Sunday Morning, December 29, 2019 AM

Know our frame that we are but the role and enjoying the blessings of Christian fellowship and community

Basking in the light of Christ, but they themselves are stone -cold in their hearts and need your life in them

So here we are father. We're We're here to hear from your word about your son

We ask for the power of the Holy Spirit that you would take your truth. Take your word Straight to our hearts

Cutting deep Making the changes that you want to see Lord, we are utterly dependent upon you for this

So at the end of all things You utterly get all the glory Salvation belongs to you and to the lamb who's on the throne

We give you the praise now and when we know we will give you the praise then For this time father

Supply our needs strengthen us in our weaknesses Or we believe help our unbelief

We see all these things when we we ask for these things looking only to Christ the one with whom you are well -pleased

Amen Invite you to open your Bibles to Jeremiah chapter 36

Jeremiah 36 and we'll be looking at verses 1 through 8 this morning As Always, I I intend to preach the whole passage and then

I don't So I'm trying to preempt that by saying from the outset. Yes.

This is part one It's I'm not going to spring that on you later that there's a part two or three that I'm going to say it right up front this is part one and We're going to consider a story

Jeremiah 36 that has to do with the Word of God how the

Word of God is a gift a gift to us as his creatures and then this story focuses in on what happens next that God gives his word in such a specific and good way but then

What happens next do we receive it or do we reject it? And what's the fallout or?

What's the outcome of how we respond to the gift of God's Word Jeremiah 36 is

Another look back at what is going on with Judah as a nation a

Few chapters ago we we left off with the armies of Babylon surrounding the city of Jerusalem they

Had done all they needed to do to conquer the city except actually conquering it They had taken out all of the cities around them all of the fortified cities surrounding

Jerusalem. They had eliminated those they had cut off all Chance of anybody coming to the rescue.

There was a an aborted attempt by the Egyptians to come help but That was put to rest and and now it's just nothing left.

But just waiting for the demise just waiting for the end Jeremiah is waiting for the end in prison.

He's in jail. He was put in Under guard under house arrest by by the

Royal Guard because they got tired of his preaching he kept on saying things like The Babylonians are going to conquer us all and destroy everything and there is no escape and you may imagine that that's a very unpopular thing to say over and over again and it might have wounded the

Professional pride of the soldiers who were guarding the city. What do you mean? What are you saying about us and again him saying this over and over again about the

Kings at Achaia? You will soon no longer reign and even though you'll try to escape it won't work out and you'll be humiliated

Well, that's not a very popular thing To say to the king and so Jeremiah is placed under house arrest

Interestingly enough people are still coming to Jeremiah including the king to find out Well, what does God have to say about our situation and Jeremiah keeps telling him the same thing over and over again

But it seems better now that the voice of the prophet of God is neatly contained within a box right,

I Mean I can go and listen to it if I want to and if I don't want to then I don't have to Right as long as the preaching of the

Word of God is contained in a box and not out in the public square who cares? Right That's why the founders in our nation one of the things they did get right

Freedom of religion not freedom of worship. It wasn't freedom of worship You can do whatever you want inside your concrete box freedom of religion so that the scriptures may be proclaimed and practiced and Pressed upon all the people in the nation in the public square

Okay, and that's that's the key now That's what causes the problems and so Jeremiah has been placed into his concrete box where he can still preach and pray and do his worship

Thing but under constraints so that nobody will get too upset What are they afraid of?

What are they tired of what is so wearisome to them the authority of the

Word of God? That's what's so grating upon their consciences. So So offensive to their sensibilities is that some foreign authority is being

Constantly put over and against them saying you must conform to this

You must change your ways you in and of yourself Even together as a culture cannot decide what is true and false and what is right and wrong

But there is a an external authority to you straight from the man from from the from the

God who who has made you and You must submit to that and that's what they're that's what they're upset about and that's what this story is about because after we learned that the

Babylonians are up against the wall and Jeremiah's in prison and all is about to All all is about to fall then

God Has for us in the writings of Jeremiah in the preaching of Jeremiah several stories several opportunities to look back and see how it was

That they got into this situation. I mean we'd be wondering that shouldn't we? I mean we're faced with the with the awful

Awful tension of what's about to happen and you can read in the book of lamentations Just how awful it was

With the Babylonians got through and all of all of the of the chaos and the disaster and the carnage that came after it

But how did they get to that place? How did the people of God? How did the treasured people of God even the tribe of Judah?

