Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / The Broken Pot - The Book of Jeremiah
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Let us pray. And the vessel that he made of
- 0:04Speaker 1: clay was marred in the hand of the potter, so
- 0:08Speaker 1: he made it again in another vessel, as seemed good
- 0:11Speaker 1: to the potter to make it. Jeremiah 18.4 As the
- 0:17Speaker 1: words of today's reading echo deep in my ears, may
- 0:22Speaker 1: the truths be etched on my heart like tattoos. for
- 0:29Speaker 1: today is the day that I accept my call to
- 0:32Speaker 1: be set apart and consecrated to do great works for
- 0:36Speaker 1: your name, Heavenly Father. When doubts begin to arise in
- 0:41Speaker 1: my mind, like Jeremiah, I thank you that your word
- 0:46Speaker 1: will rise up within me like a flame and burn
- 0:50Speaker 1: all limiting beliefs that seek to hold me back. Your
- 0:56Speaker 1: word in Jeremiah 1.5 says that before I was in
- 1:00Speaker 1: my mother's womb, you had already called me. So I
- 1:05Speaker 1: thank you that no name, no words, no harmful lies
- 1:11Speaker 1: that were ever spoken over my life can bear any weight,
- 1:16Speaker 1: because before they spoke them, you already spoke blessing of
- 1:20Speaker 1: purpose over me. Whether I had people who believed in
- 1:25Speaker 1: me or people who doubted me, It doesn't take away
- 1:29Speaker 1: from my calling and my destiny. Therefore, like Jeremiah, I
- 1:35Speaker 1: will stand tall and speak what you tell me to speak.
- 1:41Speaker 1: I will build what you called me to build, knowing
- 1:44Speaker 1: that nothing can stop the momentum of my life, because
- 1:49Speaker 1: the potter of my life has me on his wheel
- 1:52Speaker 1: of destiny and in his hands. I am molded and
- 1:58Speaker 1: created for greatness. And I thank you, Lord, that through
- 2:04Speaker 1: you it shall be done. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank
- 2:15Speaker 1: you for making prayer a priority in your day. To
- 2:18Speaker 1: learn more about the Bible, stay tuned for today's story.
- 2:22Speaker 1: Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
- 2:34Speaker 2: The Broken Pot In our last story, Josiah continued his
- 2:39Speaker 2: reform over the nation of Judah. He cut down all
- 2:43Speaker 2: the remnants of old idols and reinstated the Passover to
- 2:47Speaker 2: remember the freedom in God. However, the people continued to
- 2:51Speaker 2: long after their corrupt ways. The Lord gave Josiah a
- 2:55Speaker 2: gentle warning. Judgment was coming upon Judah for all its
- 3:00Speaker 2: past sins. There would be a reckoning for all the
- 3:03Speaker 2: innocent souls that were led astray by past kings. Now
- 3:07Speaker 2: we peer into the life and calling of Jeremiah, who
- 3:11Speaker 2: was a prophet during the reign of Josiah. We learn
- 3:15Speaker 2: of Jeremiah's first call from God and the images that
- 3:18Speaker 2: were shown to him, inspired by the book of Jeremiah.
- 3:25Speaker 3: Hello and welcome once again to the Bible in a
- 3:27Speaker 3: Year podcast. This is Jack Graham. And in our last reading,
- 3:31Speaker 3: we heard how Josiah brought the people back to God,
- 3:35Speaker 3: reading the book of the law, the covenant to them,
- 3:37Speaker 3: and calling them to renew their faith in God, the
- 3:41Speaker 3: covenant that God had made with Israel in the days
- 3:44Speaker 3: of Moses. He then went through the land and destroyed
- 3:47Speaker 3: altars and shrines to honor God and protect people from
- 3:50Speaker 3: falling back into idolatry and spiritual bondage. Josiah had already
- 3:55Speaker 3: received word from God that his people would be judged
- 3:58Speaker 3: for their unfaithfulness. And today, we'll see the beginning of
- 4:02Speaker 3: this time with the initial call of the prophet who
- 4:05Speaker 3: would have great significance in the story of God's people.
