As I sat with my mother yesterday exclaiming that God and her were the reasons my life has been so blessed, I saw tears roll down her eyes. She said,”Darron, you don’t know how many mothers would want to hear what you just said.” She also said, “Every parent, not someone who births a child but a parent, ever wants is your good. That’s all I wanted for you. I wanted you to grow up to be a man, and you have done that.” Finally now as a parent, I have some insight into what my mom said. I also know about my disobedience and the whippings she put on me to straighten me out.
In our text, Jeremiah 29, today, we hear and see a parent reminding His children in the midst of their discipline that He has their good in mind through this hardship. It conjures up that proverbial, “this is going to hurt me more than it hurts you” statement that I and many others heard when we were about to receive consequences for our wrong doing. My experiences don’t quite capture what this parent is saying. This parent, well, let me give you the background.
In Jeremiah 25, listen to what this parent told His children.
“4 And though the Lord has sent all his servants the prophets to you again and again, you have not listened or paid any attention. 5 They said, “Turn now, each of you, from your evil ways and your evil practices, and you can stay in the land the Lord gave to you and your fathers for ever and ever. 6 Do not follow other gods to serve and worship them; do not provoke me to anger with what your hands have made. Then I will not harm you.”
7 “But you did not listen to me,” declares the Lord, “and you have provoked me with what your hands have made, and you have brought harm to yourselves.”
8 Therefore the Lord Almighty says this: “Because you have not listened to my words, 9 I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,” declares the Lord, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. 10 I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”
In essence, I have warned you and warned you. I sent people to tell you to change your behavior, but you did not, so you will be captured for 70 years. Note God’s faithfulness in fulfilling His Word in response to our disobedience. God is faithful in disobedience as well as in obedience. The Israelites were brought into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar just as He said.
When we are going through our discipline, some times we lose sight of what the goal is for the consequence. God, in His faithfulness, did not want the people to lose heart nor settle into the thought that this was all that was planned for them. He reminded them that being in captivity was not the end. He reminded them that He had told them after the 70 years that He would come back for their release recharting their course back to fulfill His plan to use them to bless all nations, but He did not want them to be fooled by what false prophets were telling them, so He sent Word to them.
This brings us to our text today, Jeremiah 29
8 Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. 9 They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the Lord. 10 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
When life has gotten tough, these verses bring me through. It reminds me of how God relates to His people, of which I am; therefore, I take solace in these verses where He provides a conditional promise about my life and future.
“11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”
God had a plan to prosper me and not harm me, plans to give me HOPE and a future. The future is the next minute, hour, year and beyond this life. Isn’t this what we all want? God says the only way for me to experience His divine plan for my life is to seek Him with all my heart. That gives me Assurance of Hope by God through His Power and Plan. It gives me access to talk to the Father and a guarantee that He will listen.
Through my obedience to Jehovah, I have access to talk to the Father (praying), guarantee that He will listen to my prayers, a plan set to prosper me and to give me HOPE and a future. We must seek Him with all our heart. The Hebrew word for heart is lebab which means inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding. With all we have.
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