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Jeremiah 29:1-14

The Plans God Has for You

  • Rich Jones
  • Weekend Messages
  • January 25, 2026

We live in a world obsessed with the future. Everyone wants to know what happens next. We crave certainty. And when we hit a season of trouble – – when the bottom drops out, anxiety skyrockets.

This was exactly the situation facing the people of God in Jeremiah chapter 29. To understand the power of this text, we have to feel the weight of their situation.

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The Plans God Has for You
Jeremiah 29:1-14
January 24-25, 2026

We live in a world obsessed with the future. Everyone wants to know what happens next. We want to know if the stock market will go up or down. We want to know if we will get that promotion. We want to know if our children will turn out okay.

There is a multi-billion-dollar industry built on trying to predict the future—from economic forecasters to weather models, and sadly, even to psychics and horoscopes. The human heart is anxious about the unknown. We don’t know what the future holds.

We crave certainty. And when we hit a season of trouble – – when the bottom drops out, when we lose a job, when a relationship falls apart, or when we find ourselves in a place we never intended to be — anxiety skyrockets. We feel like we are in a dark tunnel, and we just want to see the light at the end. We just want it to be over. We want God to speak a word and fix it all immediately.

This was exactly the situation facing the people of God in Jeremiah chapter 29. They were in exile. They were far from home. To understand the power of this text, we have to feel the weight of their situation.

In 597 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came against Jerusalem. He didn’t destroy the city yet—that would come later—but he took away many of the best of the people of Jerusalem. He took the royal family, the skilled craftsmen, the soldiers, and the priests.

He marched them 900 miles across the desert to Babylon — modern-day Iraq. Imagine the trauma. One day you are living in your own house, surrounded by all you’ve ever held dear. The next day, you are force-marched to a foreign land, surrounded by pagan idols, strange languages, and a hostile culture.

They were “displaced persons.” They were refugees. And they were depressed. Psalm 137 captures the cry of their heart: “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.” They hung their harps on the willow trees. They couldn’t even sing.

They were just waiting. Waiting for God to get them out. Waiting for the nightmare to end. They never unpacked their bags. They were sitting by the door, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. “Surely God won’t leave us here,” they thought. “Surely this is just temporary.”

To make matters worse, there were false prophets feeding them lies. A man named Hananiah was telling them, “No worries! Two years! Give it two years and God will break the yoke of Babylon, and we will all go home!”

That was the message they wanted to hear. It was a message of quick relief. Immediate restoration. But it was a lie. God had a different plan — a harder plan, but a better plan.

God spoke to Jeremiah back in Jerusalem and told him to write a letter to these exiles. It was a letter that shocked them. It was a letter that changed their entire perspective on their suffering. And it is a letter that God has for you today. Because we all experience “exile” in some form.

Maybe you aren’t living in Babylon, but you are living in a marriage that feels lonely. Maybe you are in a career that feels dead-end. Maybe you are in a season of chronic illness or grief, or financial wilderness. You feel displaced. You feel stuck. And you want out. And God sends this letter to say, “I have a plan. It’s not what you think. But it is good.”

 I. Bloom Where You’re Planted

  •  The first part of God’s plan is to call them to faithfulness right where they were.
  •  God shatters their illusion of a quick return. He tells them, essentially, “Unpack your bags. Get settled. You’re going to be there a while.”
  • But He doesn’t just tell them to wait; He tells them to live.

A. Trust in the sovereign hand of God

  • Notice how the letter begins. Jeremiah isn’t just giving good advice; he is bringing a word from the Throne of Heaven.
  • Verse 4 – Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon…
  •  Notice what He said “…to the exiles whom I have sent…” This changes everything. From a human perspective, it looked as though it was Nebuchadnezzar who had sent them into exile. It looked like the Babylonian army was the one in charge. It looked like they were victims of geopolitics and military defeat.
  • But God pulled back the curtain and said, “No. Nebuchadnezzar is just a tool in My hand. I sent you there.” This is the sovereignty of God. And it is the bedrock of our faith and our peace.
  • If you believe that your life is just a series of random accidents, or that you are purely a victim of other people’s bad choices, you will be bitter, angry, and fearful.
  • But if you believe that God is sovereign—that if “His eye is on the sparrow” — then you can find peace even in Babylon. The exile was a judgment, yes. It was the consequence of their idolatry. But it was also God’s divine hand. God had sent them there.
  • This is hard to understand sometimes. We want to blame the enemy. We want to blame the economy. We want to blame our boss. And while those things have a part, the believer looks deeper and says, “Father, if You have allowed me to be here, then You must have a purpose for me here.”
  • Acceptance is not resignation. It’s not giving up. Acceptance is the spiritual posture that stops fighting the reality of the moment and starts looking for what God is doing in it.
  • As long as the exiles were listening to the false prophets — thinking they were leaving in two years — they couldn’t settle. They couldn’t grow. Their lives were on hold.
  • Are you living your life on pause? Are you in waiting mode? Waiting for something to happen before you can be content?

Illus – “If I could just get a promotion, then I would be content,” or “if we could just buy a house, then I would be happy.” And of course, there are many single people who say, “If I could just get married, that would solve all my problems; then I would be happy.”

  • God says, “Stop waiting for the circumstances to change. Accept that I have placed you here for this season and for a reason.” You are where you are by divine appointment.

B. Engage your faith

  • Once they accepted that God had sent them, God gave them a surprising command. He told them to get to work building a life.
  • Verse 5-6 – Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.”
  • Plant. Marry. Multiply. These are words of permanence. These are words of building a life. God was telling them: “Don’t just survive this season; thrive in it.” “Bloom where you are planted.”
  • This was a radical command. Who builds a house when they are an exile in a foreign land? Who plants a garden when they expect to leave tomorrow? Only people who trust that God is with them in the exile.

Illus – During World War II, thousands of Allied soldiers were held in German prisoner-of-war camps, such as Stalag Luft III. The conditions were bleak. They lived in overcrowded barracks, surrounded by barbed wire and machine-gun towers, with no idea if the war would last months or years.

Most men battled crushing boredom and despair. But a group of prisoners decided they would not just sit and wait for the war to end. They founded what became known as the “Barbed Wire University”.

 They realized that among their ranks were professors, scientists, lawyers, and linguists. So, they built a school inside the prison camp. They organized a full curriculum, teaching classes in law, engineering, history, and languages. They even arranged for the University of London to send official exams through the Red Cross so that the soldiers could earn college credits while in captivity.

 Instead of pacing the perimeter fence in anxiety, they studied. Instead of counting the days, they made the days count. Many of them left the camp at the end of the war not just with freedom, but with degrees that prepared them for the rest of their lives. They couldn’t control when the war would end, but they could control who they would be when they walked out the gate.

  • The exiles wanted to make Babylon a place to give up, doing nothing, and just wait. God told them to make it a garden—a place of harvest.
  • There is a temptation when we are in a hard season to withdraw; to curl up in a ball, to isolate.
  • That’s when people stop dreaming. They say, “I’m just trying to get through this.” But God says, “No, build a house. Build a life.”
  • What does this look like for us? It means if you are single and want to be married, don’t put your life on hold.

 Illus – I remember when I was single and really wanted to be married. A pastor friend said, “Don’t wait until you’re married to live your life. Now is the time to pour into yourself, to learn, to grow, to improve your mind, to strengthen your faith. Don’t wait until you’re married to live; live and I’ll bring someone alongside that has the same heart.” Great advice.

  • Serve God with everything you have now. It means if you are in a job you hate, don’t just do the bare minimum while you look for a new opportunity. Work as unto the Lord. Be the best employee there. “Build a house” in that cubicle.
  • It means if you are sick, don’t let the illness define you. Find ways to bless others even from your weakness.

Illus – I remember hearing Luis Palau speak of the many times he was in the hospital. All the nurses at the hospital wanted to take care of him because he blessed everyone around him.

  • “Multiply there and do not decrease.” God wanted His people to be a people of increase, even in captivity.
  • God wants your faith to grow. He wants your character to grow. Don’t let the trouble shrink your soul. Let it expand your capacity for God.

