Jeremiah 20:7-18 · Jeremiah’s Complaint

7 O Lord , you deceived me, and I was deceived; you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me.

8 Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long.

9 But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.

10 I hear many whispering, "Terror on every side! Report him! Let's report him!" All my friends are waiting for me to slip, saying, "Perhaps he will be deceived; then we will prevail over him and take our revenge on him."

11 But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior; so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced; their dishonor will never be forgotten.

12 O Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous and probe the heart and mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you I have committed my cause.

13 Sing to the Lord! Give praise to the Lord ! He rescues the life of the needy from the hands of the wicked.

14 Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!

15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, who made him very glad, saying, "A child is born to you-a son!"

16 May that man be like the towns the Lord overthrew without pity. May he hear wailing in the morning, a battle cry at noon.

17 For he did not kill me in the womb, with my mother as my grave, her womb enlarged forever.

18 Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame?

I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
Jeremiah 20:7-18
Sermon
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"The word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long." (v. 8)

Prayer: Lord, you have called us to a faith that is much more than a sentimental security blanket. You have challenged us to live out what we say we believe. You never said it would be easy. Give us the courage to stand up and be counted, and also the courage to keep standing after we have been counted.

"I beg your pardon; I never promised you a rose garden. Along with the sunshine, there’s got to be a little rain, sometime." This is the refrain of a song that was popular in the 70s.

The lyrics continue with the singer telling his sweetheart that he could promise her things like big diamond rings, the moon, or the world on a silver platter; but the only thing he can give is himself. He cannot promise "…

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