Hello, and welcome to this week's episode of
Trinity Sermons. This week, we are continuing
our sermon series, The Bible Doesn't Say That,
where we look at some different phrases that
sound really spiritual, but aren't actually biblical.
Today, we're looking at this phrase, God has
a wonderful plan for your life. And while it
is true that God does have a plan for your life,
and that that plan is good, that doesn't mean
that it always feels good. So Rob is going to
unpack for us Jeremiah 29, 11. I know the plans
that I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans
to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to
give you a hope and a future. And we're going
to talk about what does that really mean for
God to have plans for our hope and future. Today's
reading is taken from the book of Jeremiah, chapter
29, verses 1, 4 to 14. This is the text of the
letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem
to the surviving elders among the exiles and
to the priests and the prophets and all the other
people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile
from Jerusalem to Babylon. This is what the Lord
Almighty, the God of Israel, says to those I
carried from... Jerusalem to Babylon. Build houses
and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what they
produce. Marry and have sons and daughters. Find
wives for your sons and give your daughters in
marriage so that they too may have sons and daughters.
Increase in number there. Do not decrease. Also,
prosperity and the peace of the city to which
I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord
for it, because if it prospers, you too will
prosper. This is what the Lord Almighty, the
God of Israel, says. Do not let the prophets
and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen
to the dreams you encourage them to have. They
are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have
not sent them, declares the Lord. This is what
the Lord says. When 70 years are completed for
Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good
promise to bring you back to this place. For
I know the plans I have for you, declares the
Lord. plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future. Then you
will call on me and come and pray to me, and
I will listen to you. You will seek me and find
me when you seek me with all your heart. I will
be found by you, declares the Lord. and will
bring you back from captivity. I will gather
you from all the nations and places where I have
banished you, declares the Lord, and will bring
you back to the place from which I carried you
into exile. The word of the Lord. Today, we are
going to be looking at one of your favorite verses.
It's a verse that you know, and it's a verse
that many of you have quoted from time to time.
And even if you're actually not a Christian,
you wouldn't call yourself a Christian, chances
are you've seen this verse somewhere on a t -shirt,
on a piece of artwork, or something like that.
What I want to do, though, is I want to start
by telling you about the first time I came face
-to -face with this particular verse. I was a
student in university, first year, heading to
physics college. class, and there was someone
who said, hey, come over here. I want to talk
to you. It seemed like a friendly fellow, so
I went over to chat with him, and I thought it
was just an innocent conversation, but then he
pulled out one of these little booklets, and
the booklet says, you know, it's called The Four
Spiritual Laws, and so as it turns out, this
guy, a great guy, but he was part of a Christian
group on campus, and what this Christian group
did, among other things, is they went around
to people, and they talked to them about Jesus
and tried to get them to follow Jesus by taking
them through their little booklet, which was
called The Four Spiritual Laws. And so I decided,
okay, you know, sure, why not? I'm happy to hear
what the four spiritual laws are. And he opened
it up and the very first spiritual law says that
God loves you. and has a wonderful plan for your
life. And I thought, well, that sounds really,
really good. And he talked about how God had
plans to prosper me and not to harm me, plans
to give me a hope and to give me a future. It
sounded fantastic. I loved law number one. Then
he did go through and tell me what law number
two was about, how my sin separated me from God.
Law number three was how Jesus bridged that divide
between me and God. And law number four, how
I could begin a relationship with Jesus right
then and there. Great. But it was really law
number one that caught my attention. God has
a wonderful plan for my life. And he even quoted
a very famous scripture verse. This is your favorite
scripture verse too, which is Jeremiah 29, 11.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares
the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm
you. Plans to give you hope and a future, right?
Now this verse has actually been nicknamed America's
favorite Bible verse. But I say even here north
of the border, we love this verse. Chances are
you guys have a bookmark somewhere. It's a laminated
bookmark with an eagle soaring. And you got it
at a Christian bookstore sometime back in like
1997. And on that verse, on that bookmark, it
says Jeremiah 29, 11. And you love that bookmark.