Around centered around the Holy City in which was the temple in which was the Ark of the

Covenant the life of the people of God How is it that it has come to this? And so there's several looks back now.

This is the way it was Five years ago or or 15 years ago even 20 years ago before the fall of Jerusalem Look at all the things that have been going on.

Look how patient God was with this people Look how time and again he sent his prophet Jeremiah and gave them opportunity after opportunity to repent to hear his word and look how creative he was in pointing at This illustration or that illustration and bringing the focus of the people to his word how patient how long -suffering?

What a good God is This God who has now brought this judgment upon this people

That's what we're looking at in the previous chapter we looked at the opportunity of the Rechabites the family that followed the instructions of their forefather

Jehonadab and They were put forth before the people as an example, you know

Here is this family that follows the instructions of their patriarch who's been long dead now 200 years

But you won't listen to me that as I'm speaking to you directly through the prophet even now An example set before them so they could take stock of their ways and repent and here's another another example

Another story that we are given in Jeremiah 36 So I'm going to read for us

Jeremiah 36 1 through 8 and I'll take the time to summarize the the rest of the chapter

So we get the get the idea where it's all heading But would you please stand with me as I read? These eight verses the word of the

Lord These are the words of our King and Savior Jesus Christ through his prophet

Jeremiah In the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah King of Judah this word came to Jeremiah from the

Lord saying Take a scroll and write on it all the words Which I have spoken to you concerning Israel and concerning Judah and concerning all the nations from the day.

I first spoke to you From the days of Josiah even to this day perhaps

The house of Judah will hear all the calamity which I plan to bring on them in order that every man will turn

From his evil way, then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin Then Jeremiah called

Baruch the son of Nehemiah and Baruch wrote on a scroll of the dictation of Jeremiah all the words of the

Lord Which he had spoken to him. Jeremiah commanded Baruch saying I am restricted I cannot go into the house of the

Lord So you go and read from the scroll which you have written at my dictation the words of the

Lord to the people in the Lord's house on a fast day and Also, you shall read them to all the people of Judah who come from their cities

Perhaps their supplication will come before the Lord and everyone will turn from his evil way

For great is the anger and the wrath that the Lord has pronounced against this people Baruch the son of Nehemiah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him

Reading from the book the words of the Lord in the Lord's house

And this is the Lord's Word you'll be seated, you know the saying seeing

Is believing well fearing begins with hearing fearing begins with hearing

You know what? It's like to be woken up in the middle of the night by sound. What was that?

Sometimes you think oh, it couldn't be anything too bad I'll try to go back to sleep

But then you spend a long time thinking about whether or not and you keep on listening for anything else It sounds get our attention and cause us to fear

It's an involuntary thing. You hear a siren you hear tires screech you hear screams you hear shots

Hey, I get your attention I get your blood pumping Fearing begins with hearing

Not always though We don't always fear every single sound that we come across doing If a beggar comes up to me and tries to tell me something

I I'm not going to be as in tune with what he's saying Then if a police officer comes up to me to tell me something right one of those two men

Hi, they're both made in the image of God. But one of one of those two men is endowed with authority And when the guy endowed with authority begins to speak

I Just naturally give him more attention. I Put more stock in the things that he is saying to me if if someone shows up and demands to enter your house and they're in there say a police officer or some sort of Officer of the law and they demand to come into your house and go through your belongings.

Check out your civil war drawer You say well, do you have a warrant? All right.

Do you have written? Authority to do that. You're looking for verbal authority

And if he does then you're gonna pay close attention and scrutinize that information, aren't you?

