizing problems. Face each day with the assurance that God will be with you and will see you through.
After King Solomon’s death, the united kingdom of Israel had split into rival Northern And Southern kingdoms. The Northern kingdom was Israel and the Southern king- dom was Judah. Jeremiah lived and prophesied during the reigns of the last 5 kings of Judah. As Babylon, Assyria and Egypt bat- tled for world supremacy and dominance, Judah found herself caught in the middle of the trian- gle.The world today seems similar to the times in Judah..chaotic po- litically, morally and spiritually.
When God wants to make a prophet, he first takes him to the desert and crushes him. God spoke many times to Jeremiah over the many years. It was Jere- miah’s job to determine what God wanted him to do each day. Tears make a prophet better than laugh- ter does. The crucible of suffering is the best birthing room of a prophet. Jeremiah would have been glad to continue the family business of being a priest (Jere- miah 1:1). He did not volunteer for the position of a prophet.
Jeremiah has been called “the
weeping prophet” for good reason. Besides writing the book that bears his name, he also wrote Lamentations, which is filled with tears. He, along with the prophet Habakkuk, was to get God’s peo- ple ready for their captivity in Babylon. This was not an easy job. He prophesied during the reign of two of the worst kings of Judah— Jehoiakim and Zedekiah (Jere- miah 1:3).
In addition to this, the people at large pushed back on Jeremiah’s prophetic word by laying claim to the temple as a good luck charm (7:1-15) and by issuing death threats against Jeremiah (11:21- 23). The shepherds of Israel had caved in on their responsibilities to the sheep (23:1-8), and the king even burned Jeremiah’s scroll (36:23).
But not all was doom and gloom for the weeping prophet. Some of his ministry was carried out dur- ing the reign of good King Josiah (1:2). Even when he wanted to give up he was unable to do so due to the fire in his bones (20:9). He saw a new day and a new covenant
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