The Trumpet of the Lord

The Trumpet of the Lord
Jeremiah 6:16-21
October 25-26, 2025

Assyrians defeated Israel, it was the greatest trouble of their history. Unfortunately, it was trouble of their own making, because they had turned their back on God, who had called them out of the nations, who had blessed them amazingly, just miraculously. They forgot all that God had done for them. They turned toward the gods of the world because they appealed to their fleshly, human nature.

What's interesting is that Jeremiah was born during what could be called or could be considered the greatest revival in the history of Israel. It was the revival of Josiah. What's interesting about Josiah is that his father was terrible. He was an evil king and his father's father was a terrible, evil, and wicked king, but Josiah chose a different path. He chose to honor God. He chose to follow after the ways of God. He was one of the greatest kings since David. He was one of the greatest kings, which is a great life lesson unto itself.

You don't have to repeat the sins of the father. This is a great word for us today, because many people have had fathers that were not the best examples at all, and worse. I know many of you know my story. My father was an alcoholic and angry and cantankerous, and difficult. Of course, his story ended wonderfully because he did accept the Lord when he was 75. I give glory to God for that.

When I was a young man, a young boy growing up in this, there arose in me this understanding like this is going to end with me. God is going to do a new work in me. It's going to end right here and right now with me. I want to tell you that because maybe you had a father that was less than the greatest example. I'm telling you here today, it can end right here with you and it can end right now. God can do a new work and he'll do it in you. It'll be a work in revival. Amen. You can give God praise. Right? It's amazing.

What had happened was Josiah, he was a young man he saw all the ways that Israel had turned their back on God and he saw that they had built altars to Baal or Asherah, to Molech, or whatever. Not only did they build altars in Jerusalem, they built altars to these gods in the temple, in the house of the Lord, and a righteous indignation just arose in him, "This is not right. This is the house of God." When he became king, he said, "Get those things out of here." He cleansed the temple and rebuilt the temple and reestablished worship and honor and the Passover. It was amazing revival.

These were the days in which Jeremiah was born, but when Josiah passed from the scene, he died in a battle with the Egyptians, the next king and the next king and the next king after that were all bad. None of them had a heart after God. All of them led the nation down this path of downfall and destruction. How does God respond? How does God answer when the people go away, turn their back? He pursues them. He sends the prophets to go after them, to call them to revival, "Come back. Come back."

Jeremiah is called to be that prophet who would call them to revival. Now, what's interesting also is that Jeremiah was called to be a prophet when he was very young, maybe late teens, 20 at the latest. In fact, he said to God, "I'm just a youth." The Lord responded, "Do not say that you're just a youth. I will be with you and the words that you speak will be the words that I give you to speak." In other words, the authority of God will reside upon him.

He said to Jeremiah, "I will make you like a fortified city. You'll be like a pillar of iron. You'll be like a wall of bronze against these people." He said, "Against kings and princes and priests, against all the people." What a calling. He's going to stand against all of them, but there was this strength, this inner strength in the soul that God would do in his life and in his soul. That becomes another life lesson. Strength of faith in the soul brings strength of life in the living. It's translated into how you live your life.

One of the greatest examples of that, I think, would be David. David certainly understood this, if anyone did. What an example of taking faith and bringing it into the living out of life victoriously. All of the other kings were called sons of David. Oh, but if only they had the faith of David, if only they understood that it is God's strength in the soul that makes them great. He wrote it. He wrote it to them in 2 Samuel 22, where he wrote this. He says, "Who is God besides the Lord? And who is a rock besides our God? God is my strong fortress. And he sets the blameless in His way. He makes my feet like hinds feet, and He sets me on high places."

Now, when you go to Israel with us, you're going to see this. You look up onto the cliffs or the rocks, and you'll see these hinds up there. Do you know what a hind is? A hind is a doe, a deer, a female deer. You look up onto the cliffs, you think, "How can they do that? They're standing on sheer rock face, and they're bounding about with confidence." David says, "That's what God does for me." God sets me on high places, difficult places. God does this. He trains my hands for battle such that, he says, "my arms can bend a bow of bronze."

By my God, I can run upon a troop. By my God, I can leap over a wall. He understands faith in the living out of life. You have given to me a shield of your salvation, and it is your help that makes me great. This was Jeremiah. He understood this. God would strengthen him in the inner man. Jeremiah set out to be a prophet, to call them back to revival. Over and over he calls them. Relentless in his pursuit.