- 4:08Speaker 3: That prophet is Jeremiah. So let's listen to God's Word today.
- 4:14Speaker 2: In the days of King Josiah the Righteous, Jeremiah was
- 4:18Speaker 2: walking in the temple courtyards. It was dusk and the
- 4:21Speaker 2: sky was a shimmering amber. Jeremiah watched the sun slide
- 4:26Speaker 2: behind the horizon. The west wind whistled gently. and the
- 4:30Speaker 2: trees beside the temple swayed to the evening lullaby. Jeremiah
- 4:35Speaker 2: sat down as the daylight left the land. He was
- 4:38Speaker 2: a very young man. Often he sought the Lord in
- 4:41Speaker 2: the coolness of nightfall. As Jeremiah closed his eyes, he
- 4:45Speaker 2: could hear a quiet voice in the wind. Along with it,
- 4:48Speaker 2: a gentle warmth and presence. The Lord spoke to Jeremiah
- 4:53Speaker 2: as he sat beside the temple. Before I formed you
- 4:57Speaker 2: in your mother's womb, I knew you, Jeremiah. His voice
- 5:02Speaker 2: was firm and strong, but refreshing to the soul. Jeremiah
- 5:07Speaker 2: was equally mesmerized and afraid. Before you were born, I
- 5:12Speaker 2: set you apart for the nations. I have chosen you
- 5:15Speaker 2: as a prophet to them. You shall be the declarer
- 5:19Speaker 2: of my wisdom and judgment. The Lord spoke past Jeremiah's
- 5:24Speaker 2: mind and straight to his heart. Jeremiah quivered at the
- 5:28Speaker 2: Lord's call. He knew that the position of prophet was
- 5:32Speaker 2: a great responsibility. With it came trials, judgment, and persecution.'
- 5:38Speaker 2: My God,' Jeremiah stuttered,' I do not know how to
- 5:44Speaker 2: speak your truth. I am only a boy. How could
- 5:47Speaker 2: I do such things?' A bright light then burst through
- 5:50Speaker 2: his mind's eye, and Jeremiah was swept into the presence
- 5:54Speaker 2: of God. He felt a hand stretch out to him
- 5:55Speaker 2: and touch his mouth. Behold, I have placed my words
- 6:13Speaker 2: in your mouth. You are to be set apart to
- 6:16Speaker 2: watch over all the nations and kingdoms. You shall witness
- 6:19Speaker 2: the building and breaking of all things before you. Jeremiah
- 6:24Speaker 2: turned his mind's eyes forward. He saw a budding almond
- 6:28Speaker 2: branch slowly growing before him and budding beautiful little flowers.
- 6:33Speaker 2: He heard the Lord behind him asking, Jeremiah, what do
- 6:37Speaker 2: you see? I see an almond branch, Jeremiah whispered. Yes,
- 6:43Speaker 2: you see well. It, like everything else, grows according to
- 6:48Speaker 2: my word, the Lord replied. Now what do you see?
- 6:53Speaker 2: Jeremiah felt the whistling wind pick up as he was
- 6:56Speaker 2: shown the image of a pot facing north. The pot
- 7:00Speaker 2: was over a fire and the water was simmering into
- 7:03Speaker 2: a boil. Jeremiah watched as the boiling water grew heavier.
