Strangers in a Foreign Land
JEREMIAH
AN ANCIENT MAN WITH A MODERN MESSAGE
“Strangers in a foreign land”
Jeremiah 29:1-10
“These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.
“For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.”
(Jer 29:1-10 ESV)
“These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.” (Heb 11:13 ESV)
There is an important truth that we as Christians need to be reminded of. We are not permanent residents of this world. Our citizenship is not in this world it is in heaven. Notice what the writer of Hebrews said we are “strangers and exiles on the earth”. A Christian is a stranger in a foreign land.
This truth, this reality presents a problem for believers. The problem that we are confronted with is how does my temporary status affect my life in this place at this time. To say it in another way would be to say, to borrow the words from the late Francis Schaefer “How then should we live?”
There are different tensions that exist in the Christian life. One of those tensions is the tension of being a foreigner in a strange land. Every believer regardless of where they live on the earth are strangers in a foreign land. The tension in our lives is how do I live out the reality of my Christian faith in a strange land. Admittedly this issue takes some thought and perhaps therein lies the struggle for many. Far too many Christians have tried to live with the tension of being a stranger in a foreign land by choosing to withdraw from this world. Many Christians because they do not understand how to live in this world simply choose to withdraw and create a Christian community completely separate from this world. I know of one church that had a desire to build their own rec center so that the people of the church go there and exercise and play basketball and not have to have any contact with non-believers! I’m not saying that a church having a rec center is wrong, but if you simply use it to isolate the people of the church from the community that is wrong. We cannot, must not deny the reality that as believers we must come to grips with this question; “How do I live as a Christian in an un-Christian world?”
Thankfully God has not left us to try and figure this out on our own. His Word gives us guidance and understanding in answering the question of how to live as a stranger in a foreign land.
Jeremiah has been faithfully telling the people of Judah for the last two plus decades that unless they repent of their sins and turn back to God, judgment is coming. Part of that judgment would be that many of the residents of Judah would be carried away captive to the city of Babylon. There they would live as exiles for the span of seventy years. You can read that pronouncement in chapter 25. What was pronounced throughout the book of Jeremiah has now become a reality. The invaders from the north had come to the land, they had conquered the land, and they have carried away captive the people of the land. Their seventy-year exile has begun.
In Jeremiah 29 we see Jeremiah’s heart for the people of Judah. For whatever reason Jeremiah was not among those who were exiled to Babylon. For a time after the exile Jeremiah remained in Judah until he was taken against both his will and God’s will to Egypt where we believe he died. We need to understand that not all the people of Judah were forced into exile. The Bible mentions some 3,000 people of Judah that were carried away into captivity. It seems as if Nebuchadnezzar took many of the best and the brightest that the land of Judah had to offer. He probably did this to enhance his own kingdom and to use their skill to his advantage. Remember among those who were taken into exile were young men like Daniel, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
We have an adage that says “out of sight out of mind”. But that was not the case with Jeremiah. How do we know that? We know that Jeremiah was still concerned for the people who found themselves living as strangers in a foreign land because of a letter that he wrote to them. The content of that letter is found in Jeremiah 29. In his letter to the exiles Jeremiah instructs them how to live in less than ideal circumstances. What the Lord said to Jeremiah applies to us a Christians; it applies to believers as we struggle with how to live as strangers in a foreign land.
First of all God wants them to…
1. PARTICIPATE IN THEIR COMMUNITY
Jeremiah begins by once again reminding the people that he is simply God’s messenger delivering God’s message. In verse four Jeremiah writes
“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon:” (Jer 29:4 ESV)
In our haste to get to the rest of the passage we may be tempted to skip over verse four. But I believe if we would do that we would be making a mistake. The reason that I think if would be a mistake is because of what we would miss if we would choose to ignore this verse.
The first thing that will be of benefit to us as we learn to live as exiles is to remember who it was who placed us here. Once we begin to understand who it was that has positioned us we can begin to better understand why we are here and what we should be doing while we are here.
Who was responsible for the people of Judah being in exile? We know that as a result of the poor leadership provided by both the civic and the religious leaders of the people that they sinned against the Lord and the exile was part of the judgment for their sin. We know that Nebuchadnezzar was responsible for invading the land and carrying them into captivity. But who was at work behind the scenes using the actions of the people to achieve His desired ends? God was.
