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1 For by grace you are saved through faith, and 4EXPLORE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>THE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>BIBLE$ this is not from yourselves; it is God s gift Adult Learner Guide large print summer 2011 not from works, so that no one can boast. Jeremiah, Lamentations Anchored in Faith

2 4EXPLORE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>THE>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>BIBLE$ Meet the Writer R. Kelvin Moore wrote this quarter s lessons based on the Books of Jeremiah and Lamentations. He is a professor of Christian Studies at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee. Along with teaching students biblical Hebrew and Old Testament for nearly 20 years at Union, he also has served churches as pastor and Bible study leader. He is a member of Idlewild Baptist Church. Dr. Moore holds degrees from Samford University (B.A.) and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div., Th.D.). Previously, he has contributed articles to LifeWay magazines such as Collegiate, Biblical Illustrator, and Preaching. Dr. Moore and his wife, Cathy, have two youngadult children, Megan and Bailey. We welcome him as a new writer for Explore the Bible Series. Explore the Bible: Adult Learner Guide (Large Print) (ISSN ) is published quarterly by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, One LifeWay Plaza, Nashville, TN 37234, Thom S. Rainer, President. Copyright 2011 LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. For ordering or inquiries visit or write LifeWay Church Resources Customer Service, One LifeWay Plaza, Nashville, TN For subscriptions or subscription address changes, subscribe@lifeway.com, fax , or write to the above address. For bulk shipments mailed quarterly to one address, orderentry@ lifeway.com, fax , or write to the above address. We believe that the Bible has God for its author; salvation for its end; and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter and that all Scripture is totally true and trustworthy. The 2000 statement of The Baptist Faith and Message is our doctrinal guideline. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Standard Christian Bible, Holman CSB, and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers. The suggestions for pronouncing Bible names are from That s Easy for You to Say: Your Quick Guide to Pronouncing Bible Names by W. Murray Severance, Copyright 1997 by Broadman & Holman Publishers. Used by permission. A d u lt LEARNER GUIDE This periodical is designed for adults using the Explore the Bible Series. V o lu m e 4, Number 4 Summer 2011 PRODUCTION & MINISTRY TEAM David Briscoe Content Editor Pat Phillips Production Editor Dawn Rodgers Wyse Graphic Designer Brent Bruce Graphic Design Specialist Alan Raughton Lead Adult Ministry Specialist David Apple Adult Ministry Specialist Dwayne McCrary Editorial Project Leader Send questions/comments to Editor, Explore the Bible: Adult Learner Guide One LifeWay Plaza Nashville, TN Or make comments on the Web at MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL Bret Robbe, Director Leadership and Adult Publishing Ken Braddy, Ron Keck Managing Directors Leadership and Adult Publishing David Francis, Director Sunday School Bill Craig, Director Leadership and Adult Ministry Gary H. Hauk, Director Publishing, LifeWay Church Resources Printed in the United States of America 4 Explore the Bible: Adult Learner Guide

3 Table of Contents Summer 2011 Adult learner guide How to Become a Christian: Jesus Biblical Illustrator Article: Drink Offerings in the Ancient Near East Daily Bible Readings Introduction to Jeremiah, Lamentations Unit Overviews Unit 1: navigating Life s Storms (Jer. 1:1 25:38) June 5 Accept Your Commission Jeremiah 1: June 12 Get Back on Track Jeremiah 2:1 6: June 19 Live Above Board Jeremiah 7:1 10: June 26 Rise Above the Tide Jeremiah 11:1 15: July 3 Never Say It s Hopeless Jeremiah 16:1 18: July 10 Submit to Divine Discipline Jeremiah 19:1 21: July 17 Keep Your Behavior in Line Jeremiah 22:1 25: Unit 2: staying on Course (Jer. 26:1 45:5) July 24 Settle Down Jeremiah 26:1 29: July 31 *Check Your Direction Jeremiah 30:1 33: August 7 Stay True Jeremiah 34:1 39: August 14 Follow Orders Jeremiah 40:1 45: Unit 3: serving the Commander (Jer. 46:1 52:34) August 21 Recognize the Lord s Authority Jeremiah 46:1 52: August 28 Rely on the Lord s Love Lamentations 1:1 5: * Evangelistic Lesson cover photo credit Photography by Paul Hart, 2010 istockphoto, LP Explore the Bible: Adult Learner Guide 5

