Today, we continue in the series.
Study in Jeremiah standing tall today is part four in our series.
He faithfully proclaimed God's message for 40 years.
He did everything God asked him to do.
He remained faithful and obedient to God no matter what.
He connected, he served,
he gave, he invited,
he loved God, he loved people,
he lived a good life, he always put God first.
You would think someone like that ought to live in
a large brand new home, three-car garage,
a loving wife, three talented healthy children,
no sickness, a huge bank account,
a successful career, and enjoy a perfect life, right?
Well, at least he should be appreciated and respected,
right? But Jeremiah didn't get any of that good stuff,
much less respect and appreciation.
Not because of his lack of faith or his disobedience,
because he was consistently obedient and faithful to God.
God sent Jeremiah to warn Judah to turn away from worshiping idols.
Jeremiah was given the job to deliver a very unpopular message,
a very convicting message,
one that caused him great mental pain,
a message that caused him to be hated by his own people.
But Jeremiah faithfully preached that message for over 40 years,
without seeing anyone change their heart and follow God.
I'm not sure how he did that.
I'm not sure that I could do that.
But the people didn't want to hear it anymore.
They had hardened their heart.
They were not going to change,
and somehow they needed to shut Jeremiah up.
Jeremiah chapter 18 and verse 18.
Then certain ones said,
come, let's make plans against Jeremiah.
It can be a dangerous thing to speak the truth to
people who don't want to hear the truth,
to speak the truth to people who can't handle the truth.
Standing tall is not the easiest thing to do.
A plot, a conspiracy was being formed to silence Jeremiah.
Verse 18. Then certain ones said,
come, let's make plans against Jeremiah.
For instruction will never be lost from the priest,
or counsel from the wise,
or word from the prophet.
Come, let's denounce him and pay no attention to all his words.
Now, we're not talking about a simple disagreement here.
These people are out to destroy Jeremiah,
whatever it costs.
Their plans include to spread lies about him,
to get the people to turn against him,
to bring legal charges against him of blasphemy and treason,
and then finally to bring a plan to assassinate him.
They were planning to use
three groups of influential people to make all of this happen.
Verse 18. For instruction will never be lost from the priest,
or counsel from the wise,
or word from the prophet.
They were going to use the priest,
the wise, and the prophet.
These priests represent the corrupt religious authority.
The wise are the intellectuals and the advisors.
These prophets were the false prophets of that day.
They would combine all of their influence and all of their power
to bring down this one man of God, Jeremiah.
They thought that if they could keep him quiet,
that they could continue to do what they were doing,
and if they only knew just how wrong they were.
This is about 20 years into Jeremiah's ministry,
and the years of rejection and mockery
were beginning to take their toll on Jeremiah.
Jeremiah is a godly man, but he's still just a man.
Listen to his prayer for those who conspired against him in verse 22.
Let a cry be heard from their houses
when you suddenly bring raiders against them,
for they have dug a pit to capture me
and have hidden snares for my feet.
But you, Lord, know all their deadly plots against me.
Do not wipe out their iniquity.
Do not blot out their sin before you.
Let them be forced to stumble before you.
You deal with them in the time of your anger.
We can almost come to terms with Jeremiah's prayer
by realizing that he's basically asking God
to bring the judgment that God had pronounced on them
for their disobedience.
Jeremiah is praying what he had already warned
would happen to them if they did not repent.
But still we struggle with this kind of prayer and rightly so.
I mean, would it be right for us to pray that way?
Should we ever imitate this prayer of Jeremiah?
The answer is no.
I don't think we have a clue what he went through,
what he suffered, what he endured,
yet he still remained faithful.
The Scripture tells us that God hears the cries of those
who suffer for his name.
Psalm 3417, the righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,
and rescues them from all their troubles,
but to pray that God would not wipe out their iniquity,
but to pray that God would not blot out their sins.
No, that's not right.
And as awesome as Jeremiah was, he is not our example.
There was another prophet who came after Jeremiah.
Like Jeremiah, he spoke the truth to the people
who did not want to hear his truth either.
He spent his whole life helping and healing
and loving the less fortunate, yet he was also despised.
The priests and the wise and the false prophets
conspired against him too.
They turned the people against him also by spreading lies.
They accused him of treason and blasphemy also.
They also plotted to assassinate him,
but instead of praying to not blot out their sins,
instead of praying to not wipe out their iniquity,
he prayed, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.
That's the example that we should follow.
This is what Jesus taught, and this is what we should do,
Matthew chapter 5, verse 43.
You have heard that it was said, love your neighbors
and hate your enemy, but I tell you,
love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
And the apostle Paul continues this same teaching
in Romans chapter 12.
Bless those who persecute you.
