God Has Great Plans for Our Future

Many people seem to have a preoccupation with their future. Let’s go on a journey through the ages.

The high school student is working to prepare himself for college to get a degree, with the hope of getting a job which will provide satisfaction and financial reward. Some students are interested in getting involved in an apprenticeship program in an area that excites them. Or maybe they’re looking toward a technical institute to better prepare them for a potential job. Some are wanting to be involved in full-time Christian ministry. Questions that run through their minds might be: should I get involved in church work now or wait until I’m older or out of college? What if they I want to be involved in missions overseas or in a different area of the nation?

It doesn’t stop there. What about the young families who wonder how the bills will be paid? How will they be able to help their children go to college? What about weddings? What about the vehicle which is showing more and more signs of wearing out? Can I afford the time to be involved in the church? Should I teach the class that my child will be in next year or should I take a little time off?

And it continues to those in the middle age years. Did I choose the right career? Should I consider venturing into something new? Should I retire? If I do, should it be 55, 62, 65, etc.? Should I consider backing off in my church activity or my work? Should I really plug in now, since I may have something more to contribute?

And on it goes. Those who are older may wonder how long they will be able to maintain their household on their own. Should we move to a retirement complex? Should we downside our living quarters? What about any equity we might have? How should we pass it on? Can I still be involved in my church?

In case you haven’t gathered yet, nobody is ever absolutely certain what their future holds while on this earth. The tragedy is that some can become so paralyzed by uncertainty about the future that they are of no value in the here and now.

Yet there is great hope for all of us. There is One Who does know the future! Our Lord not only knows it, but He wants us to realize that His plans for our future are bright and full of promise in Jesus Christ.

Here’s what I would like for us to all remember:

God Has Great Plans for Our Future.

The intent of the passage we’ll be looking at today was primarily to the people of Judah, in particular to those who were exiled in Babylon. But there are some principles that are echoed in the New Testament, as well.

If you recall, there were three deportations out of Jerusalem into Babylon. This is why we see King Jehoiachin’s (or Jeconiah’s) name mentioned as one who was deported, earlier in the chapter. We also see Zedekiah’s name spoken of as the current king of what was left of Judah. So, we can better understand that this section of Scripture is intended for those who went out with the first group of exiles.

Bloom Where You Are Planted. - 29.4-9

Jeremiah 29:4–9 (NASB95)

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. ‘Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. ‘Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’ “For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream. ‘For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord.

Verse 4 appears to be the beginning of the letter to the exiles already in Babylon. It’s not difficult to identify with their concern and bewilderment as they were now in a foreign land with a people who spoke in a language that was not at all familiar to them. They most likely remembered all of the promises about God’s blessing and protection and a homeland. Some of them may have even realized that all of this was taken away because of the nation’s disobedience and rebellion. Some may have been genuinely confused due to what the false prophets had been saying. It is possible that they might have thought that those false prophets were actually men of God and had promised protection. Yet, here they found themselves in exile in Babylon. Something wasn’t right about their situation. What exactly was in their future?

Even after disobedience and sin, God provides opportunity for restoration and reconciliation. In these verses, we see some specific instructions that may not have made sense to many Jews. One was that they were told to get on with life. How could they? Because God had promised them that there was to be a future. They were going to be used of God. Thus, the people were told to settle down and establish themselves. They were to live as if that was where they would be for some time. There was no need to mope and hang their heads. They were not to go around in mourning, but rather do something constructive. In other words, Get busy! When you cannot undo the past, you deal with the present and prepare for the future. Just the fact, that if the Jews would follow those simple instructions, would show evidence of a change of heart. But how could they know they were to have a future?

Look at Jeremiah 29:6 “‘Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.”

That’s right! Get married and have children. Then provide spouses for the children when they’re ready to marry. Keep increasing in number. if God’s people had no future on this earth, they might as well stop having children and simply prepare to die. We see that God is letting them in on the truth that they need to be fairly numerous so as to rebuild the land which was being destroyed because of the nation’s sinfulness. There needs to be enough people to settle back in their homeland so that they are not overrun by wild animals and other nations.

In addition, they are to assimilate themselves into the Babylonian nation in which they found themselves. That means that they are to pursue the good of the Babylonian empire. They are to do whatever they can to make the Babylonian nation prosperous. For if they do, they will also benefit.

Again, to the Jew, this might not make a lot of sense. However, obedience to God may not always make a lot of sense from our perspective, either. Yet, if we could see through God’s eyes, we would immediately obey.

What does it mean to you and me today to “bloom where we’re planted”? It very simply means that we are to live our life to the fullest for the cause of Jesus Christ. We cannot sit back and wait till all the conditions are perfectly aligned before we live for God. We cannot wait until we achieve a particular accomplishment before we serve God. We are to serve Him right now and live for Him right now in the situation in which we find ourselves.

