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[0:00] I never pack my study Bible in my luggage like that. I never do it. I always keep it in my backpack. And on the way home, I just thought, lesson learned.

[0:13] So I still got this other Bible, which I love, but I'm so unfamiliar with the placement of everything. Bear with me if I can't find something on the fly. But anyway, please find Jeremiah chapter 1 tonight.

[0:24] Let's get into the scriptures. Jeremiah chapter 1. And I want to read with you together the first chapter in its entirety and just kind of get you into the scene here of the calling of Jeremiah.

[0:43] Many Bibles will have that maybe heading somewhere on the page. A lot of them call this chapter the calling of Jeremiah. And that might even be what I'd title this message if there was a title for it.

[0:55] Let's begin reading in verse 1. Verse 4.

[1:21] Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee. And before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

[1:34] Then said I, O Lord God, behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child. But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child. For thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt speak.

[1:45] Be not afraid of their faces, for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord. Then the Lord put forth his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

[1:56] See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant. Moreover, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou?

[2:09] And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. Then said the Lord unto me, Thou hast well seen, for I will hasten my word to perform it. And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou?

[2:19] And I said, I see a seething pot, and the face thereof is toward the north. Then the Lord said unto me, Out of the north, and evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the Lord.

[2:32] And they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah. And I will utter my judgments against them, touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the work of their own hands.

[2:52] Thou, therefore, gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee. Be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them. For behold, I have made thee this day a defensed city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.

[3:16] And they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee. For I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee. Now, I like this guy Jeremiah. I like this book.

[3:27] It's a big book, and it's got a lot of prophecy, but it's got a lot of stuff that Jeremiah went through. He's called to minister for God in a real tough time in the history of the nation of Israel.

[3:39] A real tough age, and God just sticks him out there on the battle lines, and says, don't you dare give me any excuses. You just get out there and do what I tell you to do. Go fight.

[3:51] Who's he fighting? The devil? The world? No. He's fighting, in verse 18, he's fighting against the kings of Judah, his own people. He's fighting, or preaching against, when I say fighting, he's fighting against the princes thereof, the priests thereof, against the people of the land.

[4:06] He's called to go give it to his own countrymen, his own people, and straighten them out, and give them the word of God. And Jeremiah is called to go against a rebellious people, a rebellious generation, and they did not respond well to his preaching.

[4:22] If you read through the book, he ends up in jail multiple times. Just lock him up. Toss him in the dungeon. We're sick of hearing what he has to say. And he's also dealing with other prophets that are all over the place, preaching a whole different message of peace, peace, when God says there is no peace.

[4:39] And it's a fight. He's getting it on all ends. And what he has to do is trust God, and stick his neck out, and take a stand. And there's even spots in this book where Jeremiah struggles, and even, what's the word, he even says that God deceived him.

[4:56] He's kind of getting bitter against God for the way this thing's turning out, and then he gets his heart right, and the word of God's fire, shut up in his bones, he couldn't stay, and he just gets out and preaches again.

[5:08] And I like Jeremiah. He's an inspiration to me. Reading his story, and I'm thankful there's a record of his ministry in this book. It's a great book in size, 52 chapters, reading about this account.

[5:21] And there's a, you ought to consider there's, God put this book of 52 chapters. I mean, besides the book of the Psalms, and the book of Isaiah, if I'm right, that's the next in line for size, as far as chapters go.

[5:36] That's a big book. And there's a lot of stuff recorded in here, that I think is very applicable, to our day to day. This Bible is on top of things. You can, you can get that into your head right now, and understand, it's not an old book, or some old religious sacred thing.

[5:52] This thing is alive. It is up to date. It is quick and powerful. And this book, you turn it loose, it can handle it. And Jeremiah is one of these books. Let me give you something, just by way of introduction here, of how this book has great application to our day to day.

[6:08] This man, Jeremiah, is an example of a God-called preacher, that'll stand alone, all by himself, against God's people, that aren't interested, in what God has to say.

[6:22] You read this book, you'll get sucked right into that storyline. He's sent to go against his own people, God's people Israel. And he's sending a man, to go preach against them, and to stand against them, was the word.

