Jeremiah 1:4-10
“Yahbut’s Disease”
By: Ken Sauer, Pastor of East Ridge United Methodist Church, Chattanooga, TN
In these opening verses of the Book of Jeremiah, the prophet gives us a testimony of his “call” to become a prophet.
One thing immediately stands out.
Jeremiah did not “choose” to be “appointed…as a prophet.”
Becoming a prophet wasn’t some sort of “career move.”
Actually, it was just the opposite!
Had Jeremiah wanted to be a prophet, he would have signed up.
He would have gone to seminary or prophet school!
This wasn’t his idea.
This “prophet thing” was all God’s idea.
“The word of the Lord came,” to him.
This wasn’t the result of some personal search for God.
God is the One Who took the initiative.
God is the One Who makes the choice to call Jeremiah.
And Jeremiah’s response is all too human!
All he could do was make excuses as to why he shouldn’t do it.
He wasn’t qualified for this.
This job never showed up on his career aptitude test.
Besides, he was too young.
He was only a boy.
He didn’t know how to speak well.
And he didn’t want to have any part of this “speaking for God” stuff!
But God won’t take “No” for an answer!
God’s call never goes away or magically disappears!
God “reached our his hand and touched” Jeremiah’s mouth.
This is no time for excuses.
Even if Jeremiah doesn’t think he is qualified for this, it’s no problem for God.
God will put the words in his mouth.
God will tell him what to say.
God will help Jeremiah with what Jeremiah thought was impossible.
And, as always, what God promised; God delivered on!
Jeremiah’s excuse making disappeared.
His rebellion melted away.
And Jeremiah became a prophet, one of the greatest prophets in the history of Israel.
And the Book that follows these verses in today’s lesson is a testimony to that fact!
But it almost didn’t happen!!!
And what a tragedy that would have been, not only for Jeremiah but also for the people who needed to hear and learn from God’s Word!
Jeremiah suffered from a condition which seeks to stifle all of us.
It can be brought on by a low self-esteem, the lure of the world, laziness…you name it!
We can call this condition, “Yahbut’s Disease.”
It’s a way of making excuses for ourselves; its an uncanny ability to wiggle our way out of doing what God is calling us to do.
“Yeah, but…I do not know how to speak…”
“Yeah, but…I am only a child…”
“Yeah, but…I am too old…”
“Yeah, but…I do not know enough about the Bible.”
“Yeah, but…I’ve got too many other things I need to be doing.”
“Yeah, but…there are so many others who must be more qualified than I.”
“Yeah, but…Yeah, but…Yeah, but…”
We can “yeah, but…” all our way to the grave, or we can decide to trust in God and do what we have been “set apart” and “appointed” by God to do!
The choice is ours; the consequences are eternal!!!
I didn’t have a choice as to what God was calling me to do with my life…as to why God “formed [me] in the womb.”
I don’t have any memory of this experience, but have heard it from my parents on several occasions.
When I was about 3 years old I was in a room with a bunch of other kids.
Everyone was playing and running around, but not me.
I sat glued to the t-v; it was as if I were mesmerized.
On the t-v was a program about angels, and I couldn’t tear myself away from it.
For whatever reason, it fascinated me.
All the other “fun stuff” that was going on in that den didn’t mean a thing.
All my attention was focused on the spiritual.
My parents stood in the doorway watching.
And as they did, they made a remark to one another: “Kenny is going to be a preacher when he grows up.”
When I was 5 years old, my family went to see the movie, Jesus Christ Superstar.
While (I would imagine) everyone else enjoyed the movie, but didn’t think too much about it after the credits began to roll; I became obsessed.
A few days later I talked my mother into buying me the album soundtrack to the movie.
I would come home from Kindergarten and spend hours upon hours listening to the music and lyrics, and looking at the pictures on the album jacket day after day after day.
I was just being “me,” and I didn’t even know it.
As early as I can remember, prayer played a huge role in my life.
I always said my prayers, by myself…in my room…before I went to sleep.
No one was forcing me to do this.
For a time, when I was in middle school, we lived close enough so that I could walk.
