So far the people of the Northern and Southern Kingdoms were also to
busy doing the wrong things to listen to the warning messages sent by God.
Last week we saw that the Assyrian army came to Israel, the 10 tribes
of the Northern Kingdom, and destroyed it. The Lost Tribes of Israel were
spread all over the Assyrian kingdom and were never to return. They repeatedly
turned their back on God and He finally let them deal with the consequences.
Judah on the other hand fared much better due to the faith of their king
Hezekiah. He honored God and restored Judah as a nation that worshiped The One
True God. During Hezekiah’s life Judah was spared judgment.
Hezekiah a good king, eventually dies and his son Manasseh takes the throne
at the ripe age of 12. Manasseh was not like his father.
2 Kings 21:2-3
“2 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, imitating the detestable practices of the nations that the
Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites. 3 He
rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had destroyed and
reestablished the altars for Baal. He made an Asherah, as King Ahab of Israel
had done; he also worshiped the whole heavenly host and served them.”
Hezekiah loved the Lord; Manasseh turned his back on God. He reversed
all the good that his father had done. Altars were built for Baal, he even
built altars inside the Lord’s Temple, sacrificed his son in worship to a pagan
god, practiced witchcraft, and so much more. Manasseh was an evil king.
Here is a summary of what could be said about Manasseh who did more
evil in the eyes of God than any other king.
2 Chronicles 36:15-16
“15 But Yahweh, the God of their
ancestors sent word against them by the hand of His messengers, sending them
time and time again, for He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling
place. 16 But they kept ridiculing God’s messengers, despising
His words, and scoffing at His prophets, until the Lord’s wrath was so stirred up against His people that there was no
remedy.”
We looked at these verses for the Nation of Israel before Assyria
attacked, but these words are also true for the Nation of Judah under Manasseh.
Now I know Manasseh became king at a young age and I know a lot of
people might say that was the problem, but I don’t think so. If you look at the
last 6 kings of Judah, only Josiah was a good king and he took the throne at 8
years old. Can’t blame Manasseh’s failure as a leader on how young he was, his
grandson did a good job and he was even younger.
With five of the last six kings being evil and leading Judah away from
God, He cannot continue to bless them. It would send the wrong message to Judah
and to the surrounding nations. God sent messenger after messenger and Judah
did not listen. God warns Judah of exile, yet through Ezekiel the prophet, God
promises to fulfill his purpose that all nations will know God.
Ezekiel 36:23
“23 I will honor the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations—the name you have profaned among them. The nations will know that I am Yahweh”—the declaration of the Lord God—“when I demonstrate My holiness through you in their sight.”
Even through all of the evil kings and the judgment coming against Israel and Judah, the main purpose of God in His relationship with Israel is always to demonstrate that He is the One True God and that He wants to be in a relationship with all of us.
Judah went the way of Israel and turned away from God and He does the
only thing left to do. God raises up the Babylonians to judge the Southern
Kingdom, sinful Judah. These Babylonians are the same ones that Hezekiah showed
all the treasure, armory, in short he showed them everything. Isaiah told
Hezekiah this was going to happen, and it did.
The Babylonians conquered the Assyrians and destroyed Jerusalem and
Judah in 586 BC, taking prisoners into exile.
2 Kings 25:10-12
“10 The whole Chaldean army with the
commander of the guards tore down the walls surrounding Jerusalem. 11 Nebuzaradan,
the commander of the guards, deported the rest of the people who were left in
the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest
of the population. 12 But the commander of the guards left some
of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.”
Some of the people from Judah were left to tend the land. The fall of
the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdome are hard stories but they teach
us valuable lessons of faith. We have seen that through faith in the Lord, ‘all
things work together for the good of those who love God.’ What we find this
week is that in the midst of this horrible judgment and both nations being
destroyed that God always offers a promise of hope. Enter Jeremiah, the weeping
prophet who was called by God to speak to Judah and its fall.
