I Almost Quit!
Jeremiah 20 8-11
August 6, 2006
Pastor Edwards
Have you ever been in a situation where it seemed to be over bearing? Maybe it was a job or a relationship. Maybe it was a task you had that seemed not to go right. It seemed the harder you tried the more things seems to go wrong. When you spoke it was though no one wanted to hear you. It was like you was the invisible man. Even though you was there no one seemed to see you. Have you ever had a situation like that?
Well hear we have young Jeremiah, is feeling that way. Even though he is speaking the words that God had ordained him to speak. It is though no one is listening. His message is not a popular message and he do not have many faithful followers. Jeremiah is feeling that the whole world is against him. And that it is all Gods fault. He say’s in verse 9 “I will not make mention of him nor speak any more in his name.” Now you see why Bro. Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet. But Before you throw rocks at young Jeremiah some of us have done the same thing when things seems to be going wrong .When trials and tribulation comes on every side it seems that we want to say God why me. Why is every one is against me. I want to quit. I want to give up because this task that you have giving me is over bearing.
And that is what the enemy wants you to think. He wants you to give up and throw in the towel. He wants you to blame God for what you are going threw. He wants you to believe that God is not there for you. The biggest trick that the devil ever performed was to make man believe that he do not exist. He want us to believes that it is not him that is taking us through the storms of life but it is all God’s fault. But the devil comes to kill, steal and destroy. He wants to kill the relationship you have with Jesus Christ. He wants to steal your happiness and your Joy. He wants to destroy your faith that you have in God. Because if you do not have faith it is impossible to please God.
But I want to tell you today that God will not put more on you than you can bear. Yes it may feel that you are all alone some times. It may feel that no body is listening. But there is one that always hears your cry there is someone that always know your hurts and your pains. David said he inclined his ear onto me and heard my cry. No matter what you are going through God will always see you through. He said I will stick closer than a brother. I will never leave you nor forsake you. I will be there always until the end of the age.
When your mother and father forsake you God will be there to pick you up.
James said in James 1v 2 “Brethren count it all joy when you fall into divers temptation Knowing this that the trying of your faith woreth patience“. When things seem to be getting bad that is not the time to quit. That is not the time to give up. That is the time to press toward the mark of the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus. It’s not time to pray less it’s time to pray more. The Bible says that man ought to always pray and pray without ceasing.
Now we have to ask our self what is making Jeremiah want to quit.? What is making him want to give it all up.? First of all Jeremiah was not sure about this prophesy thing in the first place. When God told him to go he made all kinds of excuses. He said I can not speak for I am a child. Than God has to reassure Jeremiah and tell him that I will be there with you. And so Jeremiah goes and does what God has told him to do and preached what God want him to preach. and now Jeremiah finds himself locked in prison. The king has gotten him locked in stocks. His and hands is bound and his legs is bound. No one has came to visit him, no one has wrote him a letter. And Jeremiah is feeling that no body cares. Jeremiah feels that he was overpowered when God called him to preached. But God warned him of all that he would face right from the start and reassured his prophet on several occasions that God will be there for him. In chapter 1v19 He told Jer. “And they shall fight against thee: but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the Lord to deliver thee.
Even though God reassures us in his word. That he will deliver that he will defend and he will destroy. And that OUR enemy will fall at our feet. We find our self like Jeremiah complaining and murmuring. And finding ourselves almost wanting to quit. But I come to tell you today New St. Paul keep your hands in God’s hand. And God will restore the years that the canker worm has eating up. Don’t quit. Don’t give in don’t bow and don’t bend. Paul said I ran a good race I fought a good fight. We have to keep fighting, keep praying and keep believing. That God can do the impossible for them that believeth. Tell your neighbor you got to believe.
Jeremiah was getting weak he was getting weary. Because every time he turned around people was against him. On one incident in Jeremiah chpt. 26:7-16. As soon as Jeremiah ended his sermon the priest and the prophets wanted to kill young Jeremiah. And he barley escaped with his life.. It has gotten so bad that Jeremiah says I will not even mention the name of the Lord. I am tired of folks want to put me down for calling on the name of the Lord, I am tired of folks want to kill me for preaching the word of God. They shall be into the word not against the word. . The words that I speak are that of the LORD. Here he is doing the will of God. Preaching the word that God has giving him. Because God told Jer. Don’t be afraid of there faces and don’t worry what you are going to say I will put the words in your mouth. And he is going through all of this. So Jeremiah is not playing tuff he’s saying I almost quit. I am tired of folks God. Every time I mention your name they want to come against me. Have you ever just got tired of church folks? Tired of there talking Tired of there lies and tired of there deceit? You have to ask your self sometimes. Do they ever come to serve God or do they just come to stir up mess.
