Jeremiah 15: Carrying a Word That Does Not Change

Introduction

Masami Nakayama, an evangelist at Aburayama Shalom Church in Fukuoka, continues his journey through the book of Jeremiah at the prayer meeting. The previous messages dealt with the prophet's warnings against the leaders, the kings, the priests and the people, and against the sin and decline spreading among them.

This time, the text shows something different. Jeremiah, set apart by God before his birth to be a prophet, and who has kept passing on the Lord's word despite the hardships, opens his heart before the Lord here, without a mask, with his real feelings. The passage is Jeremiah 15:10-21.

The title of the message says it all: we too are people who have been entrusted with a word that does not change.

Outline of the Message

1. A Prophet Rejected for Telling the Truth

• In verse 10, Jeremiah's sorrow overflows: "Woe is me, my mother, that you have borne me, a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth!"
• The words he passed on came from God: a lament, an anger, a word of judgment. He did not let himself be swept along by his people's sin, and he kept speaking with seriousness and sincerity.
• The people did not listen. They welcomed those who spoke lies as prophets and treated the one who spoke God's word as a liar. "You are a false prophet": the truth was uncomfortable, so they shut their ears and persecuted him.
• Because he faithfully carried out his task, Jeremiah was hated, accused, rejected and cursed, though he had wronged no one.

2. God Does Not Tell Him: "You Have Done Enough"

• In verse 11, God answers his prophet's complaint: in the time of disaster, his enemies will come to him themselves and ask him to intercede for them. Verses 12 to 14 announce judgment on those who refuse to return to God.
• The Lord does not say to Jeremiah: "You no longer need to work, you have done more than enough, your role is over."
• The preacher gives an example: if he himself confessed that he was tired of his Sunday school ministry, the church would probably tell him, "You have worked hard, take a little rest." "That's a joke," he adds. For Jeremiah, the story does not end there.
• His mission was not finished. Sin and decline were spreading before his eyes, and there were still words to speak to a people walking toward ruin. Even when those words seemed to fall into the void, God kept him standing in his task.

3. The Joy of the Word in the Midst of Loneliness

• In verses 15 to 18, Jeremiah tells how he followed the Lord. Verse 16 expresses his attachment to the Word: "Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words were to me a joy and the delight of my heart; for I am called by your name, Yahweh, God of Armies."
• In persecution, with no one to share his sorrows and joys with, alone, Jeremiah found his joy in the word he had received.
• You probably know that moment, during worship, a time of meditation or a time of sharing: a text you had only skimmed until then suddenly reveals its depth. The word rises within you and spreads through your whole body "like blood circulating." "Then I realize that I am being shaped by the Word," says the preacher.
• For Jeremiah, who had left everything to follow this path, this joy was perhaps everything. Despite the shame, the pain and the mockery, he probably had, like us, enough assurance to tell himself that he could still hold on to this God and this word.
• To be called by the name of the Lord of Armies, the Lord who gives victory in every battle, is to be among those who follow him. We too are called Christians, after the name of Christ. We are not worthy of it, and yet the Lord has us bear this name and places us where we are.

4. When the Promise Seems Like Deceptive Water

• The joy of the Word did not make the suffering disappear. In verse 18, Jeremiah questions God: "Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuses to be healed? Will you indeed be to me as a deceitful brook, as waters that fail?"
• He obeys the Lord, he shares the Lord's heart, and the more he calls the people to turn away from the path of ruin, the more hostility and insults he receives, he and the Lord's name along with him.
• The time of judgment is approaching, and the people do not realize it. They even believe they are obeying God. They choose the path of death, the weak are oppressed, justice is not done, and the living God is treated as if he did not exist.
• The preacher puts himself in the prophet's place: alone in such a situation, he could not help asking, "Why did you call me? Wasn't it a mistake? I told you I was not capable. It is hard. Is your promise true? Where is my help?"
• We know that God is right. But when the gap between his word and reality seems too wide, we cannot keep it to ourselves. And when we lose sight, even a little, of the one we were leaning on, our supports start to wobble.

