I Cannot

"If I say,

'I will not mention Him,

or speak anymore in His name,'

there is in my heart

as it were a burning fire

shut up in my bones,

and I am weary holding it in,

and

I cannot."

Jeremiah 20:9

 

 

 

At times it feels like you hear "the whisperings" of others. This may or may not be the reality, but you sense the opposition or disgust. Most of the time, its those closest to us, at other times, outsiders that don't really know you. Either way, we cannot give in and become someone we aren't for their liking, for their molding, and ultimately for their pleasure. Friends and family would have you be one way, whereas God has put Himself inside you for another Way. Sometimes these are the same, but I wonder how many times they truly are not. Again Jeremiah praises God not because of his amazing circumstances, but because He is God. Jeremiah continues to say 'for to you have I committed my cause.' Even in the midst of opposition and the hidden blank portrait people paint of you and your life, stands the call of God and His statement about you; "For I know the plans I have for you". It hurts though, it doesn't feel good when your the outsider. But, 'I cannot'. I will always be a servant of the Lord, 'I cannot' stop.

 

"Sing to the Lord;

praise the Lord!

For he has delivered the life of the needy

from the hand of evildoers."

Jeremiah 20:13

 

 

Amen.

Reworking

May we shout for praise to our King!!

"and he reworked it into another vessel"

Jeremiah 18:4

 

 

Yes Lord here I am,

mold me,

use me,

the first attempt was spoiled

But mold me again,

use me again,

Let my lips praise You!

 

 

 

Jesus, transform me into the man You want me to be

Please create an awe of You in me

I love You.

Amen.

Worship

"A glorious throne

set on high from the beginning

is the place of our sanctuary."

Jeremiah 17:12

 

 

There is a war that wages,

Its between self and God;

May He win!

May He win!

 

 

"Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed;

save me, and I shall be saved,

FOR YOU ARE MY PRAISE."

Jeremiah 17:14

 

 

Our hearts are going to worship;

Our God made us so,

So let this heart praise you God!

Let this body dance and this mind work

Let my soul sing

Yes my soul sings!

Let not my anxiety control me,

But let the Spirit bear its fruit

Much fruit!

God be praised.

Amen!

Who's Will?

We have 2 wills to follow:

 

The will of God

 

or the will of self

 

 

"and because you have done worse than your fathers

for behold

every one of you follows his

stubborn,

evil will,

refusing to listen to me."

Jeremiah 16:12

 

 

 

"give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

1 Thessalonians 5:18

 

 

 

As you see, our will produces stubborn rebellious hearts, whereas the will of God produces a heart full of thankfulness.

 

 

May we follow the will of God. Amen.

With you

"For I am with you,

to save you,

and deliver you declares the Lord."

Jeremiah 15:20

 

 

God keeps reminding Jeremiah this verse over and over throughout the book. "I am with you, to save you, and to deliver you." Its a simple statement and a reminder, but it has deep meaning and power. Jeremiah is in the midst of adversity and looking at the people he was called to lead, he sees absolutely no results, no true repentance, and to make matters worse, backsliding. That can be a crushing thing. When your invested in the lives of others, its hard to not be frustrated. We are even frustrated with ourselves left alone. Now God was calling Jeremiah to speak and prophecy against a nation that wanted nothing to do with God. An impossible task, however Jeremiah listened and obeyed and therefore God "had his back". And not only to save him, but to deliver him.

Cling to Me

"For as the loincloth clings to the waist of a man,

so I made the whole house of Israel

and the whole house of Judah

cling to me,

declares the Lord,

that they might be for me a people,

a name,

a praise,

and a glory,

but they would not listen."

Jeremiah 13:11

 

 

 

God would have us cling to Him, we would find our Home. We would find our praise, finally a true name, and in return share in His glory.

 

Israel and Judah didn't cling to God and therefore "refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, SHALL BE LIKE THIS LOINCLOTH, which is good for nothing."

