JEREMIAH 1-8 RETURN TO ME2013 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Jeremiah 1-8 Return To Me

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 2013.

And we're here in Jeremiah chapter 1. We'll be looking at chapters 1 through 8. And as we begin the book of Jeremiah this evening, I will be sharing throughout the book of Jeremiah that this book is completely appropriate and applicable to us. As we go through this book, I think that it becomes clear there's a lot of parallels between the nation of Judah as Jeremiah is speaking to it

And the United States, as we study these things today, that our nation is on the same path that the nation of Judah was upon. And that was the path to destruction. And so as we read through these things, there should be a soberness that really kind of comes over us as we recognize we are headed that same way.

There's a lot of things that we could talk about and we will see throughout the book of Jeremiah. But also as we look at these things, I really want to challenge you to consider these things personally. These things are appropriate and applicable to us individually.

Because the things that Jeremiah is addressing with the nation of Judah, the things that the people were doing, their behaviors and the way that they were acting, is, well, we can easily fall into the same type of practices. And there's a great danger for us, even though we're here at church, there's a great danger for us that we need to take heed to.

And so as we look at chapters 1 through 8 this evening, I just want to share with you kind of bruntly up front. My job tonight is not to make you feel comfortable. I'd prefer to give that kind of message. But as I was preparing, the Lord really laid this heavy upon my heart. You know, we look at the prophets and we hear about the burden of the Lord. And that is what I have this evening. There's a burden that I must bring forth today.

these things that Jeremiah says with clarity. My job this evening is to really call you to repentance. My job is to warn you about what is to come. And as we'll see with Jeremiah this evening, God will judge me if I am unfaithful to that. And so I want to do my best to be faithful to the Word of God and to what He has put upon my heart. And so I would ask you to prepare yourself

Now I'm not going to start, you know, calling out people by name and making you stand up. But God's calling you out by name. And He knows exactly what's going on in your life. And He wants to do a work this evening. And there's some of you that need to come to repentance. And you've been resisting. But I pray that this evening that would come to an end. And that you would turn. And that you would surrender. That you would repent.

And so as we look at Jeremiah, starting here in chapter 1, it's going to be a little bit of a challenging book because it's so applicable to us. Now as we begin looking at this, to start out with a little bit of introduction, we're working our way through the major prophets. We finished Isaiah last week.

Now we're in the book of Jeremiah, the second of the major prophets. And we'll be with Jeremiah for a little bit here as we work through the book of Jeremiah. But then also the book of Lamentations is also written by Jeremiah. So we'll be spending some time with Jeremiah for this book and the next book. And then moving on to Ezekiel and Daniel. Now the prophet Jeremiah ministered from about 625 to 586 B.C.,

This is really the final days of the nation of Judah that he was ministering. So the kings that were on the throne while Jeremiah ministered were Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and then Zedekiah. Alongside of him ministering were Zephaniah and Habakkuk, as well as Ezekiel, but he was ministering from Babylon. We often refer to Jeremiah as the weeping prophet, right?

He spoke very boldly on behalf of the Lord, but you also see the brokenness in his book, in his words that he would bring forth, that there was a brokenness before God as he weeped over his people that were insisting on their rebellion to their own destruction. And so we'll see that heart of Jeremiah throughout the book.

Jeremiah ministered to the nation of Judah during a very critical time. So zooming back, you know, rewinding the tape a little bit, you might remember Israel was one nation under King Saul, David, and then Solomon. At about 933 BC, the nation was divided, split in two. Civil war took place. The northern kingdom took the name Israel. The southern kingdom took the name Judah.

The southern kingdom was where Jerusalem was, where the temple was. And so the southern kingdom had some good kings and people who turned to the Lord. And there were some revivals that took place. While the northern kingdom was just wicked and idolatrous from the very beginning. So in 722 BC, the Lord used the nation of Assyria to come and conquer the northern kingdom to deal with them for their sinfulness.

But the nation of Judah was not innocent. They continued to turn away from the Lord more and more. And God was calling out to them. And it's a little bit later on in 586, right here at the end, that's when Babylon conquers Judah. So they last a little bit longer than the nation of Israel. But they have basically the same problem as we'll see mentioned in the passages that we'll look at this evening. Now Jeremiah comes on the scene about 626 B.C.

And Josiah is on the throne. Josiah is a good king. He comes after Manasseh, who is the wickedest of the wicked kings. But Josiah was a good king. There's a revival that takes place. And Jeremiah, although there's a revival that's taking place, Jeremiah is there on the scene to call the people to repentance. He's calling them to turn back to the Lord.

Now as Jeremiah is prophesying, he's saying, if you don't turn back, Babylon is going to come and conquer the nation of Judah. Jeremiah is a unique prophet in that he gets to see the fulfillment of the majority of his prophecies. Because he is alive and there in Jerusalem when Babylon conquers Jerusalem for the final time.

And so he sees the fulfillment. Much of Isaiah, you might remember, a lot of it was, you know, future. Isaiah never saw the fulfillment of it. But Jeremiah was different in that these things that he's declaring happen in his lifetime. So he comes on the scene about 70 years after Isaiah's death as kind of like the last call of repentance to the nation of Judah, leading up to the final destruction by Babylon.

