WHERE IS JEREMIAH?

       Where is Jeremiah? Where is he today? Have we heard him speaking? Have we heard him declaring the word of God? If he is here why haven't we noticed him?
      We all somewhat condemn the Israelis of Jeremiah's time for not listening to what he had to say. We all see those around him refused to believe what he said was what the true God, Jehovah, was saying to the people. They didn't want to hear it because it was not revealing the kind of God they wanted. They had an image of who they wanted God to be and if what they heard didn't match up to that which they wanted they refuse to hear the one speaking God's word, sometimes they even would stone the one delivering the word God sent. Where is Jeremiah? Why haven't we heard him lately? Why isn't he speaking?
      God has Jeremiahs speaking today. But usually the people flock to the preacher with the easy message, the easy teaching. When many of the people do find a Jeremiah today they leave soon because the God that Jeremiah preaches is too harsh for them so they go elsewhere.
      No, none of the Jeremiahs today get stoned with stones, but the words, the gossip, the lies, said about them do more damage than stones. Many of us are appalled that this is happening, that the one doing this, the unsaved world, the news media, the critics, are doing this to the Jeremiahs of today, and we think, 'how dare they'. Who were the ones persecuting Jeremiah? Who were the ones throwing, or wanting to throw the stones at Jeremiah? Was it the heathen Gentiles? Was it the the nations around Israel who didn't want to hear what Jehovah had to say? Was it the ones who didn't know about how good God is? Look closely, see with your eyes, let your heart realize, that the ones throwing the stones was God's people but they were not acting much like God's people. It wasn't the ones outside Israel, it's not the ones outside the Church, it is God's people who are throwing the stones. When we hear God's word spoken harshly we refuse to hear it because that is not what we want to hear even though if we look in God's word, the Bible, and read the things Jesus said we will find out these are God's words trying to wake up a sleeping Church. The preachers speaking God's full word, leaving nothing out, are many times left with very few to listen. Their congregations are usually small. There seems to be very few who want to hear God's word that sometimes steps on there toes. Even some of those who continue to come for one reason or the other come wearing steel toed shoes refusing to allow God's word to touch their hearts. When we hear God's word as it is it sometimes insults us, this doesn't feel good, yet it is the very thing God uses to bring us to a humble place before Him where He can begin to do some work in our lives and bring us to that blessed relationship with Him that we all want. God is good, all the time, not just when we hear what makes us feel good. God doesn't look at our comfort at the moment, He looks at our security in eternity, our joy of unity with Him for ever. We are bad children, we don't do as we ought, the apostle Paul tells us so and the same about himself. It is only by one thing and one thing only that we are saved and that is the size and extent of God's

L O V E

The other thing which allows us to remain is God's family is His

LONNGGGGGSSUUUUFFERRRRING

      Yes it is by God's grace and mercy which is found in His deep love for us and His longsuffering that tolerates us which allows us to continue in the salvation we have by the blood that fell from the body of Christ as He hung on the cross those suffering hours, those last hours on the cross before He died, dying for our sins, not his. Even Pilate, a harsh Roman ruler of that territory said Jesus was innocent. It was because of us that Jesus died. It was because of our sins that He died. If we as Christians allow ourselves to let our heads be put in some fluffy cloud, by some preach, or even just by what we think of ourselves, that we are good people deserving to be blessed - as is said, 'get your head out of the clouds'. The only thing we can do is to come before God broken, knowing who we are, knowing it is by His love that we are blessed and nothing else. One of the things we can do, if we do it in honesty, is to really look at who we are and ask ourselves, 'If we were God would we have put up with us for as long as He has'? As the truth is known in each of our hearts about who we are we begin dropping the stones in our hands and walking away with our heads hanging down in shame. But God does not want us to stay there, He wants us to hear His word, to come close, to be humbled, to be blessed, and to come into a close relationship with Him which will give us joy for eternity. Find a Jeremiah, let the words of God that he speaks cut into your hearts removing the calloused parts that a healing may come which will take you into a place with God you may have never experienced before, a place you will never want to let go of. God is good, all the time.

Robert L Doudna 2009