Jeremiah I: The Call

I'm going to be teaching from the book of Jeremiah. When I read through it this year, it, like Jeremiah, it just burned inside of me. And I thought, well, there's some things here I probably need to know and can probably share with you at times. We're going to unpack it verse by verse, but certainly not through the whole book. It's 52 chapters, so it's quite lengthy.

And we'll for the most part approach it topically. But it will be more than just an exercise in biblical history, I promise you this. I read this in a book recently and I have just been saying it to whoever will listen to me is that God still speaks through what he has spoken. And so there are things in the book of Jeremiah that are as relevant as the news that you read, you know, on your iPhone or wherever you, wherever you get your news. See, my hypothesis is that the person of Jeremiah and his historical context has everything to do with who we are right now and where we are right now.

And God's word to his people then are God's words to us now. And as we go through the book of Jeremiah, I hope to make a case for that. You know, I want to start with a story first. I want to talk about my mom. I've talked quite a bit about my dad, but I haven't talked much about my mom.

My mom was the consummate homemaker. She was a licensed practical nurse when that was a thing. When she got married and had children, she devoted herself to our home and there wasn't anything she couldn't do. I mean, she was extremely gifted with her hands. And my father went out and he made the living and my mother ran the household and household.

And we at that time we had chickens before it was, you know, fashionable. We had chickens back in the 50s and we had a garden and my dad would buy a whole cow that was grass fed and we, you know, so it was all very organic and took a lot of work to do. And my mother could process a chicken, if you know what I mean, take it from the coop to in the freezer during the day. And then she'd get dressed up like, and look like a model to go and she'd be president of the pta. So it was this kind of thing.

So there wasn't anything she couldn't do. You know, when my father became ill as a result of his smoking, his illness sapped the life out of her. And for this reason, you know, he was a heavy smoker and so he did damage to his Heart and he had the bypass and then the medication. But to stay alive, his diet had to be pristine. So.

And no salt, right? So if you're going to keep going, Bob, you got to watch what you eat. And my mother was perfect for that job because she was meticulous in preparing his meals, making sure we had baked cod and well, I was out of the house by then. Baked cod and steamed broccoli and just everything that would keep him alive. But then she drive through town and she see his car at McDonald's or at the all you can eat fish fry at the VFW where he's probably putting a beer down with the fish.

And then he'd go into congestive heart failure and then they'd have to go into the emergency. And this became a cycle for her and it really just broke her down. My dad gave up a 45 year smoking nicotine habit overnight. But I'll bless God if he couldn't eat sausage and pepperoni. He didn't want to live, you know what I'm saying?

So he was just going to eat what he's going to eat. Well, after my dad, excuse me, finally passed, my mom, it's like she just broke. She just broke after, you know, years of this. And she became, from our perspective, and I'm saying from my brothers and sisters, like a hypochondriac and this hale and hearty and formidable and can do it all, woman. We were taking her into the emergency room like every couple months and I had three other siblings who were great, loved her and we all were very active with her care.

And her symptoms are always kind of nebulous, right? Something doesn't feel right here. No, something doesn't feel right there. And no matter how much you try to tell her you look good and I don't think anything's wrong, she wouldn't be satisfied unless you took her into the emergency room. And you go in the emergency room and you know what it's like.

Well, here you have the urgent cares, it's different. But back in the day you went in that emergency room and there was gunshot victims and people with stuff hanging and it was just, it was a thing. And you were there a long time. So we had, you know, a couple years of every couple months we'd have her in the emergency, emergency room. And more often than not, it was me who took her because I was the oldest, I was a daughter.

And just certain things, as the oldest daughter you do. And I was happy to accept that mantle. And then of the four of us. I had the more flexible work schedule because I worked at our church and so I could move and shift things. So that's the backstory.

Now, picture it. Beautiful day in May in Ohio. The sun is shining. The birds are tweeting. My kids aren't giving me any grief.

We don't owe anybody any money. Everything's just going good. It's just a beautiful day. I'm at a shower at church. A friend of mine is getting married, chatting it up at the table.

All of a sudden, I look down, I see my phone ringing. I see it's my mother.