C. Seek the welfare of the City

  • If the command to “build houses” was surprising, the next command was almost scandalous. It went against every patriotic and religious instinct they had.
  • Verse 7 – Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare, you will have welfare.”
  • Seek the welfare—the Shalom—of Babylon? Babylon? The city that destroyed our homes? The city that mocks our God? Pray for them?
  • We want to pray against our enemies. We want to pray for judgment on Babylon. We want to pray, “Lord, burn it down! Get us out of this God-forsaken place!”
  • And God says, “No. Pray for its peace. Work for its good.” Why? “For in its peace, you will have peace.”
  • This is a profound spiritual principle. God calls His people to be a blessing to the world, even when the world is hostile to them.
  • We are called to be salt and light. Salt doesn’t do any good if it stays in the saltshaker. It must be poured onto the meat.
  • Light doesn’t do any good if it’s hidden under a bushel. It must shine in the darkness. God had placed them in Babylon not just to discipline them, but to be a witness to
  • Think about Daniel. He was one of these exiles. He served in the court of the king. He served with excellence. He sought the welfare of the city. And because of Daniel, the pagan kings of Babylon ended up praising the Most High God.
  • Be in the world, but not of the world. But here is the tension, and it is a vital one. They were called to settle in Babylon, but they were not called to become
  • Babylon is a picture of the world. It represents the system of values that is opposed to God—pride, idolatry, and self-sufficiency.
  • God told them to live there, to build there, and to prosper there. But He also told them, implied in every command, “Do not lose yourself there.” “Hold onto your faith. Never forget that you are God’s chosen people.”
  • This is the New Testament principle that Jesus taught us: Be in the world, but not of the world. They were to be residents, but they were also to remain distinct. They were to participate in the economy but not participate in the idolatry. They were to walk the streets of Babylon, but their hearts were to remain in Zion.
  • This is exactly our calling today. We live in a culture that is increasingly like Babylon. It can be hostile to our faith. It has different values.
  • One temptation is to isolate from it completely. God says “No, don’t isolate.”

Illus – During Y2K there was a guy I knew who decided to move to the remotest places in Idaho to escape the chaos that was supposed to happen in Y2K… He took his family and moved, never to be seen again.

  • The other temptation is to assimilate into it completely. To this God also says, “No.”
  • If you isolate, you have no influence. If you assimilate, you have no testimony.
  • There is a line between them. We work hard, we love our neighbors, we seek the good of our community.
  • But we never forget who we are. We never forget where our true citizenship lies. We are ambassadors. An ambassador lives in a foreign country, speaks the language, and respects the laws, but he represents another King.
  • Be in the world, but don’t let the world get into you. Prosper in Babylon, but keep your window open toward Jerusalem, just like Daniel did.

II. Trust that God’s Plan is Good

  • The first part of God’s plan is about our responsibility in the present.
  • The second part of the plan is about God’s promise for the future. God doesn’t leave them in Babylon forever. He gives them a promise to hold on to; He gives them a future and a hope.

A. Trust in God’s timing

  • Before he gives the famous promise of verse 11, He gives the timeline of verse 10.
  • Verse 10 – For thus says the Lord, “When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.”
  • Seventy years. Imagine 70 long years. For a 20-year-old exile hearing this letter, that meant he would be 90 when the exile ended. For an elder hearing this, it meant he would die in Babylon.
  • This was not the “two years” that Hananiah promised. This was a lifetime.
  • Why 70 years? In 2 Chronicles 36, we are told that God would give the land its Sabbaths.
  • For 490 years, Israel had failed to give the land its sabbath rest — every seventh year. God keeps accounts. 490 divided by 7 is 70.
  • God was purifying His people. He was curing them of idolatry. And deep cures take time. We want “instant” answers. We love instant everything.
  • God is patient. He will marinate us in something if that is what it takes. He works slowly, deeply, and thoroughly.

Illus – Consider the Saguaro Cactus of the American West. It is a symbol of the desert, standing tall and majestic, sometimes reaching 40 to 60 feet in height. But its growth is agonizingly slow. In its first 10 years of life, a Saguaro grows only about one inch. One inch in a decade! If you walked by it, you would hardly know it was there.

You could easily think it was a failure. You would wonder if anything were happening. But under the surface, it is preparing to survive in a harsh land. It is developing the root system it will need to survive the droughts and the storms of the desert. It takes about 70 years before it finally produces its first arm. Imagine –70 years of what may appear to be “doing nothing” before it begins to look like the giant it was meant to be.

Jeremiah told the exiles: “When seventy years are completed, I will visit you.”

  • God uses the “70 years” — the long seasons of waiting — to build your spiritual depth. He is preparing you for the weight of glory. If He answered your prayer immediately, you might not have the depth of character to sustain the blessing.
  • Maybe you have been praying for something for a long time. A wayward child to return. A healing. A spouse. And you are tired of waiting. You feel like God has forgotten.
  • Verse 10 reminds us: God is patient. There is a time for every season under heaven. “When seventy years are completed… I will visit you.” His delay is not His denial. His timing is perfect. Trust the timing of the hand of God.

B. God’s plan is a future and a hope

  • And while we wait, we cling to one of the greatest promises in all of Scripture. This is the verse we put on plagues for our walls and the words we write on cards. But it means so much more when we read it in the context of the exile, in the context of a 70-year wait.
  • Verse 11 – “For I know the plans that I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”
  • The people in exile thought God was angry at them. They thought He was done with them. They looked at their circumstances—ruin, captivity, loss—and concluded, “God is against us. His plans for us are for not for our good, but to punish us.”
  • God interrupts their despair and says, “I know My plans for you… And it is good.” The word “know” here in Hebrew is emphatic. “I, I myself, know the plans…”
  • “You don’t know the plan. The world doesn’t know the plan. But I know.” And the nature of the plan is “Shalom.” Welfare. Peace. Wholeness. Completeness.
  • “Not for calamity.” Not for evil. This is the heart of God for His children. Even when He holds the rod of discipline, His eye is on your restoration.
  • Even when He leads you into the valley of the shadow of death, He is leading you through it to the table He has prepared for you.

Illus – It’s like a master weaver creating a beautiful tapestry. If you look at the back of the tapestry, you can make nothing of it. It looks like a mess. Knots, loose threads, chaotic colors, no discernible pattern. It looks like a disaster.

That’s often how their life looks to many. They see the back of the tapestry. They see the exile, the pain; the confusion. But God is looking at the front. He is weaving a pattern of beauty. He knows the plan. He sees the “end.” He sees the picture of Jesus being formed in you.

  • This requires faith. Faith is trusting the hand of the One weaving when you can only see the knots. Faith is trusting the Father when you think your life is on hold.
  • “God, I don’t like this. It hurts. But I trust Your thoughts toward me.” He has a “future” for you.
  • For the exiles, that future was the return to Jerusalem. It was the rebuilding of the temple. It was the coming of the Messiah.
  • For us, the future is the abundant life in Christ now, and the eternal glory of heaven later. Your story does not end in Babylon. Your story does not end in the hospital room. Your story does not end in divorce court. God has a future and a hope for you.

C. God wants you to seek Him

  • Finally, God reveals the ultimate purpose of the plan. Was the plan just to have them build houses and gardens in Jerusalem? No. The plan was to restore their relationship with Him.
  • Verses 12-14 – Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord.
  • In Babylon, stripped of everything, they realized that all they really needed was God.

Illus – C.S. Lewis famously said, “God whispers to us in our pleasures… but shouts to us in our pain: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

  • The exile was the megaphone. And the promise is: “You will find Me.” What a promise! God is not hiding from you. He wants you to find Him.
  • But there is a condition: “…when you search for Me with all your heart.” Not half-heartedly. Not as a backup plan. Not just “God, get me out of this mess.” But “God, I want YOU. You’re all I need. Every hour I need you.”
  • God is waiting for you to seek Him. He has “sent” you into this season so that you would stop seeking satisfaction in the world and start seeking satisfaction in Him.
  • He is the Fountain of Living Waters. Why would you chase broken cisterns? When you seek Him with all your heart—surrendering your will, your timeline, your demands—you find Him. And when you find Him, you find everything. You find a “future and the hope” because He is the future and the hope.
  • This letter from Jeremiah changed the course of history for those exiles. They stopped listening to the lies of Hananiah. They unpacked their bags. They built houses. They planted gardens. They prayed for the peace of Babylon. They became a strong, faithful community in the midst of a pagan land.
  • 70 years later, when God opened the door, a faithful remnant returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. They had a future and they had a hope. God’s word was true.
  • What about you today? Which voice are you listening to? Are you listening to the voice of anxiety that says, “It’s over. There is no hope.”?
  • Or will you listen to the voice of the Lord? The voice that says: “I have a plan for you.” “I have placed you here for a purpose.” “Bloom where you are planted.” “Trust My timing.” “Seek My face.”
  • God is preparing you for greater things. He is using the “Babylon” of this world to prepare you for the “Jerusalem” of His Kingdom. Don’t waste your exile. Don’t waste your pain. Don’t waste your life. Press into God. Seek Him with all your heart. And you will find that even in the midst of the desert, He is making a way. He is giving you a future and a hope.