Here's what it looks like visually. So we left Isaiah. You might remember that. He ministered during the time that the northern kingdom was conquered. Jeremiah ministers during the time that the southern kingdom, Judah, is conquered by Babylon. And so he's ministering to the people for some time.

He ministers about 40 years in total. And it's, you know, a little bit before the battles begin. But then during the time when Babylon is laying siege, the whole time Jeremiah is calling the people to repentance.

He's alongside of Ezekiel and Daniel also. Ezekiel and Daniel are both in Babylon and so we'll get to that a little bit later on in our journey. But so we're heading into this final climax time when Judah is conquered by Babylon and taken away captive. Quite a devastating thing for the nation.

Quick look at the geography. It's not really much different than Isaiah, so I'll do it quickly. Here you see that Israel, the northern kingdom, those were the boundaries originally. As Isaiah is ministering, it's gone. Assyria has conquered it, led the people away captive.

And so you just have the nation of Judah. And the nation of Judah was not like the borders you see here. It was really reduced pretty much to the city of Jerusalem. There were villages and things like that, but there was no more strongholds. It wasn't these strong boundaries like we see here.

The top right, you see the nation of Assyria, and they were the ones who conquered Israel. God used them as his instrument of judgment. And then on the bottom here, you have the nation of Babylon, which we'll be talking a lot about, because Babylon is the nation that God uses to bring judgment and discipline to the nation of Judah. So let's get started in chapter 1 of Jeremiah. Verse 7, it says, "'But the Lord said to me, "'Do not say, I am a youth.'"

For you shall go to all whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. In verses 1 through 3, we are introduced to the words of Jeremiah. We're given the time frame. He's ministering beginning the 13th year of Josiah, and then through the end of the nation of Judah. So it's the last five kings of Judah that he ministers to, and it's about 40 years long that he is prophesying.

Well, God is giving him his commission here in chapter 1. In verses 4 through 10, God tells Jeremiah, you shall go to all whom I send you. He tells Jeremiah, before you were even in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I had set you apart and I had called you to be a prophet to the nations.

And so he says, Jeremiah, you're part of my plan. I knew about you long before you were, you know, a glimmer in your father's eye. And I've called you to be my prophet. And Isaiah responds in verse 6 and says, I can't speak, Lord. I'm a child. I'm a youth. I'm too young to speak. Jeremiah is a young man, but God is going to use him

to speak to the elders of the land and to the nation as a whole. And so God responds in verse 7 and says, don't tell me that you're just a youth. You're going to go to whoever I send you to and whatever I command you, that's what you're going to speak. God is commissioning Jeremiah and saying, you're going to do what I tell you to do and you're going to say what I tell you to say.

He tells them in verse 8 to not be afraid of their faces. Don't let their angry looks when you say these things dissuade you from saying what I've called you to say. And then in verse 9 it tells us that the Lord put forth his hand and touched his mouth. And the Lord said to him, behold I have put my words in your mouth. And so he's giving Jeremiah what he wants him to say. He's giving Jeremiah the prophecy to bring forth.

And what is that prophecy? Well, we see it begin in verses 11 through 16. He proclaims a calamity out of the north. In verse 14, it says, And here, God is speaking through Jeremiah to warn of the coming battle from Babylon.

He says in verse 16, So God announces what is to come, but he also tells them why.

Because they have forsaken God. It's according to all of their wickedness that this is coming upon them. And that will be repeated throughout the prophet Jeremiah's ministry. Now in verses 17 through 19, God tells him again, speak all that I command you. After he tells him, hey, this is the basic message here. There's judgment coming.

And there's a need for repentance. And it's because of wickedness. And if you repent of your wickedness, then I will restore. It's not going to be a popular message. So he tells him again, so you better make sure, Jeremiah, that you say everything that I tell you to say. He says in verse 17, prepare yourself and arise. Speak to them all that I command you. Do not be dismayed before their faces, lest I dismay you before them.

It's a serious charge that God is giving to Jeremiah. Prophets have to be faithful to speak God's word no matter what. Even if the response is not good. Even if it's an unpopular message. Even if there's great opposition and persecution and it costs you your life. Prophets have to be faithful to speak God's word.

And he says, if you're dismayed before their faces, I will dismay you before them. So it's a serious charge that Jeremiah has. I think Peter felt this charge as well when he stood before the Sanhedrin. They commanded him not to speak in the name of Jesus. And Peter and John answered in Acts 4.19, whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than God, you judge.

For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. We have no choice. We must proclaim the name Jesus, Peter and John say. We must speak what God has commanded. And so here we have the commissioning of Jeremiah the prophet as God calls him with a very heavy, serious message and says, you better make sure that you declare clearly and boldly. Here's a quick look at

The Babylonian Empire, because God's message is calamity will come from the north. Now Babylon is not actually directly north of Jerusalem, but the path that they would take, they would go up the Euphrates River. And so when they came down into Judah and Jerusalem, it would be from the north, just like God was declaring. And so they would come down conquering all these lands, including the land of Judah and the city of Jerusalem.