All right, you're gonna pay very close attention to it Someone gives you a subpoena or a judge and it has something to do with your life and he issues a ruling there is going

To be some close attention some scrutiny to that written authority

That's just natural, isn't it? So how unnatural is it? For us to not care what

God has said how absolutely reverse of the matter is it

For us to not really care all that much what God has said indeed his written authority the difference between the fool and the

God -fearer Has to do with how the person deals with the

Word of God You can tell the difference between a fool and Someone who fears

God by the way, they deal with the Word of God and we need to know the difference

Do we know the difference between a fool and someone who fears God? What's wrong with being a fool?

well Judah was playing the fool The people of Judah were being incredibly foolish not listening to the

Word of God And how is it that they ended up in the situation? They were in great disaster upon their nation upon their city upon all their people

How is it that they came to that end because they were fools? Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his folly

The fool says in his heart there is no God The fool is wise in his own eyes, and you can't tell him a thing

At the culmination of the list in Romans 3 of what it means for man to be utterly depraved and No good in and of himself that the capstone of that description as as Paul's quoting various Passages from the

Psalms and so on that the capstone is and there is no fear of God before their eyes

Well, we don't want to be fools We want to fear God We should want to fear

God. Why should we fear God with a fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge? Only fools despise wisdom and instruction

Proverbs 9 says that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom That's where everything begins.

You want to know what is what is real? What is true? How things actually operate in the world?

to give a given account of your reasoning to be able to to speak clearly to know and to have

Wisdom and to operate in the way in which the world is designed Fear the Lord is the beginning of knowledge fear.

The Lord is the beginning of wisdom And it's absolutely no mistake that all the treasures of knowledge and wisdom are hid in Christ so We don't want to be fools.

We won't be God fearers and fearing God begins with hearing hearing his word

I was reading just Reading a book this week

And so someone said challenging times Challenging times Perhaps we ought to return to the worship of God the

Father Almighty and stop chumming around with our sky buddy The answer to all the woes in the world

Comes back to this the fear of the Lord Fear of the Lord. Do we fear

God? and Jeremiah 36 Gives us the opportunity to consider just whether or not we fear the

Lord as we look at whether or not Judah fears the Lord and it all has to do with the

Word of God. How do we? Relate to the Word of God even as Adam and Eve everything in their life hinged on what they did with the

Word of God So also in the life of Israel everything hinged on what they did with the Word of God So it is with us as followers of Christ as the church everything hinges on what we do with the

Word of God Do we fear God or not? So I'll talk about the inscripturation of the word and I invented a term there

Other people invented it before me. It's just not officially recognized Spellcheck hates it

I'm using that instead of the traditional inspiration of the word because that term is is a widely misunderstood

How just how is it that God's Word ended up in a book? That's what we want to talk about How is it that God's Word?

Ends up written down for us in a book Jeremiah 36 helps us think about that Verses one three way helps us to think about how

God gave us his word and why? How God gave us his word and why

I? Want us to notice first of all the divine author the divine author

I've read through chapter 36 several times not least of which trying to trying to trace the pattern of who said what to who and when

Which is a which is a very fun project to do how many times did the Word of God get written down and then?

Transferred by reading and or by summarizing and preaching in Jeremiah 36

Many many times over the transmission of the Word of God is is Paramount in this chapter, but as we read through 12 times in this chapter.

We are told who the author of the words are Who's the author of the text? Who's the author of the word?

It's the Lord It's the Lord seven times in the first eight verses We're told it's the

Lord's words that were given to Jeremiah that were written down on a scroll Being dictated to Baruch and then read to the people.

It is the Lord's words We know who the author is

When it comes to the scriptures God's name is listed as the author as the editor

He authored the foreword he authored the preface he authored the introduction the contents the conclusion and the epilogue

He's the author It is God's Word because these words came from God and Because that's the case

Everything else that we say about the Word of God follows from that If indeed it is God's Word Then no wonder the psalmist said what he said in Psalm 19 about the

Word of God how he praised it as higher and more perfect and to be great more greatly desired than Then the way that God has revealed himself in the book of nature, which is a great book

It's very thick and there's lots to read about in the book of nature the book of creation lots to praise

God about in the book of creation, but scripture, which is a smaller book is

Far better Notice what the psalmist says? Psalm 19 verse 7 the law of the

Lord is perfect restoring the soul The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple the precepts of the

Lord are right rejoicing the heart The commandment of the Lord is pure enlightening the eyes the fear of the

Lord is clean enduring forever The judgments of the Lord are true. They are righteous all together because these are

God's words. They are perfect sure right pure Clean and true

Why because of the author Because of who wrote the scriptures the

Holy Bible and everything else follows we hear in 2nd

Timothy 3 16 that that all scripture is Inspired by God breathed out by God Inspiration is an interesting take the the more technical term would be expiration.

