THE NAUGHTY FIGS AND THE PROPHETS OF CAPTIVITY
THE NAUGHTY FIGS AND THE PROPHETS OF CAPTIVITY
Sunday, August 1, 2015, the Year of Our Lord
Pastor Carolyn Sissom
The proclamation of the 2014 conference was “Prepare for War”. When the shofar sounded Sunday morning at the 2015 conference, Prophet Roger Teale heard in the Spirit, “WAR!”
War has begun in the U.S.A. War is here.
When Apostle Marvin Barham was preaching, he made a statement based on Bible history; there are three kinds of prophets: (1) Prophets of peace; (2) Prophets of deliverance and (3) Prophets of captivity.
All evil is certain to be judged by captivity. “If you submit to the dealings of God, you will live and be restored; if you resist or fight, you are dead!” (Jer. 26:20-23)
I have always known that our church being at the Willow Fork is a prophetic sign of a warning of captivity of the Church universal.
You might ask me, what is our captivity? We still have freedom of speech, freedom of religion with liberty and justice for all. Those who fear our government are in captivity. There are many churches who are so intimidated by political correctness and fear of the federal government; they are even now oppressed into captivity. There is fear of lone wolves and deranged gunmen walking into churches and start shooting for no reason except racial hatred or religious fanaticism. So, yes, some are in captivity of fear of preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
When terrorists can walk into a military facility and start shooting our military men and they are not permitted to carry guns, we are in captivity.
When the populace cowers down, giving these people-groups power to terrorize us by intimidation. They are already in captivity.
The books of the prophets belong to the time of the nation’s decline, the exile, and the return to their homeland. Isaiah, Joel, and Micah prophesied before Jerusalem fell to Babylon in 586 B.C. Jeremiah, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah prophesied at the time of the fall and during the captivity.
God sent these prophets on a daunting and sometimes dangerous mission. They were for the most part dispatched at the eleventh hour, to try to halt the people’s head long rush to destruction; to warn them of judgment; to call them back to God in repentance and after the great crash came, to comfort the survivors with the assurance of God’s continuing love and purpose for them.
I turn today to chapters 24-29 of the Book of Jeremiah. In 2008-2009, I taught the Book of Jeremiah. However, I purposely skipped those five chapters because I could not get the unction of the Holy Spirit to teach them. These chapters were for Israel in captivity and I knew 7-years ago that the U.S.A. still had time to repent.
Jeremiah was a leader in the brilliant constellation of prophets clustered around the destruction of Jerusalem. Ezekiel, a fellow priest, somewhat younger than Jeremiah, was preaching in Babylon among the captives, the same things that Jeremiah was preaching in Jerusalem. Daniel a man of royal blood was holding the line in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar. Habakkuk and Zephaniah were helping Jeremiah in Jerusalem. Nahum, at the same time was predicting the fall of Nineveh. Obadiah, at the same time was predicting the ruin of Edom.
Jeremiah was commissioned to bring the last appeal from Jehovah to Judah before destruction came (Jer. 7: 2-7). He was to announce the inevitable doom that was coming upon Judah, Jerusalem, and the Temple under the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon (21: 1-10).
Jeremiah answered his prophetic call aware that the responsibility was on the God who commissioned him to fearlessly speak powerful things to a degenerate generation.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel had fallen, and much of the Southern Kingdom Judah. They had suffered reverse after reverse until Jerusalem alone was left. Still, they ignored the continued warnings of the prophets and grew harder and harder in their idolatry and wickedness. The hour of doom was about to strike. The international situation was a three-cornered contest for world supremacy with Assyria, Egypt, and Babylon. For 300 years Assyria with Nineveh as its capital had ruled the world, but now it was growing weak. Egypt in the Nile Valley, which had been a world power 1000 years earlier, was again becoming ambitious. Babylon won the contest by the sovereignty of the Hand of God in the middle of Jeremiah’s ministry. (Jer. 27: 6-11).
For seventy years Babylon was to rule the world, the same 70 years as the Captivity of the Jews.
The message of Jeremiah is one of eventual restoration. The Word of the Lord calls backsliders to forsake their iniquity and return to the Lord.
The purpose of the book of Jeremiah is manifold: (1) to show God’s grace and mercy in calling a backslidden nation to the Lord. (2) To reveal the righteous judgments of the Lord. (3) To reveal the destiny of the nations. (4) To historically reveal God’s dealings with the destruction of the Temple, the desolation of the city, and the captivity of the nation of Judah to Babylon.
Mission Impossible: Weep, and warn a deafened Judah of idolatry.
Like Amos and Jesus, God, spoke to Jeremiah through agriculture. I know I preached on the “Naughty Figs” of Jeremiah 24, but I couldn’t find the sermon. It seems that whenever the figs are ripe in Texas, I am given a sermon about figs. This year is no different.