Bless and do not curse.
Friends, do not avenge yourselves.
Instead, leave room for God's wrath,
because it is written, vengeance belongs to me.
I will repay, says the Lord.
But if your enemy is hungry, feed him.
If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
For in so doing, you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.
Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.
You see, as Christ followers, as Christians,
this is how we are taught to respond.
But it's not always easy, is it?
We don't always respond that way in traffic, do we?
We don't always respond that way on social media, do we?
And I'm sorry to say, your pastor
does not always respond that way either.
May God help us to be humble and obedient as Christ followers.
Then God told Jeremiah to return to the potter's house.
Remember the potter's house?
But this time, not as a spectator, but as a customer,
God told him to take some of the giver's
and to take some of the people who were in the potter's house.
And God told Jeremiah to return to the potter's house.
God told him to take some of the Jewish elders
and some of the leaders with him to the potter's house.
And this was a demonstration of his faith in God,
because Jeremiah knew about the plots and the conspiracies
against him.
Jeremiah 19, verse 1, this is what the Lord says,
go and buy a potter's clay jar and take
some of the elders of the people and some of the leading
priests and go out to Ben Hinnom Valley near the entrance
of the potter's gate.
Proclaim there the words I speak to you.
Say, hear the word of the Lord, kings of Judah
and residents of Jerusalem.
This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, says.
I am going to bring such disaster on this place
that everyone who hears about it will shudder,
because they have abandoned me and made this a foreign place.
They have burned incense into other gods.
Then you are to shatter the jar in the presence
of the people going with you.
And you are to proclaim to them, this
is what the Lord of armies says.
I will shatter these people and this city like one shatters
a potter's jar that can never again be mended.
So Jeremiah takes the Jewish leaders
to this valley near the potter's gate.
This is where the potters worked.
And this is where the broken pottery was thrown away.
This is Jerusalem's garbage dump.
And with great courage, Jeremiah delivers God's message
to the leaders.
And then he finishes his message with a very powerful object
lesson.
He smashes the clay pot into many pieces,
demonstrating what God is going to do to the city
and the people because of their constant disobedience
and idol worship.
Last week, we talked about how the potter
can take some messed up clay and remold it
into something useful.
And that is possible as long as the clay is soft.
That is possible as long as our heart is soft.
But when the clay becomes hard, when our heart becomes hard,
it cannot be remolded.
For the people of Judah, their heart had become hard.
They had rejected God too many times for too long.
And for them, it was too late.
And I don't say this to scare anyone or to guilt anyone.
But the opportunity to make things right with God
will not always be available to you.
Now is the right time.
Now is the right time for you to become a Christian.
Now is the right time for you to make things right with God.
Now is the right time for you to be baptized.
Now is the right time for you to come back to God.
None of us are guaranteed tomorrow.
None of us are guaranteed another time.
None of us are guaranteed another time.
Today, before you leave, is the right time.
Standing tall comes with a price.
Jeremiah faithfully delivered God's message
and it cost him something.
Jeremiah chapter 20 verse 1.
Pashur the priest, the son of Imre,
the chief official in the temple of the Lord,
heard Jeremiah prophesying these things.
So Pashur had the prophet Jeremiah beaten
and put him in stocks at the upper Benjamin gate in the Lord's temple.
The story that started in the potter's house
ended up with a beating and locked in prison stocks.
Not only did Jeremiah experience physical suffering
for being faithful and obedient to God,
but the stress brought emotional trauma as well.
So who is the blame for all of this mess?
And just like we do sometimes,
Jeremiah blames God.
Verse 7.
You deceived me, Lord,
and I was deceived.
You seized me and prevailed.
I am a laughing stock all the time.
Everyone ridicules me.
For whenever I speak, I cry out.
I proclaim violence and destruction.
So the word of the Lord has become my constant disgrace and derision.
He's saying that God tricked him into the ministry
and once he got him in, he overpowered him.
It's like arm wrestling with God,
and when you do that, who do you think is going to win?
But he quickly realizes that God did not trick him.
He comes back to God.
He realizes that God is so awesome
that he has no choice but to tell everyone about him.
In verse 9.
I say,
I won't mention him or speak any longer in his name,
but his message becomes a fire burning in my heart.
Shut up in my bones.
I've become tired of holding it in.
I cannot prevail.
And then listen to Jeremiah's confidence
as he begins to grow in his faith in God.
Verse 11.
But the Lord is with me like a violent warrior.
Therefore, my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
Since they have not succeeded,
they will be utterly shamed as everlasting humiliation
that will never be forgotten.
And then listen to the song of praise in verse 13,
the song that he sings.
Sing to the Lord.
Praise the Lord, for he rescues the life of the needy
from evil people.