Now, my mother never called to chat. She was not a talker. She's really kind of a quiet, elegant lady. I knew why she was calling. It'd been about two months and we were due.

So I looked at the phone, and I decided right then and there, I'm not doing this today. I'm not doing this today. Number one, I know she's fine. And B, all my other brothers and sisters are off. Somebody will take her.

She'll get to the hospital. I'm drawing a boundary, right? There was a book that had come out by Cloud and Townsend Boundaries that was going through our counseling department. Like, we were telling everybody how to create boundaries. You got to create boundaries.

So I said, I'm creating a boundary, and she'll get there. She's fine. I took my furniture, I put it in my purse. I tried to carry on, and the Holy Spirit fell on me so hard, and it would not get out of my ear. And all I could hear was, call your mother.

Call your mother. Call your mother. Call your mother. Call your mother. Call your mother.

Call your mother. Call your mother. Fine. So I get my phone, I go out in the hall, I call my mother. I said, hey, Mom, I see that you called.

First thing she says to me is, what? Why didn't you answer the phone?

I said, it was in my purse. And I said, so, what's going on? She goes, something's wrong. I said, what happened, Ma? She goes, four days ago, I had this little funny feeling in the back of my neck, and I was dropping safe.

And I said, I'm not well. I just put my cart back and I came home. Then I felt better. But now, today, I have a funny feeling in my chest. I said, okay.

I said, you know what? I'm at a shower right now. I said, but I'll come over. I said, I have to make a quick stop at a graduation open house just to drop off a card. I said, but I'm on my way there, Mom.

So I'm like, I just know I'm going to end up in the emergency room all day with this and a beautiful sun. So first time in my life, I probably drove the speed limit to get. I let myself be comforted by the oldies and seventies, Carpenters, bread, little bit of Neil diamond shoved in there. Oh, Lord God.

I get to my mom's apartment. When I walk in, one of my other brothers is already there with her. And we exchange knowing glances. So I said, so, so, mom, what's going on? And she told me the story again four days ago.

Funny feeling here now. Funny feeling here. I said, you know what, Ma? You know what we'll do? I said, instead of going down to the emergency room at the hospital, I said, they just open an urgent care, which they were just beginning to do then.

And I said, how about if we take you to the urgent care, we'll let them assess you there. And if we need to go to the next step. I said, you'll get in quicker. If we need to take the next step, we'll take the next step. I said, how about if we do that?

She goes, okay, that sounds fine. Well, she was in her jammy. So I said, you know what, mom, why don't you go back and get you some clothes on and, and we'll take you up there. So she's going back to her room and we're waiting till she gets back. And there my brother and I started doing rock, paper, scissors.

He was going to take her, you know, rock, paper, scissors. Shoot. Rock, paper, scissors. No, we didn't do that. So I told my brother, I said, you know what, Bob?

I said, I'll take her. I said, go home. I said, I'd rather do this at 2 o' clock in the afternoon, then 2 o' clock in the morning. Go home, I'll call you. Yes, okay, fine.

So we get in the car and we're driving there and I said, you know, Mom? I said, you said, and she looks fine, she's fine. I said, mom, you know, you said like you had like a funny feeling in your heart. She said, yeah. I said, make sure you lead with that when you get in those.

Because if you tell them, if you're old or you tell them something's wrong with your heart, they get you in right away. I said, so you say that first. When you get to. She goes, okay. So we get to the urgent care, she goes in, she sits down, blah, blah, blah, funny.

Finial hair, chest. And my chest Feels funny. Okay, back you go. So we're back in a room, and I'm sitting there with her. And so the nurses come in, and of course, you know, she's got, for lack of a better phrase, a rap sheet of her various visits to the hospital and the fact that nothing's from their point of view, is ever wrong with her.

So the nurse and I exchange knowing glances, and so they start looking at her. And at the intake, they found that her blood pressure was high, which they figured was just with the anxiety of being afraid of what is wrong with me. Right? Have you ever had that fear of what is wrong with me? And so they.

They hooked her up to an IV and they gave her a little something something. And, man, you could see when that thing got on board. And she just calmed right down, and she just. Was just laying down, and. And it was great.

