“Inquire of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds and will make him withdraw from us.” Jeremiah 21:2
When enemy armies advanced against Jerusalem, the king did not know what to do. It was a national crisis. So he called Pashhur and Zephaniah and sent them to Jeremiah. Why did he do that? Because he knew Jeremiah had the Word of God.
Jeremiah’s questions were never answered. But he stands as a man who believes what God said, and who does what God commands, and that is just about the highest worship anyone can offer to God.
When Jesus came to the cross, what did he do? He said to the Father: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” There was no answer to that question! Still he believed and obeyed the Father: “Into your hands I commit my Spirit.” These words splintered the gates of hell.
It may well be that the greatest impact of your life will be that when you faced disappointed hopes and shattered dreams, you loved him still. Just as you believed him in your pleasure, you choose to believe him in your pain. Just as you loved him when he gave, you loved him when he took away. Just as you obeyed him in your joy, so you obeyed in him in your disappointment.
Your finest hour as a Christian may not come on the podium of life’s successes, but on the day that you choose to hold your unanswered questions; and at the end of it all you stand as a man or a woman who believed what God said, and obeyed what God commanded.
Do you think this is what Jeremiah envisioned as his finest hour? How about you?
