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Old Testament Sermons / Speaker:Berry Kercheville When God Is Weary of Relenting Jeremiah 14-15 Introduction: Will God always forgive when we repent? Will he change his mind about bringing judgment on us? In our study of Chronicles, we learned that when Solomon finished the temple he prayed that at any time Israel fell into sin and was being punished either by drought or captivity from the nations, they could always repent and pray to God and he would forgive them and restore their prosperity. The same is true for us today, isn’t it? Sure! We easily have in the back of our minds that we can always come back and God will always forgive us. Jeremiah 14-15 says differently! The Drought: 14:1-12 Most of us already know the reason for a drought in Israel. God had warned in Deuteronomy 11 that he was the provider of rain, and if the rain did not come it was because Israel was in sin. Verses 2-6 give us a description of the severity of the drought: no water (3), no rain (4), no grass (5), and no vegetation (6). Whether rich or poor, man or beast, all were suffering. Reaction of the people: 7-9: We have seen how wicked these people are in the past chapters. But when suffering is at its worst, just about anyone will finally turn to the Lord and ask for help. And that is what Israel does. Vs. 7: They begin with confession. Wow! They admit their sins. That’s a new twist. Vs. 8-9: They plead to God as the only one who can save them. God is the “hope of Israel!” But they are confused. Why is God acting like a stranger and like a mighty man who cannot come to their aid? After all we are called by your name! When we hear their confession and plea, we immediately think, okay, God is going to forgive them. But God does not forgive them. Why? Because they love to wander away from him. They love their sins and their lifestyle. In other words, if he sent them rain, they would immediately go back to their wickedness. They do not love God, they love to wander. The last words of verse 10 are an amazing contrast to the God we know: “…now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins.” Vs. 11-12 God turns to Jeremiah and gives him his final decree. For the third time, God tells Jeremiah, “Do not pray for the welfare of this people!” Fasting won’t help them. Praying won’t help them. Sacrifices won’t help them. I not only won’t help them, I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. Lesson: Don’t turn to God when you haven’t even looked at yourself. James 4:8-9, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.” Did you notice that Israel did not exhibit any of the above attitudes? Jeremiah the Intercessor! (14:13-22) We are accustomed to God’s faith leaders interceding for the people when they are under the threat of judgment. Even though God told Jeremiah for the third time not to pray for the people, Jeremiah still finds a reason he should intercede and hopefully save the people. Jeremiah’s argument is that the people have been listening to the prophets and the prophets have been telling them they are assured of peace. God’s answer is somewhat surprising: The prophets are prophesying lies. Though they claim their words are coming from God, it is really coming out of “the deceit of their our minds.” The Lord goes on and states that not only will these prophets be consumed by sword and famine, so will the people who listen to their words will also be victims of famine and sword with none to bury them! We may be shocked by God’s answer, but we shouldn’t be. God warns about lying teachers from the beginning of scripture to the very end. If you asked me what is the greatest mistake Christians and religious people have repeatedly made throughout history, and especially today, it would be not considering the Satan’s goal to deceive us concerning what God teaches. God says that even these prophets are “deceived.” They speak from the “deceit of their own minds.” In other words, we need to understand that even for a teacher, it is just plain easy to get enamored with our own thoughts and desires and come up with teachings that are contrary to scripture. If we are not careful, we can have a strong desire to justify our lifestyle by misusing scripture. In 2 Peter 3:16, Peter warned about being carried away with how some were teaching Paul’s writings: “There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.” Peter’s use of “ignorant” is not intended as derogatory; they are speaking from a lack of knowledge and a desire to fit scripture into their own desires. Further, Paul identified the preachers at Corinth this way: “For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds” (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Therefore, it is imperative that each Christian is passionate about knowing the scriptures! Don’t be a casual reader. Don’t accept anything told you without proving it by God’s word. Vs. 17-22 Summary: 17-18 The tears of God and Jeremiah over the judgment that cannot be averted. 19-22 Again we see the confusion of Jeremiah and the people over God’s unwillingness to change his mind. “Have you utterly rejected Judah? — Why have you struck us down and no way to be healed? — We acknowledge our wickedness! — You are the only God who can bring rain! — We set our hope on you!” God Will Not Relent! (15:1-9) 1: “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me…” Shocking! These are two of the greatest at interceding for the people. God had repeatedly listened to their prayers. But in this case, not even they could sway God. “Tell the people to go away!” Where? To pestilence, sword, famine, and captivity. 