Seeing Life Through God's Perspective: Lessons from Jeremiah

Devotional

Day 1: The Significance of Baptism

Baptism is not merely a ritual; it is a profound act of obedience that signifies an inward transformation. When believers like Jerry Roberts and Sandra Winston publicly profess their faith through baptism, they are declaring their commitment to Jesus Christ and reflecting the work God has already done in their hearts. This act of obedience serves as a powerful testimony to the community and a reminder of our ongoing journey with Christ. Baptism is a public declaration that we are no longer our own but belong to Jesus, and it marks the beginning of a new life in Him. [26:35]

Romans 6:3-4 (ESV): "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."

Reflection: Think about your own baptism or the moment you committed your life to Christ. How does this act of obedience continue to shape your daily walk with Jesus?

Day 2: God’s Perspective on Our Lives

God sees the bigger picture of our lives, even when we can't. Jeremiah's prophecies remind us that God uses hard words to guide us back to Him. These words are not meant to harm but to help us see the destructive paths we may be on and to encourage us to repent and turn back to God. Understanding that God has a bird's eye view of our lives can help us trust Him more fully, even when we don't understand our current circumstances. His perspective is always for our good and His glory. [39:44]

Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV): "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Reflection: In what areas of your life do you struggle to see God's bigger picture? How can you trust Him more fully with these areas today?

Day 3: The Impact of Small Choices

Small daily choices can lead to significant outcomes, both positive and negative. God sees these choices from His bird's eye view and uses prophets like Jeremiah to warn us when we are heading down a harmful path. This perspective helps us understand the importance of making godly choices every day. Each decision, no matter how small, contributes to the trajectory of our lives. By seeking God's guidance in our daily choices, we align ourselves with His will and purpose for our lives. [41:42]

Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV): "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."

Reflection: Reflect on a recent small choice you made. How did it impact your day or week? What can you do to ensure your daily choices align with God's will?

Day 4: The Courage to Speak Hard Words

Jeremiah's courage to deliver God's hard words, despite the risk to his own life, serves as a powerful example of faith and obedience. Hard words are not harsh words; they are meant to guide us back to God. We must be willing to hear and heed these words for our spiritual growth. Speaking the truth in love, even when it is difficult, is a vital part of our Christian walk. It requires courage and a deep trust in God's plan and purpose. [56:25]

Ephesians 4:15 (ESV): "Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ."

Reflection: Is there a hard truth you need to speak or hear today? How can you approach this situation with love and courage?

Day 5: The Power of Self-Examination and Repentance

True transformation begins with self-examination. It's easy to point fingers at others, but we must first evaluate our own lives. Repentance is a beautiful act of turning away from sin and returning to God, who is always ready to receive us with open arms. By regularly examining our hearts and actions, we allow God to reveal areas that need change and growth. This process of repentance and renewal draws us closer to Him and aligns our lives with His will. [01:00:50]

Lamentations 3:40-41 (ESV): "Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the Lord! Let us lift up our hearts and hands to God in heaven."

Reflection: Take a moment to examine your heart today. What areas need repentance and renewal? How can you turn back to God and embrace His grace?

Sermon Summary

### Summary

Today, we had the privilege of celebrating Believer's Baptism, a significant act of obedience that reflects the inward transformation God has already accomplished in our hearts. We witnessed Jerry Roberts and Sandra Winston publicly profess their commitment to Jesus Christ, marking a beautiful start to our fall season.

We also embarked on a new sermon series titled "Bird's Eye View," focusing on the book of Jeremiah, specifically chapter 26. This series aims to provide us with a broader perspective on our lives, much like how God sees the bigger picture. Often, we get so caught up in the minutiae of our daily lives that we fail to see how the pieces fit together. Jeremiah's life and prophecies offer us a unique vantage point to understand God's overarching plans.

Jeremiah 26 is a narrative that follows the prophetic messages given by God to Jeremiah. These messages were often hard words meant to bring the people of Judah back to God. We discussed the importance of understanding that hard words from God are not harsh words. They are meant to guide us back to Him, to help us repent and turn away from destructive paths.

