00:00 Introduction and Welcome

00:15 Preparing for Election Outcomes

02:41 Trusting in God's Sovereignty

07:20 Jeremiah's Prophecy and Message

12:06 Judgment and Repentance

19:58 Concluding Prayer and Encouragement

Hey, everybody.

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Welcome to Thursday, August

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of the daily Bible podcast.

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New just meaning the next day.

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I'm not making any radical

changes or anything like that.

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It is what it is.

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We're going to talk about the

Bible and how we should understand

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it as we walk through, uh,

today, Jeremiah four through six.

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But before we jump into that, just.

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Uh, some thoughts to what to chew on here.

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And as, as your pastor, some things

that I want you to begin to think about.

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Um, and even prepare your hearts for, and

I was just kind of surfing through some

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news headlines before jumping on and.

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Obviously it's an election year.

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And I think all of us have a

desire or a hope or prayer.

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As to how the election will,

uh, resolve itself and turn out.

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But I want you church to begin

to prepare yourself for it.

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Not to go that way.

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Uh, I don't want you to wake up on the

day after the election or however long it

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takes to sort through the, the election

results in to be dismayed and panicked

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and anxious because perhaps it breaks

the way you didn't want it to break.

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Uh, listen church, our hope is not in

a Republican in office or a Democrat

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in office or an independent in office.

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Our hope is in Jesus Christ on the throne.

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And I.

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I'm worried that, uh, we've, we've put

all of our eggs in the basket of, of one.

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Uh, and we're so hopeful that things

are going to get better if this

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one gets elected and in a couple

of thoughts, number one, there's

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no guarantee on that front, right?

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I mean, there's been.

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On both sides of the aisle.

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Uh, massive compromise on some key

issues that we, as Christians would

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stand up and say, Hey, this is important.

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And certainly a more grievous one's

on one side than the other, but both

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sides are, are making compromises

on the sanctity of human life.

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I mean, both sides are

sitting there saying.

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Uh, yeah.

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We can see situations where abortion would

be permissible and, and good and in okay.

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Uh, you know, and then, you know,

obviously on, on the other side, you've,

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you've got a little bit more unhindered

restrictions on that, but I just, I don't

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want us to be a church who has pinned

their hopes on, uh, The, the political

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state of our country turning around.

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I want us to be a church.

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That's pinned their hopes on the

spiritual state of our country, uh,

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being revived and listen at the,

in the end, Jesus comes back, takes

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us to be with him and in the great

tribulation comes upon the whole earth.

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We've been reading about

some of that in the profits.

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We're going to.

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I get there more as we continue into

the new Testament as well, but, um,

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Th th the churches is here for the

time being, and while we are here, Our

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mission is not a political mission.

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It's a spiritual mission.

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No.

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It doesn't mean that we abdicate.

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From the political sphere.

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It doesn't mean that

we retreat completely.

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It doesn't mean that we don't care about

the issues at hand, but I fear we care

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more about the political issues at hand,

than we do about the commission of the

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church to be a light amongst the nations.

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To take the gospel to the lost.

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And so I just want you to start to

think about and prepare yourself

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for what am I going to do?

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If my person loses, what am I

going to do if the other one wins?

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And you may be wondering, okay,

why is pastor PJ being so vague

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about who we're talking about here?

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Part of the reason is, and

this is kind of a sidebar.

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Is it 5 0 1 C3, which is

a nonprofit organization.

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I can't stand up and endorse anybody.

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Uh, that, that, that.

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Transgressors.

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The boundaries of what a

5 0 1 C3 is allowed to do.

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And you may be wondering,

well, what's the penalty?

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Well, the penalty could go so far as to

have tax exempt status removed and a,

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and some other ramifications as well.

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That wouldn't just impact us,

but, but other churches as well.

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So I have to be very careful

about how I address these things,

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especially from the pulpit.

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Uh, this being a ministry

of our church as well.

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I'm carrying that over

into this context too.

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So if you're sitting there saying,

man, why is pastor PGA, tap,

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dancing around names and things?

