Endurance is not a common quality. Many people
lack the long-term commitment, caring and willingness that are vital to sticking
with a task against all odds. But Jeremiah was a prophet who
endured.
Jeremiah's call by God teaches how intimately
God knows us. He valued us before anyone else knew we would exist. He cared
for us while we were in our mother's womb. He planned our lives while our
bodies were still being formed. He values us more highly than we value
ourselves.
Jeremiah had to depend on God's love as he
developed endurance. His audiences were usually antagonistic or apathetic to
his messages. He was ignored; his life was often threatened. He saw both the
excitement of a spiritual awakening and the sorrow of a national return to
idolatry. With the exception of the good King Josiah, Jeremiah watched king
after king ignore his warnings and lead the people away from God. He saw fellow
prophets murdered. He himself was severely persecuted. Finally he watched
Judah's defeat at the hands of the Babylonians.
Jeremiah responded to all this with God's
message and human tears. He felt first-hand God's love for his people and the
people's rejection of that love. But even when he was angry with God and
tempted to give up, Jeremiah knew he had to keep going. God had called
him to endure. He expressed intense feelings, but he also saw beyond
the feelings to the God who was soon to execute justice, but who afterward would
administer mercy.
It may be easy for us to identify with
Jeremiah's frustrations and discouragement, but we need to realize that this
prophet's life is also an encouragement to faithfulness.
Keep reading -- 139 days left!
All footnotes taken from the Life Application Study Bible, NIV
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