Jeremiah 52

Listen, we have a special guest today, a special guest that will be joining us. I know that you guys are looking forward to Pastor Justin, but he'll be back next week. We have King Jehoiakin from Jeremiah sharing with us today. King Jehoiakin is actually in prison in exile. And so we're going to join him from his prison cell to hear more about his story and. And how it can relate to us here in 2020. I'm going to read just so that we can get in the right context, in the right frame of mind, from Jeremiah 52, starting at verse 31. So if you have your Bibles with you, your Bible apps, whatever that is, turn with me to Jeremiah, chapter 52, starting at 31. It says, in the 37th year of the exile of Jean, King of Judah, and in the year of Awal, Murdoch became King of Babylon. On the 25th day of the 12th month, he released Jehoiachin, King of Judah and freed him from prison. He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiakin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king's table. Day by day, the King of Babylon gave Jehoiakin a regular allowance as long as he lived, to the day of his death. Amen. I hope you guys are ready for a special treat as we then enter into the jail cell of King Jehoiakin. Follow me there.

Man. Okay. No need to push me. Jeez. Hey. Hey, y'. All. My name. My name's King Jehoiakin, and I am. Let me tell you a little bit about me. I heard y' all are preaching through Jeremiah, and I got hit up by. By Jeremiah. He's over there in Egypt someplace talking about some. You want to go tell the folk at Congress street about your story? And I'm like, man, why you gotta. Jeremiah and his scribe Baruch decided to keep my story in Jeremiah. And nobody asked you to put me in the story. They put me in the story. Jeremiah 52. My story is interesting. You know, I'm in the end of 2nd Kings 25. I'm also in Jeremiah 52. But you don't really get the full picture of me. I'm in prison in exile right now. And let me tell you about me before people want to assume things about me and told me that I can get a little bit more freedom if I tell y' all my story, because I'll get to that, too. So here's the things I want you to know about me. My story is in 2nd Kings 25. My story is in Jeremiah 52. And the reason I'm in there is because, well, when you see what happens to me in Jeremiah 52, I don't really deserve to be a part of this story. I don't really deserve to be the king, because the story ends and tells you that I get to the king's table, I'm hanging out with the king. I'm hanging out with the king and all the other guards. But really, frankly put, y', all, I don't deserve to be at the king's table. Here's what happened to me. And When I was 18 years old, my daddy died. And I ended up becoming the king over Judah. And it was cool. Like, it was amazing, right? I was 18 years old. And here's what I did, though. I was a bad. I was a bad king. I ruled for three months and 10 days. And I was in Babylon, and Babylonians came in and conquered us in 597 BC. And the way the writers talk about me. And I did it. I did evil in the eyes of God. I did so much so that I want you guys to remember all the negative kings, all the bad kings there ever were in scripture. And in three months and 10 days, I did worse in three months and 10 days than some of those really terrible kings did in the entirety of their entire reign. And so God let Nebuchadnezzar come in and remove me, king Jehoiakin, at 18 years old, for being king over Judah. And Jeremiah even talked about my failure in Jeremiah chapter 22. Jeremiah said that I would be removed from the kingship, I'd be taken to Babylon, and then I'd die in Babylon. Like y'. All. I really screwed things up with God. So much so that not only did I get fired from my job, but God then put a curse on me. The curse that God put on me. You can find it in Jeremiah 22. And I'll. I'll tell you what Jeremiah said, because it's something I'll Never forget. Jeremiah 20. Jeremiah said this. Jeremiah said, as surely as I live, declares the Lord. Even you, Jehoiakim, son of Jehoiakim, king over Judah, were a signet ring on my hand. I will still pull you off. I will deliver you into the hands of those who want to kill you, those who fear Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, the Babylonians, I will hurl you. And the mother who gave birth to you into another country where neither of you were born. There both of you will die. You will never come back to the land you long to return to. Is this man Jehoiakin, a despised broken pot and object no one wants? Why will he and his children be hurled out, cast into a land they don't know? Oh, land, land, land. Hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says. Record this man as if he was childless. A man who will not prosper in his lifetime. For none of his offspring will prosper. None will sit on the throne of David or rule anymore in Judah. I really screwed things up with God. I did, I have to admit it, I did evil in God's eyes. I really messed things up with God. And I guess my question to those of you watching today, have you ever done that? Have you ever been to a place in your life where you also like me? King Jehoiakin, you screwed things up with God. I