Dear Ones:
In 1 Corinthians 13, the Apostle Paul uses a phrase which has a profound lesson for us with regard to growing, maturing…becoming what we are called to be. He wrote: “…when I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” (v. 11) We find here the declaration of a definite transition from childhood to manhood, or becoming an adult. And the issue at hand is that of maturity, experiential knowledge of living a life of usefulness and fruitfulness.
When Jeremiah was called to be a “prophet unto the nations,” (Jer. 1:5), he answered the Lord by saying, “…Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” Jeremiah’s perspective of himself was that, in the face of responsibility, he felt his resources and abilities were like those of a child. How does the Lord deal with him on this issue? “But the Lord said unto me, ‘Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.'” (v.7) In one statement the Lord calls Jeremiah to cease to be “childish,” and to become a man…but to be a man according to HIS working. “Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, ‘Behold, I have put My words in thy mouth.'” (v.9) The Lord will enable Jeremiah to be the man he is to be, according to the calling of God, BY the provision of the Lord. The Lord goes on to speak of the spiritual authority that he has given Jeremiah “…over the nations,”…declaring unto him later on in the chapter: “I have made thee THIS DAY a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls against the whole land…they (kings, princes, priests…) shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee.” (v.18-19)
The point is this. Every time that Jeremiah looks at himself in the mirror, and considers “his resources,” he remains a “child,” very helpless and limited. It is when he submits to the Lordship of Christ concerning his calling, and commits himself to believe God concerning His promises, that he becomes the man he must BE to fulfill the will of God.
In the face of Joshua’s calling to bring the people of Israel into land of promise, the Lord COMMANDS Joshua: “…Be strong, and of a good courage. Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God IS WITH THEE whithersoever thou goest.” (Josh. 1:9) Do we believe that this applies to us also? There is the same individual need, and the same Lord who will meet that need.
In Paul’s second letter to Timothy, who was to succeed him in the ministry, and not being of the same temperament as the Apostle, wrote to him these words: “…stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of POWER, and of LOVE, and of A SOUND MIND.” (1:6-7) The call to Timothy here, in its simplest form, is the same as to Jeremiah…to put off the childish considerations of one’s own meager “resources,” and to grasp, lay hold on, the unfathomable riches, and resources that are in Christ. We must never forget that when God calls us, He ALWAYS provides every resource that we should fulfill our calling.
This is a very serious matter, this calling to BE men and women of faith. I conclude with one more verse from Jeremiah 1:17. “Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.” The Lord is determined to make us what He intends us to be, but to do this, we must be commited to believing Him, and obeying Him to do it…and He will. He is faithful.
Love, Dad