Jeremiah 24 & 25:The God-given Destiny

Introduction

Winston Churchill devoted the 1930s to warning his countrymen against the rising menace of Nazi Germany's unilateral remilitarization, which was being carried out in clear violation of both the Treaty of Versailles and the Treaty of Locarno. His numerous warnings and speeches fell on deaf ears. Churchill was ridiculed, mocked, and dismissed as an irrelevant babbler.

Adolf Hitler, the German fuehrer and chancellor, desired world domination. In March 1938 he annexed Austria. He next eyed Czechoslovakia with its more than three million German-speaking inhabitants. Neville Chamberlain, the British prime minister, sought peace through acquiescence, accommodation, and appeasement.

Much like the false prophets of Jeremiah's day (6:14; 8:11), Chamberlain sought peace at any price and refused to recognize the devastation and long disruption that were about to come upon his people's world.

After his second trip to Germany, Chamberlain returned to England a hero—waving the joint declaration that stated their countries would “never go to war with one another again.” In March 1939 German troops marched into Prague. On September 1 German troops entered Poland, and German bombs fell on Polish cities.

Two days later Britain and France declared war on Germany, and the world was at war again. On May 10 Hitler attacked Holland, Belgium, and France. Chamberlain resigned, and Britain installed Winston Churchill as prime minister and asked him to form a new government. The man who was once mocked and ignored is now proven wiser than anyone else in the room at that time.

I want to start with a premise in this lesson:

*What happens in our life when the way forward is not the path of least resistance?

How do we respond? Often, when we are called to do the right thing and it’s difficult, we will often delay our response or give a partial response. We will go halfway or up to the point where our response becomes uncomfortable, then we stop.

*It is those who place their desire to obey God over their own benefit that experience the fullness of God.

I look at the world around us and I see our pleasure being catered to. The food we can eat, the vacations we can take, but when we look at a story like Churchill’s, is pleasure and ease always the litmus test to the good life?

If you looked at our relationships, our media, our culture… what defines your way forward and what way forward are they actually offering? Because honestly, you are free to choose a good way forward, or you can choose an easy way.

You see,

*It is often in our lives that we have found the greatest challenge ahead because of the easiest path chosen.

Is there something that God wants you to do, but it’s difficult?

I know that politicians get a bad wrap often in churches because of how we view politics, but there are good politicians that sacrifice and serve their community, but honestly, I wouldn’t want to be a politician. Sometimes, there are some who choose to make the decision they believe is 100% right, but they face a large number of people who 100% disagree.

And often politicians make the easy choice to appease the masses and get the votes. In this, often, the right people can be voted out and the wrong people stay in. The easy path is popular and it’s why I hate politics.

*Freedom in our lives only has real, lasting value when our freedom is used to live out God’s will.

What happens when we take freedom and live like we want? Isn’t that how many of us came to a place where we cried out to God?

I remember when I was younger. I didn’t care much about my Christian walk. I had returned from the Gulf War and I decided that I could have died and there was so much “life” I didn’t get to live before I went to war.

That mentality created so many problems in my life. I did so many things wrong. I took my freedom and made a prison for my own life. It was so bad, that I thought my life was over. I asked God to save me, and He did. For that, I am forever grateful.

*Is anything ever gained in the Christian life when ease is placed before obedience?

Has anything ever been gained in the Christian life when ease is placed before obedience?

Why do you think God calls us to do hard things? Why does He put us in situations where obedience is on the line?

Let’s be honest, if obedience were always easy, everyone would obey God. It would be the easiest path. And if in the world’s opinion, God’s will was the most physically pleasurable, the most comfortable and the most profitable for our physical reality, wouldn’t the world have an entirely different perspective on following God?

But it isn’t always easy for people. I have to give up what I want for what God wants. I just want you to consider this however...

*What if obedience was designed as God’s plan to give us His very best?

What if having faith rather than answers for your future was the better option?

What if faith in Jesus was so strong in your life that you lived the way God wanted you to no matter what?

