For I Know the Plans I Have for You

Introduction

Today, we are going to look at a text that is fairly popular and often quoted. You’ve probably heard the eleventh verse of this passage quoted many times. You may have seen it on a decorative pillow or displayed as wall art.

Today, though, we are going to look at the beginning of , and explore how God offers encouragement through this scripture, but how that encouragement may not come in the form we think it ought to.

We are going to primarily deal with verses 4-14, but it is important that we understand exactly what is going on as Jeremiah is writing this letter.

Context

As we approach , we are entering into a scene where Nebuchadnezzar had deported significant amounts of people from Jerusalem to Babylon. There are people who’ve been left in Jerusalem and there are those who’ve been taken captive into Babylon.

Perhaps those who have been left behind in Jerusalem believe that they’ve received some sort of favor from God, and if they believe that, it’s likely that those who have been taken see themselves to be under the curse of God. When we get down to it, however, this news isn’t all that good for anyone who hears it. God is bringing judgement on the people of Israel, and everyone is going to feel it in some way.

So, Jeremiah writes to those who have been deported, and as a prophet, writes from God to the people.

vv. 4 - 7

God is responsible for the deportation of the people.

In verse 4, The Lord is clear that he is responsible for the deportation of his people to Babylon. He planned the exile and he put it into motion.

To clarify, God didn’t deport them for his own entertainment, nor is God a tyrant. In this situation, the people of Israel got themselves into this predicament. They opted for disobedience and God has opted to discipline them.

We know that suffering comes as a consequence of sin, but that still isn’t to say that if you are experiencing suffering that it’s a direct result of some sin. So, don’t get caught up in tracking your trespasses in an effort to figure out why you are where you are.

Do, however, take time to reflect on what your contribution could be. Sometimes, you will find an answer and other times, you may not. Either way, self-reflection is an important part of this life.

Regardless of what you find, though, the rest of this text still remains relevant. You can bake a cake, or one can show up at your doorstep. Either way, you still have to decide what to do with it.

It doesn’t matter how you landed where you landed, you now have to figure out how you’re going to live in light of your circumstances.

God tells the exiles to make themselves at home.

The Lord is preparing these Israelites for an extended stay in Babylon, and even tells them to set up shop there. In his instructions to them, the Lord further reiterates the longevity of their stay. For people to marry and then to have children who will marry points to a significant amount of time. We know later in this text that it will be 70 years.

We aren’t to imagine that the Israeli exiles were suddenly pleased and excited to be in Babylon. It isn’t as if the Lord gave these instructions and everything immediately changed for them. Absolutely not.

There was work to be done.

So what do you do when you’re in a place you didn’t expect to be in? How do you respond?

Some of us are inclined to react by curling up and retreating. Others of us are inclined to fight against the circumstance in which we’ve been placed. Others are compelled to try and find a way out of their situation.

None of those things, though, are what God commands of these Israelites. He tells them to cultivate their circumstance.

If I can give you a simplistic example: It’s no secret to most people that I absolutely despise snow. It’s nice when it falls, but awful when it sticks. Where I am from, we get a little more snow that what this area typically does, but since it’s still North Carolina, even an inch can shut everything down. So, when it begins to fall, I know that it won’t be long before I can’t get out of the house or go to the store. I know that I am about to lose some freedom, and I don’t much care for it. Even so, when the snow begins to fall, I can’t stop it. It’s a reminder of my powerlessness, and I have to figure out what to do. Am I going to hunker down for days and complain about the weather? Am I going to somehow think I can stop it by my grievances? Both of those would be absurd. Instead, I am tasked with figuring out how I might brave the cold and live with it. After I come to grips with the weather, I may venture outdoors to play in the snow with my family. I may enjoy a bowl of snow cream. Perhaps I begin to see beauty in something that I don’t really like that much.

That’s where the Israelites are, and that is what God is commanding them to do. Their complaints or worries about exile won’t remove them from it. To sit and mope won’t, either.

We can get so caught up in trying to find a way out of our circumstances that we fail to flourish in them.

How are you responding to your circumstances today? Are you fighting them? Are you so focused on getting out of them that you can’t focus on honoring God in them?

Let it not be said that we were so intent on moving ourselves that we wasted days, months, years, or even a lifetime neglecting our relationship with our Creator God.

I don’t want to look back in ten years and see all the opportunities I missed to know God better because I was so focused on the things around me that I lost site of who he is.

I don’t want to look back and have to come face to face with the fact that people didn’t hear the gospel, because I was so caught up in my own perceived misery that their eternity took a back seat.

Stop waiting for your circumstances to subside, and start living for Jesus in them. Your joy isn’t determined by your circumstances, anyway. Pray continuously for your situation, and for the environments that you wish you weren’t in. When those environments thrive, you will, too.

vv. 8 - 9

Do not seek answers from man.

As the Israelites are dealing with this exile, there are individuals among them who claim that they prophesy in the name of the Lord, and they’re telling them that it will all be over soon. Hold on just a little longer and all will be well.

These diviners are offering that they have the answers. Answers to the questions of how they might get out of their situation. Answers to how much longer they might be in their situation. They are false prophets and they aren’t offering godly advice. This certainly nips the bud of the prosperity gospel, doesn’t it? It kills American folk religion that offers a way out of our circumstances if we just do the right things.

What’s more is that the Israelites are seeking this kind of advice from these false prophets. We all like to hear what we like to hear, don’t we? When someone offers advice or counsel that makes us feel good, we tend to return to them for more. When we don’t hear what we want to hear, we don’t always react kindly. The Israelites are hearing something that they like from these prophets, but it isn’t the truth.