The Plans God Has for You
Jeremiah 29:1-14
January 24-25, 2026

Open your Bibles, if you would, to Jeremiah 29 as we're continuing our study through the entire Bible. We're just working our way through all the way to Revelation, and then we'll do it again. The title of our message, The Plans God Has For You. Very important what God would have for us in the Word today. Let's pray and receive from God's Word together. Lord, we thank You. We know that You send Your Word to reveal Your heart after us, Your desire to bless our lives. We open our heart to receive from You and just pray that You would pour out Your Spirit of life through Your Word. Meet us here in this holy place and stir us up, Lord, to hear Your heart. In Jesus' name, and everyone said, Amen.

We live in a world obsessed with the future. Everyone wants to know what's going to happen next. Is the stock market going to go up? Is it going to go down? Will we get that promotion? How will our children turn out? Indeed, there's a whole industry built on predicting the future. There are economic forecasts. There are weather models, which we appreciate when they get it right. The human heart is anxious about the unknown. Some, sadly, even turn to psychics or horoscopes.

I remember back when newspapers were a thing, that there would be horoscopes printed in the paper every day, and people were like, "Oh, I wonder what's going to be in my future." This is a terrible idea. Anybody want to agree with this? God says, I have a plan. I have a plan, and that plan is good. God's hand is the hand that moves. We crave certainty. We don't know what the future holds. When we hit a season of trouble, the bottom falls out, or we lose a job, or relationships fall apart, or we find ourselves in a place we never intended to be, anxiety skyrockets, and you feel like you're in a dark tunnel. You just want the light to come at the end of the tunnel.

We want this thing to be over. We want God to just fix it. This is exactly the situation facing the people of God in Jeremiah 29. Here in Jeremiah, they are now in exile. They are in Babylon. They are far from home. To understand the power of this text, you've got to feel the weight of it. In 597 BC, the King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon besieged Jerusalem, surrounded it with his armies. Jeremiah had told them, this city will fall, this city will burn and give yourselves up. If you do that, then you'll have your life as a reward.

Nebuchadnezzar took many of the best people of the city and put them in exile. He took away the royal family, the king, the queen mother, the children, the family, the skilled craftsmen, the soldiers, and priests. He marched them 900 miles across the desert to Babylon, modern-day Iraq. Imagine the trauma. One day, you're living in Jerusalem, surrounded by all that you've ever known and held dear. Next day, you're forced to march to a foreign land, surrounded by pagan idols, strange languages, hostile culture. They were displaced, and they were depressed.

Psalm 137 speaks of it. "By the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept when we remembered Zion." They hung their harps on the willows. They couldn't even sing. They just were waiting. Waiting for God to end this nightmare. They didn't even unpack their bags, you might say. They're just sitting, "Surely God won't leave us here. Surely this is temporary." To make matters worse, there were false prophets feeding them lies. There was a man named Hananiah, in particular, that was telling them, "No worries, no worries, two years, two years, and God will break the yoke of Babylon, and we're going home, two years."

That was the message they wanted to hear, the message of quick relief, immediate restoration, but it was a lie. God had a different plan, a harder plan, but a better plan. God spoke to Jeremiah, who was in Jerusalem, told him to write a letter to the exiles in Babylon. This is the letter that we're going to read now. It was the letter that shocked them. It changed their entire perspective on what they were going through, their suffering. It is a letter that God would use for us today.

You may not be living in Babylon, certainly not, but you may be going through what you feel like is an exile. Maybe you're living in a marriage that feels lonely, or maybe a career that's in a dead end, or season of chronic illness, or grief, or financial wilderness. You feel stuck, and you want out. Then God sends a letter like this, "I have a plan. It's not what you think, but it's good." Let's read it. Jeremiah 29. We're going to actually begin in verse 4, where he says, "Thus says the Lord of hosts."

I. Bloom Where You’re Planted

This is the letter. "To all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, build houses, live in them, plant gardens, eat their produce, take wives, become fathers of sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands that they may bear sons and daughters, multiply there. Do not decrease." Verse 7 is famous. Then he says, "Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will have welfare.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, 'Do not let the prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams which they dream, for they prophesy falsely to you in my name. I have not sent them,' declares the Lord. For thus says the Lord, when 70 years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you, I will fulfill my good word to you, and I will bring you back to this place."

Then the very famous verse 11. "For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call on me, and you will come and pray to me, and I will listen to you, and you will seek me, and you will find me when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes. I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to that place where I sent you into exile."

These are the words that we want to see and apply to our lives. We'll look at the other verses around this at our Wednesday verse-by-verse service, but notice how he would apply this today as he speaks this word to us now. "Bloom where you're planted." He says, the first part of God's plan is faithfulness. Right where you are. You're in exile. You're in a place you don't want to be, but bloom where you're planted. Faith now. He said, God shatters the illusion of a quick return, telling them, you need to unpack your bags and settle in. You're going to be there for a while, but not just wait. Live.

A. Trust in the sovereign hand of God

He's wanting them to see something very, very important. Starting with this, trust in the sovereign hand of God. Notice how the letter begins. Jeremiah isn't just giving advice here. He's giving them a word from the throne of heaven itself. Notice verse 4, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem." Notice, whom I have sent. This changes everything.

From the human perspective, it looked as though Nebuchadnezzar sent them into exile. It looked as though the Babylonian army was the one in charge of this whole thing. They were just victims of geopolitics and military defeat. Then God pulls back the curtain and says, "No, Nebuchadnezzar is a tool in my hand. I sent you there. This is the hand of God. This is the bedrock of faith and peace, no matter what you're going through, this is the substance of peace."

See, if you believe that life is just a series of random events, random accidents, that you're just a victim of other people's bad choices, then you will live your life bitter and angry and fearful and full of anxiety. If you believe that God's hand still moves, that if His eye is on the sparrow, then surely His eye is on me, then you can find peace no matter where you are, even in Babylon, even in exile. Yes, the exile was judgment. Yes, it was. It was consequence of their idolatry, but this is now the divine hand of God.

See, this is hard to understand. We want to blame somebody. We want to blame the enemy. We want to blame the economy. We want to blame the boss. All those things have a part, but the believer looks deeper and says, "God, I know that You have a purpose and that Your hand still moves." I believe that God's hand still moves in our lives today. Anybody want to agree with me on this? His hand still moves. See, acceptance is not just resignation. Okay, fine. No, it's not giving up. It is a spiritual posture that stops fighting what's happening and starts looking for what God is doing in it. God's doing something. God is moving somehow.

See, as long as the exiles were listening to the false prophets thinking, "Ah, two years, we're going home," they couldn't grow. Their lives were on hold. Their lives were on pause. Many people are like that. They're in waiting mode. They're waiting for something to happen before they can live. "If this could happen, then all will be well." Many people are like, "If I could just get that promotion, if I could just get a raise and have more money, then I would be content. If I could just buy a house, then I would be happy."

Of course, there are a lot of single people who would say, "If I could just get married, it would solve all of my problems." Of course, there are many married people who would say, "No, it's not going to solve all your problems." This is the way people are. They're always waiting for something. "I can't wait till I graduate from high school. When I graduate from high school, then I'll live. If I could just graduate from college, then I'll live. If I could just get a job, get a career going on, then I can live. If I could just get married, then I'll live. If I could just have kids, life would have such meaning. If my kids could just sleep through the night-- If my kids could just graduate from high school, then I could live."

B. Engage your faith

Then at one point, "If I could just retire--" There's always something. Always waiting, always waiting, always waiting. God says, stop putting your life on hold. There is a reason where you are. God is going to do something now. He's telling them, engage your faith. In other words, engage your faith. Once they accepted that God sent them there, God gave them a surprising command, build something there. Engage your faith.

Notice verses 5 to 6, "Build houses, live in them, plant gardens, eat the produce, take wives, become fathers of sons and daughters, multiply there, do not decrease." Build, plant, marry, multiply. These are the words of a life, permanence. Don't just survive. Bloom where you're planted. Thrive. It's a radical command. Who builds a house when you're in exile in a foreign land? Who plants a garden when you expect to leave tomorrow? Only people who trust that God is with them. In other words, don't just count the days. Make the days count.