4: The reason God will not relent is because of King Manasseh and the blood he shed. But wait, that’s not fair to these people! 6: “You have rejected me…You keep going backward…I am weary of relenting. God had not rejected them; they rejected God! Oh how this happens today. Sin is such a pattern in people’s lives that they cannot figure out why God would reject them. They can’t identify their sin as being serious before God. We have seen a pattern throughout Israel’s history that is just as true today: wicked leaders reinforce and spread wicked people. And even when a righteous king like Josiah came, the people were too accustomed to evil to change. Therefore, God’s answer is, “I am weary of relenting.” God is weary of hoping beyond hope that they would change. Look at your own life. What is it that years and years ago you knew you should change, but you still have not changed? Lesson and Conclusion (15:10-21) As we have seen previously in the book, Jeremiah is struggling with what is happening. The prophet obviously believed that he would preach and the people would repent. Not so. Instead, the people were cursing him and he was suffering because of them. In verses 15-18, Jeremiah proclaims his righteousness in spite of his “unceasing pain.” If Israel is shocked that God would not relent, Jeremiah is shocked that he must suffer as he preaches, and God will not relieve him. 19-21 God’s answer is basically, “You need to get your mind back on me and my purposes in teaching these people. I will take care of you, but you need to return to me!” Lesson: Living righteously and getting rid of sin is not easy, and can be painful, especially in how family and friends may react. Oh, but we want it to be easy. We don’t want to deal with the consequences of telling others about the dangers of living in sin. Well, get over it. This is not about us, it is about God and his kingdom. As God answered Jeremiah, “I am with you to save you and deliver you.” Now listen to what God says, “If you return, I will restore you and you will stand before me.” What do you need to do to return to God? The time is now. Do not be like Israel who was shocked by the judgment that came against them. At some point, God will be “weary of relenting!” Berry Kercheville The post Jeremiah 14-15 When God is Weary of Relenting appeared first on Woodland Hills Church of Christ.

Topical Sermons / Speaker:Berry Kercheville The post Reaching the Lost: Working with God in Prayer appeared first on Woodland Hills Church of Christ.

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Old Testament Sermons / Speaker:Berry Kercheville Becoming “Good for Nothing” Jeremiah 13 Introduction: Illustrations are quite common in prophetical writings and especially in Jeremiah. When God gives these pictures it forces us to more plainly see our own present condition in his sight. Therefore, God gives us a photograph of how we appear to him when we do not live to glorify him. Chapter 13 gives us two vivid illustrations of how God sees Israel and therefore and warning to us. The Loincloth and Jars Filled with Wine, 13:1-14 The story: Jeremiah is commanded to purchase a loincloth, take it to the Euphrates (or Perath, NET, NIV, about three and a half miles from Anathoth), and bury it, then come back and get it. But when he retrieves it, it is ruined, “good for nothing.” The “loin cloth”— “A short skirt bound tightly around the waist and reaching some way down the thighs.” Linen would the fabric used by the priests (Leviticus 16:4) and likely was worn as an undergarment based on the analogy God used. The symbol of the loincloth is given in verse 11. Just as the loincloth would cling closely to a man’s body so it was God’s intention that his people cling closely to him and become “a people, a name, a praise, and a glory” to God. Is this the way you see your relationship with God? Notice the word “cling.” This is the same as Genesis 2:24—“a man shall leave his father and mother and cling to his wife.” God is not a casual partnership, or something we do when it is convenient, or a part time effort. It should be evident in every moment of our lives that we are clinging to him. But they refused to listen and therefore they would become to God like the loin cloth, “good for nothing.” Well, what would you do with a pair of underwear that was all rotten with holes in it? Throw it away! Look at yourself. You didn’t just happen. You personally were created by God. But notice, not just created, but created to cling to God The question for us is quite obvious: Do we cling closely to the Lord or do we just “put him on” as an occasional “outer apparel?” We should be reminded that everything God has done has been to create “a people, a name, a praise, and a glory.” When we do not dedicate ourselves to that purpose, we are literally good for nothing. No wonder God created Hell. It is like a trash can, a Gehenna garbage dump where what is unusable is cast. Therefore, God is giving us a choice, be a “vessel of honor” or decide to be trash. How did Judah become good for nothing? Pride! Here is where we can get confused. We think pride is simply thinking of ourselves too highly. No, pride has to do with our relationship with God. Verse 10 describes it as “stubbornly following their own heart.” We must read “heart” as our minds. In other words, we do what we want to do. We are like Solomon in Ecclesiastes, seeking and searching whatever our eyes see and desire. Isn’t it interesting that homosexuality is promoted by the word Pride? Without even realizing