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That's why.

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But I just want you church

to start to think about man.

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If my person doesn't win.

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If, if that person isn't in

office, after the election's

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over, how am I going to respond?

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How are you preparing your

heart now for that time?

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If it happens, maybe it won't happen.

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Maybe the person that you vote for

is going to be the winner and, and.

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Great.

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But even then, Prepare your heart

for, for how you're going to respond

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to that because listen, Our hope is

not again, in, in the oval office.

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Our hope is in the throne of David.

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Then we have to, to own

that and embrace that.

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And we can't ride a.

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You know, we can't be, be manic on

this and be super high if our person

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wins and super low, if our person

doesn't, we have to be able to find

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that steadfastness, that steadiness.

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Uh, that allows us to ride the

wave no matter what happens.

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Come.

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Uh, election day.

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So I want you to begin to prepare

your heart now for that to begin

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to work through even those feelings

of disappointment and anxiety that

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you may be thinking about right

now and to ask yourself, okay.

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What's the what's at the root of that.

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W what's at the root of my anxiety.

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If my candidate doesn't win.

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Uh, is it an distrust of God's

sovereignty in this situation?

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Is it a fear of suffering?

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Is it a fear of the

future for my children?

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I get those things church.

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I do.

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And I've entertained those same

thoughts myself, but we have to take

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those anxieties, take those fears

to the word of God and go back to

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that and say, okay, at the end of

the day, do I believe what I say?

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I believe I've got my

doctrine of God's sovereignty.

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I've got my doctrine that he

is the ruler of all rulers.

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I've got my doctrine that says

he puts Kings in place and

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remove his king removes Kings.

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But does that doctrine show up in my life?

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Does that doctrine produce a devotion

in my life and in my heart that says,

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you know what, come, what may work.

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I'm going to continue to trust the Lord.

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It doesn't mean that things

might not get difficult.

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It doesn't mean that things

might not be better one way over

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the other, but you know what?

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I need to make sure that my

heart is anchored to God and

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not to a political party.

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Uh, th that's.

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That's what we're here to do church

again, the church is here for the time

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being until God calls us home and we

don't know how much longer that is.

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And so while we're here, we have a mission

in the mission is not to go up and.

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Go out and, and make someone

one political party or another.

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The mission is to go out

and make followers of Jesus.

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And that's where our focus needs to be.

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And so as we vote, we vote because man.

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We feel like putting this person

in an office over this person in an

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office is going to make it easier

for us to do that, to go in and make

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disciples, make followers of Jesus.

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But listen, if, if God puts

the other person in office,

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our mission doesn't change.

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Our task is still the same.

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And sometimes the seasons of the most

explosive growth for the church have

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been during those times when it's

been hardest for the church to exist.

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So I don't know.

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I don't know.

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I'm not a prophet.

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I'm not telling you what I think

is going to happen in the future.

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I just don't want you to be so high on

one outcome that if that outcome doesn't

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happen, that you're left shattered in,

in looking to pick up the pieces and

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saying, what are we supposed to do now?

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And ain't going to all,

ER, and tucking our tails.

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And saying, woe is me listen,

church, our mission doesn't change.

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And we know we're not

going to be sidelined.

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Politically.

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The gates of hell are not going

to prevail against the church.

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And so our mission stays

the same, no matter what.

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And so we vote based on biblical

principles, we've we vote based

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on our convictions and we pray.

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And we ask God for certain outcomes.

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Yes, yes, yes.

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But at the end of the day, we trust him

for those outcomes and we're not going

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to be, we're not going to be derailed.

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We're not going to be sidelined.

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We're not going to be thrown by

any outcome one way or the other.

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We're going to trust him in that.

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And so church begin to prepare

yourself, begin to prepare your

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hearts now for whatever the outcome

of the election is going to be

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to say, God, I trust you in this.

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I trust you in this.

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And I'm going to continue to

trust that you are the God who is

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sovereign over all of these things.

