Jeremiah: Known Unknown
Known to God, unknown to himself. That is who Jeremiah was. That is who many of us are. And it is that journey from unknown to known that marks the lives of all the visionaries we have met and all the visionaries we shall encounter.
David put it this way:
My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the
depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me
were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
Psalm 139:15-16
In Jeremiah’s Words:
The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin.
Jeremiah 1:1
This is Jeremiah’s introduction of himself.
In God’s Words:
The word of the LORD came to me saying,
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.
Jeremiah 1:4-5
The Contradiction
Jeremiah’s identity came from his father. His father’s name, his father’s occupation, his father’s location.
God’s identity of Jeremiah goes to a time when Jeremiah was not. A time that predates his father. It extends back to a time before Jeremiah was formed. And He reveals it in past tense, cementing his identity as a fact.
☆ Formed you
☆ Knew you
☆ Set you apart
☆ Appointed you
This was true for David. This was true for Jeremiah. This is true for you.
For we are God’s workmaship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
The Conversation:
Jeremiah: I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.
Often times we think that when God reveals His vision for our lives that we are going to excitedly agree with him. But this is not always the case. This was not true for Jeremiah. His response to God’s revelation was a protest.
But God being God answered not only Jeremiah’s protest, but the underlying fear Jeremiah had.
God: Do not say I am only a child.
In other words, do not judge God’s vision for your life based on what you see or know about yourself.
God: You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you.
God was essentially saying He was in control. He already already knew who Jeremiah was to speak to, what he was to speak to them and when he was to speak to them. God has the blueprint of His vision.
God: Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you.
God went to the heart of Jeremiah’s protest – FEAR– and addressed it. He told him not to be afraid, but He did not sugarcoat the truth of the vision when He said, “I will rescue you.” Only someone facing trouble needs to be rescued.
Living out God’s vision isn’t always hunky-dory. There will be times of trouble. Times when we will be afraid. Yet He assures us that He will be with us and rescue us. Trouble and danger do not mean God is not in the picture. They simply mean you need God to live out His vision.
The Assurance
Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “Now, I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.”
Jeremiah 1:9-10
God reached out to Jeremiah and empowered him to do what He appointed him to do.
☆God reaches out to us.
☆God empowers us.
We cannot fulfil the vision of God for our lives without His enablement.
To prove what He had done, God took Jeremiah through a session that I can only describe as a “prophetic class”. The session confirmed to Jeremiah that indeed God had done what He said. (See Jeremiah 1:6-16)
The Commission
“Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them.
Jeremiah 1:17
The commission is clear:
☆ Get ready to do what He has revealed to you
☆ Walk in obedience
☆ Fear God,not man
The Blessing
Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land — against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you, ” declares the LORD.
Jeremiah 1:18-19
God will always bless and empower you to live out His vision for your life. His blessing of Jeremiah:
☆ Anchored and established him in his position
☆ Strengthened him
☆ Bestowed authority upon him
☆ Shielded / protected him
Your Turn:
What stage are you?