The Call of Jeremiah
Jeremiah 1:4-10
We will take a look this morning at the call of the prophet Jeremiah who served in one of the most painful times of the history of Jerusalem and Judah. He got to see the backsliding of the nation from the reforms King Josiah had put in place to the seige of Jerusalem to the burning of the city where the survivors were for the most part taken to Babylon in exile. Jeremiah also wrote the Book of Lamentations about this awful experience. Although the book is painful to read, it has much to warn us of the dangers of apostacy from the LORD. So let us open out Bibles to the Book of Jeremiah, Chapter one. We will begin with verse 4.
The prophecy of Jeremiah begins very abruptly. Verses one thought three were added by a later editor, possibly Baruch, to provide us some introductory information about Jeremiah. But for Jeremiah, it begins with: “Then the word of Yahweh came unto me.” Jeremiah we still young when this call came out of the blue. He was from a priestly family. So he might have been taught some of the rudiments of the Hebrew faith including the duties of the priests to which he was called by birthright. The priests were called as a class of people from Israel to attend to the altar and sacrifices of the people before the LORD. Priests interceded for the people before the LORD and provided the means of atonement for sin as well as to offer other sacrifices such as peace offerings. But this call which Jeremiah was personal. He was not called to serve the altar as a priest but to warn and intercede for the people as a prophet.
The LORD continues by telling Jeremiah had been set apart (sanctified) for this purpose while he was still in his mother’s womb for the purpose of being a prophet to the nations. This is interesting because one would think that it might have said that he was called to be a prophet to Judah and Jerusalem. But the LORD gave a wider perspective. The prophecy was not just for the benefit of Judah alone but also for and against the Gentiles. We also see here a clear indication of predestination which has caused considerable disagreement in the church. Jeremiah did not have the opportunity to exercise his “free will.” He tried to protest the call as do many who have felt the call to ministry. But he was called to be a prophet, and a prophet he would be. Considering how difficult Jeremiah’s ministry would be, it would have been hard for someone who was informed of the implications of this decision would decide to follow through with the ministry.
The LORD goes on to encourage the young prophet. He tells Jeremiah that his being a youth is unimportant. He was to go to all that the LORD sent him anyway. This included the leadership of Judah including the kings who would not at all be happy to see Jeremiah or hear the words he brought. This is because Jeremiah was spouting his own opinions of the times and giving some sort of political advice on how to deal with the dangers which the nation faced. He wasn’t called to tell them everything was OK, and that the LORD was on their side, no matter how wickedly they acted. Instead he would speak the words that the LORD Himself would put in the mouth of Jeremiah which he symbolized by touching his mouth. This seems to indicate that the LORD appeared to Jeremiah visibly in human form or what is called by the theologians, a “Theophany.”
Jeremiah was appointed over the nations first to root out, to pull down, to destroy, and to thrown down. So much of Jeremiah’s ministry was to be negative in nature. As he prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem because of the apostacy of the nation, this message would not be popular. He also prophesied about the judgment of the nations around Judah as well. He was prophesying catastrophe. But we should also not that he would later build and plant. There would be restoration for Judah after seventy years of captivity. The catastrophe would indeed be great, but in the end, a better Israel would emerge. So for all the very negative prophecies in the book, one must keep the idea of restoration in mind which would come after the punishment of the nations.
Why should we study the Book of Jeremiah today? What can we learn? Most importantly is that our times are not all that much different today here in America. Although Israel and Judah were especially called by the LORD to be His chosen people, America until recently has prided itself in being a “Christian Nation.” Those who would call themselves such are responsible to conduct themselves appropriately. The history of the United States had been far from perfect, just as the history of Israel and Judah were. But at least there was some effort to adhere to Christian ethics and principles. there have been periods of revival which have served to renew the commitment of the people to the Lord. But these days seem far behind us today. The nation has a whole committed gross apostacy. It is anti-Christian principles which are now being promoted instead. This cannot but end in judgment and disaster. It would have been better if America had never embraced Christian principles than to have embraced them and then deserted. At least the judgment would have been less severe as those nations which never knew the Lord are to be judged also. What I say here is true also of other nations which have considered themselves part of Christendom.
