PEDIGREE “FJC”
Jeremiah 9:23-24
.INTRO: An older woman was cruising a busy parking lot in her new Mercedes-Benz looking in vain for a parking space. She finally saw someone loaded with packages heading for a car, so she followed him, put on her blinker and waited patiently until he pulled out.
Just as he pulled out a young man in a sleek black Porsche zipped in to the space ahead of her. She was dumbfounded and outraged, and jumped out of her car, shouting, "How could you do that? Didn’t you see me waiting there with my signal on?"
He smiled an arrogant smile and replied, "That’s what you can do when you’re young and fast."
As the young man was about to enter the store he heard the hideous crunch of metal striking metal. He ran back, horrified, to see that the woman had gunned her Mercedes and smashed it into his beautiful black Porsche. He ran back and cried, "How could you do that?"
She smiled back at him and replied, "That’s what you can do when you’re old and rich!"
. We all like to let people know who we are don’t we.
. There were three boys sitting around one day and one said to another, My daddy is stronger than your daddy, the one he was talking to said well my daddy is stronger than your daddy and the one who had started the conversation retorted back that his daddy could beat up the other boy’s daddy. This went on for a little while. The back and forth that goes on between young boys like this. The third boy had been sitting there listening to this and finally he had something to say. He said my daddy can do all the things that your dad can do but guess what, my Momma can beat up my daddy.
. We all like to brag a little bit don’t we?
. As we look into our scripture this morning. We see that the nation of Judah had abandoned God for the most part and were worshipping other god’s and idols. They were becoming dependent upon themselves and were not trusting in God . They were becoming self sufficient in their own minds.
. Whereas in the past, their ancestors would tell the story of God and how He saved His people from bondage and slavery and how he brought them into the promised land.
. The land that they were now living in.
. They were not depending on God they were depending upon themselves.
. After all they were successful. They had good land and good crops and they had all the luxuries that the world could offer and they had forgotten where their blessings had come from.
. There’s an old Jimmy Stewart movie called Shenandoah and Stewart played a hard working farmer and the family was sitting around the table getting ready to eat and this is the blessing that the character prayed.
. “Lord, we plowed the field, we planted the field, we harvested the crop. We cooked it and put it on the table. It wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for our hard work. But we thank you for it anyway. Amen.”
. Bragging about themselves and how it was them and their hard work, their knowledge of how to work in the fields that had produced the food.
. They gave God absolutely no credit.
. Our scripture this morning talks about this arrogance that can creep into our lives and how we are to deal with it.
. Lets read our scripture: Jeremiah 9:23-24
. This is what the LORD says:
“Don’t let the wise boast in their iwisdom,
or the powerful boast in their power,
or the rich boast in their riches.
24But those who wish to boast
should boast in this alone:
that they truly know me and understand that I am the LORD
who demonstrates unfailing love
and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth,
and that I delight in these things.
I, the LORD, have spoken!
. Jeremiah was warning the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem specifically that there was going to be a reckoning.
. That God wasn’t going to put up with this arrogance much longer. They needed to come back to God and realize just who they should be worshipping and giving credit to for all their blessings.
. The first thing we see here in verse twenty three is that the intellectuals were boasting about their so called knowledge.
. God says that you’re not as smart as you think you are.
. You can’t depend on knowledge. Yet it seems that many would rather boast of their knowledge than revel in the mysteries of God.
. We haven’t changed much.
. We teach evolution as the way man came into existence.
. Our schools tell us that science reveals things that were previously misunderstood and that now we have the knowledge to know better.
. Back in 1966, the cover of Time magazine shook our world.
. It said “Is God Dead”
. The article featured a man named Friedrich Nietzche.
. Nietzche was a German philosopher who espoused that basically our knowledge and science have moved us past believing in God.
. He said “God is dead in the hearts of modern men - killed by rationalism and science.
. Knowledge is power. Have you ever heard that.
. We get prideful in our knowledge and education.
. Have you ever seen peoples business cards who after their name have BA, BS,MA,MD MAL,THD,PHD or any other title they can put on their card or storefront window or web-site.
. It seems that they are bragging about all their accomplishments and want everyone to know about how smart and accomplished they are.
. If you are here this morning and have been born again. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, I have some initials that you can and should put behind your name.
. I will share those with you here in a few minutes.
. We shouldn’t boast about how smart we think we are.