4 Navigating Life s Storms Week of June 5 Unit 1 Accept Your Commission Background Passage: Jeremiah 1:1-19 Lesson Passages: Jeremiah 1:4-14,17-19 Biblical Truth Believers can act with assurance of the Lord s presence and power in any assignment He gives them. Life Goal To help you accept assignments from the Lord, even difficult ones istock Photo, LC Some years ago, one of my students came to see me with an urgent request. He had calculated that to remain in school he would have to make an A in my class. Sounding desperate, he asked if I would figure his current grade and what score he would need on the final exam to finish with an A. I ran the numbers and then informed him of the painful truth. Even with a perfect score on the final exam, the student s overall grade would fall a few tenths of a point short of an A. His face drooped with disappointment. Wanting to encourage the young man, I promised that I would give him the few tenths of a point needed if and only if he earned a perfect score on the final exam. The student s face immediately lit up in a hundred-watt smile. He exclaimed, I m going to ace your final exam, Dr. Moore! To my pleasant 12 Accept Your Commission

5 Study Questions 1. What response did Jeremiah make initially to the Lord s call to be a prophet? (1:6) 2. How was Jeremiah s ministry to be both destructive and constructive? (1:10) 3. What was the meaning of Jeremiah s vision of the boiling pot? (1:14) 4. What was the Lord s threefold promise to Jeremiah concerning the difficulties the prophet would face? (1:18-19) surprise, that s exactly what the young man did. I still remember how passionately the student accepted this daunting assignment. In a similar sense, the Lord commissions all believers to the daunting responsibility of serving Him in His kingdom. We might have different tasks to do, and some of these tasks might entail difficult circumstances. Nevertheless, the Lord promises to be present with and to empower His people. The prophet Jeremiah learned this truth from the moment the Lord called the young man to proclaim His message. May we too find reassurance from Jeremiah s experience. May we readily accept the Lord s assignments regardless of how difficult they appear. BACKGROUND PASSAGE OVERVIEW Chapter 1 records Jeremiah s call to be a prophet. Initially, Jeremiah recoiled from this assignment. He thought that he was too young, and the times in which he lived were uncertain in many respects. He didn t have any experience as a prophet. However, the Lord assured the young man that He had been preparing Jeremiah for this work even before his birth. With the promise of the Lord s presence and power, Jeremiah had no reason to fear what others might think of him. The prophet s ministry would have both destructive and constructive effects. His messages of divine judgment would tear down the people s false worship and allusions of security. Eventually, Jeremiah also would proclaim a message of hope designed to rebuild the people s trust in the Lord. To encourage His new prophet, the Lord gave Jeremiah two powerful visions. These visions assured Jeremiah that if he This lesson begins Unit 1, Navigating Life s Storms. See page 10 for an overview of the unit. S This lesson as a whole centers on the theme of Serve. Decide on ways that you can be more involved in serving the Lord, in strengthening your present service, and in encouraging other believers in their service to the Lord. For more on Connect, Grow, Serve, Go: A Commitment to Balanced Spiritual Health, see page 11. Week of June 5 13

6 faithfully carried out his assignment, the Lord absolutely would guarantee the prophetic message and watch over His prophet. Recognize Your Commission (Jer. 1:4-6) HCSB 4 The word of the LORD came to me: 5 I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations. 6 But I protested, Oh no, Lord God! Look, I don t know how to speak since I am only a youth. KJV 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. 6 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child. What assignments have you taken on that you sensed the Lord gave you? (1:5) Jeremiah was called to be a prophet at a critical time for the nation of Judah. The son of a village priest in Anathoth [AN uh thawth] in the territory of Benjamin, Jeremiah grew up just an hour s walk from the capital city, Jerusalem. He began his prophetic ministry in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah (Jer. 1:2), almost a hundred years after the Assyrians fulfilled the prophecies of the Lord s messengers Amos and Hosea by destroying the Northern Kingdom of Israel. The overgrown ruins of Samaria, Israel s once powerful capital, lay just 30 miles north of Jeremiah s hometown. Except for a brief time of religious reform during Josiah s reign, Judah seem determined to follow her sister kingdom s path to judgment. The Lord called Jeremiah to urge His wayward covenant people to repent. Verses 4-5. Jeremiah s call to the prophetic ministry was a startling, life-changing event. The prophet recalled it vividly, reporting the very dialogue between the Lord and him. The Lord took the initiative and spoke individually to Jeremiah. As Christians, we know the Lord can use various means to get us involved in serving Him. It s important for us to remember, however, that He deals personally with each of us. That s the way Jeremiah described his call to be the Lord s prophet. Verse 5 reveals the amazing relationship between God s sovereignty and human free will. The word rendered formed 14 Accept Your Commission

