Sermon – Jeremiah 1:4–10 Chosen By God

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Sermon – Jeremiah 1:4–10 Chosen By God

First Presbyterian Church of Ocean City

August 21, 2016

            I beginning today a sermon series entitled “Jeremiah, Prophet to the Nations.”   Jeremiah spoke to the nations of the world at a time of turmoil.  And with war, violence in our streets, and global terrorism we too live in a time of turmoil.  And so today the nations of the world need to hear from God.  They need a prophet who will lead them through this time of death and destruction into the new thing that God is about to do.  Jeremiah’s words and actions have been written down and preserved for us for such a time as this.  And we will get to them, but first let’s pray.

            “Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification.  Amen.”   (John Calvin)

            The seventh century before Christ began during the time of Assyrian domination of large territories including Judah and it’s capital, Jerusalem. The Assyrian empire had dominated the region for generations.  The Kings of Judah, although descended from David, were little more than puppet rulers.  They even allowed the Assyrians to place carvings of their gods in the temple Solomon had built in Jerusalem.  The Lord God of Israel had almost been forgotten.

            But by the end of the 7^th century Assyria was in decline.  And for a brief moment the nation of Judah was free.  God raised up for the nation a great king.  His name was Josiah.  Josiah took advantage of their newly found independence to restore the Jerusalem temple.  The old Assyrian idols were removed.  And during the renovations a scroll was found in a storage room.  When they opened the scroll they read these words.

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.  3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.

            They realized that the Lord God of Israel was actually the creator of the world. They brought the scroll to King Josiah and as they read it they realized also that this was the long lost book of the law of Moses.  They realized that the nation had stopped obeying God’s law.  There were no annual feasts and festivals as proscribed by God.  There was no worship.  Children were not being taught God law.  And so Josiah ordered that the law, the Torah, be read and obeyed throughout his kingdom.  And a renaissance of faith in God began.

            But the political independence of Judah was not to last.  Pharaoh led the army of Egypt north to capture the nation of Judah.  They wanted to engage in the lucrative international trade that came up the Kings Highway from Ethiopia through Egypt, passing Jerusalem before heading toward Damascus.  They also wanted the Mediterranean port of Joppa.  In 609BC Egypt and Judah met on the battlefield.  King Josiah was killed and his army destroyed.  Judah became of vassal state of Egypt.  Pharaoh placed Jehoiakim on the throne in Jerusalem.  But this did not bring peace to region.

            General Nebuchadnezzar led the army of Babylon against the Egyptians and defeated Pharaoh in the decisive battle of Carchemish in the summer of 605BC.  At the conclusion of the battle Nebuchadnezzar returned to Babylon to be crowned king.  Judah became a vassal state of Babylon.  On March 16, 597BC Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, surrendered to the Babylonian army.  Jehoiachin was exiled to Babylon along with thousands of Judeans.  Left behind were the poor and needy, the widows and orphans, the disabled and anyone Babylon didn’t want.  And Babylon installed Zedekiah as their puppet King of Judah.

            Into this situation God sent a prophet to the nations.  Let’s see how God called him to this work.

Jeremiah 1:4 The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,

    before you were born I set you apart;

    I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

            God had chosen his prophet for the nations before he was even born.  Jeremiah was to be an important part of God’s plan for the world.  Jeremiah was chosen to bring God’s word, and what God reveal to him, to the nations of the world.  Jeremiah had been chosen as a prophet.  And God’s decision to choose Jeremiah came even before he was conceived in his mother’s womb.  God had already chosen Jeremiah when he created the world.  Jeremiah was to be an important part of God’s purpose and plan.