So the nurses were coming in, and. And not because I didn't care, but I. I did care, in a manner of speaking. I. But I did have Tetris on my phone. It was a flip phone.

And so while. While the nurses were coming in and out, I was playing. Playing Tetris.

You know how you're trying. And every once in a while, I say, ma, how you doing? You doing good? Yeah, I'm doing good. Okay.

Blah, blah, blah. So I'm sitting there, the nurses are done with this test and that test, and just sitting in there, and I'm looking at her, and she's laying there, and she looks so. So peaceful and at rest. And I thought, I'm an animal. I mean, for four days, this happened four days ago with this here and this here.

She's probably been sitting there scared for four days, probably didn't want to call us. And, you know, this is. I'm an animal. That's all I can think about. I'm so sorry.

I'm so sorry, Lord. So I'm sitting there looking at her, and the attending physician comes in. He sees her, looks like she's sleeping. He goes like this to me. I thought, ooh, we're getting discharged.

So I walk out to him, and he said, you know, I don't know any other way to tell you this other than to tell you this. Your mother is dying.

I look back, she's in the bed like this. I said, are we talking about this patient right here in that room? He said, yeah. He said, you know, that funny feeling that she felt in the back of her neck four days ago? That was her aorta dissecting.

He says, generally, when that happens to somebody, they bleed out into their chest. There's no getting into an ambulance in a hospital. They're gone. What your mother's body did was it formed a sac that has been collecting that blood. And the pressure she feels now in her chest is that sac has reached its capacity, and how much of that.

That blood it can contain, and it is getting ready to rupture. And I must tell you that if that sac ruptures, there'll be nothing we can do to save her. He said, nevertheless, I have an ambulance that is on its way, and a surgical team is assembling at the hospital. We're going to attempt to get her into it, but I must tell you, it is unlikely she's ever going to leave that room.

I'll be honest with you. I do not remember what I thought. I just remember what I. What I did. So I asked the doctor, I said, can I please tell this information to her because she's already afraid and this news alone would be traumatic.

And he said, yes, you can. And he goes, do you want to know something interesting? He said, I was actually signing her discharge papers, and I got a funny feeling that told me, you better take this other test. And that's when we found the problem. I said, okay.

I said, thank you. So real quick, just got on the phone with my brother, blah, blah, blah. This is what's going on. I mean, my mother's security, my mother's eternity was secure. She knew the Lord.

We didn't have that to be concerned with. I said, bobby, tell the others. And Bobby, pray. I got to get in the room right now.

So I go in the room, and she just has her eyes closed. She looks perfect. So I put my arm on her and I say, ma, what's the matter? I said, I talked to the doctor, and I said, I have to tell you, God is so good to us. I said, you remember that little pop you felt back here in your neck?

I said, your aorta sprung a leak. And I. And as being a licensed practical nurse, she knew the implications of that, right? And I said, but you know what your body did? It formed a sac, and that sac is holding that blood.

I said, but you know I can't stay that way. I said, so, girl, you're going for a ride in the ambulance, and we're going to get you into surgery. We're going to get that. That fixed. I didn't know what to expect.

What happened next was totally unexpected. She said to me, I told you something was wrong with me. I tell you kids, something's wrong with me, and you never believe me.

I thought she would drop dead from fear. She took a victory lap. I told you I was sick. I told you. I told you.

You never believed me. I said, well, that's on us. That's absolutely right. Then she got really, really quiet. And she said, jay.

You know, my family calls me Jay, actually. She said, jay. You said, I'm going into surgery. I said, yeah. Would you do me a favor?

I said, sure, Ma. Anything. She goes, go get my purse and bring it over here. She said, open up my purse in there. Say a little.

Little black bag, zippered. Would you go and open it up? My makeup's in there. Could you fix me up a little bit before I go into surgery?

I said, yes, indeed, Mom. I will get you all. All beauty up. Because, you know, at those times, the nurses to the nurse, the doctors were, ooh, and now we're talking surgeon. So she not going into surgery looking nasty.

She's going into surgery looking fine. And that's how she was going into surgery. Well, what we came to find out about my mom is that had had dangerously high blood pressure that had been undiagnosed and untreated for a number of years. And though she looked perfectly fine, it was like there was a ticking time bomb inside of her. And.

