Scripture

Tears of joy will stream down their faces,

And I will lead them home with great care.

They will walk beside quiet streams,

And on the smooth paths where they will not stumble.

Observation

The Lord is going to bring His people home from every corner of the earth. He will not overlook the blind, lame, expectant mothers, and women in labour. He will guide them beside quiet streams and along smooth paths.

The Lord who scattered His people is gathering them back. He has redeemed Israel and all their crops will be abundant. Everyone will celebrate and dance for joy.

Application

The primary focus of this prophetic word is the release of Israel from its exile in Babylon. The Lord promises to bring them home and to prosper His people in the land He has given them.

To us, it is a reminder of the joy of salvation. God loved us so much that He sent His one and only Son to bring us home to Him.

Christmas is a season of rejoicing. One of the biggest sources of joy for many people is families getting together again. In my family there has been so much laughter and celebration as we have gathered together.

Jesus is calling people home to Himself. We were once far away, but now we are coming home with tears of joy.

The best home coming ever is still in the future. One day all of the followers of Jesus from all of history will be called home to Heaven to start an eternity of joy.

Prayer

What an awesome gift you are to the world, Lord Jesus Son of God! I thank you for the anticipation of the great home coming. Amen

Scripture

And this will be its name: “The Lord Is Our Righteousness.”

Observation

Jeremiah, writing at the time of the Exile, writes of Israel and Judah’s future hope.

The Lord will do all that He has promised. At the time of His choosing, He will raise up a righteous descendant of David. This man will do all that is just and right in the land. Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will be called, “The Lord Is Our Righteousness.”

The Lord promises that David will have a descendant on the throne for ever, and that there will always be priests offering sacrifices and grain offerings to the Lord.

Application

The Lord is our righteousness.

We cannot be cleansed from our sin and guilt by our own efforts. We cannot earn it through religious sacrifices or by doing good deeds. Elon Musk does not have enough dollars to buy his righteousness.

No, the Lord is our righteousness. He is the one who declares that we are not guilty.

He does this because of the death of Jesus on the cross. The sin of the world was laid on Christ, and when He died, our guilt died with Him.

The Lord is our righteousness. He is the one who declares that our sin has been atoned for.

Now we are welcomed into His family, His Kingdom. Nothing can separate us from the Lord.

Prayer

Hallelujah! Lord I could never be good enough by myself. Sin always finds me. But you have declared that I am righteous. Please help me to live in your righteousness. Amen.

Scripture

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

Observation

Jeremiah was a prophet called by God in the end period of the kingdom of Judah. He carried the Lord’s message during the reigns of Josiah, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah right through to the exile in Babylon.

The Lord called him to this prophetic ministry. The Lord knew him before he was born and appointed him to be a messenger to the nations.

Jeremiah says he is too young. But the Lord replies by saying that He has put His words in Jeremiah’s mouth.

Application

The Lord’s words to Jeremiah are true of all of us. He formed us and knew us before He made us. He sets each person apart for a task or an assignment.

We don’t think of ourselves in these terms. We think calling and appointment are only for the spiritual elites, the top people like pastors, evangelists and apostles.

The fact is that each person was hand- made by God for a specific purpose or a particular task.

Maybe it is leading a cell group, perhaps leading just one person to the Lord, or raising our children to love the Lord.

Whether we are called to pull down and raise nations, to raise children or visit people in a nursing home, this is God’s mission and He appoints people to the right place.

Steve Stewart, leader of Impact Nations, a short term missions group, has a favourite saying. “You were made for this!” It doesn’t matter what the “this” is. You were made for a task that nobody else can do.

Prayer

Lord God, you made the heavens and the earth. You fashioned me to be your instrument. Help me to fulfil your mission. Amen.

Scripture
“In those days and at that time, I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line.”

Observation
The Lord promises to restore to His people all that has been taken from them. At the right time there will be a Branch from the line of David- a righteous branch who will do what is right.

