Jeremiah 33:1-3 While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the Lord came to him a second time: “This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it – the Lord is his name: ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’
This promise was first given to the prophet Jeremiah by God Himself while he was being held under arrest and imprisoned in the guard’s courtyard in Jerusalem!
Because Jeremiah conveyed messages from the Lord that King Zedekiah was unwilling to receive, he was taken into custody! The truth was not what he wanted to hear. Jeremiah was advising Zedekiah to return to God while there was still time, as he was the last King before Judah was destroyed by the Babylonians. Zedekiah made the decision to silence the messenger rather than going back to the Lord. Do you recognise this?
How could Jeremiah have known that Judah would soon suffer? The majority of other prophets were announcing precisely the opposite message from Jeremiah’s! Similar to Zedekiah, we are inundated with contradictory signals concerning our situation both now and in the future. How can we determine which are accurate? Is it feasible to predict what will happen next?
Does God still give future revelations? The Bible is so much more than just a historical book, despite the belief held by many. The pages of God’s Word contain guidance for now and hope for tomorrow. God provides us with insights into life that we would not otherwise obtain by looking at it through the prisms of social media, the economy, geopolitics, or even history when we read the Bible. How? How can er obtain divine insight?
One method is to engage with the Spirit of God as we read the Bible. The Bible gives you access to the author whenever and whenever you read it, unlike any other book! Think about that for a moment. Ask the God of the Word to open your understanding as you turn the pages of the Bible. When the Psalmist prayed, “Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions,” he was doing just that.
God challenges us to just ask. He says, “I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come.” (Psalm 119:18). This is the mystery of revelation. God will enable us to see things that we would not otherwise perceive by using His revealed Word. All around us, God is working in incredible ways, yet far too often, we are blind to it. There’s a tremendous promise in Amos. The Bible states, “In fact, the Sovereign LORD never does anything until He reveals His plans to His servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7).
Are you aware of His purpose for your life? Ask Him! Ask God to show you His plan instead of telling Him yours. See where God is at work in your surroundings. Give yourself to God so that He can include you in His work and you will reap the benefits of matching your heart with His! Will you take up God’s challenge?