did evil in God's eyes. I got other people do evil in God's eyes. So much so where God had to banish me and put a curse on me and that God pulled me off his hand. Now the problem with my mess up was I was the king and the line of Judah, I was a king over Judah and the line of David. And so the king, the Messiah, Jesus, the messianic secret was a covenant that God made with me and made with the people. And that Jesus was going to come through my lineage, through my offspring. And so the son of David, Jesus, the Messiah, was going to come through me. And so when I screwed up, it wasn't just a screw up for me. Is the Messiah still going to come? Is God still going to honor the promise he gave us because of the sins of the king, y', all, imagine the weight that was on me. I. I'm 18. I messed up, got fired from my job by God. In three months and ten days, my enemies come in, take over everything. I'm cursed, I'm messed up. And God throws me into exile. I'm removed from my position. King Zedekiah becomes a king over Israel. And so y', all, here's the thing. I get why I'm in exile. Like I do. Like I really messed up and did bad. I get why I'm in exile. I get why I'm there. I did evil in God's eyes. I turned away from God. I succeeded my father and then I sinned and I did evil in God's eyes. I had a title, but I didn't want to Trust God with the weight of the title. Maybe that's a principle to some of you. Under the sound of my voice, I had a title of king, but I didn't trust God to be with me to handle the weight of my title. And maybe for some of you, you have a title, but have you trusted God with the weight of your title? I was a king and now I'm in chains because I was a king, but I didn't trust God with the weight of what it meant to be king. Because I got so consumed in being king, I didn't trust God to be my leader. I got consumed with being king over the nation that is known about their worship and their praise unto God. But in spite of me having that title, I didn't trust God with the weight of the title. Maybe some of you under the sound of my voice today are in the same position where you have a title. But have you trusted God with the weight of your title? Oh, you have authority. But have you trusted God with the weight of your authority? You have. You have the peace that God gives you. But have you trusted God with the peace that God gives you. You have the title, but have you trusted God with the weight of your title? Have you trusted God with the weight that your work gives you? The weight that your co workers give you? Have you trusted God? Because it's very easy to have a title, but the only way that we can maintain the title is if we trust God with the weight the title gives us. Y', all, I was the king and I didn't trust God to help me manage it. So I did evil the eyesight of God. So much. So where. Here's something else I'll tell you. Never make permanent decisions in temporary places. I did what was good for me. I did what was good for me in my last name. I did what was good for me and my friendships. And I didn't do what God needed me to do. I made permanent decisions in temporary places. You know, I. I wonder how often so many of us, even those of you listening to me today, have made permanent decisions in temporary places. Temporary relationships, temporary jobs, temporary places. You know, you are bigger than what you're going through. Don't make a permanent decision in a temporary place. I didn't grab ahold of the weight of my title. I made permanent decisions in temporary places. And so maybe some of you, under the sound of my voice, you're just like me. You're sitting in exile. Chained down to something that you can be freed from. Chained down to something you didn't need to be chained to in the first place. You're weighed down by mistakes. You're weighed down by situations you got yourself into. You're weighed down by problems that you created. Because here's the thing I want to free some of you with today. As much as I wanted to put what I did onto other people, I had to accept the reality that the reason I'm in prison is not because of my father. The reason I'm in prison is not because of my mother. The reason I'm in prison is not because of my friend. The reason I'm in these chains is because of my sin. I'm in exile for sin that I committed. When's the last time you were honest with yourself? There are some sins that you committed. It's really easy to talk about what my father did. My father was a puppet. My father was a terrible king. I could talk about my. The reason we're here because of my father. But I'm not in prison because of my father. I'm in prison because of me. I'm not in prison because of what my dad did. I'm in prison because of stuff that I did. And y', all, I'm. When's the last time you were honest? I want to share with you. The reason I can tell you my story today is because I took some time to be honest with myself. The reason I am in chains is because I put myself in these chains. What are the things and honestly you have done that you have not been honest with yourself that you've done? And I'm not telling you to beat yourself up. I'm not telling you to throw yourself away. I'm not telling you that you're not good enough. I am telling you that there are times where we have to be because when we're not honest with ourselves, we're lying to ourselves. I want you to be honest that there are sins that some of us have committed that have put us into some positions and into some places where we are not able to hold onto the mantle that God has put and trusted onto all of us. Because we are in exile for some sins that we committed. I'm in exile for stuff I did. I'm in exile for bad things that I did. I'm in exile because I made some poor decisions. I'm in exile because I made some poor choices. And in exile, while I'm sitting in exile, y', all, some 37 years later, that's where you get my story. In Jeremiah 52 and 37 years later, I get pulled out of exile. 