We also explored the concept of small daily choices leading to significant outcomes. God sees the trajectory of our lives from His bird's eye view and uses prophets like Jeremiah to warn us when we are heading down a harmful path. Jeremiah's courage to deliver God's hard words, despite the risk to his own life, serves as a powerful example of faith and obedience.

The story of Jeremiah also highlights the importance of evaluating our own lives. It's easy to point fingers at others, but true transformation begins with self-examination. We must be intentional about our walk with God, recognizing that He uses even the hard moments to draw us closer to Him.

###

Key Takeaways

1. Examination and Repentance**: True transformation begins with self-examination. It's easy to point fingers at others, but we must first evaluate our own lives. Repentance is a beautiful act of turning away from sin and returning to God, who is always ready to receive us with open arms. [01:00:50]
### [60:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[26:35] - Believer's Baptism: Jerry and Sandra
[36:45] - Introduction to New Series: Bird's Eye View
[38:15] - Overview of Jeremiah 26
[39:44] - The Need for Perspective
[41:42] - God's Bird's Eye View
[43:13] - Hard Words vs. Harsh Words
[44:56] - The Destructive Nature of Sin
[46:39] - The Call to Repentance
[48:15] - Understanding Jeremiah's Context
[49:57] - The Role of Prophets
[51:23] - King Josiah and Jehoiakim
[53:09] - The Consequences of Leadership
[54:57] - Jeremiah's Boldness
[56:25] - The Importance of Hard Words
[60:50] - God's Grace and Repentance
[62:36] - The Blessing of God's Instructions
[65:14] - Small Choices, Big Outcomes
[67:07] - Jeremiah's Unpopular Message
[69:01] - Jeremiah's Courage
[70:58] - The People's Reaction
[72:33] - The Role of Religious Leaders
[74:28] - The Story of Uriah
[75:53] - The Impact of One Individual
[77:57] - The Legacy of Shaphan and Hakeem
[79:43] - The Importance of Knowing God's Word
[81:09] - Conclusion: Embracing Hard Words
[81:59] - The Beauty of Repentance
[82:49] - Evaluating Our Lives
[84:19] - Being a Church on Mission
[86:30] - Closing Prayer

Bible Study Guide

Observation Questions

What was the main message that God instructed Jeremiah to deliver to the people of Judah in Jeremiah 26? ([54:57])
How did the people and religious leaders initially react to Jeremiah's message? ([01:07:07])
Who was Ahikam son of Shaphan, and what role did he play in Jeremiah's story? ([01:15:53])

Interpretation Questions

Why do you think God emphasized that Jeremiah should not hold back any words when delivering His message? ([56:25])
How does the concept of "hard words" differ from "harsh words" according to the sermon? ([43:13])
What does the story of Ahikam son of Shaphan teach us about the impact of knowing and valuing God's Word? ([01:17:57])

Application Questions

Reflect on a time when you received a "hard word" from God or someone else. How did you respond, and what was the outcome? ([43:13])
Jeremiah showed great courage in delivering God's message despite the risk to his life. How can you cultivate similar courage in your own faith journey? ([56:25])
The sermon emphasized the importance of small daily choices. Identify one small choice you can make this week to align more closely with God's will. ([41:42])
Self-examination and repentance were key themes in the sermon. What specific area of your life do you feel needs self-examination and potential repentance? ([01:00:50])
How can you be more intentional about your walk with God to avoid drifting away from Him? ([41:42])
The sermon mentioned the destructive nature of sin. Is there a "pet sin" in your life that you need to address? What steps can you take to overcome it? ([44:56])
How can you support others in your community who may be struggling with hard words from God, much like Ahikam supported Jeremiah? ([01:15:53])

