Living Stones Church, Red Deer - Jeremiah Series

Jeremiah 37

In the editor's synopsis of Barbara Tuchman's book, 'The March of Folly,' we see the historical tragedy of folly in human governance. "A phenomenon noticeable throughout history regardless of place or period is the pursuit by governments of policies contrary to their own interests. Mankind, it seems, makes a poorer performance of government than of almost any other human acti...

Jeremiah 36, Jeremiah Series

We live in a society awash in lies posing as truth. What when wrong? What can we do about it? Jesus was challenged as to the heart of serving God. In his response, Jesus said, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (Matthew

Jeremiah 35 - Jeremiah Series

There have always been counter-cultural movements. From the Amish, who have maintained a very agrarian, communal, and non-modern approach toward life, and momentary movements like the hippies of the 1960s, there has always been a segment of society that is living ‘off-grid.’ Values shape how people live life. There are many who are at odds with the current c...

Jeremiah 34, Jeremiah Series

For basketball fans, ‘March Madness’ is the tournament where the best teams in college basketball meet over a couple of weeks. The tournament begins with 64 teams endeavouring to win a national championship which takes talent, determination, and grit. It is so difficult to repeat. Yet between 1964-75, an eleven-year stretch, one team won that championship ten...

Jeremiah 33, Jeremiah Series

Sin shatters our sense of self-identity. What others do to us, what we do to others, and finally, what we do to ourselves distorts the image of God in our lives. Sin, followed by failure, loss, rejection and abandonment, causes us to wonder who we are and where God is in the equation. The exile shattered the nation of Israel. The questions that came to the su...

Jeremiah 32, Jeremiah Series

One of the most quoted texts of Scripture is Proverbs 3:5: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”

Yet, we can struggle with this idea, especially when everything we see, hear and experience difficulties, pain, and loss; it seems God is telling us to trust Him in that season of darkness. Jeremiah had been prophesying Go...

Jeremiah 31, Jeremiah Series

Here we come to one of the Old Testament's most moving and powerful texts. These promises are a high point in the Old Testament. A broken, divided nation hears the amazing promise that will extend for generations. The introduction of the new covenant is communicated here, which will move God's covenant past an agreement with a nation to extend this covenant t...

Jeremiah 30, Jeremiah Series

God does and will address sin in our lives and our society as a whole. When God’s discipline occurs, it is very painful to bear. Despair and hopelessness often accompany that discipline. It is designed to bring us to the end of ourselves and cause us to look up.

Robert Davidson explains this reality by taking the example of Jeremiah’s messages: “In Jeremiah’s...

Jeremiah 29, Jeremiah Series

Interestingly, we have finally arrived at one of the most popular biblical texts in our contemporary society. But we may not realize the context in which Jeremiah 29:11 is situated. For those who may not know the text: "For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper...

Jeremiah 28, Jeremiah Series

I’ve just finished reading an interesting biographical sketch on the life of Winston Church during his first 58 years before the Second World War and his first time in office as the Prime Minister. The book is entitled: ‘The Last Lion,’ by William Manchester. Churchill was never fooled by Hitler and his intentions before the War. While Britain was disarming f...

Jeremiah 27, Jeremiah Series

How do we live under unpopular political leadership? It is a question that we are constantly faced with in dealing with changing leaders and political philosophies. Where do we look for answers when society as we know it is faltering? The psalmist speaks of the hour when the 'wicked bend their bows, and they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from ...

Jeremiah 26, Jeremiah Series

We live in an hour when many people do not want to be corrected or warned. In Proverbs 1, we hear the call of wisdom to turn to her ways. However, we see that the foolish mock and refuse to listen to God's correction, resulting in calamity and distress.

"Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you; I will make known to you my teachings. But s...

Jeremiah 25, Jeremiah Series

What happens when God is talking, but we are not listening? Maybe even more critically, God warns us of impending danger, but we ignore what is being said? One aspect of God’s loving nature is that He does warn us when we are deviating from the right path. The problem begins when our deviation is about to destroy ourselves and others. What happens, then? What...

Jeremiah 24, Jeremiah Series

How do we see tragedy in our lives? How do we move forward when our world comes crashing down around us? As we are about to discover, God has a plan for good even in times of trouble and despair. Robert Davison relates this powerful insight about the things we may consider sacred, but we have lost the true meaning of what faith is all about. “Sometimes the th...

Jeremiah 23, Jeremiah Series

Who is influencing and shaping your life? Who are the people that are knowingly or unknowingly influencing you? Some of the most significant influences in our lives are friends, media, and people who we respect and embrace what they are telling us. How do we know where we are headed unless we know the character and direction of those influencing us? We have b...

Jeremiah 22, Jeremiah Series

The passing of Queen Elizabeth II has caused us to pause and be amazed at her reign of seventy years. She had a very consistent moral influence on others. Her speeches pointed people to God. She brought honour to her position. So, what is it that God requires of those in leadership positions? God’s standard is the same for all those in positions of leadership...

Jeremiah 21, Jeremiah Series

The most terrifying state of being is when we find ourselves in conflict with God. Is it possible for God to be against us rather than for us? Our decisions can move us in a direction that brings us into conflict with God. We are either moving toward God or away from God in our lives. Using the image of light and darkness within a moral context, we are either...

Jeremiah 20:7-18

As we journey through the Christian life, there come moments where it seems God is distant and the task at hand seems overwhelming. Things are not transpiring as we would hope or desire. Jesus had his Gethsemane experience, where the conflict between what He knew He needed to do and the difficulty of doing it collided and created conflict within His soul. The agony in th...

Jeremiah 20:1-6, Jeremiah Series

One of the repeated themes in the Scriptures is the imminent judgment about to occur because of human rebellion against God. Think back to Noah and the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, the destruction of the Northern Kingdom under the Assyrians, and the destruction of Jerusalem first by the Babylonians and later by the Romans. We are now living in the hour of C...