5. "If You Return, I Will Make You Stand"

• God answers starting at verse 19. He takes up what, in Jeremiah's words, put the Lord in doubt, then shows him where his place is: "If you return, I will bring you again, and you shall stand before me."
• The place to return to is not with those who rest in a false peace, but with God. He is the one who will make the shaken prophet stand, the one who will make him speak.
• "I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall; and they will fight against you, but they will not prevail against you; for I am with you to save you and to deliver you" (verse 20).
• These are the words God had spoken to Jeremiah on the first day, in chapter 1, when he called him. He was young and inexperienced, and God had told him: do not be afraid, I am with you to deliver you.
• The promise made at the moment of his first step was still there, intact. This word reminded Jeremiah, just as he was about to collapse, that nothing had changed.

6. Remembering Your First Calling

• When did you first hear the Lord's call, the Gospel? The preacher believes that each of us remembers it clearly: that moment when you met the Lord and told yourself, "If the Lord says that even I am fit, then I will take this path."
• He asks us to remember it, today and wherever we are sent. God keeps the same promise as at the beginning. Even if we forget, he remembers. He set us apart before we were born.
• You may be going through things you do not understand, that you cannot accept, to the point of asking God, "Why?" You may be rejected where you are placed, poorly received, forced to speak to people who shut their ears or treat you as an enemy. You may feel that your efforts are not rewarded, that you are the only one suffering, and that your wound does not heal.
• Yet we were set apart and called to be sent there. If that is what we were chosen for, then there are words to speak and things to do there.
• Times change, many things pass, but God's promise does not change: "I am with you to save you and to deliver you." This word was not addressed only to Jeremiah. It is addressed to us today.
• When you walk with the Lord, he provides what you need, the words as well as everything else. You do not need to be afraid, since the Lord says: do not be afraid. Up to now, our worries, our fears and our excuses have been taken away by his word, and that is why we are here. "It is the Lord's work."
• The message ends with Jeremiah 1:8: "Don't be afraid because of them, for I am with you to rescue you," says Yahweh. The preacher invites us to live this week as people to whom God has given words to speak and entrusted with a responsibility in these last times.

Key Takeaways

• Jeremiah was rejected not for a fault, but because he faithfully passed on a word the people did not want to hear.
• God welcomes the honest complaint of his servant, but he does not relieve him of his mission: there are still words to speak.
• The joy of the Word can sustain you in loneliness, even if it does not erase all the pain.
• The place to return to when you waver is God himself. He is the one who makes you stand.
• The promise of the calling does not change: "I am with you to save you and to deliver you."

Personal Application

1. Do you dare to tell God what you really feel, without a mask, like Jeremiah?
2. When did you first receive the Lord's call, and what decision did you make that day?
3. Which word of the Bible has been a joy and the delight of your heart lately?
4. In what place or among which people do you feel rejected or barely listened to, and what does God still entrust to you there?
5. What fear or what excuse do you need to hand over to the Lord, relying on his promise to be with you?

Verses Cited

• Jeremiah 15:10-21
• Jeremiah 1:5
• Jeremiah 1:8

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens in Jeremiah 15:10-21?

Jeremiah, rejected and cursed for faithfully passing on God's word, opens his heart without a mask before the Lord. He speaks of his joy in the Word, but also of his pain and his doubts. God answers by calling him to return to him and by renewing the promise of his calling: I am with you to save you and to deliver you.

Why does God not tell Jeremiah to rest?

For Masami Nakayama, Jeremiah's mission was not finished. Sin and decline were spreading before his eyes, and there were still words to speak to a people walking toward ruin. Even when those words seemed to have no effect, God kept him standing in his task.

What is the link between Jeremiah 15:20 and Jeremiah's calling in chapter 1?

The promise "I am with you to save you and to deliver you" echoes what God had said to Jeremiah at the time of his calling (Jeremiah 1:8). The preacher sees in it a promise that does not change: God remembers the beginning, even when we forget it, and this word is addressed to us today as well.