God's doing something now. Don't just wait for something. Don't just count the days. Make the days count. I was thinking of an illustration. This took place in World War II. During the war, there were many thousands of Allied soldiers who ended up being POWs held in prisoner of war camps such as Stalag Luft III, where this story actually takes place. True story. It was in a book. Conditions are terrible there. Overcrowded barracks, barbed wire fences, machine gun towers. No idea how long this thing would last. Turned out it would be years.

Most men battled crushing boredom, despair. A group of soldiers decided that they would not just sit and wait, but they would make the days count for something. They founded what later became known as the Barbed Wire University. They realized that amongst the POWs were professors, scientists, lawyers, linguists. They organized a school inside the prison camp, organized full curriculum, teaching classes, law, engineering, history, languages. They even arranged for the Red Cross to bring official exams from the University of London while they were there in captivity. They earned college credits.

Instead of just pacing and pacing and worrying and being angry, instead of counting the days, they made the days count. Many of them left the camp at the end of the war, not just with freedom, but with degrees that were honored, that prepared them for the rest of their lives. They couldn't control when the war would end, but they could control who they were when they walked out that gate. Don't just count the days. Make the days count. The exiles wanted to make Babylon a place to give up. Do nothing. God says, make this a place of harvest.

It's tempting when you're going through a hard season to withdraw, curl up, give up. That's when people stop dreaming. That's when people stop looking for what God's doing. Never stop looking for what God is doing. God is doing something now. Don't just say, "I got to get through it. Just got to get through it." No, build something. Engage your faith. It means don't put your life on hold. Make your days count.

I remember when I was young, I was single, and I really wanted to be married. I was talking to a pastor friend of mine, and I was telling him, "Oh, one day when I get married--" and he said, "Look, can I give you some advice? Don't wait until you're married to live your life. Build. Now is the time. While you are single, now that you've got time, now build something. Invest in your faith. Strengthen your faith. Strengthen your life. Become the man of God that God wants you to be, and then you will be prepared for when God will bring you that who will come alongside of you." Good advice. Amen?

Surely God understands. He wants you to now look for what God is doing now. It means that if you're in a job that you hate, don't just do the bare minimum. Work as unto the Lord. Yes, you're waiting for something new to happen, but work as unto the Lord. Build something there. Engage your faith. It means that if you're sick, don't let this illness define you. Find ways to bless others from the weakness.

I was thinking of an illustration. I remember reading or hearing from Luis Palau. Many of you know Luis Palau and the worldwide ministry that he led. He's with the Lord now, but he battled lung cancer, even though he smoked not a day in his life. I remember him saying that they're in the hospital, going through the various treatments that he had to go through, that whenever the nurses would come in, he would pray for them, share the Gospel with them. It turned out that all the nurses on the floor wanted to take care of Luis Palau because he was always blessing them.

Multiply there. Do not decrease. God wanted them to increase. God wants your faith to grow. He wants your character to grow. Don't let the trouble shrink your soul. Multiply there and increase. It's like the Scripture. Going through the Valley of Baca, they make it a spring. The Valley of Baca is another way of saying a valley of trouble, like Death Valley in America. Going through the Valley of Baca, they make it a spring. They pour out around them. Then it's interesting what he says next. He says, "Seek the welfare of the city."

C. Seek the welfare of the City

Now, if the command to build houses was surprising, the next command was almost scandalous. It went against every patriotic and religious instinct they had. Notice verse 7, "Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord on His behalf." The word in Hebrew is 'shalom'. Seek the peace of Babylon. Babylon, the city that destroyed our homes. The city that mocks our God. Pray for them? This is not what people would want to do. People in this circumstance would want to pray against them. Burn it down, Lord. Take us out of this God-forsaken place and burn down this city. That's what many people would say.

Jesus said in very similar word, "Pray for those who persecute you." Radical Christian understanding. Very different than the way the world would be. The kingdom principles are higher. The ways of God are higher. Pray for those who are against you. Pray for its peace. Work for its good. For in its peace, you will have peace. Now this is a profound principle. God is calling His people to be a blessing in the world, even a world that's hostile to your faith. In other words, we're called to be salt and light. Jesus said this. "You are the salt of the world. You are the light of the world."

Salt doesn't do any good if it stays in the salt shaker. It must be pressed into the meat. I remember reading a book when I was in Bible college called Out of the Salt Shaker and Into the World. That's when you're effective. Light doesn't do any good if it's hidden under a bushel. That's what Jesus says. If a person has a light, do they hide it? No, they put it on the lampstand to give light for all to see. God placed them in Babylon, not just to discipline them, but to be a witness to Babylon.

Notice Daniel. We're going to soon get to his book. He was one of the exiles. He served in the court of the king with excellence. He sought the welfare of the city. Because of Daniel, the pagan kings of Babylon ended up praising and honoring the Most High God. It's a principle that the Lord Himself gave to us. Be in the world, but not of the world. Here is the tension, and it's a vital one. They were called to settle in Babylon, but they were not called to become Babylonians. Very important distinction. You can live in Babylon, but don't become Babylonian.

See, Babylon is a picture of the world. It represents a system of values very much opposed to God. Pride, idolatry, self-sufficiency, all that the world stands for. God told them, live there, build there, prosper there, but don't lose yourself there. Don't become a Babylonian. Hold on to who you are. Do you know who you are? Hold on to your faith. Be distinctly different. Never forget that you are God's chosen people. It's the New Testament principle. Be in the world, but not of the world. They were to be residents, but remain distinct. They were to participate in the economy, but don't participate in the idolatry.

They were to walk the streets of Babylon, but their hearts were to remain in Zion where the glory of God dwelt. This is exactly our calling today. We live in a culture more and more increasingly like Babylon, and it's hostile to our faith. It has very different values than the kingdom of God. Anybody want to agree with this? Our temptation would be to either isolate from it or assimilate into it. God says, no, neither one. If you isolate, you'll have no influence. If you assimilate, you'll have no testimony. It's tempting when going through things like this to curl up, give up, isolate, withdraw. Many people do this. They just withdraw.

I was thinking of-- some of you remember back in 1999, Y2K. Anybody remember Y2K? Only old hands are raised. It stood for Year 2000. The idea, of course, was that the computers in those days used two digits to represent the number, right? 96, 97, 98, 99. Then when it turned 2000, the year would show up as 00, and the computers of the world wouldn't know what to do. Chaos would ensue. What would happen with the nuclear codes? It could be chaos. Everybody was very, very worried. This was a thing in '99. Very worried about chaos ensuing in the world.

This fellow that I knew decided he was going to withdraw. He was going to pull up stakes, take his family, move to the hinterlands of Idaho, and live in the wilderness of the Rockies somewhere. This is exactly what he did. He pulled up his stakes. He moved, and never to be seen again. He's probably living off the grid in the Rockies right now, thinking that there's a nuclear chaos going on in the world. It's tempting to isolate, to withdraw. I remember back in '99, we had discussions, and people were like, "What are you going to do, Pastor? If it turns to chaos, what are you going to do? Are you going to move to New Zealand?"

I said, "Look, if it turns to chaos, I'm going to be right here. We need to be right here in the middle of it. If this thing turns to chaos, we need Christians to step up and be leaders in the midst of it. That's what I'm going to do. That's what we need to do. That's where I'm going to be, and that's where you're going to be." Amen? Let's give the Lord praise, right?

No, don't isolate, but don't assimilate either. Don't become Babylonians. You'll have no testimony. There's a line. Work hard, love your neighbor, seek the good, pray for those who persecute you, pray for the welfare of the city, but never forget who you are. Never forget your true citizenship, that we are ambassadors for Christ. An ambassador lives in a foreign country, speaks the language of that country, obeys and respects the laws of that country, but represents another king altogether. Be in the world, but don't let the world be in you. Prosper there in Babylon, but keep your window open towards Jerusalem.

II. Trust that God’s Plan is Good

When we get to Daniel, we'll read his story. Three times a day, he would open the windows and pray with his heart turned toward Jerusalem, the place where the glory of God dwelt, the place of God's honor. He never forgot who he was. Yes, he was in Babylon, but his heart was always in Jerusalem. Then there's this. Out of Jeremiah 29, "Trust that God's plan is good." The first part of God's plan was about bloom where you're planted, engage your faith, believe that God is doing something in it. The second part of God's plan is to hold onto a promise for the future.

A. Trust in God’s timing

When you're going through a valley, when you're going through an exile or Babylon, you've got to have a promise. You need something to hold onto. It means something you can firmly hold onto of your faith, a promise like this. First, before he gives them that promise, he gives them timing, the timeline of it. Notice in verse 10, because he's telling them, trust in God's timing. Notice verse 10, "For thus says the Lord, when 70 years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you, I will fulfill my good word to you, and I'll bring you back to this place." 70 years.