7 also can be translated fashioned. Even before Jeremiah developed in his mother s womb, the Lord fashioned a purpose for the child and the child for a purpose. The Lord chose Jeremiah for an assignment, a clear demonstration of God s sovereignty. Yet, Jeremiah had to respond freely and positively to the Lord s call by embracing and fulfilling the assignment. The phrase set apart means to be designated for a specific purpose. The Lord had a specific assignment for Jeremiah. He was to be a prophet to the nations. The messages the Lord wanted him to declare concerned not only the people of Judah but also the peoples of the whole world. Verse 6. What a daunting assignment! Jeremiah expressed a sense of shock and inadequacy: Oh no, Lord God! He felt unqualified to speak for the Lord. (See Study Question 1.) Similar to one of Moses protests (see Ex. 3:10), Jeremiah pointed to his young age. The Hebrew word translated a youth has a broad range of meaning: it can refer to a baby (see Ex. 2:6), a teenager (see Gen. 37:2), or young men of military age (2 Sam. 2:14). Whatever his exact age, Jeremiah felt overwhelmed by the task. God has an assignment for every believer. Like Jeremiah, we may feel overwhelmed by the thought of being commissioned by God for a task. Yet, we can be sure that the sovereign Lord who calls us to serve Him also equips us for the task. Receive the Lord s Power (Jer. 1:7-10) HCSB KJV 7 Then the LORD said to me: Do not say: I am only a youth, for you will go to everyone I send you to and speak whatever I tell you. 8 Do not be afraid of anyone, for I will be with you to deliver you. This is the LORD s declaration. 9 Then the LORD reached out His hand, touched my mouth, and told me: I have now filled your mouth with My words. 7 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. 8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD. 9 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. Week of June 5 15

8 10 See, I have appointed you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and demolish, to build and plant. 10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant. What Godgiven assignment have you taken on that had an element of fear you had to overcome? (1:7) How has the Lord assured you of His presence and power in serving Him? (1:9) Verse 7. The Lord rebutted Jeremiah s excuse of being too young and inexperienced. The young man needed only to depend on the Lord s guidance and empowerment and to be faithful. The Lord would show Jeremiah whom to address (everyone I send you to) and would give him the very words to say (speak whatever I tell you). Now, as then, the Lord looks more for obedience than for experience when He calls His people to serve. Verses 8-9. Next, the Lord addressed Jeremiah s unspoken hindrance: fear. Jeremiah must have been petrified! Who was he to call for repentance from powerful kings, priests, and elders, not to mention from the many citizens of Judah? However, the Lord assured Jeremiah that he needn t be afraid of anyone. The basis of the Lord s assurance was twofold. First, Jeremiah could count on the Lord s constant presence: I will be with you. Second, the Lord promised to deliver Jeremiah. The Hebrew term for deliver can have the meaning of to rescue. Thus the Lord wasn t promising that the prophet never would face opposition or be in physical jeopardy. He was promising, however, to be Jeremiah s powerful Anchor, giving the prophet power and victory over whatever he faced in his service to the Lord (compare 2 Cor. 12:9). The statement This is the Lord s declaration literally means So says Yahweh! It was the Lord s stamp of authenticity on a prophet s words. The Lord added an assuring gesture to His words of assurance. He touched Jeremiah s mouth, empowering the prophet to proclaim His words. Jeremiah would have to recall and draw upon this divine assurance many times in the coming years of his prophetic ministry. Verse 10. The prophetic messages of Jeremiah would be both destructive and constructive. Destructively, his messages primarily would announce God s judgment designed to uproot and tear down, to destroy, and demolish a wayward, idolatrous society. On the other hand, some messages would 16 Accept Your Commission

9 point to a hopeful future for a repentant remnant of God s people. These messages would build and plant the seeds of a new covenant in the future. (See Study Question 2.) Realize the Lord s Reassurance (Jer. 1:11-14) HCSB KJV 11 Then the word of the LORD 11 Moreover the word of the came to me, asking, What do you LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, see, Jeremiah? I replied, I see a branch of an almond tree. 12 Then said the LORD unto me, I see a rod of an almond tree. 12 The LORD said to me, You have Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it. seen correctly, for I watch over My word to accomplish it. 13 Again 13 And the word of the LORD the word of the LORD came to me came unto me the second time, inquiring, What do you see? saying, What seest thou? And I And I replied, I see a boiling pot, said, I see a seething pot; and the its lip tilted from the north to the face thereof is toward the north. south. 14 Then the LORD said unto me, 14 Then the LORD said to me, Disaster will be poured out from the break forth upon all the inhabit- Out of the north an evil shall north on all who live in the land. ants of the land. The Lord gave the prophet two memorable visions. These served as preparation for a lifetime of demanding ministry. Verses Jeremiah didn t explain the surrounding circumstances of the two visions. Both of the central images were common items. The Lord called attention to the items deeper meanings by asking, What do you see, Jeremiah? First, Jeremiah saw a branch of an almond tree. The prophetic meaning lay in a word play between the like-sounding Hebrew terms for almond and watch. From that moment on, Jeremiah would be reminded every time he saw an almond branch of the Lord s watching over His Word to accomplish it. The almond tree, first to bloom in the spring, was a sure sign of the onset of the season. So, too, it would be for Jeremiah a sign of the imminence and certainty of the Lord s judgment. Verses Second, Jeremiah saw a boiling pot, its lip tilted from the north to the south. The pot s scalding Week of June 5 17

