Statements of Faith; Acts of Trust

                                      Jeremiah 32:1-3, 6-15

 

 

          Ever notice that the Bible is a whole lot about choices? Noah has to ignore his neighbors and build the world’s biggest boat on dry land. Abraham has to choose to follow God, not only into a foreign land, but even to an altar where his son Isaac lies bound for sacrifice.  Moses has to choose God over common sense to go back to Egypt. Joshua gathers the people of God in the Promised Land and says “Choose this day whom you will serve.” Satan himself comes for Jesus in the desert and promises him the world. Jesus has a choice to make at the very beginning of his ministry. His choice will define what else will happen with that ministry. The Bible is a whole collection of choices made.

          The teachings of Jesus make it clear that all we have to do is choose God—choose Jesus—choose the gospel and salvation is our reward. There can not really be any doubt among Christians that we can’t earn our way. We have a choice to make. We can choose Jesus…or we can choose anything, anyone, else. Choices. They can save us…and they can destroy us. Every choice has consequences.

          Today, Jeremiah tells us a story about hope…and about choices. His story is about a land deal. We’ll come back to that. Right now, let’s talk about another story of hope. Reading Jeremiah brought a story to mind. There’s a film, about twenty years old now, called Hope Floats. It’s about a woman whose husband is unfaithful. She moves home with her daughter from the big city. Going back to the small town is tough on her. She has gone from the envy of all to the girl whose husband left her. She sees herself as a failure. The very fact that she does makes for a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. She wallows in self-pity in her mother’s house until one day, her mother sweeps in like a fresh breeze, throws open the windows, lets the sun shine in and says “Get out there! Get the stink blown off you!” Rousted resentfully from her self-pity, she begins the job of putting herself back together. On the way, she finds people still want to love her, still want to believe in her. She does indeed blow the stink off her and finds her way back from failure. She chooses to show faith, in herself and in others, and she makes her statement of faith, one step at a time.

          It is the eighteenth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of mighty Babylon. It is the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of the southern kingdom of Judah. Though Zedekiah was king, he had been pretty much placed there ten years before by Nebuchadnezzar. He was the last King of Judah. Jerusalem is under siege. Within a year, it will fall and the people of Judah will be carried off into exile. Jeremiah is imprisoned. Zedekiah has called him seditious for his views. He is prophesying defeat. He is even advocating that the people should get used to Babylonian life, as they will be gone a long time.  He says that the king himself will be captured and taken to Babylon. In the midst of such doom and gloom prophecy which, by the way, was completely accurate, the imprisoned prophet of a people under siege from a vastly superior force takes some very interesting personal steps. He makes a choice of his own.

          Jeremiah’s uncle comes to see him about a piece of land. We need to set the scene here to get the real picture. First, Jeremiah is “shut up in the court of the palace guard”; that is, he is not accessible. Second, his uncle apparently doesn’t live in Jerusalem. Third, Jerusalem is under siege. Fourth, real estate prices have plummeted. This is the recession to end all recessions. So when uncle Hanamel shows up on Jeremiah’s doorstep and says he want Jeremiah to exercise his right of redemption and buy a field in Anathoth, which is several miles outside Jerusalem, Jeremiah says this: “Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.” Say what? There’s no way this can happen. Jeremiah is under guard. Jerusalem is under siege. Judah is under attack. And uncle Hanamel shows up against all odds and wants Jeremiah to do the dumb thing of the day. Invest in a piece of property that almost certainly will be claimed by the invading army, to which Jeremiah says, this must be a sign from God. Isn’t it funny how so often, divine guidance comes riding in on the train of everyday life? The very presence of Jeremiah’s uncle at the court of the guard was the guidance Jeremiah needed.

          So what does Jeremiah do? He buys a piece of land. The man is under arrest and the wolf is at the door and he buys a piece of real estate. He tells his scribe Baruch to “take the deeds and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for a long time.” We know that works, because of our discovery of centuries old manuscripts in 1948 in earthen pots. We call them the Dead Sea scrolls. Why in the world would Jeremiah do such a thing? He answers that question for us. “For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land” [v. 15].

          Jeremiah made a choice. He made his own personal statement of faith in God. He trusted God’s words and he acted in faith. In that act, he made a huge statement to those around him. The Babylonian armies were literally poised for the final assault on Jerusalem. Everyone knew that their method of conquest included dispersion of the population into exile. And Jeremiah bought a piece of land. What a powerful affirmation of his trust in God! What a statement of faith about the future of God’s people and God’s promise!

          When I was talking about this subject with my wife Cindy, she reminded me that in the early years of our marriage, and when our finances were stretched, when my business was thin and the cash flow was meager, those were the times that I was wont to show up with an unannounced semi-extravagant purchase.  It was my way of stepping out on faith, of saying to myself and to her that God would provide and that I just needed to have faith and keep showing up. I think Cindy got worn a little thin by those acts of faith, but she never really challenged me on it. As I look back, I realize that maybe that was Cindy’s act of faith in her husband…that she was also making a choice, a choice to support me even when my behavior might have looked a bit irrational.

          God is always coming through for us. Isn’t it nice when occasionally, we step way out of our comfort zone, like Noah, and Joshua, and Jeremiah…and come through for God. Jeremiah bought that field as a symbol, a symbol of his belief in God’s promise. Don’t you just love the Jeremiah’s of this world! They stand up. They refuse not to be counted. They act on their faith!

This church has done something a little like that. We have banded together as God’s people and said that we worship not as the culture tells us, but rather as the Scriptures inform us through the Holy Spirit. We too have made a choice. Now that the choice has been made, it is for us to live out that choice. But we have the words of the Lord to guide us, even from days of old. As God told Jeremiah that houses and vineyards would once again be bought in the land, we might feel his presence here today, saying to us in 21^st century context:

Trust me. I haven’t left. I never will. And no matter how bleak it may sometimes look, your future is bright and my promise is real. You are my children! Keep the faith!

When we hear such a message, from whatever source it may come, may we join with Jeremiah and say “Then I knew that this was the voice of the Lord.” May we trust in him and step out on that limb, build that boat, buy that piece of land…invest in that faith!            Amen.