. Next Jeremiah writes that we shouldn’t boast or brag about:
. How powerful we are or our position in this world.
. The powerful were flaunting their power.
. As I read through this and thought about who God was talking about and to in this scenario I thought about the priests.
. The priests were in a powerful position.
. They were the interpreters of the law.
. What they said went.
. They could have been the ones who also had the knowledge.
. They could have been boasting saying look at us we are the smart powerful people who speak for god.
. We are important.
. I’ve often wondered why a person would spend millions of dollars to get a job that pays a couple hundred thousand dollars a year.
. Part of that could be the power and prestige that comes with the title of representative or senator or president or vice- president.
. God is telling them and us not to be so full of ourselves.
. It’s not about us.
. It never has been, it’s about Him.
. Your power or position is a blessing from God.
. We should use whatever power or position that we have to glorify Him.
. There is a responsibility that comes with a powerful position.
. Jesus modeled that responsibility for us in the upper room when He washed the feet of the disciples.
. The all powerful was not boasting about who He was.
. He was modeling for us the humbleness that should be found in positions of power and prestige.
. In Mark 9:33-35 we see a conversation between Jesus and His disciples.
. 33After they arrived at Capernaum and settled in a house, Jesus asked his disciples, “What were you discussing out on the road?”34But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest.35He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.”
. They wanted to be the greatest. They wanted to be first.
. They wanted the power and prestige that they thought would come by being Jesus’ right hand man.
. Man what power would come from that .
. People would recognize them and give them respect.
. They could boast in their power.
. Jesus said no.
. Approximately 600 years before, God had told the people through Jeremiah, Don’t boast about how powerful and prestigious you are.
. Be humble. The same thing that Jesus taught. Humbleness and humility.
. Gods gives us one more directive here about boasting.
. He says don’t boast in your riches.
. Don’t brag about how much money you have.
.I know that everyone here this morning has known someone who wants everyone to know how much money they have.
. People who do that are calling attention to themselves to say Look at me. Look at what I’ve got.
. This is what’s important to me. Money
. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t believe that there is anything wrong with money.
. It’s the love of that money that is wrong.
. The pride of what you have.
. Making sure that everyone knows that you have money.
. I believe that Christians that are wealthy are wealthy for a reason.
. Along with money should be the gift of giving.
. Giving back to God part of what He has blessed them with.
. While it may be all that some can do to tithe, God has blessed some with wealth in order to fund and finance His kingdom growth.
. Don’t brag about your wealth, use it for the glory of God.
. While God tells us not to brag or boast about our wisdom or power or wealth, He does say that there is one thing we can and should boast or brag about.
. HIM
. Look at verse 24: 24But those who wish to boast
should boast in this alone:
that they truly know me and understand that I am the LORD
who demonstrates unfailing love
and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth,
and that I delight in these things.
I, the LORD, have spoken!
. God says if you want something to brag about, brag about me.
. I give you something to boast about.
. Back in 2002 Bonnie Raitt had a hit song called lets give them something to talk about.
. It was a love song but when I read this scripture this song came to mind.
. That what God is saying here.
. I am giving you something to talk about.
. Talk about Me
. Brag about Me
. Boast that you truly know me.
. Boast that you have a relationship with me.
. Boast that you know who I am and what I Am.
. I Am The Lord.
. I am God
. Talk about my love and grace for mankind.
. Talk about who I am and my righteousness.
. Boast about your righteousness in Me and what I can do for everyone.
. God says that He delights or is pleased when we boast about our relationship with Him.
. Basically this is the great commission of Jeremiah.
. Tell others about Me, God says
. Some 600 or so years later Jesus says the same thing.
. As you are going through your life, boast about me.
. Don’t get caught up in bragging about who you are or what you have, boast about what you have found in Me.
. I talked to you earlier about all these titles that people have.
. I you are here this morning and are born again and a follower of Jesus I have a degree or a pedigree to bestow upon you.
. Instead of MD or PHD or THD I suggest that your let people know that you are a “FJC”
. Follower of Jesus Christ.
. God says boast in me.
. Boast in Jesus Christ and what He has done for you and can do for others.
. When you boast, boast in Jesus.
.Invitation
. *** To my Christian brothers and sisters, thank you for taking the time to read this sermon. I ask that you take another second and score this for me. I am always open to feedback so that I can continue to grow in the proclamation of God’s word.
May God bless you as you continue to strive to walk worthy of His calling.
