Title Scream! I will answer (Jeremiah 33:3)
Contents As we live in the world, there are times when we face difficulties that we cannot solve on our own. In times like these, God tells us to pray. Jeremiah in today's text was also at a dead end in life where there is no way to escape. The country is falling apart, and people do not listen to him. Not only that, but the king drove him into a slave wrath and put him in prison. The word of God that came to Jeremiah who was in such an absolute crisis was, “Call to thee, and I will answer you, and I will show you great and mysterious things that you do not know.” It was God's solution to life in crisis.
Then why does God tell us to cry?
First, because we are in danger of not praying because of that suffering, which is more terrible than our suffering.
Jeremiah was a man of such tender heart that he was called the prophet of tears. So, he must have forgotten that God was still with him, despairing at his appearance in prison. Then, God commanded him to acknowledge God's existence again with a cry and to depend only on God. God is speaking to you who are frustrated and exhausted by life's unresolved problems today. “You cry out to me!”…
Second, it is because God's answers are given through our cry.
Prayer is like an echo. When we cry out, we get an answer. If you cry out loudly, you will receive a loud answer, and if you cry out earnestly, you will receive an answer as much as your earnestness. Because God works through our cry, He tells us to pray.
Third, because when we cry out, we learn great and mysterious things.
Prayer is about discovering God's will for the problem, not letting God carry out my will for the problem I am facing. That's why some even say, "We don't need a mouth to pray, we just need an ear." God says that when we cry out, He will reveal His heart, which we do not know. It is to make known the will of God. Do you want to know the meaning and end of your suffering? Do you want to know God's ultimate plan for you? Then cry out. Just as he told Jeremiah the future of his country, God will give us courage by guessing our future with God.
Dear Bethel prayer comrades! Starting tomorrow, we will start the ‘Dawn Prayer Meeting on the 21st of Jericho’ where we gather together and cry out. Let's gather here and together we cry out to the Lord God. God will answer and make known His great and mysterious providence. I hope that you will become believers who do not give up on this precious opportunity.
December 8, 1996 on the Lord's Day