JEREMIAH 502010 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Jeremiah 50

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2010.

Alright, well Jeremiah chapter 50, we're looking at and heading towards the end of the book of Jeremiah. This week and next week we'll be focusing on the nation of Babylon and what God has to say towards Babylon. And then the final week we'll be finishing up the book and looking at a final narrative of the last days of the nation of Judah.

But we are here in chapter 50 tonight focused on the nation of Babylon. And in verse 1 of chapter 50 it says, The word that the Lord spoke against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet. Declare among the nations, proclaim and set up a standard. Proclaim, do not conceal it.

Verse 2.

Here in the first three verses of chapter 50, we have the introduction really into this prophecy and this proclamation that Jeremiah will be bringing against the nation of Babylon. You remember the nation of Babylon was the nation that God used to

to bring judgment upon the nation of Judah. God's people, the nation of Judah, had turned against God and rebelled against God. And so, in order to bring judgment, God used Babylon as his instrument. He brought them down and conquered the land of Judah three times. The third and final time,

The city of Jerusalem was completely destroyed. Everybody that was left was taken captive except for a small remnant. And you know the story. We just went through it a couple of weeks ago. That small remnant left and they went down to Egypt because they were still fearful of Babylon. And so at this point, the nation of Judah is desolate. It's desolate.

It's completely gone and the rest of the Jews are in Babylon, in captivity. God used them very effectively.

But like many other nations that God had used in the past, for example, the Assyrian Empire, God used them as an instrument to bring judgment upon certain nations. But the nation of Assyria was also in rebellion against God, and so God used Babylon to judge the nation of Assyria.

Well, Babylon has been used by God, and yet God has reason to bring judgment upon Babylon as well. And so he raises them up and uses them for his purposes, but they're still in rebellion against him. And so now he's proclaiming that because of Babylon's rebellion against God, they are going to be destroyed as well. And so he tells Jeremiah to declare among the nations, to

to proclaim it and not hide it, to not conceal it, but to say that Babylon is taken. Babylon is going to fall. Babylon is going to be conquered.

He mentions some of the Babylonian gods here, Bel and Merodot. These were some important idols and false gods that they worshipped in the land of Babylon. And he says they're humiliated and their images are broken in pieces because they were not able to protect Babylon from this attack, from this overthrow that was going to take place.

He says in verse 3 that a nation out of the north is going to come against her and is going to make the land desolate. Similar to what we read about the nation of Babylon doing to the land of Judah, another nation was going to do to Babylon now, to overthrow Babylon, to make the land desolate. No one's going to dwell there. They're going to move and depart, both man and beast. It's just going to be left empty.

Now this would be hard to imagine as Jeremiah is writing this.

Because as Jeremiah is writing this, Babylon is the world power, the dominant world power of the day. They were a very big and strong nation. Even the city of Babylon itself was impressive. It was strong. It was thought to be, you know, that nobody would be able to penetrate the city. No one would be able to conquer the city.

And yet Babylon, with their strength and with all the impressive might and the things that they were able to accomplish, and even though that God had enlisted them and used them to bring judgment upon the nations, now they will be judged for their rebellion against God. You know, it's interesting that people so many times...

As we've been looking at Jeremiah and I've been sharing over and over that Jeremiah for us is a call to purity, a call to holiness. So many times people continue in sin and they cite examples in their life at how God has worked as a reason for why they can continue living that way.

they say, well, look, yeah, I'm doing this, but look, God's still working. God's still doing these things. It's similar to what Babylon was doing. Babylon says, yeah, we're proud and we're full of ourselves, but look, God is using us and he's raised us up to accomplish these things. And so we need to look and understand that yes, we

We do reap what we sow. Even Babylon, this huge nation, is not too big for God to deal with. Babylon is going to be judged for their sin, for their rebellion against God. Their gods are going to be shamed. Now, historically, we know that this does take place, of course, just as God promises that it would. In about 538 B.C.,

Cyrus the Great, leading the Medo-Persian Empire, conquers Babylon. And he does it in a brilliant way without really much of a battle at all. The city of Babylon, the capital of the nation, was a city that was very impressive. It had incredible walls surrounding the city.

There's a little bit of discussion among historians and archaeologists about just exactly how big the city walls were. But here's how Haley records it in his handbook, that the city walls were 60 miles long. That would make it about 15 miles long.