That bookmark is in your favorite Bible because
you love that verse. Or perhaps you've got that
coffee mug, right? And every morning as you pour
that blessed brew into your coffee, you say,
the Lord has plans to prosper me today and caffeinate
me today. And you love that coffee mug. The coffee
tastes better because it's in that mug. It's
your favorite verse. Or maybe, I think probably
every single graduation card that you get these
days has this verse on it. And for good reason.
It's very encouraging for the new grad to know
that once they graduate, there is a future for
them. There is a purpose for them. There may
even be a job for them. It's a very encouraging
graduation card. Some of you have a fridge magnet
that has this verse on it. Every time you raid
the fridge for a midnight snack, you remember
Jeremiah 2911. It's on Facebook banners. This
is on Instagram posts. on social media. It's
on home decor. It's even on tattoos. People love
this verse. And I will bet good money. I'll bet
good money that someone here has a little cushion
at home that your grandma cross -stitched for
you. And on that cushion is is cross -stitch
Jeremiah 29 11, because Jeremiah 29 11 is the
most grandma -approved scripture verse in all
of the Bible. This was the promise that I was
told about that day on campus. God has a wonderful
plan for my life. But does the Bible really say
that? And does that verse, Jeremiah 29, 11, really
mean that? Will God really give us a life of
ease and success as it suggests? Will everything
go smoothly? Will my bank accounts always be
full? My relationships always be harmonious?
And if I do go through any trouble, I know that
it will be temporary and God will sort it out
really, really quickly. Is that the kind of wonderful
life that this verse talks about? Or maybe did
grandma have no idea what she was doing when
she stitched Jeremiah 29 onto that little pillow
for you? So you might hate me today and think
this is totally sacrilegious, but we are going
to dissect your favorite verse. and see what
it really says. And don't worry, in the end,
it's going to be wonderful. But before we begin,
let's just do a little refresher course on how
we're supposed to read any Bible verse, actually,
that we come across, even if it's from an Old
Testament book like the book of Jeremiah. By
the way, there's little notes, as always, that
we've given you, and I would encourage you to
follow along to get the most out of this. But
whenever we read a Bible verse, the first thing
that we should ask is we have to look at the
context. Who wrote it? Who were they writing
to? When were they writing? What was happening
at the time? What comes before that verse? What
comes after that verse? Scripture verse lives
in isolation. Context is really important. Secondly,
if you come and you hit a snag about how to interpret
a verse in the Bible, then one of the rules is
you interpret Scripture with Scripture. Which
means the best way to understand the Bible is
to let the Bible tell you how to understand it.
Look through the rest of the Bible for other
Scriptures on that same theme. The Bible can
explain itself, in other words. Thirdly, read
whatever you're reading through the lens and
through the story of Jesus. Because, and here's
why. Because as Paul says in 2 Corinthians, he
says, all the promises of God find their yes
in Jesus Christ. So that means that Jesus is
really where the whole Bible is pointing toward
him, and therefore we have to read the Bible
in light of the great event. of Jesus Christ.
And then fourthly, and finally, we're going to
apply what we've read to our lives. The Bible
is not a textbook, right? The Bible is a It's
a book that we are meant to live out. And only
once, though, we've understood the context and
interpreted it properly and filtered it through
Jesus, only then can we actually know what it
meant and then know what it means and then know
what it means to live it out. So those are just
some of the tools that we can use to read a verse
like Jeremiah 29 .11. And when we do read Jeremiah
29 .11 with some of those tools, what do we discover?
Well, one of the first things we have to ask
is, Who is the you? Who is the you in, for I
know the plans I have for you? Now, most of us
instinctively assume the you is me, right? God
has plans for me. God wants to prosper me. God
does not want to harm me. He has a future for
me. He has a hope for me. But it's important
to note this, that the Hebrew word you here is
plural. So in English, what it actually reads
is, I know the plans I have for all you guys.
Which means that this verse is actually a communal
promise to a group of people. It is not an individual
life verse. It is not a private word from God
to the young adult looking for a job. That's
not who the you is. Who is the you? Well, we
go back a few verses to Jeremiah 29 .1, and it
tells us who the you is. This is the text of
a letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from
Jerusalem to you? No. To the surviving elders
among the exiles. That's who. Oh, right, right.