what they have done, we are called upon to be proud of sexual sins. Isaiah said, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil.” Here’s how pride works: Very early in our lives we set a fairly ridged daily life. We get accustomed to it and we like it. We seek and search out things to do that give us some temporary pleasure, things that distract us from our work and fill that empty spot inside of us that we don’t like to think about. We begin to think our little worldly idols are the only way to fill emptiness. Our distractions may not always be things that are morally evil, they are just things we like to do. But God is not in the picture. Or maybe a little bit. “Church” can be a good façade to cover up the truth that I just want to live life my way. “Every jar shall be filled with wine” (12-14) The people’s response indicated that they thought Jeremiah was telling them something that was obvious. “Of course every jar will be filled with wine! That’s what we have been telling you! We will continue to live in prosperity. Babylon can do nothing to us.” But Jeremiah explains it is not the wine of joy they will be filled with, God will fill them with the wine of God’s wrath. God will dash them against one another and he will show “no pity or spare or have compassion.” They will be destroyed. That is exactly what God later said the Babylonians would do to them (21:7). Thus God gives us a strong reminder: mercy comes to those who obey God and keep his covenant. In fact, mercy and forgiveness are embedded in the covenant (Jeremiah 31:33-34). There is no mercy outside the covenant! God’s Pain Over Judah’s Demise (15-17) Vs. 15-16 God pleads with them—“hear, give ear; be not proud.” God is not saying he will stop the coming judgment. No, it’s coming. “Give glory to the Lord your God” are the same words Joshua said to Achan. His death was still certain, and so was Judah’s. But they could still have an eternal hope if they would give up their ways. Consequences to our sins remain, but we can still find eternal hope. Vs. 17 God’s tears. Ezekiel 33:11, “As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live.” In our weakness and foolishness we may think that our sins are not hurting anyone. Well, that’s not true, sin harms everyone around us, but what is especially not considered is that our sin harms God and is painful to God, even to the point of tears. He weeps bitterly for us just as we would for our own children. The Shocking Consequences of Stubborn Pride (18-27) The problem with those who are prideful is they believe they can escape the consequences. “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil (Ecclesiastes 8:11). “Yep! I’m not doing what I ought to do, but everything is going fine! I’m making good money. No worries!” Then suddenly it happens… 18-19 The king and queen are dethroned. Even the cities of the wilderness are closed up and all Judah is taken into exile. What! That can’t be! We were still offering sacrifices. 20-22 “What happened to your beautiful flock? Why are these special allies that you cultivated as friends destroying you?” It happened suddenly, like a woman in labor! But worse, why are we being violated like a woman in a siege? The answer is simple: it is the greatness of your iniquity! When judgment comes, that will always be the answer! 23-27 The inability to change. In spite of God’s warning, they cannot change any more than an Ethiopian can change the color of his skin or a leopard his spots. God plainly warns us of the danger of procrastinating a change of lifestyle that is at best mediocre in serving God. The longer we stay in a lifestyle that does not give God our all, the more difficult it is to change. The people of Judah are a perfect example. It became impossible for them to change! We think in our minds, “Oh that can’t be so! I’m going to change at some point, I’m just not quite ready.” What we don’t realize is how deep in a pit our mind is already. We haven’t just dug a little hole when we dabble a bit in sinful activities. Patterns and addictions develop in our brains as we practice sin. Sin detaches us from God. Every day we delay pushes us deeper until we do not know how to escape and no longer have the desire in our heart for God. It is what the Lord meant when he repeatedly accused Israel of having a hard heart and a heart of stone or when Paul referred to having a “calloused” mind (Ephesians 4:21). Wife: “I caught my husband watching porn. He was really sorry, but then I caught him again and again. I don’t know what to do; he says he’s sorry.” Husband: “I found out my wife has had an affair. She is really ashamed and sorry, and she said it was only once. Should I just forgive her and let it go?” I’m sure we would all say that if there is true repentance, it would be important to save the marriage. That being said, there is something most people do not think about. Those were not little sins that just happened and we should put it behind us. As Paul said, “…the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.” These sins go deep and will be remembered and replayed for years to come. Conclusion: Now listen again to the words: “This evil people, who refuse to hear my words, who stubbornly follow their own heart and have gone after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be like this loincloth, which is good for nothing.” Pride says, “I can quit my sins; I’m not too deep. What I’m doing is not that bad.” God has an entirely different take! Berry Kercheville The post Jeremiah 13: Becoming Good For Nothing appeared first on Woodland Hills Church of Christ.