And because she looked okay, none of us took it seriously until that day in the urgent care. Well, what does that have to do with the book of Jeremiah? For 40 years, Jeremiah told his people, you're sick. There's something wrong here. There's something wrong on the outside, there's something wrong on the inside.

And if you don't change your ways, God's judgment is coming down for 40 years. And you know what? No one took him seriously because everything looked the same. And they didn't take him seriously until the Babylonian army surrounded Jerusalem, broke down the walls, start killing women and children and everybody there, and burned the place down. And then they said, oh, something must be wrong.

I had incorrect, preconceived notions about my mother because of the way she looked. I thought she looked fine.

And the Israelites had incorrect, preconceived notions about their own country because they thought they could live on past successes, past things God had done. Preconception can lead to deception.

And so as we read through Jeremiah, let's lay down any preconceived notions that we have and receive God's word through fresh ears. Several times in the book of Jeremiah, he talks about uncircumcised ears let's roll away what the filter that may be distorting what God wants to say and hear the thing that he wants to say to you today because I think you know what the Spirit of God was trying to get to them then he's going to try to get to us now. For tonight in particular, though, I want you to have a fresh ear to hear what the Spirit is saying to you.

I believe this night could be a seminal moment for you personally, and I am going to do all I can to set the atmosphere for that to happen for you. I want it to happen for me. So let's start in the book. Okay, Jeremiah, it's important that you look at the text in one way or another as we read. I'll be reading out of the ESV all the kings names and their geography names.

I'm just going to go with the English pronunciation and even the southern English pronunciation because I don't feel like wrestling with them words. All right, so we'll just do it. Jeremiah 1, read 1 through 3. The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, one of the prophets who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah, the son of Ammon, king of Judah, in the 13th year of his reign. It came also in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, and until the end of the 11th year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, King of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.

And I'll know what the temptation is when you read these first two verses, the temptation is to say, okay, blah, blah, blah, geography, blah, blah, blah, history, right. Anathoth and the list of the kings. And while it's true that these three verses do seem give us the geographic and historic context, the geographic context is going to be basically Jerusalem. Anathoth was a day's it sounds like I have a list, but there's a th in there. Anathoth was about a day's walk from Jerusalem.

In parts of that city you could see Jerusalem. Most of the action of Jeremiah is going to be taken place there. 40 years of it until they are exiled. And then you'll have some people in Egypt and some people in Babylonia. So that's the geography, the historical context.

Well, oh, I told you. It's going to be the final 40 years of the kingdom of Judah from Josiah to Zedekiah. There'll be an appendix of another four years after the exile where Jeremiah will continue to prophesy but yeah, that is the geographic and the historic context. But the light that shines on this interpretation is not from what is written, but what would have been known by the contemporary reader.

And that's what I want to unpack for you today.

I have a question first for my Bible. My Bible, people. Is Roman in here? He's probably helping with the kids. Caleb, or.

I know your name. I'm looking right at your face, Amber. There we go. You know, Jeremiah interacted with Josiah and Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah, all those guys. And.

And second Kings and second Chronicles covers that historical time, covers those. Kings never mentions Jeremiah. I find that interesting. Like, he's so prominent in that time period. I wonder why that doesn't happen.

I say that I'm fishing for someone to tell me that, because I really don't know. All right, I digress. Verse one. The words. I'm going to tell you what's not written, but what would have been known.

The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. Does that sound impressive? It's not meant to.

First, you think, oh, he's a priest. He's not a priest. He's a kid. Second, the lineage. The son of Hilkiah and Anathoth.

He's descended from priests with a jaded history.

One of his descendants that you will know about is Eli. Eli. In the day of the tabernacle at Shiloh, Eli had those bad sons, Hophni and Phinehas, who were doing naughty things in the temple. And he wouldn't correct them or make them change their ways. And because he would not correct them, God sent a prophet to tell him this.

In 1st Samuel 2. 33. Every one of you cut off from my altar will be Eli. Yeah. Eli's descendants that I do not cut off from my altar will be spared only to blind your eyes with tears and to grieve your heart.

