Kerry Shook - Strength for Uncertain Times
It seems there's one thing for certain these days, and that is we live in very uncertain times. We're gonna look at a time in the Old Testament when God's people felt very uncertain about their future. They didn't know what was going to happen next. They were in captivity in Babylon, and they had a lot of fears about the future, but God spoke to them through his prophet Jeremiah, and God told them, "You don't have to be afraid of the future, because I'm already there".
You see, God's not limited by time and space. He's in the past, present, and future, all at the same time, and God says to you today, "You don't have to be afraid of the future, because I'm already there preparing a way for you. I'm already there making a way for you". Now, I want us to really study Jeremiah chapter 29, because through the prophet Jeremiah, God reveals his ultimate plan for the nation of Israel, but in this passage, he also reveals his personal plan for you and me. Now, there's imbedded in this passage one of the most famous promises in the Bible that you're probably really familiar with, but usually, we don't study the verses before and after the promise. We don't get the premise for the promise. And it's really powerful, and it tells us how to have strength in uncertain times.
So, would you stand in honor of God's Word, Woodlands Church, and follow along with me. We're gonna start with Jeremiah 29:11-14, but we're gonna study so much more. "For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,' declares the LORD, 'and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,' declares the LORD, 'and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.'"
You can be seated. God says, "I know the future, because I'm already there, and I have a hope-filled future planned for you, if you'll step into my plan". If I'm going to find strength in uncertain times, then I really need to do what this passage says. So, let's look at it in Jeremiah 29, verses 8 and 9. "Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel says: 'Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in My name. I have not sent them,' declares the LORD".
In Jeremiah's day, there were all these voices that were speaking out, saying they were speaking for God, but they were false prophets who were telling the people lies, and there were all these voices, and they were saying, basically, "Hey, everybody, don't worry about anything, because God is gonna bring us back to the promised land immediately, and God is gonna destroy the Babylonians immediately. God is going to take us back to the promised land right away and destroy our enemies right away, and he's gonna take away all of our problems. There'll be no more problems. There'll be no more difficulties. Everything in the future is going to be perfect. It's all gonna work out perfectly. There's smooth sailing from now on".
But God says, "It's not true. It's not true. They're lying to you". And when it comes to the future, we hear so many voices telling us what the future's going to be like. Some say doom and gloom. Some say everything's gonna be great and all in between. There's so many voices, so-called expert voices that have no idea what they're talking about, because when it comes to the future, you only need to listen to one voice, and that's God's voice. Trust God's Word over man's opinion. Trust God's Word over what the world says.
In Isaiah 48, it says the grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever. God's Word, God's truth stands forever. It's the same yesterday, today, and forever. You can always count on it. It's the truth. I have to trust God's Word over man's opinion. I have trust God's unchanging Word over what the world says, because that's always changing, and if you don't stand on the Word, you'll fall on this world, without a doubt, and God wants you to stand on his Word. I mean, if you're looking to popular opinion, that's always changing, but God's Word is never changing, and you can trust in the anchor of God's Word. It will hold you strong. It will make you unshakeable in these very shaky times. There will be a solid rock when nothing around you is solid. You'll be standing on the never changing, all-powerful Word of God. I've gotta trust God's unchanging Word over the culture, because the culture's always changing.
Now, Jesus had a lot to say about the future. In Matthew, Jesus told us the signs of the times, the signs that would be coming before he returns. And in this passage, he says, "Don't be surprised, because there's gonna be wars and rumors of war. There's going to be diseases and pandemics. There's going to be earthquakes and famines". And he said, "Don't be surprised by those things. That's going to happen". And then he says Christians will be persecuted in the last days.
Did you know that over 150,000 Christ followers were martyred for their faith last year? That's five times more than a century ago. More Christ followers are being killed for their faith than at any other time in history, and that's so hard for us to grasp, because we live in a place where freedom of religion and freedom to worship; but in many communist countries, Muslim countries, it's against the law to profess your faith in Christ, be baptized, and so Jesus said, yet Christians will be persecuted, but he said, "Don't be surprised". Don't freak out over these things. "These are just the labor pains. This is just the beginning of the end, but then there's one big sign that will happen. There's one big sign". He says, "The gospel will be preached to the entire world. Then the end will come. Then I'll return".