Can you imagine 70 years? That is a long time. For a 20-year-old hearing this, it means he would be 90 before the exile is over. For an elder hearing this, it means you're going to die there. This is not the two years of Hananiah's promise. No, this is a long time. 70 years? Why 70 years? In 2 Chronicles 36, we're told that God said, "I am going to give the land its Sabbath rest." See, God's word has said to them that they are to give the land a Sabbath rest. Every seven years, the land is to have rest.

Now, we know this is true. The science of agronomy today even verifies, you've got to give land rest, or it will not produce. It was true, proven by agronomy, but it was a principle of faith in those days. Do not plant, do not harvest. They could harvest whatever, glean whatever volunteers, we would say, that came up, but give the land rest. We know it's true. We know it's true. Not only give the land rest, give the people rest. Can you imagine having a year off every seven years?

In fact, modern-day companies give, oftentimes, people a sabbatical. It's named after the Biblical principle of the Sabbath rest. Some of them even peg it to the seven years of the Bible, which I think is wonderful. Today, on a sabbatical, you don't get a year off. I thought I would just clarify. You get a few weeks off, but you get a rest. In those days, they get a year off. The land rested, but for 490 years, they didn't obey. They did not believe. See, it takes faith to believe. It takes faith to give the land rest, not to harvest, not to plant and harvest.

God says, "Trust me, I will do more with six than you can do with seven because you keep plowing and planting and harvesting, you're going to wear out the land. I can do more with six if you just trust me. Just trust me. Faith, engage your faith." For 490 years, they did not. God says, "Then I'll do it. I'll give the land its Sabbath rest. I'll bank up for every Sabbath year that you missed." 490 divided by 7 is 70 years. "When 70 years are completed, I will visit you. I will restore."

See, 70 years, God is doing something, purifying His people. Deep transformation takes time. We want everything to be instant. That's why we love our microwave ovens. We want instant. God says, things take time. God is patient. God will leave you in it for as long as it takes. God works slowly. God works deeply. God works thoroughly. Did you know that after those 70 years, when they came back to Jerusalem, they never did the idolatry thing again? They were done with that. It was a long, long transformation, but something amazing happened. 70 years.

I was thinking of an illustration. It reminds me of the saguaro cactus that grows here in our own American West. It's a symbol of the desert, standing majestic and tall, sometimes reaching 40, 60 feet in height, but its growth is agonizingly slow. Did you know that in the first 10 years of a saguaro cactus, it grows only about an inch? An inch in 10 years. If you walk by it, you hardly know it was there. You might think, "Well, that's a failure. 10 years? What have you been doing for 10 years?" Building roots, growing depth. It's like that Scripture, planted by streams of water. They do not fear a year of drought.

God is doing something in this picture. You're going through a long time, long period. You set down roots, deep roots, so that you can endure the drought. It takes, interestingly, almost 70 years for the saguaro cactus to grow its first arm. "When 70 years are completed, I will visit you." The long seasons of waiting, building, preparing, spiritual depth. If He answered your prayer immediately, you would not have the depth of faith, and depth of soul to sustain the blessing. Maybe you've been praying for something for a long time, a wayward child, a healing, a spouse, and you're tired of waiting, and you feel like God's forgotten you. Verse 10 reminds us, "There is a time for every season under heaven." God is patient. Trust God's timing.

Then there's this. God's plan is a future and a hope. While we wait, we cling to one of the greatest promises in the Scriptures. This is the verse that we put on plaques, hanging it on the wall. This is the verse that we write in cards to encourage people that are going through a difficult time. I was thinking of Pastor Jon Courson. Many of you know that he was a Calvary Chapel pastor in Southern Oregon. Huge church, now retired, but went through terrible tragedy. When he was 29, he was pastoring at the time. When he was 29, his wife died in a car accident.

A few years later, his daughter died in a car accident. Just in the depths of grief, he was just praying, "God, why? Why?" He's going through the Scriptures looking for God to just be his strength, looking for a promise to hold onto. Then his eyes came to Jeremiah 29:11. "I know the plans that I have for you, plans for good, not for calamity. To give you a future and a hope." This verse, it just became an anchor to his soul. "I'm going to hold onto this." Then the next day, Pastor Chuck from Calvary Chapel goes to him, and he said-- Pastor Chuck called him and said, "Jon, I'm so sorry. I love you. I'm standing with you. I want to pray with you, but I have a verse for you, Jeremiah 29:11." It's like confirmation. God has a plan. God has a plan to give you a future and a hope.

B. God’s plan is a future and a hope

The people in exile thought God was angry. They thought God was done. They looked at their circumstances, ruin, captivity, loss, and they could conclude, "God's against us. Look at our situation. God's against us." Many people think that today. They go through a valley of despair. They go through their own Babylon experience, and they think, "God is against me." God interrupts that despair. He says, "I know the plans that I have for you. I know." It's emphatic in the Hebrew. "I myself know very well the plans that I have for you, plans for welfare, not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope."

The nature of that plan is peace. It's the word 'shalom', peace, completeness. I have a plan, a plan for you. It's not for calamity, not for evil. This is the heart of God for His children. I have a plan, and it's a good plan. Even when He leads you through the valley of the shadow of death, He's leading you through it to the table that He's prepared for you. It requires faith to believe. To believe that God's plan is good means that you believe God's heart for you. I know the plans. It's because of His heart for you, plans to prosper you, the welfare, peace.

Faith is trusting in the Father. Even if you say, "God, I don't like this, it hurts," you say, "But I trust. I trust your thoughts toward me. I trust your plan for me. I trust your hand in my life." For the exiles, it meant the future return to Jerusalem, the rebuilding of the city, the rebuilding of the temple, the coming of the Messiah. For us, it's the understanding that God is doing something in the soul, transforming us, preparing us for the eternal weight of glory. See, your story does not end in whatever you're going through. It does not end in Babylon. It does not end in exile. It does not end in divorce court. It does not end in bankruptcy. Whatever it is, that's not the end of the story.

C. God wants you to seek Him

God has more. God has a plan for you, and it's good. Anybody who want to agree with me? It's good. God has a future. God has the hope. Notice this. This is a very important part of the story. It would not be complete without understanding this, that God wants you to seek Him. This is the key. He reveals the ultimate purpose in His plan, not just to build houses or to plant gardens. No, the plan is to restore. Notice verse 12 and following. "Then, at the end of all that, He declared, then you will call on Me, you'll come and pray to Me, I'll listen to you, and you will seek Me, and you will find Me when you search for Me with all your heart, and I will be found by you." This is restoration.

In Babylon, stripped of everything, they came to realize all they needed was God. I need thee. Every hour, I need thee. They came to a place of understanding. "When you search, you'll find Me. When you find Me, you will find all that you need for your soul's delight." Search with all your heart. Now you might say, "Wait, Pastor, I thought you said that God searches for us." You would be right. That's true. Jesus said, "The Father sent me to seek and to save that which was lost." You would be right.

God is the one pursuing. God is the one calling out your name, knocking on the door of your heart. God is the one pursuing sinners to reconcile that sinner to Himself. You would be right. Once that sinner has been reconciled, how is that sinner reconciled? Because God has made a way for the sins of that sinner which have separated you from God. He's taken all of your sins, and He placed them on the cross of Jesus Christ so that they are paid for and paid in full. Forgiveness is yours when you ask the Lord Jesus Christ. He will forgive you of all your sins. Ask.

He pursued you. He's offering you, and He'll reconcile you. Having been reconciled, having now a relationship made possible only because of what Jesus did for you, having been reconciled, then He says, "Now seek. Now you seek. You seek for more. You search for me with all your heart. Search for more." Jesus said it. He said, "Ask, seek, knock." Jesus said, "I want you to ask, I want you to seek, I want you to knock. Ask God for more. Ask, and it will be given. Seek, and you'll find. Knock, and the door will be opened unto you. For anyone who asks for more of the Holy Spirit, God delights to give it."

This is what God is saying to you. You're going through a valley, going through an exile. You feel like you're in Babylon. Trust that God's doing something in it, yes, but the greatest thing that God is doing is calling you to seek for more of Him. Revival comes when you understand this is the most important of it all. Seek Him. Search, and you'll find. All that your soul desires is found in Him. After that, nothing else will matter until you have found that which God gives to your soul.