It was a square city, 15 miles on each side. The walls then were 60 miles long, and as recorded by an ancient historian, they were 300 feet high. Now just picture that for a moment, 300 feet high. In those days, that was completely marvelous. That was something that would have been impressive. You would see that city from a long distance off.

The walls were also very thick. It's said to be 80 feet thick so that you could actually have chariot races on top of the wall so that they weren't just tall and thin and you could knock them over. They were not able to be rammed. You couldn't break through the wall. It was very thick. They even record that the wall went 35 feet below the ground so that...

any potential invaders would not be able to dig underneath the wall to try to get into the city that way. And so you can imagine with these kinds of walls, it would be pretty difficult. Not only that, but that was the outer wall, and then a little bit further within the city, there was another wall that further protected the city. So just in case they got over that outer wall, there was a little bit of a smaller wall on the inside that would protect them in that instance.

And so this city, you can understand how you could sit in the city of Babylon and say, no one's getting in here. That just would not be possible. We can do whatever we want. We can live however we want. Jeremiah can say whatever he wants. It's not going to happen. But God says, this is what's going to happen. And it does indeed happen. Cyrus the Great, what he does in order to conquer Babylon, the city of Babylon...

The Euphrates River went right through the middle of the city...

And so they had gates that would go all the way to the bottom of the river so that you could not get in to the city through the river. You would have to try to hold your breath, then get to the gate, then try to break it open, all the while holding your breath. It just would not work. And so it was a great protection. So what Cyrus did was he diverted the Euphrates River

so that the water of the river going through the middle of the city went way low, and then they were able to just march right under the gates or right through the gates without the worry of holding their breath the whole time. And so doing this, they brilliantly invaded the city without a real battle. They didn't have to lay siege to it. And for the most part, the population, you know, they went to bed one night, they woke up the next night, and there was a new...

new ruler, new authority, new power without really much drama or much of a battle. Now the city of Babylon...

From that point, it becomes a prominent place in the Persian Empire. That's where Cyrus was from. But from then on, the city begins to degrade, and it becomes the middle and the center of battles throughout the following years. In about 300 BC, Seleucus, who was one of the generals of Alexander the Great's,

pretty much demolishes the city of Babylon and makes a new city on the Tigris River just across the way and uses the materials from the city of Babylon to build his new city and from that time the city of Babylon has been in ruins.

And so we see the fulfillment of what Jeremiah is saying in history. It happened just as God said it would happen. But as you can imagine, for those who were receiving this at the time, they would have thought, this is just not possible. Sure, it might happen to the nation of Judah, and Jerusalem had some pretty strong protection, but nothing like this. So, yeah, we could see how that would happen, yet...

Now as we look at these things, I'm not going to spend too much time on it, but there's also some multiple fulfillments of some of the prophecies that are here in the chapter. It's referring to the overthrow and destruction of Babylon that would take place,

During the Persian Empire and the following empires. But also there's a destruction of Babylon that's going to happen much farther from today. In Revelation chapter 18, you can read about that destruction of Babylon. And there's a lot of parallels in that. And so some of these things are probably referring to the final destruction of Babylon at the end of the days.

And that's in Revelation chapter 18. So you can check that out and spend some time in that on your own. Verse 4.

My people have been lost sheep.

Their shepherds have led them astray. They have turned them away on the mountains. They have gone from mountain to hill. They have forgotten their resting place. All who found them have devoured them. And their adversaries said, We have not offended, because they have sinned against the Lord, the habitation of justice, the Lord, the hope of their fathers.

God now describes the state of his people and he says, in that time, as Babylon is overthrown, the children of Israel are going to come. They're going to join up with the children of Judah, those two nations that split, that were originally one nation, the nation of Israel. They're going to be reunited, God is saying, and they're going to come back together.

They're going to ask the way to Zion. You remember that the nation of Judah was in captivity for 70 years there in Babylon. And so many of the people at that time, at the destruction of Babylon, were going to ask the way to Zion.

They had been born in Babylon. They did not come from Judah. They were born after that. And so many of them would not know the way. They've heard about Jerusalem. They've heard about Zion. Their parents and their grandparents have told them about it. But they're asking the way. How do we get there? There's going to be a regathering to the nation that's going to take place as Babylon is taken over and destroyed.

