“When You’re Ready To Quit”
Jeremiah 8:21-9:2
[THIS SERMON IDEA/OUTLINE CAME FROM Brian Harbour’s Book entitled "From Cover to Cover"]
It is hard to read the book of Jeremiah and not feel sorry for him. He is called the “weeping prophet” and for good reason. He was under the constant strain of speaking the message God wanted him to say and speaking the message the people wanted to hear. 6:14 tells us the people wanted to hear that there was “Peace.” But God’s message was one of judgment unless they repent. Of course, Jeremiah was faithful to preach God’s message. So, what kind of position do you think this put Jeremiah in?
Jeremiah 20:7-8, 10
[7] O LORD, you deceived me, and I was deceived; you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. [8] Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the LORD has brought me insult and reproach all day long...[10] I hear many whispering, “Terror on every side! Report him! Let’s report him!” All my friends are waiting for me to slip, saying, “Perhaps he will be deceived; then we will prevail over him and take our revenge on him.”
The people he loved wanted him dead. This led to many nights of crying out before the Lord (thus, “weeping prophet”). And many times he just wanted to give up.
(Read Text)
You know? This text says he WANTED to give up.
But you know what else?
He DIDN’T give up.
In fact, he COULDN’T give up?
Why?
I. He couldn’t give up because he had a BURNING DESIRE WITHIN (20:9)
Jeremiah 20:9 -- But if I say, “I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
A. “fire” -- there are numerous words used in the Old Testament to refer to fire. However, this word is never used of a “literal fire.” it’s always used figuratively to describe an inner, all-consuming and contagious “passion.”
B. What was the source of this burning desire? It was God’s call on his life.
1. Jeremiah 1:4-5
[4] The word of the LORD came to me, saying, [5] “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
2. And like most of us when we hear God’s call he began to make excuses:
[6] “Ah, Sovereign LORD,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am only a child.”
3. But the Lord always reminds us:
[7] But the LORD said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. [8] Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD. [9] Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “Now, I have put my words in your mouth.”
C. “Although Jeremiah felt inadequate to the task, although he was unsuccessful at times, although the people remained indifferent and no one seemed to care . . .
Jeremiah could not settle for a “resort in the desert” because he had the challenge of God burning within his heart, and he could not escape it (Brian Harbour, From Cover to Cover, 100).
That is why 20:9 characterized his life -- But if I say, “I will not mention him or speak any more in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
D. If there is a phrase in the Bible that should characterize our lives it is Isaiah 6:8 -- “Here am I, Send me!”
Jeremiah couldn’t quit . . . he couldn’t give up . . . because of his burning call within to preach God’s Word to all Israel.
II. He couldn’t give up because of the OVERWHELMING NEED WITHOUT (18:11, but actually, the whole book of Jeremiah)
The message of Jeremiah was simple: “The Lord is preparing disaster for you unless you turn from your evil ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and actions.” (18:11)
A. The OVERWHELMING NEED WITHOUT was that the people he loved were about to feel the wrath of the Lord unless they repent!
B. Jeremiah shared the heart of the Lord: to see his people repent!
C. “As he looked at those around him, his heart was burdened by their spiritual condition. They had turned from God. They were wasting their lives. They were traveling down a pathway that would ultimately lead to their destruction.” (Harbour, 101).
D. The need expressed by Jeremiah upon his people is the same need we see evident in our world today.
Illustration: When a teacher asked one of her students to tell the class the shape of the world, the little girl responded, “My daddy says it is in the worst shape it has ever been in!” (Harbour, 101) . . .
And the little girl was right:
“Never have there been more broken homes, more ruined lives, more subtle temptations, more atrocious manifestations of sin, and more opportunities for the power of evil than in our generation.” (Harbour, 101).
E. What’s the key? What was the key for Jeremiah? As he looked around at his people HE TOOK ON THE HEART OF GOD.
1. What is the heart of God?
Luke 15 -- “At evening, when the shepherd counted his sheep, ninety-nine were safe in the pen. That’s a pretty good percentage. Ninety-nine percent is not bad. However, the shepherd was not concerned about percentages. He was concerned about lost sheep. So he went out immediately and searched diligently until he found the one lost sheep. Then, he laid it on his shoulders and called his friends to rejoice with him for this one lost sheep had been found.” (Harbour, 101).
2. When you heed the CALL of God you will have the heart of God. That’s the way it was for Isaiah in Isaiah 6 -- (Expound -- Worship in God’s presence leads to surrender to God’s plan).
F. Does this describe our heart? Is our heart burdened by the spiritual condition of those around us?
For Jeremiah, this was another thing that kept him going. “Jeremiah could not give up, even when he wanted to, because he was compelled by the need around him.” (Harbour, 101).
III. He couldn’t give up because of the ANSWER he possessed.
A. If we have the heart of God that is burdened by the spiritual condition of those around us, it is because we know of their spiritual need. But more than that, we also have the spiritual answer.
B. That answer is “Jesus”
Illustration: The Baton Rouge Gideon Camp sponsored a Gideon Day at Angola Penitentiary. They took Bibles into the cells of prisoners to tell them about the love of God. One of these Gideons was named Luther. When he walked into Charlie Frazier’s cell, the prisoner started cursing him. Charlie Frazier was a notorious criminal, having been in solitary confinement for twelve years. He didn’t want to talk about God. So he ordered Luther to get out. “You religious people come down and talk about the love of God. It’s easy for you. Just get out.”
Luther put his hand on Frazier’s shoulder, looked him in the eyes, and said, “Fellow, I just want to tell you that I love you.” Frazier ordered Luther out of the cell again. He left, but as he did, he laid a Bible on the bunk. “This is the Word of God,” he said in parting. “I hope you read it.”
A few days later, Luther received a phone call from the chaplain at Angola Penitentiary. He informed Luther that Charlie Frazier had been converted to Jesus Christ. Frazier became superintendent of the Sunday School at Angola Penitentiary, a position he held until stricken with cancer. After Frazier’s death, the Louisiana attorney general was quoted as saying in the New Orleans paper, “We don’t know what changed Frazier. He was a notorious criminal. He killed two guards in an attempt to escape from our penitentiary, but in the past few years he has been a new man. I don’t know what came over him, but whatever it was changed his life.”
We know what it was. It was Christ, for he is the answer to man’s deepest needs. That is why we must never quit (Harbour, 102).
Conclusion: Jeremiah had God’s call, God’s heart and God’s answer. These three things worked in his life in such a way that even when he wanted to quit, he couldn’t.
