Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Aug 14th, 2020 God’s Presence and Provision … by Pastor Corey Woolner

“Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5)

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 1 – 3 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)

(Second Milers also read – John 21; Psalms 66 – 70; Proverbs 14)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 119:105

Read the “0814 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Here in chapter 1, we see that the Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah as a young child. Jeremiah, the Weeping Prophet, heard the voice of the Lord in his younger years. In verse 5, we see a strong reference to life in the womb. God knew him when he was in the womb, proving that life begins at conception!  When a baby is in the womb, God knows that baby and that baby is a precious life! Abortion is the murder of that precious life and we as Christians need to speak up about that.

Continuing on, God tells Jeremiah that he was ordained a prophet to the nations. Jeremiah claims that his age and inexperience mean he cannot do and be what God wanted. The Lord gave Jeremiah assurances. In verse 7, the Lord tells Jeremiah that this calling was not about Jeremiah himself, but about his God. In the next verse, God told him to not be afraid of their faces, since that would be tempting because of his youth.

At times, I feel like Jeremiah. The Lord opened the door for me to become a Pastor back in October. After much prayer, we accepted the position. I’m 25, and trust me, my age was a great concern. “God is this too much for me? Am I too young?” These questions would run through my mind. One passage that helped me was in Joshua 1, where God told Joshua that just as He was with Moses, He would be with him. The assurance the Lord gave Joshua was His presence, and that’s the same assurance He gave Jeremiah. As a young Pastor, I am not to be afraid of their faces, but rather to preach the Bible as God commands.

God also gave Jeremiah the assurance of provision. He said in verse 8 “…for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.” God is able to deliver us from anything we face! There is nothing too hard for Him! The God we serve is the God of Jeremiah and the other prophets. As Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego said “…our God whom we serve is able to deliver us…” Christian, you have nothing to fear. You have been promised His presence and His provision. God will take care of you!