- 7:07Speaker 2: eventually spilling over onto the fire below. I see a
- 7:11Speaker 2: boiling pot, Jeremiah answered God. It is facing away from
- 7:16Speaker 2: the north. The Lord continued. This time his tone was
- 7:20Speaker 2: intense and filled with warning. Out of the north disaster
- 7:24Speaker 2: is boiling. Soon the kingdoms of the north will boil
- 7:28Speaker 2: over onto the land of Judah. They shall come, and
- 7:31Speaker 2: it will be with my permission, for I am allowing
- 7:34Speaker 2: them to come into the land as judgment for Judah's
- 7:37Speaker 2: past sins. They will burn and break, but they shall
- 7:41Speaker 2: not destroy, for I am still a merciful God. Jeremiah
- 7:46Speaker 2: still struggled to completely understand the will of God, although
- 7:50Speaker 2: he was meant to be a messenger of the Lord
- 7:52Speaker 2: that did not mean he was particularly equipped to give it.
- 7:55Speaker 2: The Lord was gracious to Jeremiah and showed him several
- 7:59Speaker 2: images of his plan to help explain. Arise and go
- 8:02Speaker 2: down to the potter's house in Jerusalem. There I will
- 8:05Speaker 2: show you my will. So Jeremiah packed his things and
- 8:09Speaker 2: made his way to the potter's house. It was dawn
- 8:13Speaker 2: by the time Jeremiah made it, and the potter was
- 8:15Speaker 2: already hard at work. The room smelled like clay and campfire.
- 8:20Speaker 2: Jeremiah watched as the potter worked at his wheels. The
- 8:23Speaker 2: clay spun fast on the wheel, tamed by the potter's
- 8:27Speaker 2: guiding hands. Jeremiah watched as the potter gracefully worked his
- 8:31Speaker 2: hands up and down the clay, molding it into a
- 8:34Speaker 2: tall and thin shape. The vessel continued to spin on
- 8:38Speaker 2: the wheel, however it began to wobble and lose its
- 8:41Speaker 2: thin frame. The top began to sag and its edges
- 8:44Speaker 2: became sloppy. Jeremiah became worried that the pot was ruined
- 8:48Speaker 2: and expected the potter to throw away the clay and
- 8:51Speaker 2: start over. Instead, the potter pressed his fist down on
- 8:55Speaker 2: the top of the clay. It continued to spin and
- 8:57Speaker 2: form into a round and wide bowl. Jeremiah's eyes widened
- 9:02Speaker 2: as he saw the potter form a pot far more
- 9:04Speaker 2: beautiful than the one before. The potter meticulously designed the
- 9:09Speaker 2: handles and spun the pot into a marvelous work of art.
- 9:13Speaker 2: Jeremiah did not realize it, but he was crying watching
- 9:17Speaker 2: the potter work. The Lord then spoke to Jeremiah's heart.
- 9:21Speaker 2: Can I not do the same thing that the potter
- 9:24Speaker 2: has done? God said softly. The clay in the potter's
- 9:28Speaker 2: hand was unruly and unbalanced. It had to be broken
- 9:32Speaker 2: down to make something more marvelous. Jeremiah watched the potter
- 9:36Speaker 2: as he listened to the Lord. I am shaping disaster
- 9:40Speaker 2: so that something more splendid may be made. Jeremiah was
- 9:44Speaker 2: filled with purpose after this. He left the potter's house
- 9:48Speaker 2: and began to call out the declarations of God in
- 9:51Speaker 2: the temple courtyards and the city streets. Amen your ways,
- 9:55Speaker 2: Jeremiah declared. Turn from your evil ways and embrace your
- 10:01Speaker 2: Much of Jeremiah's words fell on deaf ears. People passed
- 10:06Speaker 2: and paid no attention. In fact, many of them began
- 10:09Speaker 2: to grumble at his words. Yet Jeremiah continued to speak.
- 10:13Speaker 2: We have turned our backs on God. He says to us,
- 10:17Speaker 2: My people have forgotten me like a bride running away
- 10:20Speaker 2: from his groom. As Jeremiah spoke the words given to
- 10:24Speaker 2: him by God, his heart began to break. He could
- 10:27Speaker 2: feel the hurt in the Lord's words. He loved his people,
- 10:32Speaker 2: and year after year, since freeing them from slavery, they
- 10:35Speaker 2: had found new ways to turn away from him. Sorrow
- 10:38Speaker 2: filled his heart, so he continued to proclaim the warnings
- 10:42Speaker 2: of God unashamed. This caused some elders to conspire against
- 10:47Speaker 2: Jeremiah and sent him threats. He did not cease preaching.