37 years later, King Evil Merodach comes and gets me. And when he comes and gets me, the text says, in Jeremiah 52, look what he does. The text says, watch this. Me, the cursed one, the messed up one, the one who's in exile, he comes and he gets me, and he brings me to the king's table. Oh, I get to the king's table, y', all, and I am, the text says. He spoke kindly to me. He gave me a seat with other kings. I got brand new clothes, I got brand new food, and I had an allowance as long as I lived for the rest of my life. It's a beautiful end of my story. It's a beautiful way to hear because we don't know exactly when I ended up dying or anything. All I know is that in spite of all the sins I committed, this ex king was treated like a king again. So how did I get there? How? Pastor said you're in the zone. If I had to give a title to my little. Talk to you all today. B. I want you to own the grace of God on your life. How do you do this? Number one, I want you to build relationships with who's in front of you. I want you to build relationships with the people that are in front of you. Let me tell you how I knew about Evil Maradok before I got to the king's table. So Nebuchadnezzar was a terrible king. Nebuchadnezzar was the king over Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was the one who came in and got me from Judah because I did evil in the eyes of God. Nebuchadnezzar is a bad brother, y'. All. And Nebuchadnezzar, you hear about him in Daniel's story. Nebuchadnezzar was a bad king. And so one time while I was in exile, Nebuchadnezzar did this. Nebuchadnezzar, I met this young man named Evil Merodach. Evil Merodach. The word evil in the Hebrew, for us, it was this. This. The word evil literally translates to mean the word foolishness. So he really was Foolish Merodach. You know where he got that name from? His daddy. His daddy was King Nebuchadnezzar, who was a crazy nut job. And so King Nebuchadnezzar gives his own child the name Evil Merodach. Foolish Merodach. And he was guilty one time of maladministration in his father's cabinet. So you know what his Father did. Every seven years, King Nebuchadnezzar would send people into prison. And one of the people he put in prison was his own child. Nebuchadnezzar put Merodach in prison. He put a. And not only did he put his son in prison, but he gave him the name Foolish Merodach. Evil. His daddy called him Evil Maradok. Parents, be careful of the names you put on your children. Knucklehead child ain't cute. Little darky child is not cute. Calling your kid Light Skin. Calling your kid Yellow. Calling your kid Cornmeal. I wish y' all talked to me. Calling your kid Big Booty. Calling your kid Skinny Legs. Calling your kid Big Feet. Calling your child Big Nose is not a cute nickname because your names mean something and your names speak to what you believe. The future is for your child. Calling your kid Nappy Head is not cute. Calling your kid Bigfoot is not cute. Calling your kid Little Feet is not cute. He put a name on his child that he was the foolish child. And so Merodach comes into prison with me one day and I'm hanging out with Merodach for seven years. And I've repented unto God. Rabonic sources to tell us that I repented unto God while I was in prison. And so Merodach comes down to live with me, y'. All. And all I did to Merodach while he was in prison with me, all I did was give Maradok my story. All I had was my story. And all I gave him was my story. Because here's the principle. If you're going to be one who owns the grace of God, I want you to build relationships with the people that God puts in front of you. Even if you don't like them. I want you to build relationships with the people that God puts in front of you. All I could tell Evil Merodach was my story. All I did was tell him about who I was. I did evil in the eyes of God. I turned away from God. I cursed a whole nation and brought them into exile, y'. All. And here's what got me, y'. All. When I was able to vocalize my failures, my failures no longer were able to tell me how to feel or what to do. When I got to a place where I told my story, my story no longer controlled me. I controlled my story. I want to tell some of you the greatest place of freedom you'll experience is when you own your failures. And don't let your failures own you. When you own your story. And don't let your story own you, because it's okay to talk about your failures when you can talk about the grace of God, y'.

All.

