02/14/2024 – God’s Power Overcomes our Excuses
Jeremiah 1: 7 But the Lord said to me: “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ For you shall go to all to whom I send you, And whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you,” says the Lord. 9 Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me: “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. 10 See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down, To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plant.”
Jeremiah responded to God’s call by expressing inability – I cannot. And he also provides a reason: I am too young. God’s word knows no inability. You will never find a limitation in the Bible to the power of God- on the contrary, the word of God keeps pushing the limits of human ability- to him who believes ALL things are possible!
God does not accept our excuses. He rebukes Jeremiah: do not say you are a child. Do not tell me what I already know. The greatest obstacle is our own realization of our capabilities in God. This is also appropriate because to be convinced that we can do God’s calling would be a sign of pride.
God’s call reveals your identity. Your current situation does not define you, nor your past. What defines who you are is God’s call on your life. God says: I ordained you a prophet to the nations! God gave an order concerning Jeremiah’s future and who he was to become. What defines you beyond anything else in this life is God’s purpose. You are a worshiper… you are a child of God… you are a servant of God!
God’s call defines your destiny. Despite people’s rejection. I was his word against all the false prophets. Despite his own resistance, Jeremiah fulfilled every word that God told him. There is power in God’s call on your life. His calling is powerful. God will not be deterred.