It was exhaled All the scripture is exhaled by God and Profitable for doctrine for reproof for correction for training and righteousness that the man of God would be adequately equipped for every good work so all of scripture is

Breathed out by God and that's why it's good to tell us what's true where we're wrong how to get right and how to live

God's way Because we're made in his image and so his word the Word of God is made for those who are made in the image of God so everything else follows about the scriptures the things that we that we faithfully say that have been handed down to us by our faithful forefathers and in Acknowledgement of the scriptures testimony of itself

That it is God breathed that it is inspired that this is this word is without error that it is inerrant

Cannot fail it is infallible that it has all the authority of God That is authoritative for every aspect of our life that it is a clear word.

Please hold on to that This is the thing that's being targeted. It's a clear word It's not only meant for an elect few who have certain training in Eastern thought and therefore it's not for you

Don't buy that garbage God is a perfect communicator and everlasting

God and he has given us a clear word in the Holy Spirit by whom we would know What he means in his text and it's sufficient for all of our faith and practice

Do we need to know how to worship God if we live here or live halfway across the world? Scripture tells us how we worship

God how to live together as the people of God Everything else everything follows about what we say about the

Word of God from this that is God's word and notice the

Form of God's Word what God spoke to his prophet is God's Word what God's prophet dictated to the scribe

That was God's Word what was written down on the scroll. That's God's Word. What was read aloud to the people.

That's God's Word How is that because he's the author notice the term author and authority

What's the authority of the Word of God goes back to the author of the Word of God who is God himself?

Notice what happened in the text and this happens a lot in Jeremiah verse 1 this word

Came to Jeremiah from the Lord Saying take a scroll right now what

I have said to you The Word of God shows up the

Word of God shows up and Encounters Jeremiah personally and says remember all those other things that I came to you and said

Well, I want you to write it down now on a scroll The Word of God shows up and says you're going to go and say how many times this has happened

Jeremiah The Word of God shows up comes to Jeremiah and says I want you to go To the temple courts or I want you to go out by the by the the dung gate

And I want you to go preach this word. I want you to say to the people thus sayeth the Lord Do we do we see that?

It's the Word of the Lord who brings the words of the Lord That we have that the

Word who became flesh and dwelt among us The Word who is the only mediator between God and man not only in terms of salvation

But also in terms of revelation the only mediator between God a man who is the Word who became flesh

Who's at the right hand of the Father even now that he's the author of the scriptures I'm not kidding and I'm not putting on airs when

I want us to stand for the reading of God's Word These are the words of our King Savior Jesus Christ He has spoken to us through his prophets through those who were anointed

Whether they be prophets priests kings or apostles whoever they were those whom he spoke through These are his words the words of our

King And so that's why we stand to give him honor when we read it together in our corporate worship divine author a divine author

Well if we don't want to be a fool we should listen to what God has said We should pay attention to what he said take very take it very seriously

Why would we why would we fear? Why would we fear a

Police officer who gives us our speeding ticket more than we fear the king of the universe who has given us his word the divine author and a human agent a divine author and a human agent notice how

God uses these Human agents Jeremiah as a human author Baruch as a as a human scribe then

Jeremiah called Baruch verse for the son of Nariah Baruch had a High position in the life of Jerusalem and Judah.

He was highly respected by other scribes other officials very educated man as a scribe and Jeremiah called him

Said you must come do this work for me and Baruch wrote on the scroll at the dictation of Jeremiah All the words of the

Lord which he had spoken to him So the Lord had spoken words to Jeremiah and Jeremiah dictated those words to Baruch who wrote them down upon a scroll

Jeremiah commanded Baruch saying I am restricted. I cannot go into the house of the Lord. Why not? Well last time he tried that they almost killed him.