Let's pray. Lord, we are so thankful that You give such promises as these. We can trust Your hand that moves. God's doing something. We can believe that Your plans for us are good, to give us a future and a hope. That You've called us to a deeper place to seek, to ask, to knock. Church, how many would say to the Lord today, "I trust Your hand. I believe that You are doing something even now. I believe Your hand moves. You're doing something in this. God, I believe that Your plans for me are good, to give me a future and a hope. I believe in Your plan because I believe Your heart.

God, You say to me that I should seek. Well, I seek You with all my heart. I do want more. I'm asking. You said I could ask. I'm asking. I'm seeking. I'm knocking. I want more. Oh, God, do a great work in my soul. I want more." Church, is that your heart and your desire? Would you just raise your hand as a way of saying that to the Lord today? "I trust Your hand. I know You're doing something in it. God, I believe Your plans for me are good. I will seek You with all my heart."

Just raise your hand to the Lord and say it by that-- "Lord, do this great work in me. Do this in me, God. Pour out Your Spirit of life. I seek You with all of my heart because I believe that Your plans for me are good." Father, we honor You and thank You for it all. In Jesus' name, and everyone said-- Can we give the Lord praise and glory and honor..

 

Jeremiah 29:1-14    NASB

29 1Now these are the words of the letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders of the exile, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 (This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the court officials, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.) 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying, 4 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, 5 ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. 7 Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’ 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream. 9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord.

10 “For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’

Los planes que Dios tiene para ti
Jeremías 29:1-14
24-25 de Enero de 2026

 

            Vivimos en un mundo obsesionado con el futuro. Todo el mundo quiere saber qué va a pasar después. Queremos saber si el mercado bursátil subirá o bajará. Queremos saber si conseguiremos ese ascenso. Queremos saber si nuestros hijos saldrán bien.

Existe una industria multimillonaria construida para intentar predecir el futuro—desde pronosticadores económicos hasta modelos meteorológicos y, tristemente, incluso psíquicos y horóscopos. El corazón humano está ansioso por lo desconocido. No sabemos qué depara el futuro.

Anhelamos la certeza. Y cuando llegamos a una temporada de problemas —cuando todo se viene abajo, cuando perdemos un trabajo, cuando una relación se desmorona, o cuando nos encontramos en un lugar en el que nunca pensábamos estar— la ansiedad se dispara. Nos sentimos como si estuviéramos en un túnel oscuro y solo queremos ver la luz al final. Solo queremos que se acabe. Queremos que Dios diga una palabra y lo arregle todo de inmediato.

Esta era exactamente la situación que enfrentaba el pueblo de Dios en Jeremías capítulo 29. Estaban en el exilio. Estaban lejos de casa. Para entender el poder de este texto, tenemos que sentir el peso de su situación.

En el año 597 a.C., el rey Nabucodonosor de Babilonia se enfrentó a Jerusalén. Aún no destruyó la ciudad—eso vendría después—pero se llevó a muchos de los mejores de la gente de Jerusalén. Se llevó a la familia real, a los artesanos hábiles, a los soldados y a los sacerdotes.

Los llevó 900 millas a través del desierto hasta Babilonia, el actual Irak. Imagina el trauma. Un día vives en tu propia casa, rodeado de todo lo que siempre has querido. Al día siguiente, te llevan a la fuerza a una tierra extranjera, rodeado de ídolos paganos, lenguas extrañas y una cultura hostil.

Eran “personas desplazadas”. Eran refugiados. Y estaban deprimidos. El Salmo 137 recoge el grito de su corazón: “Junto a los ríos de Babilonia, allí nos sentamos y lloramos, cuando recordamos a Sion.” Colgaban sus arpas en los sauces. Ni siquiera sabían cantar.

Solo estaban esperando. Esperando a que Dios los sacara de allí. Esperando a que la pesadilla termine. Nunca deshacían sus maletas. Estaban sentados junto a la puerta, listos para marcharse en cualquier momento. “Seguro que Dios no nos dejará aquí”, pensaron. “Seguramente esto es solo temporal.”

Para empeorar las cosas, habían falsos profetas alimentándoles con mentiras. Un hombre llamado Hananiah les decía: “¡No pasa nada! ¡Dos años! Dadle dos años y Dios romperá el yugo de Babilonia, ¡y todos volveremos a casa!”

Ese era el mensaje que querían oír. Fue un mensaje de alivio rápido. Restauración inmediata. Pero era mentira. Dios tenía un plan diferente: un plan más difícil, pero mejor.

Dios habló con Jeremías en Jerusalén y le dijo que escribiera una carta a estos exiliados. Fue una carta que les sorprendió. Era una carta que cambiaba por completo su perspectiva sobre su sufrimiento. Y es una carta que Dios tiene para ti hoy. Porque todos experimentamos el “exilio” de alguna forma.

Quizá no vivas en Babilonia, pero sí en un matrimonio que te resulta solitario. Quizá estés en una carrera que te parece un callejón sin salida. Quizá estés en una época de enfermedad crónica o duelo, o en un desierto económico. Te sientes desplazado. Te sientes atrapado. Y quieres salir. Y Dios envía esta carta para decir: “Tengo un plan. No es lo que piensas. Pero es bueno.”

 

  1. Florece donde estés plantado

 

  • La primera parte del plan de Dios es llamarlos a la fidelidad justo donde estaban.

 

  • Dios rompe su ilusión de un regreso rápido. Les dice, esencialmente: “Desempacad vuestras maletas. Instalaos. Vas a estar allí un buen rato.”

 

  • Pero no les dice simplemente que esperen; les dice que vivan.

 

  1. Confía en la mano soberana de Dios

 

  • Fíjate cómo empieza la carta. Jeremías no sólo da buenos consejos; trae una palabra del Trono del Cielo.

 

  • Versículo 4 – Así dice el Señor de los ejércitos, el Dios de Israel, a todos los exiliados que he enviado al exilio desde Jerusalén a Babilonia…

 

  • Fíjate en lo que dijo “… a los exiliados que he enviado…” Esto lo cambia todo. Desde una perspectiva humana, parecía que había sido Nabucodonosor quien los había enviado al exilio. Parecía que el ejército babilónico estaba al mando. Parecía que eran víctimas de la geopolítica y la derrota militar.

 

  • Pero Dios corrió el telón y dijo: “No. Nabucodonosor es solo una herramienta en mi mano. Te envié allí.” Esta es la soberanía de Dios. Y es la base de nuestra fe y nuestra paz.

 

  • Si crees que tu vida es solo una serie de accidentes aleatorios, o que eres víctima pura de las malas decisiones de otros, te sentirás amargado, enfadado y temeroso.

 

  • Pero si crees que Dios es soberano —que si “Su ojo está puesto en el gorrión”— entonces puedes encontrar paz incluso en Babilonia. El exilio fue un juicio, sí. Era la consecuencia de su idolatría. Pero también era la mano divina de Dios. Dios los había enviado allí.

 

  • Esto a veces es difícil de entender. Queremos culpar al enemigo. Queremos culpar a la economía. Queremos culpar a nuestro jefe. Y aunque esas cosas tienen un papel, el creyente mira más profundo y dice: “Padre, si me has permitido estar aquí, entonces debes tener un propósito para mí aquí.”

 

  • La aceptación no es resignación. No es rendirse. La aceptación es la postura espiritual que deja de luchar contra la realidad del momento y empieza a buscar lo que Dios está haciendo en él.

 

  • Mientras los exiliados escuchaban a los falsos profetas —pensando que se marcharían en dos años— no podían asentarse. No podían crecer. Sus vidas estaban en pausa.

 

  • ¿Estás viviendo tu vida en pausa? ¿Estás en modo espera? ¿Esperando a que pase algo antes de poder estar contento?

 

Illus – “Si pudiera conseguir un ascenso, estaría contento”, o “si pudiéramos comprar una casa, entonces sería feliz.” Y, por supuesto, hay muchas personas solteras que dicen: “Si pudiera casarme, eso resolvería todos mis problemas; entonces sería feliz.”

 

  • Dios dice: “Deja de esperar a que cambien las circunstancias. Acepta que te he puesto aquí para esta temporada y por una razón.” Estás donde estás por cita divina.

 

  1. Involucra tu fe
  • Una vez que aceptaron que Dios les había enviado, Dios les dio un mandato sorprendente. Les dijo que se pusieran a trabajar construyendo una vida.
  • Versículos 5-6 – Construye casas y vive en ellas; y plantad huertos y come sus productos. Toma esposas y hazte padre de hijos e hijas, y tomad esposas por tus hijos y da a tus hijas a los maridos para que tengan hijos e hijas; y multiplica allí y no disminuyas.”

