Valois United Church

Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15
Psalm 91 VU 807
Luke 16:19-31

The year is 587 B.C.

Ten years ago the Babylonians came to Judah. They ransacked the territory. And they put Jerusalem under seige. Day after day the seige continued, month after month the people endured.

And then a year ago the Egyptians approached, and the siege was lifted.
And the people rejoiced.

Jeremiah did not rejoice. He told the people (Jer 37)
“Pharaoh's army, which set out to help you, is going to return to its own land, to Egypt. And the Babylonians shall return and fight against this city; they shall take it and burn it with fire. Thus says the Lord: Do not deceive yourselves, saying, "The Babylonians will surely go away from us," for they will not go away. Even if you defeated the whole army of Babylonians who are fighting against you, and there remained of them only wounded men in their tents, they would rise up and burn this city with fire.”

And the people did not want to hear his word. It was altogether just to discouraging.

Well, as well as saying these discouraging things, Jeremiah went to go to his family’s town of Anathoth, not far from Jerusalem. But as he went to go out through the Benjamin Gate of the city, a soldier arrested him, convinced that Jeremiah, who had said such terrible things, was going to run to the Babylonians - he was charged with desertion, imprisoned, beaten, .... Fortunately, after several days, the King heard about it and had Jeremiah brought before him. Then he arranged that Jeremiah would be allowed to be free from the prison cells, but had to remain in the courtyard with the palace guard.

Things go worse for Jeremiah, and then they got better, but you’re going to have to read about that yourselves. But days in the bottom of a cistern are not fun.

But he returned to the courtyard, and stayed there for many months.
But beyond the gates the Egyptians have left.
And the Babylonians have returned, and the city is again under seige.

And Jeremiah, prophet of God, heard God’s word telling him that his cousin is going to come to him, asking him to buy a certain piece of land.

Now, did you laugh when that reading was read a few minutes ago? We should.
Jerusalem is under siege.
Anathoth, where the land is, is overrun with Babylonian troops.

And Jeremiah’s cousin is going to offer Jeremiah a parcel of land that he can buy! That’s what God told him. Only there was one more part: Jeremiah is supposed to actually buy the land!

Why not buy land with nuclear waste buried on it?
Why not buy land in Kabul?
Why not buy property in Myanmar?

But then Hanamel, the cousin, comes to visit, and offers the land. Jeremiah now knows that this truly is God’s word and God’s wish.

Jeremiah, right there in the courtyard with the guards, proceeds with the purchase.
Right there, as the smoke from the invaders fires rises up just beyond the city walls, he proceeds with the purchase.
He weighs out the money for Hanamel - 17 shekels, a fair price on any day.
He signs the deed, as does Hanamel, seals it, gets witnesses and weighs the money on scales.

Now there are two copies of the deed: one is sealed, with all the terms and conditions, and there is the open copy. Jeremiah gives them both to Baruch, who is free to leave the courtyard, and he instructs Baruch to take the two copies of the deed and put them in an earthenware jar, so that they would be protected for years if need be.

And then Jeremiah stands up and declares:
32:15 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.

And as the sound of the invading army rises above to noise of the city, all the people around, the witnesses, the soldiers, they all shake their heads at the crazy prophet.... a crazy one who would buy land at a time like this, when the city is about to burn, and Anathoth is already over-run.

The year is 587 B.C. The people dispair.
But Jeremiah knows.
God is with us.

Jeremiah takes a leap of faith.
Jeremiah takes a public leap of faith.

In part he shows what faith is.
And in part, his leap of faith, because it is so concrete, begins to sow a few seeds of hope in the soil of despair.

Another preacher writes:
“Faith doesn't always make sense to us, much less
to those around us who don't share it. To wit,
‘Oh Death, where is thy sting?’ And,
‘Blessed are those who .......’ even
when they feel anything but blessed.

“Despite what looks logical or feels sensible, the
faithful trudge on, hoping against hope that God
will eventually give us the reason for leading us
into places that put faith to work.

“It was not sensible for Wycliffe to bring the
Scriptures to his countrymen and women in their
native language. It was not smart for Nelson
Mandela to stand up against apartheid.

“Jeremiah's crazy property purchase proved to be
right and was celebrated. Even in the light of
destruction, God always sends up the first shoots
of life. Just look at the land after a forest
fire. One of the first things to grow back is a
brightly colored leafy plant that seems intent on
laughing at the attempt to kill it.”

Jeremiah the crazy prophet.... by concrete action shares faith and hope.

One Montreal area minister showed his faith that his relationship with a congregation would flourish:
“When I planted raspberies in my first year in my first pastoral charge, some people speculated that I would be staying with them longer than the average for previous ministers - 3 years - since they knew how long it took for these berries to mature.”

“Jeremiah's faith in God is not just wishful thinking. He invests in a dead end because of his faith in God. He puts his shekels where his faith is.

“How can the church do something as "insane" as this prophet? Which dead-ends can we invest in because of our faith in Christ?”

- - Storyteller

Wow!!! What dead-end are we going to pursue.... because with God, what God declares not to be a dead end.... is not a dead end!

And hopeless causes, with God, are not hopeless causes...

But can we figure out which hopeless causes, which apparent dead ends, God wishes us to pursue?

There is a risk. And society is not necessarily interested:
In a show of a willingness to impose costs penalties on lawyers who act in appeals without reasonable prospects of success, the New South Wales Court of Appeal recently {reviewed the operation of section 198J of the Legal Profession Act 1987 (NSW) and} found both a lawyer and a barrister liable to personally pay costs incurred by the defendant/respondent to an appeal.

But when God tells us to pursue something, when God calls us
to hope
to act
to be
to speak
then we must try to be like Jeremiah.

As individuals. And as a congregation.

Six years ago this reading was read less than one month after 9-11

My church contributions have lowered drastically since Sept 11. Am I alone? I want to share the Jermiah field of hope message. I want them to continue to give to the church as a "beacon of hope" So far they are scared and tight fisted. – SD

Today is not right after 9-11. But stresses and worries continue to haunt us, and always will.

So are we going to roll over and give it all up?
Are we going to despair, like the people around Jeremiah?
Or are we going to turn to God
and ask “which way?”

If we say yes, then
How are we going to do that asking? How do we find out which way God is calling us?

.... the expected ways, where we expect success
.... and the unexpected ways, where we would have thought things unlikely or impossible

Well, as a congregation, we’re going to be having discussions over the next little while. And when we have open discussion, where all can speak, when we have discussion with prayer, I am convinced the Spirit moves and guides.

And day by day, we’ll find God’s voice and God’s direction.
But when God tells us to pursue something, when God calls us
to hope
to act
to be
to speak
then we must try to be like Jeremiah.

As individuals. And as a congregation.