Called

Called, Anointed, and Appointed: Jeremiah 1:4-10

Our Young people are seeking relevance and purpose for their lives. They want to know is this all that there is or is there more to what I see in my school, community and even in their own family.

The Ideal Places for God’s Use

In The Presence of God - Psalm 16:11

“In Your Presence is Fullness of Joy; At your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

I want to be in God’s space. In God’s space there is extreme, utmost joy.

Called, Chosen Of God in His will

I Timothy 1:11-12 Paul shared with Timothy that he was thankful to Christ Jesus who enabled him for that he found him faithful, putting him in the ministry.

Young people will God find you faithful first in a personal relationship and then in the service that he is leading you to do. Will you be faithful?

Youth should Remember God in the Days of their Youth

Ecclesiastes 12:1 – Remember now your creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come and the years draw near. Remember means= Always be mindful of the God who created you and never forget the source of your life, the center of all joy and my beginning and my ending.

Young means energetic, vibrant, strong, adventurous, experimental, learners and fresh

The youth also belong to God; You don’t have to wait until you are old to start serving the Lord.

Serve God with that energy, serve him with that vibrancy, serve him with that creativity, and serve with that willingness to want to know who he is. God can use you.

Psalms 8:2 = Out of the mouths of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength (praise)

Matthew 21:16 – You have Perfected Praise

Praise Produces Power. While others were rejecting Jesus it was the young people who were crying out Hosanna

Children throughout the Bible

Moses was delivered as a child and his sister followed him down the river and she brought him right back to his mother

Josiah – Youngest King of Judah at the age of 9 that brought God back to be worshipped

Samuel – Before he was born, Hannah dedicated him for service to the Lord

Daniel- Served God in his youth and prophesied to the nation

The three Hebrew Boys were teenagers in captivity under Babylon but yet held on to the Lord even if it meant their life.

John the Baptist in conception leaped at the hearing that Jesus the Christ would be born

Jesus came to this earth as a child and taught learned men at 12 and said I must be about my Father’s business.

Jesus raised Jairus' daughter.

Admonished to the Parents Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a Child in the Way He/she should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.

Dorothy Nolte – Children Learn what They Live:

If a child lives with criticism he learns to condemn

If a child lives with hostility he learns to fight

If a child lives with fear he learns to be apprehensive

If a child lives with ridicule he learns to feel sorry for himself

If a child lives with jealousy he learns what envy is

If a child lives with shame he learns to feel guilty

CONTRAST

If a child lives with encouragement he learns to be confident

If a child lives with tolerance he learns to be patient

If a child lives with acceptance he learns to love

If a child lives with approval he learns to like himself

If a child lives with recognition he learns that it is good to have a goal

If a child lives with sharing he learns about generosity

If a child lives with honesty and fairness he learns what truth and justice are

If a child lives with security he learns to have faith in himself and those about him

If a child lives with friendliness he learns to that the world is a nice place to live in

If you live with serenity your child will live with peace of mind.

Prophet Jeremiah

Called – Means I have been summoned by God for a specific service/ purpose

God has made a decision about the direction for my life.

Problem: He is not supposed to be a prophet he is supposed to be a priest because his father was a priest, his granddaddy was a priest and now he is breaking the tradition.

What do you do when everyone expects you be something else than what God has called you to be.

Some call Jeremiah the Reluctant Prophet because serving a prophet was much more demanding than serving as a priest.

The Priests’ job was predictable:

You had the job description written out for you. The instructions were the same everyday:
sacrifices to offer
unclean people and animals to exclude from the camp
cleansed people to reinstate in the church,
official ceremonies to observe,
a sanctuary to care for
a law to teach.

The Prophet’s Job

You never knew from one day to the next what God call you to do

The priest were concerned about conserving the past traditions, the prophet goal was to change the present so the nation would have a future. When the prophet the nation headed in the wrong direction his job was to call them back to God.

Priests dealt with the externals of dealing with outward appearances of thing clean and unclean while never touching the hearts, the prophet wanted to change the hearts.

Priests didn’t minister to crowds often but to individuals, but the prophet is being sent to the nations and usually the people didn’t want to hear their message.

Priests’ belonged to a special tribe and had authority and respect, but the Prophet came from any tribe and had to prove their call.

Priests were supported from the sacrifices and offerings of the people, but the prophet had no guaranteed income. Jeremiah would have a much easier way to just be priest. Offerings were one thing but preaching the word to hardhearted people was another story.

The time that he preached was a time of rebellion

Jeremiah had to tear down before he could build up. He had to root up before he could plant. Too many ministries are organizational structures that really don’t belong and should be torn down. Some plants are taking up space and bearing no fruit. Jesus said Matthew 15:13 “Every plant which my Father has not planted will be uprooted.”

Any servant of God who finds himself or herself too weak to serve needs to consider these questions: 1) Has God called? The he will equip you. 2) Are you obeying the

commandments by faith? He God will protect you. 3) Are you sharing the Word? Then God will accomplish his purposes no matter what the people say.

The Message that Jeremiah had to Preached was Dangerous

Jeremiah did not always preach a feel good message. The people called Jeremiah a traitor. Jeremiah would be beaten, persecuted, arrested and more than one occasion his life was in danger. We live and go to churches where we want to have entertainment

And preaching has been the best way to get good advice rather to get what thus saith the Lord.

God is will raise up some young Jeremiahs who will do what God tells them do.

Jeremiah was Consecrated/Anointed

God sanctified him – God set him apart, made him completely devoted to God

God touches his lips- He puts the words of God on him. In other words when I speak I am only to speak what thus saith Lord. If it is not of God I need to shut up, If it is of God I am suppose to speak it. Prophets only spoke when God gave them something to say.

You are an ambassador of Christ, you are the official sent forth to announce the message of the one who sent you. You belong to God
You exist only for the purpose for which you were called
You possess all the authority and power of the One who sent you
You are sent with the message of the Sender. The message is not your own.

Jeremiah was Appointed

Means to be fixed, securely placed, established, stable, set, concentrated, prepared.

Young people if you are going to work for God will set you up. Present your body a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service. God want to use you to reach the nation.

Don’t be afraid.

Be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord for ye know that your labor is not in fine.

Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might.

You can do all things through Christ that strengthens you.