(Jer 1:4) “Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (5)  Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” It is a wonderful thing to know one has a divine purpose for one’s life. YOU have a divine purpose. You are to live for the glory of He Who gave His life in payment for your sins. Jeremiah was faithful to his purpose, through man dark times – humanly speaking. What about you? Does your life proclaim a purpose?

(Isa 1:2) “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.”  Today I wish to focus our attention on the first portion of that verse. Our Lord has spoken, we have the completed message in our KJV Bible, and therefore need to “give ear” – hear it! THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE for reading the Bible. No commentary, devotional, nor sermon can take the place of humbly opening your Bible, submitting to the Holy Spirit’s teaching, listening to God speak to you!

(Pro 1:7)” The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” One does not truly fear the Lord who refuses to read, listen, and then heed His instruction. By refusing to do so, they are despising the wisdom of His Word. I have had folks say to me, “My God wouldn’t send anyone to hell.” My response is, “Your god is not the God of the Bible. Your god is the god of the imagination.” Read the Book. Go to a Baptist Church that holds to an infallible Bible. Get to know the true God through the teaching and obeying of His Word!

(Psa 1:1) “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. (2) But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. (3)  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” You cannot have the promise of verse 3 without the obedience to verses 1 &2. It never ceases to amaze me when people believe they can claim the promises of God without obedience to the other Scriptures. One cannot have the blessings of being planted without the Born Again Experience, an imperative according to the Lord Jesus. And one cannot bear fruit unless one obeys the law of separation of verses 1 and 2.

“There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. The word “perfect” is not speaking of sinlessness, for the Bible says “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. It is referring to perfect in his desire to do what is right in God’s sight, adding he “feared God and eschewed evil.” Do you fear Him? To “eschew” means to turn away from, in this case, that which is evil. It is true that when one plays with fire they sooner or later get burned; with bees – stung; with snakes – bit. YOU are no exception.

The Book of Esther reveals how the Lord uses the pride of a King, to bring about the establishment of a Queen (Esther) to saved His people Israel from destruction! (Pro_21:1  The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.” No one, not even you or I, can stand against the Lord! Submit to Him in everything, Remember, there are no exceptions to God’s rules!

Often, as the saved of God living among the lost in the US, we think of corruption of our country as “their sin”. When it comes to nations, such thinking is foreign to Scripture. You see,  a Citizen of this nation is a part of that nation whether lost or saved. Nehemiah, upon receiving dire news of Jerusalem’s physical condition, prayed, (Neh 1:7) “WE have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.” His fellow citizen’s sins were Nehemiah’s sins. Our prayers for our country should say, “WE have sinned.”