Jeremiah 1:4-5
“4 The word of the Lord came to me: 5 I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Can you imagine hearing these words from your Creator? Before you were born, before you were conceived, I knew you, called you, and decided what you were going to do. Those words were spoken directly to Jeremiah, but they are also true for each one of us. God knew you before you were formed in the womb, God knew you before you were born, God set you apart to achieve the purpose you were created for.
Ephesians 1:4-5
“4 For He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love 5 He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His favor and will,”
God chose you, before He even created the universe He chose you to be His own. God created every person for a reason, we each have a purpose. The question is, do we let God work in our lives or do we turn away from what we were created to do. Sadly too many turn from God and never know His grace and love. As we keep reading in Jeremiah we see he is looking for an excuse to not do what God created him to do.
Jeremiah 1:6
“6 But I protested, “Oh no, Lord, God! Look, I don’t know how to speak since I am only a youth.”
Sadly this is all too common. God calls someone to preach, I don’t know enough or I can’t speak in front of people. God calls us to share the gospel with a friend or loved one, oh I can’t do that I may mess up or they may get mad at me. God may call us to give of ourselves, our money, or our time. That is not going to work for me, I am too busy or I have to go buy a new toy instead of giving. Excuses, just like Jeremiah. Let’s look at how God responded to Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 1:7-10
“7 Then the Lord said to me: Do not say, “I am only a youth,” for you will go to everyone I send you to and speak whatever I tell you. 8 Do not be afraid of anyone, for I will be with you to deliver you. This is the Lord’s declaration. 9 Then the Lord reached out His hand, touched my mouth, and told me: I have now filled your mouth with My words. 10 See, I have appointed you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and demolish, to build and plant.”
God pulled out His ‘SMITE’ button and wiped Jeremiah off the face of the planet.
Wait a minute, that is not what that said. It was more like; don’t doubt yourself for I will be with you. Do not be afraid, I will protect you. He then touched Jeremiah’s mouth and gave him all that he would need to do all that God had called him to do.
If God calls us to something, He will equip us for it. I am sure you have heard the saying ‘God does not call the equipped, He equips those He calls.’ God called Jeremiah and was clearly equipping him for the task.
Matthew 28:18-20
“18 Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Jesus will be with us to the end of the age, through everything we will deal with, with every challenge we will face, Jesus will be with us. If that was not enough, we get even more help.
John 16:7
“7 Nevertheless, I am telling you the truth. It is for your benefit that I go away, because if I don’t go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send Him to you.”
The Counselor, the Holy Spirit is alive and well in the world today and is here to help us achieve our purpose.
If God has called you to something, He will equip you for it. If He wants you to preach His words, He will give you the tools necessary. If He wants you to share your testimony with a friend or loved one, He will give you the words to say. If He has called your to do anything, He WILL equip you to do it.
Jeremiah was called to call the people of Judah back to God. Some people would say he failed, but the truth of the matter is that the people of Judah were called to be the children of God and they chose to turn away. Jeremiah did exactly what God wanted him to do; the people of Judah did not.
Jeremiah 2:11-13
“11 Has a nation ever exchanged its gods? (But they were not gods!) Yet My people have exchanged their Glory for useless idols. 12 Be horrified at this, heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled. This is the Lord’s declaration. 13 For My people have committed a double evil: They have abandoned Me, the fountain of living water, and dug cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that cannot hold water.”
Jeremiah spoke boldly, the people of did not listen.
Jeremiah is known as the ‘weeping prophet.’ His heart broke for the people of Judah, but he never gave up hope.
Jeremiah 29:11
“11 For I know the plans I have for you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
Jeremiah’s weeping is found in the Book of Lamentations, his hope for Judah is expressed clearly in these verses.
Lamentations 3:21-23
“21 Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: 22 Because of the Lord’s faithful love
we do not perish, for His mercies never end. 23 They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!”
Even though the people of Judah did not listen to God’s warning, God was still faithful. He was faithful to return people to Jerusalem, He was faithful to bring the Messiah out of Judah, and He is still faithful and is trying to spend eternity with each and every person ever created.
If we stray from God, His mercies never end. If we falter and fall, He is still faithful. No matter what, God Loves you and is calling you to spend eternity with Him.
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