They also are coming back, not just to the location, but they say, come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that will not be forgotten. And so there's a, not a revolution, but a revival that is taking place. The people are coming back to the Lord and

And God says about them that they've been lost sheep, they've been scattered. The shepherds that were there with authority in the nation scattered the people and led them astray. We saw that over and over again with those kings who would not worship God, those kings who would not obey God, the false prophets who were continually...

promoting lies and deception and leading people away from God instead of encouraging them in the ways of God. And as they were scattered, as they were spread out by these false prophets and bad kings, he says, all who found them devoured them. The surrounding nations preyed upon them

because they figured, well, they've sinned. They've sinned against God. They said, hey, look, we're not doing anything wrong. We're just being used by God to judge this nation because they've turned away from the Lord. Verse 8. Move from the midst of Babylon. Go out of the land of the Chaldeans and be like the rams before the flocks.

For behold, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country, and they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be captured. The arrows shall be like those of an expert warrior. None shall return in vain, and Chaldea shall become plunder. All who plunder her shall be satisfied, says the Lord.

So as we go on now, God is still talking to His people and He says, Hey, leave Babylon, guys. Now this is interesting because when Cyrus the Great comes in the way he does and conquers Babylon...

Daniel's able to show him some writings from the prophet Jeremiah. And we saw those back a ways in Jeremiah where God mentions Cyrus by name and says that Cyrus is going to let his people go. And so Jeremiah says, look, you're talked about in the scriptures and God says you're going to let his people go.

And Cyrus at that time makes a decree and says, whoever of the Jewish people wants to go back, you're free to go back. They were set free, even though it's a new empire that comes in and conquers Babylon, that new empire, Cyrus the Persian king, he sets the people free. And so God tells them, move from the midst of Babylon, go out of

There wasn't a big battle this time, but there is a big battle coming, God is explaining. He says, I'm going to raise up and cause to come against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country. Babylon is going to be destroyed, so leave. Get out of there. You've been set free. Now go back to the land that...

that I've given you. He says, Kaldia shall become a plunder and all who plunder her will be satisfied. And so God calls his people to leave, to come out. And there was a great move back to the land that God had given them by

also by Zerubbabel. Nehemiah, you remember as well, led a group of people there to the promised land, taking them out of Babylon. But percentage-wise, it was only a small percentage. It wasn't all of the Jews who were in Babylon who left. They said, hey, we're comfortable here. We've got houses. We're just going to stay here. But God says, no.

Go, because there's destruction coming against this city and you have your chance now to avoid that and get away from that destruction. Verse 11, because you are glad, because you rejoice, you destroyers of my heritage. Now God is focusing back on the nation of Babylon. Because you have grown fat like a heifer threshing grain and you bellow like bulls.

Verse 14,

Put yourself in array against Babylon all around. All you who bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows, for she has sinned against the Lord. Shout against her all around. She has given her hand. Her foundations have fallen. Her walls are thrown down, for it is the vengeance of the Lord. Take vengeance on her, as she has done so due to her.

This would be so difficult for the people to visualize, to see, to see.

in their day because Babylon was doing these same things to other nations Israel and Judah they were fearful to go out and sow and to reap they were locked up in their cities because of the sword because of Babylon coming against them

and now Babylon is going to be this way, it would have been unthinkable for them, so difficult to imagine that there would be another nation that could take on the giant that Babylon was. But God says, because you were glad, because you rejoiced,

the destroyers of my heritage, talking to Babylon, because you were full of yourselves. You were useful and you were used by me, but it went to your head. And we'll see later on that they fight against the Lord and that they are full of pride. And so God says, for this reason...

I'm bringing this judgment upon you. I'm calling these nations against you. They're going to set themselves in array against you. They're going to shout against you all around Babylon. And look at what they're shouting. That her foundations have fallen, her walls are thrown down for it is the vengeance of the Lord. Amazing. These humongous, huge, impregnable walls.

They're going to be fallen. They're going to be torn down. They're going to be demolished. It's the vengeance of the Lord. No matter how high, no matter how strong, mankind cannot thwart the plan of God. It reminds me of the psalmist. I think it's Psalm chapter 2, where the psalmist says, Why do the nations rage? Why do they plot in vain? The Lord laughs. He scorns at their attempts to defy God.

