Pastor Tim Brown, Calvary Chapel Fremont, Wednesday December 29, 2010

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Jeremiah 11:1-17

1-5

When God created Adam/Eve He placed them in the Garden of Eden - lush/green/overflowing w/ fruit/food - well watered.  They just had to care for it – but not by the sweat of their brow, for the Lord had blessed it/His hand was upon it/was like a supermarket that no matter when you go into it, it is always well stocked/shelves are full.  They didn’t live near a Food Maxx, they lived in a Food Maxx.   

It was probably the next best thing to heaven.  God was there/there was no sin/bounty was there/human love was there.  One thing it had that heaven won’t have is that the serpent was there.  Because of yielding to Satan’s deception and sin’s temptation, sin entered the world and humankind were banished from Eden.   

While man is in his body, he can’t go to heaven – flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.  And God won’t reproduce the Garden of Eden because it was a place of no sin/curse.  We know that the curse placed on the earth won’t be lifted until the Millennium.  But the next best place after heaven/Eden, is a land flowing w/ milk/honey.  This is where God is leading His people.

The land flowing w/ milk/honey wasn’t heaven where they wouldn’t have to work.  Nor was it like the Garden of Eden where not much effort would be needed to cultivate/keep it.  They would have to work hard, but the Lord would bless it with plentiful rain/bountiful harvests.  The Lord would make it flow/gush w/ milk – basic necessity/honey – bonus item!  This was a place of fullness.

God has a place of fullness for you - Mt. 11:28/Jn. 7:37-38

Milk Christians – just the basics    Cross/empty tomb

Honey Christians – all the blessings  Upper room/Pentecost

There is a condition for this fullness/this blessing –

4 Listen to My voice/do all that I command you – so you shall be My people.  God is still speaking and making His will very clear.  Cf. Pr. 1:20-21  London curbs: look b4 crossing.  God will make His will clear so that you don’t step into oncoming traffic.

Samson was a man blessed of God/stepped n2 oncoming traffic – stripped of his strength/robbed of his eyesight/enslaved to the enemy.  His disobedience led him into the iron furnace.

The obedience of faith is the key to the fullness of God.  I know the will of God when it comes to money/sex/relationships/time/ethics/spiritual disciplines/witness -  obedience is the key to there being a flow in your life.  Samson was called/blessed, but his isn’t enough.  He was enslaved because of disobedience.  Judah was like Samson - in the land/not experiencing all God had 4 them - apply to us.

5  God: I want bring to fruition My promises/purposes, but there has 2ba fundamental reality operating in your life.  Fullness is given to the obedience of faith.  Many have faith to be milk, but not honey Christians.

3  Cursed is the man who does not heed...  J takes up the theme of Dt. 28 - probably in response to the finding of the book of the law in the 18th year of King Josiah.  J is trying to steer Judah toward the Lord, but they are fighting him every inch of the way.

You can tell your car has an alignment problem when you drive it and let go of the wheel and it starts to veer to the right/left. You know that you have an alignment problem when you are alone, when the hand of spouse/family – the eyes of friends/neighbors are off you and you veer to the right/left.  That’s a Samson heart.

You know your car really has a problem when regardless of how tight you hold the steering wheel it goes where you don’t want it to go.  This happened to me when I slid on ice a couple of times.  Israel is skidding out of control.   

J reminds Judah that if they don’t walk in the word of the Lord there is a curse upon their lives. That is strong language; it is the language of the OT/not NT.  I wouldn’t be true to the NT if I were tell you that if you don’t give any money to God/if you sleep around/if you don’t pray - you are cursed.  That’s not what the NT says.  It says that you will be spiritually stunted/disciplined/reap what you sow – but not cursed.  Here’s the strongest the NT gets -  

For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.  Hebrews 6:7-8

Jesus demonstrates for us how severe a curse really is –  

As they were passing by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots up. Being reminded, Peter said* to Him, “Rabbi, look, the fig tree which You cursed has withered.”   Mark 11:20-21

The fig tree Jesus cursed was withered/dried up – the moisture was squeezed from it/life was drained/held no promise.  Jesus has given you His Spirit and He will never take His Spirit from you.  You can quench/resist/grieve the Spirit, but He won’t remove Him from you.  It may look like your life is close to being cursed, but that’s on you.   

The Lord takes their time in Egypt and uses this to describe what the curse will look like in their lives.  He calls Egypt the iron furnace: iron – strength/furnace – heat.  They were in a place where they would constantly wither and not be able to escape.  They were in a place where everything died.   

They were in a place where their dreams/visions could not come to pass because they were slaves.  They could not serve God in that place.  They were not in the place God had promised them in Abraham.  He had promised them a fruitful land, one flowing w/ milk/honey.  A place where they would be free to be the people of God – sacrifice/worship/witness.  They could not do this in Egypt.   

When you are a slave of sin you cannot be a servant of God.  When the power of sin is greater than the power of God in your life, you are a slave of sin and not a servant of God.  Some of you are in a place where you can’t serve God.  Samson – serving will of others.  He was in a place that crushed dreams/killed vision.  Disobedience led him into the iron furnace/into place of curse.

6-8  Since obedience to the covenant was the condition for blessing, J brought the covenant to their memory.  He was urging/ exhorting obedience to the Word of God.  This exhortation to obedience is not new – from Egypt.   

Solemnly warned… = H: to do again/idea of repetition-permanence.

The Lord has one consistent message - His desire for their blessing/ requirement of their obedience has not changed.

Ever since man has fallen God has desired to raise him up.  God desires to raise you up that you might walk in the obedience of faith and in the fullness of blessing.   

9-14 Since you won’t listen to Me, I won’t listen to you.  It wasn’t always like this – Moses/Samuel/David/Isaiah interceded for the people and the Lord heard them.   

A professor told his class, “You can either take this class seriously or you can take it over.”

15-17  Whatsoever a man sows that he shall also reap

Unrepentant sin will keep you from the promised blessing.  Some of you are wondering why you are not experiencing the fullness of the blessing of Christ on your life.  Your prayers aren’t connecting/God’s not listening/no joy or peace.  W/o the obedience of faith there is no fullness of Christ.  What is the Holy Spirit indicating that needs to change in your life?   

    * God desires to bring you into a land flowing with milk/honey.
    * The obedience of faith opens the door to the fullness of God.
    * God’s desire doesn’t change though your desires change.
    * Unrepentant sin will keep you from the promised blessing.