That's the one big sign that we're to be aware of. So, I get asked a lot, when things are so chaotic in the world and everything seems so uncertain, and you see all these things Jesus predicted about the labor pains coming true, I get asked a lot, "Pastor, are we living in the last days"? And the answer is yes. The Scripture says we're living in the last days for the last 2,000 years. Ever since Christ died, rose again, and ascended to heaven, that's the last days, according to Scripture, for the last 2,000 years, or the church age. And so we're living in the last days.
Now, the better question may be, are we in the last days of the last days? And that's something no one knows for sure. It sure feels like it, with all of these things happening that Jesus predicted and the Bible predicted, but no one really knows. And if you ever hear a pastor, or a so-called prophet, or some theologian, or mathematician say they've calculated through Scripture, through the Bible code, the exact day that Jesus Christ is coming back, if you ever hear that, just know he's not coming back on that day. That's about the only thing you be certain of. "Well, I know he's not coming back on that day, because the Bible says that no one knows the day or the hour".
So, if someone predicts it, you go, "Well, mark that off. Jesus isn't coming back that day". That's about the only thing we know, because the Scripture says no one knows the day or the hour except for God the Father, and so he knows, and it's not our business to know the time and the day, but we are to look for the signs, and remember the big sign before Christ comes back. The gospel will be preached to the entire world. Then the end will come. And world there means people groups, that every people group around the globe will hear the gospel, because of Christ's love, and his mercy, and his grace, and then the end will come. Christ will return.
Well, because of technology, you're living in the first generation in the history of the world where this can happen. I mean, right now, this is going out all over the world. Our broadcast ministry goes out all over the world. Did you know you're living in the first generation in human history when Christ could come back today? Because we're seeing and may have already seen the last big sign happen before Jesus returns. This is the most exciting time in the history of the world to be alive, and I hear Christ followers, "Oh, things are so awful, and it's gonna be terrible, and I don't know what's gonna happen with our kids and their generation, and the world is going to hell in a handbasket. This is awful".
And yes, it's fearful out there. There's a lot of things it seems we should be afraid of. But you know what? It's the greatest time in the history of the world to be alive. God placed you here on this planet at this time and in this place for a reason, because he wants you to be a builder, to build his kingdom, to build into others, to make a difference. We ought to be the most joyful people on the face of the earth, because the worst thing that could happen to us, we die and get to go to heaven. And so while everyone else is afraid and while everyone else is experiencing anxiety and fear, we ought to be experiencing joy. We ought to be the most joyful people on the face of the earth, where people look at us and go, "Wow, I want what they've got. In the middle of all the chaos, they have peace. I don't get it, but I want it".
Jesus then went on to say, "Hey, listen up, because I can tell you exactly what's gonna happen in the future. There'll be two tracks in the future. One track will be getting worse. Things will be getting worse: more problems, more pain, more evil, more people turning away from God's values, but then there's a second track that'll be amazing: a great awakening, millions will turn to Christ. Marriages will be healed and fractured families will come back together, and God will give amazing strength and joy to his followers in very uncertain times. There'll be miracles and blessings, and God will bless and build up his people during that time".
Isn't that amazing? There'll be two tracks. And that's the way life is. Life's always in two tracks. That's the way your life is and my life is. It's not a rollercoaster where you're on this big high and everything's going great in your life, and then sometimes you're in the valley where everything's terrible. No. It's two tracks where there's some amazing things God is doing in your life, some great things, wonderful things on one track, and the other track there's some really painful things, some awful things that are going on at the same time, and that's just the way life is, but it's gonna be magnified in the future.