[6:36] And the content, or I'm saying content, I'm reading the word wrong, they're content, to do things their own way, God's people, to just ignore, what the word of God is, and what the Lord is telling them, and coming after them, and they're just content, to go full on, and have it their own way, and as the book says, they're going to receive, the fruit of their way, is one of the messages, Jeremiah gave them.

[7:01] They make no attempt, to turn, and to follow through, with the word of God. And so, Jeremiah sent, to preach to them, to tell them, that they're the ones, with the problem, they're going to get judged, they got sin, and iniquity, and they say, no actually, we don't like your preaching, you're the problem.

[7:18] You're the problem, we don't want you, around here anymore, let's get some other preachers. Another way, that this book, seems to apply, to our day to day, is it seems to be, pretty fitting, of the land we live in, the United States of America.

[7:30] Because in this book, we see a nation, that once feared God, and now they're called, a backslidden nation. And Jeremiah uses that term, against Israel. They're a backslidden nation, they turn against the preacher, and they resist his word, they resist God's will, and as a result, like I just mentioned, they get the fruit of their way.

[7:51] And that's, that's around us today. This land's turned from God, years ago, and it's just going down, and down, and, I mean, if you could, resurrect one of the, just normal people of old, not a super spiritual, or super moral, but not some, derelict either, just a normal, middle of the road, kind of person, bring them up to speed, to where we are today, they would be shocked.

[8:15] They'd be absolutely shocked. This is weird, but, just this afternoon, I was on my phone, and I came across something on YouTube, a little video, that was a, a re, mastered video, of Southern California, in the 1940s, or 50s, or something, I don't know.

[8:33] And, it was a, it was a scene of somewhere, and it just showed people, walking the streets, and walking around, the train tracks, and stations, they were all dressed, that all the ladies had dresses, and hats, all the men had suit coats, and pants, and it wasn't like a downtown scene, some of it was just in a store, I was just blown away, I was like, this is such a great video, just to, to look back into time, and to see how people, carried themselves, I thought, I wish we could put a side by side, of today, of some of the people, that come into those stores, and the difference, of what you see.

[9:06] Anyway, getting off track here, but this, this application, of this book here, is very fitting, to the United States of America, and falling away from God. Also in this book, one other mention here, of how it applies to our day, is that prophets, and its preachers, of this day, are guilty of stealing, and perverting, the words of God.

[9:32] That's all over this book, but in chapter 23, very strong, and God has a big problem, with these preachers, the prophets, of Jeremiah's day, that are perverting, his words, and they're the ones, that the backslidden people, are turning to, and these people, look to these prophets, for a positive message, they just want to hear peace, and God says, there is no peace, and they keep preaching, positive messages, and so it just sounds, so applicable to our day, so as I said, the Bible has no trouble, being up to date, whether it's a, lukewarm, apostate church, or a God rejecting nation, that we live in, or it's false preachers, and teachers with their lies, this book is right on the money, and so you do well, to read Jeremiah, and you do well, to study what his message is, and what God says to him, because I see, that we're right there today, and it shows us, where we are today, it shows us, why we got to where we are today, and it even shows us, where we're headed, just read that book, it'll show you all that, now, getting to the message tonight, this calling of Jeremiah, in chapter one,

[10:37] I want to notice a few things, about the man here, in this chapter that we read, about his calling, and really mostly about, the Lord working, in his life here, so let's pray together, and then we'll get back, into chapter one, Lord as we gather today, I thank you for the word of God, I thank you for each one, that's here, and for their desire, to come together, and to come apart, and to get around the Bible, so Lord I pray, that you'll feed us, from your book, that you'll give us something, that can help us to grow, that you'll minister, these words, and Lord that will make application, in our lives, not just fall on deaf ears, help us to be doers of the word, and not hearers only, we ask also, that you'll be with brother Justin, and with the teens, and all that goes on in that room, and just help them, to enjoy themselves, and to get something from you, and we pray these things, in Jesus name, amen, look back in chapter one, with me of Jeremiah, and verses four and five, I want you to know, something about God here, in this calling of Jeremiah, first is that, God prepares, the person, that he seeks to use,