*"Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading." - Oswald Chambers

- Oswald Chambers “There are no 'if's' in God's world. And no places that are safer than other places. The center of His will is our only safety - let us pray that we may always know it!” ― Corrie ten Boom

Read more: https://www.christianquotes.info/quotes-by-topic/quotes-about-obedience/#ixzz5AbBUYTHP

“There are no 'if's' in God's world. And no places that are safer than other places. The center of His will is our only safety - let us pray that we may always know it!” ― Corrie ten Boom

Maybe, just maybe, your entire existence has been less about what your life was meant for and more about who your life is meant for. Maybe this is about who God wants you to be and not what you and I want. Maybe in the end, our decision on how to live matters.

*Two Baskets ()

CSB After King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had deported Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, the officials of Judah, and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket contained very good figs, like early figs, but the other basket contained very bad figs, so bad they were inedible. 3 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “Figs! The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are extremely bad, so bad they are inedible.” 4 The word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah I sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.

6 I will keep my eyes on them for their good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not demolish them; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God because they will return to me with all their heart. 8 “But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible, this is what the Lord says: In this way I will deal with King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land or living in the land of Egypt. 9 I will make them an object of horror and a disaster to all the kingdoms of the earth, an example for disgrace, scorn, ridicule, and cursing, wherever I have banished them. 10 I will send the sword, famine, and plague against them until they have perished from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.”

Jeremiah 24:1–10 CSB

1 After King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had deported Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, the officials of Judah, and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket contained very good figs, like early figs, but the other basket contained very bad figs, so bad they were inedible. 3 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “Figs! The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are extremely bad, so bad they are inedible.” 4 The word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah I sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. 6 I will keep my eyes on them for their good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not demolish them; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God because they will return to me with all their heart. 8 “But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible, this is what the Lord says: In this way I will deal with King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land or living in the land of Egypt. 9 I will make them an object of horror and a disaster to all the kingdoms of the earth, an example for disgrace, scorn, ridicule, and cursing, wherever I have banished them. 10 I will send the sword, famine, and plague against them until they have perished from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.”

I’ve been telling you over and over that this book is not in order. I just want to go back *to my final kings chart for a minute.

Tonight,

I won’t do this often, but I want you to be able to navigate time as we read these chapters. In chapter 24, we see Jeconiah taken captive and Zedekiah taking over. These are the final 2 kings.

Chapter 25 talks about Jehoiakim as king. As you can see, he’s the king right after Josiah.

As we read Jeremiah, we have to be mindful of the time and what’s going on. It helps us to understand the book of Jeremiah.

In this chapter, Jeremiah has a vision of two baskets, one containing good figs and another containing bad figs.

So it’s interesting. Some were carried off to Babylon and others were left in Judah. This happened in 597BC. But those who were still in Judah thought they were the ones favored by God.

But in the vision, God actually declares that the ones taken captive are really the ones He is working on.

*Just because you have an easy path, doesn’t mean it is the path God is blessing.

Because in our lives, and especially today, many of us have been taught that when good things happen, God is blessing you and when bad things happen, we blame the devil right?

I have listened to people wounded by church who have been told that if everything is going wrong in their life, that it must be sin. I talked with one person who had a church kick them out because of their hardship.

That makes sense right? Hit someone when their down. Lord forbid you show them the grace God freely offers to everyone. It is the ugly side of legalism.

*The book of Job is the reminder to every believer that we can be suffering and be exactly in the center of God’s will.

Job is

Not many pastors are brave enough to say it because it doesn’t raise church attendance, but God can use your suffering for His glory. It is the story of Job.

God can be course-correcting your life and even if you don’t want it, He wants it for you. Remember, it’s His will right?

I don’t want you to be surprised when suffering comes. Whether it’s sickness, your job, a loss, a change you never saw coming...

*“Christianity teaches that, contra fatalism, suffering is overwhelming; contra Buddhism, suffering is real; contra karma, suffering is often unfair; but contra secularism, suffering is meaningful. *There is a purpose to it, and if faced rightly, it can drive us like a nail deep into the love of God and into more stability and spiritual power than you can imagine.” – Tim Keller

Something happens to the person that realizes that their life is in God’s hands… then they realize that despite our efforts to resist it, our lives have always been in His hands.

