Seek the Prosperity of the City

In one paragraph

The sermon this week came from Jeremiah 29, the passage that leads up to the verse most of us already have memorized. Pastor James opened by connecting the arrival of Van and Lauren Jones to his own memory of coming to Jackson fourteen years ago, and then walked through what God actually said to the exiles before He said "I know the plans I have for you." Pastor James started by working through a...

Read together

1. Matthew 5:43-45 quoted to introduce the theme of loving enemies and praying for persecutors, used as New Testament parallel to Jeremiah's message
2. Jeremiah 1:5 God tells Jeremiah he was known and consecrated before birth, appointed as prophet to the nations
3. Jeremiah 1:8 God tells Jeremiah not to be afraid of the faces of those he delivers the message to
4. Jeremiah 6:16 stand at the crossroads, ask for the ancient paths and the good way, walk in it and find rest
5. Jeremiah 17:9 the heart is deceitful above all things, used in the context of marriage counseling
6. Jeremiah 17:14 heal me O Lord and I shall be healed, save me and I shall be saved
7. Jeremiah 31:3 God declares everlasting love and unfailing kindness drawn toward his people
8. Jeremiah 33:3 called God's telephone number, call out to Me and I will answer and tell you great and unsearchable things
9. Jeremiah 29:11 plans to prosper and not to harm, to give hope and a future, noted as second most googled Bible verse
10. Jeremiah 29:4-7 God's command to the exiles to build houses, plant gardens, grow in numbers, and seek the prosperity of the city where He sent them
11. Jeremiah 29:10 after seventy years God will visit and bring the exiles back to Jerusalem
12. Psalm 137 by the rivers of Babylon the exiles wept, hung up their harps, and called down curses on their captors
13. Psalm 19:14 may the words of my mouth and meditations of my heart be acceptable, quoted as part of the Sublime song
14. 2 Kings 24:17 referenced for background on Zedekiah as king left behind in Jerusalem
15. 1 John 1:9 if we confess our sins God is faithful and just to forgive, quoted during communion prayer
16. Romans 10:13 the whosoever reference made during communion, anyone who puts their trust in Jesus has salvation

Talk about it

1. Pastor Tim talked about Jeremiah faithfully delivering God's word for forty years to people who were not listening. Have you ever felt called to keep doing something for God when it seemed to be producing no results? What kept you going?
2. The sermon pointed out that Jeremiah 29:11 is the second most googled Bible verse, but that most people quote it without knowing the context it was spoken into. How does knowing it was written to people in painful, unwanted exile change the way you read it?
3. God told the exiles to build houses, plant gardens, take wives, and raise families in Babylon, basically to put down roots in a place they did not choose and did not want to be. Has God ever asked you to invest seriously in a place or situation you would not have picked for yourself? What did that look like?
4. Psalm 137 shows the Israelites being completely honest with God about their hatred for their captors, while Jeremiah 29 records God telling those same people to seek the prosperity of those captors and pray for them. How do you hold those two things together in your own life when you are hurt or wronged?
5. Pastor Tim said that persistent, consistent love over time is the only thing that works, drawing on his own experience in Mexico. Who in your neighborhood, workplace, or community is it hardest for you to seek the prosperity of right now, and what would one practical step look like?