Jer. 24:1-3: “The Lord showed me, and behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the Lord, after Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smith, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe; and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. Then said the Lord to me, What see you, Jeremiah? And I said, figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
The good figs represent the best of the people who had been carried to Babylon in Jehoiakim’s captivity (597 B.C.), and earlier deportations, including Ezekiel and Daniel. The bad figs spoke of those who had remained in Jerusalem who were minded (with Egypt’s help) to resist Babylon.
God would be gracious unto those who yielded to the captivity and then punish those who resisted it. Jer. 24: -28:17 was addressed to the remnant of Judah yet to go into captivity under Zedekiah. God will give the good figs a heart to know God.
Jer. 14:4-7: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel; like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, who, I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. For I will set My eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land; and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God; they shall return to Me with their whole heart.”
Am I saying we are to submit to captivity? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I am saying that even though the U.S.A. has had reverse after reverse in the moral decline of this nation, we are still to “cry out – spare not” (Isa. 58:1). The word for “cry out” is “a war cry or alarm of battle”, “The sound or signal for war or march”.
I am also saying that in the midst of captivity the Lord will have a remnant who will obey him and hear his voice and be kept safe. The Word of the Lord came clear, “stay here!” Marvin’s word to me that the pressure to move was not from the Lord. Does that mean we stop looking for a place? No! It just means we stay here until the Lord speaks or another door opens.
Isaiah prophesied 100 years before the captivity in Babylon that the remnant would hang their harps in captivity on the willows in Babylon.
The Lord spoke to Moses of the First Feast of Tabernacles (the glory of the Lord): Lev. 23:40: “You shall take on the first day the boughs of goodly tees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and the willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.”
The Willow Brook is also a prophetic sign of preparation for the Feast of Tabernacles – The Glory of God.
Jeremiah 14: 8-10: “And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus says the Lord, so will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in the land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt. I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they are consumed from off the land that I gave to them and to their fathers.”
This destruction is described in 11 Chronicles 36: 12-36: “Zedekiah did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God…he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar…he stiffened his neck, hardened his heart from turning to the Lord God of Israel…all the chief priests and the people transgressed after all the abominations of the heathen and polluted the house of the Lord…the Lord God sent to them His messengers…but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised His words, and misused His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.”
After calling them to repentance, God will forsake those who forsake Him. A righteous God must judge righteously and then restore.
Where sin establishes itself, there must be a tearing down before a rebuilding can occur (Jer. 1:10).
The longsuffering of God is due to His tender compassion and love for His people. His love is an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3).
In chapter 25, Jeremiah prophesies the seventy years’ captivity. Jeremiah repeats that for 23 years he has spoken to the people, rising early and speaking, but they would not listen.
25:4: “The Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but you have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear.”
The exact duration of Babylon’s dominion is foretold (606-536 B.C.). Jeremiah also prophesied “when the seventy years are accomplished, that God will punish the king of Babylon and that nation for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.”
The prophetic eye of Jeremiah sees the day of the Lord and His ministry in the earth.
25: 30-38: “…The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter His voice from His holy habitation; he shall mightily roar upon His habitation; he shall give a shout, as they that tread the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth. A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the Lord has a controversy with the nations. He will plead with all flesh. He will give them that are wicked to the sword, says the Lord…”
Chapter 26 is the story of Jeremiah’s trial before the princes. His accusers were the priests and false prophets. Jeremiah had friends among the princes, a man named Ahikam, who saved him from death. However, one of Jeremiah’s fellow prophets, Uriah, fled in fear to Egypt, but was fetched back and executed (Jer. 26: 20-23).
This is the message for the church today. Jeremiah was not intimidated by this threat upon his life. He submitted to it, if they could prove his guilt. He warned them of their guilt if they should shed innocent blood. The prophet was warned (16: 1-2) against diminishing God’s words, which would be a tendency because of his timidity and the people’s hostility. Jeremiah was faithful to speak all that God had commanded him (26:8). He was courageous in hostility and refused to be quieted or silenced (26: 6-13). He submitted to threats of violence in quiet confidence of having done his duty (26:14). His confident reaffirmation convinces his enemies of the truth of his assertion (26: 15-16). The fulfillment of God’s earlier promise (“I am with you to deliver you”- 1:19) is evidenced here! By submitting to possible death, Jeremiah lived, and, as a consequence, continued to prophesy. By fleeing to save his life, Urijah died, and, as a consequence, ceased to prophesy.
This revealed a central truth to all of Judah: If you submit to the dealings of God, you will live and be restored; if you resist or fight them, you are dead!
It is folly to forsake a fountain for a broken cistern.
“I know in whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day”.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries Church
Scripture from K.J.V. I entered into the labors of Principles of Present Truth by: Kelly Varner; quotes from Prophet Roger Teale and Apostle Marvin Barham from the 2015 Eastgate Ministries Conference, The Spirit of Glory. Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of those who I entered into their labors.