Now, he gives them warnings of disaster, but he also shows them visions of glory and honor. He's saying to them, "You have no idea what God can do in your life. If there is revival, God will do glorious things, wonderful things." He gives them a vision of this. Here in Chapter 6, God declares through Jeremiah that God's call to revival is like a sound of a trumpet. Now, the trumpet, they understood. It was like a shofar, that ram's horn trumpet. They knew this trumpet call. They understood it.

They used the trumpet as a way to call Israel to assemble or prepare for war, warnings of disaster, whatever. The trumpet, they understood. It was a great analogy that God says, "I call out to you like the sound of the trumpet, like, "Assemble, come, be in that place of revival."

All right. Let's read it. We're in Jeremiah Chapter 6. We begin in Verse 16. "For thus says the Lord, Stand by the ways and look and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it. But they said, No, we won't walk in it. So I sent a watchman over you and saying, Well, then listen to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, No, we won't listen. Well, then therefore hear, O nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them. Hear, O earth. Behold, I am bringing disaster on this people, but it is the fruit of their own plans.

They did this because you've not listened to my words, and as for my law, you've rejected it. You've not delighted in my word, which is a delightful word. No, you have rejected it." Verse 20. "So what purpose does this frankincense come to me from Sheba," this offering, in other words, this sweet cane from a distant land. Your offerings are not acceptable to me. Your burnt offerings are not pleasing, your sacrifices. What is this?

"Therefore, says the Lord, Behold, I am laying stumbling blocks before these people and they will stumble against them. Fathers and sons together, neighbor and friend, will perish. For thus says the Lord, Behold, a people are coming from the north." He's prophetically speaking of Babylon. Not many years down the road, they will come from the north. "A great nation will be aroused from the remote part of the earth."

I. Ask for the Ancient Paths

All right. God would use these verses today in our lives as He wanted to use them in their lives in that day. Starting with Verse 16. I love at Verse 16, when He says, "Ask for the ancient paths." It's the good way. Walk in it. There are many paths." In other words, look and see. He says, "Look, you'll see there are many paths. There's many choices. There's many ways you can walk in this world." That's true today. Just like it was true in those-- there's many choices. You can choose whatever path you choose.

"I set before you this ancient path. Ask for directions. Ask for where it is." No, that's a difficult word for many people, because most people don't like asking for directions. Men are famous or infamous for not asking for directions. Men would rather drive for hours lost rather than ask for directions. Of course, we have a strong belief that the Earth is round, so eventually we'll get there.

It's an old joke. Of course, today we have GPS on our phones, so we don't have that. Before there was GPS, people had to ask for directions. It became a running joke that men didn't want to ask for directions. Actually, men would stop and ask for directions, but only if there was a woman not in the car. If there was a woman in the car, no way we're stopping. I know all about this. I read about this in books.

Why was this so? Because men were embarrassed. We wanted women to think that we're strong and that we know where we're going, even though we have no clue. We got this from our dad. He was embarrassed, and he didn't stop for directions. His dad, before him, did the same thing, and on and on. You can trace it all the way back to Moses, who was in the desert for 40 years.

Actually, Moses had a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. Here he says, "Look, as for the way, look for, seek after. Where is the ancient path? Find it." It's not new. It comes from the Ancient of Days. He knows the way, and He says, "You need to stay on this path," because he knows the soul better than you know your soul. He knows that you're prone to wonder.

In fact, many of you may remember that hymn that we sang in the church for many years. Come Thou Fount of Many Blessings. The third verse captures this truth. The third verse was like this, "Prone to wonder, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Take my heart, oh, take and seal it with your spirit from above. May I walk on earth, a stranger as a son, and heir of God. Come now, fount of many blessings and on and on." It's a great song that captures a great truth. There is a way, there is a path that is open before you, and it's a path.

A. God’s ancient path is a high way

God's ancient path, he says, "Is a highway." This becomes a theme of Jeremiah. He uses it in several places. Notice, for example, Jeremiah 18:15, where he says, "My people have forgotten me. They burned incense to worthless gods. They have stumbled from their ways, from the ancient paths, and they walk in by ways and not on a highway. It's a highway of holiness," He says.

For example, in Isaiah 35, He mentions the same idea verses 8-10. "A highway will be there, a roadway, and it will be called a highway of holiness. It will be for him who walks that way, the redeemed will walk there. The ransom of the Lord will return and come with joyful shouting to Zion." That's the holy hill in which the temple resides. "With everlasting joy upon their heads, they will find gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away." What a great word.

A highway that will lead you home. A highway that will bring you right to the throne room of our God. It's a highway that resides in the soul, a beckoning call to that which is glorious, a desire for the presence of God in your life. When I think of this, I think the best illustration of it has to be that of David. He wrote in Psalm 27, he said, "One thing I have asked from the Lord and that I shall seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate there in His temple."