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That in mind, let's jump into our

text, speaking of a time that,

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that this had to happen, right?

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I mean, think about Jeremiah.

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Jeremiah is being told by God.

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Hey, Jeremiah.

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Uh, Jerusalem's going to get destroyed.

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The temple is going to be destroyed.

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The people are going to be killed a lot

of them and, uh, carried into exile and

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here comes famine, pestilence and sword.

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And in captivity.

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All of those things, Jeremiah,

all of that's coming.

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Imagine being Jeremiah the prophet

and think about the temptation to be

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anxious, to be fearful, to be concerned,

to say, God, what are you doing?

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Right.

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And yet we get a good example in Jeremiah

through most of it there's times that

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Jeremiah does question, but through

most of it, Jeremiah is saying, okay,

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God, I'm going to be faithful to you.

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I'm going to be faithful to your message.

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And Jeremiah in the midst of all that

took a, an unpopular message to a people

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that, that persecuted him greatly.

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And he continued to trust the Lord.

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And so it's, it's appropriate.

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I think it's helpful as we transition

into the text from where we just came to

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think about these things, as it relates to

Jeremiah, this is not something we're not

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unique in, in facing what we're facing.

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People have faced far worse

in are currently facing far

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worse than we face as a church.

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And as a nation.

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And so we need to bear that in mind, as

we think about our future, but Jeremiah

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chapter four, It's still part here of

Jeremiah's second message to the people.

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So as Jeremiah four, we jumped

into it verses three through four.

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Uh, there's an indictment

on the hearts of the people.

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The hearts were hard and dry, like

fallow ground, again, that fallow ground.

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If, if you've been, uh, outside in

your backyard, perhaps, or if not come

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over to my backyard, you can see it.

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Uh, that just the heat, it

causes the ground to dry up

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and cracks come in the ground.

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And man, if you took some, some grass

seeder or some crop seed and sewed

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it down there on that fallow ground.

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That C's not going to do anything

because the ground is so hard and dry.

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It's not gonna be able to

send down roots at all.

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And Jeremiah saying, you know what,

Israel, that's your hearts in your

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heart needs to be plowed under to expose

the good soil in another metaphor.

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God urges them here to consecrate them.

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Civil students.

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To him spiritually by circumcising their

hearts, the inward state, not about

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the external act, but the inward state.

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Hey.

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Uh, submit to me, uh, consecrate

yourself to me, devote yourself to me.

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The Lord wanted full devotion

and surrender to his Lordship.

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And that's verses three through four is

chapter four opens then five through six.

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He goes on and talks about an enemy.

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That's going to come from the north.

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Now, this is Babylon.

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The Babylonians.

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Uh, we're going to attack from the north.

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They were coming from the north

and this enemy was going to cause

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the people to sound the alarm and

retreat into their fortified cities.

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And so they're going to see Babylon

coming eventually, and they're gonna

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run and they're gonna flee into their

fortified cities because of this great

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enemy coming from the north versus 79.

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Babylon is the destroyer of nations.

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Notice how it's described there.

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And Babylon, the destroyer of

nations was coming to destroy Judah.

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And the only response now is for the

people to mourn and lament their corrupt

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Kings prophets and priests would be no

help because this was from the Lord.

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Uh, they were not going to turn this back.

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Verse 10.

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This first could be evidence

that Jeremiah, maybe didn't fully

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understand what was going on there.

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As we read in Jeremiah chapter four.

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Verse 10 here.

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Hold bear with me for just one second.

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Let me get there.

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And here it says, then I said, oh Lord.

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Uh, surely you have utterly

deceived this people in Jerusalem

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saying it shall be well with you.

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Whereas the sword has

reached their very life.

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And so it's possible if this is from

the mouth of Jeremiah himself, that

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it could be evidenced that he didn't

fully understand what's going on or.

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In this verse, Jeremiah could be quoting

the people saying you've deceived us.

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God.

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Or he could be quoting the false

prophets who had been prophesying

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about peace and comfort either way.

