Readings for today: Jeremiah 51, Psalms 137
Preachers often talk about “calling.” We talk about discerning God’s call. Hearing God’s call. Responding to God’s call. We believe we are different. Set apart. Anointed in a special way to serve a specific purpose in God’s Kingdom. (By the way, I actually believe this is true for every Christian not just preachers.) However, underneath the sacred language we use is often a false assumption. The false assumption is that if we remain faithful to God’s call on our lives, we will be rewarded. We will lead fruitful ministries. Lead many to Christ. Transform entire communities in the name of Jesus. Yes, we expect there to be challenges along the way but none that are insurmountable. We have this hidden expectation that we will be financially taken care of and the churches we lead will grow. This is why so many pastors burn out after a few years. The reality of the work simply doesn’t measure up the expectations we hold so dear in our hearts.
This is why I love Jeremiah so much. His calling is traumatic. He’s called to lead God’s people during a time when they are at their most rebellious. He is called to speak God’s Word at a time when they are deaf to the divine. He is called to do ministry in a time when everything is falling apart. God is plucking up. God is tearing down. God is scattering His people all over the earth. Jeremiah will never lead a large church. Never see the fruits of his ministry. Never know the comfort of a beautiful building or flush bank account. His retirement will take place in exile. He will be ignored. Mocked. Spit on. Thrown into a pit. Dragged all over the place against his will. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain and hardships he had to endure.
And yet, Jeremiah never takes his eyes off of God. Never takes his eyes off of the coming of God’s Kingdom. Despite the chaos and destruction and violence and suffering he sees all around him, he is able to look beyond it to a time when God will have the final word. “The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. Jeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, all these words that are written concerning Babylon. And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, and say, ‘O Lord, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be desolate forever.’ When you finish reading this book, tie a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, and they shall become exhausted.’” Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.” (Jeremiah 51:59-64) What an act of faith! Jeremiah takes all the words God has given him to preach. Writes them down in a book. Hands it to Seraiah to take to Babylon. Tells him to read it to the exiles once they arrive and then throw it in the river. It’s like the ultimate mic drop!
Friends, we are living through incredibly difficult times. The world around us is on fire. God is plucking up what’s been planted. Tearing down what’s been built. Scattering all that we’ve tried to gather for hundreds of years. He is exposing the underbelly of our sin. The things we’ve tried to keep hidden all this time is now coming to light. The hatred in our hearts is on full display. The anger and outrage is spilling over from social media into our streets. The lack of moral leadership is obvious. We have sown the wind. Now we are reaping the whirlwind. What is our calling as the people of God in a time like this? To see past the present into the future God has secured for those who love Him. Friends, we must never believe there are circumstances or conditions that lie outside God’s authority or control. God will bring order to our chaos. God will build up what we tear down. God will plant where we have plucked up. God will repair what we have broken. God is able and those who place their trust in Him will be “more than conquerors through Christ who loved us.” Amen?