 

  • Plantar. Casarse. Multiplicar. Son palabras de permanencia. Estas son palabras para construir una vida. Dios les decía: “No sobreviváis solo a esta temporada; prospera en ella.” “Florece donde estás plantado.”

 

  • Fue una orden radical. ¿Quién construye una casa cuando es un exiliado en un país extranjero? ¿Quién planta un jardín cuando espera irse mañana? Solo personas que confían en que Dios está con ellos en el exilio.

 

Illus –  Durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial, miles de soldados aliados estuvieron retenidos en campos de prisioneros de guerra alemanes, como el Stalag Luft III. Las condiciones eran sombrías. Vivían en barracas superpobladas, rodeados de alambre de espino y torres de ametralladoras, sin saber si la guerra duraría meses o años.

 

La mayoría de los hombres luchaban contra un aburrimiento y una desesperación aplastante. Pero un grupo de prisioneros decidió que no se quedarían sentados esperando a que terminara la guerra. Fundaron lo que se conoció como la “Universidad del Alambre de Púas”.

 

Se dieron cuenta de que entre sus filas habían profesores, científicos, abogados y lingüistas. Así que construyeron una escuela dentro del campo de prisioneros. Organizaron un plan de estudios completo, impartiendo clases de derecho, ingeniería, historia e idiomas. Incluso organizaron que la Universidad de Londres enviara exámenes oficiales a través de la Cruz Roja para que los soldados pudieran obtener créditos universitarios mientras estaban en cautiverio.

 

En lugar de pasear nerviosos por la valla perimetral, estudiaron. En vez de contar los días, hacían que los días contaran. Muchos de ellos abandonaron el campo al final de la guerra no solo con libertad, sino con títulos que les prepararon para el resto de sus vidas. No podían controlar cuándo terminaría la guerra, pero sí podían controlar quiénes serían cuando salieran por la puerta.

 

  • Los exiliados querían convertir a Babilonia en un lugar donde rendirse, sin hacer nada, y simplemente esperar. Dios les dijo que lo convirtieran en un jardín—un lugar de cosecha.

 

  • Existe la tentación de retirarnos, cuando estamos en una época difícil; de enrollarse como una bola y aislarse.

 

  • Es entonces cuando la gente deja de soñar. Dicen: “Solo intento superar esto.” Pero Dios dice: “No, construye una casa. Construye una vida.”

 

  • ¿Cómo nos parece esto para nosotros? Significa que si estás soltero y quieres casarte, no pongas tu vida en pausa.

 

Illus –  Recuerdo cuando estaba soltero y realmente quería casarme. Un amigo pastor dijo: “No esperes a casarte para vivir tu vida. Ahora es el momento de invertir en ti mismo, aprender, crecer, mejorar tu mente, fortalecer tu fe. No esperes a casarte para vivir; vive y traeré a alguien que tenga el mismo corazón.” Muy buen consejo.

 

  • Sirve a Dios con todo lo que tienes ahora. Significa que si tienes un trabajo que odias, no hagas lo mínimo mientras buscas una nueva oportunidad. Obra como el Señor. Sé el mejor empleado allí. “Construye una casa” en ese cubículo.

 

  • Significa que si estás enfermo, no dejes que la enfermedad te defina. Encuentra maneras de bendecir a los demás incluso desde tu debilidad.

 

Illus –  Recuerdo haber oído a Luis Palau hablar de las muchas veces que estuvo en el hospital. Todas las enfermeras del hospital querían cuidarle porque bendecía a todos a su alrededor.

 

  • “Multiplica allí y no disminuyas.” Dios quería que su pueblo fuera un pueblo de crecimiento, incluso en cautiverio.

 

  • Dios quiere que tu fe crezca. Dios quiere que tu carácter crezca. No dejes que los problemas encojan tu alma. Deja que expanda tu capacidad para Dios.

 

  1. Busca el bienestar de la ciudad
  • Si la orden de “construir casas” fue sorprendente, la siguiente orden fue casi escandalosa. Iba en contra de todos sus instintos patrióticos y religiosos.
  • Versículo 7 – Busca el bienestar de la ciudad donde te he enviado al exilio y ruega al Señor por ella; porque en su bienestar, tendrás bienestar.”
  • ¿Buscar el bienestar —el Shalom— de Babilonia? ¿Babilonia? ¿La ciudad que destruyó nuestras casas? ¿La ciudad que se burla de nuestro Dios? ¿Rezar por ellos?
  • Queremos rezar contra nuestros enemigos. Queremos orar por el juicio sobre Babilonia. Queremos orar: “¡Señor, quémalos! ¡Sácanos de este lugar maldito!”
  • Y Dios dice: “No. Reza por su paz. Trabaja por su bien.” ¿Por qué? “Porque en su paz tendrás paz.”
  • Este es un principio espiritual profundo. Dios llama a su pueblo a ser una bendición para el mundo, incluso cuando el mundo les es hostil.
  • Estamos llamados a ser sal y luz. La sal no sirve de nada si se queda en el salero. Hay que verterla sobre la carne.
  • La luz no sirve de nada si está oculta bajo un almud. Debe brillar en la oscuridad. Dios los había colocado en Babilonia no solo para disciplinarlos, sino para ser testigos a
  • Piensa en Daniel. Fue uno de esos exiliados. Sirvió en la corte del rey. Sirvió con excelencia. Buscaba el bienestar de la ciudad. Y por culpa de Daniel, los reyes paganos de Babilonia acabaron alabando al Dios Altísimo.
  • Estar en el mundo, pero no en el mundo. Pero aquí está la tensión, y es vital. Fueron llamados a establecerse en Babilonia, pero no a convertirse en babilonios.
  • Babilonia es la imagen del mundo. Representa el sistema de valores que se opone a Dios: orgullo, idolatría y autosuficiencia.
  • Dios les dijo que vivieran allí, que construyeran allí y que prosperaran allí. Pero también les dijo, implícito en cada mandato: “No os perdáis allí.” “Aférrate a tu fe. Nunca olvidéis que sois el pueblo elegido de Dios.”
  • Este es el principio del Nuevo Testamento que Jesús nos enseñó: Estar en el mundo, pero no en el mundo. Debían ser residentes, pero también debían mantenerse distintos. Debían participar en la economía pero no en la idolatría. Debían caminar por las calles de Babilonia, pero sus corazones debían permanecer en Sion.
  • Esta es exactamente nuestra vocación hoy. Vivimos en una cultura que se parece cada vez más a Babilonia. Puede ser hostil a nuestra fe. Tiene valores diferentes.
  • Una tentación es aislarse completamente de ella. Dios dice: “No, no te aísles.”

 

Illus – Durante el año 2000, conocido con la expresión Y2K (Year 2 thousand) en el cual pronosticaron un debacle debido al cambio de 1999 a 2000, debido al reloj interno de las computadoras. Una persona que conocí decidió mudarse a los lugares más remotos de Idaho para escapar del caos que se suponía que iba a ocurrir en el año 2000… Se llevó a su familia y se mudó, para no volver a ser visto nunca más.

  • La otra tentación es asimilarse completamente en ella. A esto Dios también responde: “No.”
  • Si te aíslas, no tienes influencia. Si te asimilas, no tienes testimonio.
  • Hay una línea entre estos. Trabajamos duro, amamos a nuestro prójimo, buscamos el bien de nuestra comunidad.
  • Pero nunca olvidamos quiénes somos. Nunca olvidamos dónde reside nuestra verdadera ciudadanía. Somos embajadores. Un embajador vive en un país extranjero, habla el idioma y respeta las leyes, pero representa a otro Rey.
  • Estar en el mundo, pero no dejes que el mundo te afecte. Prospera en Babilonia, pero mantén la ventana abierta hacia Jerusalén, igual que hizo Daniel.
  1. Confía en que el Plan de Dios es Bueno

 

  • La primera parte del plan de Dios trata sobre nuestra responsabilidad en el presente.

 

  • La segunda parte del plan trata sobre la promesa de Dios para el futuro. Dios no los deja en Babilonia para siempre. Les dio una promesa para aferrarse a esta; les da un futuro y una esperanza.