If what others are telling doesn’t match up with what God is telling you, don’t listen, even if it sounds good. Further, God will never lead you in a direction that is contrary to his Word.

vv. 10 - 14

God has a good purpose.

Here is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. We’ve made it down to verse 11, which is one of the most commonly misquoted verses in scripture. Unfortunately, this verse has been used for quite some time to push the idea of American folk religion and Moralistic Therapeutic Deism, which ultimately boils down to the idea that God’s ultimate goal is to make you happy here on the earth. (can elaborate if time allows).

Too many people are buying the lie that God exists only that we may never suffer, or that we may always be delivered from the situations we find ourselves in because of the curse of sin. That’s not it.

When we read with that mentality, we are in effect ignoring the rest of the book. Jeremiah is a book that is all about God uprooting the plans of his people. Take solace in this verse, but do not take false comfort.

Yes, God had a plan for Jerusalem. Yes, God had a plan for the Israelites. Yes, God’s plan was for their good, but God’s plan absolutely involved them being exiled for seventy years. God’s plan involved discomfort. God’s plan involved difficult circumstances. God’s plan involved things that the Israelites may not have seen coming. But God’s plan and purpose were truly and fully good.

Don’t let the devil tell you that something that God says is good isn’t.

So, where’s the hope then? If God is not promising deliverance from specific circumstances, if not comfort, where is the hope? If God isn’t going to take me out of this difficult time, then what am I to do now?

Our hope is in Christ.

We still find hope in the promises of God, including this one. God’s promises are true, and our God is incredibly faithful.

We can find comfort in Christ in our circumstances.

We can find rest in Jesus. recounts Jesus as saying that in this world we will have trouble, but take heart, he has overcome the world. Jesus has overcome it all. He is a Savior who knows our experiences and who understand where we are coming from. He’s felt what we feel. He’s hurt where we’ve hurt. He’s wept just as we’ve wept.

God tells his people that they will call to him and he will listen. We have a great mediator, Jesus. We can talk to the Father whenever and wherever. Our Savior is our Wonderful Counselor. He is Emmanuel, God with us. You don’t have to suffer alone. Call upon the Lord.

We can find hope in the message of the gospel.

When God tells the Israelites that his plans are for their good, he means it. God’s purpose is to bring them closer to himself, even though it means a time of hardship. God’s ultimate purpose is to bring his people into closer communion with himself.

For us, this is the process of sanctification - God continuously working on us to make us more like his son, in preparation for eternity.

In , we find a New Testament example of scripture that speaks for our good, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is for our comfort. We hear from Paul that all things work together for the good of those that love God, who are called according to his purpose. Once more, this speaks to our becoming more like the Savior.

As God speaks to the Israelite people, he promises restoration, but he is pointing to more than just a return to their original land. God is promising an ultimate sacrifice that is going to completely flip the system that got the Israelites where they are now in the first place. He’s pointing to Jesus.

You may ask yourself: So what does that mean for us? What is God’s promise to me?

God’s promise is not that you’ll get the job. The promise is not that you’ll get into that school you applied to. God’s promise is not that you’ll get the girl or the guy. God’s promise is not that your job will get easier. He doesn’t promise health and wealth. God doesn’t promise that your hopes and dreams will be fulfilled. He doesn’t promise that your plans won’t be crushed. The promise is not that all of your problems will dissipate and that life will become far easier for you than it is right now. No!

The promise is that the God who raised Jesus Christ from the dead to conquer death, hell, and the grave will raise you up with him, and that is ENOUGH FOR US.

Is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ enough for you? Is the cross your completion? Is Jesus your living hope? If he’s not, then you will almost certainly never find rest in these troubled times.

Deliverance comes through the cross of Christ, and the promise that we will one day see him face to face should be more than sufficient. The grace that only Christ can offer is the good news, and deliverance from sin and shame is far greater than any other deliverance we could seek or ask for.

So when the winds blow, do not be discouraged. When the waves crash, do not be overcome. When the world around you seems to be falling apart, do not crumble with it. This may not be where you thought you’d be. This may not be what you wanted, but you can rest knowing that no matter how hard, how long, or how frightening things may seem, there is a God who has a plan that is for your good, whether you see it now or not.

Even when you don’t see it, he’s working. Even when you don’t feel it, he’s moving. Even when it seems like you are at the end of the road, he has made a way. Take heart, church, our God knows the plans he has for each of us.

They may bring difficulty and discomfort. Your life may not be what you thought it’d be, and you will have to rest in knowing that God knows better than you do.

So, serve our savior. Get to work sharing the love of Jesus. A lost world is depending on it. Flourish where the Lord has you now. A whole generation is depending on you to leave them with a church that is further along than it was before you got here. Our time is short, and God’s plans will come to fruition. Don’t sit on the sideline sulking. Don’t give into the lie that God has abandoned you. He’s probably closer than you imagined he could be. He is present in the ease, and he is present in the difficulty.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Trust him. Obey him. Seek him.

Invitation

Maybe you’re here today and you’re going through something that has taken you by surprise. Maybe you’ve had trouble dealing with it. Maybe you haven’t found hope in Christ, or you may not even know him.

Utilize the altar, or build one where you are.

God, forgive us for believing that your plans are supposed to line up with ours. Forgive us for believing that you owe us something. Forgive us for our doubt, and remind us that your plans are beyond our understanding. Remind us of you good purpose - to make us more like our wonderful, merciful savior. May we not forget that everything is worth losing for a closer walk with you, our Creator and Sustainer. Thank you for Jesus, who was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died an unfair death, and whom you raised from the dead on that glorious day. It is in his name that we pray. Amen.