I've been outlawed from the house of the Lord I can't go there and and preach You know, it's it's a sad state of affairs when the preaching of the

Word of God is not allowed in in the house of worship It's a sad state of affairs, isn't it?

So you go and read from the scroll which you have written at my dictation the word of the

Lord to the people in the Lord's house on a fast day and Also, you shall read them to all the people of Judah who come from their cities

I want to consider that the human agent involved. First of all, Jeremiah is a prophet.

He has a holy calling He's a holy calling God came to him and Encountered and confronted

Jeremiah when he was very young and said you're gonna be my prophet and you're gonna go say what

I want you to say Jeremiah tried to try to complain and tried to to get out of it and God said

No, I've had you picked up for a long time Before you were born so God gets the last word in like that all the time

But in Jeremiah chapter 1 verses 5 through 10 He says God says to Jeremiah before I formed you in the womb

I knew you before you were even formed for your before you were even conceived I knew you meaning

I loved you. I set my love on you. I chose you I knew everything about you.

You're just a guy I want and before you were born. I consecrated you I've anointed you

I've set you apart. I appointed you as a prophet to the nation's Jeremiah grew up in Anathoth Levitical city a place where priests grew up God says

I've consecrated you to something else to be a prophet Then I said alas Lord God behold. I do not know how to speak

Because I am a youth look at the look at the human agent that God picked. He picked somebody who can't speak

He did that before didn't he the gal Moses? Come on stutter mumble. Let's go

You're my servant And so he picks out Jeremiah. He's too young.

He can't speak well, but that's the one that God decides to use But the Lord said to me do not say

I am a youth because everywhere I send you you shall go and all that I command you you shall speak do not be afraid of them for I am with You to deliver you declares the

Lord The Lord stretched out his hand now watch this the Lord stretched out his hand

Who is this who shows himself in bodily form? Before the incarnation, isn't it

Christ? Stretches out his hand. He touched my mouth The Lord said to me behold.

I have put my words in your mouth See I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms To pluck up and to break down to destroy and overthrow to build and to plant.

This is no angel folks This is the Lord of the universe saying I'm giving you Authority to preach my word to all the nations over whom

I am God So a human agent, but he has a holy calling a holy calling

As a prophet this this pattern has been completed in Christ This is a past pattern the way as Hebrews 1 1 through 2 reminds us that that God in in in past times

He spoke in the prophets in many portions and in many ways But in these last days he has spoken to us in his son

Who we made the heir of all things through whom he also he created the world And this pattern of revelation is is fulfilled and completed in Christ Well, this holy calling is all upon this human agent, but isn't he isn't he time -bound

I mean he only writes about stuff that concerns the Jews and only the group of Jews who who died

Most of them died in the assault of Babylon. So who really cares about what happened, you know in in the early 500s

BC I mean The stuff he talks about and the way, you know the way he talked with he's writing on a scroll

So, you know, he's outdated You know, he's talking to Baruch about reading this aloud to people on a fast day

There's no mass email or mass text. Obviously, this is outdated

Has nothing to do with us, right There is a historical context But it's not time bound.

It's time related It's not time bound. It's time related. We cannot

Take up the humanity of the scriptures the fact that human agents that were chosen by God Truly wrote down and and authored the scriptures

We can't take the humanity of scriptures and pit it over and against as if in conflict with the divine authorship of the scriptures

Because God is the one who wrote it and God is eternal It's eternal word, but there is a time

Context here isn't there in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah this word came to Jeremiah from the

Lord Saying it's pivotal year. We read about it in Jeremiah 25 It was the year that the clock started ticking for the 70 years of Babylon They would be there for 70 years through three through three reigns of three different Kings and then

Babylon's time would be ended with the onslaught of the Medes and the Persians But it was the fourth year of King Jehoiakim when

Jeremiah came preaching and saying and not only did King Jehoiakim but also to all the representatives of The other nation -states who had gathered there in Jerusalem and said to them all

God is raising up King Nebuchadnezzar All these lands are now his when he shows up you submit to him

And if you don't here's all the awful things they're gonna happen to you another very popular message from Jeremiah But notice in the text that it in verse 9.