David understood what many people do not understand. How beautiful, how glorious is the presence of God. When David became king, he set up a tent in the city. The temple was not built yet, but he brought the ark of the covenant. You can call it a tent of meeting. David loved to go there, just to be there, just to sit there. He loved to worship, he loved to sing. He loved to be near. Something beautiful happened in the heart of David when he resided there, to behold the beauty of the Lord.

Well, one day, David learned that his son, Absalom, had conspired against him. Then, when David learned how deep this conspiracy was, that Absalom had planned to bring an army to march against his beloved city, Jerusalem, he knew that he must flee the city to spirit from war. Tragically, sadly, David fled Jerusalem with his servants, with his special forces. He left Jerusalem weeping, covered with ashes. He crossed the Jordan and headed east.

Now, there he felt safe, but his heart longed, oh, the courts of the Lord. Oh, the dwelling places of the Almighty. Oh, there was this great desire. I remember the glorious beauty of being there in the house, in the presence. Oh, he longed. He wrote, therefore, Psalm 84:1-5. Notice how he captures the same as what we see in Jeremiah. "How lovely are your dwelling places?" Here it is. Oh, if people could only understand this, it would transform the soul, I tell you.

"How lovely are your dwelling places? Oh Lord of hosts, my soul longed and yearned for the courts of the Lord. How blessed are those who dwell in your house, for they are ever praising you." He speaks here of the birds. He comes in the house of the Lord, and they had set up nests in the rafters. He is like, "Oh, man, to be a bird like that. I could be here all day, worshiping, honoring."

B. The ancient paths are the good way

He says, "Oh, how blessed are those who dwell in your house. They are ever praising you." Then he says, "And how blessed is the man whose strength is found in you. In whose heart are the highways of Zion." There it is. "There is in my heart a highway. There's something that draws me to Zion. The holy place where God dwells, God set a path." What he says in verse 16 here is that the ancient paths are the good way.

Verse 16, "Stand by the way. Look and see. Ask for the ancient paths where the good way is, walk in it, and you will find rest refreshing for the soul." This is a very important word. It's a very significant word. I love this idea. It means a lot to me. I believe that God has set before me a path to walk, a beautiful, glorious path to walk. I'm not lost. I know my way. God has put me on a path. He has set before me a path that is glorious, a path that will bring me home. I'm not lost. I know my way. I know in whom I have believe, and God has set it before me, and I will walk this path all the way home.

It's the good way. He says, "Walk in this, it's the good way." Now, when He says that, He doesn't mean the easy. He's not saying, "Oh, and roses will be along every path." No, no. It may be difficult. There will be steep hills, there'll be troubled valleys, there'll be difficulties. Jesus said the same, "In this world, you'll have many troubles. Take courage. I've overcome the world."

David said, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for thou art with me." God says, "I will be with you on this, this path that you walk, this glorious path. I'll be with you. When you encounter troubles, difficulties, I'll be with you and you'll be transformed on this journey such that you will be a blessing to those in whom you then with walk." Notice, for example, in Psalm 84, as he continues in the next verses, he says, "Passing through the valley of Baca" Now, he just said, "Look, there is in my heart a highway to Zion, but I know this, that I will walk through the valley of Baca."

Now, in Hebrew, it means the valley of terrors, the valley of weeping, valley of trouble. We all understand this. Life's troubles. Life's tears. Walking through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring, and the rain covers it with blessings, the early rain. They go from strength to strength. Something happens as they walk on the path. They go from strength to strength. Every one of them will appear before God in Zion. Ah, they will find their way home. God will make sure that they get home. Passing through the valley of Baca, something happens. They make it a spring. They bless as they go along the way.

When David left Jerusalem covered with ashes, weeping, all those with him, covered with ashes, weeping. What you read is that David then begins to speak words to them, encouraging edifying words of loyalty, words of honor, just builds up along the way. All those walking on the path with Him, He builds them up along the way. They make it a spring. They encourage, they strengthen those in whom, along with they walk, because every one of them, they go from strength to strength.

David understand. Yes, I know I'm going through a valley, valley of Baca, of trouble and weeping, but God is the strength of my heart. God is restoring. God is restoring, and God will lead me home. I know my God. He speaks this word. He's speaking it to everybody around him. Stay faithful, stay true. We're coming home. Stay faithful. Stay true. God's going to do a great work. Stay faithful, stay true. We're going home.