And so this was a major event that happens during Jeremiah's ministry as Babylon fully conquers Jerusalem and leads the people away captive. Up until that time, Jeremiah is there warning and warning and warning and warning. And then he watches it be fulfilled as the people insist on their ways and they do not return in vain.

Repent from the wickedness that God is calling them to repent of. Babylon conquers Judah. This is just some quick insight because sometimes it gets confusing. Babylon actually conquers Judah three times. Jerusalem is beaten three times by Babylon.

The first happens in 605 BC. We're not going to see these things happen tonight, but we'll see them as we go through Jeremiah. Jehoiakim is king at that time. He is defeated by Babylon. And Jehoiakim, young men from the royal family, probably including Daniel there, and also some of the temple articles are taken from Jerusalem to Babylon at that time. But Jehoiachin...

Is then placed on the throne. And he's supposed to be subject to Babylon. He says okay I'll be a good king. I'll be submitted to you. I'll pay you taxes. You know he talks a good talk. So in 597 though. Jehoiachin surrenders to Babylon. Because he had rebelled. And Babylon came against Jerusalem a second time.

And when Jehoiachin surrendered, then Jehoiachin, more temple treasures, the captains, the craftsmen, kind of the influential, important people are then taken to Babylon captive at that time. But then Zedekiah is put on the throne. He does okay for a little bit. And then he rebels against Babylon. And so in 586 B.C.,

The final conquering of Jerusalem takes place by Babylon. Zedekiah is defeated. Jerusalem and the temple are completely demolished. Babylon says, look, I've beaten you three times already. I'm not going to go through this again. So they just completely destroy the city, the temple, and the whole population is taken to Babylon. There's a small, tiny remnant that is left behind, but they don't stick around for very long. They run to Egypt. And so

Three times Babylon conquers Judah and this is what God is proclaiming is coming. All the while though, check it out, there's three times Babylon conquers Judah. All the while God is calling the people to repentance. Even in the midst after they've been conquered once or twice, God's saying there's still time. If you repent, I'll establish you. If you turn back and get right with me, I'll establish you. I'll take care of you. You don't have to be conquered for the third time.

But the people insisted on their ways and brought upon themselves this destruction. Chapter 2 now of Jeremiah verse 11 is the key verse. It says, The Lord begins in verses 1 through 13 here to say,

He calls him to remember. He says, I remember, there in verses 2 and 3, in the days of your youth, man, you were in the wilderness and you were seeking after me and Israel was holiness to the Lord. You were set apart to me. You were excited about me. When I presented my word to you, my laws, you said, yes, we're going to follow God. We're going to obey God. God says, I remember those early days. Think about this for your own life. Do you remember those early days when you used to be really

passionate for the Lord and on fire for God. I like Pastor Chuck's challenging quote. I refer to it often. He says, if you can remember a time when you were more on fire for God, then you are backslidden right now. That doesn't mean we always are doing more things, but where's your heart with the Lord? Where's your passion for God? God looks at Judy and says, I remember those days when you really, you had a heart for me.

What does he say when he looks at your life? When he looks at my life? I remember those days when you really had a heart for me. Is that what the Lord says? In verse 5, the Lord says, God says,

I led you in the wilderness. I provided for you. I brought you into the promised land. I gave you the law so that you could understand my word and have relationship with me. Was I unfaithful? Did I not serve you well as a God? In verse 11 he says, Has a nation changed its gods which are not gods? But my people have changed their glory. They've traded the true and living God for what does not profit them.

God says this is shocking. He tells the heavens to be astonished in verse 12. Verse 13 is an important verse. He says,

They've rejected God. They've turned to their own ways and their own ways are destroying them. Whatever you would trust in that is not God is a broken cistern. And so God always presents to us these two choices. It's your choice. It's my choice. You can have the fountain of living waters and never thirst again or you can have your own broken cistern and be thirsty continually, unsatisfied.

You have to choose one or the other, but it is your choice. In verses 14 through 25, he says, your own wickedness will correct you. He says in verse 17, have you not brought this on yourself? And that you've forsaken the Lord your God, where he led you in the way. You've brought this upon yourself. You have the destruction of Babylon coming. It's going to be great devastation. I mean, the things that happen...

When Babylon conquers, they're atrocities. They would be difficult for me to explain to you. They'd be difficult for you to listen to. The things that go on in war are, they're horrible. And God says, have you not brought this upon yourself? Now, I would like to point out here. I think it's important for us to remember, not all difficulties in life are God's correction for sin.

And Job is the hallmark, you know, picture of that. That Job was righteous, yet he went through great affliction. So we cannot make the conclusion of Job's friends. Don't be that foolish and think that just because I'm going through great affliction or just because that person's going through great affliction, there must be some terrible, horrible sin. No, don't make that mistake. However, don't go too far the other way.

and think that God will not use affliction to bring judgment for sin. He will do that too. Sometimes affliction is God bringing discipline for sin. Sometimes affliction is God's way of calling us to repentance. God will let us experience the consequences of sin to call us to repentance. So how can you tell the difference?