Babylon tried really hard to defy God. They relied upon their great strength, their incredible walls and buildings that they were able to make. But God was able to tear them down. And God is proclaiming that they will be torn down. They will be thrown down. God will take vengeance upon them. Verse 17.

Israel is like scattered sheep. The lions have driven him away. First the king of Assyria devoured him. Now at last this Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has broken his bones. Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land as I have punished the king of Assyria.

But I will bring back Israel to his home, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan. His soul shall be satisfied on Mount Ephraim and Gilead in those days. And in that time, says the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none. And the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found, for I will pardon those whom I preserve. God now focuses on Israel, and again he says, they're like scattered sheep.

The lions have scattered them, those nations that came against them. He gives the example of Assyria. Assyria came and devoured the northern kingdom and led them away captive and spread them out across the nations. And then he says also Babylon. At last, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has broken his bones. And Babylon came to the nation of Judah and did the same thing that Assyria did to the nation of Israel.

And so God says, I'm going to punish Babylon. He says, just like I punished Assyria. Now God used Babylon to conquer Assyria, to punish Assyria, and now God is going to use another nation, or actually a multitude of nations, to now conquer and punish Babylon. But he says, in the midst of this, he's bringing down this judgment, but he says, in the midst of this, I'm going to bring back Israel to his home.

And so he's going to preserve his people in the midst of dealing with this great and severe nation. And he says they're going to feed on Carmel. These are locations within the nation of Israel. And they're going to be brought back. They're going to be reestablished in their land, God says. He says that in that time that the iniquity of Israel shall be sought. People will try to find faults with Israel. And God says they're not going to find any fault.

because I will pardon those whom I preserve. Amazing, the grace of God that we serve. This incredible grace where He casts our sins as far as the east is from the west. And even if you were to seek out to find sin in the life of a child of God, God says it shall not be found.

You know, Satan is referred to as the adversary, the accuser of the brethren. The one who stands before God and accuses us and says, look at what this person is doing and look at how they've failed and look at how they've rebelled against you. But those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ and received His gift for us there upon the cross, the forgiveness that He offers to us,

God says their iniquity, their sin, it will not be found because he pardons those that he preserves. Praise God for that. So Satan can accuse all that he wants, but nothing will stick. We're blameless. Nothing sticks to us because God has forgiven us. Verse 21. Go up against the land of Marathim, against it and against the inhabitants of Pechod. Waste and utterly destroy them, says the Lord, and do according to all that I have commanded you.

Verse 23. Verse 25.

The Lord has opened his armory and has brought out the weapons of his indignation, for this is the work of the Lord God of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans. Come against her from the farthest border, open her storehouses, cast her up as heaps of ruins and destroy her utterly. Let nothing of her be left.

Here God continues to proclaim...

He says, I've commanded it. He says, do all that I've commanded you, speaking to those nations that are coming against Babylon. He says, the destruction is going to be great.

He comments in verse 23 how the hammer of the whole earth, that's how Babylon was. It was the hammer of the earth. It came and it just rocked the earth, man. It conquered nations. It defeated strongholds. It was powerful. But this hammer has been cut apart and broken. And now it has become a desolation among the nations. He says, you've been trapped. You were not aware. You've been caught.

And why? He says there at the end of verse 24, because you have contended against the Lord. The reason for Babylon's judgment is because they fought against God. They've contended against the Lord. They've refused to bow. They've refused to submit to God.

And this is something that you can count on. For sure, without exception, if you fight God, you will lose. And it doesn't matter if you're a man, it doesn't matter if you're a woman, it doesn't matter if you're a big tough guy, it doesn't matter how much money you've got, it doesn't matter how successful you are, or how popular you are, or how big of a nation you are, if you fight against God, you will lose. But if you submit to God, you win.

So it's our choice and we have the opportunity. Even as God gave Babylon opportunities, you remember, and we'll get to it

not in a couple weeks, but eventually when we get to the book of Daniel, how God gave Nebuchadnezzar opportunities to turn and get right with God. And some of them he took, and some of them he did not take. But God gave him those opportunities. If you submit to God, you win. You're on God's side. And He has in store for you what is best. But if you fight against God, if you contend against the Lord...

you will always lose. You will fail every time. God says, I've opened my armories. This is my indignation coming. This is the work of God.