Where are the prophets of the Lord today. We have the so-called prophets who proclaim your “best life now.” If this life is the best life here and now, God help us in the future!” Preachers preach health and wealth. Preachers preach the American blessing. There are no shortage of Hananiah’s running round today. But where is the weeping prophet who preaches judgment upon the sins of the nation. Such people like Jeremiah are seen as traitors because they weaken the resolve of the nation. But unless the sin in rooted out and the structures of evil cast down, there is no hope for this or any nation. Then things can be rebuilt. Repent!
Even though a nation like the United States is not called in the same way as ancient Israel, we must realize that God has a nation a people called the “Church.” The Greek word for church, ecclesia, means “those who have been called out.” Christians are people especially called out by God from all the nations to serve Him. This is a high and holy calling. We are to further the cause of the Gospel by proclaiming it. Some are especially called to be preachers, others pastors and teachers. And so on, for there are many gifts of the Spirit. It is the church who must speak courageously to these times, warning the world of the immediacy of judgment as well as the hope that if one believes on the Lord Jesus Christ they can be planted and built into a new and restored Israel. We must remember that God has a purpose beyond judgment itself, restoration.
This is a time for reflection and repentance in today’s church. there is much to be reformed both in doctrine and practice. There is also the need to set priorities in these urgent times. Jude lived in troubling times also. As the church passed the torch from the Apostolic generation to the next generation, there were many things which troubled this prophet. He had earlier intended to have written to this church things concerning the common salvation. It is so much easier to talk about the unsearchable riches of Christ. We should grow in the faith. The teaching of sound doctrine is vital to the health of the church. In fact, the lack of attention to sound doctrine and holy living had led to the decline of the church. They needed to be woke up from their slumber. Jude commands them to “earnestly contend for the faith that was once and for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). The Greek word for “earnestly contend” is a word we translate as “agony” in English. Correction is painful. It is easier to preach soothing words to a church living in difficult times, We should encourage one another. But sometimes encouragement requires seeing the situation as it really is so that this hope might remain sound. There is nothing worse than putting one’s faith on an unsound foundation. So the prophet must warn not just the nation and the heathen, but the church itself.
Concerning the prophets in the church, let us now understand what the role of a prophet is. We tend to think of prophets as the speakers of “prophecy” about future events. It is true that God used prophets to address future events, sometimes far into the future. But this is an incomplete description. The Greek word for “prophet” has the idea of “to speak for” someone else. This is what the call of Jeremiah entailed. Yahweh said He would put His words into Jeremiah’s mouth. In modern times, the morning sermon should be prophetic in nature. The man of God should preach the word of God and not his own opinions. The true prophet is called by God for this purpose. No one should even attempt to seek the office of pastor or evangelist on their own, no matter what speaking abilities he might have. God equips who He calls for the purpose.
The man of God should also realize that ministry is not easy if one is true to his calling. Some people enter into the ministry for the wrong reasons. They think it gives them prestige and power. Some think it is easy. All you have to do is to get along and make people feel good. Itch their ears. Tell them what they want to hear, and you will be popular. Others see it as a means of making money. Others are lazy. But thanks be to God that the many serve the office of pastor out of love for God. Jeremiah’s ministry would bring him fame, if fame means being cast into a dungeon full of mud and being threatened with death on many occasions. He was defamed and mocked. Yet he was faithful to the ministry to which the Lord had called him to. He failed to make a single convert, which is heartbreaking to the man of God. It breaks God’s heart also, I might add. But this did not make Jeremiah a failure. The popularity of the false prophets in his day, such as Hananiah, did not mean that they were successful. In fact the LORD condemned Hananiah to death for his false prophesying. I might add that failure to have observable fruit in one’s ministry is a valid excuse for failure. Nor does being popular in the ministry and bringing many to Christ indicate failure. Success or failure in one’s ministry is whether one is faithful to the One who called him.
