Series: What
I'd Like to Know Is… (1/6)
July 29, 2012
This series was created by requests from our
congregation. The six most requested topics were chosen and made into a
six week sermon series.
Dear friends in Christ.
“Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and
scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the LORD. 2 Therefore this is
what the LORD, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people:
“Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed
care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,”
declares the LORD." (Jeremiah 23:1–2, NIV84)
We don’t know exactly when the Prophet Jeremiah
spoke the words of our lesson today, because the book of Jeremiah was not
written in a chronological order so much as it was laid down topically. It was laid down topically according to the
prophecies that the Lord gave to Jeremiah throughout the many years that he
served as prophet proclaiming the truth of God’s Word to all those living in
Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom of Judah.
But even though we don’t know exactly when Jeremiah spoke these words,
our best guess is that this all took place about 2,600 years ago, somewhere
around 597 BC.
This would mean that when Jeremiah spoke the words
of our lesson today, roughly 125 years had passed since the Assyrian Empire had
conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel and taken them off into captivity—a
captivity from which the nation never returned.
Roughly 80 years had passed since the Prophet Isaiah had been martyred,
as tradition suggests, at the hand of evil King Manasseh. Less than 25 years had passed since King
Josiah, the grandson of evil king Manasseh found the book of God’s Law and
begun a religious renewal in the Kingdom of Judah. A renewal unlike any that had ever been seen
before! However, when Josiah died
fighting against Pharaoh Neco at the battle of Megiddo, about 15 years before
our lesson takes place, things began to go downhill quickly. Things began to go downhill quickly because the
next two kings that followed faithful Josiah did evil in the eyes of the Lord
just as their predecessors had done.
Though Josiah turned to the Lord unlike any other king in the history of
Judah, and though he worked very hard to bring about religious renewal and lead
the people back to the Lord their God, the kings that served after him did the
very opposite. They did evil in the eyes
of the Lord. They worshiped false gods. They bowed down to idols and by their example
they led the people of Judah away from the worship of the true God. Thus they were destroying and scattering the
sheep of the Lord’s pasture.
So, by the time that Jeremiah spoke the words of our
lesson today, it was the 11th hour. King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had either sent, or would very soon be sending
Babyloniah, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against the land of Judah to
devastate the land and punish the nation because their king had tried to rebel
against Nebuchadnezzar. Then, as history
shows us, not long after those raiders were sent, Nebuchadnezzar himself would
advance on Jerusalem, lay siege to it, and carry its people off into 70 years
captivity in Babylon. So this was the
political situation in Judah. There were
maybe 11 years left until King Nebuchadnezzar would march in and completely
destroy Jerusalem and its temple before the captivity would begin. There was
not much time left until the Righteous Lord would fulfill the words he had
proclaimed to the people for centuries, the words that Jeremiah so recently spoke
to them, saying: “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the
sheep of my pasture!” declares the LORD. 2 Therefore this is what the LORD, the
God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have
scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I
will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the
LORD." (Jeremiah 23:1–2, NIV84)
This was the political situation in Judah during the
days of Jeremiah! But is the political
situation in America all that different today?
Are our leaders leading us by example, and encouraging us as a nation to
live in our faith? If you look back in
history it seems that some did and some did not. Take a look at Mr. Jimmy Carter. He is a man known for his faith and his trust
in God. No matter how you felt about him
as president or what kind of job you believe that he did, it seems that he
sought to lead this nation based on his faith in God. The same thing seems true about the years
that Mr. Ronald Reagan was president.
His words in speeches seem to convey a personal faith in God his
creator, and it seems that he sought to rule our Nation from that
perspective. Again I’m merely bringing
these men up as examples. You may or may
not have liked them as leaders or how they led, but their words and actions
often show them as leaders who either sought to lead based on a faith in God or
without a faith in God. The same thing
can be said about Mr. George Bush Sr. and Jr.
By their words and their actions they seemed to seek to lead the nation
based on their faith. However it seems
that the exact opposite can be said about Mr. Bill Clinton and Mr. Barack
Obama. With their words and actions they
demonstrated themselves to be men who do not hold to the same faith to which we
hold. They have demonstrated themselves
to be men who have more of a secular attitude to the leadership of this country
and by their examples, Americans have felt justified to emulate the actions and
the beliefs of these presidents and turn away from the truth of God’s
Word.
Please understand what I am saying here. Under every president countless people have
come to trust in the Lord and countless others have fallen away from the
Lord. However, in the same way that the leaders
of God’s people greatly influenced the faith of God’s people in Jeremiah’s, so
also the leaders of America greatly influence the spirituality and the faith of
Americans. For example, in the last 20
years or so, Christians have grown more and more silent. Christians are finding that they are facing
much more mocking and ridicule than they once did. Christian children are growing tired of
following the faith of their parents because more and more of their friends do
not see the need for worship or God’s word.
