Daily Devotions

Jer 20:9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
KJV
Jeremiah was a man called of God before he was ever born to preach the Word of the Lord to a rebellious people. There came a time when the prophet was so discouraged by the hard heart of the people that he decided not to preach any more, not to even mention the name of the Lord. What brought Jeremiah to this point and what got him past it? That is what I want to consider for a few days this week. We find the call of the prophet in the first chapter of this book. (Jer 1:5-9 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.6 Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
7 But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.9 Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.) I am not a Calvinist, I believe Jeremiah still had to repent and be saved before he could follow this calling, that Jeremiah had a free will as all of us have, but God had chosen this man to be a prophet before he was born, God had a job for Jeremiah. As Jeremiah answered this call he was given some insight by the Lord as to how he would be received, how his message was going to be received. When one of the first things promised is deliverance and protection one knows the message will not be well received. The same thing we experience as Christians today when we try and share the gospel message and when we proclaim Bible truth, the message is not well received. I also believe that we need Divine protection today just much as Jeremiah did in his day, that we stand in danger when we proclaim the truth of the Word of God. This oppression that we face can be at times discouraging just as it was for Jeremiah. Yet we have been called and commissioned to speak for the Lord, to give light to a world of darkness. Christian before you were saved God also gave you a message, a message of truth and light. Will you like Jeremiah be willing to answer the call? The first thing Jeremiah did was speak for the Lord. This answer will lead to his discouragement later on, but the first thing is to answer the call.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 30th, 2017 at 8:18 am and is filed under Daily Devotions. You can skip to the end and leave a response.