In recent years we have heard alot about the "end of the world". Y2K ...when the year 2000 was ushered in and the threat of all computers crashing because they had no way of accepting the numbers 2000. We heard of a preacher, Harold Camp give us an exact date when it was all going to end, and then we had the Mayan Calendar supposedly point to 2012 as the official end of the world.
Even now, we have the "Blood Moons" to keep watch on, and yet while we hear all this, we see groups like ISIS that have rather quickly come to the forefront, the continual shakiness in the stock markets, the strength of the U.S. dollar, the Euro dollar, civilian airplanes being shot down and many innocent people killed, and the horrible spectacle of U.S. journalists being beheaded in retaliation for U.S. aggression.
And this is only the tip of the iceberg...Gay rights, government corruption, and the constant threat of wars...the list could go on and on.
So, the question is: "What should we do?"
Jeremiah the prophet of old faced situations similar to ours...a messed up nation (Judah and Benjamin) doing messed up things. Jeremiah lived in a world that was about to collapse, and everyone was off doing their own thing...living lifestyles that pleased themselves and giving no thought to what could actually happen if they didn't take the time to think through what they were doing....and consider making some changes.
Jeremiah actually "came on the scene" during the reign of King Josiah of Judah. The thing about Josiah...he wanted his people to follow the ways of their ancestors...and return to the lifestyles that would please the Lord God of Israel.
In fact, the people of Judah had gotten so far away from even knowing the Lord's commands let alone obeying them....that the Torah...the books of the Law, Psalms, and others in the Old Testament had been lost...and entirely forgotten. It was King Josiah that led the charge in discovering the old Books of the Law and brought them to the people...to begin reading, to understand, and to obey what the Lord God of Israel was wanting out of his people...that He might bless them!
The problem with the people?....they didn't think they needed it...for they were not doing anything wrong...at least in their own eyes.
So, the book of Jeremiah begins:
A Gleaning from Jeremiah 1: 1-10
" There came a message...a message for Judah...from a young man...and the words he spoke came directly from the Lord...the Lord God of Israel. The man that spoke these words was quite young, for he was approximately only 20 years of age. It was the year 627 B.C., and it was in the month of August that this message began to spread across the land.
The young man himself was the son of a Jewish priest named Hilkiah, who happened to be one of the Jewish priests in a village named Anathoth, which was in the land of Benjamin, about 3 miles northeast of Jerusalem. The young man's name was...Jeremiah.
The message of Jeremiah was directly from the Lord Himself, and Jeremiah was to proclaim this message to the people of Judah...here is how it all got started.
It began to happen, the message of Jeremiah, during the 13th year of King Josiah of Judah. Yet, the message of Jeremiah did not end there...Jeremiah continued with messages from the Lord God of Israel past Josiah's reign, through the reign of Jehoiakim (King Josiah's son), right down to the 11th year and the 5th month of King Zedekiah of Judah...when Jerusalem was captured and destroyed and all of it's people were taken into exile by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.
The way it all started for Jeremiah was when the Lord God of Israel spoke these initial words to Jeremiah himself: " I knew you...even before you were formed in your mother's womb...and even then I approved that you would be the one to declare My words...and now...this day has arrived!"
At first, Jeremiah was not excited about this whole idea, and responded: " Wait...wait a minute please! I am not ready or even qualified to speak for You...I am still a youth and have not had many experiences in dealing with life...and besides...I am not a great speaker."
Yet, the Lord God responded to Jeremiah: " I do not see you that way...so why should you? If I am saying to you...to speak My words to others...than you need to go and speak My word to others. And remember, don't "sugar coat" anything I tell you to say...don't leave one dot or tittle out from what I tell you to say....to anyone! Because you believe in Me and trust Me in all this, I will be with you through it's entirety. I will walk you safely through all the various encounters you are about to face and you will not have to live in fear...in any form that it might try and threaten you. I am with you...in all this."
Then, the Lord God took His very hand, and touched Jeremiah's lips and spoke: " My words are now in your mouth. Today our work begins...to warn the nations and various kingdoms throughout the earth. For My words that come forth from your own lips will cause some nations to be torn down and destroyed, and then nations will begin again...being planted once more, nurtured, to become strong and great."