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Uh, whatever this is that the people

are accusing God where the false

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prophets are, or Jeremiah is just

expressing his confusion here to

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God saying, God, what are you doing?

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What about all this talk about security

and hope in the millennial kingdom imagery

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that they had heard and, and, and then the

false messages from their false prophets.

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Well verses 13 through 18 that

the profit pleads with this.

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The people to repent and he encourages

them to wash their hearts from their

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sinfulness and evil, but this judgment

was coming because of their rebellion.

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That's for 17.

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And now all that was left was

to feel the impending doom.

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And so the protest in verse 10

there, I tend to think that it

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wasn't necessarily Jeremiah, but it

was him quoting the PR the people

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saying, Hey God, what are you doing?

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How, how can you do this in Jeremiah?

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Is.

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Reminding them.

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Look, this is coming because of

your sins in verses 13 through 18.

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You need to repent and wash

your hearts again, it's not

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the external as much as it is.

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The problem is the root.

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It's the internal here.

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And a few days we're going to get to that,

that verse in, I believe is Jeremiah 17.

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It says the heart is deceitful

above all things and wicked.

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It's ill, it's sick, right?

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That the problem is a heart problem.

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The heart of the problem is a heart

problem, not, not an external problem.

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And so Jeremiah is saying you need to

repent and deal with your true nature,

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but understand the judgment is coming.

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And, and there's an impending doom

that they were going to feel verse 18.

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Verses 19 through 21, then the prophet

is emotionally and spiritually distraught

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over the circumstances facing his people.

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Uh, Jeremiah was not delivering

this dispassionately.

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He was not delivering the Singh.

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Hey, everybody gather around this

is what's going to happen and just

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know that it's going to happen.

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And, and sorry about you.

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No, he is he's lamenting.

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He's bemoaning this, that this is

happening and he's distraught over this.

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And we find that in the text.

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Verse 22, the Lord's indictment

and reminder of why all of this was

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happening is that my people are foolish

and they know me not, they are stupid

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children and have no understanding,

but they are wise in doing evil.

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And so the Lord is saying, this

is why Jeremiah remembered,

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this is why this is happening.

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Versus 23 through 26, a picture of

the earth after the day of the Lord.

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And really what we get here is a poetic

version of the reversal of creation.

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The earth is without form and void.

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Again, it's been completely destroyed.

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And so there, we see this in

verses 23 through 26, where it's

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without inhabiting the fruit.

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Once fruitful land is now a desert,

the cities are laid in ruins.

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And so this is the undoing of, of

creation here in verses 23 through 26.

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Just a picture of God's

wrath coming upon the people.

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Again, verses 27 through

31 is chapter four ends.

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Judgment is coming.

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Nothing's going to stop it.

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As we turn to chapter five.

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We get into Jeremiah here.

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Uh, it there's a parallel of, of him

and Abraham and Sodom and Gomorrah.

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Uh, because the command is run to and

fro throughout the streets of Jerusalem,

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look, and take note, search her squares.

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See if you can find a single one who does

justice and six truth that I may partner.

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So, so God is, is kind of pitching the,

the, the offer now much like Abraham

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said, Hey, if I can find 30 righteous,

if I can find 20 riches, 15, 10, 5, 1.

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Eh, this is, this is the reverse God is

telling Jeremiah, go, go look, Jeremiah,

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go look, see if you can find anyone.

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And if you can find anyone

then yeah, maybe I'll exercise

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mercy and I'll I'll pardon?

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Verses three through six

though, none had been found.

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Jeremiah was determined to find somebody

who would repent, perhaps someone

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from the leadership, but finding none.

328

He realizes there that

it is truly too late.

329

Uh, the therefore a lion from the

forest Babylon she'll strike them

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down the Wolf from the desert.

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She'll devastate them a leopard,

watching their cities, everyone who

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goes out she'll be torn in pieces

because their transgressions are many.

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And they're apostasy are great in, so

it's just a, it's a tragic, tragic scene.