            God has a plan for the world.  And we are part of that plan.  The part we will play was chosen for us by God before we were born, before we were conceived, before creation itself.  We were selected to do something very important for God.  This is what Calvin called predestination.  We are predestined by God to serve in His plan for creation.  Predestination in no way limits our freedom.  We are free to choose to ignore God if we want.  We can choose not to be part of God’s plan.  But why would we?  There is a purpose for our lives.  That purpose is to be part of what God is doing in the world.  We live out our purpose in life by being a part of God plan.  If we walk away from God, then there is no plan and no purpose for our lives.  But if we follow God, and do what he says, then our lives have a purpose.   And with a purpose we have a reason for our existence.

            So let’s turn back to the book of Jeremiah and see what his reaction is to God’s purpose for his life.

6 “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.”

            Who?  Me?  I’m just a teenager.  I don’t know anything about being a prophet.  How can I be a prophet to the nations?  To which God responded:

7 But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord.

            So whatever God has planned for us, He will equip us to carry it out.  We will have the gifts we need to do what God wants us to do. 

            I was never a writer.  I went to college to study math and physics.  I managed businesses and worked with computers.  I never wrote for a living.  But God’s plan was for me to be a pastor.  So I was trained in seminary and nine years ago began writing sermons every week.  I am still not a real good writer.  But somehow each week God tells me what to say to you.  It took me long time to figure out how I fit into God’s plan.  But once I did I found purpose in my life.

            Nine years ago I was ordained by National Capital Presbytery as a Minister of the Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).  Let’s listen to young Jeremiah’s ordination to the office of Prophet to the Nations.

9 Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”

            The message that Jeremiah is to bring to the nations of the world is that it is the Lord, God of Israel who created you.  And as your creator He has the ability to destroy you and create something new.  All kingdoms and nations and states are temporary.  They are created by God to achieve God’s purposes on earth.  So long as they are useful to God, God will sustain them.  But when a nation is no longer useful to God then it will be wiped away and replaced with something new.

            This message was to be delivered to King of Judah, who had the responsibility to care for the widows and orphans, the poor and needy, the disabled, all who Babylon had left behind.  This message was also to be delivered to the nations surrounding Judah, and the great Babylon itself.  God is the creator of all nations.  All nations have the responsibility of following God’s direction.  If nations are useful in carrying out God’s plan, God will sustain them. If nations choose to ignore God, God will destroy them and establish new nations in their place.

            This warning is for all nations of the world, even those that exist today.  God’s words as spoken by Jeremiah are for America.  We are to listen for God’s voice.  We are to be part of God’s plan.  God gives our nation a purpose.  If America is useful to God in rolling out His plan then God will sustain it with his mighty power.  But if America is no longer useful to God he will replace it with something that is. 

            This was the guiding principle of the original European settlers here in America.  They believed strongly that they had been chosen by God to settle this land.  And they believed that the land they were entering was the promised land, the land God was providing.  They saw themselves as participants in the plan God has for all of creation.  And so it was their faith that prompted them to settle a new land. Keep this mind as you select leaders for America this November.

            So what have we learned?  All of us and all the nations on earth are created by God for a purpose.  We are part of God plan, chosen before we were born.  If we are useful to God in implementing that plan God will sustain us.  If we are not useful God will destroy us and create something new. 

            I urge you to live your lives according the plan God developed for you before you were born.  Pray, worship and read the Bible to understand what that plan is for you.  And then lead your lives according to lives you were chosen to live.  Do this and your lives will be blessed, full and rich with promises.  Let’s pray.

            “Grant, Almighty God, that as thou hast not only provided for thine ancient Church, by choosing Jeremiah as thy servant, but hast also designed that the fruit of his labors should continue to our age, O grant that we may not be unthankful to thee, but that we may so avail ourselves of so great a benefit, that the fruit of it may appear in us to the glory of thy name; may we learn so entirely to devote ourselves to thy service, and each of us be so attentive to the work of his calling, that we may strive with united hearts to promote the honor of thy name, and also the kingdom of thine only -- begotten Son, until we finish our warfare, and come at length into that celestial rest, which has been obtained for us by the blood of thine only Son. Amen.” (Calvin http://biblehub.com/commentaries/calvin/jeremiah/1.htm)