Jeremiah 1 - Call & Commission

by Katrina

LINK: Jeremiah 1

BACKGROUND - THE BOOK
Welcome to the book of Jeremiah!

The prophet Jeremiah was one of God's messengers to the people of Judah -- another messenger that they would refuse to listen to. And when they really disliked his message, they would abuse the prophet. He is known as the "weeping prophet" because he wept for his people. He wrote out his poems of mourning in what we call the book of Lamentations. Jeremiah truly had a heart for God as well as for his people. And seeing the people sin against their God, as well as seeing the coming disaster, broke his heart.

Jeremiah was called by God around the age of 20, during the reign of the good king Josiah, in the year 627 B.C. He continued preaching through the following five kings -- Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah, and Gedaliah -- and beyond the fall of Judah to Nebuchadnezzer in 586 B.C. For more than 40 years, Jeremiah faithfully proclaimed God's message to Judah, even in the face of opposition. During Zedekiah's reign, Jeremiah was imprisoned, and in 586 when Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, Jeremiah was freed. He was given the choice of going to Babylon or remaining in Jerusalem at that time. He chose Jerusalem. However, he was soon abducted by Jews fleeing to Egypt and taken there to escape Nebuchadnezzar. In Egypt, Jeremiah prophesied a few more years before he died there.

At the time when Jeremiah began preaching, the major power of the world was Assyria (to the east). But God's prophets kept predicting destruction from the north, which would be Babylon. This is one of the reasons people chose not to believe the prophets. Babylon wasn't powerful yet when God predicted that Judah would be overthrown by Babylon. The idea that little Babylon would be a threat to anyone was ludicrous to them. So they laughed at the prophets.

As you read this book, it is helpful to know that these prophesies are not arranged in chronological order. Each prophesy begins with a statement that "the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah" or "thus says the Lord," something along those lines. The historical time is indicated by naming the current king at the time of the prophecy.

With that said, chapters 1-6 did occur at the beginning of Jeremiah's ministry.

BACKGROUND - CHAPTER 1
Chapter one is the call and commission of Jeremiah for God's service as a prophet. Jeremiah was reluctant, but God demonstrated to Jeremiah who He was and that Jeremiah must go where God sends him and say what God tells him to say.

God gave Jeremiah three promises to prepare him. The first two were in the form of visions

• vision of the almond tree - In Hebrew the word for "almond tree" and the word for "watch" are very similar to each other. God used this play on words to show Jeremiah that He will always watch over His word and fulfill it.
• vision of the boiling pot - The boiling water represented the wrath of God about to be released. It was facing away from the north to indicate that God would bring His wrath from the north in the form of Babylon.
• The third promise was that God would make Jeremiah strong, and even though he would face opposition, he would not be overcome by it. God promised that He Himself would be with him to deliver him.
  

REFLECTION/APPLICATION
The Lord called Jeremiah and entrusted him with a message for His people. God put His own words in Jeremiah's mouth and told him what to say. God told Jeremiah that he would face opposition, but He also promised to give His own strength to Jeremiah to overcome that opposition.

This is all very similar to our own commission from God. As believers, we are each entrusted with a message from God to the nations. God has given us His own words. Jesus has all the authority in the world and tells us, based on that, to go make disciples. Jesus warned that we would face opposition just as He did. And Jesus promised to be with us always and to the end.

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:18-20)

Personally, I know that I need to draw more strength from the Lord and be more bold in proclaiming His message. How about you?

PRAYER
Lord, you have given us the message of reconciliation, not so we can keep it to ourselves, but so we can spread that message around the world. Give us your strength to live in obedience to your command. Thank you for your promise that you will be with us always and forever. We need not be afraid. Teach us to be like Jeremiah, who obeyed you even in the face of opposition, overcoming the fear of man with the fear of the Lord. Thank you for providing this great message of salvation! May we live our lives worthy of this great calling. In the name of Jesus, and only by his shed blood, amen.