To the priests and the prophets and all the people
that Nebuchadnezzar carried away into exile from
Jerusalem to Babylon. Okay, that's the you. This
is a letter written to the people of Judah who
2 ,600 years ago were taken from their homeland
and forced. To live in Babylon under the thumb
of King Nebuchadnezzar. If you want even more
context, remember context is important. Jeremiah
tells us the reason God allowed them to be taken
off into exile was because of their idolatry,
their injustice, their hypocrisy, the way they
oppressed people. And now they're in crisis.
And now they want to go home. And now they want
to be rescued, okay? But just to be clear, let
me say it again. Your favorite verse was not
a private note of encouragement to a new grad.
It is a public letter to a nation who is in crisis.
Now, I confess that when I first read that verse
on campus, I thought, oh, the U is me. Right?
Because I want to be the main character of the
Bible. Right? When I read about Noah building
the ark, I say, oh, that's about me. That's about
me building my life. When I read about David
and Goliath, I say, oh, that's about me. That's
about me overcoming my challenges. When I see
Jesus calming the storm, I say, oh, that's my
story. That's about me kind of dealing with my
anxiety or whatever the case is. We assume. The
verse is about me. But when we do that, we risk
twisting the meaning of the verse. I want to
share with you a couple of fancy kind of seminary
words. The first word is exegesis. Let's say
that one together. Exegesis, right? Exegesis
is when you read the Bible. To draw out, that's
what X means, to kind of pull out, draw out the
meaning of the text. And that's how we should
be reading the Bible. That should be our goal.
What did God mean? What was God saying then and
there to those people? Another word, though,
that we learn in seminary is eisegesis. Can you
guys say this? Eisegesis. Eisegesis is when you
read into the text things that actually aren't
there. things that we wish were there, or even
we read ourselves into the Bible. Now, guys,
it's not that we're heretics. It's just that
we're human beings, and it's natural to read
something like the Bible and put ourselves right
in there. But when we start there, when we treat
Scripture as a mirror that reflects myself, rather
than as a window to see the context, then you're
going to get bummed out eventually. Because what
you thought the Bible was saying to you wasn't
actually being said to you in the way that you
thought, and you're going to be let down. Now,
check this out. What comes before Jeremiah 29?
Jeremiah 28, right? And if you read Jeremiah
28, you'll actually read... about a guy named
Hananiah. Hananiah, like Jeremiah, was a prophet.
But Hananiah had a very different message for
all the people who were in exile. This is what
Hananiah says. He says, guess what? Good news.
The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says that
within two years, he is going to bring you back.
to Judah, back to your home. And that's good
news, folks. This exile is going to be short
-lived, so don't get too comfortable here. God's
going to rescue us. He's going to break the Babylonians,
bring us back home before you know it. If this
was like today, you know, hashtag going home
or hashtag God's got you, right? This would be
trending on TikTok. People would be reposting
this like crazy. But Jeremiah, This is Hananiah.
Jeremiah just starts slow clapping, saying, oh,
very nice, Hananiah, very nice. It all sounds
so lovely. But the truth is, Jeremiah says, these
people are not going anywhere anytime soon. So
Jeremiah says, so you should build houses. You
should settle down. You should actually plant
gardens. Get married. Why not? Because this is
what the Lord says. When 70 years are completed,
not two, 70 years, I will come to you and bring
you back. In other words, get ready for the long
haul. You're going to be stuck in a very difficult
situation for 70 years before anything changes.
And that's Jeremiah 29, 10. And right after that,
we read, for I know the plans I have for you,
says the Lord, plans to prosper you, not to harm
you. That's the context. So can you imagine a
new graduation card? Happy graduation. Good things
are coming for you in 70 years, in your 80s.
Hang on till 2094. That's the context of this
verse. It's actually quite ironic, because we
think that this verse is about God's wonderful
plan for your life, but this verse is actually
about how God upends all the wonderful plans
that we have for our lives in so many ways that
we don't want. We want comfort and ease, and
we want immediate resolutions to our problems,
but that was not the promise, and that still
is not the promise. Here's the kicker, you know,
Jeremiah... calls Hananiah a false prophet and
says, hey, by the way, Hananiah, you're going
to die. And sure enough, seven months later,
Hananiah drops dead. That, by the way, is why
people name their sons Jeremiah and not Hananiah.
