In 627 BC the long ministry begins. His call is our call - analysing the features, terms and privileges. Jeremiah's good reluctance, his anointing and level of conviction; the certain outcome of his words (and ours). Are we in the last phase of the age?

'The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin: To whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.'

Modern translators and writer destroy the message of Jeremiah by calling his words charges or accusations against Judah rather than pleadings (KJV). Here is how we are meant to read these pleadings and apply them to ourselves, to derive challenge and comfort.

'Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, in a land that was not…

The prophet identifies in a single verse the two great missteps in life, giving two contrasting illustrations of human experience. One is a free-flowing fountain of meaning and happiness with God, and the other is a broken cistern representing toil and failure without Him.

God's message through the 'reasoning prophet' was that society in general makes two massively harmful decisions. One is to reject spiritual life from God, and the other is to live for short-lived material things alone. Here the gains and losses are compared.

Other issues in life may sweep God out of our thought, or we may be indifferent to Him, or deliberately forget Him. But God and the soul are the most tragic losses to any person. Here is what we lose, and how we may find all we have lost.

What do we lose by forgetting God and the soul, and building our lives without interest in these things? Society currently urges us into unbelief, but here is how God reasons with us about the purpose of existence and the way to eternal life.

The unfaithful wife called back shows God's patience to rebellious Israel. How much more to true believers who should never delay repentance after waywardness. Compromised Judah prayed to the true God from idol shrines! Reasons why worldly evangelicals forfeit real blessing today.

Here are the prophecies of Christ, the Branch, and of His ransom for sinners; of the return of the exiles; of the calling out of believers in the Gospel age; of the calling of the Gentiles; of the New Testament ministry, and the regenerate character of the church.

'They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.'

'If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove.'

'Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it.'

It is astounding how many illustrations and arguments the prophet Jeremiah uses to persuade people in 586 BC to turn back to God. Yet today his reasoning is just as vital, as he stirs us to see our need of spiritual life.

Why does the prophet appeal to Judah to repent, when he knows they never will? So that God's heart in the matter will be seen, obstinacy revealed and so that individuals may find the Lord. Here are lines of appeal still to be used today.

'O ye children of Benjamin, gather yourselves to flee out of the midst of Jerusalem, and blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a sign of fire in Beth-haccerem: for evil appeareth out of the north, and great destruction.'

The quest for safety, success and satisfaction is the story of life, but are they spasmodic or delusory? And do we seek them only in the material realm? Here is the reality of our spiritual needs and standing before God, and how we may know Him.

With graphic and intriguing appeals the prophet presents our typical approaches to life, our expectations and desires. Each brief picture says something startlingly true about life, and points to our need of the Saviour of the world to bring an eternal direction into our earthly journey.

Appealing to individuals to seek the Lord, Jeremiah uses powerful illustrations to show how we are seen by God. He speaks of the inevitable things in life, of our vulnerability to unbelief, of things that distract us from God, and of how we may find Him.

'The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, Stand in the gate of the LORD's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.'

What is the source and authority for our views about life, its source, how it should be lived, what standards we adopt, what we value and support, or what we believe in? Is the authority no more than the imaginations or desires of the heart?

Why should vague or false ideas about God so offend Him? Here are the marks of wrong religion, and how they differ massively from the faith of the Bible. Here also are the motives for false faith, and the benefits of the true.

Why are we often so resistant to reconciliation with God? This is about our various reactions to the call of Christ, and how we avoid spiritual and eternal issues. Here, also, are some of the real dangers of delay, and the way to respond to God, and find His blessings.

Suggested by the teaching of Jeremiah, here are the reasons why people are inclined to turn away from God, and to block out thoughts of His help and of eternity. Here also is a summary of all that is lost, and how to find Him.

Here we glean the necessity of 1) strong sorrow for the lost, 2) ministering for conviction, 3) humbling ministry, 4) expansive labouring, 5) readiness for trials, 6) closeness to Christ. Precious and powerful verses to challenge and enliven sincere students of the Word.

Although almost alone in his stand, Jeremiah obeyed God's express command in these chapters to make no concession to apostate culture (unlike many evangelicals today). Here also is the source of his strength, his occasions of doubt, meeting with God's reproof, and his preaching emphasis.

According to the Bible, alienation from God is entirely due to the problem of sin. But what is sin, why should it be so offensive to God, and what is the biblical method of bringing about forgiveness and reconciliation with God?

Like someone in denial about an illness, we somehow shut out all thoughts of our relationship with God and of eternity. We cannot see why God would reject us. The Bible tells us how much we need to find Him, and how He has made it possible.

A passage that highlights the key moments in conversion to God; when personal sovereignty collapses, we see our separation from God, and then - the crowning moment - we see the price Christ the Saviour has paid for our forgiveness and reconciliation with Him. You May Be Also Interested in……

Drawn away from God by various influences (mentioned here), we become our own god, requiring 'worship' and admiration, and inventing our own ruler. Then God intervenes, and we see ourselves as we really are. Only He can turn us round to find and walk with Him. Here is how.

The actions of a king in choosing earthly counsels in times of trouble, rather than God's solution, amazingly mirrors the actions of most of us as we fashion our policy for life. Here are our reactions to life's troubles, and the earthly or heavenly options before us.

In the disastrous decision of the ungodly king who took Judah into 70 years of captivity we see the very influence that manipulates away from God, and into rationalism and atheism. Here are the 'levers' used by unbelieving society to keep us from God.