Bible Classes / Speaker:Berry Kercheville The post 1 Chronicles 16 – 20 appeared first on Woodland Hills Church of Christ.

Old Testament Sermons / Speaker:Berry Kercheville Psalm 127 Unless the Lord Builds the House Introduction: “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” That is a mouthful and deserves our careful consideration. There is more to these words than you might imagine, and certainly more than I imagined. The key to the Psalm is dependence on God, without which all of one’s effort will be in vain (used 3x) in the text. The psalm reminds us to have an acute awareness of God’s overseeing presence in our world and in our lives. Human strength and the apparent success in human ventures cannot be proven in short time frames, but can only be evaluated over a lifetime. Isaiah 40:6-7 “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; sure the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” The context of this passage is God’s reminder that it is only his word “implanted” and applied in our lives that will enable us to overcome the withering of our grass-like existence. Three Concerns for Building, 1-2 The efforts of building a “house.” The application could apply to any project, from the church, to a business, to one’s own household. Obviously, “house” is not speaking of a place to live, but of a large family that grows over generations. We all hope and pray that the generations following us will continue to be faithful to the Lord. There will almost always be exceptions when certain of our descendants turn from God, but this psalm speaks of our actions at the present. Are we going to build the house, or is God building our house? Guarding what one has built. Again, that could be a city, a nation, one’s own home, or one’s life. A watchman is watching for an impending attack. Evil lurks at any given moment. Human ability to watch and warn is limited. But God can see all, and without him our watching is in vain. It is not that a watchman in the city us unnecessary, any more than a builder is not needed to build a house. But our human limitations leave us vulnerable without God as the primary “watcher.” Our house needs to be guarded from the evil one. His attacks come from every angle: TV’s, computers, phones, alcohol, and worldly influences. Are we ensuring that the Lord watches the house? How one treats his labor in building. God desires to give sleep/rest to his beloved. Labor is good and commanded by the Lord, but it is intended to be balanced with other responsibilities. The Preacher in Ecclesiastes 9:7-10 prioritizes God and family ahead of one’s work. We must work, but we must not “eat the bread of anxious toil” trusting in self instead of the Lord. Consider the word “vain.” We know the word because of its use in Ecclesiastes. Just as in Ecclesiastes, “vain” indicates that which is short term, not long term. It is the opposite of success and eternal life and joy. When we understand the word, we can see how Solomon warns us by negative statements. Building, watching, and laboring without the Lord’s direction will end in failure. The opposite is then also true. Building, watching, and laboring with our eyes on the Lord, will not be vain, but instead, guarantees success. Therefore, there is security in building, watching, and laboring when the Lord is the goal and primary focus. Any effort or work we humans pursue, also comes with doubt and fear of failure. But when the Lord builds the house, we can be confident in the best outcome. Even in the midst of trials and missteps, we are always steadfastly following the goal, knowing that the Lord produces the outcome. The Primary Focus of Building Now we see what the Lord is building. The focus is on children that are a heritage or inheritance from the Lord. Complimenting verses 1-2, our children are not “ours,” they are “a heritage from the Lord,” and therefore as parents we are stewards (caretakers of another’s goods) of our children, a blessing God has entrusted to you. God’s primary goal for our children is not fun or happiness. If the Lord is building our house, and we are to be found faithful as stewards of God’s children, teaching them that they are image-bearers of God sent throughout the world to reflect God’s image. They are “children arrows” so that when he “speaks with the enemies in the gate,” parent nor child will be put to shame. Verses 3-5 are a contrast to the vanity of verses 1-2. The last three verses exhibit a house built by the Lord, a house over which the Lord will watch, and a household in which labor is kept in balance so that anxiousness is taken away because of one’s trust in the Lord. The result: “God gives to his beloved sleep.” The implication is not just a good night’s sleep, but a comfort and security knowing that the Lord is our ultimate provider. It is the