From the farthest border, people are going to be gathered. They're going to come and to bring destruction upon the nation of Babylon. And the telling of it, it's going to be declared in Zion. The word is going to spread about what has happened to Babylon, what God did in bringing judgment upon them. Verse 29.

He says,

Verse 33, Verse 33,

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the children of Israel were oppressed along with the children of Judah. All who took them captive have held them fast. They have refused to let them go. Verse 34, the Redeemer is strong. The Lord of hosts is his name. He will thoroughly plead their case that he may give rest to the land and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.

As God continues to proclaim this destruction, again He says, call all the archers. He's calling the nations. He's calling the warriors. He's calling those who will come and will camp around and destroy Babylon. He says, repay her according to her work.

Just as Babylon has done, it's going to be done to Babylon. And again, God gives us the reason there in verse 29. He says, "...for she has been proud against the Lord."

Babylon has been proud. Babylon has been haughty. Babylon has been full of itself, relying upon itself, looking to itself, and refusing to submit to God. Instead of humbling itself before God, Babylon has trusted in itself and been proud against the Lord and against the Holy One of Israel. And God says, Therefore, her young men shall fall in the streets.

Just like contending against the Lord, anyone who is proud will be brought low. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, without exception, without fail. God alone is high and exalted. He alone has the rightful place and the right to be exalted. Anyone who exalts themselves, exalts themselves against God. It's an affront to God to exalt yourself, to be proud. And it will result in the judgment of God.

in the humbling by God or humiliation by God. And so God says in verse 31, Behold, I am against you, O most haughty one. God is against everything that is high and lifted up because it's high and lifted up in opposition to God who alone is worthy of all honor and glory and power. He alone is worthy to be exalted. And so verse 32, The most proud shall stumble and fall.

No one will raise him up. To be puffed up is to be in opposition to God, against God in pride. There in verse 33, he goes on to say that the children of Israel and the children of Judah, they were oppressed and those who took them captive, the nation of Assyria, the nation of Babylon, held them fast and would not let them go.

God used those nations to deal with His people, but it wasn't a permanent end. It was so that they could bring judgment, so that they could have the fruit of their doings according to their words. But then God was going to bring them back, but they refused. Those nations said, no way, we're not letting them go. We're holding them fast. Well, good luck with that. Their Redeemer is strong, God says. The Lord of hosts is His name. He will bring them back.

You can say no. You can resist Babylon. You can say no, we're not letting him go. But God says, I'm going to do that work. Their Redeemer is strong. Isn't it good to know that your Redeemer is strong? Nothing, nothing can hold its grip on a child of God. Remember Jesus said, He who the Son sets free is free indeed, because your Redeemer is strong. How encouraging it is.

to know that we can come to God. And yes, we reap the consequences of our sins. And yes, we find ourselves tangled up. Like Hebrews says, let's lay off those weights and the sin which so easily entangles us. But we can be set free. We can lay it off because our Redeemer is strong. As we come to Jesus, by the power of God, we can be set free because our Redeemer is strong. And even if nations...

Try to hold on to the children of God. They will not be successful because the Lord of hosts, our Redeemer, is strong. Verse 35.

Verse 2.

Verse 39, Therefore the wild desert beasts shall dwell there with the jackals.

And the ostriches shall dwell in it. It shall be inhabited no more forever. Nor shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors, says the Lord, no one shall reside there nor son of man dwell in it. God said his sword is against them in all of these different areas.

complete utter destruction is the point. Their warriors are not going to be successful. Their soothsayers, their wise men, they're going to be fools. Their treasures, they're going to be taken. Everything that they relied upon, everything that they relied in, God said, a sword is against that. A sword will devour that. You will be defeated. And then everything that you and I rely upon, aside from God,

Wherever we put our trust, when it belongs to God, the same thing happens. When we contend against the Lord, when we are proud against the Lord, relying upon our own selves in any capacity, God says, I can't let that stand. I want you and I need you and what's best for you is for you to trust in me.

And so a sword is against all of these areas of Babylon, all of these things that they trusted in, all of these things that were their strength and their pride and with which they said, no, what God says is not going to happen. We can continue on. We can do whatever we want to do because look at us. Look at our strength. Look at how rich we are. Look at what we've got.