If we are facedown in the mud, then we need to stop wallowing in the mud. We need to work with God to get ourselves cleaned up so we can serve Him. If we have walked into a rope trap, snagging our feet, finding ourselves dangling above the group with a feeling of absolute helplessness, we need to allow God to get us down and become obedient by choosing to walk in the footsteps of Jesus the rest of the way.

We do not have the luxury of saying, “Woe is me. I’m in a real mess, so I cannot serve God.” That would be what Satan would want you to do.

Neither can we go back to the “good ole days.” We can’t go back to the way things were by simply clicking our ruby slippers together. Neither could the Jews go back and find their nation untouched. Things change; life changes; people change; mistakes are made—life goes on.

If we choose to pout or gripe or isolate ourselves rather than serve God, in loving obedience, we sin. If the people of Judah would have refused to settle down, plant gardens, eat, marry, have children, seek the prosperity of the Babylonian Empire, they would have compounded their sin even more. Like the exiles in Babylon, we need to bloom where we are planted.

Blessings From God’s Promises. - 29.10-14

Jeremiah 29:10–14 (NASB95)

“For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. ‘Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. ‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. ‘I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’

These verses give affirmation to the previous section. In the previous verses, instructions were given. Now we see what is behind the instructions. God desires to bless His children.

The people needed to be reminded that because of their sin, they would have consequences to face. There would be seventy years of exile in Babylon. The people would be cut off from the land of milk and honey. They would be cut off from experiencing living in the land promised to Abraham and all his descendants. They would be under the rule of a people who did not understand or appreciate their way of life.

That is often what we need to be reminded of in our lives. This is not intended to continually slap us across the face, but is rather a reminder that what we we sow we will reap. For every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction. There are consequences for our disobedience. However, God reminds us, as he did the Jews, that He will fulfill His “gracious promise.”

As you read through verse 11, we see that God is reminding the people of Judah who are in exile that He knows the big picture. He knows what His plans are for His people. God does not want to harm His children.

God was letting the exiles know that they will have a hope-filled future after the exile. Even though the false prophets were suggesting a quick deliverance, God was stating that it would not be quick, yet it would happen. God had not forgotten any of His children.

Yet, God requires repentance for sin. The people will one day call upon God. They will seek God with all of their hearts. And when that happens, God will listen and present Himself to the people in power.

This is the same for us today. We, however, live in an age of grace. Still, in order for God to bless us as He desires, there must be repentance for sin. To simply call upon God as a fire escape is not enough. To plead for His help just to get through a particular situation is hollow. There must be a seeking after God with the whole heart. We must want to be in absolute harmony with God.

When we repent, we also must understand that God is not waiting for us with a giant spanking stick to get His divine point across to us. Instead, we see throughout the Bible, a picture of God Who is looking constantly for us to come back to Him withHis arms open wide, welcoming us.

Conclusion

Let’s consider something from the New Testament, specifically from Luke 15.11-32, which is commonly referred to as the parable of the prodigal son.

That young man knew what was right and what was wrong. He was like so many who grew up in the right environment, yet made some wrong choices. It would have been much easier for this son to burn all the bridges behind him, never to return home. One wonders if he subconsciously knew his father’s heartbeat. He might have known that his dad would accept him back, yet he couldn’t be for certain. After all, he was still his father’s son.

So, after everything fell apart in his life, he decided to head back home with a speech prepared and rehearsed in his mind. You can imagine as he walked homeward over the miles that he kept going over what he was going to say, for he knew he didn’t deserve to be received back.

But I want us to consider Luke 15:20 ““So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.” The father must have been looking every single day for this son. It wasn’t just by accident that he saw him coming a long ways away. He probably had been anticipating with great longing that day when his son would return.

But look at this father. He had no pretense of trying to appear dignified and proper. He was not going to demand the last drop of blood, forcing the son to grovel in repentance. Not at all! The father ran to his son, threw his arms around him, and kissed him.

That seems to be the picture of our Lord Jesus Christ when His children come back to Him in repentance with a desire to follow Him with all their hearts. And as the body of Christ, what a challenge for us to respond the way Jesus responds when a sinner repents.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to bloom where we are planted and be willing to receive the blessings of God’s promises, regardless of what they may look like. Yes, God does have great plans for you and me, as well.

This passage was intended for the exiles of Judah who found themselves in Babylon. However, my prayer is that this message can also apply to anyone here or online who might need that affirmation that God loves you and wants the very best for you. This message is for anyone here who needs to repent of sin, no matter how big or small that sin may be.

Is the fact that you’re not dealing with a particular sin keeping you a prisoner away from God’s blessing? If it is, recognize that God is looking everyday for you, hoping to be able to run and hug you and let you know that you are still His child and that He still wants to use you in His kingdom.

God Has Great Plans for Our Future.