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1/1/12 A PROPHET TO THE NATIONS

1/1/12 A PROPHET TO THE NATIONS
Jeremiah 1:1-10     Sunday, January 1, 2012
Key Verse: 1:5         Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF

“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.”

Dear Lord, heavenly Father, thank you for your love and your grace in 2011. You blessed us so much, especially with the forgiveness of sins and helping us to bear the fruits of the spirit. Lord, I also thank you for my kids spiritual growth and helping them to keep their faith and at the same time navigating the culture around them. They have been a blessing to their friends and teachers. They have excelled in their personal talents and you have given them a hope and a future. Continue to grow them into servants of the word of God and shepherds of your flock. Please fill our hearts with new hope and new possibilities to know Jesus and to see open doors of opportunity to know God and to follow Jesus. Please grant me one word of God to hold onto. I thank you and I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!

1. The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah (1-5).

Verses 1-5 read, “ 1 The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. 2 The word of the LORD came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, 3and through the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile. 4 The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew[a] you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
Jeremiah was a priest whom the Lord called to be a prophet during Judah’s last decades as a kingdom. It was a dark time spiritually, just before their sins provoked God’s redemptive punishment through the Babylonian exile. Jeremiah served during the reigns of several kings. Though some were good, and others evil (2Ki 22:2; 23:37), the Lord provided his word through Jeremiah faithfully. Jeremiah’s call and appointment was not an emergency response to a crisis, but part of God’s plan of redemption that was put into motion before Jeremiah was born. In dark times, the Lord knew Jeremiah, called him, and appointed him with great vision.

This same calling is given to all of God’s children Ro 8:28-30 reads, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.” God called me to be his son and his servant. He really wants me to reveal Christ and the power of God and the Gospel to those around me in my little portion of the mission field, NIU and surrounding areas. I have been called to be a shepherd and a 1:1 Bible teacher. I have been called to be a preacher of the word and to raise my children up as disciples of Jesus. I have been called to bear fruit for Christ, inwardly and by the grace of God, outwardly. I have been called to be a shepherd and Bible teacher in the context of the UBF ministry. Lastly I have called to be in Christ and follow him all the way to the kingdom of heaven. This is my calling.

As we begin a new year, let’s pray that the Lord may renew his calling in our hearts. There are so many forces in this world telling me to just give up and quit. Work, sleep, eat and exercise and social network, (mostly sleep). Give it up. What is the use? I can not seem to attract people to be disciples of Jesus. After trying to get people to bring the New Years in with, one person came for supper and movie. That was nice and I am thankful but the point I am trying to make is that there are very few people who are committed to come together and be unified as one. We are all doing our own thing, or we do something with the non-Christian world. This new paradigm of doing ministry frustrates me. It makes me want to give up and just live my life and be very selfish and move on, taking care of me and my own until the day that God takes me to heaven.

But now it he time that I need renew my calling. I need to have renewed vigor and renewed hope and know that when I take a stand Jesus will help me to serve his Gospel ministry, even in this new ministry context. I must renew my identity as a shepherd and Bible teacher. I must renew my calling as a servant of the word of God and disciple raiser. I need to renew my hope that my kids may grow in their living faith.

2. You must go to everyone I send you to (6-10).

Verses 6-10 read, “Alas, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” 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. 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.”

It was hard for Jeremiah to share a clear message of God’s judgment with hard-hearted rulers who were older than him, but the Lord was with him. The word of the Lord would uproot empty dreams and promises and provide the foundation for a new beginning. God’s servants must share God’s message as it is with boldness and courage. The Lord wants to make a new beginning in dark times.

In my heart I think, I don’t know how to communicate to this younger generation. I don’t know how to promote Christian unity. I don’ t know how to inspire mission, except by exerting human force. I don’t now how to pass on the mission and the vision to the next generation. I don’t even know how to invite anyone to my house and even eat dinner with us, or to a barbeque or whatever. I can speak, but can I communicate? God tells me that he will teach me how to communicate. He will teach me how to share the word of God to the hearts of the young people. He will teach me how to inspire and serve with the word of God and raise disciples among the new mosaic generation. God just wants me to open my mouth and preach and teach.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your calling. Renew my heart and let me speak your word boldly.

One Word: Appointed as a prophet to the nations




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