The Precious.
Jeremiah 15:19
The prophet Jeremiah faced rebuke, mockery and loneliness and stood transparent before God and lifted his state of depression to the Lord.
God’s promises weighed on the balance scales
In your mind’s eye, please see a set of balance scales. Balance scales are the type we see the blind lady of justice holding, where a heavier weight tilts in that direction but even weight balances out perfectly.
How do we separate God’s goodness, from the ordinary?
In Jeremiah 15, Judgement must come; therefore the Prophet Jeremiah prays and beseeches—God answers!
This isn’t the text, but listen to, Jeremiah 15:16NASB The prophet prays, 16 Your words were found and I ate them, and Your words became for me a joy and delight of my heart.
Again, Jeremiah was also whinny, and joyless. He had joined ranks with the pessimist, He needed this prayer, he needed this talk with his Lord.
Again, Verse 16, Jeremiah ate God’s word and it brought him great joy!
Jeremiah 15:19NASB Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “If you return, then I will restore you—You will stand before Me; And if you extract the precious from the worthless, You will become My spokesman. They, for their part, may turn to you, But as for you, you are not to turn to them.
Listen to the last part of this verse again, 19c…They, for their part, may turn to you, But as for you, you are not to turn to them.
The Barnes Commentary say’s, A flattering prophet perishes with the people whom his soft speeches have confirmed in their sin: but the truthful speaking of God's word saves both.
Refuse to get down on the level of dross, and impurities. P.H
Again, Jeremiah 15:19AMP “Therefore, thus says the Lord [to Jeremiah], “If you repent [and give up this mistaken attitude of despair and self-pity], then I will restore you [to a state of inner peace] So that you may stand before Me [as My obedient representative]; And if you separate the precious from the worthless [examining yourself and cleansing your heart from unwarranted doubt concerning My faithfulness], You will become My spokesman. Let the people turn to you [and learn to value My values]— But you, you must not turn to them [with regard for their idolatry and wickedness].”
Verse 19a.“Therefore, thus says the Lord [to Jeremiah],
Think about this, The Divine voice within— Jeremiah, makes answer to the passionate complaint of Jeremiah.
Jeremiah had listened to the complaint of the people, he begins to believe for God’s people to “return” to their Godly mind, to repent of their murmurings and distrust.
Jeremiah 15:19b. “If you repent [and give up this mistaken attitude of despair and self-pity], then I will restore you [to a state of inner peace] So that you may stand before Me [as My obedient representative];
Think about this, We are obedient representatives for our Lord.
Plain and simple—If we repent, God will restore. He will produce inner-peace, so that His people may stand before Him…
2 Chronicles 7:11-17TLB So Solomon finished building the Temple as well as his own palace. He completed what he had planned to do.
12 One night the Lord appeared to Solomon and told him, “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this Temple as the place where I want you to sacrifice to me. 13 If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust swarms to eat up all of your crops, or if I send an epidemic among you, 14 then if my people will humble themselves and pray, and search for me, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear them from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land. 15 I will listen, wide awake, to every prayer made in this place. 16 For I have chosen this Temple and sanctified it to be my home forever; my eyes and my heart shall always be here.
17 “As for yourself, if you follow me as your father David did,
What was King David’s testimony, He was a man after God’s heart.
* Humble yourself.
* Pray.
* Search for Him (God).
* Turn from wickedness.
Again, Jeremiah 15:19b. And if you separate the precious from the worthless [examining yourself and cleansing your heart from unwarranted doubt concerning My faithfulness], You will become My spokesman.
Jeremiah has to distinguish between “the precious and the vile,” between the gold and the dross, between a righteous zeal and the despondent bitterness which is its spurious counterfeit, not in the people only to whom he speaks but in himself.
God wants us to evaluate our circumstances, evaluate our lifestyles, evaluate what’s really important.
What’s priority to you?
God—Worldly pleasure.
Family—Selfishness.
Church—parties.
Friends—Enemies.
Work—Being lazy.
I call it, “A check up from the neck up.”
If we are going to separate the righteous from the unrighteous, the gold from the dross, miscommunication, from God’s information:
We have to begin by examining ourself.
If you’re willing to live obedient, Verse 19, of Jeremiah 15c…You will become My spokesman.
As your life reflects Jesus, you’ll have something to say.
Like Jeremiah, everyone has decisions to make. Time becomes the test, right or wrong— decisions, can become our destiny.
Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet, most of Israel refused his words—Thus sealing their future.
God spoke this one verse to me: Separate, evaluate our circumstances, what’s of faith, and what’s not. What’s important? What has my attention? In the long run, should I hold onto my goals and ambitions. Are they worth dying for? Are they worth living for?
Again, Jeremiah 15:19NASB Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “If you return, then I will restore you—You will stand before Me;
And if you extract the precious from the worthless, You will become My spokesman.
2—things God will do as someone returns to Him:
Restore.
Acts 3:19NASB Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;
Say, restore.
Psalm 126:1-3NASB When the Lord brought back the captives of Zion, We were like those who dream. 2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting;
Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us; We are joyful. 4
Restore our fortunes, Lord, As the streams in the South.
Be My spokesman.
The Bible is clear about God’s own—His family.
1 Peter 2:9-10NASB But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
If you will begin to extract the common from the precious you will move into God's glory, His best, His perfect will.
Benediction.
