Monday August 3, 2015

Coming up Sonday August 9, 2015 

Jeremiah 50-51. Fallen is the City of Doom

Read Jeremiah 50:1-3

The accepted word today is that each nation has it’s own sovereign right to worship and celebrate how ever it desires and to worship what ever god it so desires. Generally speaking, one nation has no right to infringe upon another nation. Unfortunately, God does not play the game according to man-made rules and regulations. God refuses to be bound by conditions and conventions that humanity has created.

God is the sovereign Lord over all creation. He does what He pleases, In Jeremiah 27:5-7 God declares:

“5 With my great power and outstretched arm I made the earth and its people and the animals that are on it, and I give it to anyone I please. 6 Now I will hand all your countries over to my servant Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon; I will make even the wild animals subject to him. 7 All nations will serve him and his son and his grandson until the time for his land comes; then many nations and great kings will subjugate him.”

Even though the people of God were the people of Israel, God was free to raise up the Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar to subdue the nations and to punish them. Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans were instruments of use in the Lord’s mighty and sovereign hand.

Because the Babylonians worshipped false gods, the main god being Marduk, God was free to punish them. Marduk (often called Bel, which is more a title than a name), according to the Enuma Elish (the Babylonian creation myth), rose to power after he defeated Tiamat, the primeval chaos and through her blood created the heavens and the earth. In the judgement that would soon come upon Babylon we read in Jeremiah 50:2

‘Babylon will be captured;

Bel will be put to shame,

Marduk filled with terror.

Her images will be put to shame

and her idols filled with terror.’

God is a jealous God (Joshua 24:19) and will not tolerate being worshipped and adored above blocks of wood and stone. He will not give up His majesty to a false god.

The stance of God towards the nations has a great impact upon churches today. We live in a world where each nation is given freedom to worship any particular god it sees fit to worship. We live in a world where one nation has no right to cross borders to influence another nation’s culture. But Christianity, by its very nature is a-cultural and crosses all boundaries. God has called us through the church to be drawing all nations to Himself in adoration and worship as they bow down to the Lordship of the risen Christ Jesus.

Prayer:

Using today’s Bible passage and notes write down points for

Adoration:

Confession

Thanks

Supplication:

· Pray that the work of the reformed college in Myanmar would continue to progress forward and upward. Pray that God would provide all the resources needed to train up pastors and to send them around the country. Pray that the students would mature and grow deeply in the gospel.

·  Pray that Shiloh Church Ministries in India would continue to grow and thrive and be able to train up and equip more village pastors to proclaim the gospel in areas where the gospel has rarely, if ever, been preached.

 

Discussion Questions 

1. As you think about the nations of the world, which countries do you know of that worship false gods?

2. How can your church be working for these nations?

3. How can we keep the nations before the church in prayer?

                          P r e p a r a t i o n f o r C e l l

Read this week’s passage and jot down any problems or issues that come to mind about the passage, it’s application or meaning to you and/or your church.

                             O n Y o u r O w n

Key Words/Phrases                         Jeremiah 50-51

Use this space to write down and define key words/phrases. Look for repetition and biblical themes from other parts of the Bible.

                       P r e p a r a t i o n f o r C e l l

After your cell has met, jot down the solutions you found having studied the passage together.

                                   P r a y e r

Prayer:

How does this passage lead you to pray in terms of

Adoration: Confession Thanks Supplication:

Non Believers to be Praying for

              C e l l G r o u p - D i g g i n g D e e p e r .

The Passage:       Read Jeremiah 50-51

Before Cell, complete the ‘On Your Own’ section on the previous page. Describe the context of this passage?

List the key words/phrases and what they mean? Use your previous page notes

The judgement to the nations runs from chapters 46 to 51. Babylon is given 2 entire chapters in this judgement discourse. Why do you think this is so?

On what grounds is Babylon judged?

How does this fit into the theology or overall story of the Bible?

What issue is drawn out for judgement in 50:1-3?

In 50:4-7, the text turns again to the people of God. What role does this change play in context? What is being said about the people of God?

Why was Babylon judged according to 50:11-13?

Israel and Judah are again mentioned in vs 17. Why is this? What is said about Israel and Judah?

What is the point of Jeremiah 50:20 in context?

How does it apply to us today?

What is the contextual point of the comparison with idols in 51:15-19? How does it apply to us today?

Describe one practical thing you can take away from this passage that gives you stamina in terms of maintaining your ministry and calling. Think of your

head heart hands