[11:39] God prepares the person, that he seeks to use, look at verses four and five, then the word of the Lord, came unto me saying, before I formed thee, in the belly, I knew thee, and before thou camest forth, out of the womb, I sanctified thee, and I, God speaking in the first person, ordained thee, a prophet, unto the nation, God says, I formed you, I knew you, I sanctified you, I ordained you, now granted, understand, he didn't ordain him, to salvation, that's not found, in the text anywhere, he ordained him, to service, or to the ministry, he called him to preach, you might say, but he didn't do it, when Jeremiah, was a grown man, and he said, that guy's tough, that guy's strong, I think I could call, I think I could use him, I don't think, he'll quit on me, he's got something in him, he's got guts, he'll be a good preacher, it wasn't when he was a grown man, that God ordained him, and called him, and sanctified him, it wasn't when he was a child, where God looked upon him, and said, well look at this, he's got such great parents, he's got a great upbringing, this child has such potential,

[12:45] I think I can use him, I think I'll keep an eye on him, no, it's long before any of that, and in this, in his life, God takes credit, for preparing this man, and calling this man, and understand this, God chose to use Jeremiah, he had his hand on him, his entire life, and Jeremiah didn't even realize it, he had no idea, that he was being prepared, for service, and that God had planned this, a long time, how do I know that, because when God tells him, what he wants him to do, Jeremiah's like, I can't do that, Jeremiah wasn't in his mind, being groomed, for the service of the Lord, to be a preacher, against the nation of Israel, and just declare to them, their iniquity, he wasn't getting himself, mentally prepared for that, he wasn't training for that, he was just living his life, and when God says, hey, I picked you, I called you, and I want you to do something, for me, Jeremiah's like, what, no, I can't, I can't possibly do that, his mind's not even understanding, that God has been working, from the womb, forming him, preparing him, to choose him,

[13:53] God saw, what he wanted to do, Jeremiah had no clue, what about that, what about that, shows me, that God can call, anybody he chooses, and don't think for a minute, that he doesn't want to use you too, because you didn't have this, upbringing, or because you didn't get trained, in theology, or because, God didn't, put you, into some situation, where you would shine, among all the believers, in the world, God doesn't need to do all that, but he's putting you, in places in your life, he's molding you, he's bringing you, to the word of God, he's bringing you to the well, to get a drink, and you don't even realize, it like Jeremiah, that God wants to use you too, you may not even realize, that he's preparing the person, that he seeks to use, he works in the background, in ways that we're not even, conscious of, think about the man Moses, for a minute, Moses, 40 years in Pharaoh's house, what was that all about, well we understand now, that guy had some skills, of leadership, and of running things, he was being trained, and groomed, for a position of leadership, and then 40 years out, in the wilderness, what in the world, how do you go from there, to there, oh, maybe behind, all of this,

[15:11] Moses perhaps, didn't even perceive this, God is preparing him, to not just, be a leader, but to lead, in the wilderness, to lead a bunch of sheep, as it were, that thing, all of a sudden, 80 years later, the light comes on, then the word of the Lord, comes to him, and says, Moses, go, and you know, what Moses does, well Moses does, the same thing, that Jeremiah does, take a look at, verses 6, through 8, and first, it said, God prepares the person, that he seeks to use, and secondly, I want us to see, that God doesn't accept, excuses, verse 6, then said I, O Lord God, behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child, but the Lord said unto me, say not I am a child, for thou shalt go, to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee, thou shalt speak, be not afraid of their faces, I am with thee, to deliver thee, saith the Lord, God doesn't accept, Jeremiah's excuse, he barely got the excuse, out of his mouth, and God took it, right away from him, I can't speak, no, don't say that to me, you do that as a parent, your kid talks back, or your kid, argues with you about, don't you tell me that, don't you say that, you take it away, right away, you don't entertain it, you don't argue with him about it, you shut him down, and that's what God did to Jeremiah, no, you're gonna do this,