If affliction sometimes is judgment for sin, but sometimes it's not, how do you know the difference? Well, I would say two things. First of all, seek the Lord. If you're wondering if the affliction that you're going through is a result of sin, ask God. And then secondly, I would say repent of any known sin. Whatever you know about in your life that's not in line with God, that's out of His will, that's out of

Of what he has instructed for you. Repent of it. Don't think. Well that's just a little thing. God wouldn't allow this affliction in my life. For that little thing. No. If.

If you know about sin, if God has shined his light into your heart to reveal that there is an issue here, then you need to repent of it. Don't foster it. Don't compromise with it. Don't put up with it. Don't justify it. Don't let it continue. Deal with it. Turn from it. Repent of it. Get it out of your life. And so to find out, to tell the difference if affliction is God's judgment or not is

First of all, seek the Lord. Ask the Lord. Walk with the Lord. And then as he shows you things, turn from sin. Repent of sin. In verse 19, he says, your own wickedness will correct you and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the Lord your God and the fear of me is not in you, says the Lord God of hosts. Here's what God says. Your wickedness will correct you.

Sometimes affliction is that correction for your wickedness. Sometimes difficulties in your life is correction from your own wickedness. Because it's an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the Lord your God. And the fear of God is not in you. We are way too comfortable about not having a fear of the Lord. We need to fear God. It's a wicked and vile thing. It's a bitter thing.

To turn away from God. To allow sin to continue in our lives. And if we do, God says your own wickedness will correct you. Galatians 6 verse 7 and 8 tells us to not be deceived. That God is not mocked. Whatever you sow, that's what you're going to reap. And if you sow to your flesh, then you will reap corruption. But if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap everlasting life. You reap what you sow. Your own wickedness will correct you.

Well, then in verses 26 through 37, God says, let your gods, lowercase g, let your gods save you. They've turned away from God in wickedness. But verse 27 says, although they've turned their back to me, in the time of trouble, they will say, arise, God, and save us. How many of us know that relationship with the Lord, right?

It's like, I want to do what I'm going to do. I'm going to live the way that I want to live. But all of a sudden there's the crisis. And then, oh Lord, save us. Deliver me. I'm in this great difficulty. And God says, verse 28, where are your gods that you've made for yourselves? Let them arise if they can save you in the time of your trouble. For according to the number of your cities are your gods, oh Judah. Verse 29, why will you plead with me? You all have transgressed against me, says the Lord.

God says, let your God save you. You've been trusting in those things. You've been worshiping those things. Let them deliver you from this situation. There comes a point where God lets us, because we insist on having these other gods, God says, okay, well, they're going to be your God. Then let them deliver you. He says, why do you call out to me? Why are you pleading with me when you've transgressed against me? Why are you calling out to me when you've insisted that

On your own ways. And you refuse to listen to my words. Why are you calling out to me? Now it's a challenging question. But don't mistake it and think that God says. Don't come crawling back to me. No. He's inviting you back. But he's challenging your heart to say. Listen. Don't think I'm fooled. When you're on again. Off again. On and then. On again. Off again. You know. Back and forth. I'm not fooled by that. When you. You're following me. You're calling out to me. Because of the crisis. And then.

After the crisis is over, you're back to normal. Just doing whatever you wanted. I'm not fooled by that. And there will come a point where I'll just leave you to your gods. Chapter 3 now. Verse 12 is the key verse. Go and proclaim these words toward the north and say, Return, backsliding Israel, says the Lord. I will not cause my anger to fall on you, for I am merciful, says the Lord. I will not remain angry forever.

Check this out. Verses 1 through 5, God says, return to me, says the Lord. Now, this is, I mean, I almost wanted to like just throw out, you know, all the rest of the chapters, just camp in chapter 3. Because this is absolutely amazing. He starts out in verse 1 saying, he's talking to Israel. That's the kingdom that's already been conquered by Assyria. He says, you've played the harlot with many lovers. You've pursued after many gods.

Idolatry is often paralleled with adultery. Idolatry and adultery are similar in that when you pursue other gods, it's like when a spouse pursues unfaithfulness. And when we are unfaithful to the Lord, it's harlotry. When we trust in other things, it's harlotry. And as Israel worshiped all these false gods, he says, you've played the harlot with many lovers, yet, what does he say? Return to me.

Amazing the grace of God. Absolutely astounding. He welcomes back the rebellious. He invites the sinful to return. Those who have been spitting in his face, been stubborn and resisting and spiteful, he invites back. Yet return to me, he says. He's sending Jeremiah to the nation of Judah,

Not to just beat him down and say, you guys are horrible. You're awful. I hate you. No, he's announcing the truth in order to call them to repentance. In order to give them opportunity to repent. And as we study through Jeremiah, we, Calvary Chapel Living Water, you and I here this evening, August 21st, God's speaking to some of you. And he's saying, repent. He's calling you to repentance. Just as Jeremiah was calling Judah to repentance. He's saying, return to me, says the Lord.

In verses 6 through 10, he says, Judah turns to me in pretense. Judah's pretending to turn to me. In verse 8, he says, Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel, the northern kingdom, had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce. Yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also.