It wasn't till the fifth year It wasn't till the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah in the ninth month

That the words were read it took that long to write down everything that Jeremiah had to say

It took that long to compile and get enough material for the scrolls It took that long to put it all together and then to wait for the perfect moment a fast day something terrible must have happened

And I think that thing was in second Kings 24 one You can look it up on your own But something terrible happens to in the nation and then all the people got gathered together and they fast because something bad happened

So they come together to mourn and to say what what what went wrong? Maybe God is upset with us.

And then so Jeremiah says wait until a moment like that When you have maximum exposure for the

Word of God to the way the whole country is listening The whole society is listening and then read to them these words of the

Lord. It's a good idea

He's trying to obey what God had told him to do. So this is the best way to do it So there's a historical context

But there's also a human condition when we encounter Jeremiah as he gets real personal some time to time in the book

We find him to be fearful sometimes don't we? Fearful about what it's gonna happen to him what people are gonna say how they're gonna oppose him

We find him to be fearful and therefore we can see that he doesn't trust God enough Jeremiah himself doesn't fear the

Lord all the time more than he fears man Jeremiah is a sinner

He's a sinner he makes mistakes He doesn't do everything the way he's supposed to We also find that he's often frustrated and the things that he says about his own history the things he says about the nation the thing he says about God are often out of perspective and not the correct understanding of the sovereignty of God and the goodness of God So we find that Jeremiah as he gets personal in the in the book

He's a sinner. He gets things wrong So then the question comes how does

God bring about divine authorship without error without? Failing that is everlasting

Authoritative insufficient. How does he bring about that kind of divine authorship, which is perfect through human agency, which is imperfect

This has been a critical question in the last 200 years

And many many Shades of heresy have been put forth to try to answer this question in a way

That'll make literature professors happy Which of course that's what we're called to do, right?

We're called to Take the gospel to all the literature professors for approval and make them happy.

How does God do this? well Thankfully we just had

Christmas and we thought about the incarnation of the word haven't we the incarnation of the word in which

Christ is fully God and fully man and His divinity does not make his humanity other than fully human and his humanity does not make his divinity other than fully divine he is as much

God as God is God and he is as much man as man is man and He is the supreme revelation of God What about not the incarnation of the word but the inscripturation of the word, how is it done a divine author and a human author

Does the humanity of the text in any way take away from the divinity of the author?

The divine origin the divine perfection the divine truth in the text Is there something about the human authors that somehow?

Trump's the divine origin of the scriptures to make it full of errors and problems that we can safely ignore

Depending on what the winds of the culture are saying currently No Not at all and The divinity of the authorship of the text that it comes from God himself

Doesn't mean that every single book in the Bible is written in the same tone by the same

Personalities or with the exact same set of vocabulary or even in the same language

But it's a very human text and Paul's writing style is different than Peter's writing style

Isn't it but to have the two together is no problem for people who believe in Jesus No problem at all

Because if we if we believe in the incarnation of the word What problem could we possibly have with believing in the inscripturation of the word?

No problem at all, especially since the testimony of scripture itself is sufficient to tell us what we're supposed to believe about that 1st

Peter chapter 1 verses 10 through 12 as to this salvation the prophets who prophesied of the grace

That would come to you The prophets who prophesied of the grace who would come to you like jeremiah made careful searches and inquiries

As to that salvation that they Promise would be revealed in full seeking to know

What person or time? the spirit of christ within them was indicating as he

Predicted the sufferings of christ and the glories to follow So the holy spirit as we will see in the next passage is bearing these prophets along holy men moved by the holy spirit but it is christ himself through the holy spirit who is prophesying about himself

How he's going to come what's going to happen? Verse 12 it was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you

In these things which now have been announced to you through those who have preached the gospel to you By the holy spirit sent from heaven things into which angels long to look and then 2nd peter chapter 1 verses 19 to 21

So we have the prophetic word made more sure more sure than what more sure notice the previous three verse more

Sure more certain more clear Than the encounter of the three disciples

With jesus on the mount of transfiguration We cannot name another spiritual experience of followers of jesus christ

That is a greater spiritual experience Than being in his presence of the shekinah glory of god comes through him

The shekinah glory cloud comes down and you hear a word from god the father saying this is my beloved son

With whom I am well, please listen to him What spiritual experience is more impressive than that?

and Just to be clear Fearing god does not mean hoping for yet another really

Amazing spiritual experience They happen But where do we fear god we fear god when we turn our attention to the prophetic word that's more sure

It's more sure than even that The scriptures Now look verse 19.

