WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH THE WORD?
Jeremiah 36
Introduction
It is one of the greatest blessings in our lives to be able to own, read, and comprehend the 66 books known as the Bible. What an incredible collection of documents that are so well attested, so reliable, so well documented, and that contain for us the Divine Revelation of God.
"The BIBLE -- banned, burned, beloved. More widely read, more frequently attacked than any other book in history.
Generations of intellectuals have attempted to discredit it, dictators of every age have outlawed it and executed those who read it. Yet soldiers carry it into battle believing it more powerful than their weapons. Fragments of it smuggled into solitary prison cells have transformed ruthless killers into gentle saints" - Charles Colson
Not everyone regards the Bible in this way. There are scoffers, unbelievers, and even backsliders who have decided to ignore or hate the Bible.
Our question for today is: What will you do with the Word?
Text: Jeremiah 36 - the story of King Jehoiakim’s knife.
1. THE KING’S KNIFE (Jeremiah 36)
The prophet Jeremiah was given a word from the Lord. The revival enjoyed under King Josiah now long gone. Jehoiakim is the current wicked king. Jeremiah asked his secretary Baruch to write down the prophesy in a scroll. It was a Word to evoke repentance and avoid the judgment that is sure to come otherwise. Baruch took it to the temple on a day when there were many people gathered and he read it to all the people of Judah. It was hoped that its message would move them to repentance. The King sent for the scroll. In a room full of officials, the secretary read it to the king.
Jeremiah 36:22-23 It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off
with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire.”
In the verses that follow the Bible reveals the response to the reading of God’s Word: They showed no fear; They did not repent of their sins; The King did not listen. King Jehoiakim would be punished for the disrespect he showed to God’s Word.
2. WRONG WAYS TO RECEIVE GOD’S WORD!
Laugh at the Bible and those who believe it.
Ignore it and pretend it doesn’t exist.
Reject it and determine to discredit it.
Disobey it and not worry about what it says.
Be offended by it and reject it as archaic.
Hate it and keep others from having it.
None of these can be effective!
Matthew 24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
1 Peter 1:24-25 For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.”
3. WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH THE WORD?
Study It!
2 Timothy 2:15 Do your best to present yourself to God
as one approved, a worker who does not need to be
ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
Hold Firmly to it!
Philippians 2:16 “… hold firmly to the word of life. …”
Trust It!
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on
my path.
One of these days some simple soul will pick up the Book
of God, read it, and believe it. Then the rest of us will be
embarrassed. -Leonard Ravenhill
Desire it!
1 Peter 2:2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual
milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
Use it!
Ephesians 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Conclusion
The Word of God when read and trusted should be a catalyst for change and transformation in our hearts.
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to
dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Even Jeremiah knew that God’s word should effect a change in our hearts.
Jeremiah 31:33 “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
Everyone here has a Bible in their possession. What are you doing with the Word of God today?
“The Bible is the book of my life. It's the book I live with, the book I live by, the book I want to die by.” - N. T. Wright