Quite possibly the people of God felt deserted by God! After all He had made promises to them, after all he had always delivered them before. The history of Israel up until this point had always been a history of deliverance. He delivered them out of the land of Egypt. He delivered them from the armies of Pharaoh. Time after time the Lord had delivered them from the hands of the Philistines. He had delivered them from the Assyrians. God had always been there to deliver them. Perhaps many of the people thought that because God did not deliver them that He had deserted them! But that was not the case! As God begins to speak to His people through Jeremiah the first words out of the God’s mouth were these. Thus says the Lord of Host, the God of Israel. In using both of these titles God is re-assuring His people that He has not forgotten them. He begins by reminding them that He is the Lord of Hosts. He reminds them that He is Lord of all, He is Lord of everyone, He is the Lord of Hosts. That title Lord of Hosts also reminds us that God is still a mighty warrior, that He has not lost any of His power. He has not been overcome by the strength of mighty Nebuchadnezzar! He is the Lord of Hosts and He has used the mighty Nebuchadnezzar to accomplish His good pleasure. But not only does the Lord declare that He is the Lord of Hosts, He also reminds the people that he is still the God of Israel. He wants to make it clear to them that He is still their God. He has not deserted them, He has not cast them off to look for another people to call His own. Yes, they had sinned, yes they were having to suffer the consequences of their sin and this was the time that they needed God the most and He reminds the that He has not forgotten them, He has not cast them off, He has not given up on them. He reminds them that at the very time that they needed Him the most He was still there for them! There are two implications of these truths for our lives.
First of all you are where you are at because God has positioned you there. We may not like where find ourselves, we may regret the decisions that were made that set in motion the events that have brought us to this place in our lives. But even in the midst of difficult circumstances and situations we can be comforted with the knowledge that God has placed us where He has seen fit to place us. As hard as it was for the exiles to believe and possibly understand, the reality was that their time in exile, being strangers in a foreign land was actually going to be good for them. This time of exile cured them of their idolatry. They never made that mistake as a nation again. What each one of us as believers need to frequently remind ourselves is that God has placed us where it is best for us. Therefore we need to be careful about complaining about where God has brought us and not be so quick to look for the way out. As we will see here in just a few moments you can flourish, you can grow wherever God has placed you. God’s working in our lives is not hindered by either location or less than perfect circumstances. We need to remember the words of Paul to the Romans
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Rom 8:28 ESV)
Part of the all things includes where we are at and our current circumstances and our current condition.
The second implication is that in a time of testing, in our time of trouble that God has not forgotten us. He is still there for us He is still our God! When you need Him the most He will be there for you! God gives us His Word on it. Just a few chapters
Later in the book of Jeremiah, God would say to Jeremiah while Jeremiah was in prison the Lord instructed Jeremiah to…
“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” (Jer 33:3 ESV)
Jeremiah found God was still with him in the prison. Jonah found God was still with him while in the belly of the great fish. Paul and Silas found the God was with them in the jail cell. Daniel found God was with him as he slept with the lions. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego found that God was with them even when things began to heat up! The Lord Jesus has promised us that as long as the world stands he would never leave us or forsake us! The problem is not that God deserts us, the problem is we desert God!
What were the people of God to do in their exile? How did God want them to live as strangers in a foreign land? He wanted them to be active participants in their community. God had sent them there in part to establish a godly presence in an ungodly society. Even though the people had sinned against the Lord, they were still His people. God uses imperfect sinful people to accomplish His purposes. God was going to us the imperfect sinful people of Judah to accomplish His purpose in Babylon. In reality these exiles were a very large group of missionaries! So too God leaves us in our cities and towns after our salvation in order to establish a godly presence where we live. Every Christian is a missionary in the sense that we all find ourselves as strangers in a foreign land and each of us have been given the responsibility to spread the fame and the glory of God to those around us.
How were they to establish this godly presence in the city of Babylon?
Let’s look at verses five and six again.
“Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease.” (Jer 29:5-6 ESV)
God wanted them to settle down and live a normal life! They were going to be there for seventy years, despite what the false prophets continued to tell them. The false prophets continued to tell the people that they were only going to be there for a couple of years. Their advice would have been to just rent, don’t buy your not going to be here that long! God says yes, you are going to be here for awhile so go ahead and buy your house, plant your gardens, eat your food. God says raise your families, and then become grandparents. One of the ways that they were to establish this godly presence in an ungodly city was through the raising of godly families. Does God consider families to be important in His eternal plan? Yes He does. One of the ways to establish a godly presence in our community is by raising godly families. As parents we have been given the task to raise our children in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord. Once we have raised a godly family, by God’s grace they will raise a godly family, and by God’s grace the next generation will raise a godly family and our communities benefit from the multiplication of godly families.
As Christians we are not only allowed to get involved with our communities, God wants us to get involved with our communities. God wants Christian Little League Coaches. God wants Christian Girl Scout Leaders. God wants you as a Christian to volunteer at the local school. God wants Christian political leaders. God wants Christian musicians who play more than quote unquote Christian music. God wants Christian artists. God wants us as Christians to be involved at every level of society, to be a part of our society in order to establish a godly presence in the community.
