Life Lessons From Jeremiah
Pt. 2: Be On Mission
By Louie Marsh, 5-10-2026
IF I'M GOING TO SERVE GOD…
1) It helps to know WHAT I'm supposed to do!
See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant." Jeremiah 1:10 (ESV)
The three pairs of verbs-pull up/tear down, take apart/demolish, build/plant-are all-involving. In the way of faith we do not escape because it is too much for us; we plunge into it because we are commanded and equipped. It is not our feelings that determine our level of participation in life, nor our experience that qualifies us for what we will do and be; it is what God decides about us.
· To uproot and tear down
"13He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up." (Matthew 15:13, ESV)
"7If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, 8and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it." (Jeremiah 18:7–8, ESV)
• Sin-corrupted structures must be pulled up at the roots (Jeremiah 18:7-8; Matthew 15:13).
• "Tear down" pictures dismantling false worship, injustice, and empty confidence.
· To destroy and overthrow
"52he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate;" (Luke 1:52, ESV)
• Intensified verbs stress total demolition of prideful kingdoms.
• Nothing withstands the Lord's decree—not Jerusalem's walls, Babylon's empire, nor modern idols (Jeremiah 25:29; Luke 1:52).
• Destruction here is mercy: it halts evil before it devours further
· To build and plant
"6I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up, and not tear them down; I will plant them, and not pluck them up." (Jeremiah 24:6, ESV)
• Judgment clears ground for restoration.
• "Build" promises stability; "plant" promises fruitfulness.
• God never leaves ruins unattended; His ultimate aim is a people and a place flourishing under His reign.
· This is Jeremiah's MISSION STATEMENT.
Other Biblical Mission Statements:
John the Baptist;
A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3 (ESV)
Jesus:
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:18-21 (ESV)
Paul:
But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles— to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' Acts 26:16-18 (ESV)
For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 1 Corinthians 1:17 (ESV)
My Mission Statement:
To go anywhere, at anytime, to teach anyone God's Word, and to Empower Disciples.
2) To fulfill God's call I need lots of REASSURANCE!
· 1st Assurance – God is WATCHING over him.
And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Jeremiah, what do you see?" And I said, "I see an almond branch." Then the LORD said to me, "You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it." Jeremiah 1:11-12 (ESV)
The almond tree is one of the earliest trees to bloom in Palestine. Before it puts forth leaves, it puts forth blossoms, white and snowy.
The vision is accented with a word play. The word almond and the word watching are nearly identical in Hebrew. "What do you see, Jeremiah?" I see a shaped ("almond"). "Good eyes! I'm sticking with you. I am shoqed ("watching") my word to make every word I give you come true. I am watching my word like a shepherd watching his flock.
· 2nd Assurance – BELIEVE that God limits evil in this world.
The word of the LORD came to me a second time, saying, "What do you see?" And I said, "I see a boiling pot, facing away from the north." Then the LORD said to me, "Out of the north disaster shall be let loose upon all the inhabitants of the land. For behold, I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, declares the LORD, and they shall come, and every one shall set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its walls all around and against all the cities of Judah. And I will declare my judgments against them, for all their evil in forsaking me. They have made offerings to other gods and worshiped the works of their own hands. Jeremiah 1:13-16 (ESV)
"I believe in getting into hot water, it keeps you clean." - G. K. Chesterton
The subject of the vision is negative (in contrast to the almond vision) but its message is positive, for its effect is to contain evil. The boiling pot is a container of evil, and it poured out by someone – it is limited and controlled.
The boiling pot reduces evil to a location and a use. We cannot afford to be naive about evil-it must be faced. But we cannot be intimidated by it either. It will be used by God to bring good.
"7For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way." (2 Thessalonians 2:7, ESV)
The first vision convinced Jeremiah that the word of God bursts with wonders and that its wonders are not illusions. The second vision convinced Jeremiah that the world is very dangerous but that the danger is not catastrophic.
3) I must be SHAPED by God's Word & Vision, nothing else!
Jeremiah was shaped by the visions, not by the fashions of the day, not by his feelings about himself. We know that he often felt terrible and that he was treated terribly. He often felt weak; he often was near despair. In fact, he was always strong. His emotions often failed him; his faith always held fast. His strength was not achieved by growing calluses over his highly sensitive spirit.
"18And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. 19They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you."" (Jeremiah 1:18–19, ESV)
Educated by the almond rod, his inward responsiveness to the personal, whether God or human, deepened and developed. Educated by the boiling pot, his outward capacity to deal with dehumanizing evil and to resist depersonalizing intimidation became invincible: "impregnable as a castle, immovable as a steel post, solid as a concrete block wall." Not bad for someone who started out as "only a boy."
4) Now it's time to get to work – be PROFESSIONAL.
But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I command you… Jeremiah 1:17a (ESV)
"6Now John was clothed with camel's hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey." (Mark 1:6, ESV)
Pictures – map of E.Timor, story of when you first taught this.
THE UNLIVED LIFE – taken from The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. (Gates of Fire)
Resistance is the most toxic force on the planet. It is the root of more unhappiness than poverty, or disease. To yield to Resistance deforms our spirit. It stunts us and makes us less than we are and were born to be. If you believe in God (and I do) you must declare Resistance evil, for it prevents us from achieving the life God intended when He endowed each of us with our own unique genius.
Genius is a Latin word; the Romans used it to denote an inner spirit, holy and inviolable, which watches over us, guiding us to our calling. A writer writes with his genius; an artist paints with hers; everyone who creates operates from this sacramental center. It is our soul's seat, the vessel that holds our being-in-potential, our star's beacon and Polaris.
WHAT IS THIS RESISTANCE?
· I won't let my FLESH stop me.
For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. Romans 7:14-20 (ESV)
5) To overcome I must RELY on God's strength.
… Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you." Jeremiah 1:17b-19 (ESV)
· God's strength shows itself in my WEAKNESSES.
Jeremiah 1:17b-19; 2 Corinthians 4:7–10, 12:7-10
"17... Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. 18And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. 19They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you."" (Jeremiah 1:17b–19, ESV)
"7But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies." (2 Corinthians 4:7–10, ESV)
"7So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12:7–10, ESV)