And all your descendants will die in the prime of life.

Jeremiah's ancestor, but he had a more recent ancestor that was discredited, and that was the priest Abiathar. Abiathar and his family, who was descended from Eli. There were priests at a place called Nob. When David was running away from Saul, he stopped at that place and he. They assisted him.

He did not tell them he was running away. They knew nothing. They did not know that David was a fugitive. They just thought, David's the man of Saul's man. We got to help him the way you have to help him.

Well, word gets back through Dog the Edomite that David was there. He goes, tell Saul. Saul comes with the arm. And he says to the priests, what did you. Why did you help David?

Where's David going right now? Tell me what you know. And all the priests there, including Abiathar, said, we didn't know anything. He stopped here. We thought he was on an errand for you.

And under the order of Saul, he had all those priests killed, which fulfilled, you know, the prophecy given to Eli, except for Abiathar. Abiathar escapes. He grabs the ephod, you know, that's the thing they put over their. Their robe. Has the pockets with the umim and the thummim.

He grabs that, he runs and he finds David. And David feels terrible. He goes, it's my fault. All your family are dead. I'm so sorry.

You will always stay with me. I'll always take care of you. And so Abiathar grew up with David, running around the desert with David. And when David finally came to power, he had a place of power in the castle with the castle, the. What do you call the place where they live?

What Palace? That's it. Thank you. In the palace with David. Ha.

But this is like a soap opera. When David was getting old and the kingdom was supposed to go to Solomon, David's son, Adonijah said, that's not right. I'm the second oldest son. I should be the next king. And so he curries support from, guess who, Abiathar.

And from Joab, the commander and new king of them. He has them. Tell them, Tell the people, come and see your new king. Well, that didn't go over well with Solomon's mama, Bathsheba. You don't want to make the mama bear angry.

So she goes and tells David, blah, blah, blah, Solomon is crowned, finally crowned king. And he tells. Solomon tells, what's that brother's name? Adonijah. I should kill you.

I'm not, because you're my brother. Don't give me no more trouble. Well, Adonijah gives him some more trouble. He conspires to take the kingdom away from David again. Apparently, he had Abiathar's support.

And when that happened, Solomon said, that's it. No more mercy. I'm going to kill you. And Abiathar come here. And this is what he says to him and to Abiathar, the priest.

The king said, go to Anathoth, right to your estate, for you deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death because you carry the ark of the Lord God before David, my father, and because you shared in all of my father's afflictions. So Solomon expelled Abiathar. He was expelled from being a priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh. Jeremiah lived in the Shiloh shadow of the shameful past of his family.

We have shameful things in our past, don't we?

We have shameful things in our past that are not of our own doing. And we have shameful things in our past that are own poor choices.

It doesn't seem to deter God in his calling.

Bottom line, Jeremiah was an unlikely choice. A little kid from a shameful ancestry. Skip down to verse four. We'll cover verses two and three when we discuss the historical context, which is not as boring as it sounds. Verse 4.

Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. And before you were born I consecrated you, I appointed you a prophet to the nation. Let me tell you something. Those four verbs, I formed you, I knew you, I consecrated you, I appointed you. They are not unique to Jeremiah, the noun clause prophet to the nations, that's unique to Jeremiah.

But it would apply to every person sitting here right now. You, he knew you, he formed you, he consecrated you. That means he set you apart for something special. And he appointed you for a purpose. And I'm not just making that up because it goes along with what I want to say.

The Bible tells us that. Psalm 139 verses 13 through 16. You formed my inward parts. You knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works. My soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance. In your book were written every one of them.

The days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

Oh my brothers and sisters, it is a life altering experience to connect with your God given destiny.

I mean there, there are some of you and some people who connect with that as children or teen when I read certainly have biblical examples of that. Precious little Samuel, when I read about him running around in that like maybe five or six years old running around that little tunic that his mother made, I just to go scoop him up, you know, he just sounds so cute. But you have Samuel, we have Jeremiah. How about John the Baptist who was filled with the spirit in his mother's womb? I would say that's finding out pretty early you're called of God.

Some of you in here might have a child who has a unique sensitivity to the things of God.

