LOOK TO THE ROCK THAT IS HIGHER THAN I
“Call to me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know” (Jeremiah 33:3)
Wouldn’t it be breath-taking and absolutely stunning if you were praying one morning the verse in Jeremiah 33:3 and suddenly without warning you found yourself being carried away in a chariot to places unknown … a secret meeting with God at the throne to be shown “great and mighty things” you did not know? Wow! Can you imagine such a thing? God knows the intention and yearning of your heart to know God. He wants to share with you hidden secrets about who He is. The question is what is your true desire to really know God? How much time each day to you spend in prayer with your heavenly Father to even realize there is so much more that He desires to show you? It is more than just answering a prayer for you—God has hidden secrets He wants to share because your heart is ready to receive them—He always knows the intention of the heart. Having these kinds of conversation with the Lord will literally change your life. Do you want that?
God says, “Call to me!” The promise is—I WILL answer you. The secret of Jehovah is with them that fear him. This calling is a prompting that instructs us to, “Call upon me (God).” In Psalm 147:9, it is used to describe the “cry” of the young ravens for food. When used with reference to prayer it carries the idea of an urgent cry for help. There are many places in the Word of God where God instructs us to “Call upon Me.” Just knowing who He is should motivate us to respond to His prompting. When Jeremiah penned this God-given promise he, “was still confined in the court of the guard” (33:1). He is in prison and Jerusalem has been conquered and destroyed. The longed for restoration is beyond his grasp. There is nothing that he or the disposed inhabitants of Israel could do to restore the fortunes of Israel or the fortunes of Judah. In Psalm 50:15, the Psalmist records the following invitation, "And call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me." In Psalm 91:14 and 15, God’s speaks to the one who trusts in the Lord and says, "Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known my name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him, and honor him" (Psalm 91:14-15).
Such was the answer of God to the soul of the man of faith, who had been honest enough to speak of his doubt in the Divine presence. By honest inquiry, we create the opportunity for confirmatory revelation; but that is never collective it is always personal. I cannot have my deepest question answered by any human being. No priest, prophet, or preacher, can bring to storm-tossed souls God’s answer. Give God the chance to speak to you. The chance is created by the affirmation of unbelief, in His presence. The trouble of our infidelities is that we proclaim them to friends and neighbors and not to God. We see the restoration of the Israelites going on in this chapter. Jeremiah is making his message clear from God that those who expect to receive comforts from God, must call upon Him.
God assured Jeremiah that he had only to call to God and God would answer (see also Psalm 145:18; Isaiah 58:9; Matthew 7:7). God is ready to answer our prayers, but we must ask for His assistance. Surely God could take care of our needs without our asking. But when we ask, we are acknowledging that he alone is God and that we cannot accomplish in our own strength all that is his domain to do. When we ask, we must humble ourselves, lay aside our willfulness and worry, and determine to obey Him.
God offers us a promise when we call to Him—“I will answer you and show you…” When prayer is silenced, God is silent. When people pray, God answers. What will He show us, “Great and mighty things.” The term show means to make conspicuous in the Hebrew (nagad). Something that was previously unknown or unknowable is now going to be made known. The Hebrew term translated “mighty things” is (betsuroth) and in its earliest usage is referred to a “sheepfold,” but with time it came to mean a “fortress.” In common usage it was used to refer to that which was inaccessible, either because it was hidden or well protected. Whatever you need, God has an answer for you if you will call upon Him.
Now only does God answer those who call upon Him, His provisions are greater than our petitions. God’s provisions are greater that our problem. Paul echoed this in his letter to the Ephesians when he wrote, “Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, to Him be the glory” (Ephesians 3:20,21). Time and again George Mueller prayed—30,000 prayers in 60 years and all were answered! So what is the secret? The secret to answered prayer is to pray!
Let me offer you some examples of those who took the time to pray and saw answers: Hannah prayed—and God gave her Samuel; Elijah prayed—and it rained; Elisha prayed—and God gave life back to a dead child; Samson prayed—and God gave him back his strength; Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God—and the prison they were in was shaken and the jailer got saved!; Jesus prayed—a short prayer to His Father—and Lazarus was brought back to life!; again Jesus cried out with a deep prayer of anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane—and God answered—giving Jesus the strength He needed for the horrific days ahead.
What is prayer? Each of us probably has his or her own definition for prayer. What do you call it? Communion with the Father? Calling out to God? Pleading with Him for preservation and protection? Looking to Him for guidance and direction? Some call it conversation, adoration, praise, confession, petition, requests, devotion, thanksgiving, supplication, penitence, worship, intercession? In truth, these can all be aspects or definitions of prayer. I like this one from, "Walking with the Savior" - "Prayer is the recognition that if God had not engaged Himself in our problems, we would still be lost in the blackness." How many of you believe your relationship with Jesus Christ is the most important relationship in your life, and that prayer is vitally important to that relationship? Then why don’t you do more of it?
"I will answer you." WHAT A PROMISE! When I pray - me - just a breath - or a blade of grass - in the scheme of things - yet I’m SO important and special to God that when I pray - any time I pray, every time I pray - He PROMISES to hear and answer my prayer. If you are NOT born again - if you do NOT have a personal saving relationship with God through Jesus Christ, then God only promises to answer ONE prayer from your heart and lips - the prayer of faith for salvation. Does that mean He can’t or won’t answer other prayers? Absolutely not - He is GOD - therefore He can do whatever He wants within the confines of His nature and the parameters He places upon Himself. He may have answered numerous of your prayers - hoping those answers would turn your heart to Him by faith. If you ARE born again - God promises to answer EVERY prayer you utter. Now pay attention - because God has more than one option for His answers. Among them, He can say YES, or He can say NO, or he can say "WAIT OUT" - that’s army for "NOT YET!" Nothing is impossible with God. Nothing is too hard for Him. I WILL SHOW YOU GREAT AND MIGHTY THINGS! Look at Abraham and Sarah (nothing is impossible). God’s dealings with His people over 2,500 years ago set a precedent for today. The problem is we are not calling on God!
Answered prayer is one of life’s most rewarding experiences! Especially when the answers are greater than we imagined!