[16:29] I don't accept your excuse, Jeremiah, God took it away, he never even once, considered, what Jeremiah's opinion, of himself was, God doesn't want to know, what Jeremiah thinks, do you think you could handle this, Jeremiah, would this be alright, he doesn't ask him that, does he, he says, I formed you, I ordained you, now you're gonna do this for me, I'm calling you, he never gave Jeremiah, the opportunity, to expound upon his case, because God's not interested, in Jeremiah's reasoning, of why he can't do it, so he shot him down, right away, I can't speak, Jeremiah says, before he could even bring up, the people that he was, called to preach to, God cut that off, and took that excuse away, as well, he says in, in verse 8, he said, be not afraid, of their faces, he said it again, later in verse number 17, be not dismayed, at their faces, and again, at the end of it, he said, they shall fight against thee, and they shall not prevail against thee, for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee, before Jeremiah, could even get that excuse out, he could, excuse himself, for being the subject, of the preaching, the preacher, and say,

[17:41] I'm not good enough, God took that away, said, no, that's not gonna work, I'm gonna be with you, and before he could even look, and say, but they're not gonna listen to me, they're no good, they're a wicked generation, God took that away, and said, don't worry about who they are, you're gonna do what I told you to do, God doesn't accept our excuses, it reminds me of Moses, like I mentioned a minute ago, Moses back in Exodus 3, when God called him out of that fire, Moses went with one excuse, after another, through that chapter, and every single one, God took right away from it, and when it was all said and done, Moses is heading back to Egypt, to obey the Lord, God doesn't accept our excuses, remember reading, in verse 5, before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee, you know that God knew this man, Jeremiah, he knew that he'd make excuses, he knew that he'd be afraid, of the people that he would go against, to preach it to, and God wouldn't entertain, his excuses at all, because God sees that, as just a weakness in the man, but it's a weakness, that God can easily overcome, if the man will submit to him,

[18:50] God doesn't need your excuses, I once, I've been involved with, in some church ministry, and setting some things up in the past, and there's times where, I'd have to organize a certain, event or a night, and I'd need help, I'd need people, and I'd go to people and ask, can I put you down for this, can I have you to do this, and in certain cases, could I have you sing, or could I have you preach, or could I have you give a testimony, or could I have you do, you know, read scripture, on a New Year's Eve night, or whatever, whatever, and with, and I'd have a list, I'd go through my mind, of people that I think, could do this, and would maybe even want to do this, and even some people, that haven't done it before, that it would be good for them to do it, it'd be good for them, just to come out of their comfort zone, or their shell, and inevitably, there's people that say, what Jeremiah said, oh Lord God, behold I cannot speak, and the thing with God is, he doesn't accept your excuses, he doesn't, he doesn't give that to you, oh that's right, my fault, what was I thinking, you can't speak, you're right, you can't talk to people, anywhere, ever, you don't know how to talk, that's right,

[20:00] I forgot, you don't know how to talk about me, that's right, I forgot, you're scared, God doesn't accept that, does he, doesn't accept excuses, he didn't accept them for Moses, he's not taking it from Jeremiah either, as soon as it comes out of his mouth, he takes it right away, again it's just a weakness in the man, and God overlooks it in Jeremiah, he doesn't think twice about it, because God says, I'm with you, I've got that part covered, look with me at 2nd Corinthians, keep your place, but look at 2nd Corinthians 3, it's just a weakness of your flesh, a fear, and it's something that God says, I got that, I can take that from you, we can work with that, 2nd Corinthians, we're going to look at chapter 3, I want to read a little bit out of these two chapters, 3 and 4, and kind of put this, in the perspective of, our testimony, and our witness for Christ, that God doesn't accept excuses, because God has all the power necessary, and all the strength, to supply you, to fulfill the calling, that God gives you, in 2nd Corinthians 3, let's just begin, at the beginning of the chapter, he says, do we begin again, to commend ourselves, or need we as some other, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you, ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of all men, their outward testimony, is displayed in verse 3, for as much as ye are manifestly declared, to be the epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God, not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart, and such trust, have we through Christ, to Godward, not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency, is of God, who also hath made us able ministers, of the New Testament, and now he goes on, to talk about the contrast, of the old New Testament, and how the New Testament, is so much better, but the point he's getting, he's starting in driving home, is that God made us these ministers of this, and it's not in our strength, the Lord's sufficient, the sufficiency of all of this, is of God, and now in chapter 4, verse 1, therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not, but have renounced the hidden things, of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves, to every man's conscience, in the sight of God, he's describing them, outwardly ministering, this New Testament, which we would know, as the gospel of Jesus Christ, and doing it with such a testimony, before the world, verse 3, but if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world, hath blinded the minds of them, which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them, for we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants, for Jesus sake, for God, who commanded the light, to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light, of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus Christ, but we have this treasure, in earthen vessels, why?

[23:24] That the excellency of the power, may be of God, and not of us, now we're, we've been made ministers, of a New Testament, we're to commend, not commend ourselves, in the sense of, getting someone to tell, how good we know, it's going to show, the light that God put inside of us, is going to shine, as we live for Christ, as we walk by faith, and when we just submit ourselves, to the Lord Jesus Christ, our sufficiency is of God, our, where's the verse, verse 7, the excellency of the powers of God, not of us, and I'm just trying to tell you, God doesn't accept your excuses, God puts a light in us, he puts his spirit in us, and he can empower us, to be his ministers, he doesn't need your excuses, so make a practical application, if God's calling you, to do something, do it, or just say yes, if God gives you, an opportunity, to do something for him, have a green light on you, at all times, as a believer, say yes,

[24:26] Lord, yes, what else can I do, while I'm at it, instead of this, some people have in their Bible, maybe it's an NIV, or something, it says, in Philippians, I can't do all things, through Christ, that's not what your Bible says, does it, you can do all things, through Christ, which strengthens me, and he'll strengthen you, and he won't take your excuses, and what I also want you to see, from Jeremiah, is that God knew him, he knew the weak man, he knew the man, would be afraid, he knew he wasn't just going to, like, show me where they are, and I'll take them out, he said, no, I can't do that, Lord, I can't speak, that's a popular one, right there, by the way, I can't talk, I can't get up, in front of church, I can't say anything, for Christ, I can't witness, I can't, what if I forget, what if, I don't know the Bible verses, I've heard it, God's heard them worse than me, all the excuses, I'm old, I can't memorize scripture, like I used to, boy, if I was young,

[25:27] I could do that, God doesn't need your ability, he needs your availability, he'll take care of the rest, amen, God doesn't accept excuses, come back to Jeremiah, let's see a few more things here, and I'll try to fast forward here, move on, thirdly, we read through verse 8, come to verse 9 now, then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth, and what happens, when the Lord puts forth his hand, and touches a man's mouth, here's what happens, the Lord said unto me, behold, I've put my words in thy mouth, God does some kind of, some supernatural exchange here, with this man, he touches his mouth, and what God's doing, is he's inputting his words, into the mouth of Jeremiah, the preacher, Jeremiah's problem was, I can't preach, oh Lord, I cannot speak, for I'm a child, the Lord says, I got that covered, touches his mouth, what's going on here, what do we learn from this,

[26:32] God's words, can overcome, our weaknesses, Jeremiah's weaknesses, was I can't speak, I'm just a child, God touches his mouth, God takes that excuse, away from him, I fixed it for you Jeremiah, it's all good now, you can speak, you can preach, and Jeremiah was right, as a man, he can't speak, but that's not a problem, for God, so what do we do, do we just sit around, and say, I'll wait for God, to touch my mouth, and if he never touches, my mouth, if he never touches me, if he never puts his word, in me, then I'll never speak for him, hold your place, come back to Proverbs, because I believe, based on this thought here, in the Proverbs, that you can get God's words, in you, and that you can seek them, and you can receive them, if you want them, in Proverbs chapter 2, let's read a couple verses here, beginning in verse 1, my son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee, so that thou incline thine ear, unto wisdom, and apply thine heart, to understanding, yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice, for understanding, if thou seekest her, as silver, and searchest for her, as for his treasures, then shalt thou understand, the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God, for the Lord giveth wisdom, out of his mouth, the word of God, cometh knowledge, and understanding, and it goes on, he does this, does this,

[28:13] God starts to work, and it starts with the desire, of the man, if he wants to receive those words, and he seeks after them, and searches for them, when he wants them, then he gets them, come back to Psalm 119, you could almost just put your finger, on any place in this chapter, Psalm 119, and this comes to light, God's words can overcome, our weaknesses, and I'm speaking of a man, who, who, if you want the word of God, and you want it in you, it'll get in you, if you search it, if you seek for it, if you desire it, God's not going to withhold you, withhold that from you, verse number 18, look at this one, open thou mine eyes, that's a prayer, to God, open thou mine eyes, that I may behold, wondrous things, out of thy law, he's not sitting around, waiting for God, to touch his mouth, to put the word of God in him, he's begging for it, verse 20,

[29:15] I love this verse, my soul breaketh, for the longing, that it hath, unto thy judgments, at all times, I'm just skimming through, some of these, there's so many of them, here's the one about teaching, verse 33, teach me oh Lord, that's another prayer, verse 34, give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law, I shall observe it, with my whole heart, this guy wants to know, the word of God, verse 27, here's the one I wanted, make me to understand, the way of thy precepts, and then what are you going to do, so shall I talk, my mouth, I can't talk Lord, if you want the word of God, you desire it, he'll put it in you, then I'll talk, of thy wondrous works, here's another one, verse 46, look at that one, he says, I will speak, of thy testimonies, also before kings, and will not be ashamed, you go ahead, and read through these verses, and see, the result, of the word of God, and a desire, for the word of God, and I didn't even bother,

[30:26] I would take too long, but when it's in you, and just quickly, in this chapter, it'll cleanse your way, you'll want to keep it more, the one we read, was that you'll tell, others about it, you go ahead, and do your own study, on that, what happens, when you desire, the words of God, so I don't believe, you got to sit around, and wait for God, to touch your mouth, like Jeremiah had, I want you to realize, also God's words, can overcome our weaknesses, as words will complete us, they contain everything, necessary for us, also back in Jeremiah, God's words, are sufficient, to accomplish his will, or highlighting God's words now, in verse 9, God put his words, in his mouth, and then in verse 10, see I have this day, set thee over the nations, and over the kingdoms, to root out, to pull down, to destroy, to throw down, to build, and to plant, he's saying to Jeremiah, you're good to go, what did God do,

[31:28] I put my words in your mouth, and now you're good to go, I can turn you loose, and now it's time for you, to go work, and do what I called you to do, and what he's called to do, is something Jeremiah, probably said, what, me, what do you mean, set me over the nations, over the kingdoms, to root out, what are you talking about, I'm going to be destroying, and I'm going to be building, and well, he's going to do it, with the word of God, look at chapter 23, briefly, we'll just see a verse here, Jeremiah 23, it's not that Jeremiah, is going to do anything, fantastic, it's God saying, my words, are going to do the work, that's why I touched your mouth, and put my words in you, God's words can overcome, our weaknesses, when he puts, when they're in us, we don't have to be afraid, when they're in us, we can speak the word of God, we don't have to have, our own experiences, and own wisdom, to teach the people, we just say, thus saith the Lord, we preach the Bible, preach what God said, you don't have to fear, you get God's words in you, and then also here, now God's words are sufficient, to accomplish his will, what God's calling you to do, he's going to give you, his words to do it, and that's all he's going to give you, by the way, he's not going to give you, some second outpouring, of the Holy Spirit, you're not going to have to prove, to somebody, that you have something extra, he's going to give you, his words, that's all he's going to give you, because those words, are sufficient, for accomplishing his will, look at chapter 23, and speaking of this destruction, and this building, and all of that, in chapter 23,

[33:07] God likens his words, to something here, verse 29, he said, is not my word, like as a fire, saith the Lord, and like a hammer, that breaketh the rock, in pieces, and then he goes on, to say, I'm against the prophets, that steal my words, he's against them, that prophesy, their false dreams, so he puts his words, in Jeremiah, and his words, are like a fire, destructive, like a hammer, that's going to break the rock, that's going to destroy, root out, pull down, destroy, and throw down, the word of God, that's all you need, that's all Jeremiah got, that's all he needed, the Bible is likened, to hear the fire, and the hammer, it's also likened, to a sword, it's likened, to light, and a lamp, the word of God, is likened, to bread, and milk, and meat, in plainer words, it's everything, the believer needs, to fulfill, what God has called him to do, the words of God, we're going to run out of time here,

[34:11] I'm going to go to 2 Timothy 3, and just read this, if you got time to catch it, go ahead, but in 2 Timothy 3, when I get there, I'm reading, verses 15 through 17, that the God's words, are sufficient, to accomplish his will, in verse 15, Paul's admonishing Timothy, and he says, and that from a child, remember, let no man despise thy youth, Timothy, you're a preacher, that from a child, thou hast known, the holy scriptures, that's all you need, Timothy, thou hast known, the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee, wise unto salvation, through faith, which is in Christ Jesus, all scripture, is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God, Timothy, Jeremiah, you and I, may be perfect, that is, complete, fully grown, and matured, that's all you need, throughly furnished, unto all good works, and that, is just from the scriptures, that's all God's offering, that's all he needs to offer, if you want to get training, get training in the word of God, learn this book, don't, don't go to some, website, or some college, that's going to say, here's the how to's, for ministry, or, it's going to give you ten,

[35:30] I don't know, ten tools, for effective ministry, or things like that, they're all over the place, which you'll find, if you'll look at it, that's stuff, that's being offered today, in churches, in these big mega ministries, it's, it's psychology, it's marketing, it's worldly, business strategies, is what it is, being implemented, into the church, for how to get more people, and how to get them coming in, and how to get their money, and how to build a bigger program, and build this, and build that, and call it, the blessings of God, tools for effective ministry, and no Bible, no words of God, God's words are sufficient, to accomplish God's will, that's what he gave Jeremiah, that's what he gave Timothy, that's what he gives us, it's not a, extra portion of anything else, two things Jeremiah had, he said, God said, I am with thee, and he said, I'll put my words in your mouth, and that's it, and we're going to, shut it down here, but if we finish the chapter, there's a few more things, and one is that God's words, when God's words are with him,

[36:40] Jeremiah can now, see some things correctly, and he can, he can receive insight now, from God, he says, what do you see, and he told him what he saw, and there's some interesting things, there with this rod, in verse 11, as well as, this seething pot, in verse 13, and the point is, that with the word of God, and the words in him, now Jeremiah is seeing things, seeing them clearly, seeing them rightly, and it'll happen to you too, when you get God's words in you, you'll see things, exactly the way they are, but if you don't have, the word of God in you, and God's words going through you, and filtering all of this, you'll believe the lie, you'll think, hey that is a good idea, we should try that, in this church, we should bring them in, we should go that direction, but God's words, will keep you from that, help you see, and then also, to close it out, God's words will protect, as well as, or God protects, sorry, as well as provides, for the obedient servant, all the way to the end, they're going to fight against him, but God's going to be with him, to deliver him, it's not a pretty calling, that Jeremiah has, and this chapter one, kind of highlights that calling, it's a tough one, but the Lord is there, from the beginning, before Jeremiah even had any idea, that God was going to use, and the Lord was there, and he's there to see him through, all the way to the end, and it's a good story, at times, to see some of this stuff, transpire, where it looks like,

[38:04] Jeremiah is going to get it, looks like it's done, and then in the end, he's the one walking away, a free man, and the king, that rejected God's words, is God's eyes plucked out, his sons are murdered, and he's in a prison somewhere, so God's faithful to his word, don't think you need something, more than his words, and don't make excuses, when God calls you, or seeks to use you, or desires to use you, he prepares you, and so let's quit there, and I hope I had, some of those thoughts, that would get something inside of you, and make you a desire, to fulfill, to give you a try.

[38:42] iers, and give you a try.

[38:57]  Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.