When I realized that I got myself in this situation, God can get me out of this situation. God can still set me free. So this one time I'm sitting there, y', all. And Nebuchadnezzar, who just died a couple of days earlier on the 25th, some 37 years later, he died. On the 25th, Merodach was installed on the 26th, he. On the 26th, Merodach decided he was going to undo the decrees of his father. Sounds a lot like Yalls upcoming president, right? Who says he's going to undo the decrees of the former president? He came through. And on the 25th, Nebuchadnezzar died. On the 26th, Merodach became king. And on the 27th, guess what? I am free from where I was. Because Merodach remembered me when he became king. The only thing that set me free was that I had repented unto God and told Merodach my story and told Merodach who I was was. Because when God had me in exile, I built relationships with who God put in front of me. When God had me in exile, I told my story to the people that God put in front of me. Can I tell you, Church? Build relationships with who God puts in your presence. If I never talked to Maradoc, I would never be at the king's table. If I never engage with Maradoc, I would never be. If I judge Maradok because of who he was, I would never have been at the table. I would still be sitting and riding in prison. But I thank God I didn't let prison take my story from me. I thank God I didn't let my chains chain down my narrative. I thank God I didn't let what I went through and what I did wrong against God stop me from telling the story of who God is to me. Who are the people that God has put in front of you that God is challenging you to tell your story to? Who are the people that God has put in your presence that God is telling you to tell your story to church? I want you to build relationships with the people. People in front of you. Because you never know the Merodach in front of you. The writer of Hebrews came back and told us later that you may be entertaining angels unaware. The very person that would give me freedom to sit at the king's table was sitting with me in prison. And if I judged him and didn't talk to him. I would have kept myself where I was instead of going to where God could take me to be. Church I want you to build relationships with people. I want you to tell your story to people. The Garden of Eden. We hear the stories. The Garden of Eden is nothing but 12 to 14 square miles wide. And the Garden of Eden, yah, was a place where God literally told Adam to be fruitful and to multiply 12 square miles. Who are the people in 12 square miles around you where God is telling you to tell your story? Who are the people that are on your job that have never heard your story? Who are the people that don't know what you've overcome, don't know what you've come out of because you're ashamed to tell them of what you did without acknowledging the reality that the only reason you can tell them what you did is because you don't do it anymore. Build relationships with who's in front of you because not only I found grace because I put relationships who's in front of you, but secondly, I found grace because I realized. Watch this. That God will bring triumph in your tragedy. God will bring triumph. The entire book of Jeremiah comes down to my story. And it's a story that shows that someone who sinned horribly against God still gets welcomed. King's tables. I sat in prison for 37 years. I'm no longer the king. I don't have influence. I don't have leadership. I don't have power. I'm cursed by God. My children are cursed. I've messed up. And yet when I got to the King's table, Jeremiah 52 says, When I got there, y' all watch what they did. They spoke kindly to me. They gave me a seat even though I wasn't even a king anymore. I got brand new clothes. I ate king's food. I had an allowance as long as for as much food as I needed. They had no reason to be nice to me. I have no influence. I have no power. But he still gave me king's treatment because watch this. Church. Just because I'm not where I was doesn't mean that I can bloom where I am. Church God can still bring triumph in your worst tragedy. I'm talking to people under the sound of my voice. When you feel like me, you feel chained to your past and chained to your story and chained to what was and chained to what went wrong in your life. But I want to let you know that God can still bring triumph in your worst tragedy. You can still make it to king's tables. You can still do the work that God's called you to do. You can still be the person that God's called you to be. That God will still bring you to king's tables even though you know you don't deserve it. That God can still bring triumph in your worst tragedy. I'm. I'm grateful that God doesn't judge me completely over what I've done. But in my repentance and my sacrifice back unto God, God will still open up the opportunity to be at a king's table. I'm glad I'm not who I used to be. I'm glad I'm not who I was. God will bring triumph in your tragedy. So I want to tell you, don't let prison become your narrative, but allow it to be a place where you can repent unto God, build relationships where you are. And here's my last principle. If I were to tell you to be in the zone, build relationships with who's in front of you. God can always bring triumph out of your tragedy. But thirdly, and finally, I fell in love with grace. I want you to fall in love