That entire 5 to 10 minute walk was my morning prayer time.
I prayed for everybody and everything I could imagine.
I’m sure that no human suggested I do this, again, I was just being “me,” and I just naturally did it.
Those are found memories.
I really enjoyed this.
I also prayed as I did my morning paper route a few years later.
And I also did a bit of evangelizing.
I had a best friend, named Tom, who didn’t go to church and whose parents didn’t believe in God.
One night I walked in the door at a fairly late hour.
My parents were a bit upset and worried.
“But I was telling Tom about God,” I remember saying as if this were the most important thing anyone could do.
And, and…I knew I had been called to be a minister.
And somehow, my pastor figured this out very early on.
I think it started by my complimenting him on his sermon…as a very young boy.
He was probably quite surprised.
This is the same pastor who showed up at my door, right before I left for college with a brand new pocket-size Bible…
…a Bible that literally changed my life!
This is also the same pastor who paid for my plane trip to an exploration event put on by The United Methodist Church, for young people who may be called to go into the ministry.
It was at this event, that I first rebelled against this call, and basically said to God, “Yeah, but I’m not gonna do it!”
I say, the “first time,” because there were many!
But, by God’s amazing grace and initiative, God keeps calling, and keeps calling and keeps calling!!!
What is God calling you to do?
If you have been making the excuse of “Yeah, but…” and continue to do so, you will never be truly happy and at peace until you, along with Isaiah, Moses, Jeremiah and millions upon millions of others say, in essence, “Here am I, send me.”
That is when the big relief sets in, and life really gets rolling!!!
We have all been created by God for a purpose, and until we allow God to use us for that purpose…well, we will run, and run, and run…
…but never be truly satisfied!
Only a “Yes” to God can cure us from “Yahbut’s Disease”!
Last week we talked about “how” we are all—as the persons who meet at 1601 Prater Road, in this part of Chattanooga, Tennessee—the Body of Christ!
Paul instructs us in 1 Corinthians Chapter 12, “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ…God has arranged the parts of the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be…Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”
None of us are here by accident; God has a specific task for each one of us to play in order that this Church be all that it is meant to be!
So, how are we to discern what it is we are called to do?
One way is to find out where there is a need that is not being met.
In our case, for instance, we need Sunday school teachers, helpers during Youth group which meets every Sunday evening at 5:15 p.m….and I am told that the qualifications to help with the Youth are…well, you just need to be able to breath!
We also need persons to help Lindsey during Children’s Church.
Lindsey has been basically begging for help in these areas, but has had little response, and the need is great!
Is God calling you to work in one of these areas?
Have you heard God’s call, but responded with a “Yeah, but…?”
We also need persons to drive the vans which pick up folks for church.
This is a vital and extremely important element in the ministry of this church!
What a privilege and honor!!!
But there are only, I believe, three people who divide up this important ministry which makes all the difference in the world to the persons who would not be able to be with us if it weren’t for their service.
There can be no doubt that God is calling some of us to these ministries, for we are The Body of Christ!
And each one of us is a limb or organ.
And in order for the Body of Christ to function as it should, every limb and organ has to be doing it’s part!!!
As Paul tells us, “the eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’”
We all need one another!!!
We are not called to just warm a pew, we are all called to contribute to the whole as well!
We are not called just to receive, we are called to give and participate as well!
And the awesome thing about giving and participating is that, when we do this, we gain much more than we ever would if we just continued to say, “Yeah, but….”
God has called each and every one of us to be an active participant in helping bring the Kingdom of God to this lost and broken world.
None of us are qualified.
What God is calling you to do may never have registered on your career aptitude test.
You may be getting older, or you may feel you are too new to the faith.
But God won’t take “No” for an answer.
God will put the words in your mouth.
God will tell you what to say.
God will help you with what you might think is impossible.
And only God can take our “excuse making away.”
All we must do is say, “Yes” to God…
… “Yes, God; use me. I trust You. For before You formed me in the womb You knew me, before I was born You set me apart and appointed me.”
Thanks be to God!
Amen.