He's giving us a comparison here of Israel versus Judah. God called Israel to repentance. They did not. And so Assyria came and conquered them as they continued to refuse. Now God is calling Judah to repentance. But Judah is more accountable because Judah saw what God did to Israel. And because they saw what God did to Israel and still refused to repent,

God says, I'm going to bring this judgment. Verse 10, and yet for all this, her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to me with her whole heart, but in pretense, says the Lord. So Judah saw what happened to Israel, but didn't turn to the Lord except to pretend to turn to the Lord. They kept going to church. They kept going to the temple. They kept doing the sacrifices. They would do the fast. They would go through the motions of Judaism and

But their hearts were far from God. And they would continue to practice their wickedness along with their worship, or so-called worship, of God. But it wasn't a real worship. It was pretend. They were pretending. And this is why it's important for us to consider as well because, well, it's possible for you and I to pretend to worship the Lord. We fall into this same pattern. And that's why God's calling some of you to repentance.

Because there's a lot of pretending going on. But we're not turning to the Lord with a whole heart. In verses 11 through 20, he calls out to Israel. He says, return backsliding Israel. Now check this out. Israel was taken captive by Assyria a hundred years before Jeremiah is saying these things. So a hundred years have gone by. Israel's been taken captive. They've been dispersed by Assyria.

And God says, it's still not too late to turn back to me. Isn't God's grace amazing? Even after you think, oh, all hope is lost. For sure, it's all done with. God's done with me. Even a hundred years later, God's saying, it's not too late.

Listen, as long as you have breath, it doesn't matter what you've been involved with, how far you've gone, as long as you have breath, you have opportunity. God's saying it's not too late. Turn back. Return, backsliding Israel. Return, he says in verse 12. Return, backsliding Israel. I will not cause my anger to fall on you, for I am merciful, says the Lord. I will not remain angry forever. Come back and experience my mercy, God says, with one requirement.

It's found in verse 13. Only acknowledge your iniquity that you have transgressed against the Lord your God. Return to me even if you think you've gone too far. I'll show you mercy. But there's one thing you got to do. You got to acknowledge your iniquity. You got to confess your sin. You got to repent. You got to repent. Return. He says, I'll restore you. I'll give you shepherds. I'll increase you. My throne will be in your midst and nations are going to gather to you.

I'll do an incredible work. You'll experience the abundance of my mercies. I like the way that Peter words a similar thing in Acts chapter 3 verse 19. He tells the people, repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. Listen, when we're in rebellion against God, when we're involved in our own sin and worshiping God in pretense,

Those are not times of refreshing. Those are times of heavy burdens and great pains, even though we pretend that that's not the case. If you want to be refreshed, you want to be set free, you want to be released, you want to have those burdens lifted, repent and be converted. And times of refreshing will come from the Lord. You'll experience His mercies. Acknowledge your sin before Him, He says.

He says in verses 21 through 25, return and I will heal your backslidings. Come back, return, repent. I will heal you. I like the way that Warren Wiersbe describes backsliding. He says, backsliding is like sickness. It begins with a secret infection of sin, which leads to a loss of spiritual appetite, gradual decline, and if not attended to, death.

God heals our backsliding if we honestly accept his diagnosis and humbly return to him. It's like an illness. It begins with secret sin. And if you allow that to continue, you might fool every one of us, but God can see. And if you allow it to continue, your spiritual life will decline. And if it's not dealt with, it will bring death. The wages of sin is death, even death.

For those who go to church. Even for those who profess to know Christ and to walk with Him. The wages of sin is death. It destroys you. But God can heal you if you will honestly accept His diagnosis. Acknowledge your transgression. Confess your sin. And humbly return to Him. Well now chapter 4 of Jeremiah verse 14 says,

Is the key verse. It says, O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness that you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you? He says in verses 1 through 4, put away your abominations. What's he calling them to do? Repent. He says in verse 1, if you will return, return to me. If you will put away your abominations out of your sight. Notice he says, then you shall not be moved.

He's giving them an opportunity. If you'll return to me, you will not be moved. I will establish you. Returning to the Lord requires, though, the putting away of sin. There's a promise of blessing if you will do it, but you have to put away the sin. You must repent. God says in verses 5 through 9, I bring disaster from the north. Again, Babylon is coming. They're

There's going to be great destruction, he says in verse 6. But, verse 10 through 18, he says, wash your heart that you may be saved. The judgment's coming. It's coming. There's going to be great destruction. But wash your heart. There's still an opportunity. It's not too late. Wash your heart. Turn to me. Acknowledge your sin.

But then he says in verse 18, Your ways and your doings have procured these things for you. This is your wickedness because it is bitter, because it reaches to your heart. You see, the issue is the heart. Wash your heart because your sinfulness reaches to your heart and it brings upon you, well, the wages of sin is death. So wash your heart that you may be saved, he says to Judah. He says this.

to Calvary Chapel Living Water. Wash your heart. He says in verses 19 through 22, my people are wise to do evil. As he announces this great destruction, there's sorrow over it. God doesn't delight in bringing judgment. He sorrows over it. As Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet, he accurately represents the heart of God as God weeps over this judgment that will be brought to his people.