Not only did God want them to participate in the community, He also wanted them to
2. SEEK THE PEACE OF THE COMMUNITY
“But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” (Jer 29:7 ESV)
The word that is translated “welfare” in verse seven is the Hebrew word “shalom”. Shalom is peace. Philip Ryken writes, “Shalom is comprehensive peace.” Clifford Green says “More than the absence of conflict and death, this rich term fills out the word community by embracing well-being, contentment, wholeness, health, prosperity, safety, and rest.” Shalom means order, harmony, and happiness. It means that all is right with the community.
What is God saying to us? God is saying I want you to be involved in your community is such a way that you are doing whatever you can for the public good. Our efforts in outreach are developed according to this principle. We try and engage in good works, to meet needs in our communities that will better our communities. Our Summer Reading camp is an example of this. Children who learn to read well, grow up to be adults who read well, and have a better chance of being better educated and working better jobs and making more money and providing better for their families. The church’s working for the good of the community gives them and us the opportunity to interact and by God’s grace will lead to opportunities to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with them.
Philip Ryken says, “Seeking the peace of the community means being a good neighbor. It means shoveling the sidewalk. It means cleaning the street. It means planting a tree. It means feeding the poor. It means volunteering at the local school. It means greeting people at the store. It means driving safely and helping people with car trouble. It means shutting down immoral businesses. It means embracing people from every ethnic background with the love of Christ.”
Let me remind you that those things in and of themselves will not bring peace to our community. Real peace. Lasting peace, comprehensive peace only comes through Jesus Christ. Peace in our community and peace in our lives has only one source and that source is Jesus Christ. Paul wrote in Romans 5:1
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom 5:1 ESV)
As a church and as individuals we engage in good works to provide us with the opportunity to share the gospel with real people whose lives demonstrate turmoil and trouble rather than real peace that only comes through Jesus Christ.
As strangers in a foreign land we are to actively participate in our communities, we are to actively seek the peace of our communities and then we are to…
3. PRAY FOR THE COMMUNITY
“and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”
(Jer 29:7b ESV)
Our responsibilities to our communities includes our active participation, it includes our active peace seeking and it also includes praying for the welfare, praying for the peace of the city. Part of our prayers should be for the peace, the welfare of the place we live. Why should we do this? God says we should pray for the welfare of the city, because as the city prospers you too will prosper. Which would you rather live in, a dying town or a thriving town! I’m excited to see Richmond and Berea move forward. I’m excited to see fine dinning come to town now that White Castle has opened up! I glad to hear that in a couple of years we won’t have to drive to Lexington to shop at Meijers. I’m glad to see the city thrive and grow and prosper. One of the ways that we can promote that is through our prayers.
Prayer is a civic duty for the Christian. To help put this in context let’s remind ourselves of who these words were written to. They were written to captives in a strange land. Isn’t it interesting that God didn’t tell to rebel against the city? Isn’t it interesting that God didn’t say form a protest, to form a committee to make plans to overthrow the government? God was concerned about the quality and the kind of government that Babylon had but rather than overthrow it He wanted His people to infiltrate it. Daniel, a resident of Judah and an exile in foreign land rose up through the ranks to become the de-facto Prime Minister of Babylon! Nehemiah was the cupbearer to the King! Esther became the Queen!
One of the ways that we can seek the peace, the welfare of our communities is through personal involvement and prayerful involvement.
How do we know what to pray for? God tells us.
“Pray for peace in Jerusalem:
Prosperity to your houses!
Peace inside your city walls!
Prosperity to your palaces!
Since all are my brothers and friends,
I say, Peace be with you!
Since Yahweh our God lives here,
I pray for your happiness.”
(Psalm 122:6-9, Jerusalem Bible)
God gives us four things to pray for our community.
1. Pray for the prosperity of the city.
In other words pray for the economy of the community.
2. Pray for the safety of the city.
Pray that we would have safe streets and drug free neighborhoods.
3. Pray for the politics of the city.
Pray that virtue, ethics, respect, would be restored to public office.
4. Pray for the people of the city.
Pray for blacks, whites, Koreans, Chinese, Hispanic. Pray for the young, pray for the old. Pray for the Lord’s blessing on all your brothers and your neighbors.
Let me close with words from Charles Spurgeon
“A blessing in the city may not make us great, but it will keep us good; it may not make us rich, but it will preserve us honest. Whether we are porters, or clerks, or managers, or merchants, or magistrates, the city will afford us opportunities for usefulness. It is good fishing where there are shoals of fish, and it is hopeful to work for our Lord amid the thronging crowds.”
Psalm 122:9 in the ESV says
“For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.” (Psa 122:9 ESV)
Why participate in your community? Why seek the peace of your community? Why pray for the peace of your community? For God’s sake we seek the good where we live! For God’s glory and God’s honor we need to live as God’s people in a foreign land.