And that's why Jesus said in John 16:33, "I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world". He's saying that, "Hey, I want you to know, if anyone tells you, as a Christ follower, everything is going to be perfect in the future, it's all going to be smooth sailing, you're not gonna have any problems, not as long as you're in a foreign land". He said, "You're gonna have problems. You're gonna have pain and difficulties and heartaches". But, but he says, "I'm gonna give you peace in the middle of the problem". And then he goes on to say, "There's no problem you'll face in your future that I haven't already overcome. There's no heartache that I haven't already overcome".
That's great news to know, I don't know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future. I don't know what the future holds for me, I don't know what the future holds for you, but I know whatever problem comes my way, God can give me peace in the middle of the problem, and I know that whatever heartache, whatever trial comes my way, I know that my God has already overcome that, and he will see you through. He will see me through. That's good to know.
Well, I want us to get back to Jeremiah 29 again, because in verse 4, "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 'Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters, find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they, too, may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there. Do not decrease.'" So, God is telling his people, "Don't let your fears about the future keep you from living in the present". But you know we suffer from what I call the someday syndrome. We say, "Someday, when I get through this problem, then I'll really enjoy life. Someday when this circumstance changes, then things are going to be amazing. I'm gonna do the things that are most important. Someday, when things settle down, then I'll really focus on my relationships".
Do you really still believe that, that someday things are going to settle down? Things are never going to settle down. That's a lie we tell ourselves. Someday, when things aren't so busy, I'll really give God my life. Someday, when things aren't so busy, I'll really live for God. And, yeah, one day that's what I really want to do. It's just really tough right now. It's really busy right now. It's really hard to get to church right now. It's really hard to connect online right now. I mean, things are just really busy, a little crazy. But soon, when it settles down, it will never settle down.
So, you need to just get settled in your heart in Jesus Christ and start living now, because today is your someday. Because when are we gonna wake up and realize this is our one and only life down here on earth, our one and only chance to live for God, and be a people builder? This is it. When are we gonna wake up and realize this is our life? It's painful. It's beautiful. It's crazy. It's chaotic. It's miraculous. It's messy. It's fulfilling, all at the same time. This is your life. Today is your someday. No more someday. No more when and then thinking. When this happens, then I'll do this. No, today is your someday. It's all you know you have.
The miracle is in the moment; and if you don't live in the moment, you miss the miracle that God wants to give you right here and right now. But Jesus said in Matthew 6:34, "So don't be anxious about tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow. God will take care of your tomorrow as well. Live one day at a time". So, God works his miracles in the moment, and so we're to stay present today, doing what he's called us to do today, not someday. In Jeremiah 29:12, God said, "Then you will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart". He says, "Bring all your worries about the future to me, and surrender to my control, and I'll take care of you. You'll find me, and you'll find my peace in the middle of all the stresses".
See, the reason why we're so anxious and worried about the future is because we're trying to control something that's uncontrollable. The future is uncontrollable, as far as you're concerned or I'm concerned. I can't control the future. Experts can tell you what the stock market's gonna do, but nobody knows for sure. I mean, no one knows who's gonna win the games. No one knows what the future holds. I mean, you can make predictions, and there are a lot of these future experts out there, but nobody knows, because no one can control the future, no human being, that is. And so when you try to control something that's uncontrollable, you're gonna get stressed out. You're gonna be anxious and fearful about the future.
And so you can't control the future, so what do you do? You surrender the future to God, because God is in control. That's when you find his peace. When you're trying to control something that you can't control, like another person, then you're gonna be filled with fear. If you're trying to control and change your circumstance that can't be changed, that you can't control, you're gonna be filled with fear, but when you surrender to God and his control, you're gonna have peace, even in the middle of uncertainty.
In Philippians 4:6, it says, "Don't worry about anything: instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus". Here he says, "Don't worry about anything".
There's nothing worth worrying about? Don't worry about anything. Why is that? Don't worry about anything, because worry is unhelpful, it's unhealthy. In fact, the root English word for worry literally means to choke or to strangle. And worry will take a stranglehold on your life and choke out all the joy, and all the purpose, and all the meaning, because worry is so detrimental to your health, and it doesn't change a thing. It's worthless.