Because Hananiah was offering them false. Good
news. News that feels good in the moment. News
that claims God is going to get you out of the
hard things real fast. When in reality, God might
be calling you to stay faithful through a long,
hard season. And if we're not careful, we can
get drawn into that same kind of message today.
We open our Bibles. We assume it's about me and
my comfort and my goals and my happiness. And
when we treat that, The Bible like that, we're
actually not hearing from God. We're just hearing
our own voices amplified. Now, I know some of
you will probably say, Rob, okay, come on, but
what is the harm? Look, what's the harm of having
something encouraging? Yes, it might be misquoted
or misapplied, but it's hopeful, it's positive.
It is in the Bible, right? Well, here's the harm.
When we take Scripture and we turn it into a
promise, of personal comfort, three things can
happen. First, creates an egocentric faith. When
we read that I know the plans I have for you,
and we assume that the you is me, that means
our faith starts to revolve all around our dreams
and our comfort and our timeline. And in that
scenario, God actually becomes your butler, not
your king. Someone who's always there to bless
your plans or fix your problems or get you that
parking spot. But when God is your butler, you're
only going to stick around as long as the service
is good. And that brings us to the second danger
of misreading the Bible. It creates disillusioned
disciples. You see, many people go to church
and they get super excited. About Jesus. Not
because they were convicted of their sin. Or
not because they were just amazed by God's grace.
But because they were told, follow Jesus and
your life will get better. And maybe for a little
while, it does. But then eventually comes that
phone call from the doctor and the diagnosis.
Or then all of a sudden comes the layoff. Or
comes the breakup and the depression. And suddenly...
You feel lied to by God. Studies show that over
90 % of people who decide to follow Jesus because
of the promise of a better life don't continue
in a life of discipleship. In fact, Bill Bright,
the guy who wrote the four spiritual laws, later
regretted his approach. And why? Because of the
fallout. People were told, God's got a wonderful
plan for your life. Or like Hananiah, they said,
God is going to fix everything and it'll be very
quick. And when life didn't match up to that
promise, it was like God let them down. But it
wasn't God who let them down. It was a warped
version of the gospel that failed them. And that
means that the third problem with this way of
thinking is that misreading the Bible. creates
a version of the gospel that, yeah, it works
well on a Hallmark greeting card, but it does
not work well in real life. It works in the country
club, but it doesn't work in the hospital room.
The gospel makes sense in the suburbs, but it
doesn't make sense in the slums. It works on
Instagram, but it doesn't work in a war zone.
Craig Groeschel put it very sharply. He said,
if your version of the gospel doesn't preach
in a refugee camp, it's not the gospel. When
we replace the gospel of the cross with the gospel
of comfort, we turn the good news into a greeting
card. It's not the gospel. And that's why we
have to get this right. That's why we have to
read Bible verses, even our favorite Bible verses,
in the right way. And I know that right now you're
probably feeling pretty depressed by all this.
You're like, gosh, Rob, that was my favorite
verse, and that was my favorite coffee mug. And
now you're telling me that verse wasn't written
for me, it wasn't meant for me, and it didn't
mean what I thought. And I want to say, don't
worry, I've got some other ideas for some coffee
mugs. I think these verses... do apply for all
Christians everywhere. How about this one? Get
a coffee mug with 2 Timothy 3 .12. Everyone who
wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will
be persecuted. Wouldn't that be great? Every
morning to pick up your cup of coffee and say,
oh, praise God, I'm going to be persecuted today.
My life verse. There you go. Or how about this
one? You want a different magnet for your fridge?
Then try Philippians 1 .29. For you've been given
not only the privilege of trusting in Christ,
but also the privilege of suffering for him.
Oh, every time I open the fridge, I'm reminded
of that promise. The believing in Christ means
suffering for Christ. Okay, obviously I'm playing
with you. Truth is, you do not have to trash
your mug. or your magnet, or go get that tattoo
removed, right? You don't have to hide grandma's
pillow when she comes over. Do not burn that
vintage bookmark. It's going to be worth something
someday. Because now that we know what Jeremiah
29 11 meant in its context back then, that we
can now see what it really does mean for us today.
