Jeremiah 9:23-24
Intro: Jeremiah was a young priest denouncing the practice of worshiping images.
Jeremiah gave reason to worship the true God, His creative power and providential care.
Although Jeremiah's message was strong and his faith deep in God, the people would reject his message since they had rejected God and rather chose to glory in things that are limited and weak in the face of God's power.
In this message, let us learn that the only thing that has any merit and deserves our recognition is God's presence in our life, not the power of man.
In what should be glory?
1. We Cannot Glory in the Wisdom of Man. (23).
A. If men could boast in their great wisdom, then why did Solomon pray to God for it? In I Chronicles 1:10, Solomon asked God for both wisdom and knowledge. "Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?" Even King Solomon, in all his glory, knew his wisdom and understanding were limited. Solomon knew he would fail in ruling the people and he needed wisdom from God to rule them properly.
B. Solomon wrote in the book of Ecclesiastes 9:11, "I returned and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."
In this passage Solomon addresses the limitations of man's understanding, his wrong conclusions, his ignorance, and even his false premises. Again, success is not based upon strength, wisdom or riches. It is based upon time, which are portions of one's life, that if in line with God's will, prove to give success and joy. It is only by God's will that man can accomplish anything, at any time.
C. When it comes to wisdom, the wisdom of man when challenged proves to be faulty and clouded. Sadly, even the most learned of men, have been known to deny the existence of and the reality of God. Those of you who have been trained in school or even in college, do you not sometimes find it hard to come up with the answers to your problems? We all need God's help, just like Solomon. Jeremiah was right you cannot glory in what you know. God is omniscient or all-knowing and He knows you and your limitations, but He still loves you. It is true, it is not what you know, but who you know that counts.
2. We Cannot Glory In The Might of Man (23).
A. Many men have been proclaimed as having great strength. Athletics is a forum for the proclaiming of power, might, skill and tremendous strength under challenge. Sadly, the same people who show great strength have recently proven to be weak. Many have relied on substance abuse for strength.
B. There was once a mighty man named Samson, in Judges 13-16, we read about Samson who became the 12th judge of Israel, and a thorn in the side of the Philistines. Samson's claim to fame was his great strength, strength that was not known to any man before. Killing a lion with your bear hands, slaying a thousand men with the jawbone of a donkey. As we read, though, we find the secret of his strength, it was not his alone, it was given to him by God because of his faith. In Judges 13:7, we find that Samson was a Nazarite, which meant that he had made a vow to God, never to cut his hair. This act showed humility before God, a faith in God, and a vow which carried with it both life and death. Samson though was tested by lust for Delilah, who cut his hair and Samson lost his strength. He was taken captive, tortured, ridiculed, and then taken to the temple of the Philistines to be made fun of. Praying to God for strength, he was able to pull the pillars together and the temple collapsed killing many Philistines on that day. Samson, though, also lost his life. Although he was strong, his might failed him at the end.
C. Are you trusting in your might or strength? Have you found yourself too weak to accomplish a task? If so, then you should understand why you cannot glory in your might. We are not as strong as we think we are, but God is omnipotent or all-powerful. You can count on Him.
3. We Cannot Glory in the Riches of Man (23).
A. With the economy in the shape that it is, it should be easy to understand this division of my message. Many of us have found our money running short and our debt increasing. Riches do not merit being gloried in and spending your life amassing wealth is a very dull life.
B. Jesus said in Matthew 19:23-24, "Verily, I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." Jesus shared this just after encountering a young man who asked Jesus how to have eternal life. Jesus told the young man, that what he should do was sell what he had, give the proceeds to the poor, and then come and follow Him. The young man, left or went away sorrowful. Jesus is not saying that those with wealth cannot be saved, but it is a challenge to get people to understand that wealth will not give you eternal life, only faith in Christ will do this. Thus, Jesus simply means it would be harder for a wealthy person to renounce their wealth, and follow the will of God, than it would be for a poor man.
C. Paul shared with Timothy that covetousness becomes a barrier to serving God especially for a minister. In I Timothy 6:10, Paul specifically shared, "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." Once again, please read the verse, it is not money that is the root of all evil, it the love of money. If you have money, that is fine, but if money is the most important thing in your life, or if you only think or covet having more and more of it, then you will be miserable. I am here to tell you that money can buy happiness, but that happiness is short lived. Only Jesus Christ can give you joy, happiness, and contentment that is everlasting.
D. According to Jesus, riches are temporal and that is why they should not be so important to us. In Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus said, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." As you see, what you value the most will steal your affection. Earthly riches can be eaten, as by a moth, corrupted, as by rust, and stolen, as by a thief. Therefore, earthly riches are temporal, but the treasures of God are eternal.
E. As you see, although money is needed to pay debt or to pay your bills, it must not become the most important thing in your life. You should not spend your life boasting about the wealth or riches you have. God should be most important, since you can be wealthy today and broke tomorrow.
4. We Can Glory in the Power and Majesty of God (24).
A. Jeremiah has told us that nothing of man is worth boasting about or building your life upon, but now he changes his tune and tells us about God and that if you want to boast of anything and if you want to build your life upon a solid foundation, boast about God.
B. In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus shared about two men who built houses. One built his house upon a rock, and the storm could not destroy his house. The other built his house upon the sand, which is made up of tiny stones, and when the storm come this man's house was totally destroyed. Upon closer examination we see that Jesus was speaking about a person's life, using these two men as examples. The first man, heeded God's word and his life was strong and secure, the other build his house upon the wisdom of man and suffered total destruction. Therefore, I ask you, upon what foundation is your life established? God is the solid rock and sure foundation, while man is like the sand that may look inviting, but is a very poor foundation upon which to build your life.
C. David wrote in Psalm 18:1-2, "I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." David truly knew Who God was and His care for His people. David not only proclaimed his love for God, but praised Him as the solid foundation or rock upon which a person can build their life and be secure. A fortress was made up of high walls, thick walls, and protected by soldiers, thus, it was hard for any enemy to gain access to those inside the fortress. God certainly delivers us from our cares, and in salvation, from our sin. God does give us strength to face another day. As a buckler, we are safely protected and cannot be removed from His care. A horn was sounded at the conclusion of battle, to mark victory, and truly the salvation of God gives us a reason to proclaim victory in Him. Lastly, when an enemy approached, the fortress was ready to fight, because there was a watchman in a high tower paying close attention. Truly, God watches out for us and He will not allow us to be defeated.
D. Isaiah saw the Lord sitting upon a throne in Isaiah 6:1-8, and he heard the seraphims proclaim holy, holy, holy to God. At this sight, Isaiah felt totally outclassed, and he came to the realization that he was dirty by the flesh. When God said He needed someone to go and to deliver His message, Isaiah was more than pleased to be the person God used. He surrendered to God and let God clean him up. We should be so glad we know God and we should never be ashamed of Him, and of His power. As a matter of fact, we should be looking for the opportunity to share the name of Jesus Christ with those we come in contact with.
Conclusion: In life we may believe that our wisdom, might or riches are reasons to boast, but when it all comes down to finding out what really matters, boasting of God and our relationship with Him is the best. Our wisdom, might, and riches will ultimately let us down. Think about it, there will be a question asked, and you will not have the answer. There will be a problem you will face, and you cannot overcome it alone. Finally, there will be a price, like the price for our sin, and you will not be able to pay it. But, if you are smart or ignorant, if you are strong or weak, and you may be poor or rich, yet you can boast in one thing, GOD!!!