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And God asks the question in verse seven.

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How, how can I, pardon you?

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Your children have forsaken me and

sworn to those who are no gods.

337

And so again, God is just saying,

Jeremiah, this is what it is.

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What other choice do I have?

339

How can I pardon you?

340

When you have become like

the other nations you've

341

gone after these other gods.

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And then there's a refrain that

begins to repeat itself in the

343

book of Jeremiah, we find it here

in verse nine for the first time.

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Shall I not punish them for these things?

345

Declares the Lord.

346

And shall I not avenge myself

on a nation such as this.

347

That's going to show up over

and over and Oregon should not

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punish them for these things.

349

Jeremiah.

350

And shall I not avenge myself on

a nation, such as this, a nation.

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Israel once his nation that has now

become just like the people, just

352

like the enemies, just like those

that, that, uh, that rejected God.

353

And so.

354

There's that.

355

That charged there.

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This is what it is, Jeremiah.

357

Verse 10 though, in the midst

of the judgment, in the midst of

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this passage, that is so grave.

359

There are statements like this one here

that we find, but make not a full end

360

verse 10, go through our vine rose and

destroy, but Nate make not a full end.

361

And that's just a reminder of God's mercy.

362

There's going to be a remnant who does

repent and who will not be destroyed a

363

remnant that God will bring back from

exile and ultimately a faithful remnant

364

who will possess the millennial kingdom.

365

As we look forward to the future

fulfillment here, this is not a remnant

366

that God is going to say, you know what?

367

I'm forgetting your sins.

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This is a remnant.

369

That is, is those that have repented.

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Those that experienced the judgment of

God and repent in, in return to the Lord.

371

Uh, and so that's, what's in view here

making not a full and there will be

372

that remnant, but then verses 14 through

31 is the rest of the chapter unfolds.

373

This section provides more details

regarding the impending judgment

374

at the hands of the Babylonians.

375

Also reminds the people again and

again of why this was happening.

376

And so we go through this, this.

377

Final section here.

378

This chapter in Dodger provides

these, uh, these charges there.

379

Verse 21, foolish and senseless people.

380

You have eyes, but see

not ears, but hear not.

381

You remember what God told Isaiah go

and prophesied, but they're not going

382

to see, and they're not going to hear.

383

Uh, so this, this is fulfillment.

384

Even if I say is prophecy there.

385

Uh, verse 22, do you not fear me?

386

Do not tremble before me the.

387

The implication there's is no you don't.

388

And so again, that this is why these are

the charges, uh, verse 23, this people

389

has a stubborn and rebellious heart.

390

They have turned aside

and gone away again.

391

Stubborn rebellious turned

aside, rejected him, gone away.

392

Verse 28.

393

They know no balance

and deeds of evil there.

394

That's an indictment.

395

If there ever was one, they

know no bounds in deeds of evil.

396

They judge not with justice.

397

The cause of the faithless and

the fatherless to the cause of

398

the followers to make it prosper.

399

They do not defend the rights of

the needy, so that they're wicked

400

in the way that they're treating

the, the oppressed and the needy.

401

And then again, that same refrain

verse 29, shall I not punish them?

402

And shall I not avenge myself

on a nation such as this.

403

So God is saying, Hey, Jeremiah.

404

This is why, and this is

what's going to happen.

405

Chapter six then.

406

Uh, this chapter contains the

plans for the attack of Jerusalem.

407

And the reason why it's found

in verses six through seven as

408

a well keeps its water fresh.

409

So she keeps fresh, hurt, evil, uh, just,

uh, again, a troublesome indictment there.

410

Um, this is the city verse six.

411

That must be punished.

412

There's nothing but oppression within

her as a well, keeps her water fresh.

413

So she keeps fresher evil.

414

The idea is the spring that.

415

Freshens a well, uh, for, for

Israel, that was a corrupt spring.

416

That was the spring of evil that kept

the, the well full of evil within her.

417

Uh, verse 10 to whom shall I speak

and give warning that they would hear.