I can understand being down sometimes I can understand complain sometimes I can even understand getting mad at your brother or sister sometimes. But what I can’t understand is some folks are unhappy all the time. You complain all he time. You are weary all the time. Are you sure you are born again of God Because the child of God should have some joy if not all the time but at least sometimes. Have you really been changed have you really been delivered. I know you been in church all your life but that don’t make you saved. You need to have a relationship with Jesus.
So what is making Jeremiah want to quit what is making him want to give up.
So I had to ask Jeremiah myself Bro. Jeremiah what make you want to quit. Was it the sermons that you had to prepare. Was they to in-depth and tedious. Bro Jeremiah said no it was not the sermons that I had to prepare because the words that I spoke came straight from God. All I did was open my mouth and God spoke through me.
I said ok Jeremiah it was not the sermons. But Jeremiah did you want to quit because God would not let you marry and you felt alone. He said no it was not that. He said if you have God on your side that is all you need. He will comfort you in the midnight hour. He will be your mother when you are motherless. He will be a wife when you are wifeless he will be your husband when you don’t have a husband. God is all I need.
I said Jeremiah what was it what made you want to give up and quit. Than Jeremiah took me to verse 10. Look at verse 10 with me if you will. The New American Standard Bible put it like this Jeremiah 20:10 (NASB) He said this is why I almost quit.
10 For I have heard the whispering of many, "Terror on every side! Denounce him; yes, let us denounce him!" All my trusted friends, Watching for my fall, say: "Perhaps he will be deceived, so that we may prevail against him And take our revenge on him."
It is not the word that make you want to quit it is not the world that make you want to quit. Because you know that the world is cruel. You no they will not be there. But it was my trusted friends. The ones that I depended on the ones that I needed. The one’s that I thought that will always be there for me. I got tired of there frowned up faces. I got tired of there back stabbing I got tired of THEM LIEING ON ME my own friends putting me down. So many folks have quit the church not because of the enemy but because of the church folks. They came out the world because they was tired of being abused. I came out the world because I was tired of getting beat down. They came out the world because the scandalize my name. So I came to the church seeking peace seeking happiness and seeking joy. But I found that the same folks that was in the world some how got in the church. The same ones that I was trying to get away from the same ones that I thought was going to be on my side is the same ones that put me down and tore me up. Jeremiah said it was my familiars people that I had contact with. People I have known for a while I almost quit because of them. I almost threw in the towel.
Well Jeremiah why didn’t you give up and give in? He said because the word of God got in me and it was fire shut up in my bones. I almost quit I wanted to quit. That was my will to give up. But God’s will was stronger than mine so I had to continue. I had to keep pushing. I had to keep preaching. I can’t quit. I can’t give up because it is like fire shut up in my bones.
God’s word is like fire and when it gets down in the inside it burns up everything that is not right by God. It burns up your will and you take on Gods will . It burns up that heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. When the word comes in it will burn up hatred and bring in happiness. It will burn up malice and envy, it will burn up back biting and make you love every body. When God word really get inside of you can’t do what you want to do. When God’s word get inside you even though you want to quit even though you want to throw in the towel you can’t quit.
Because I will be honest with you I almost quit. I almost threw in the towel. I got tired of my familiars like Jeremiah got tired of his. Not because the devil. Not because he threw sickness on me like he did Job. I almost quit. Not because I was thrown in the lions den like Daniel. I almost quit . Not because I was thrown in the fiery furnace like the 3 Hebrews boys. But I almost quit because the ones that I thought will be with me. I almost quit because the ones I thought would be praying with me is praying against me. Yall Almost made quit. But I could not quit because that is not the will that God had for me. So I could not quit I could not throw in the towel because my will is no more I have to be about my fathers business. I have to do what he commanded to do. So you almost made me quit. But it aint gone work you almost made me give up but I have to do God’s will I have to be about what God wants me to do. So I come to tell the enemy and my familiars. I told that we don’t stop I told we want stop. God’s word can not stop. Heaven and earth shall pass away but my word shall forever stand!!
