I want to challenge your faith!
Section One: "Burn the Book!"
"Burn the Book!" A Historical Parallel
Jeremiah 36
To be the "Jeremiah Generation", you must be ready to confront the misuse of God's Word and apply it correctly in your own life. Consider the three following applications.
1. The Burning Book of Jehoiakim
Jeremiah 36:1-3
“In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: ‘Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now. Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, each of them will turn from his wicked way; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin.’"
Jeremiah 36:21-24
“The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him. It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him. Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe's knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire. The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes.”
Just as Jehoiakim refused the message of God by cutting it into pieces and using it to further his own selfish desires, we too can be guilty of abusing His Word. Do you emphasize favorite biblical principles at the expense of others? Are you cutting up the message of God and using it to further your own selfish agenda or are you selflessly accepting all that the Father puts in front of you? May you never be guilty of going through the Bible cafeteria style. It is not a buffet designed to please your tastebuds. It is a predesigned plate lunch designed by your Creator to meet your needs. To be the "Jeremiah Generation", you must eat it all!
2. The Burning Book of Jeremiah
Jeremiah 20:7-9
“I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. 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. 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.”
Does the Word of God burn in you like a blazing fire? Are you on fire with the message of God? In verses 7-8, Jeremiah admits that God's message often brings him ridicule and insult. He further admits that, because of this treatment, he has often considered giving up the role of messenger (verse 9). But, because he is the man of God, because he puts God's interests first, the message is like a burning fire inside him and he cannot deny the role he has been given. Does Jeremiah's passion for the message of God describe your devotion to His Words? To be the "Jeremiah Generation", you must be on fire with the message of God. Does the Book burn in your heart?
3. The Burning Book of Jesus
1 Peter 1:10-12
“Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.”
Both Jehoiakim and Jeremiah lived many years before the cross. They had only a faint, shadowy understanding of what it would be like to live under a system of grace provided, not by the sacrifices of animals, but by the sacrifice of God's very own Son. Peter says that the ancient prophets searched intently and even the angels long to look into these things. You and I, on the other hand, are greatly blessed to live on this side of the cross. No longer is the coming of the Messiah a mysterious futuristic event. No longer is the glorious life under grace a wished for condition. We are living it! Because we see clearly God's plan of salvation, we must draw one very large application. In order to be the "Jeremiah Generation", you must not only be on fire with the message of God, you must also be on fire with the urgent need to share that message with those who are lost. Jesus once said that He had come to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). If the book of Jesus is burning within you, you too will be on fire with Christ's message of salvation. Are you on fire?
Copyright 2006 by Childs Family Publications