You strengthen those around you along the way. It's the ancient path. The early rain covers it with blessings. The early rain is the rain that comes in the fall that waters the seeds that prepares them to sprout in the spring. In other words, blessings will come. There will be blessings. You might not see them for a while, but they will be there. They will be there, you watch. God will add His blessing. Walk in the good way and you will find rest, refreshing. God will do a work in your soul. Walk in the good way, you'll find rest.

II. Listen to the Sound of the Trumpet

Jesus said the same in Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all you who are weary, heavy laden, burdened, troubled, anguished of soul. I'll give you rest." Physical exhaustion is one burden, but the soul's burden is far greater. Jesus understands. The Lord understands that the soul must be alive. The soul must be refreshed. He gives them the call. Do you not understand the sound of the trumpet is a warning? He says, "Listen to the sound of the trumpet. I set watchmen over you, listen." They said, "No, we won't listen."

Now, in those days, a watchman would sit on the watchtower, and his duty was to watch, scan the horizon, watch for danger, watch for trouble. If he saw anything approaching, he would sound the trumpet. The people's job then was to heed that sound and then run, come into the walls, come in for safety. The watchmen have their duty to sound the trumpet faithfully, truthfully. The people have the duty to heed the warning, which is to say the trumpet sounds call out truth. It's the word of God. He calls them out.

When God speaks it, it's a word of truth. It's to be abideth. It's to be heard. It's to be listened for the word of God has authority. The word of God has weight. He means that when He speaks. There were those who said, "No, we will not listen." In fact, they would not even acknowledge that it was the word of truth. In another chapter, he says, "Oh, this will not be so. It won't happen. It won't happen." God says, when God speaks it, it will happen. This is a word of truth. There's so many untruths today. There are many deceptions today, many untruths. Need to understand what is truth and what is a lie today.

A. The trumpet sounds call out truth

I was reading about an interesting bird. It's an Africa bird called the fork-tailed drongo. The drongo has learned to be able to mimic the signals and the warnings of other animals so as to deceive them. Very interesting. For example, let's say the meerkats are out there, and they would put a sentry to watch the skies for a hawk or an eagle or whatever. Meanwhile, they're gathering their lunch or their meals, and then if an eagle or a hawk should appear in the sky, then the sentry would sound the alarm. They'd all scamper down into their burrows and be safe.

Well, the drongo just stands there or sits there on a tree and he watches them. When they've gathered enough food, he mimics the danger signal, and they all scamper down into the burrows. He simply goes and picks up all their lunch. Learn the art of deception, which is very interesting. There is so much that's false today. Enemy comes to steal and kill and destroy. Will steal and will deceive any who has ears that he could deceive. False promises of the enemy will eat your lunch and destroy your life.

There comes the time to recognize that the word of God is true. When He sounds an alarming. Sounds a signal. It is true. When He gives a word of hope, it's true also. They say, "Oh, we will not listen." Now, that's the theme. Not only is it throughout Jeremiah, throughout all the prophets, but it is throughout the whole Bible. Jesus said in many places, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

It would often be when the word was hard, when the word was difficult, required a transformation of life. He who has ears to hear. It takes a heart after God to hear. Hard hearts are the opposite. They refuse to hear, but God tries to break through. He keeps speaking to them. Words of grace, words of kindness, words of love. He tries to win them over, but the hearts are hard. They can't even hear that. They can't even hear the kindness. They can't even hear the love, the grace.

That's why He says in Jeremiah 4, just a couple chapters before He says, "Thus says the Lord to them. In Judah and Jerusalem, break up this fallow ground. This fallow of ground is hard. Break it up." Break up this hard heart of yours and don't sow them on thorns. Do you not see what you are doing? He's trying to show them. Trying to show them a way, a glorious way, the way that's good.

Oh, I'll bless your life, but they wouldn't hear it. I got grace for you. They wouldn't hear it. I got so much love for you. You wouldn't hear it. Break up the fallow ground, the hard heart, so that you can hear it. Be sensitive to when the Lord speaks. When I think of this, I think about when I was a young man, I loved to play the piano and worship. I could do it for hours. I became so into this that I would find all of the pianos in the community where I could play for free.

There was this church and that library. There was a musical hall at school. I had 10 minutes between classes. If I ran, I could play for five minutes and then get to my next class. I was just so into it. One day I'm in a church and I'm playing, and the pastor comes through the sanctuary in the back. I stop, and he says, "Hey, want to hear some? It really means a lot to me." He says, "Pastor, do you want to hear it?" He said, "Okay, sure." He comes up, and he sits down next to me, and I start singing the song.