He weeps. He says in verse 22, he says, for my people are foolish. They have not known me. They are silly children and they have no understanding. They are wise to do evil, but to do good, they have no knowledge. Why are they foolish? They're foolish for not knowing God. You are foolish if you do not know God.

You're a fool if you don't know how to hear His voice. You're a fool if you don't walk with God every day. You're a fool if you don't know how to communicate with God and hear from God. You're a fool if you do not know God because He extends to you this relationship for free. If only you will acknowledge your iniquity and turn to Him. It's foolish to not know God and to not know God makes you a fool.

Because you have to give in to deception. And you become a fool like a silly child. He says they have no understanding. They're wise to do evil. They got a lot of wisdom about that. But to do good, they're clueless. Now let me ask you to consider. What kind of wisdom do you have? Seriously, what kind of wisdom do you have? It's astonishing that people who go to church, who say they're Christians, don't know how to hear from God.

You know how to hear from all kinds of other people, but you don't know how to hear from God. What's wrong with you? You're foolish if you don't know God. Listen, if you don't know how to hear from God, you need to get right with God and you need to turn to him. You need to learn to walk with him. You need to take this seriously and put him first in your life. This is not a game. This is not messing around. This is life and death for eternity. This is serious. You need to know God. You need to know his voice. You need to learn to walk with him.

You don't know how to hear from God, but you're great at searching the internet. You've got your priorities all messed up. Sure, you could find the answer on Google, but hearing from the Lord, finding His answer, I don't even know where to begin. That's foolish. God wants you to know His will. You don't know how to talk to God, but you can gossip for hours and hours and hours. You could talk to this person and that person and the person over there, but you don't know how to talk to God? Don't be a fool.

Get your priorities straight. What kind of wisdom do you have? You don't know the books of the Bible, but somehow you've memorized all 400 channels that you have. You know exactly where to find what you want to watch, but you look at the scriptures and you have no idea the beginning from the end. What's wrong with you? Don't be a fool. Get your priorities straight. Return to me, says the Lord. You've gotten lost. You need to know me. You need to put me first, God says.

You don't know what your spiritual gift is. But you know really well how to find free pornography. Don't be foolish. It's foolish to not know God. It's foolish for you to not have an awesome intimate relationship with God. It's foolish for you to not hear from God. When Jesus calls us to enter in by his blood. When Jesus invites us by his work upon the cross. It's foolish. What kind of wisdom do you have? Seriously. To do evil?

or to do good. You ought to be an expert in walking with God. Why are you floundering? Why are you wishy-washy? Why are you back and forth? When are you going to take this seriously and get right with God and repent and turn to Him? Put Him first in your life. Well, Judah does not. And so in verses 23 through 31, he says, "...the whole land shall be desolate."

Now he does say in verse 27, it's going to be desolate. I'm not going to make a fool into it. I'm not done with the Jewish people, but I am going to bring some serious correction. And there's only going to be a small remnant that remains when this destruction comes. Let's keep going. Chapter 5, now verse 1. He says,

In verses 1 through 9, God says that they have refused correction. So much so, he says, I dare you, Jeremiah, find one righteous person. And if you can find, remember Abraham? He was pleading for Sodom and Gomorrah. Lord, if there's 10 righteous, you know, he started at 50 and worked his way down. If there's 10 righteous, will you save it? God says for Jerusalem, if you can find one person, I will pardon her. They pretended to know the Lord, but they did not know him. They were not righteous enough.

He says in verse 2, Though they say as the Lord lives, surely they swear falsely. They're just pretending. So Jeremiah seeks for this one. In verse 4 he tells us, well verse 3 and 4, there's nobody who's righteous. Well maybe that's just the poor people. The poor people, you know, they're the ones who don't know God and that's why they're poor. So then in verse 5 he says, The great men of the city of Jerusalem, surely they must know the Lord.

And he finds, no, they've burst the bonds. They've thrown off the things of the Lord a long time ago. And so God says in verse 9, shall I not punish them for these things? And shall I not avenge myself on such a nation as this? Because they've cast me off. They've cast me out. In verses 10 through 19, he says to Babylon, destroy, but do not make a complete end. He's going to bring this destruction as a result of their sinfulness. You reap what you sow.

He doesn't make a complete end because this is his people. He's still got a plan for them, even to this day. He's not done with the Jewish people, but they will reap what they have sown, just like you and I will. He says in verses 20 through 29 that your sins have withheld good from you. You're missing out, he says to Judah, on God's goodness because of your sin. You're missing out on God's blessings because of your sin. He says in verse 22, do you not fear me? Aren't you going to tremble before me?

He says, no, in verse 23, this people has a defiant and rebellious heart. And you're missing out, verse 25. Your iniquities have turned these things away. Your sins have withheld good from you. We hold on to sin thinking this is good. We don't realize the wages of sin is death. But not only are the wages of sin death, but our sinfulness also keeps us from the good that God wanted to do.