opposite of the agonizing labor of one who is filled with fear and anxiety concerning his future. Verses 4-5 mirrors the three times in Genesis that the Lord commanded, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” What is especially noteworthy is that the Lord said it twice following the Flood in Genesis 9:1, 7. It is difficult to read those words and not take to heart a direct command from God. Consider a few reasons why children were important to God: Most importantly, bearing children is kingdom work. We say, “Oh but look at how evil the world has become!” Yes, but it has always been that way, and God gave us the responsibility of filling the world with his image-bearers and children-arrows that will be able to “speak with his enemies in the gate.” Remember, the Lord is building the house, the Lord is watching over our lives and family, the Lord is taking away our “anxious toil.” Trust the Lord. Consider this: what are the expectations of the survival of a church that does not have children? If there are no children, you might as well preach their funeral. Soon the light that at one time shone brightly in those areas is now dimming, and soon will be extinguished. However, in this psalm the Lord is primarily exalting the benefit of children to the individual couple. Children are an “inheritance and reward from the Lord.” And what is especially wonderful today, because of Sacred Selections, those who are unable to have children can adopt without going into debt and those who cannot adopt can financially support adoption: “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27). One more benefit: children grow us spiritually. Children require us to mature. Notice that the text refers to “children of one’s youth.” Yes, we had children when were young and dumb, but if we trusted in God, “the Lord built the house and the Lord watched over our efforts.” Marriage and children change us to be more perfectly in the image of God, and is one of the primary ways the Lord prepares us for his eternal kingdom. Seeing the Greater House the Lord Is Building Psalm 127 is about a household. It is about building a house with the direction and help of the Lord. Without the Lord, the house and household are failures and do not reach the purpose of the Lord. In the text, the focus is not on a father or a mother, they are understood to be present and are builders along side the Lord, but they are not the focus. The Lord is the focus. He is the one who builds and watches; he is the one who gives rest to those who trust him and gives children arrows as an inheritance. Now I want you to tie this into the way the Lord pictures children in his kingdom. We are too narrow in our understanding if we are simply looking at the children of a physical family. Isaiah 53:10 This text briefly sets up what we will seen in chapter 54. In spite of the Lord offering himself in death, in his resurrection he will “prolong his days” and “see his offspring.” Just as “the Lord builds the house” in the psalm, so here we see the true house the Lord is building. Isaiah 54:1-3, 13 This text gives us a description of how the Lord will see his offspring. Sarah, long dead, though desolate and unable to have children, will now see her children. In fact, she will have so many children that her offspring will be far more than children that come from the physical offspring of Abraham’s concubine wife who was not barren. You might say, “But Sarah only had one child!” Oh no she didn’t! In fact, Sarah is still having children! Even Isaac would not have been born if were not for the Lord building the house. The children of Sarah are so many that God’s true Israel must “enlarge their tent” so that the offspring of Sarah is spread abroad through the whole earth and possesses the nations. Verse 13 confirms this even further. “All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.” Let’s add one more text: Isaiah 56:3-5. God calls to the eunuchs, those who cannot have physical children, and tells them not to think of themselves as those who cannot produce offspring, for God will give them “in my house a monument and name better than [physical] sons and daughters.” So today is Mother’s Day. That’s nice, but it isn’t the Mother’s Day the Lord celebrates. Teresa’s co-worker told her yesterday that she doesn’t go to church on Mother’s Day; it’s too depressing. Well, that’s not the way it is in God’s kingdom, and that is not the way it is in this church. Everyone here are mothers and fathers of offspring equally great as the beautiful children we have present with us. No one is a dry tree in the kingdom of God. Conclusion: “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married, says the Lord.” Berry Kercheville The post Psalm 127 Unless the Lord Builds the House appeared first on Woodland Hills Church of Christ.