A Future and a Hope
by Ken Treybig

I have been going through the book of Jeremiah in my monthly Bible reading and was struck by a passage that appears around the middle of the book. Jeremiah apparently had a long ministry as a prophet of God, beginning while he was a mere youth in a small town about three miles from Jerusalem (see Jeremiah 1:1-10). God rejected his objection of being too young for the job and gave him the audacious commission of being prophet for more than one nation with the assignment of being responsible to "root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant." Jeremiah's ministry as a prophet lasted for around 50 years through the time of the destruction of Jerusalem by Chaldeans. The middle section of the book tells the story of Jeremiah prophesying of the imminent destruction of Jerusalem.

But here's the part that struck me about God's incredible mercy and desire to do good for those He has called into a covenant relationship. In chapter 29 we're told of a letter that Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the exiles Nebuchadnezzar had taken captive to Babylon. It was sent in response to a false prophet saying that within two years God would destroy Nebuchadnezzar's power and the exiles would all return to Jerusalem (Jeremiah 28:1-4). Obviously this kind of word would travel quickly to those in exile, so God set them straight through Jeremiah and told them to build houses, plant gardens, and settle down while also praying for the success of Babylon so they, too, would prosper. He said the captivity would last 70 years (Jeremiah 29:10). Yet even while delivering the sad news that the captivity would last 70 years (not two) God included encouragement by saying He would indeed bring them back after that time of punishment.

Verse 11 says, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Even in the midst of a time of despair God was extending an encouraging word that their trouble would figuratively last only for a moment and in the end there would be a future and a hope. Two chapters later God spoke about a new covenant with Israel when He would put His law in their minds and write it on their hearts. As those who already have entered that new covenant, how much more is God desirous to see our ultimate good?

The future He holds out to us is for eternity-not just a lifetime or for a few centuries. And the hope we have is not in a physical land, but that of inheriting eternal life with a powerful spirit body living forever in God's Kingdom assisting Him in ruling that kingdom! What an incredible promise and encouragement from God!

Yet how often do we as New Testament Christians-whether we are married or single-let temporary adversities in this life get us down so we seem to lose hope? My wife and I were blessed to be sent to the Philippines this year and I was asked to speak at all three sites there. It was an inspiration to us to see the positive, joyful attitudes of our Filipino brethren at the Feast even when Super Typhoon Parma (the strength of a class 5 hurricane) was bearing down on the northernmost Feast site at the start of the Feast. The mood and attitude of the group was that they were there to rejoice before God and nothing was going to "dampen their joy". It was humbling and at the same time inspiring and encouraging to see such hope in their future with God despite any physical struggles they might be going through-and some had already experienced flooding from the typhoon that hit before Atonement.

It's natural for us humans to get discouraged in times of stress, but let's work to keep in mind the word of our awesome, loving God, realizing that despite any troubles we face in this life, His ultimate goal is to give us an eternal life and hope.