B. A. D. (Be A Disciple) Student Ministries

Jeremiah 29:11 Doesn't Mean What You Think It Means  And Some Notes on Being a Good Fig  Jeremiah continues to proclaim God's word amid false prophets, and the Lord tells Jeremiah a metaphor. Jeremiah sees some figs, a basket of good ones, and a basket of bad ones, so bad they cannot be eaten. The Lord says similarly, there are good exiles and bad ones, and those who are good or who become good figs will be given a heart to know God, and they will be His people, and He will be their God--because they have returned to Him with all their heart (Jeremiah 24:7).  Then we get to It. The big prophecy. The Israelites are spending 70 years in exile and captivity to atone for their sins. At this point, everyone thinks Jeremiah is insane. They had been told lies that were pleasing from false prophets for years, and here comes Jeremiah, with all this bad news. Of course they're going to think he's insane! But what comes next is a very defining point of the Israelites--t...

Keeping Faith by Staying in the Word As Jeremiah continues to spread the word of God, the people of Judah and Israel begin to mock him. They don't believe what he's saying. Why? Because the other prophets in town are being deceitful. They're telling the people that they're on the right page with God, and Jeremiah is telling them that no, they are not. They're not right with God and they're ruining every chance they have by continuing to live in sin and worship other gods.  So Jeremiah gets frustrated and asks God, "Why does the way of the wicked prosper?" And God responds with a very detailed and specific answer which basically says, "They'll get what's coming to them eventually." God gives Jeremiah several metaphors to demonstrate this, including burying a linen belt and digging it up at a later date. It went in fine, but it's later dirty and decomposed.  Then, we hear about how God will bring destruction and famin...

A New Prophet There's a new man in town, folks. One who's come to tell the Israelites what's actually up.  Jeremiah was called by God at a young age to deliver a message to Israel. At first, he says he's too young, that no one will take him seriously, and that he doesn't know how to speak to the people. But the Lord reminds him that he was formed by God's hands, and that the Lord's words have filled Jeremiah's heart, and that he should not be afraid.  So, Jeremiah does it. He becomes God's servant, His mouthpiece, and delivers His word to Israel. A lot of the words he speaks in today's reading are thoughts we've all had throughout all of the readings. Israel has forsaken God and lived in sin. That they need to circumcise their hearts. Jeremiah 4:14 gets even more specific with "O Jerusalem, wash the evil from your hearts and be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts?" Because Israel had been unfaithful! They ...

God is for Everyone. Finding Comfort Amid Loss.  In today's reading, the Lord has a softer tone. Isaiah 54:9-10 says this:  "To me, this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord, who has compassion on you.  The Lord has sworn to not be angry, to not rebuke, to be a God of everlasting love that cannot be removed. What a relief!  In this time of world-wide political turmoil, I believe it's important to remind ourselves of this: God wants everyone. God is greedy for our hearts and souls. He wants us to live pure lives with Him, and to not exclude anyone from that. Christianity is a non-exclusive club in which everyone still gets treated like a V.I.P. At least, that...

God Continues to Save His People Do any of us truly deserve God's grace? No, but that's why it's called grace. It's a gift! We can talk, day after day, about what idiots the Israelites were. They had everything going for them and yet they still turned their backs on God! However, everyday, we all do little things that bring us further away from God as well. And He forgives us as He forgave them. He blesses us with His grace and His mercy the same way it was extended to the Israelites. That should bring us all some comfort.  The caption of Isaiah 43 is "Israel's Only Savior." How fitting is that? Through all those kings, all those judges, the only true savior, the only one who actually saves  was there for all of it. He was there all along. And they turned their backs on Him! But Isaiah 43:2 shows what a merciful savior God is:  "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not swe...

Finding Rest in the Lord Today's reading begins with the Lord mourning the sins of the nations we've spent the most time with in the Old Testament so far. He compares their view of Him to a vase looking at a potter and saying, "You know nothing." (Isaiah 29:16). It talks about how the Lord came to save the nations time and time again, but they nations responded with just words, not actions. But God  continued to save them, because He is a gracious and compassionate God. It's also pointed out that the people so frequently relied on horses, on other nations, on worldly things--rather than relying on God, and seeking help from the Lord.  Then, we see a little bit of a turnaround, in Isaiah 33:2, there is a cry for help. "O Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress." The Lord should  be our strength every morning. Waking up is hard enough, without thinking about the crazy world we ha...

The End of the World A Pinpoint Between Life and Death Today, I'll mostly be focusing on Isaiah 24-26, but first, I'd like to point out a little extra Jesus prophecy, carried over from yesterday's reading.  Isaiah 16:5 says, "In love, a throne will be established; in faithfulness, a man will sit on it--one from the house of David--one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness." This verse is referring to Jesus. I love  that it's pointed out that God sent Jesus out of love, not condemnation. And Jesus took over that role because of his faithfulness, which we are to emulate.  Moving on to Isaiah 24: The Lord's Devastation of the Earth a.k.a. the end of the world.  Reading Isaiah 24 is gruesome. It seems nice at first, it sounds like a leveled playing field where master and servant, debtor and creditor, priest and people are all the same! Sounds lovely! But the chapter continues to point out that people have absol...