The Pain and Promise of Perseverance

“But if I say, "I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name," Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, And I cannot endure it.” – Jeremiah 20:9

In a day where Truth is increasingly passé, and even hated, we as people of God must remain encouraged in the battle. I have been challenged again by the words and wrestling of the prophet Jeremiah, the prophet who blows all of the contemporary paradigms of “successful ministry”, as he labored and wrestled through the agony of discouragement because of his call to proclaim the message of God. If we are truly the people of God we cannot allow ourselves to fail or give in to the “sweet promises” of retreat, compromise, or quite. Now is the time for the people of God to rise up with greater confidence than ever and fight through our proclamation of Truth for what is right.

If truly called, then ceasing in our labor means the following pains to us:

1) Our enemies will mock our God and us

Why can we not afford to keep silence in loving and lifting the Truth to new volumes and heights? Because those who have heard us will see not only us, but our God as disingenuous and fraudulent. We cannot afford to back down because God’s reputation is on the line! I love the words of David in I Samuel 17:46 as he stared down the giant who had caused the armies of the living God to cease and run,

“This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,”.

There is something refreshingly bold and tough about the words of a man who is so confident in his God, and his God’s message, as he looks his enemy in the face and spells out move by move what he is about to do. Why does he do this? So that that there will be peace in Israel? No. So that all will adore him for his bravery? No. Is it so that all the world will be impressed? No. The sole purpose for David’s bravery and perseverance for God in the face of overwhelming opposition is stated simply and powerfully for this reason, “that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,”. He simply put out the message and let the chips fall where they may. At the end of the day however, one thing is certain, no one will mock us or our God if we, like David remain faithful to the task at hand.

2) Our inward pain will make of us a broken and smoldering misery

Jeremiah knew and preached that the Word of God is like a fire and a hammer (Jer. 23:29), burning and leveling everything in its path. How painful to attempt to hold such a force inside. He contemplated the allure of quitting, but at last realized that this would only intensify his pain. Is the temporary mocking of this world and its temporal people really worth trying to bridle the omnipotent Word of Creator God? Jeremiah knew the answer: NO! If we believe this world to be to difficult try the burden of an unfaithful life. It will literally burn you out and drive you to the point of destruction. Paul echoed the same reflection of the internal torment for being egligent in our responsibility to preach the Gospel in I Cor. 9:16, “Woe is me if I preach not the Gospel!” The temporary relief is only short-lived at best!


Knowing then the pain of withholding the Truth, what is the promise of faithfully delivering the message regardless of how it is received, or even if it is received?

1) The Lord is with us as our champion

Just as David learned, when we are obedient, bold, and faithful, we won’t fight the battle alone. Jeremiah says that God is with us as our “dread champion”! He is not some equal, He is the dominating force of the universe fighting on the side of His Truth! Honestly, who doesn’t want a front row seat to watch this fight? That is the promise of faithfulness in proclaiming Truth. We will be active witnesses in watching our God accomplish all His will with might and power!

2) Our enemies will be crushed

Blurring the battle lines is never a good thing, in fact it is always a dangerous thing. As for me, I want to stay as far away from the enemy as I can because of this promise. God is going to crush them, and I don’t want to deceive anyone, including myself, as to which side I am on. God will deal with them! They will be defeated and exposed, and I don’t want to be on the receiving end of that promise. In fact, I want to be part of the delivery of that promise through proclamation of the Truth. I want to ride behind my conquering King as His faithful soldier, but that will never happen if I shut my mouth and suppress the message that must be preached!

All this to say that we have no option but to faithfully and fearlessly proclaim that which alone pure, powerful, and ultimately victorious! May we by God’s grace know the promises of perseverance!