with the grace of God. I got to the king's table. I sat at the king's table. I got new clothes, got food, And I'm still cursed. But I learned the grace of God because when I heard about my grandson Zerubbabel in the book of Haggai that while Jeremiah 22 says that God took me off of his hand, the text says he put Zerubbabel on his finger. That Jesus still came because God broke the curse that I started. I heard that when Joseph and Mary had Jesus, that Joseph didn't conceive with Mary, but the Holy Spirit did. Meaning that Jesus was still connected to the line of the tribe of Judah, but the blood was going to come through the Holy Spirit because God made sure his word came true. But nothing of any sort of curse could come down through Joseph's bloodline, y'. All. That's the grace of God. The grace of God said I'm going to be in the king's palace with king's treatment. I'm never going to be kings again. Here's what I want you to understand too. Because sin has consequences. So I'll never be king again. But God still gave me king treatment. I may never have the title of King of Judah, but I will still have the treatment of a king. I may never be who I was, but I can still be great where I am. Y' All I'm so glad that God still invites me to king's tables, that the grace of God still brought me beyond myself. The grace of God still got me to the king's table. The grace of God still made sure that my chains don't define. The grace of God still made sure that my life was not my chains, but my life is the change that comes with Jesus. The grace of God made sure that I had everything I needed to be who God needed me to be. I thank God for his grace. So now I'm seated at the King's table because of Grace. Seated, eating. Good. Because of Grace. And I'm talking to those of you under the sound of my voice. The reason you are where you are, the reason you're doing what you're doing, is because your chains no longer define you. But you can stay seated at the King's table because of Grace. Grace grabbed you out of prison. Grace made sure your job didn't kill you. Grace. Grace made sure that you were covered. Grace made sure that nobody found out. Grace made sure that God forgave you. Grace made sure that Jesus still came for you. Grace made sure that everything was covered. I wish I had somebody who can thank God like me that while you could be chained down, Grace came and set you free. Because you know what you should be chained to, and you know what should have killed you. And you know you should still be in prison. But thank God. Grace. Grace. I'm. I'm in the zone today because of Grace. And I know your pastor's all, you know, learning and want to talk about all this other stuff, but y', all, I. Grace. Because Grace is what got me out of prison. Grace is what made sure my seed still had power in the future. Grace made sure that I'm sitting at the king's table the rest of my life. Grace made sure these didn't define me. But you all learn about me that I'm one at the King's table. That no matter how much evil you do in God's eyes, Grace can still bring you to the King's table. I don't. I don't know who I'm talking to. But since they threw me down here to talk to you all tonight about my story, I want you to know that there is nothing that you can do to run away from the love of Jesus. I want you to know there is nothing that can keep you so far from who God is. I want you to know there's nothing so wrong, nothing so terrible that God will not look at you and still bring you to the king's table. As a king who did wrong and was did evil in God's eyes, grace so got me to the king's table. No matter who you are, no matter where you are, no matter what you've done. Maybe the words you need to hear today is grace and mercy will see you through. Maybe the words you need to hear today is that God will bring triumph in your tragedy. Maybe the word you need to hear today is don't make permanent decisions in temporary places. Maybe the word you need to hear today is trust God with the weight of your title because you can't do it by yourself. Maybe the word you need to hear today is the reason I can wear my chain is because my chains don't define me, because grace set me free. I'm King Jehoiakim. I reigned over Judah three years, 10 months. I did evil in the eyes of God. I strayed away from God, but God still invited me to the king's table. Maybe you're under the sound of my voice and I want to pray for you. I'm not perfect. I don't have it all together. But grace allows me to wear what used to chain me. Now maybe you're listening to the sermon today and you just need a little grace. And I want to pray for you that you own the grace of God on your life. Father, in Jesus name same grace you gave to King Jehoiakin's failures, God give it to ours as well. The same peace you gave to King Jehoiakin's failures, give it to us today. The same love you gave in spite of his failure. Give it to us today. And we'll be so careful to give your name. All the glory, glory, honor and praise. It's in Jesus name we pray. Amen. Thanks for letting me visit with you today. I'm gonna go get your pastor real fast. I hope you guys own the grace of God on your life. Go get your pastor real fast. I guess he has some stuff he wants to tell y', all, because I'm wearing my chains out and I'm. Let me. Let me. Go get your pastor. Stay right here. Go get your pastor real fast. All right, give me one second.