The words go like this, Oh Lord, take your plow to my fallow ground. Let the blade dig down in the soil of my soul, for I become dry and dusty. Oh lord, I know there must be richer lines below, for I've been living in Laodicea, and the fire that once burned bright, I've let it grow dim. The pastor stops me like, "Wait, wait, wait." He said, "You shouldn't sing that song." I go, "Why not?" Don't you understand? He says, "Don't you understand? That song is a prayer? God's going to do it." I was taken aback. Don't you know you sing a song like that, that's a prayer. God's going to do it. God's going to take his plow. I was taken aback because my heart was saying, "Then do it." If my heart is so hard that I can't hear, if I am no longer sensitive to when the spirit is speaking, grace or kindness even, Lord, take your plow and tear up the fallow ground. Let your blade dig down to the richer places of my soul. Do it, Lord. Do it.

Anybody want to agree with me? Do it, Lord. If it needs to be done, do it. Keith Greens, if you remember him, he was part of the revival of the '60s. He wrote a song very much like it. The opening words would catch people. The opening words were this, "My eyes are dry. My prayers are cold. My heart is hard. My faith is old." Now, again, those were strong words and it caught people, made them think, "Is my heart like that?" My eyes are dry, my prayers are cold. My heart is hard, my faith is old. Oh, I know how I ought to be, alive to you and dead to me.

But what can be done for an old heart like mine?

Soften it up with oil and wine.

The oil is you, your spirit of love.

Please wash me anew in the wine of your blood.

Lord, do it.

What can be done with an old heart like mine? Soften it up with oil and wine. The oil is you, your spirit of love. God, wash over me again with your love. Open my heart to you. Wash over me again with your grace. Soften my heart, Lord. Wash me anew in the wine of your blood. The forgiveness of sin and the restoration of life. Lord, do it again. He says, "For don't waste your life." I don't want to waste my life. What a tragedy it would be if you got to the end and you look back and you realize you wasted your life.

B. Don’t waste your life

He says, "I set before you a path. It's good, it's glorious. It will lead you home. It will transform you into that which is good and glorious along the way. Walk in it. Don't walk on any path that will lead you anywhere else. There are verses here in this chapter that add up to the same message. Don't waste your life on that which produces nothing. No meaning, no purpose, no vision, no life. Notice verse 19, I am bringing in disaster on this people. It's the fruit of their own plan. What a plan? It was a waste.

You wasted the plan. You wasted your life. You didn't walk the path of life. Verse 20, what purpose does this frankincense come to me? Your burnt offerings. They mean nothing. What a waste? Verse 29 is interesting. He uses an analogy of the refining of silver. The way they would refine silver is they would put the rocks of ingots in the pot and they would fire them up and then they would belt them and then they would drain off the impurities.

Refining, refining more and more the purity of the silver, but He says in the analogy, "the bellows blow fiercely, but it's in vain," which is to say, there isn't any silver there. They fire up the bellows trying to drain off the dross. There's nothing there. There's no silver. It was a waste. Why don't you just say to the Lord, "I don't want to waste my life. I want to spend my life on the path that's good and glorious. I want to walk in your purpose. I want to see your hand blessing. I want to softhearted and hears. I don't want to waste my life.

I want to walk a on a path and a journey that will bring glory and honor to your name and will transform my soul. I am not lost. I know the way. God has sent before me a glorious path, and I will walk it. The cross is before me, the world is behind me, and there is no turning back. I know in whom I have believed. I will walk this path to glory and God will do glorious things in my heart and in my soul, and he'll do it for you.

Lord, we are so thankful because you show us the way. There is a way. There's a path to walk that's good and glorious. I set it before you to choose. Choose you this day the path. From the Ancient of Days, He offers to you a path to walk. He'll be transformed on it, He'll walk with you in it, and God will do glorious things. Church, how many would say to the Lord today, "I choose to follow you. I choose that path that you have opened before me. You set before me a path of life."

How many would say to the Lord, "I know that is the path for me. I choose that path because I know that it gives you glory and honor and it will transform my soul. I want that. I want all that you would do for me in that. I choose to follow you. The cross before me, the world behind me, and there is no turning back." Is that you church? Will you just lift your hand as a way of declaring that and just saying that is a prayer to the Lord? I know in whom I have believed. I choose to follow this path that is good and glorious.

I know God, that you are the one that will walk with me in it. I give you glory and honor for it all. In Jesus name and everyone said? Amen. Let's give the Lord praise. Can we do that in honor and glory? Amen. Church, let's worship. He's worthy of our worship. Let's all stand to our feet if you do that, and let's give him praise and-