And so he says, "Don't worry about anything". There's so many things that are really important, that are really serious. But he says, "Don't worry about them; instead, pray about them". It really helps me to know that God cares about my future, so I want us to look at that great promise that's sandwiched in there between the premise of the promise, Jeremiah 29:11. "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.'" God says, "I know the plans". I don't know the plans, but God knows the plans. But I love how he says, "I know the plans that I have for you. I know the plans that I have for you".
God has a personal plan for you. God cares about every detail of your life, and he has a personal plan for you, and it's a plan, he says, to prosper you. It's a hope-filled future to prosper you. Now, usually, when we think of the word "prosper," we think of monetary wealth. You know, accumulating more monetary wealth; and what the word "prosper" in the Hebrew means is the ability to make wise decisions, which is much more important than material wealth. Sure, it means the ability to make good financial decisions in real shaky times, but it also means things that are much more important: the ability to make wise decisions in your family, wise decisions when you get so many lies coming at you. You make truthful and wise decisions. It doesn't matter how high your IQ is. You make really dumb decisions.
In fact, some of the smartest people in the world make the dumbest decisions. Have you noticed that? It's so true. But God says, "You can make wise decisions in every area of your life, if you'll put me first, because I know that I have a personal plan for you, and it involves giving you the power and the ability to make wise decisions, where people look at you and say, 'Wow, there's something different about them. They have clarity in all the confusion. They have a peace in this crisis. How? I want what they have.'"
God cares about your future. But it's also good to know that God controls the big picture. God controls the future. In Hebrews, well, no, it's in Isaiah 46:9-10. In fact, I think you ought to memorize and meditate on this verse. This is the one that you ought to print out, memorize this week, put it into your life. This is God speaking. "Remember the things I have done in the past". That's a good thing to do, too, when you're going through uncertain times. Remember how God's brought you to this place and how God has somehow gotten you through. That encourages you.
But then he says, "For I alone am God. I am God, and there is none like Me. Only I can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish". He says, "Everything I plan will come to pass". It looks like things are out of control, but they're not, because under the surface, God is in control. And not one mad man can change God's purpose. There's not any atheist that can change God's purpose. God's purpose will prevail, and it may look like things are out of control and in chaos, but it's all moving according to God's plan and God's purpose. He's doing this underneath the surface, behind the scenes, and no evil can stop God's good purpose.
No scheme of man, no plan of Satan can stop God's good purpose for your life, and God's purpose for this world, but I think it's really important, not only to understand that God cares about your future, not only to understand that God controls this big picture, that we can't really understand right now, but it's really important when you're going through uncertain times to not get fixated on your own needs, but really those worries and those fears you have, shift from the worry and fear, and shift to prayer as we said, but also shift from the worry and fear, and then go to action.
Stop being reactive and be proactive. What I mean by that is stop looking at the news feed 50 times a day, and being filled with fear, and start going to God's Word, and being filled with faith. Shift from being reactive to proactive. Now, you need to know some things going on, so you can pray about those big things, but you've gotta take a shift and some of you need to stop looking at your news feed for a few days. Surrender that to God, because you probably can't do anything about those big things anyway, but you can pray about them, and then shift and start spending time in God's Word, and be filled with faith in God's direction.
In fact, in Hebrews 10, it says, "Let us be concerned for one another, to help one another, to show love and to do good. Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are doing. Instead, let us encourage one another all the more, since you see that the Day of the Lord is coming nearer". As we see the Day of the Lord coming nearer, what are we to do? We're to encourage each other even more. We're to build people up even more. We're to be healing agents in this hurting world, to be proactive and not reactive. We're to be thermostats rather than thermometers. Thermometers just tell the temperature. Thermostats change the temperature. We're not to relate to the culture. We're to revolutionize the culture with Christ's power.