418

In other words, Who can

I even warn about this?

419

Nobody's even willing

to listen to this again.

420

The prophecy of Isaiah here, but you

will not hear it's being fulfilled

421

right here verses 13 through 14,

from the least to the greatest.

422

Everyone is greedy for unjust gain and

from the profit to the priest, everyone

423

deals falsely they've healed the wound

of my people lightly sing peace, peace.

424

When there is no.

425

Peace.

426

Verse 15 where they ashamed

when they committed abomination?

427

No, the answer is no, they weren't.

428

In fact that's what it says.

429

No, they were not at all ashamed.

430

Uh, verse 19 hero earth,

behold, I am bringing disaster.

431

And here's the plans for

the destruction of the city.

432

I'm bring to bringing disaster

upon this people, the fruit of

433

their devices, because they have

not paid attention to my words.

434

And as for my law, they have rejected it.

435

So oftentimes God has his appeal to

Moses did this and, and some of the

436

other prophets have done this to

say, God, Please don't destroy your

437

people because w for the sake of your

name, what will the nations think?

438

Well, here, God is announcing

to the earth before he does it.

439

He says here earth, listen, this

is why I'm about to do this.

440

I'm going to destroy them.

441

It's the fruit of their devices

because they've rejected me.

442

They've rejected me.

443

Verse 24, we have heard report of it.

444

Our hands fall helpless.

445

Anguish has taken a hold

of us pain as if a woman.

446

In labor.

447

And so he's talking about, uh,

the, the impending judgment at

448

the hands of the Babylonians.

449

They are terrified.

450

Of that judgment.

451

And yet it's, it's not producing

the fear of the Lord in them.

452

Verse 26 O daughter of my people

put on sackcloth, rolling ashes

453

make a morning as for an only son,

most bitter limitation for suddenly

454

the destroyer will come upon us.

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And so again, what, what could they do?

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But simply.

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More.

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What could they do, but simply more.

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And there's more to that they

could repent, but they're

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refusing their hardheartedness.

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Their stubbornness is refusing

and so left in that state.

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The only conclusion is for them to, to

feel the weight of the impending doom

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and to mourn it's a, it's a horrible

situation facing Israel right now.

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And again, just think about Jeremiah

looking at all of this and what's

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his recourse, but to trust the Lord.

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And so that's such an

encouragement for us.

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In fact on that note, let's pray.

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And then we'll be done

with today's episode.

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God, we thank you for your sovereignty.

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We thank you.

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That that's a reality that we don't

serve a God of wood and stone or metal.

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Uh, Who has eyes, but does not

see an ears, but does not hear.

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We serve the God of creation.

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The Lord of the universe.

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We serve the God who is declared

the beginning from the end.

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I am the alpha and the omega.

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Got what a comfort that

is for us as we sit here.

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Uh, unable to see past our

own noses sometimes to know

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what's coming in front of us.

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We don't know what

tomorrow's going to bring.

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Let alone November.

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God.

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We confess that we are so easily prone

to put our trust in princes and put

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our trust in human delivers instead

of holding fast to a trust in you.

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And so God make us wise make us faithful.

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We want to do our civic duty

and do it justice and do it

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as you've called us to do it.

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But at the same time, God make us those

that, that humbly trust you regardless of

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the outcome, so that we would stay ready.

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I got, I don't want us to go into

a season as the church of, of.

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Being relegated to the sideline

because we're not ready because

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we're, we're rocked and reeled

by the outcome of an election.

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Got to help us to stay

sharp and to stay ready.

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And to stay focused and to

say, okay, Regardless of the

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outcome, the mission's the same.

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We got people to reach for Jesus and

give us favor with those people so that

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more and more might come to bow the

knee to you on this side of eternity.

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Instead of having a

ballot to you by force.

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After you return.

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And so God, we pray these things

and ask this in Jesus name.

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Amen.

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All right.

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Church keeper in your Bibles tune

in tomorrow for another episode

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of the daily Bible podcast by.