 

  1. Confía en el momento de Dios
  • Antes de hacer la famosa promesa del versículo 11, les da la línea de tiempo del versículo 10.
  • Versículo 10 – Así dice el Señor: “Cuando se hayan cumplido setenta años para Babilonia, os visitaré y cumpliré mi buena palabra para que os traiga de vuelta a este lugar.”
  • Setenta años. Imagina 70 largos años. Para un exiliado de 20 años al escuchar esta carta, eso significaba que tendría 90 cuando terminara el exilio. Para un anciano que escuchaba esto, significaba que moriría en Babilonia.
  • No fueron los “dos años” que Hananiah prometió. Esto fue toda una vida.
  • ¿Por qué 70 años? En 2 Crónicas 36, se nos dice que Dios daría a la tierra sus sábados.
  • Durante 490 años, Israel no había concedido a la tierra su descanso de sábado —cada siete años—. Dios lleva cuentas. 490 dividido entre 7 es 70.
  • Dios estaba purificando a su pueblo. Él los estaba curando de la idolatría. Y las curaciones profundas llevan tiempo. Queremos respuestas “instantáneas”. Nos encanta todo al instante.
  • Dios es paciente. Dios nos marinará en algo si eso es lo que se requiere. Trabaja despacio, profundamente y a fondo.

Illus:    Considera el cactus saguaro del Oeste americano. Es un símbolo del desierto, erguiéndose alto y majestuoso, alcanzando a veces entre 40 y 60 pies de altura. Pero su crecimiento es dolorosamente lento. En sus primeros 10 años de vida, un Saguaro crece solo alrededor de una pulgada. ¡Una pulgada en una década! Si pasaras junto a ella, apenas notarías que está ahí.

Podrías pensar fácilmente que fue un fracaso. Uno se preguntaba si estaba pasando algo. Pero bajo la superficie, se está preparando para sobrevivir en una tierra dura. Está desarrollando el sistema radicular que necesitará para sobrevivir a las sequías y tormentas del desierto. Pasan unos 70 años antes de que finalmente produzca su primer brazo. Imagina: 70 años de lo que puede parecer “no hacer nada” antes de empezar a parecer el gigante que estaba destinado a ser.

Jeremías dijo a los exiliados: “Cuando se cumplan setenta años, os visitaré.”

  • Dios utiliza los “70 años” —las largas estaciones de espera— para construir tu profundidad espiritual. Te está preparando para el peso de la gloria. Si Él respondiera a tu oración de inmediato, puede que no tuvieras la profundidad de carácter para sostener la bendición.
  • Quizá llevas mucho tiempo rezando por algo. Un niño descarriado que regresaba. Una sanación. Un cónyuge. Y estás cansado de esperar. Sientes que Dios se ha olvidado.
  • El versículo 10 nos recuerda: Dios es paciente. Hay un tiempo para cada estación bajo el cielo. “Cuando se cumplan setenta años… Te visitaré .” Su demora no es su negación. Su momento es perfecto. Confía en el momento de la mano de Dios.
    1. El plan de Dios es un futuro y una esperanza
  • Y mientras esperamos, nos aferramos a una de las mayores promesas de toda la Escritura. Este es el versículo que ponemos sobre plagas para nuestras paredes y las palabras que escribimos en las tarjetas. Pero significa mucho más cuando lo leemos en el contexto del exilio, en el contexto de una espera de 70 años.
  • Versículo 11 – “Porque conozco los planes que tengo para ti”, declara el Señor, “planes para el bienestar y no para la calamidad que os den un futuro y una esperanza.”
  • La gente en el exilio pensaba que Dios estaba enfadado con ellos. Pensaban que Él había terminado con ellos. Analizaron sus circunstancias—ruina, cautiverio, pérdida—y concluyeron: “Dios está en nuestra contra. Sus planes para nosotros no son para nuestro bien, sino para castigarnos.”
  • Dios interrumpe su desesperación y dice: “Sé que mis planes para ti… Y es bueno.” La palabra “saber” aquí en hebreo es enfática. “Yo, yo mismo, conozco los planes…”
  • “No conoces el plan. El mundo no conoce el plan. Pero Yo lo sé.” Y la naturaleza del plan es “Shalom.” Seguridad social. Paz. Plenitud. Estar completo.
  • “No por calamidad.” No por el mal. Este es el corazón de Dios para sus hijos. Incluso cuando sostiene la vara de la disciplina, Su ojo está puesto en tu restauración.
  • Incluso cuando Él te guía al valle de la sombra de la muerte, te está guiando a través de ese valle hasta la mesa que Él ha preparado para ti.

Illus – Es como un maestro tejedor creando un tapiz precioso. Si miras la parte trasera del tapiz, no puedes entender nada. Parece un desastre. Nudos, hilos sueltos, colores caóticos, ningún patrón discernible. Parece un desastre.

Así suele parecer su vida para muchos. Ven la parte trasera del tapiz. Ven el exilio, el dolor, la confusión. Pero Dios está mirando al frente. Está tejiendo un patrón de belleza. Él conoce el plan. Él ve el “fin”. Él ve la imagen de Jesús formándose en ti.

  • Esto requiere fe. La fe es confiar en la mano del Único tejiendo cuando sólo puedes ver los nudos. La fe es confiar en el Padre cuando crees que tu vida está en pausa.
  • “Dios, esto no me gusta. Duele. Pero confío en tus pensamientos hacia mí.” Tiene un “futuro” para ti.
  • Para los exiliados, ese futuro era el regreso a Jerusalén. Fue la reconstrucción del templo. Fue la venida del Mesías.
  • Para nosotros, el futuro es la vida abundante en Cristo ahora, y la gloria eterna del cielo después. Tu historia no termina en Babilonia. Tu historia no termina en la habitación del hospital. Tu historia no termina en el juzgado de divorcio. Dios tiene un futuro y una esperanza para ti.
    1. Dios quiere que le busques

 

  • Finalmente, Dios revela el propósito último del plan. ¿El plan era simplemente que construyeran casas y jardines en Jerusalén? No. El plan era restaurar su relación con Él.
  • Versículos 12-14 – Entonces me invocarás y vendrás a buscarme, y yo te escucharé. Me buscarás y me encontrarás cuando me busques con todo tu corazón. Seré encontrado por ti”, declara el Señor.
  • En Babilonia, despojados de todo, se dieron cuenta de que lo único que realmente necesitaban era a Dios.

Illus – C.S. Lewis dijo famosamente: “Dios nos susurra en nuestros placeres…  pero nos grita cuando estamos en nuestro dolor: es Su megáfono para despertar un mundo sordo.”

  • El exiliado era el megáfono. Y la promesa es: “Me encontraréis.” ¡Qué promesa! Dios no se esconde de ti. Quiere que le encuentres.
  • Pero hay una condición: “… cuando me buscas con todo tu corazón.” No a medias. No como plan B. No solo “Dios, sácame de este lío.” Pero “Dios, te quiero a TI. Eres todo lo que necesito. Cada hora que te necesito.”
  • Dios está esperando a que le busques. Él te ha “enviado” a esta temporada para que dejes de buscar satisfacción en el mundo y empieces a buscar satisfacción en Él.
  • Él es la Fuente de las Aguas Vivas. ¿Por qué vas a perseguir cisternas rotas? Cuando le busques con todo tu corazón—entregando tu voluntad, tu línea temporal, tus exigencias—le encontrarás. Y cuando lo encuentres, lo encontrarás Encuentras el “futuro y la esperanza” porque Él es el futuro y la esperanza.
  • Esta carta de Jeremías cambió el curso de la historia para esos exiliados. Dejaron de escuchar las mentiras de Hananiah. Deshicieron sus maletas. Construyeron casas. Plantaron jardines. Oraron por la paz de Babilonia. Se convirtieron en una comunidad fuerte y fiel en medio de una tierra pagana.
  • 70 años después, cuando Dios abrió la puerta, un fiel remanente regresó a Jerusalén para reconstruir el templo. Tenían un futuro y una esperanza. La palabra de Dios fue
  • ¿Y tú hoy? ¿Qué voz escuchas? ¿Estás escuchando la voz de la ansiedad que dice: “Se acabó. No hay esperanza?”
  • ¿O escucharás la voz del Señor? La voz que dice: “Tengo un plan para ti.” “Te he colocado aquí con un propósito.” “Florece donde estás plantados.” “Confía en mi momento.” “Busca mi rostro.”
  • Dios te está preparando para cosas mayores. Está usando la “Babilonia” de este mundo para prepararte para la “Jerusalén” de Su Reino. No desperdicies tu exilio. No desperdicies tu dolor. No desperdicies tu vida. Acércate a Dios. Búscalo con todo tu corazón. Y verás que incluso en medio del desierto, Él está abriendo camino. Te está dando un futuro y una esperanza.
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