Your Hope & Future With God Begins In Obedience & Contentment

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘”For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”’ (Jeremiah 29:11)

Despite the chaos in the world today, people have hope that the future will be brighter for them.  The Catholics have a new Pope who hope he will lead them in their Faith to a brighter future.  Canadians are hoping their new Prime Minister will provide them a path to hold onto their national identity while in Alberta the people are preparing to choose between possible secession from Canada or a more autonomous role that they believe with provide them a future that is prosperous.  In the US, we hope the new administration’s early actions with tariffs among other acts will set the path to a less encumbered and more prosperous future for Americans both individually and corporately.

We as Christians, while perhaps holding such hope in our mortal leaders to lead us to a better future, hold a more powerful Hope in our Lord Jesus.  Some think God is the avenue to riches and prosperity, and while for some that could be the case, it often doesn’t happen like that.  We become content in our Faith, but it may not lead to living on ‘Easy Street’; maybe Easy Street in Port Charlotte, but more of a life free of worldly concerns like paying bills, balancing the checkbook, and making sure our medical needs are covered.  Some read Jeremiah 29:11 and think that if they only believe in God enough, they will be wealthy, healthy, and a good future and long life until it’s time to ‘graduate to Heaven’.  But is that a true interpretation of that verse?

The most well-known verse in the Book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah 29:11, is a promise or covenant God makes to His people who obey Him.  Some in the ‘name it & claim it’ crowd point to this and believe it means God will enrich you with great wealth and a long healthy life, if you’re truly a believer.  God did not mean this in that sense, but to Spiritually enrich and protect you, and to give you a hope in having an Eternal future with Him after our mortal lives end.  It is important to remember there were (and still are) true believers who ended up beaten and tortured physically; Stephen getting stoned to death, almost every Apostle suffering death through various means of execution, and today where Christians are imprisoned, tortured, and/or executed for their beliefs in China, North Korea, and in Islamic regions.

In order to gain God’s plans, hope and future, He tells the people through Jeremiah in Jeremiah 29:12-15 that they must first desire His plans, then they will need to accept His sovereignty over them and seek His Words and His presence before He will release them from their captivity.  For the Israelites, this meant by obeying God (something they did not do before their exile to Babylon), they would, after 70 years, be allowed to return to Jerusalem.  There would be hardships, being away from home and living in servitude under Babylonian rule, but they were seek Joy and contentment in obedience to God and live Godly, Righteous lives; God would even raise prophets (like Daniel) in their life off of ‘Easy Street’.

We have to look past why they should seek Joy and contentment in God other than that promised future.  In Jeremiah 29:16-19, where God lays out His plans for those who did not listen to him (in particular King Zedekiah of Judah), essentially the opposite of Jeremiah 29:11’s promise.  Those who did not heed God’s Word from Jeremiah would have no hope and no future.  In Zedekiah’s case, he was captured, his sons put to death in front of him, then he was blinded (his eyes likely poked by a sword), and imprisoned in Babylon to die there.  It is probable that Zedekiah did not repent of his sins, and thus even Spiritually he had no eternal future.

Note that those who believed in God were not spared His wrath.  They went into exile for 70 years along with those who did not obey God, and most likely that generation did not return to Jerusalem but died in Babylon.  God did provide them an earthly hope and future though, by encouraging them to settle down, have children, and prosper in Babylon (Jeremiah 29:5-7) so if not, they could not, then their children would return in obedience to God, to rebuild and live in Jerusalem (which they did in Nehemiah).    

I’m sure many had plans for a major remodeling project for their homes pre-exile, or some were planning their retirement somewhere outside the city (Dead Sea Acres?  Sun City Judah?) when God’s plans superseded their plans.  But we also have to realize God’s plans aren’t always so drastic, and usually He allows our plans, made with Him, to come to fruition.  God wants us to prepare for many events that will not lead us to prosper in the secular sense; for drought, for famine, or to save for a rainy day or retirement.  Just know God’s plans for you are to give you that hope and a future with Him is as true today as it was with those in Jeremiah’s time, and follows the same guidelines.