Before I Formed You
Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Luke 4:21-30
When does our life begin and when does our ministry or calling begin? For Jesus the answer is clear:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:1-5)
“I will declare the decree:
The Lord has said to Me,
‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
You shall break them with a rod of iron;
You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’” (Psalm 2:7-9)
Jesus’ life and ministry began before He was born in the earth. That much should be clear. When did the life and ministry of the Prophet Jeremiah begin? Again, the answer is clear:
Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;
I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”Then said I:
“Ah, Lord God!
Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”But the Lord said to me:
“Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’
For you shall go to all to whom I send you,
And whatever I command you, you shall speak.
Do not be afraid of their faces,
For I am with you to deliver you,” says the Lord. (Jeremiah 1:4-8)
These two examples are from the Bible. Could they possibly pertain to us? Jesus knew who He was and what He must do. He went to the synagogue on His hometown and preached the Gospel:
In the synagogue at Nazareth, Jesus read from the book of the prophet Isaiah, and began to say, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:21)
Jeremiah also discovered his ministry:
Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the LORD said to me, “Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down,to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jeremiah 1:9-10)
Do we know who we are and do we know that God has a plan for our lives? He does! How many lives and plans of God have been aborted because we refused to listen to Him and to follow His Word? Often this abortion of life or ministry occurs because of pure selfishness. The decision to abort is not born out of love:
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
God is love. We are made in the image of God. Are we prepared to live out our lives and callings in Him?