Sermon Clips

1. "Baptism is an act of obedience in response. To what God has already done inwardly in our heart. And so today we have Jerry Roberts. We have Sandra Winston. They're a couple that's been here at TAB for over six months. And God has been working in their life together as a couple. And they are here today to say that they want to publicly profess their commitment to Jesus Christ. Amen." [26:35] (30 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

2. "What I've been thinking about over the last several weeks, and, and really even before, before we left to go out of town, is I just feel like we're in a season right now where we've got to get some perspective. You ever feel like that in life? Like, I just, I just really need some perspective because when we get too close, this stuff, and when we're, we're just looking at events as how they're transpiring in the, in the moment, many times we can't see how those, how those pieces are all fitting together, okay?" [39:44] (32 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

3. "We all have those times where we where we drift I have those times in my life right if we're not intentional about our walk with God and maybe I'm the only one but for me if I'm not super intentional about my walk with God if I'm not if I'm not focused on my relationship with him like I don't just stumble into a a spiritual vibrant life right and so we're going to talk about that in a little bit but I'm going to talk about today how how we're intentional and how God uses things in our life to draw us back to him." [41:42] (38 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

4. "God loves us enough sometimes to give us those hard words and those hard words can actually bring us life when we listen and when we heed the words of God and that's a that's a lovely thing know again I just we just live in a world where it's like we feel like we have to walk on eggshell crates you know like I don't want to say something I might I might offend somebody or I might I might hurt somebody's feelings right and again there's a big difference between a harsh word and a hard word right but God loves us enough like we're gonna see today through this word that he gives Jeremiah he loves he loves us enough to say the hard things." [43:13] (55 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

5. "God doesn't get God doesn't make a big deal about sin because he's an egomaniac and because he needs our good behavior right like some of us think that way right like we really view God that way like why is he taking all my fun away or why why does he say don't do this or don't do that like does God God like needs my obedience or something no he doesn't he doesn't he loves us enough to know that sin always kills a part of us sin always destroys it's destructive in our life." [44:56] (38 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

6. "Repentance right is when we recognize I I'm going down a path that is leading to my destruction see this I I am heading down a path and I I don't know how I got here I never intended to end up in this place but somehow I have ended up in this in this place where I am dishonoring God with my life and I recognize the consequences of my sin and I confess I agree with God that what what is happening is not good and repentance is when we confess we agree and we turn and we go back." [58:08] (44 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

7. "God's discipline for us is to get our attention away from things that are harmful and destructive and kill our relationships, kill our joy, kill our peace, kill our contentment, and to turn us back to a God that gives us life. That is the heart of God, and you see it even in these Old Testament texts. Jeremiah, don't water down the message. I know it's gonna be hard. People are gonna be like, we're not gonna like this. Don't water it down because it's too important of a message because my heart is to see my people turn and repent and come back to me." [01:00:50] (51 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

8. "He is so good. He longs just like the father and the prodigal son. He's going out and he's looking every day. He doesn't give up. He does whatever it takes because he's there with open arms. He longs for us to return even more so than we do in our heart. So don't allow Satan to cast those lies of, well, God's just mean. God's just trying to take all my joy. God's just trying to do all this. Like, why does he have all these blah, blah, blah? God is for you and he's for me today. No matter where we are, what we've done, where we've been, it doesn't matter. The grace of God is sufficient even for that." [01:01:42] (58 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

9. "Small very small daily choices lead to very big outcomes but we are too close to it we're too close to it we don't we don't see it but god does from his bird's eye view right that's why he's given this message to jeremiah he's like hey no filter on this one buddy go for it no filter perhaps some will turn and i and i put myself in the in the shoes of the people of god that are hearing this message because it's so easy for us to not make the connection between our small daily choices to large outcomes." [01:05:14] (55 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

10. "Repent. Repent is one of the most beautiful words in all of scripture it signifies to us what it means when we recognize the path we're down, going down, is not a good path. And we confess, we agree with God and we turn. And he is a forgiving, loving God that does not let us down. And he desires that from us far more than we ever even could." [01:22:49] (39 seconds) (Download raw clip | Download cropped clip)

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