But then listen to the contrast between verse 13
and verse 14.
It's astounding.
I believe that God wants us to hear the pain
in Jeremiah's voice.
I believe this is in the Bible to confirm
that there are both highs and lows as we follow God.
That living for God is not always on the mountaintop.
That there will be days in the valley also.
Verse 14.
May the day that I was born be cursed.
May the day my mother bore me never be blessed.
Did Jeremiah really mean that?
I don't think so.
He's not saying, why did I have to be born at all?
But I think he is questioning,
why do I have to deal with all this mess?
And it's okay to question.
Did you know Christians get depressed too?
Even preachers.
Many things cause depression.
We are still learning more about that
and what causes it.
Sometimes it's caused by mental illness
and medication is required to help
manage it and that's okay.
Depression can be very serious
and needs professional Christian counseling
and it's important to get professional help.
But there are some steps that you can take
that can also help with depression.
One of those is to connect with other Christians.
Hebrews chapter 10 verse 24.
And let us watch out for one another
to provoke love and good works.
Not neglecting together together
as some are in the habit of doing
but encouraging each other.
When we're depressed,
we'll be tempted to want to be left alone
and that's the worst thing that we can do.
We need to stay connected with other Christians
even when you don't feel like it.
Come to church on Sunday.
Get connected and be a part of a life group.
Make time to meet with other Christians during the week
if it's only just to go out and get coffee.
You need that encouragement
and that support now more than ever.
Connect with other Christians.
And then take care of yourself physically.
The last thing you want to do
when you're depressed is to work out.
The research has proven that regular exercise
helps fight depression.
Your body releases chemicals
that help you feel better when you exercise.
It's hard to get started
but doing just a little bit
will help you gain the energy to do more.
When you're depressed,
you'll be tempted to self-medicate with food.
Along with exercise,
you need to clean up your diet
and try to eat healthy.
Avoid fast food,
fried food, sugar.
Eat more natural foods,
fruits, vegetables.
You'll feel the difference.
Getting enough rest
is another important element
of taking care of yourself physically.
It's difficult but make an effort
to get a good night's sleep.
It'll reduce your stress.
Connect with other Christians.
Take care of yourself physically.
And then be thankful.
Do you want to know God's will for your life?
Here it is.
1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 18.
Give thanks in everything
for this is God's will for you
in Christ Jesus.
You might be depressed
but it doesn't mean you aren't blessed.
You can be so centered on what is bad
that you can miss everything that is good.
Give thanks.
It will help your depression.
Connect with other Christians.
Take care of yourself physically.
Be thankful.
And then most importantly pray.
Psalm 34, 17 and 18.
The righteous cry out
and the Lord hears
and rescues them from all their troubles.
The Lord is near the brokenhearted.
He saves those crushed in spirit.
Why not take the time to tell the one
who can do something about your problems?
God is faithful.
He hears your prayers.
So never stop praying.
Did you know it's okay to admit
when you're not okay?
The road to healing begins
with confession.
If you're depressed
there is hope
God will help you pull through.
Don't wait to get help.
Professional Christian counseling.
Medication when it's needed.
Christian joy is more than just feeling happiness.
It's the assurance that God is in control
and that He's at work
to work out things for the good.
Maybe one of the things that makes the story
of Jeremiah so difficult for us
is that we wish that it wasn't true.
Here he is
living his life.
He's faithful
and he's obedient to God
but at the same time he's suffering
and he's persecuted.
In our mind we've always associated suffering
persecution and depression
with doing the wrong thing.
Could it be that suffering, persecution
and depression could be associated
with doing God's will?
All of us get discouraged.
All of us at times will feel like quitting
but that's when we must look beyond our feelings
that's when we must look beyond our circumstances
and see God's master plan for our life.
It's always too soon to quit.
That's when we can say that we can see the day
that God gives the victory.
That's when we may before time will sow in tears
but in his time we will reap in joy.
Would you bow with me in prayer?
We ask this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Have you lost your hope and purpose?
Have you given up the fight?
There are times we must face defeat
and take it right in stride
for we know our Lord is with us.
He has promised to abide.
I see the day when we can say
God gave the victory.
In life or death we'll sow in tears
and reap in joy.
Have you ever felt like quitting?
Just turn and walk away.
Have your burdens grown so heavy
you can't walk on the way?
There are times circumstances say
there's no way to go on.
Even when the night looks dreary
we must live to see the fall.
I see the day when we can say
God gave the victory.
In life or death we'll sow in tears
and reap in joy.
In life or death in pain or death
in life or death in pain or death
in life or death in pain or death
we'll sow in tears and reap in joy.
God loves you.
He knows your hurts.
Go in peace.
We love you. God bless you.