And here's what it means. Yes, God has a wonderful
plan for your life, but it's not always a comfortable
plan. And yes, God has a future for you, but
it might take longer than you expect. God's plan
for you, like Israel, might actually include
waiting, a whole lot of waiting. You know, think
of the couple that's been trying to have a child
year after year, or that person searching for
a job. And they can never find one that truly
fits. God has plans for you. It might unfold
over decades, though, and not days. Think about
who Jeremiah was writing to. We're told he was
writing to the elders. The elders were already
60 or 70 years old. So if he says, you're going
to get out of here in 70 years, they're saying
to themselves, I am not even going to live to
see this promise fulfilled. A lot of waiting.
Sometimes never even seeing. But sometimes God
uses that waiting time to shape us more than
the thing we're waiting for. God's plans may
also include wrestling, bringing all your doubts
and questions to God. His plans for you may also
include persevering, staying faithful when prayers
seem unanswered, when progress feels slow, when
you feel totally unnoticed by God. God's plans
for you may include growing. Because growth often
happens when we're stretched. God's plans for
you may include suffering. Because with God,
suffering is never wasted. It becomes this place
where God meets us, not with easy answers, but
with his presence. You see, these kind of words,
they don't make it onto graduation cards or bookmarks.
But Jeremiah 29 .11 does not promise easy, quick
fixes. It promises long -term faithfulness. It's
not about God snapping his fingers and solving
your problems. It's about God staying with you
through your problems. And actually, that's an
even better promise. Hey, you know what? Today,
when you leave, we're going to give you a bookmark.
Except for it's not a bookmark of Jeremiah 29
.11. I'm not saying that's a bad bookmark. But
this is Jeremiah 29, 13. Two verses later. And
on this bookmark it says, You will seek me and
find me when you seek me with all of your heart.
This verse sustains us when things aren't easy.
When life is hard and uncertain and full. It
says, when you seek God with all of your heart,
you might not get everything you want, but you
know what you do get? You get God. And that is
even better. But even Jeremiah 29, 11 is a powerful
verse if you are a follower of Jesus. Because
in Jesus, Those ancient words do take on a new
meaning. Remember, one of the rules about reading
verses is to read them through the lens of Jesus.
Did God have a wonderful plan for Jesus' life?
Yes, but also no. I mean, God's plan for Jesus'
life is not health and wealth. It was suffering
and humility. Jesus followed God's wonderful
plan for him all the way to the cross, and yet
it was through that suffering and that came a
wonderful resurrection and a wonderful hope for
you and me. So therefore, if we read Jeremiah
29, 11 through the lens of Jesus, that we see,
yes, you know what? God does have a wonderful
plan for me. But not just plans for my comfort.
They're plans for my transformation. God's wonderful
plan for you is actually to shape you into the
likeness of his son. That is his wonderful plan
for you. And does God want to prosper you? Yes.
but not necessarily with material wealth. In
Jesus, true prosperity means growing in love
and joy and peace. Does God have plans not to
harm you? Yes. I mean, you're still going to
go through pain, but God will use that pain for
good, and he promises there will come a day when
there will be no more pain. Does God give you
hope? Does God have a plan for your future? Yes,
but in Christ, our future doesn't necessarily
just mean next year or the next job. It's eternity.
It's a restored world. It's a resurrected body.
It is a brand new creation. If by wonderful you
mean that God is going to take away hardship
immediately, then no. God did not promise that
to the Israelites, and he does not promise that
to you either. That is not the kind of wonderful
life. But his plans are wonderful in an even
better way. God's wonderful plan for your life
is not a life of ease, but endurance. Not about
escape, but God's embrace for you. It's not about
comfort, but it's about communion. He will never
leave you or forsake you. It's not always about
relief, but it is always about the hope of resurrection.
That's the real good news. That's the gospel
that preaches in the suburbs and the slums, in
the cathedrals. and the bomb shelters, in the
wedding chapels, and in the funeral homes. It's
the good news, not that God saves you from all
of your hardship, but that God saves you from
all of your sin and then walks with you through
all of your hardship until we get to the day
when there is no more hardship. That's what the
Bible really says. That's what he promised then,
and that is what he promises still. So thanks
be to God. Amen.