- 10:51Speaker 2: He leaned on God for courage and pressed on. It
- 10:55Speaker 2: was midday, and Jeremiah was outside the temple gates proclaiming
- 10:59Speaker 2: the word of the Lord. He spoke with the love
- 11:02Speaker 2: and intensity of God, warning people to repent and turn
- 11:05Speaker 2: back to their first love. Pashur, the chief officer and priest,
- 11:10Speaker 2: watched Jeremiah from afar. He could not stand the man
- 11:14Speaker 2: speaking as though he was the only mouthpiece of God.
- 11:18Speaker 2: Jealousy dug its roots down deep into his heart. Eventually,
- 11:22Speaker 2: hatred boiled over in him. He picked up a club
- 11:25Speaker 2: that was often used to protect the priests in case
- 11:28Speaker 2: of a robbery and stormed towards Jeremiah. The prophet could
- 11:32Speaker 2: barely see the shadow of pasture before the club struck
- 11:35Speaker 2: him over the side of his face. Jeremiah fell onto
- 11:39Speaker 2: the floor and smacked his head on the cobblestone floor. Disoriented,
- 11:43Speaker 2: Jeremiah stumbled to his knees, only to be kicked in
- 11:46Speaker 2: the jaw. Blood dripped from his mouth. He finally glanced
- 11:50Speaker 2: up to see Pashur looming over him. Before Jeremiah could
- 11:54Speaker 2: say a word, he received a swift kick in the ribs.
- 11:58Speaker 2: He could feel them crack on impact. Writhing in pain,
- 12:01Speaker 2: Jeremiah managed to open his eyes, only to see the
- 12:04Speaker 2: club descending down once again, knocking him unconscious. Jeremiah woke
- 12:10Speaker 2: up the next day. The sun was beating down on
- 12:13Speaker 2: the back of his neck. He tried to move his
- 12:15Speaker 2: hands to rub it, but could not. Regaining consciousness, Jeremiah
- 12:19Speaker 2: discovered that his head and hands were bound in the
- 12:22Speaker 2: stocks outside the temple gates. People passed by him, giving
- 12:26Speaker 2: him grim looks of disapproval or hatred. Jeremiah hung there
- 12:30Speaker 2: all day, receiving the spitting and ridicule of passerbyers. He
- 12:35Speaker 2: did not stop praying the entire time. Although many of
- 12:39Speaker 2: his prayers were asking God to release him, he maintained
- 12:42Speaker 2: his mission to preach repentance. The day was drawing to
- 12:46Speaker 2: a close and Jeremiah could hear the footsteps of Pashur
- 12:49Speaker 2: behind him. Without a word, Pashur released him from the
- 12:52Speaker 2: stocks and began to walk away. Jeremiah cleared his throat.
- 12:57Speaker 2: His head was throbbing due to dehydration and the beating
- 13:00Speaker 2: from the day before. He stood to his feet and
- 13:03Speaker 2: stuttered out a few words. The Lord no longer calls you, Pashur.
- 13:08Speaker 2: Jeremiah said. The officer turned his head in curiosity. Jeremiah
- 13:13Speaker 2: looked him deeply in the eyes. You are no longer
- 13:16Speaker 2: called Pashur, but terror on every side. Pashur reached for
- 13:23Speaker 2: his club to give Jeremiah another beating, but Jeremiah continued,
- 13:27Speaker 2: this time with the full intensity of God behind his words.
