Jeremiah 29:11 and an Introduction

As promised a few weeks ago, I am going to enter into dialogue this year about some more broad topics and hopefully we can all learn something together.  It is a bit ironic that I want to take on something like explaining theology to anyone since in school this was really my least favorite subject.  Part of that stems from the fact that in theology, as in so many areas, we are dealing with degrees of certainty.  This was actually what bothered me in one of my Bible classes.  I was a bit upset with a teacher’s interpretation of something and what I perceived was his assurance that he was right.  So, naturally, I asked him why he thought this view was correct.  His answer about “degrees of certainty” really helped in my own education from that point forward.  When it comes to theology and biblical studies, and for that matter science, history, and a whole host of other things, we are dealing only with degrees of certainty.  Especially when it comes to our knowledge of God, the very essence of theology, we must approach this subject with humility and grace, acknowledging that we might be wrong.  The best we can do is say, “From all the knowledge and experience I have, this is what I believe and think today.  It might change tomorrow under compelling evidence, be that from the Bible, a new experience, or maybe just a new realization or epiphany.”  

 I hope it is clear that I have tipped my hand here in two ways.  First, I am always open to correction and discussion.  I recognize I have a lot to learn, and I hope you do as well.  Second, in true Wesleyan fashion, my theology is drawn from what is called the Wesleyan Quadrilateral.  The Quadrilateral is just a fancy way of explaining where we get our theology and knowledge from.  It includes Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and Experience.  All four of these are necessary and quite unavoidable.  They each shape and form our thinking and re-thinking.  They also remind us that we don’t approach theology alone.  We have the Bible and the Tradition, which inform us and provide a constraint on our ideas.  Reason and Experience also remind us that we are profoundly and unescapably shaped by our own culture and experiences.

The first subject I want to tackle is actually multi-faceted and complex.  It concerns the nature of God’s knowledge and direct involvement in things on earth.  I don’t want to frame it purely around the classical debate between freewill and predestination because that is too narrow.  Rather, I want to discuss to what extent God knows and even causes the daily events in our lives.  This discussion stems out of many things I often hear in churches today about God being in “control” and hardships being a time where God is testing or building up our character.  I don’t want us to get ahead of ourselves, but I think we have to ask ourselves what it says about our God if he is in control using horrible things like mass shootings to build up human character.  So, we will discuss things such as prevenient grace, open theism, free will and predestination, the problem of evil (theodicy), and the self-limiting (Kenotic) nature of God.

But, I want to start things off simply and look at a specific Biblical verse, Jeremiah 29:11, which often gets taken out of context.  The verse reads, “‘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.’” How many of us have heard this verse, typically rendered as a promise, applied to each of us individually?  How this verse is typically used is to give us hope that God has a plan for each of us to have good lives and not to come to harm.  Later, we will explore more about how God is involved in creation, but this verse is definitely not a universal promise for Christians or anyone else. 

If we look closer at Jeremiah, chapter 29 and the context around this verse, we see that this was written to the people of Judah who were in exile in Babylon.  Verse 10, in fact, actually gives the plan God has for his people: after 70 years, God will restore them back to the Promised Land.  But more broadly than just the restoration of Israel, this verse is giving hope to the people of Israel.  God was promising that he has not forgotten Israel, even in the midst of their exile when there is no direct evidence to this fact. 

If we think about this some more, perhaps at the individual Israelite level, many of the people this letter was written to died in exile, or on the way to and from Babylon.  Others stayed in Babylon because life was good there and they didn’t want to leave.  So, in terms of the individual level, not all of the people Jeremiah was speaking to were able to have this promise fulfilled in their lives.  Yet, the promise of God remains true because it was written not to each individual Israelite, but to the people of God as a whole.  It might just be necessary to point out that the “you” used when Jeremiah writes, “I know the plans I have for you,” is plural.  The promise is written to the whole group of people.

I hope this isn’t shattering anyone’s faith.  But I also hope a few preachers are out there reading this and I challenge them to be a little more careful when they throw out Bible verses to prove their personal points without letting the Biblical text speak for itself.  If I can offer a one sentence rant; this is what is wrong with many sermons today.  The Bible is used as means to prove a point, rather like an anecdote, and not allowed to speak for itself in its context.

What does Jeremiah 29:11 and its surrounding verses say to us today if it is not an individual promise to us?  I think we must take our cue from the fact that this was written to the people of God as a promise that God has a plan for his people for hope and to prosper.  As Christians, we have been grafted into this people.  God’s plans for his people haven’t changed.  Back then, he promised to restore them and give them a future, and it is the same today.  It might be argued that we also find ourselves in exile as the people of God.  Jews and Christians are not at peace, thus causing a rift in God’s people.  Amongst Christians, there is no unity and often there is open strife and conflict.  And as we look towards the secular world, either the Church has sold out to the surrounding culture or, in some places, is openly persecuted by the culture.  It is not hard to find examples today of the Church’s need for restoration and the hope of a better future provided by God.

Like some of the Israelites in Jeremiah’s time, many of us will die in this exile.  Sure, we might have good jobs and remain faithful and obedient to the Lord, yet we will still die in exile.  Jeremiah reminds us of one more thing, however.  Exile is not permanent.  Judah was in exile 70 years.  We have waited almost 2,000 years for Christ to return and fully usher in his Kingdom.  But like the Judeans, we wait, and know that God has a plan for His people to prosper and that this exile is not permanent. 

I think this is a good place to leave things today.  We have deconstructed our notions of Jeremiah 29:11.  I will leave it for a later date to discuss what plans God might have for each of us individually.

I look forward to comments, critiques, questions, or even suggestions on future topics to discuss.

Grace and Peace.