And if you do, it's important that you help to cultivate that. And the Bible says cheering up a child in the way he should go is the amplified as and in keeping with his particular gift in bent. And as he grows older he will not depart. But there are some children as early as 3, 4, 5 will exhibit some extraordinary sensitivity to the things of God. One of our sons was like that and we were so young in the Lord we, we really didn't know what was going on.

We thought he was just giving us a hard time.

There were certain places he didn't want to go in. Like there's this, this restaurant we used to go in. It was a lovely restaurant after church, da da da. And we'd go, I don't want to go in there, I don't want to go in there. And you know, with your first child you're a little more sensitive.

You don't want to hurt their psyche and you're all want to bruise them anyway. By the second one you're like you're going in. I'm not letting a 4 year old tell me I can't go in a restaurant. So we pull him in the restaurant and he'd be sitting on the chair. I don't like it here, I don't want to be here.

He'd slide down, he'd be sitting under the table, I'd be fine. Suit yourself. Here's bread's crumb, here's a breadstick. Bon appetit. You know, it's just like he's just, he's just trying to exert his will over mine.

That's how I, I thought he was, what he was trying to do. But I found also what he would spend a lot of bit a lot of time with my mom and dad and they had their little routine and one of their routines was going to this Italian deli. And whenever they would try to go in that Italian deli, Josh would pull back on my mom's arm and said, I don't want to go in there, I don't want to go in there. And of course she loved that man. She scooped him up.

Oh grandma, when you don't have to go in there, you come sit with grandma. My dad be rolling his eyes you're going to make that kid a sissy, you know.

So what we ended up, what we found out about that particular deli, yeah, they were selling mustachiol in the front, but in the back, all kind of bad stuff was going on. And you know, as we grew and he grew and we learned about the different kinds of giftings and callings, it just became clear to us that he had a prophetic bent. Not as a prophet to tell the future, but if you have a New Testament prophetic bent, you can read a room and you tend to pick up things that are broken and wrong. And even as a little guy, he could pick up Italian, we call it Schiavo. Something's wrong here.

He had that ability. And if you have a child that exhibiting those abilities, just as important to cultivate that and understand it. Because like my husband and I, we thought it was something different. Children who have a mercy gifting, that tends to come up really early as well. Just a compassion that you don't know where it comes from.

You know, it's good to cultivate that, but that's a whole other thing. For most of us, we discover what God has called us to do as a journey, right? It's a journey of discovery. Some get it late in life, a la Moses. 80 years old.

I was actually listening to, you know how you remember certain days for me was the day JFK was shot, the day that planes wrecked into the Twin Towers, and the day I heard God tell me this, I was listening to a podcast, it was portions podcast from Scott Volk. And he was talking about Moses in the burning bush. And I was just thinking to myself, I was thinking, my goodness, he was 80 years old when he really stepped in to do the thing he was called to do. And no sooner did that thought get out of my head and the spirit of God spoke to me in that quotable way in here. And he told me, and neither have you stepped into the thing that I've called you to do.

That was five years ago. So I'm in my 60s, serving God a long time. And I gotta tell you, that made me pretty excited to know that there was still more more for me here. Doesn't matter how young you are, when you get started or in the middle or at the end, there's always enough time to do what God has called you to do.

So let me ask you, why were you born?

Why are you here?

Do you know? It's not random.

You're appointed, you're consecrated, and you're appointed.

Verse 6. Then I said, ah, Lord God. Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth. Why is Jeremiah concerned about his ability to speak? Well, 99% of a prophet's job description is talking, so you can understand that.

Why is he concerned about his age? Because all the prophets he knows about are old guys. You got your Moses, Samuel lived a long time. You got your Elijah, your Elisha. So as far as he's concerned, his youth and his inexperience as a speaker disqualifies him from the office of a prophet.

He leads him to this conclusion. I can't do this. But I will tell you that although God will tap into your natural abilities, he will always pull you beyond them because that will keep you continually dependent upon him. Once we get it in our heads that we can do whatever we do in and of ourselves, it's a pathway to disaster.

If any success or quality of life Michael and I enjoy now, it's because we never really know what we're doing. And we always have to say, I don't know what to do. And we always have to get into the Word, and we always have to get onto our face and say, I don't know how to do this. We're supposed to do. How do we raise our kids?

