NO TIME TO QUIT

“Then I said, I will not make mention of Him, nor speak anymore in His name. But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not!” (Jer. 20:9 NKJV).

Serving the Lord has its difficult moments and even the very best of saints at times, struggle with the desire to quit. Not even the great prophet Jeremiah was immune to this problem as he was ready to quit the ministry. Only his devotion to the Word of God stopped him from quitting. Thus we want to note the resignation, inspiration, and continuation of Jeremiah.

Resignation - “I said, I will not make mention of Him, nor speak any more in His name.” Jeremiah had a tough assignment. The people had rejected his message and treated him badly. As a result, Jeremiah became so discouraged that he was ready to resign; he was not going to preach anymore. He declared that he would quit speaking about the Lord.

Inspiration - “But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones.” Jeremiah was devoted to the Word of God and it inspired him to serve God. Today, few folks are devoted to the Word of God. In a time of crisis, people who are devoted to the Word will fare better than those who are not. Churches often use gimmicks to get people to serve God. This is a mistake. On the other hand, if churches concentrated on getting the people into the Word, folks would not lack inspiration to serve God.

Continuation - “I was weary of holding it back, and I could not.” Jeremiah tried to quit, but he could not. With the Word of God inspiring him, he could not quit. The Word of God propelled him onward. It kept him going and caused him to put away any thoughts of resigning. Serving the Lord can be very discouraging at times, but if we will stay in the Word we will stay in the work.

(Adapted from Butler Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“The remedy for discouragement is the Word of God. When you feed your heart and mind with its truth, you regain your perspective and find renewed strength!”

Warren Wiersbe (1714 – 1770)

American Pastor, Bible Teacher and Author

Word Study

Distress

In 1 Thess. 3:7 we read, “Therefore, brethren, in all our affliction and distress we were comforted concerning you by your faith” (NKJV).

Distress is the Greek word anankē (ἀνάγκη = an-ang-kay'). The word refers to any necessity or compulsion, outer or inner, brought on by a variety of circumstances; imposed either by external conditions or by the law of duty. It is that which is necessary due to the pressure of circumstances and so refers to that which is inevitable.

In classical Greek anankē refers to the controlling principle of all existence, the irresistible force which steered all reality on its course. In the Septuagint, anankē is used to refer to the various difficulties of life. In the New Testament, anankē refers to difficult circumstances that come on a person with compelling force. For the believer in the Lord Jesus, the worldly trials and hardships that we encounter must be viewed from the God’s perspective. God permits the ‘inevitable’ so that His people, after a short time of sufferings, will share His glory.

Prophecies Fulfilled by Jesus

Old Testament Prophecy – Messiah would have no deceit in His mouth (Isa. 53:9)

New Testament Fulfillment – 1 Peter 2:22

Did You Know…

In the Bible it states that Jesus sanctifies (Heb. 2:11).

Bible Quiz

What will “the man who endures temptation” receive from God?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: Where in the Bible can we find the following words: “Now I lay me down to sleep...?” These words are not to be found in the Bible.

Names of the Lord Jesus Found in the Bible

“Judge / Ruler”

"And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead!” (Acts 10:42 NKJV).

1. Meaning – The Lord Jesus is our Judge as well as our Advocate and lawyer.

2. Insights – The Lord Jesus, the very One who is our Advocate before the bar of God’s justice, has been made the Judge of all.

3. Related Titles – Wonderful Counselor (Isa. 9:6); Advocate / Help / Comforter (1 John 2:1; John 14:16); Consolation of Israel (Luke 2:25); Mediator / Daysman / Intercessor / Paraclete (Job 9:33; 1 Tim. 2:5)

Did You Know – Christian History

Samuel Porter Jones was born October 16, 1847, in Oak Bowery, Alabama. He was an American lawyer, businessman and prominent Southern Methodist revivalist preacher.

Jones knew what drink could do to a man and his family. He began drinking as a young man because of his father’s absence. After being admitted to Georgia bar, Jones began to hang out with other hard drinking men. Within four years, alcohol and gambling had brought him, his family and children to ruin. He moved from place to place and finally was reduced to shoveling coal for twelve hours a day.

After the death of his father, Jones had a great and miraculous experience of conviction and quit his drinking, begging God for mercy. After three days of strong coffee, he cleaned up, bought new clothes and went home to the wife he had beaten black and blue.

He preached his first sermon a week later, and with his wife, one child and eight dollars in cash, he set out as a Methodist traveling preacher. Over the years, he stayed sober and his reputation for humor and straight talk grew. He became the South’s most famous evangelist and preacher in the 19th Century. His messages were especially aimed at men, often regarded as the most difficult group to reach. His evangelistic style was considered coarse, daring and even admirable. And although uneducated and in many respects absolutely ignorant, he had the ability of being one with his audience.

He went on to preach not only across the South, but also in New York City, Boston, Cincinnati, St. Louis, Los Angeles and Canada. Over the years, it is estimated that Jones preached to three million Americans. In his sermons, Jones preached that alcohol, dances, and the theater, were sinful. He became known for his admonition, “Quit Your Meanness.”

In the last years of his life, he preached almost daily to audiences of 10,000 and more. It is estimated that through his preaching, about 500,000 people turned to Christ. One of his converts, Tom Ryman, built the Union Gospel Tabernacle for him to preach in. It was later re-named the Ryman Auditorium (home to the Grand Ole Opry).

One of his famous sermons was preached on August 2, 1885, to 12,000 people in a camp-meeting near Cincinnati, Ohio. Standing on the top of an old piano box, he took as his text Proverbs 11:19: “As righteousness leads to life, so he that pursues evil, pursues it to his own death.”

On October 15, 1906, Jones was returning home from preaching in Oklahoma City when he complained that he wasn’t feeling well. He took a drink of water then flopped over and died. He was buried at the Oak Hill cemetery in Cartersville, Georgia.

A Little Humor

It has been said that it takes 90 gallons of water to baptize a Christian, but only 9 drops of rain to stop them from coming to church.

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“There is one way to stay out of hell, but no way to get out of hell!”