So we have the prophetic word made more sure to which you would do well to pay attention As to a lamp shining in a dark place

Until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts Pay attention to the scriptures pay attention to the prophetic word like it's the only light shining

But know this first of all verse 20 no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation

For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will but men moved by the holy spirit spoke from god

Divine author human agents God's written authority that we can trust

God's written authority that is written in a way that we can access Clearly to understand it's not the parts of the bible that we have trouble pronouncing like the genealogies

It's not the parts of the bible that we have a little trouble understanding Some of the deeper passages in the apostle paul.

It's not the parts of the bible that we can't yet Understand that cause the problem for us is the parts of the scripture that we do understand that causes all the problems when

God is absolutely clear about what fidelity means within marriage about what sexuality is intended for about how

Nations should bow the knee to christ about how we ought to give christ all the glory how churches should operate in terms of Forgiving one another and loving one another

It's the parts that we Do understand that are challenging Well a triune god

With a human agent Gives us the scripture

Now, what's the point we've looked at how god gave us his written word, but why?

Why does he give us his written word? What's the gracious aim number one reverence

Reverence notice in verses three and seven what god says and then jeremiah's amen to what god says

Notice what the word of the lord says to jeremiah. So the word says this

You know, we're going to write all this down. Why perhaps? The house of judah will hear all the calamity which

I plan to bring on them in order that every man Will turn from his evil way

And then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin. Do you hear the gracious aim? What why is it that we're writing this down to be read to all the people that's a question

It's for reverence To fear to recognize what god has said to fear him and then to repent turn away from the sin

That god has pronounced judgment upon so that there would be salvation that there would be redemption that there would be forgiveness

Notice the amen of jeremiah in verse seven. He tells so the word says jeremiah.

I want you to Write this down Here's my aim and then jeremiah says to baruch. Okay, write this down Here's why we're doing it verse seven perhaps their supplication

Will come before the lord and everyone will turn from his evil way for great is the anger and the wrath

That the lord has pronounced against this people So the first aim is this is reverence

To fear god It's really impossible to fear god

It's impossible to fear god Unless you have the word of god proclaimed to you

You really can't you say well Even people who have never been given the word of god

I get scared when The power of god and creation is revealed to them. Yeah, but they get scared of storms

And whatever god they think runs it You know, they get scared of famine and whatever god is

You know withholding a good crop that year so they're not really fearing god, are they? How do you fear god unless god reveals himself to you so that you may fear him and reverence him?

The word of god must be proclaimed because God must be feared.

What does it mean to fear god? It is not As first johns points out perfect love casts out fear because fear involves torment

It's not that kind of fear not the tormented fear. Not the the terrified I don't know what this god is going to do next because he's so capricious.

He's all over the place and who knows? This is a fear of god that says That that is knowing

With whom we have to deal That he is The giver of life and the taker of life

That he is the one who is the not only the maker of all mankind, but the judge of all mankind that our everlasting

Existence Is determined based on him and his character

Do we fear god Or do we do we push back?

At those parts about who god is in the scripture that seem to be just a little too much

If we're always apologizing for scripture, we're not fearing god If we're with we're always reading the scripture and twisting our mouths just so we're moving along in our yearly scripture reading too quickly past the past the

The calamities that god declares. Oh, I don't I like that part. We're going to move This is here so we would know who god is and his holiness and his righteousness and his goodness and his

In his justice that we would know what those terms actually mean The less we fear god the worse our vocabulary gets

And we begin to use terms like holiness and goodness and righteousness and justice in ways that are not true

Because we are not bringing ourselves into alignment with the revelation of god The question for us is do we fear god and we can tell if we fear god or not by how we relate to the scriptures

Second aim is repentance notice so that every man every man

Will turn from his evil way And that's what he says in verse the whole idea brooke.