And God says, no, all of those things will be destroyed. And so this place is going to be laid bare. Just the wild desert animals are going to inhabit the place. It's just going to be desolate, like a ghost town, but just completely demolished, leveled. And it will be inhabited no more. Verse 41.

Verse 1.

Here he begins to describe a little bit of the response of the king of Babylon. As the king of Babylon begins to realize what he's got himself into, he begins to be freaked out.

This people is coming from the north. Many kings, a great nation, he says. They're going to be raised up from the ends of the earth. They're going to come against Babylon. Their voice will roar like the sea. They're going to be set up for battle. And the king is going to be freaked out. All of those things that they once trusted in, he's going to realize and recognize. His hands are going to grow feeble, God says. And he's going to have pains as if he was in childbirth.

As he realizes the judgment of God is upon him. Verse 44. Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the floodplain of the Jordan against the dwelling place of the strong. But I will make them suddenly run away from her. And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her? For who is like me? Who will arraign me? And who is that shepherd who will withstand me?

Therefore hear the counsel of the Lord that he has taken against Babylon and his purposes that he has proposed against the land of the Chaldeans. Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out. Surely he will make their dwelling place desolate with them. At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth trembles and the cry is heard among the nations."

God says Babylon's going to come like a lion, but God's going to cause them to run in fear. They're going to pretend to be strong, they're going to come out with strength, but they will be dismayed. They will be set to flee by God. He says, hear the counsel of the Lord. His purposes, this is what He has purposed for the nation of Babylon. The least of the flock shall draw them out first.

The littlest sheep will bring them out. The littlest sheep is going to lead them away. They're going to be so broken, so humbled, that one with no strength, one that is not fierce, will lead them away. That is a powerful work of God. Considering this huge, impressive nation with this incredible city, with its huge walls, and the least of the flock will lead them away, will lead them out. The noise...

of the taking of Babylon will be great. The earth will tremble. The cry will be heard among the nations. Everybody's going to be in shock.

Now, these things that we're looking at here and some of the wording here is very similar to what we read about in Revelation chapter 18. And that's why this can be referring to the destruction of the city of Babylon in Jeremiah's day and beyond that. But even still yet for us, there's an ultimate fulfillment with the final and utter destruction of Babylon. Right now it's in ruins.

But the scripture teaches that there will be a Babylon again and it will be a centerpiece for the nations and it's going to be destroyed as well.

But God says about this nation that they are going to be destroyed. They've set themselves up against God. They've contended against the Lord. They've been proud against God. They've refused to listen to God. They've relied upon themselves and been full of themselves. And God says, that will not stand. I'm going to deal with that. And as strong as you are, and as impossible you think it is for you to be defeated, it's going to take place.

And we look historically and we see that indeed it did happen just as God said. What's interesting is right there in the midst of it, God gives the promise, I'm going to take care of my people. I'm going to preserve them. You can try to find fault with them, but I've pardoned them.

Because they're my people and they've trusted in me. And so we get the choice here. We get to see these two examples. Even if we're in the midst of a nation that's in rebellion against God, which it's in a lot of ways, that very much describes our nation. Yet God has his people and he can preserve them. And he can take us out by, Lord willing, catching us up to meet with him in the clouds, the rapture of the church.

That's what we're looking forward to. But it's important that we do not contend against God, that we do not be puffed up with pride against the Lord, but that instead we humble ourselves before the Lord, that we come to Him and agree with Him and get in line with His will so that we can be on His side. If you fight against God, you will lose. But if you humble yourself, if you join with God, if you come to Him, relying upon Him and not you, you win.

You're on His side, and He always wins. He has the victory. And so the worship team is going to come up and lead us in a song, and as they do, I want to encourage you. Take this time. If there's an area of your life that you've been fighting against God, take this time to surrender. Hold up the white flag. Lord, I don't want to fight against you. This thing that you've been speaking to me, this area that you've been bringing to my attention and I've been refusing to deal with, God, I give up. I surrender.

You win, God. I'm going to do it your way. Let's take this time to surrender to the Lord, to submit to His authority in our lives, to be obedient to Him, and to glorify Him as we worship the Lord together. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.