SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/24/2014
9:21 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Redemption:
A New Beginning PT-1
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Jeremiah
30:1-11
Message of the
verses: We begin a new set of
chapters from the book of Jeremiah as we follow the writings and the outline of
Warren Wiersbe from his commentary on the book of Jeremiah which he entitles “Be
Decisive” and under the title he writes “Taking a stand for the Truth.” As we read through the book of Jeremiah and
study its content we find that Jeremiah had and did stand up for the truth of
God and did this many times in difficult places.
As we begin our study in this new section, which covers
chapters 30-33, we will find that Jeremiah will be giving a commentary on
chapter 29:11 which states in the NIV “For I know the plans I have for you,’
declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you
hope and a future.’” We will find out in
this four chapters that Jeremiah will be talking about two different horizons,
one that will focus in on the return of the exiles from Babylon, and then one
that will go all the way to the end times where he will focus on how the Lord
will bless Israel during those difficult times in which He will return to
planet earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
“1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2 "Thus says the LORD, the God of
Israel, ’Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book. 3 ’For
behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ’when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel
and Judah.’ The
LORD says, ’I will also
bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall
possess it.’" (Jeremiah
30:1-4).”
As we look at the first four verses of this chapter we
see that God tells Jeremiah to write in a book all the things that He had told
Jeremiah, and I suppose that is how we got the book of Jeremiah that we are not
studying. As we look back at Jeremiah
29:11 we see that that verse and the first four verses have similar things in
them. We see both horizons that Jeremiah
is writing about as God did indeed bring back Israel to the land from Babylon
and God again brought Israel back to the Land in May of 1948, never to leave it
again, although there will be much trouble as we see even in our life
time. The Prime Minister of Israel told
the United Nations last fall that Israel was in the Land to stay and quoted a
section of the book of Amos.
The broken Yoke (verses 4-11): “4 Now these are the words which the LORD
spoke concerning Israel and concerning Judah: 5 “For thus says the LORD, ’I
have heard a sound of terror, Of dread, and there is no peace. 6 ’Ask now, and
see If a male can give birth. Why do I see every man With his hands on his
loins, as a woman in childbirth? And why have all faces turned pale? 7 ’Alas!
for that day is great,
There is none like it; And it is the time of Jacob’s distress, But he will be saved from it. 8 ’It shall come about on that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ’that I
will break his yoke from off their neck and will tear off their bonds; and
strangers will no longer make them their slaves. 9 ’But they shall serve the LORD
their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. 10 ’Fear not, O Jacob My servant,’ declares
the LORD, ’And do not be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from
afar And your offspring from the land of their captivity. And Jacob will return
and will be quiet and at ease, And no one will make him afraid. 11 ’For I am with you,’ declares the LORD, ’to
save you; For I will destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered
you, Only I will not destroy you completely. But I will chasten you justly And
will by no means leave you unpunished’”
We can see much trouble that will come about for Israel
as described in verses 4-6, however in verse seven we read that the whole world
will experience trouble “the time of Jacob’s trouble.” This is what Bible scholars call the second
half of the tribulation period which will last for three and a half years. In verse eight we see that God will remove
the yoke from Israel’s neck “8 ’It shall come about on that
day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ’that I will break his yoke from off their
neck and will tear off their bonds; and strangers will no longer make them
their slaves.” He uses the term “that
day” a term that Warren Wiersbe has written an endnote which I will quote
here: “Isaiah used the phrase ‘in that
day’ at least forty-four times by Jeremiah only seven (4:9; 20:8; 39:16-17;
49:22, 26; 50:30). In chapters 12-14 of
Zechariah ‘in that day’ is used nineteen ties with reference to end-time events
relating to the restoration of Israel and the return of the Lord.” With this endnote we cans better understand
the significance and importance of those three words. We can look at our Lord’s words in the 24th
chapter of Matthew in what is known as His Olivet Discourse, the following
which also speaks of not only “that day” but also “Jacob’s trouble.” “21 “For then there will be a great
tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until
now, nor ever will. 22 “Unless those days had been cut short, no life would
have been saved; but for
the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 “Then if anyone
says to you, ’Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ’There He is,’ do not believe
him. 24 “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great
signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. 25 “Behold, I
have told you in advance. 26 “So if they say to you, ’Behold, He is in the
wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ’Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not
believe them. 27 “For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes
even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 “Wherever the
corpse is, there the vultures will gather. 29
"But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL
BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from
the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 "And then the sign of the Son of Man
will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and
they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and
great glory. 31 "And He will send
forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect
from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.”
We don’t see as much about the “end times” in the book of
Jeremiah as we do in the other prophets, but we will see some of it in chapters
30-33, and I truly enjoy studying about the end-times, as that is our hope as
Paul wrote to Titus: “Tit 2:13 Looking
for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ.”
Dr. Wiersbe writes the following to conclude his commentary
on these verses: “The promise of
Jeremiah 30:9 applies to the future Kingdom Age, following the Tribulation,
when the Messiah shall reign over His people.
You find corresponding promises in 23:5 and 33:14-26. When Jesus was here on earth, His people
said, ‘We will not have this man to reign over us’ (Luke 19:14), but in that
day, they will recognize their Messiah-King and welcome Him (Zech. 12:8-14:21).”
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: I have written
the following verses in other SD’s that help to show me how I am to act and how
I am to live my life in view of knowing about the end times: “10 But the day of the Lord will come like a
thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be
destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed
in this way, what sort of
people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the
day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the
elements will melt with intense heat! (2 Peter 3:10-12).”
My Steps of Faith for Today: Live the way that Peter is writing about in
the above verses.
Memory verses for the
week: Philippians 2:5-10
5 Have this attitude in
yourself which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, although He existed in the form
of God, did not regard quality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied
Himself, taking on the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness
of men. 8 Being found in appearance as a
man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death
on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God
highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those in heaven and on the
earth and under the earth,
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “Philemon.”
Today’s Bible
question: “What kind of trees did
Solomon obtain to build the temple?”
Answer in our next SD.
6/24/2014 10:17 AM
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