Pastor Tim Brown, Calvary Chapel Fremont, Wednesday October 12, 2011

Download | Duration: 00:50:15

    Another Obedience

    Jeremiah 34:1-22

1  All of Nebuchadnezzar’s army/all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion/all the peoples were fighting against Jerusalem and all its cities… This was an all-out pitched battle where everything was at stake.  Sounds familiar – Ps. 2:1-3 We see this in politics/philosophy/media/schools.  Our text is a commentary on today!

J is still listening for/to the Lord.  Above all the noise of the battle/ cries of the people, he has an ear for God.  The one who had conquered all the people of the kingdoms of the world was now coming against them.  The word of the Lord came to J when all was lost.  The word of the Lord comes to those w/ the weight of the world crushing down on them.  His word comes 2u.  Just yesterday Fran was worrying about something weighing her down and the Lord’s word came to her.

2-5 King Zedekiah was to surrender to Babylon - if so, he would die in peace.  This was a hard word for Z to hear.  To surrender would invoke the wrath of the wealthy/ruling class.  He would lose their support/fear assassination - he didn’t surrender.  When he was captured – sons killed b4 his eyes/blinded/taken to Babylon/in prison until death (J52:11).  Both he/family paid a steep price for disobedience.  There’s always a price 2b paid for disobedience.

6-10  What would motivate KZ to make a covenant w/ the people to proclaim release to all the servants?  He wasn’t a spiritual man.  He was never known for having a heart for God/man.  Did he care for the servants?  We know from the context that this is something that the people should have done themselves in response to the law of Moses.  The king forced a godly obedience upon them.  But why this/why now?  Let’s think through this -  

What God had directed Z to do was too costly for him – humble himself/surrender.  He chose to give God another obedience/lesser.  Instead of giving to God what would cost him dearly, he gave to God what didn’t cost him much at all.  He required of others what he wasn’t willing to give himself.  He wouldn’t give up that which was dear to him, but he made others give up what was dear to them.  Why would he do this?

Maybe he told the people that if they obeyed the law of Moses it would turn away the army of Babylon.  Maybe all that was coming against them would turn from them.  “J has been urging us to obey the Lord – let’s do it!” He also could have employed the guilt tactic – this is something you should anyway.  It is morally right/ spiritually and politically expedient.   

The king required this not because he had a heart for God/those servants unjustly held/not because he cared that the law of God be honored/observed.  I think that he wanted to bribe God.  He thought, no doubt, “If I do this, God will be obligated to bless me.  No, I won’t give to God what He asked of me.  I will be innovative in my obedience and give something else to God.  I will be selective in my obedience.”  It blew up in his face/showed him as the mediocre man he was.  

He gave another/lesser obedience hoping to make God his debtor.  It is easy to think like this.  “If I live my life right, God will have to bless me!”  I have heard many times, “I’ve done everything the Lord has ever asked of me and look what He has done/allowed.”  Many have thought that obedience will exempt them from the really heavy stuff of life.

    Job was blameless in his obedience and got slammed.
    Joseph had an awesome walk w/ God and spent a lot of time in prison.
    Paul had an outstanding obedience and his back was crisscrossed w/ 195 welts.
    Jesus was perfect in His obedience and got crucified for it.

Obedience doesn’t exempt you from suffering, it qualifies you for fellowship w/ God.  These men’s obedience brought them into suffering and it brought them into fellowship w/ God.  We don’t obey to avoid suffering, we obey to abide in the Savior.

Not only is the thought that you can bribe God a common one, also another obedience is always a temptation for the people of God.  King Saul in 1S15 – to Samuel: “Blessed are you of the Lord!  I have carried out the commandment of the Lord.”  He was pleased w/ another/lesser obedience/sin of Cain/Mal. 1:8/Ananias and Sapphira/your kids!

KZ expected God to bless him based upon his works and not his faith.  We are to grow from faith to faith, not from faith to works.

One of the elementary teachings of the Bible is repentance from dead works – Heb. 6:1.  We are not justified by faith/sanctified by works.  Justified/sanctified by faith – from faith to faith.

11-15   KZ’s sin was another obedience, Judah’s sin was a reversed obedience.  God is no longer dealing w/ Z, but with those who released/ enslaved their fellow Hebrews.  Even though KZ had required this of them, it was still an obedience they owed the Lord and God deals with them as responsible decision makers.  They embraced this obedience w/ a solemn assembly/oath.

16   Lev. 25:10 gave instructions about the Year of Jubilee/release of Hebrew slaves.  They had released their fellow Israelites.  When they did this (as best we can tell) the Babylonian army w/drew to fight against the Egyptians.  When the people saw this, whether they believed J’s prophecies to be false, or that their obedience had won the day, we don’t know.  But they immediately brought back into bondage those they had let go.  Theirs was a temporary obedience/ reversed when threat was over.  Fear/guilt are unworthy motivations.

How many go to church/give/serve because of guilt/fear?  Look how many flooded the church after 9/11 – and where are they now?   

They are bringing people back into their judgment - turning from forgiveness back to judgment.  God teaches us to release people from our judgment.   

Disobedience is a profanation of the Name.  Profane – to bore/pierce; to wound/wrong; to rub/wear away by defacing image on coin.  Keeping someone in your judgment slowly erases the character of Christ from you.   

17-22   KZ required this of them, yet, at the same time, they voluntarily embraced this through this ceremony.

Given into the hand of their enemies

The Babylonian army left Jerusalem and went to fight against the Egyptians, whom they defeated. When the Babylonians had left off the siege, the people thought, “Ah Ha! Our diplomacy has won the day, and now we don’t have to worry anymore.”  But J says, “They’re going to come back. The Lord has ordered them to return.” And they did. After they defeated the Egyptians, they came back and completed the siege of Jerusalem