It separates us from God so that we miss out on the blessings and the mercies of God. Now while all this is going on in verse 30 and 31, the great tragedy, he says, is that the prophets prophesy falsely. He says it's an astonishing and horrible thing that the prophets prophesy falsely in verse 31. And the priests rule by their own power. And what's the worst of these things is that my people love to have it so.

It's astonishing and horrible that prophets would prophesy falsely. But they do. There's false prophets then and now. False prophets are horrible. We'll see that as we go on. Priests ruling by their own power. We saw on Sunday the desperate need that we have for the Holy Spirit. We can't rule. We can't do anything in our own strength. That's astonishing and horrible. But the worst is that God's people love it that way.

Wouldn't you rather, you don't have to answer out loud, but wouldn't you rather come here this evening and have me give kind of a nice, fluffy, encouraging, you know, message and not this? We love it. We would prefer for our ears to be tickled. We go verse by verse, chapter by chapter. We go through the Bible in three years because it's good for us, because we need it, but it's not our favorite.

They were content. Well, Wiersbe says it this way. They were happy with the superficial ministry of the false prophets and the right it gave them to be religious and still live in sin. That's what we want. That's what we want. We want to be religious and still live in sin. And God says, no, that's foolish. Repent and turn to me. Chapter 6 now. Verse 6 is the key verse.

For thus has the Lord of hosts said, cut down trees and build a mound against Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished. She is full of oppression in her midst. There in verses 1 through 9, we see that Jerusalem is the city to be punished as he brings Babylon against. He says, be instructed in verse 8. Let my soul depart from you, lest I make you desolate, a land not inhabited. Judah gets to choose to be instructed and heed the correction or

Or be destroyed. And that's the same choice that some of you face. Be instructed. Be corrected. Receive this call to repentance from the Lord. Or experience the wages of sin. The consequences. Great destruction. Verse 10 through 15. He says they were not ashamed when they committed abomination. As he talks about committing abomination. He's talking about the priests and the prophets saying peace. Peace.

He says in verse 14, they have also healed the hurt of my people slightly saying, peace, peace, when there is no peace. This is an abomination, God says. And they weren't ashamed to commit this abomination to tell my people, peace, relax. It's going to be okay when it's not going to be okay. The message they should have been giving was repent. But instead they brought a message of peace. And that's an abomination.

I think we need to be careful. We like to say those words, hey, it's going to be okay. But be careful that you don't bring a message of peace when the message needs to be repent. Now, don't take it too far the other way and be like Job's friends and bring a message of repentance when it should be a message of peace. So you got to hear from the Lord before you say it's going to be okay or before you say repent. Hear from the Lord. He's the one who knows what's going on. But sometimes the message is supposed to be repent and not peace.

They were not ashamed to speak for God falsely. And so he says in verses 16 through 26, I will bring calamity. He says in verse 17, I sent prophets to warn them, but they would not listen. And so in verse 22, I'm bringing people from the north. They're cruel. And God is going to use the ungodly, cruel unbelievers to bring this judgment upon his people. Why? Well, verses 27 through 30, because they're all stubborn rebels. God has turned up the heat to refine them.

Babylon conquers them once. Still they don't repent. Babylon conquers them twice. Still they don't repent. He's turned up the heat, but they're insisting, no, we're going to continue in our rebellion. Not all affliction is judgment, but sometimes it is. Which kind do you face? Which kind are you experiencing? Well, now we move on into chapter 7, verse 3 is the key verse. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. Now this...

Jeremiah is giving at the temple gate. And so I instructed Richard as you came in this evening, hopefully you heard the message loud and clear. Amend your ways and your doings. That's basically what Jeremiah was doing. He was standing at the temple gate as people came to the temple to pretend to worship. He was crying out and saying, amend your ways. Repent. Turn. Stop faking it. Acknowledge your iniquity and return to the Lord. Amen.

But what's amazing about this is we see the amazing grace of God because, well, this message happens maybe 15, 20 years after what we've just been reading. Jeremiah kind of jumps around chronologically quite a bit. But as they get closer and closer, what's God saying? Amend your ways and your doings and I will cause you to dwell in this place. It's not too late. I can turn Babylon around, God says. It's not too late. Right now you have opportunity. Amend your ways.

He says, don't trust the lying words. They were trusting in that day. They were trusting that, well, we have the temple here. God's not going to allow us to be conquered because we have the temple. And he says, don't trust those lying words. That's stupid. That's foolish. I'm going to bring the judgment that I said, unless you amend your ways. We have the tendency to think like they do. It's not going to happen to me. And we have all of our reasons, right? I go to church. I read my Bible. I tithe. I help people. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

Amend your ways. Amend your ways. Repent. Change. Stop living in sin. He says in verses 8 through 15, he says, You trust in lying words. They cannot profit you.

They cannot profit you. Check out verse 9 and 10. He says, This is the craziness of what Judah was doing. They were involved in this wickedness and then they would go to temple and stand before God and call upon his name and say, hey, we're delivered.