How do we do this? How do we. I don't know what to do. How do. Financially, I don't know what to do.

Man, that is such a safe place to be. Such a safe place to be. Don't ever be ashamed to feel, I don't know what to do. Perfect. He'll tell you what to do.

Verse 7. But the Lord said to me, do not say I am only a youth, for to whom all I send you, you shall go. And whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord. And maybe some of you might hear that and think, oh, my God, the Lord will deliver me.

I don't hear it. I hear like, I'm going to need to be delivered. There's going to be trouble. That's how I hear that, Right? And indeed, the Lord would.

Would deliver him. But let me tell you, the Lord's definition of deliverance is different than our definition of deliverance. Because Jeremiah would be chained and flogged and Jeremiah would be thrown into a muddy cistern. He'd be kidnapped and taken to Egypt against his will. He was denied the companionship and love of a wife.

The Lord said, you can't get married, can't have kids. This generation's doomed. Not the companionship of a wife, not the joy of a child. And people make fun of him and call him the weeping prophet and the Lamenter. And I'd write a sad book too, if that was my story.

Verse 9. Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, behold, I have put my words in your mouth. See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and break down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant. I don't know how God's words got in Jeremiah's mouth.

I don't know if he had a vision or if it was a visitation. But I can tell you it is a marvelous thing to be touched by the Lord and have him put some of him in you to do what he's called you to do. And through God's word. God's word coming out of Jeremiah's mouth, what would he do? He would pluck up and break down.

He would destroy and overthrow, and he would build and he would plant. God's word is the instrument through which he does all things.

His word is the instrument through which he does all things. All things. And God said, let there be light. And God said, heaven and earth shall pass away, but my. My word shall never pass away.

And let's make note that the fall following there was four bad things, four to two of bad things, right? There was. There was building and planting. That in the midst of this judgment, which would be harsh and painful, Jeremiah will also offer messages of the God of God, messages from God of hope and comfort. There's probably not too many of you in here who don't have Jeremiah 29:11 memorized.

Plans to prosper you, not to harm you, plans to give you a hope. Plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope, and plans to give you a future. They aren't the only words of comfort, but they are among them.

Verse 11. And the word of the Lord came to me saying, jeremiah, what do you see? And he said, I see an almond branch. Then the Lord said to me, you have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it. The significance of this verse is lost to us in English.

It means much more in Hebrew. One of the things you have to know is that Anathoth and Jerusalem, then and now, there are a lot of almond trees growing. The Hebrew word for almond tree is Shakade. The Hebrew word for watching is Shakad. And he was telling Jeremiah, what do you see all around you, Shachead.

Every time you see a shakade, remember Shakad. Whenever you see an almond tree, remember I am watching over my word to perform it. And just as the almond tree is blessed bare in the winter, and then comes the bud, and then comes the flower, and then comes the fruit, so you shall watch my word. It'll look sometimes like it's bare. But whenever, whenever you look at that shakade, I want you to know that Shakat, I am watching over my word to perform would be as if you were living on the west coast, maybe in San Diego or some city that's not on fire.

Glory be to God.

And you're right on the Pacific Ocean. And the Lord called you to something and he said to you, marcella, what do you, Marcelo, what do you see out your window? And you said, I see the Pacific Ocean. Everywhere I look, I see the Pacific Ocean. He goes, I have called you and I want to know that.

Want you to know that every time you see the Pacific Ocean, I have specifically called you. It's that kind of word association. Everywhere he goes, he sees the Pacific Ocean. Then don't ever doubt that I haven't specifically called you.

Let me circle back to my mom. I'm actually going to be closing up because I want some altar time today.

Just like the Lord poured out his mercy on the Israelites, even in the midst of their distress, he poured out his mercy on my mom.

She did make it out of that room, and she did make it to the ambulance and into the surgery and out of surgery. And she lived to the ripe old age of 80. Feels kind of biblical, right? 70 and 80, by reason of strength. We were very grateful for that.

And no one ever batted an eye anytime she said she didn't feel right. Signs. Come on, Ma, let's go.