- 13:31Speaker 2: Thus says the Lord, I will make you a terror
- 13:34Speaker 2: to yourself and to all who love you. Pashur froze,
- 13:38Speaker 2: listening to Jeremiah intently. They shall all fall by the
- 13:42Speaker 2: sword of Babylon. All of Judah will be given into
- 13:45Speaker 2: the hand of the great northern kingdom. Your friends shall
- 13:49Speaker 2: be carried away as captives, and all the wealth of
- 13:51Speaker 2: the city shall be taken, and you, Pashur, will be
- 13:54Speaker 2: carried away as a captive. You shall die as a
- 13:57Speaker 2: captive like many. Pashur fled from the prophet, and Jeremiah
- 14:02Speaker 2: fell to his knees and wept. He lamented that he
- 14:05Speaker 2: was given the role of warning Judah He wanted to stop.
- 14:10Speaker 2: He wanted to cease preaching the word of the Lord. However,
- 14:13Speaker 2: as Jeremiah prayed to the Lord, he knew that he
- 14:15Speaker 2: must continue. If I did not preach your truth, there
- 14:19Speaker 2: would be a fire in my bones to speak. I
- 14:21Speaker 2: cannot help but proclaim your name. I would be weary
- 14:25Speaker 2: if I held it in. Jeremiah felt the heart of God.
- 14:29Speaker 2: He would preach to people who would not listen. He
- 14:31Speaker 2: would love people that would hate him in return. This
- 14:35Speaker 2: was the burden and calling of a shepherd.
- 14:42Speaker 3: Today's reading begins with a calling. God's voice goes out
- 14:46Speaker 3: to a young man in the courtyard of God's temple. Jeremiah,
- 14:50Speaker 3: that man, wasn't expecting this, but God had planned things
- 14:54Speaker 3: for him since before he was conceived, even in his
- 14:57Speaker 3: mother's womb. If there was ever any doubt how God
- 15:01Speaker 3: views the unborn, the words he speaks to Jeremiah leaves
- 15:05Speaker 3: us no doubt. There was a prophet in the womb
- 15:09Speaker 3: of this woman, his mother. God knew him and had
- 15:12Speaker 3: a purpose for him before his life began, and that
- 15:15Speaker 3: life began when he was conceived. A calling from God
- 15:19Speaker 3: is a privilege, and it should not be taken lightly.
- 15:23Speaker 3: Jeremiah seemed to understand the depth and gravity of this call.
- 15:28Speaker 3: This would be costly and often uncomfortable. People would even
- 15:32Speaker 3: hate him and want to take his life. And his
- 15:35Speaker 3: first reaction is to object.' I am too young to
- 15:38Speaker 3: speak for you,' was his reply. But God was not
- 15:41Speaker 3: interested in Jeremiah's objection or excuses. Still, he encouraged the
- 15:46Speaker 3: young man, saying in Jeremiah 1.8, Do not be afraid
- 15:50Speaker 3: of them, for I am with you to deliver you,
- 15:52Speaker 3: declares the Lord. God was reminding Jeremiah what we also
- 15:57Speaker 3: need to hear. That he who calls us is greater
- 16:01Speaker 3: than any obstacle that we face. That if God be
- 16:04Speaker 3: for us, who can be against us? We should always listen.
- 16:09Speaker 3: to the still small voice, to the word of God
- 16:12Speaker 3: that calls us to his service. The Lord then gave
- 16:15Speaker 3: Jeremiah a vision. A pot filled with water over a fire.