We try so hard to find ease and safety by our own means, we wrestle with this when God wants to work in our lives.

God continues and says that He is giving a heart to the exiles to know Him. In other words for us..

I

God

*For those surrendered to God in their circumstance, God will use their circumstance to reveal His will.

God uses life to soften our hearts to His love. Even when we lose physical ease and safety, we can trust God when we don’t understand.

*Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker who, along with her family, helped many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II by hiding them. She was imprisoned along with her sister for her actions. She paid a price for doing what she believed God wanted her to do. She says this:

*“There are no 'if's' in God's world. And no places that are safer than other places. The center of His will is our only safety - let us pray that we may always know it!” ― Corrie ten Boom

Do we believe this? Do you believe that even if you are dragged off to exile, if you are in a season you don’t want to be in… God’s will is the safest place for you to be? You see, I believe we would live differently if we completely believed this.

God is using difficulty to show His heart to exiles… to those who have lost everything… Are we currently practicing the faith now that sustains us when everything else changes?

*Managing Sin ()

Jeremiah 25:1–7 CSB

1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon). 2 The prophet Jeremiah spoke concerning all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem as follows: 3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah, until this very day—twenty-three years—the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you time and time again, but you have not obeyed. 4 The Lord sent all his servants the prophets to you time and time again, but you have not obeyed or even paid attention. 5 He announced, ‘Turn, each of you, from your evil way of life and from your evil deeds. Live in the land the Lord gave to you and your ancestors long ago and forever. 6 Do not follow other gods to serve them and to bow in worship to them, and do not anger me by the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm. 7 “ ‘But you have not obeyed me’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘with the result that you have angered me by the work of your hands and brought disaster on yourselves.’

CSB This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon). 2 The prophet Jeremiah spoke concerning all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem as follows: 3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah, until this very day—twenty-three years—the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you time and time again, but you have not obeyed. 4 The Lord sent all his servants the prophets to you time and time again, but you have not obeyed or even paid attention. 5 He announced, ‘Turn, each of you, from your evil way of life and from your evil deeds. Live in the land the Lord gave to you and your ancestors long ago and forever. 6 Do not follow other gods to serve them and to bow in worship to them, and do not anger me by the work of your hands. Then I will do you no harm. 7 “ ‘But you have not obeyed me’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘with the result that you have angered me by the work of your hands and brought disaster on yourselves.’

So now we backtrack to Jehoiakim, the second king of the final four…

Jeremiah had been sharing messages from God to His people for 23 years now, since Josiah’s reign. And for 23 years, the people haven’t listened. 70 years of exile are coming for Judah and they still won’t listen.

What we understand at this point is that Jeremiah dictated a number of prophecies and sent them to Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim then burns the scrolls they were written on.

Jehoiakim now looks outwardly. He switches his allegiance from Egypt to Babylon once the Assyrian forces (including Egypt) were defeated.

It’s interesting here and interesting for us...

*It’s amazing the lengths we will go to in order to manage our sin.

Jehoiakim now tries to manage the situation by choosing one tyrant over another, but wants nothing to do with God. He is literally choosing one slave master over another slave master.

You see, we often want the same thing. We know there is this problem that God wants us to bring to Him. He’s convicting us and revealing to us the sin in our lives, but we delay, we appease and we try to maintain the life we want instead of what He wants.

But ultimately, we have an enemy that cares nothing about us and would destroy us, so we isolate ourselves from God in our sin and we are then completely vulnerable to whoever or whatever would rule us. I’ve seen people ruled by drugs, alcohol, unhealthy relationships, abusive relationships, unhealthy desires…

*Having apathy towards your sin is merely choosing who or what rules over you.

It may be what you want in a moment, but it never leads to freedom… never...

It may be what you want in a moment, but it never leads to freedom… never...

I have talked with a handful of women and seen women in relationships where the boyfriend or husband beats them, but the women stay because they doesn’t want to be alone...

Ladies, there are worse things than being alone! Don’t choose what tyrant rules over you… God is offering you life, freedom!... A relationship is not a Godly relationship if it doesn’t follow God’s will.