NOTE: One thing I have noticed about men who are given the office of a prophet: A true prophet does not get excited over what may or may not take place in any given future...like a cataclysmic event that would change the way we live in the present, or reek havoc on the many.
Rather, the excitement within the heart of a good and true prophet...is when the "Beauty of Repentance" is received throughout the land, and they respond by doing so.
Then, His Peace and the future...can become bright.
And this is only the tip of the iceberg...Gay rights, government corruption, and the constant threat of wars...the list could go on and on.
So, the question is: "What should we do?"
Jeremiah the prophet of old faced situations similar to ours...a messed up nation (Judah and Benjamin) doing messed up things. Jeremiah lived in a world that was about to collapse, and everyone was off doing their own thing...living lifestyles that pleased themselves and giving no thought to what could actually happen if they didn't take the time to think through what they were doing....and consider making some changes.
Jeremiah actually "came on the scene" during the reign of King Josiah of Judah. The thing about Josiah...he wanted his people to follow the ways of their ancestors...and return to the lifestyles that would please the Lord God of Israel.
In fact, the people of Judah had gotten so far away from even knowing the Lord's commands let alone obeying them....that the Torah...the books of the Law, Psalms, and others in the Old Testament had been lost...and entirely forgotten. It was King Josiah that led the charge in discovering the old Books of the Law and brought them to the people...to begin reading, to understand, and to obey what the Lord God of Israel was wanting out of his people...that He might bless them!
The problem with the people?....they didn't think they needed it...for they were not doing anything wrong...at least in their own eyes.
So, the book of Jeremiah begins:
A Gleaning from Jeremiah 1: 1-10
" There came a message...a message for Judah...from a young man...and the words he spoke came directly from the Lord...the Lord God of Israel. The man that spoke these words was quite young, for he was approximately only 20 years of age. It was the year 627 B.C., and it was in the month of August that this message began to spread across the land.
The young man himself was the son of a Jewish priest named Hilkiah, who happened to be one of the Jewish priests in a village named Anathoth, which was in the land of Benjamin, about 3 miles northeast of Jerusalem. The young man's name was...Jeremiah.
The message of Jeremiah was directly from the Lord Himself, and Jeremiah was to proclaim this message to the people of Judah...here is how it all got started.
It began to happen, the message of Jeremiah, during the 13th year of King Josiah of Judah. Yet, the message of Jeremiah did not end there...Jeremiah continued with messages from the Lord God of Israel past Josiah's reign, through the reign of Jehoiakim (King Josiah's son), right down to the 11th year and the 5th month of King Zedekiah of Judah...when Jerusalem was captured and destroyed and all of it's people were taken into exile by the Babylonians in 586 B.C.
The way it all started for Jeremiah was when the Lord God of Israel spoke these initial words to Jeremiah himself: " I knew you...even before you were formed in your mother's womb...and even then I approved that you would be the one to declare My words...and now...this day has arrived!"
At first, Jeremiah was not excited about this whole idea, and responded: " Wait...wait a minute please! I am not ready or even qualified to speak for You...I am still a youth and have not had many experiences in dealing with life...and besides...I am not a great speaker."
Yet, the Lord God responded to Jeremiah: " I do not see you that way...so why should you? If I am saying to you...to speak My words to others...than you need to go and speak My word to others. And remember, don't "sugar coat" anything I tell you to say...don't leave one dot or tittle out from what I tell you to say....to anyone! Because you believe in Me and trust Me in all this, I will be with you through it's entirety. I will walk you safely through all the various encounters you are about to face and you will not have to live in fear...in any form that it might try and threaten you. I am with you...in all this."
Then, the Lord God took His very hand, and touched Jeremiah's lips and spoke: " My words are now in your mouth. Today our work begins...to warn the nations and various kingdoms throughout the earth. For My words that come forth from your own lips will cause some nations to be torn down and destroyed, and then nations will begin again...being planted once more, nurtured, to become strong and great."
NOTE: One thing I have noticed about men who are given the office of a prophet: A true prophet does not get excited over what may or may not take place in any given future...like a cataclysmic event that would change the way we live in the present, or reek havoc on the many.
Rather, the excitement within the heart of a good and true prophet...is when the "Beauty of Repentance" is received throughout the land, and they respond by doing so.
Then, His Peace and the future...can become bright.
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