This week's reading is from Jeremiah 3:11-22.
It is the story of God, speaking through Jeremiah, pleading for the people to return to Him. As I read this passage as part of this week's Lectio Divina, I was caught most not by the words of God, but by the voice of Jeremiah. Who is Jeremiah speaking to and how did they respond to his message of hope and restoration?
What kept Jeremiah speaking when people would not listen? How did he know for sure he was on the right track, maybe he didn't hear it quite right! Did he get discouraged because what he thought was the Word of the Lord was not being taken to heart?
My friend Mike is a fellow servant of God and a good guy, but is giving up ministry after battling people who want to control the Spirit of the Lord rather than just let it burn when and where it will. He had a real passion for ministry and an amazing church in New Matamorus, and it breaks my heart to think that he's finally giving up the ship. I know all too well the pain that comes from serving and being rejected and have on many occasions thought about joining him.
Habakkuk 1:2 [ Habakkuk's Complaint ] How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, "Violence!" but you do not save?
Jeremiah had a word form the Lord that just burned within him until he spoke to the people. God just would not let him go until he spoke for God. Being a prophet is not a good thing because the Truth, however much we say we want it, is very rarely a welcomed thing!
I suspect Jeremiah had several things going for him, I don't.
(1) Jeremiah was so thoroughly immersed in God's word, it was relatively easy to know the original from a counterfit
Jeremiah 1:9 "Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, "Now, I have put my words in your mouth."
(2) Jeremiah was filled with the Holy Spirit that gave him passion and energy
Jeremiah 20:9 But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
Being a prophet is a dangerous position and anyone is a nut case for every asking for the position. I do not claim that, do not want that, and hope I never achieve that. But in the words of the great band MercyMe I know there'll be days When this life brings me pain But if that's what it takes to praise You Jesus, bring the rain "Bring the Rain" By Mercy Me <embed src="http://www.godtube.com/flvplayer.swf" FlashVars="viewkey=92ac1e43b57340fd30d8" quality="high" width="330" height="270" name="godtube_video" menu="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" /></embed>Email Subscription: