«The word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations’ » (Jeremiah 1:4, 5, NIV).
AS THE SON OF A PRIEST, Jeremiah had good reason to think he would also serve at the temple. He did not even remotely imagine that God had set him apart at birth to be his spokesperson. Perhaps that fact explains how he answered God’s call: «Alas, Sovereign Lord, I do not know how to speak; I am too young» (v. 6, NIV).
Yes, Jeremiah thought that he was «too young,» and that he did not even know how to speak, but God thought otherwise, because He had set him apart «as a prophet to the nations,» as today’s verse mentions. Even more surprisingly, He had set him apart for that ministry before he was born!
How interesting! It is hard to read this passage of Scripture without wondering if what it says about Jeremiah has any practical applications for us in the twenty-first century. The answer is a resounding yes.
The first practical lesson is knowing that the God who knew Jeremiah before he was born, also knew you and me. Should that surprise us? No, let us remember that it was God who «made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb» (Psalm 139: 13, NLT). What a solemn truth! Before our parents met, God already knew us. Before they loved us, God already loved us.
The second practical value of this truth is captured by Eugene H. Peterson when he writes that, if God knew us before we were born, then we should not keep on considering that our lives are a puzzle we are trying to make sense of. Life is meaningful because the God who was there at the beginning of our history, will also be there until it ends!’
There is yet another practical application: the God who set Jeremiah apart for prophetic ministry, has also called us to carry out a sacred purpose: to proclaim «the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light» (1 Peter 2:9). In fact, we do not need to be prophets, like Jeremiah, to fulfill our «ministry;» what we do have to do is discover the part we are to perform in «heavens eternal plan,» as the following quote says:
«Not more surely is the place prepared for us in the heavenly mansions than is the special place designated on earth where we are to work for God. «—Christ’s Object Lessons, ch. 25, p. 326).
Have you discovered what your place is?
Thank You, Father, because You have always known me, because You have always loved me and because You grant me the great privilege of serving the King of kings and Lord of lords.
#AdultsDevotional
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2022
“GREAT IS OUR GOD!”
From: FERNANDO ZABALA
Collaborators: Xiomara Perdomo & Angelica Cuate