The Lord will also ensure that there will always be a descendant of David on the throne of Israel and a priest to continually offer sacrifices.

Application
The righteous Branch would come from David’s line at the right time- the kairos time, the appointed time.

The Branch, of course, is Jesus, whose birth we celebrate in a few weeks time.

God had promised that there would always be someone from David’s line on the throne in Israel. Jesus is that person. He reigns not just over Israel but the whole world.

King Jesus, the righteous Branch rules in righteousness. All earthly kings carry the stain of sin, but Jesus is not only sinless, He has defeated sin.

The righteous Branch from David’s line is bringing justice and holiness to the world even today.

Prayer
Lord you are that righteous Branch from the line of David. You are the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah! Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jeremiah+23.1-6

Scripture

And this will be his name: The Lord is our Righteousness. In that day Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety.

Observation

Sorrow is waiting for the shepherds of God’s people, for they have destroyed and scattered the ones they were supposed to protect. God promises to pour judgement over those people, but He will gather the remnant of His scattered flock. God will gather them into His sheepfold and they will be safe and increase in number.

At the right time the Lord will raise up a king who will do what is right and just. He will be called the Lord is our Righteousness.

Application

The Lord calls all of us, but especially leaders, to be righteous. This righteousness comes not from our own ethical standards or sense of fair play, but as a gift from the Lord.

The Lord is our Righteousness means that the Lord is our source of righteousness. He declares that us to be right on the basis of the cross. He then expects us to live right, that is, without sin.

This is a journey, a walk of one step after another. We take a few steps towards righteousness and then we stumble. But the goal is always to walk in the ways of the Lord our Righteousness.

Prayer

Jesus you are the Lord my Righteousness. Thank you for declaring me to be righteous in your blood. Please lead me in the right ways so that I learn to be like you. Amen.

Passage: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+31.27-34

Scripture

“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people.”

Observation

The days will come when the Lord will plant Judah and Israel amongst the children of men. Just as the Lord watched over them to pull down and uproot, He will watch over them to plant and build up.

The Lord will make a new covenant, a very different covenant from the old one. In the new covenant the Lord will write His commandments in their hearts. No one will need to encourage his neighbour to know the Lord because they will know Him.

Application

We are the people of the new covenant. The Lord writes His covenant in our hearts so that we are motivated by the indwelling Holy Spirit rather than by the written law.

The church is the community of people who don’t have to exhort one another to know the Lord.” Again it is the Holy Spirit living in us who stirs up within us a love for the Lord so that we want to know Him and grow in Him.

Prayer

Thank you Father for the gift of the Holy Spirit. May I always be attentive to the Holy Spirit so that I walk in the ways of the Lord. Amen.

Scripture

“Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for if it prospers, you too will prosper.”

Observation

Jeremiah sends a letter to the priests, elders, prophets and the other people that Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile in Babylon.

The letter carries the command of the Lord for those in Babylon to build houses and settle down, to marry and to have children. They are to seek the peace and prosperity of the city and to pray for it. If the city prospers they too will prosper.

They are not to listen to the false prophets and diviners, their dreams and lying prophecies. These are not sent by the Lord.

Application

It is easy to be critical of the politicians and institutions which lead our nation, state or city. There is much to be critical of, especially when it seems that our society is rapidly casting off all vestiges of christian values.

Rather than criticise, we should pray. As our city and nation prospers we too will prosper.

We must pray for prosperity, asking God to bless our nation, even those who rebel against Him. Babylon was so evil that it became a symbol in the Bible for all demonic forces that defy God’s Kingdom. If Jeremiah could instruct Israel’s leaders to pray for this wicked city, then surely we can pray for our own.

We must pray for our leaders to be saved so that the way they lead is shaped by the Kingdom of God not by the kingdom of darkness.

Prayer

Lord I pray for the peace and prosperity of Narrabri and of Australia. May our leaders recognise your authority and align themselves with your values. Amen.