Sermon Jeremiah 4:11–12, 22–28 Consequences of Sin

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Sermon Jeremiah 4:11–12, 22–28 Consequences of Sin

First Presbyterian Church of Ocean City

September 11, 2016

            This is my fourth sermon in a series entitled “Jeremiah, Prophet to the Nations.”  We started with God’s selection of Jeremiah, before he was even born, for this important work.  Then we heard his warning not to put our trust in false gods and material things because, ultimately the only person who can save us is God.  And last week Jeremiah told us that the nations of the world are held in God’s hands just as a lump of clay is in a potter’s hand, and can be shaped and molded into anything he wants.  Of course God could just start over again destroying the creation he started.  What would that be like?  Will God do it?  We will answer these questions, 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)

            When God created the world it went something like this.

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.

            God’s first act of creation was to send his spirit, his wind, his breath to hover over the chaos.  That is how God created the world.  If God chooses to destroy the world and start over this same spirit, wind, breath would return.

Jeremiah 4:11 At that time this people and Jerusalem will be told, “A scorching wind from the barren heights in the desert blows toward my people, but not to winnow or cleanse; 12 a wind too strong for that comes from me. Now I pronounce my judgments against them.”

23 I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty;

            The spirit, wind, breath of God would come to reverse creation and return the world to being a lump a clay in God’s hands.  The world would be formless and empty.  The only thing remaining would be God’s spirit.

            In creation God created light with his first decree.  He spoke light into existence.

Genesis 1:3 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.

            But if God was to reverse creation this light would be extinguished.  And if there is no light the darkness would return.

Jeremiah 4:23 I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty; and at the heavens, and their light was gone.

            In creation God gathered the waters into oceans and separated it from the land with another decree.  With this God created the land and ocean and boundary between them.

            Genesis 1:9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

            But if God chooses to reverse creation the land would be no more.  It would appear to us like this.

Jeremiah 4:24 I looked at the mountains, and they were quaking; all the hills were swaying.

            And God decreed during creation that crops would grow on the land when he said this.

Genesis 1:11 … “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. 12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

            But if God reverses creation and starts over things will change.  All the plant life would die off and all animals would starve.

Jeremiah 4:26 I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert; all its towns lay in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger.

            In creation God made the birds of the air and the fish in the ocean, and all living things.  And God said that all of this was good.

Genesis 1:20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

But if God reverses creation these things will be no more.  All living things will die.

Jeremiah 4:25b every bird in the sky had flown away.

And finally in creation God created all of us, women and men.  He created us in his image.  And he told us to be fruitful and multiply.

Genesis 1:27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them;  male and female he created them.

But if God reverses creation and starts over we will be no more.

Jeremiah 4:25 I looked, and there were no people;

            So if God chooses to start over he can reverse creation and everything we know including ourselves will cease to exist.  Is this something that God might do?  Or is there something about our creator God that would prevent him from reversing creation?  Here is what God said to his Prophet to the Nations, Jeremiah.

27 This is what the Lord says: “The whole land will be ruined, though I will not destroy it completely.

            So God is not going to reverse creation.  God is not going to destroy what he has already done and start all over again.  This is good news.  But we are not completely off the hook.  God has a plan and will implement it.

            The problem in Judah during the time of Jeremiah was that the people were not worshiping God and obeying God’s commands as written in the law of Moses.  The Book of the Law had been lost and discarded in a storage room in the Jerusalem temple.  For generations it was forgotten.   People began worshiping things they made instead of the creator God.  Children were not taught biblical morality.  Adults were ignorant of God’s wisdom.  And as a result they grew further and further away from the God of their ancestors.  Here is how God described the situation.

Jeremiah 4:22 “My people are fools; they do not know me.  They are senseless children; they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil; they know not how to do good.”

            The people have abandoned their God for generations.  No one knows or obeys God’s law anymore.  No one worships or participates in the feast.  No one even knows who God is. So what can God do in this situation?  God has decided not to start over and reverse creation.  So God needs to reeducate his people and convince them that obeying his law as recorded in the Bible is in their interest.  To do this he had the Book of the Law found in storage and read by King Josiah who implemented a program for people to read and obey it.  And God sent a prophet, Jeremiah, to call the people of God to obedience.  If the people repent, turn from their evil ways and embrace God’s law as their own moral code, their creator will richly bless them.  But if the people of God refuse to repent, ignore God’s law, and follow their own moral code then there will be consequences.

            The same thing is happening today.  A half century ago American children were taught from the Bible at home, in church and sometimes in school.  Through this Christian education we developed a biblical moral code for our lives.  We know what we are supposed to do.  And we know when we fall short and need forgiveness.  But many young people today in the rising generation were not educated in biblical truths by their parents.  Many never received Christian education in church.  And many have never read the Bible.   All they know about scripture is what they hear from popular culture:  Christians are intolerant.  They consider the Bible to be antiquated and filled with myths.  Many people have simply forgotten about the Bible all together. Here is what it looked like in Jeremiah’s day.

Jeremiah 4:22“My people are fools; they do not know me.  They are senseless children; they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil; they know not how to do good.”      

            In Jeremiah’s day God decided to let his people experience for themselves the consequences of sin.   As a direct result of their disobedience God will allow the Babylonians to conquer the nation, destroy their cities, and carry them off to exile in Babylon.  Then God’s people will know the cost of disobedience.  And in their desire for God’s blessings to return to Judah, they will repent and return to God.  They will confess their sin, and receive God’s forgiveness.  Their relationship with God will be restored. And they will return to rebuild their homes and cities.

            Will this also happen to us?  I think it might.  There are storm clouds on the horizon.  Fifteen years ago today terrorist destroyed the World Trade Center in New York, damaged the Pentagon in Virginia, and died in a plane crash in Pennsylvania.  This was just the first shot in a war we are still fighting.  In World War Two we were blessed with a quick victory and renewed post war prosperity because then we were a Christian nation, faithful and obedient to God.  But today after fifty years of walking away from God and ignoring God’s law will we be so blessed?  Of will we suffer the way the people of Judah did in Jeremiah’s day.

            I think that the war with Islamic terrorism will not go as well as we expect.  And eventually we will realize that this is a consequence of turning away from God.  Circumstances will get bad enough that America realizes that turning its back on God was not a good idea.  When that day comes I think the people of this nation will return to their God.  They will return to church and begin to live their lives according to biblical principles once again.  They will realize what they have done and repent.  And then we will experience God’s gracious love and forgiveness. Let’s pray.

            Lord God we are concerned for our nation.  It seems to be turning its back on you.  We fear that in order to get us back we may have to suffer the consequences of sin for a time.  But we trust that when we eventually turn back to you, your love for us will lead you to forgive us.  And so we pray this in our savior’s name, Jesus Christ.  Amen.