 

 

When we are away from God, not clinging to Him out of proper relation, The Creator and the creature, we are ultimately "playing" god. We think we are God. Since it would require humility and "vertical awe" to have a relationship with God, the right and proper one.

 

 

Cling to Me. That is always God says here. That's His Heart and His purpose for our lives.

 

Brethen, Cling. Amen.

So Be It

"...Then I answered,

'So be it, Lord."

Jeremiah 11:5

 

 

Common threads of the book of Jeremiah is the stubbornness of our evil hearts.

 

Jeremiah shockingly understands; he "gets it".

 

"So be it, Lord."

 

Its a very simple answer, but very profound. It tells the difference between someone resting underneath the sovereignty of God and someone who is objecting the will of God.

 

There are many times I don't want it to be "So be it, Lord" , or rather "It is well with my soul" God.

 

No there are many times where I don't want to answer God like this.

 

Jeremiah was resilient , "for to you have I committed my cause" even in the midst of people who wanted to take his very life.

 

Something is either very true with Jeremiah or he is insane. That is how you take Scripture. Either its very true or very insane.

 

Maybe the people of Israel thought what Jeremiah was saying was "insane". I don't know. They didn't want to listen that's for sure.

 

Not everyone is going to listen and repent. That's a truth of the Bible.

 

But we as Christians, must continually say "So be it, Lord" and follow after His call and will for our lives. There we find our true purpose and peace.

 

"Whatever my lot, Thou hast TAUGHT me to say, 'It is well, it is well , with my soul..."





Living God

"But the Lord is the true God;

he is the living God

and the everlasting King..."

Jeremiah 10:10

 

 

 

We do not serve a God,

that is small and wooden,

nor is He contained by a molden hot tool

He is the King of Kings

and the Lord of Lords

We do not serve a God,

that bows down to us

or whistles at us as if we are dogs,

He is the Great I am

"Who shall I tell them who sent me?"

Tell them I AM sent you

We do not serve a God

that is made by humans hands

by human minds

by human desires

We serve the Living God.

The

Living

God.

These Things

"Thus says the Lord:

Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom,

let not the mighty man boast in his might,

let not the rich man boast in his riches,

but let him who boasts boast in this,

that he understands

and knows

Me,

that I am the Lord

who practices

steadfast love,

justice,

and righteousness in the earth.

For in THESE THINGS I delight,

declares the Lord."

Jeremiah 9:23-24

 

 

Steadfast love, justice, and righteousness are the things that God delights in. Not our pursuit for the world's wisdom, the world's definition of strength, and of course the world's riches.

 

Again how ironic to run after the things of the world, when the things of God are genuinely GOOD THINGS. LOVE , JUSTICE, RIGHTEOUSNESS.

 

 

Why not live for these things?

Wisdom

"Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord,

so what wisdom is in them"?

Jeremiah 8:9

 

 

Its really ironic as Christians that we "feel" obligated to learn the wisdom of the world. As if we haven't discovered the Absolute Truth of Jesus Christ, we are looking to the world for its wisdom and advice on how to live. Most of it pertains to the American Lifestyle in homes, cars, and careers. Its ironic that the Word of God stays on our bookshelf or only slightly opens on our iphones on Sunday Morning, while the entire week is devoted to parenting and work. We have the wisdom of the Lord, and yet we are constantly turning the world and asking it for justification: "Is my retirement account okay"? "I spend this amount on groceries, what about you?" We all do it. Its the comparison that not only reveals our lack of trust in God and His plan for our lives, but also the fear that is deeply embedded in each of us, which truly is the great sin of Pride. We pride ourselves on being better than the next couple next to us. 'The Next Man' , we are nowhere near his level of insanity or inferiority. That is the problem with us, we have rejected the Word of the Lord, and therefore have absolutely NO WISDOM.

 

Again how ironic it must be that we who have ABSOLUTE WISDOM, look to the world who has ABSOLUTELY NO WISDOM.

 

 

"Turn and be healed". Amen.