So we can do whatever we want to do. Paul was accused of saying these kinds of things. He says, no, certainly not. Sure, there's grace. The grace of God is incredible. But it's not a license to sin. And don't take for granted the grace of God so that you just continue in sin because God will bring His judgment. You will reap what you sow. The wages of sin is death.

Don't take God's patience as acceptance thinking, well, he must be okay with it because he hasn't done anything yet. Listen, with Judah, we're talking hundreds of years before God brings Babylon. He doesn't have that much time with you, but he will give you time to repent because he'd rather you do it the easy way than the hard way. But we have to choose. Amend your ways or experience the purging fires of affliction. Don't take the grace of God for granted.

Don't say grace so I can do what I want to do. Don't say grace to just excuse your desire to continue to live in sin. You can deceive yourself. You can deceive all of us, but you cannot deceive God. Don't trust in those lying words. He says in verses 16 through 27, he's talking to Jeremiah. He says, they will not obey these words. Jeremiah, I'm sending you with this message. They're not going to listen, but you still got to bring it.

You still got to deliver it. Your job is not to get them to change. Your job is to deliver the message. And deliver the message even if they don't like it. And deliver the message even if they don't change. We as God's messengers have the same commission. Deliver the message. Verses 28 through 34 he says, The corpses of this people will be food for the birds. They're going to be completely destroyed. Their corpses are going to be left spread out all over. And the birds will feast.

on those bodies. Well, finally, chapter 8, verse 8 is the key verse. It says, How can you say we are wise and the law of the Lord is with us? Look, the false pen of the scribe certainly works falsehood. These people are confused. They're trusting in lies. They've been deceived. And they like it because the heart is deceitful above all things. He says in verses 1 through 3 that those who remain choose death.

If you want to continue living in sin, that's your choice. But you choose death. The people will be scattered. He says in verses 4 through 7, this people holds fast to deceit. They've deceived themselves and they hold fast to their own ways, to their own thoughts. Verse 6, he says, I listened and heard, but they do not speak aright. No man repented of his wickedness, saying, what have I done? Everyone turned to his own course.

As the horse rushes into battle. There's a way that seems right to a man. But in the end, it is death. Don't follow your own ways. There's another proverb that says, if you trust your own heart, you're a fool. Don't trust your own heart. Your heart is deceitful above all things. No, instead, let God's word override your heart. Let God's ways override your ways. Let God's thoughts override your thoughts.

be submitted to God. Repent of your ways and submit to God's ways. Otherwise, you're holding fast to deceit and you're bringing that destruction upon yourself. Again, he addresses the false prophets in verses 8 through 17. He says, they falsely heal the hurts of my people. My people are hurting, God says, and they're bringing them false healing. Say, no, it's okay. Calm down. Peace. Babylon's not going to come here.

We're not going to get conquered. We're not going to be destroyed. Everything's going to be okay. Calm down. It's okay. Relax. But it's lies. It's the message we want to hear. But it's false. The wages of sin is death. You reap what you sow. They're continuing to live in rebellion against God. And so they will receive the destruction of God. No matter how big the temple to God that they have. No matter how great it is. No matter how many sacrifices they give.

Because their hearts are in rebellion against God, they can't compensate for that by having a temple or by making sacrifices. But the prophets are saying peace when there is no peace. And so verses 18 through 22, God says, for the hurt of my people, I am hurt. God does not delight in discipline. He doesn't delight in destruction. He's hurt when his people are hurt. He says, I'm mourning for

Jeremiah accurately represents the heart of God here, the weeping prophet. God weeps as he calls out and he says, return to me and experience my abundant mercies and my amazing grace. There's just one requirement. Repent, acknowledge your iniquity, stop fighting against me, submit to my ways, and you will experience my healing, my abundant grace and mercy.

I'll finish with a quote from Warren Wiersbe. He says, When God calls you to return, do not wait too long. Seek the Lord while he may be found. Time's running out. Time is running out. Whether the Lord returns or you go to be with him, time is running out. It's not time to mess around. It's not time to be complacent in sin. It's time to repent and be serious about your relationship with God.

And I don't know what's going on in your life. I don't know what's happening in your heart. But you know. You know. And if there's issues of sin, if God has shown his light in your heart, repent. Don't put up with it. Don't explain it away. Don't justify it. Repent. Turn from it. Get rid of it. God's showing you for a reason. And just as Judah was able to see Israel and was held accountable for that,

You and I, we've seen both, Israel and Judah. We're accountable because we have the word of God. You're accountable because you're here and you heard this message this evening and God spoke to you. Repent. He brought forth his message to return to him, to stop playing around and to be serious about your relationship with God. So do it for your own sake. It's what's best for you. Let's pray. Lord, as we consider these things,

Lord, I pray that you would bring to the surface in our hearts those things that you want to address, those things that you are addressing. God, I pray that you would protect us from the deceitfulness of our hearts. Lord, because we'd like to explain it away or just continue on and be religious but continue in our sinfulness. Lord, help us to see through the lies. Bring clarity and give us strength that we might turn from sin and grasp hold of you.

Instead of holding on desperately to these lies, help us to hold on desperately to you. Help us, Lord, to repent and be converted that times of refreshing may come from you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 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.