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Jeremiah & Christ Introduction: Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet. Judah was conquered and Jerusalem destroyed during his lifetime. Isaiah prophesied of Babylon defeating Judah in Isaiah 39 and Jeremiah almost 100 years later saw it happen. I) Background A) Jeremiah the son of Hilikiah the priest, Jeremiah 1.1 1. Hilikiah mentioned in 2 Chronicles 34.9ff when Josiah was restoring the temple. B) Dated 627 to 580 BC C) The Kings of Judah 1. Josiah, ruled 31 years, Jeremiah started prophesying in the 13th year. 2. Despite the reforms of Josiah, Judah returned to idolatry shortly after his death. D) Jeremiah selected by God, Jeremiah 1.1-8 1. He did not run for the office of prophet or asked to be a prophet of God. 2. Compare to Paul, selected by God, Galatians 1.15-17; 1 Corinthians 9.16-17 II) Jeremiah’s Message, Jeremiah 1.9-10; 26.2 A) A general call for repentance 1. They had forsaken God and committed spiritual adultery 2. Judah had become worse than Northern Israel had been B) Judah’s thinking the temple made everything right. Jeremiah 7.4 1. They thought their sins were made OK due to having the temple. C) The broken covenant, Jeremiah 11.2-5 1. A covenant is a binding contract between two parties 2. Israel entered the covenant at Mount Sinai and God was calling them to obey that covenant. D) Sign of the linen girdle, Jeremiah 13.1-11 1. They had soiled themselves with sin and became good for nothing. All of us have had good clothes ruined by dirt and grease. 2. Jesus said salt that has lost its flavor is good for nothing, Matthew 5.13 E) The severe drought and more things to come, Jeremiah 15.3 1. Physical pain and suffering gets our attention and can cause us to turn to God. 2. The spiritual punishment will be much more severe. F) Sign of the unmarried prophet, Jeremiah 16.1-4 1. God was seeking to spare Jeremiah the heartache of seeing his family killed, or persecuted, or taken into slavery. G) They were profaning the Sabbath, Jeremiah 17.21-23, 27 H) The Potter’s vessel 1. A vessel can be repaired by the potter if the clay is still wet, Jeremiah 18.4 2. God can take the vessel and change it if they will repent. I) The earthen vessel, Jeremiah 19.1, 10-11 it was now to late to be repaired. III) The People’s Reaction A) Peace, peace when there is no peace, Jeremiah 6.14 1. No need to repent, everything is ok. 2. They used sin to excuse sin, we should take heed to the same warning today. Those that will pervert the gospel to condone or excuse sin. B) Refuse to listen to God’s word 1. Baruch dictated the words of Jeremiah on a scroll, took the scroll to the King and read it. 2. Jehoiakim, the king, turn the scroll and cut it into pieces with his knife and burned it, Jeremiah 36.23-24 C) Persecute the prophet and other godly people 1. Jeremiah was hated by the king, false prophets, and many people. 2. He was put in prison, Jeremiah 20.2; 38.6 3. 18 times the word prison is used in referring to Jeremiah. 4. Those that are ungodly will try to stop the word of God. IV) Events A) 606 BC during Jehoiakim’s reign Nebuchadnezzar took the 1st group captive, 2 Kings 24 B) Jehoiachin the temple was destroyed and a second group taken captive. C) 586 BC Zedekiah rebels against Babylon, Jerusalem is destroyed and the last of the Jews taken captive. V) Christ in Jeremiah A) Prophesy of Coniah, Jeremiah 22.24-30 1. Write this man down as childless—referring to his lineage, Jeremiah 36.27-30 2. None of his descendants shall sit on the throne of David ruling in Judah. 3. Zedekiah, the next ruler was Jehoiachin’s uncle 4. Jesus will never rule upon the throne of David in Jerusalem. a. Will not come to establish an earthly kingdom b. Will not step foot upon this earth again 5. Jesus rules on a heavenly throne, Acts 2.30; Hebrews 8.1 B) A New Covenant, Jeremiah 31.31-34 1. Quoted in Hebrews 8 to prove we are no longer under the Law of Moses 2. This covenant will be with all mankind, no longer in a covenant relationship with God due to physical birth but spiritual birth. 3. In order to enter this covenant one must be taught. 4. The promise of forgiveness of sins, Hebrews 8.6,13 Conclusion: Jeremiah shows us how hard it can be to serve God. The call to repentance was met with resistance and anger. God will punish the ungodly, even the ungodly religious people. The covenant we live under today, the law of Christ, is superior to the old Covenant due to its blessing of forgiveness and it being for all mankind. D.T. @ Westside Church of Christ 02.11.07 |