If relationships would be uncompromising in living out God’s will, I would see less people through the week. The common denominator is simply that someone deviates from who God has called them to be. They put themselves first and the damage is done.

*Putting yourself first is merely placing your will above all… including God.

God is calling Jehoiakim to holiness, but Jehoiakim would rather manage the tyrants in his life instead. I pray we learn a lesson from this king.

Read more: https://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/25-christian-quotes-about-sin/#ixzz5AgGlRL00

*Judgment on the World ()

CSB “As for you, you are to prophesy all these things to them, and say to them: The Lord roars from on high; he makes his voice heard from his holy dwelling. He roars loudly over his grazing land; he calls out with a shout, like those who tread grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. 31 The tumult reaches to the ends of the earth because the Lord brings a case against the nations. He enters into judgment with all people. As for the wicked, he hands them over to the sword— this is the Lord’s declaration. 32 “This is what the Lord of Armies says: Pay attention! Disaster spreads from nation to nation. A huge storm is stirred up from the ends of the earth.”

Jeremiah 25:30–32 CSB

30 “As for you, you are to prophesy all these things to them, and say to them: The Lord roars from on high; he makes his voice heard from his holy dwelling. He roars loudly over his grazing land; he calls out with a shout, like those who tread grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. 31 The tumult reaches to the ends of the earth because the Lord brings a case against the nations. He enters into judgment with all people. As for the wicked, he hands them over to the sword— this is the Lord’s declaration. 32 “This is what the Lord of Armies says: Pay attention! Disaster spreads from nation to nation. A huge storm is stirred up from the ends of the earth.”

In the midst of everything that has been seen by Jeremiah, he is given a glimpse of the events that are only described in the book of Revelation.

Why is this important? I believe personally that this is a message for us. You see the same conditions that bring judgment in Jeremiah’s day will bring judgment in ours. Nothing is new under the sun.

Is this not all too familiar to you? People depending on kings or governments who want nothing to do with God? Who don’t follow His ways and don’t care about truth?

A people who mock God and those who follow Him? Is it not familiar?

I love this country, but I love God more. Jeremiah loves his country and spends decades trying to turn it back to God. We should do the same, but… what if God brought judgment on this nation?

When we read Revelation, we see in detail what we read here in Jeremiah. What if we were here and it was difficult? I don’t want to debate the Rapture with you… but what if it’s us?

*HOW SHOULD WE LIVE?

In a world taking the path of least resistance, we are to choose obedience.

More and more we will have to disregard what is popular for what is right. In regards to sex, marriage, morality and life, people are choosing which tyrant rules them in their sin. God is calling us to freedom in obedience. You do not have to choose which tyrant. God is offering you a different choice!

*We will have to judge success and living differently.

We live in a time where people define success and a good life much differently than what the Bible defines as real success and real life! If the world is getting darker and darker, should we not get brighter and brighter? Should we not look more and more distinguished from the world around us?

*There will be times when God’s will is difficult, but it will always be worth it.

What we know is that God is going to judge the world and if we are in it when this happens, we are called to trust God beyond what our eyes see. We are not called to choose tyrants or manage sin. We are called to choose Christ.

Whether we are alive or not, a time will come when God judges the entire earth, even this nation… obedience may be difficult and the seasons of life we walk through may wound, but in the end, we will discover that the One we have been holding on to has been holding us.

* CSB Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

Revelation 21:3–4 CSB

3 Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

Revelation 21:4–5 ESV

4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” 5 And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Revelation 21:4 ESV

4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

You see, this is not just a promise for the return, but because of Jesus, because He loves you now, because He cares about your life now. There may be difficult seasons you walk through because you choose the right thing… the brave thing…

I love how Williams Gurnall sums up his perspective of the Christian life…

END

*“Let this encourage those of you who belong to Christ: the storm may be tempestuous, but it is only temporary. The clouds that are temporarily rolling over your head will pass, and then you will have fair weather, an eternal sunshine of glory. Can you not watch with Christ for one hour? “~ Williams Gurnall

Wood, Fred M.. Holman Old Testament Commentary - Jeremiah, Lamentations: 16 (p. 228). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.