But I want to make this personal right now, just for you. We heard what Jeremiah was called to do and the context in which he was called. What is God calling you to do and what is the context in which he's calling you to do it? And I'm not talking about vocational ministry.

The majority of you in here are not going to make your living as a professional ministry. Jesus said in the church first, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers and evangelists. To do the work of the ministry. No, to train God's people to do the work of the ministry. You have a calling that's just as holy and spiritual as anybody on staff, for whom that is how they earn their living.

There's a reason you were born.

Can I have the worship team come up?

And I'm going to say something right now. And it's. It's figurative. But for those of you who it is for, you will know exactly what it means.

The time has come now, where it's.

It's not okay just to be in the right building or the right room. You must be in the right chair.

Jesus is coming soon.

And when he comes, you want him to find you doing exactly what he consecrated and appointed you to do. And for some of you, it'll be very consistent with the life you're living as a homemaker or a tech person. I never know what those are called, but there is some purpose you're alive that you must connect with.

What is hindering you from doing that? Well, it's the same things that always hinder us, right? Philippians 3, 13, 14. Brothers and sisters, I, Paul, do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. The it in the context is who he is in Christ.

But one thing I do, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Jesus Christ. That is not just forgetting the unpleasant things. It is forgetting past successes. Can I tell you something right now? Mike and I could coast it to eternity.

I mean, we are who we are. It's unlikely we're going to rob a liquor store, kill somebody. I mean, it's just probably not going to happen, huh? But I'm not going to coast into heaven, because right here it says, if Paul is straining toward what is ahead, if he's pressing on toward the goal that to me those verbs imply effort, then I'm going to strain and I'm going to press, no matter how long I've been doing this. And again in Hebrews 12:1.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders us. That hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Well, what is hindering and or entangling you? It's time to throw it off and look forward to.

The Lord doesn't alter the past. But if you will give him that mess, that sin and that hindrance, if you'll give it to him, he will turn it into a superpower, not something that's holding you back. You know, Michael and I, this story is, I would say, 40 years old. We're just a young couple in church. My goal was to be a good mom and wife and a, you know, good Christian.

Michael wanted to be a good provider, good husband, good father. And we were sitting in church one day, and it was the end of the service. I don't remember what the service, what the ministry word was. I'm sure it was connected in somehow. And all of a sudden, our worship pastor got up and he start playing this song, and I. I was looking for it, like, on, like, where you look for songs.

It was like itunes and Spotify is that thing. And I couldn't find it. So I connect. I con connected with his wife. I said, hey, you remember the song from 40 years ago?

Blah, blah, blah. She goes, yeah, Ellen wrote it. I said, oh, my God. I said, I just. I don't know if we've ever told you how much it changed my life, but here are the words.

And it has a beautiful melody that I would butcher, so won't even try that. But here were the words. God, you are so dear to me. You're my life. You're everything I really need.

You're my life. Fill me with your glory and your life. I give to you all that I am today. I am yours. I am yours.

To be used by your strong hand. I am yours. And Michael and I were sitting there, and during that chorus, I am yours. I am yours to be used by you. He grabbed hold of my hand, and both of us at the same time just stood up.

And we just meant that with all of our hearts. We just gave our lives. Whatever you want, we're yours. And I could tell you we were surprised when the song was over and we opened our eyes and we were the only two people standing up. We kind of thought everybody would pop up for that one, but it was.

It was what it was. And you know what? That moment didn't sustain our lives serving Christ, but that moment gave us a divine kickstart in serving him. I want to give you that opportunity tonight. I want to give you an opportunity to hear his voice and let him touch you.

I want you to ask yourself, am I doing what I was consecrated and appointed to do? You've got to get rid of those past hurts. I know that's hindering some of you. You've got to get rid of those. Put it back and look ahead.

You got to strain and press ahead. He'll take that hurt. He'll turn it into something. He'll turn you into Superman. So the worship team has a perfect song to pray.

And I want you to do whatever the Lord tells you to do. I'm going to hang around the altar because although he told me that I hadn't yet entered into the thing that I was born to do, maybe he'll tell me tonight and I'm going to hang around the altar to find out.