- 16:20Speaker 3: The pot was pointing north and the fire brought the
- 16:23Speaker 3: water to a boil. God then gave Jeremiah understanding of
- 16:26Speaker 3: what it meant. God's judgment was coming from the north
- 16:30Speaker 3: to punish Judah for its past sins. This would only
- 16:34Speaker 3: happen with God's permission. a reminder of the Lord's total
- 16:38Speaker 3: sovereignty and supremacy. God would use a foreign enemy for
- 16:43Speaker 3: his purposes to correct and cleanse his own people. And
- 16:46Speaker 3: though the enemy would invade, burn, and break Judah, they
- 16:50Speaker 3: would not destroy the people. Jeremiah was beginning to understand,
- 16:54Speaker 3: but he still needed more. The Lord showed him many
- 16:57Speaker 3: things that were going to happen, and yet he struggled
- 16:59Speaker 3: to grasp God's plan. We then heard how God sent
- 17:04Speaker 3: him to the house of a potter, It was time
- 17:06Speaker 3: for an object lesson. He watched as the potter worked
- 17:10Speaker 3: the wheel, spinning the clay and shaping it into a pot.
- 17:13Speaker 3: But the clay lost its shape and all seemed lost.
- 17:17Speaker 3: But rather than toss out the clay, the potter began
- 17:20Speaker 3: to work it again. God used this to explain how
- 17:24Speaker 3: he can use brokenness in our own lives to shape
- 17:27Speaker 3: his people. Jeremiah was filled with confidence and went about
- 17:31Speaker 3: speaking God's words and warnings to all who would listen. Unfortunately,
- 17:37Speaker 3: not many did. They turned away from God and his word.
- 17:41Speaker 3: And just like the prophets who had come before him,
- 17:44Speaker 3: Jeremiah faced opposition, hatred, and even physical harm. We heard
- 17:49Speaker 3: the story of Pashur, the chief of priests, who was
- 17:52Speaker 3: so angry he beat Jeremiah and placed him in stocks
- 17:55Speaker 3: to be ridiculed by those who passed by. But just
- 17:59Speaker 3: as God had promised, in the end, those like Pashur
- 18:02Speaker 3: did not prevail against Jeremiah. and he continued working for
- 18:07Speaker 3: God's purposes. Speaking God's truth is not always easy, but
- 18:11Speaker 3: we should surely always speak God's words. Whether in ancient
- 18:16Speaker 3: Judah or in our culture today, when we speak God's truth,
- 18:21Speaker 3: it can be costly. It can be tiring. It can
- 18:25Speaker 3: be frightening. But as Jeremiah testified, he had no choice
- 18:29Speaker 3: but to cry out with God's word. Holding it in
- 18:32Speaker 3: was not an option. And even when we speak to
- 18:35Speaker 3: people who do not listen, it is our calling as
- 18:38Speaker 3: Christians to be witnesses of the good news, the gospel
- 18:41Speaker 3: of Christ, and to reach as many people as we
- 18:44Speaker 3: can with God's truth. This was what God was doing
- 18:47Speaker 3: through Jeremiah and what God wants to do through you.
- 18:53Speaker 3: Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. We pray
- 18:57Speaker 3: that you would give us strength and courage to always
- 18:59Speaker 3: stand for you and your truth, even when people don't
- 19:02Speaker 3: listen or are even hostile. Give us the resolve and
- 19:06Speaker 3: the resilience, the courage and the bravery to speak your
- 19:10Speaker 3: words with clarity and conviction. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank
- 19:16Speaker 3: you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
- 19:20Speaker 3: I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download
- 19:23Speaker 3: the Pray.com app and make Bible study and prayer the
- 19:27Speaker 3: priority of your life. If you enjoyed this podcast, please
- 19:31Speaker 3: share it with someone you love because the Word of
- 19:34Speaker 3: God will make a tremendous difference in people's lives. And
- 19:38Speaker 3: if you want to know more as to how you
- 19:40Speaker 3: can grow in your Christian life and faith, how you
- 19:43Speaker 3: can develop as a follower of Jesus into a strong,
- 19:46Speaker 3: dynamic witness, then be sure and visit Jack Graham's We
- 19:51Speaker 3: have multiple resources there available for you. Again, that's jackgraham.org.
- 19:57Speaker 3: God bless you and good day.
- 20:04Speaker 1: This episode is sponsored by MediShare, an innovative healthcare solution
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