Jer. 9:23-24; Phil 3:7-14. 9/28/25. EPC
This is what the LORD says:“Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.24But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD,dwho exercises loving kindness justice and righteousness on the earth—for I delight in these things,”
7But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in a Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. 10I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
Jeremiah had just predicted the utter destruction and captivity of Jerusalem. This happened in 586. If you knew that everything you had would be gone, it would change your perspective. There isn’t real wisdom in asking- if everything I treasure disappears, what am I left with?
In 1988 Kay had just had our second baby. I was trying to cook supper- and I was frying French fries the old fashioned way with hot oil. I got distracted by a phone call and had to go to the back of the house. When I was back there I heard this explosion. The. Pot had exploded with heat and a fire was burning the kitchen cabinets and was going into the attic. You’re not supposed to do this- but I rushed the pot out the back door, then got a fire extinguisher and put out the flames while Kay called the fire department. Back then we didn’t have much, but everything was tinged with smoke and much was ruined and burned up in just seconds. The old question is, “If your house caught fire, what would you save first? The answer should be your family- but what’s next?
NOT BOASTING Jeremiah tried to save his people by getting them to turn to God and then getting them to surrender instead of being killed. They would not listen. But he gave us this beautiful verse inspired by the Holy Spirit- no doubt. In our culture how much is spent on what is temporary- and we know it. In my mind, such devotion to the temporary good takes away from the better eternal. So in the face of destruction, let not the wise or skillful person boast in their earthly wisdom. All the books will be burned. I have visited a lot of brillliant men and women who have lost their ability to think with dementia. Specifically, I visited one of my old college professors- a brilliant guy who had written several books. But he couldn’t remember his name. It is so sad- but there is a truth here. Let not the strong and powerful person boast in their strength- the strongest will be bent or die. I remember talking to a man who owned multiple gyms in our area- he was a good friend. He worked out a lot and was in excellent shape. But the doctors had told him his muscles were not producing enough testosterone to keep from shrinking. He was so sad. Jeremiah goes on to say “Let not the wealthy boast in their wealth.” You can’t take it with you. In the book of Ecclesiastes, it speaks of the vanity of wealth and how we must leave it all behind. The old saying goes that “I’ve never seen a UHaul trailing a hertz to a graveyard.” Much less a tiny columbarium niche. Now these three things are things Jeremiah says not to boast about- I want my children and grandchildren to have- use your mind, your body, and have enough to be comfortable. Yet there are limits. What have you become addicted to that has become your God? Temporary gods die a hard death. Today I might ask for how long can you leave your phone behind? The more of these things you have, the harder it is to hold them lightly in this life. But the one thing that doesn’t fade away is the God who made us and loves us. Jeremiah knew experientially that all he had would be gone. He had been put in prison. The people of his home town of Anathoth tried to kill him because he asked them to turn away from false gods. They wanted to worship multiple gods to cover all the bases. They were the choosers of God instead of thinking God is their Sovereign King. Jeremiah had lost all he had already. He knew what was important and wanted to tell the people- quit boasting or wallowing in the comfort of temporary things. In Hebrew the word “boast” is “let-Halel” from which we get our word “Hallelujah.” Literally, it says “quit glorying in your wisdom, strength, and riches.” Or it could be translated quit praising your wisdom, strength, and riches- or quit worshiping your wisdom, strength, and riches. Hold lightly to these things- because you will have to let them go. By the way with the rise of social media, there has been a rise in the amount of money Americans spend on beauty products- nearly doubled for the younger generations we spend $6.6 trillion each year on trying to be pretty or handsome. I have heard many times when someone looks at an open casket- “Doesn’t she look beautiful- or doesn’t he look handsome.” I don’t say it, but I want to say it- that’s just makeup. The exterior things are temporary- don’t look at the outside of the cup Jesus said. If you were told a hurricane may destroy-all you have, how would yo prepare? Go buy some books in case the internet goes out? a generator, chain saw? But if it was a cat 5- wouldn’t-matter. What role does your faith play in preparing for a hurricane? if the way you prepare for the disasters in your life or death is to do everything but-call out to God then you need to listen to Jeremiah.
KNOWING GOD- But God doesn’t leave us hopeless- Jeremiah knows this too. There is something we can boast about- and it is the one thing that we often hide- that is our faith. If anyone wants to boast let them boast that they understand and know me. Knowing God is so important. Jesus said as recorded in John 17:3, “Now this is eternal life- that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Paul said that he considered everything rubbish- garbage- compared to the greatness of knowing Christ Jesus our Lord.
A) THIS IS NOT JUST KNOWING ABOUT GOD- Knowing facts about God are important. James says the demons know about God and shudder. It is possible to know about God and still be evil in your heart. But when you know God relationally- when you love Him- and want to know Him better- it transforms you. I can say after 45 years of marriage I have been changed for the better- sometimes it has been difficult for me to be shaped, and many times it has been difficult for my wife to help me be a better person. But when you love someone- it changes who you are. You want to please them. Some of you guys need to remember when you first were dating how you did anything to make her happy- and some of you gals need to remember how patient you were when you were dating and how you were able to overlook some things better. You do not stop growing in knowledge of someone in marriage or in any kind of friendship. You never stop growing in knowledge of God. He is infinite and eternal. Jeremiah picks three qualities here- loving kindness, justice, and righteousness. We can grow in our knowledge of God in all of these areas.
MAKE HIM KNOWN- To boast about knowing Him- means to let others know. Do not be ashamed of your faith. It is what brings you joy, hope, love, grace, strength. Food is my love language. I love to eat. I don’t mind talking about my latest meal or my favorite restaurant. If I find a new helpful app for my phone- I share it with people- I like to talk about the YOUVERSION Bible app. When I have been working on houses on a mission trip- I will say, “Here use this tool- it works great.” When you find something good you want to share it. This is the same with knowing God. I have a friend in God- and you can be his friend too. Come and meet my friend. He’ll be in church Sunday and I’ll introduce you. I am not embarrassed to introduce my wife` or my children or my grandchildren. I am proud of them. I boast about them because I love them. If you love God- and to know God is to love God- then you will want to introduce Him. Make Him known. [Calvin]Jeremiah says in 29, “If you seek me you will find me if you search for me with all your heart.” Jeremiah wanted others to seek Him. It is possible to know God as sure as you know anything else. You know Him by faith. But we all live by faith somewhat. If I get in my car- I know my brakes will work. Now I don’t go look under my hood to make sure there is brake fluid or look underneath the car to inspect my brakes every time. I know they will work. I know the sun will come up tomorrow because I trust it will. I don’t scour the news to see if someone is predicting it won’t come up. Everyday I know things by faith. Knowing God is not any different. There is security in knowing my brakes work and the sun will come up. There is peace that comes when you are able to live by faith in the small things. How much more peace comes from knowing God. Spread the peace in a world that desperately needs God’s peace. Eastminster you have done it for over 75 years. Keep spreading the knowledge of God.
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