Our Beliefs : Sermons : Sermon Archive - 2004 : February 1, 2004
What is God's Plan for You?
Epiphany 4
In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, a Missouri man named John Griffith operated a great railroad drawbridge that spanned the Mississippi River. One day in the summer of 1937, he decided to take his eight-year-old son Greg with him to work. Over their lunch break, John raised the bridge so the ships could pass. He was enjoying the break so much that he lost track of time. Suddenly he heard a train whistle. He looked at his watch to see that it was 1:07, and the Memphis Express, loaded with 400 passengers would be there in a minute. He jumped up and ran for the control tower, where he glanced quickly at the river to make sure all the ships were clear before he lowered the bridge. Then, to his horror, he saw his son. He had wandered off to the gears that operate the bridge and had gotten his left leg stuck. John desperately thought of how he could save his son when he heard the whistle of the train as it pounded toward the open bridge. With horrible clarity of what he was doing, he threw the main switch which lowered the great bridge into place. He buried his head in his hands as he saw the train roar by with fathers, mothers, children, businessmen, sightseers -- completely oblivious to the sacrifice he had just made to save them.
God's plan of saving mankind from sin was like that -- he had to sacrifice his greatest treasure, his own Son, to do it. But whereas John Griffith was forced to sacrifice his son, God willingly sacrificed his son, to save not strangers, but sinners, those who had by their sins declared God as their enemy. That was God's gracious plan of salvation. God's plan succeeded. So now that God's plan of salvation has worked, what is God's plan for you? That's what we're going to find out this morning as we listen to Jeremiah. What is God's plan for you? It is basically the same as it was for Jeremiah 2600 years ago.
God showed that he was in control of world events, as well as the events in Jeremiah's life. The first words he spoke to Jeremiah when he called him to be his prophet make that clear: "The word of the LORD came to me, saying, '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.' " Jeremiah's call to be God's prophet was going to be difficult; God knew that. Jeremiah was being sent as the last prophet to the people of Judah before God's anger burned against them and he sent the King of Babylon to destroy his beloved people and the temple in Jerusalem. Because of his stern message, Jeremiah would endure ridicule and hatred, and be seen as a traitor. Listen to what he says later in his book: "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 the words of the Lord spoken to Jeremiah in our text would bring Jeremiah comfort throughout those difficult days. "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." God knew Jeremiah, loved him and chose him even before he came into existence. Even after seeing all the failures and sins that Jeremiah would commit during his lifetime, God still chose him to be his very special instrument to his people.
Isn't it amazing that, even when God knew full well how many horrible sins you and I would commit, he still chose you and me in his grace to come to faith in Jesus? That is amazing, especially in the light of what God says in Psalm 14: "The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one." No one can live up to the standards God has set to get into heaven -- the standard is perfection. In fact, you and I, before God called us to faith, wanted nothing to do with God; we wanted to turn away from him and go down our own road which would only lead to death. But God chose you, set you apart from unbelievers through baptism to be his child, as Romans 6:3-4 says: "Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." Because Jesus died to take our sins away from us, and because God the Holy Spirit called us to faith, we now live a new life because we know that eternal life is ours simply by God's grace through faith. What does that mean for our lives? What is God's plan for you individually? He chose you in order that he could also send you to proclaim the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. The same was true for Jeremiah.
After choosing Jeremiah, he sent Jeremiah as his prophet to proclaim his word. God said to Jeremiah: "You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you." Jeremiah knew better than anyone what that would mean for him -- a difficult life as he told all of God's people to repent and turn to the Lord for forgiveness. He said, "Ah, Sovereign LORD, I do not know how to speak; I am only a child." Does that remind you of some other prophet? Moses, perhaps? Both of these men came up with a host of excuses: I can't speak, I'm too young, I'll say the wrong things, someone else is better qualified, send someone else. But for every excuse Jeremiah, or before him Moses, could raise, God met it with this: Your excuses are not valid. You say you are young? Don't worry -- you're not speaking your words; you're speaking God's Word. You say that you don't know how to speak? Don't worry -- you're not speaking your words; you're speaking God's Word. Are you afraid? Don't worry -- you're not speaking your words; you're speaking God's Word. I will be with you and will rescue you.
God has told us what his plan is for us now, that his plan was successful in Christ, and Satan and death and sin are defeated, and we have eternal life. Jesus said it very clearly in Acts 1:8: "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
We haven't been called to be a prophet in the technical sense like Moses or Jeremiah, but we still have been called to share our faith. Do we have those same excuses that they had after God called them? I think we often do. We say, "Ah! I'm too young; I'm too old. I don't know how to tell others. I'm not formally trained like a pastor. Somebody else will do it. I have no time. I'll face ridicule." We all have excuses. We want to tell others but it seems so difficult at times. But what will it take before our passion for lost souls is greater than our excuses? It will take a walk to the cross. There we see what our God has done for us -- gave up his own Son to suffer our eternal damnation, so we would have eternal life. He did it all for every sinner. Now he just wants you to tell others. And God meets every one of your excuses by the same thing he told Jeremiah: Don't worry -- you're not speaking your words; you're speaking God's Word. So not only has God chosen you and sent you to proclaim his Word of salvation, he also equips you with what you need to proclaim it.
That gives us so much comfort when we face someone who doesn't share our view because we can simply say, "This isn't my word; this is God's Word." That is what God reminded Jeremiah when in a vision he touched Jeremiah's lips and said, "Now, I have put my words in your mouth." What would the result of those words be? God told Jeremiah that as well: "See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant." God told his people to turn to him. If they did not, he would have a word of warning, that if they did not return to him and trust in him, they would be destroyed -- eternally, not just by the Babylonian army. But when they did turn to him in repentance, they would be rebuilt and planted, just as Isaiah said, "[We are] a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor."
Often we don't think we are equipped to be God's messengers of salvation. We often act like firefighters in a big city who wait at the fire station for a fire to be reported -- then they are off like a flash to put out the blaze. Too often we like to stay close to the familiar surroundings and the familiar faces we see in church, while waiting for someone to ask us to tell them about the gospel. Then we'll be glad to share our faith. But that's not how it works. People seldom come to us; we have to go to them. The call to action has gone out two thousand years ago; our world is already ablaze with those who don't see Jesus as their only Way to heaven. And someone who is caught in a fire doesn't need a perfectly tuned fire engine to fight a fire -- they'll take anything that can save them. They don't need a perfect presentation; they need to hear what you know -- Jesus is their Savior.
We are equipped with what we need -- God's Word. What can we do with that Word? God told Isaiah, "My word that goes out from my mouth...will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11) God's Word will work.
How many people do you know who don't know their Savior? What is God's plan for them? To have them listen to you about their Savior. He chose you for it; he has sent you to do it; he equips you with his Word. God is with you. That is God's plan for you -- to share the message of salvation in Jesus Christ. So live your life as if three days ago Jesus died and this morning he rose from the dead. Then you will be following God's plan for you because you won't be able to stop telling people about Jesus. Amen.
