You Cannot Burn God’s Word

Hey, good morning, good morning. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This morning, we are at Jeremiah chapter 36, verses 20 through the end of the chapter. Sorry that I wasn't able to get on the last couple of days. Actually, I had a few episodes recorded, but there was no audio. And so it's been a big kerfuffle. So sorry about that.
Let's have some coffee. We'll pray. And we'll get into Jeremiah chapter 36, talking about the scroll that Baruch wrote for Jeremiah and how the king is going to respond to it. Let's have some coffee. We'll pray. I'll get to God's Word. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for the blessing that we get to have, to read your Word, to learn about you. And Father, we pray that this would not just be some type of intellectual exercise or disciplinary routine, but Lord, that indeed you would help us to love you more. And that even though these things may be part of our routine, and though it might be part of our discipline, Lord, we pray that it would not be out of a sense of just raw duty. But Father, you would stoke up the flames of our heart to love you and walk in your ways. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Here we go, Jeremiah chapter 36, verses 20 through the end of the chapter.
And they went to the king into the court, but they stored the scroll in the chamber of Elishamah, the scribe, and told all the words in the hearing of the king. So the king sent Jehudi to bring the scroll, and he took it from Elishamah, the scribe's chamber. And Jehudi read it in the hearing of the king, and in the hearing of all the princes who stood beside the king. Now the king was sitting in the winter house in the ninth month, with a fire burning on the hearth before him. And it happened when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that the king cut it with the scribe's knife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the scroll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth. Yet they were not afraid, nor did they tear their garments. The king nor any of his servants who heard all these words. Nevertheless, Elnathan, Deliah, and Gemariah implored the king not to burn the scroll. But he would not listen to them.
And the king commanded Jeremel, the king's son, and Saraiah, the son of Azrael, and Shalamiah, the son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the Lord hid them. Now after the king had burned the scroll with the words which Baruch had written at the instruction of Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, Take yet another scroll, and write on it all the former words that were in the first scroll, which Jeconiah the king of Judah has burned.
And you shall say to Jehoiakim, king of Judah, Thus says the Lord. You have burned the scroll, saying, Why have you written in it that the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land, and cause man and beast to cease from here? Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim, king of Judah, He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and the frost of the night. I will punish him, his family, and his servants for their iniquity, and I will bring on them, on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah, all the doom that I have pronounced against them. But they did not heed. Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Nariah, who wrote on it at the instruction of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim, king of Judah, had burned in the fire.
And besides, there were added to them many similar words. Well, we need to ask ourselves our three questions. A, what is this about? B, what is the best verse to summarize this? And C, what are we called to do? So, what is this passage about? Well, they hide the scroll. They go tell the king what the scroll said. The scroll says, all right, bring it out. And what does the king do?
Cuts it up and burns it in the fire, even though the guys are pleading with him. Don't do that. Don't do it. Don't do it. Takes a scribe's knife. I don't know what type of knife that is. They obviously know what it was. But he cuts it up and he throws it into the fire. And then it's interesting, though.
He wants to go and arrest Jeremiah and Baruch, but the Lord hid them. God himself is protecting Jeremiah and Baruch. But after the scroll is burned, Baruch is to inscribe on a second scroll all the things that God had said plus more. And in verse 29, you shall say to Jehoiakim, king of Judah, thus says the Lord, you have burned this scroll saying, and then essentially, why did you say the king of Babylon is going to come here? Well, here's what the Lord says concerning Jehoiakim, king of Judah.
He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and the frost of the night. I'm going to punish him, his family, and his servants for their iniquity. I'm going to bring on them and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem and on the men of Judah all the doom that I pronounced against them. But they did not heed. There's a final judgment and a curse on Jehoiakim, and on his family, and on his servants.
It's clear that God is saying those who are associated with him are just as guilty as he is, encouraging him and enabling him to do these sinful things. So Jeremiah does it. He takes the scroll, gives it to Baruch, He writes at the instruction of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim, king of Judah, had burned in the fire. And he adds those similar words to it.
Babylon's going to come, but there's never going to be a king from Jehoiakim's line. That's a sad curse. So, what's this about? He tries to destroy God's Word. Jehoiakim tries to destroy the Lord's Word, but you can't destroy God's Word. God's gonna speak the truth. You can plug your ears, you can cut the book, you can throw it in the fire, but it doesn't erase the reality of what the Lord has said. That's what Jehoiakim has to come face to face with.
I think in my Bible, the best verse to underline in this, I would probably underline verse 30 and 31. That's the doom of Jehoiakim. But maybe you would argue, well, maybe you should underline him throwing the scroll into the fire, that dramatic point. Or maybe somebody would say, well, I want to underline that the point that summarizes this best is that the Lord hid Jeremiah and Baruch. That's fine. I think what best summarizes it is Jehoiakim's final doom that's prophesied by the Lord. Well, what are we called to do? Do we listen to God's Word? God's Word has all sorts of things that I don't want to hear.
All sorts of things that by nature are not pleasant, encouraging, wonderful things for my life at first glance. Tell me about my sin. Tell me about the things that happen when I don't walk in God's way and I don't like it. I don't like it at all. I don't like being rebuked by God's Word. And yet, there's this thing that I remember in the book of Proverbs.
I'd rather be wounded by a friend than have the kisses of an enemy. I'd rather God tell me what the wages of sin deserve. I'd rather hear the horrible news of who I am and how far I've fallen and what's going on and who I would be by myself. Because without it, the glories of the gospel don't make any sense. So there's many things that this world is going to find just utterly repulsive. They don't want it. I don't want it. It doesn't make it less true. It doesn't make it less relevant. He's the sovereign. He's the king. He's the one who created us. He makes the rules. And when I rebel against him, doesn't go well.
But when He softens my heart, His Holy Spirit turns me away from death to life, I gotta tell you. He's been good to me, to warn me of where my sinful flesh goes. So I hope that you will also look to Christ, that when there are things in the scriptures that you may not like, that may confront you and challenge you, I prayed that the Holy Spirit would convict you, let you see the death and the vomit and the stench of sin, and that you would turn from it into the living God, and that you would have life.
He's good. Like a doctor telling us we have cancer, we don't want to hear it, but it doesn't change the diagnosis. But there is a cure. It's found in His Son. and the application of His Holy Spirit to us. He can redeem us and He can reform us that we might die to sin and live unto Him. So when His Word is hard to receive, receive it by faith. Store it up in your heart that you might live.
Let's pray. Father, Your Word is truth. And it is hard sometimes. We may even hate it at times. But it doesn't make it less true. So Father, we pray that your Holy Spirit would please, do not make us conform your word to our lives, twist it and mangle it or try to ignore it or destroy it.
But God, we pray that we would submit unto your mighty right hand. that your spirit would bring us to our knees. Forgive us for our sins. Turn us to you. Turn us away from the ways of death. God, we need you. Please care for us, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. Oh may God bless you. May you walk in the joy of Jesus Christ. May you see the sins that are brought to light. And may you look to the one who is sitting on his throne eternal, Jesus Christ, the author, perfecter of your faith, and your high priest forever. I'll see you next time. Bye.