Listen, you got to go read this wait till maximum Exposure because we're going to have one shot at this We'll see later in the story that they only had one shot at this

Because then they had to go hiding go into hiding we'll have one shot at this we'll go for maximum exposure

We're going to read the word of god. So that's the goal so that everyone will hear the holiness of god

The promise calamity of god upon our sins and so that everyone will turn away from his evil

That's the goal That's the goal repentance turn away

And we've got to be ready to do that every time we open the scriptures Ready to turn why?

Christ is king He's king of kings lord of lords, he's the ruler of the kings of the earth he's in charge

And everything here is his everything so He has given us his word

And so when we come into the presence of the king Praying for the aid of the holy spirit to understand the text and we come to the scriptures and we faithfully

Dutifully read and study the scriptures we have to come as those who are ready to hear the word from the king about What direction we're not going?

And we need to go about what we're doing that we need to stop that we would be Like a faithful servant our eyes upon the the the hand of the master

That the the smallest uh twitch the smallest conviction of the holy spirit through the word of god and we say yes, sir

I'm on it I'm on it That's the ideal In fearing the lord.

That's the ideal in fearing god Is that kind of repentance? Well the fear god and to repent what's the promise is redemption forgiveness

What does he say In order that every man will turn from his evil way then

I will forgive their iniquity and their sin This is what we desire, isn't it?

We desire in our own lives, what we desire for those that we love, and we care for, that we've been interceding for, and praying for their salvation, that there would be a godly sorrow, a true brokenness over sin, that they would recognize it for what it is, that they would flee from it, that they would know in the grace of repentance, forgiveness of their sins.

What does forgiveness mean? Forgiveness means that he removes from us our transgressions as far as the east is from the west, that he does not deal with us according to our iniquities.

You know, in the Old Testament where it says that God remembered Israel, he remembered his promise to Abraham, and then he went to go deliver them out of Egypt, he didn't lose the information somewhere in his massive brain.

He knows all things. He doesn't forget. The remembering is the act of remembering.

I will now act in accordance with my promises, God says. What does it mean when he forgets our iniquities, forgets our sins?

God, because of the perfect work of Jesus Christ on our behalf, in our place, for our sake, upon the cross, having satisfied the justice of God, God looks upon those who are in Christ and says, not guilty.

He forgets our transgressions, he forgets our iniquities, and never will treat us accordingly, but only according to his

Son, Jesus Christ. Now, that's the promise of redemption. That's the promise of forgiveness. And notice how it comes in the grace of God.

How does it come when the Word of God is proclaimed that we may fear God, repent of our sins, and then know the forgiveness of God, which he brings about in Jesus Christ?

Notice when the redemption comes, when the forgiveness of sin comes, it comes after the repentance.

After the repentance, which is exactly why

Jesus preached the way that he did. Mark 1 15, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, the time is fulfilled, repent, and believe in the gospel.

Repent and believe in the gospel. There's a whole lot more to say.

God's will, we'll leave it for next time. I want us to remember this as we go into this new year, and as we, with all degree of sincere hope and industry, we grab our scripture reading sheets and head out into our separate ways.

I want us to remember this, that fearing God begins with hearing his word. Fearing God begins with hearing his word.

Let's fear the Lord this year. Let's not be fools. Let's be those who are attentive to the Word of God. Let's pray.

Father, I thank you for the time that you have given us. I pray that you would bless this word to our lives, that we would be nourished by it, that we would be instructed and led by it.

Father, help us to fear you, to honor you, reverence you, to quickly, willingly, zealously turn away from our sins, that we would live in a constant awareness of our justification in Christ and the free forgiveness from you.

I pray for those who are here that do not know those things, and I pray that you would be at work in their lives.

Turn them around as you would do the soul of Tarsus, as you would intervene in the life of someone like Peter.

Father, we just ask that you would do your work in us and give us the strength to follow after Christ, that we may give you all the glory.