‘I am with thee’: that is the great motto for Christians every day of their lives, and especially for preachers. But as a youngster, when I felt called to the ministry, I remember reading this chapter, alongside others recommended to me by other people and being completely turned over by it. You are called, no matter what, to humiliation, failure of support; every kind of rejection and hardship could come, many great and severe disappointments. Don't you dare complain! How often we fail in that. ‘I am with you.’ You are set in an alien, hostile place to make Christ known. And, says the Lord, I am with you. Don't ever embark in the ministry unless a passage like this has frightened the life out of you and brought you to see the commitment that is required of you. But ‘I am with you’ is sufficient for anything. They can insult us; they can oppose us; they can do all kinds of things, but God will keep us, and our words will get through to those whom he chooses.
What did Jeremiah say in response? He bowed his head and he said, ‘Lord, I accept the terms.’ That isn’t written there, but that is obviously what happened. May we too accept the terms, and stand for the Lord in all things, no matter what.