On top of this, the President of our nation stated in a number of
different speeches, “Whatever we once were, we’re no longer a Christian nation.
At least not just. We are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, and a Buddhist
nation, a Hindu nation and a nation of nonbelievers”[1] Add to that the surge in faith that took
place after September 11, 2001, which has since dissipated, and even though we
have been struggling through an economic down turn for the past six or seven
years, how many people in our world and in our Nation have stopped putting
their faith in the Lord for help, but have turned their faith toward
themselves, or the banks, or even the government to provide for them. This is the political situation in which we
find ourselves today! This is the reason
why Jeremiah’s words are so relevant for us today: “Woe to the shepherds who
are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the LORD. 2
Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who
tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and
have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil
you have done,” declares the LORD." (Jeremiah 23:1–2, NIV84)
Perhaps the economic situation in our country is the
beginning of God’s punishment against our Nation for turning away from
him. Perhaps the financial ruin, which
is predicted to be worse than the Great Depression, is this generation’s
Babylonian Captivity designed to destroy the power of the false gods of our
society and world and lead people back to the Lord. Perhaps just the idea of what is coming our
way, according to many economists, will be just enough to turn many back to the
Lord to trust in him as it was with the Israelites! Though it is true that Jeremiah’s message to
the people of Judah was indeed a message of harsh judgment, because there were
still many who were faithful to the Lord, the Lord filled their hearts with
comfort even as Jeremiah spoke. In the
midst of harsh judgment and woe, the Lord also gave great comfort, saying: “I
myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I
have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be
fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will
tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be
missing,” declares the LORD. 5 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when
I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and
do what is just and right in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and
Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The
LORD Our Righteousness." (Jeremiah 23:3–6, NIV84)
Even in the midst of looming destruction and
captivity, the Lord still comforted his faithful people with the promise of the
Messiah. Though the tree of Jesse would
be cut down and left as a dead stump through the coming captivity, the Lord
would cause a new branch to sprout when he sent Jesus as the Messiah. He would be the king who preached the message
of salvation to all his people. He would
be the king who would lead his people to the green pastures and quiet waters of
his word. He would be the king who would
fight head to head with satan and his evil angels. He would be the king who granted victory to
his people through his death and resurrection.
He would be the king who led his people to the complete safety of his
heavenly kingdom when their time on earth was done. Though it was clear that all of Judah and
Jerusalem would face some terrible times at the hands of the Babylonians, those
who trusted in the Lord had his comfort and assurance. They knew that the Lord was their
Righteousness. They knew that the Lord
was their Savior. They knew that no
matter what evil they faced by trusting in the Lord they would be delivered to
their kings side where they would live with their Righteous Savior.
The same thing is true for you and me today. Even though we are living in a world that
daily grows darker and more evil, we are looking forward to the day when we
will be gathered with the remnant of the Lord’s believers. Even though we are facing ridicule and
persecution we know that through faith in the Lord our Righteousness, we will
never be missing from his side. We know
that even though we may be facing some financial dark days in the next years,
by trusting in the Lord he will provide for us all that we need. We are looking forward to the day when we
will see the Righteous Branch of Jesse, our King, the Lord our Righteousness,
gathering us before his throne where we will live with him forever in safety
and security. No matter what we face in
this life, we know that heaven is our home.
No matter what temptations come our way, we know that the Lord Jesus has
forgiven us. No matter hardships we
face, we know that the Lord is with us, just as he was with his people even
when Babylon destroyed Jerusalem.
So now, as God’s children, continue to grow in your
faith by reading and studying his Word.
Teach your children and your grandchildren the precious truths of
salvation. Bring them with you as you
worship the Lord so that they learn the habit of taking time out for God. Schedule extra time each Sunday for Sunday
School and Bible study so that you and your family may grow in your faith and
your love of the Lord. Though the days
are growing darker, the days are coming when the Lord our Righteousness will
raise up the righteous Branch of Jesse.
This will be the day when our Savior returns in glory and judgment. This
will be the day when we see the Lord our Righteousness face to face and he
welcomes us into his heavenly kingdom forever.
Until that day, grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Encourage each other in the faith, and know
that no matter what you might face in this life, we have the Lord’s
promise: “I myself will gather the
remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will
bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in
number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no
longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the LORD. 5
“The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up to David a
righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in
the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness."
(Jeremiah 23:3–6, NIV84)
Amen.
Pastor
David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church--Le Sueur, MN
[1] From
a speech on June 7, 2007 referenced at:
http://www.christianwebsite.com/obama-america-no-longer-a-christian-nation/ also from a speech on March 9, 2008
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmC3IevZiik
also a speech on April 9, 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIVd7YT0oWA
All sites accessed July 28, 2012.