10 contents were about to pour out in a specific direction. The Lord explained the prophetic meaning as being an impending disaster about to overwhelm the people of Judah. An enemy army pouring in from the north would strike against all that live in the land. (See Study Question 3.) Jeremiah knew that this enemy would be an instrument of the Lord, sent to punish His people because of their sins. Preaching messages of impending judgment would be difficult and even dangerous for Jeremiah. These visions reassured the prophet that the Lord was guaranteeing His judgment would come. Although we might not have the same assignment as Jeremiah had, we still can be encouraged by the reassurance the Lord gives those who serve Him. He will bring His purposes to completion. Rely on the Lord s Resources (Jer. 1:17-19) HCSB KJV 17 Now, get ready. Stand up and 17 Thou therefore gird up thy tell them everything that I command you. Do not be intimidat- them all that I command thee: be loins, and arise, and speak unto ed by them or I will cause you to not dismayed at their faces, lest I cower before them. 18 Today, I am confound thee before them. the One who has made you a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze this day a defensed city, and an iron 18 For, behold, I have made thee walls against the whole land pillar, and brazen walls against the against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the popula- Judah, against the princes thereof, whole land, against the kings of tion. 19 They will fight against you against the priests thereof, and but never prevail over you, since I against the people of the land. am with you to rescue you. This is 19 And they shall fight against the LORD s declaration. thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee. The prophet must have felt overwhelmed. These verses record the Lord s final, threefold charge: brace yourself, speak the word of the Lord, and don t be discouraged. Verse 17. The Lord told Jeremiah to get ready. The verb rendered get ready depicts a man s tying up his full-length robe 18 Accept Your Commission

11 to allow for running or performing a demanding physical task. The Lord directed Jeremiah to prepare for strenuous action. Next, the Lord instructed Jeremiah to tell them everything that I command you. The pronoun I is emphatic. Jeremiah s message was not to be his own thoughts or opinions but rather the undiluted message of the Lord. Then the Lord encouraged the prophet not to be intimidated by his audience. The word translated intimidated can refer to being shattered or dismayed. The same Hebrew term is used a second time in the verse when the Lord warned that He would cause Jeremiah to cower before his opponents if the prophet disobeyed the prophetic calling. Verses The Lord s threefold charge to Jeremiah was capped with a threefold promise. First, the Lord promised to strengthen His servant, making Jeremiah into a spiritual version of a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls. No enemy of the Lord would be able to penetrate Jeremiah s spiritual life or take him captive. Second, the Lord promised Jeremiah that he was on the winning side. Of course, there would be intensive battles to fight, spiritual and otherwise. However, the Lord s opponents would never prevail against the prophet as long as Jeremiah stayed anchored in faith. Third, the Lord promised to be with Jeremiah, ready at all times to rescue His servant. (See Study Question 4.) Jeremiah would face difficulties in carrying out his God-given task, but the Lord promised that He would supply His full array of spiritual resources to the prophet every moment of every day. The Lord makes this same promise to every Christian today who serves Him in the power of the Holy Spirit. WHAT ABOUT YOU? Have you sensed the Lord leading you to serve Him in some capacity? Perhaps the task is to share the gospel with a neighbor or coworker. Or to take a leadership role in a new Bible study group. Or to serve on a church committee or to get involved with an ongoing church ministry. Maybe the Lord is calling you to lifelong vocational ministry. The same Lord who called and equipped Jeremiah as a prophet wants to equip you to serve Him. Will you embrace the Lord s commission? When have you experienced the Lord s threefold promise of strength, victory, and rescue? (1:18-19) A n s w e r s t o Study Questions 1. Jeremiah protested that he was unqualified to speak for the Lord. 2. Jeremiah s messages of judgment would tear down idolatry; his messages of hope would point to a new covenant. 3. The boiling pot meant that an enemy army would invade the land from the north. 4. The Lord would strengthen Jeremiah, give him ultimate victory, and always be with him to rescue him. Week of June 5 19