Devotionals

The Foundation and Hope for our Faith

by Henry Jaegers
02/23/22
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The Foundation and Hope for our Faith

Part One

By Henry Jaegers

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.  For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. (Hebrews 12:2,3)

I have been delayed in putting together this message for reason. I began to write on the subject on Tuesday, February 22, 2022, and my mind went blank yesterday as I tried to present this message. There is a reason why this delay has occurred. Yesterday, something happened in our world that is very scary, especially to those who know nothing about Scripture and whose faith is based on something that lacks substance and reality.

I do not know how many of these messages I will be sharing with you, but I know deep down in my heart, that I cannot do it in one short devotional. And what I am sharing with you is not devotional but what I believe is foundational to our faith and for our hope for the future.

Several years ago, I was prompted by the still small voice of the Holy Spirit to begin reading the book of Jeremiah. At that time, I did not know why God was leading me in that direction. I also did not know what I was about to discover when I began to carefully read and gain some understanding of this marvelous book.

Recently I was forced to change the title of the book, "called to preach"; insights into the prophetic ministry".  My purpose for writing this book is I wanted men to realize the seriousness of being trusted with sharing the word of God with others. I wanted people to understand the experience of Jeremiah and the struggles that he went through and the difficulties that he faced by being faithful to God. But the title of my book was somewhat misleading because when people saw the title, they interpret the book to be a book on homiletics.

I recently changed the title of that book by adding the phrase. Called to preach! Is anyone listening? This change was prompted by remembering the words of Mr. Masterson, who taught our homiletics class in my second year of Bible school. He made a statement that I have never forgotten and I have come, over the years, to realize the wisdom contained in it. He said, "some of you think that you are called to preach, but the problem is finding people who are called to listen."  And I have discovered over the many years, the reality and the depth of wisdom that came from this man.

Now you are probably wondering where I am going with all of this. As I compared the times of Jeremiah to our present time, I see circumstances that Jeremiah faced that are similar to ones that we face today. They have happened many times since Jeremiah began his ministry, and they are just as much a reality today, as they were back then when God told Jeremiah to declare His message, to ear's that were not willing to listen. Now am I beginning to make sense?