S1: Today on bold steps with Mark job, we're getting a
S1: glimpse at God's big picture.
S2: It changes our perspective. God, you have placed me here
S2: at this place, at this time, at this moment, because
S2: you have a purpose and a plan for me at
S2: this time.
S1: Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark job. Mark is the
S1: senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago and
S1: president of Moody Bible Institute. And with all that's happening
S1: in our world today, we need real peace now more
S1: than ever. And as the Bible teaches, peace in your marriage,
S1: your family, your community, and this world is possible. Mark,
S1: peace is contagious. It's like a good virus, isn't it?
S3: It is contagious. And boy, if you have peace these
S3: days and operate with peace, you are the exception. And
S3: this is a great message because no matter where you live,
S3: whether it's a big urban center or a small rural community,
S3: I think that God has placed all of us in
S3: the place that we're at in the season that we're
S3: at for a purpose, and that purpose involves influencing where
S3: we live.
S1: Let's see it as an opportunity.
S3: Absolutely. And by the way, living in the city of
S3: Chicago and ministering here in the city of Chicago more
S3: than ever before, we're aware of God really needs to
S3: work and move in places like Chicago all over this country.
S1: Let's be agents of peace. Here's Mark with today's message.
S2: Peace and lack of stress or learning how to cope
S2: with stress is not just a personal thing, but it
S2: also is a contagious thing that should splash into other
S2: people's lives. In fact, your peace should be able to
S2: splash into your marriage and should splash into your family
S2: and should splash into your community and should splash onto
S2: your block, and ultimately should splash onto our city and
S2: our country. It's contagious, and the peace of God was
S2: never meant just to stay within our lives. It's something
S2: that spreads like a good virus all around us. And
S2: so today, I want to talk to you a little
S2: bit about that, not just your personal peace, but our
S2: responsibility to help generate peace around us in whatever environment
S2: God has placed us in order to do so, I'd
S2: like for you to take your Bibles and turn to
S2: Jeremiah chapter 29. Jeremiah the 29th chapter. This is a
S2: great chapter because it talks about how to view the city. Uh,
S2: what is our responsibility towards this great city that we
S2: live in, and how do we view our responsibility towards
S2: the city? And I want to give you a little
S2: bit of a background so that you can understand what
S2: the prophet is talking about. This book is written by Jeremiah.
S2: Jeremiah was called the weeping prophet. He was called the
S2: Weeping prophet because he had a message that he knew
S2: that no one would listen to. So he spent a
S2: lot of time weeping. Uh, he knew that he had
S2: a message to give, but he also knew that very
S2: few people would listen to the message that he had
S2: to give. It's kind of a tough thing to have
S2: a message and know that no one's going to respond
S2: to your message, right? Uh, they actually put him in
S2: a well, they arrested him. They ostracized him. They ridiculed
S2: him because his message was not a popular message that
S2: he was presenting and speaking. But Jeremiah was writing to
S2: a group of people that had been taken from Jerusalem. Uh,
S2: Jerusalem had an it was about 600 BC. Uh, Jerusalem
S2: had been invaded by their rivals Babylon and the people
S2: from Babylon, which is modern day Iraq. The people from
S2: Babylon invaded Jerusalem. They tore the city apart. They burned
S2: the temple. They, um, desecrated. They stole items from the temple.
S2: They left the city in ruins. And they confiscated or
S2: took captive 3000 men and women that they carried back
S2: to Babylon. That was hundreds of miles away from where
S2: they lived. So these 3000 people were in a city
S2: that they did not like, in a culture that they
S2: did not understand, and they were dreaming about going back home.
S2: Why do we have to be in Babylon? Our heart
S2: is in Jerusalem. That song that was made popular years
S2: ago by the rivers of Babylon. They sat down and
S2: remembered Zion. This is. This is right there. They're talking
S2: about that they were longing for Jerusalem, and they were
S2: living in a city that they really didn't like, and
S2: a culture that they really didn't want to be a
S2: part of. And Jeremiah writes to them about what attitude
S2: they're supposed to have towards the city that they live in.
S2: Some of you have come to. Some of you were
S2: raised in Chicago all your life. You've lived in the
S2: same neighborhood. Maybe you're still in the house that you
S2: grew up in. And so you live in Chicago because
S2: that's what you know. That's what you like. Your family
S2: members are here. Your kids, your cousins, your uncles, your aunts, uh,
S2: you know, the neighborhood you grew up in, Chicago. You've
S2: been eating Al's beef on Taylor Street since you were
S2: a little kid. You remember when Connie's pizza was just
S2: a little hole in the wall restaurant before they went
S2: big time and started franchising? I mean, you have been
S2: around for a long time. You eat and breathe. Chicago.
S2: There's others of you that you moved to Chicago because
S2: of school or because of your business, or because you
S2: came to school and went to college, and then you
S2: realize you had $60,000, you had to pay off. So
S2: you had to work somewhere and you got a job
S2: and you're still trying to pay off your college bill.
S2: But you came here and you live here. Some of
S2: you migrated from another country because Chicago and America was
S2: the land of opportunity. And so you, your parents or
S2: your grandparents migrated to Chicago. And you're in this in
S2: this city, some of you love being in the city.
S2: Some of you have developed. Some of you live with
S2: a suitcase mentality. You know what a suitcase mentality is?
S2: I'm here for now, but I'm not staying long. I
S2: have a suitcase that I have not completely unpacked because
S2: my heart's not here. One of these days I'm going
S2: back to Texas. It always seems to be warmer weather
S2: that we're going back to, I don't know, Everybody dreams
S2: about going back. I run into some people. They talk
S2: about the old country and and almost like their hearts
S2: in the old country. But they lived here for 30 years, right?
S2: But still, uh, the idea is, I'm not going to
S2: stay here. This is only. I'm only passing by. Uh,
S2: this is really not my home. This is really not
S2: my city. I live here for now, but I'm really
S2: just passing through, going somewhere else. Jeremiah is speaking a
S2: word from God to the people that lived in Babylon,
S2: a huge city, and he's telling them how to have
S2: a proper view to the city that they live in.
S2: And I want to give you just a couple principles
S2: that I think are really important for you and I
S2: to grasp today. Number one, in verse four, he starts
S2: by telling them, this is what the Lord Almighty, the
S2: God of Israel, says to all those I carried into
S2: exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. Notice God is saying, I
S2: carried you into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. The first
S2: thing to have a proper view of this city, write
S2: this down is a proper view of the city, acknowledges
S2: that God has placed us in our city and our
S2: communities at the right time. You are here, living in
S2: this city or in this great metropolis because God wanted
S2: you here. You need to acknowledge it's the will of
S2: God that I live in this city. It's the will
S2: of God that he brought me here. You may think, well, no, pastor.
S2: You see, I got a job offer, and I knew
S2: a cousin that knew a cousin that helped me get
S2: this job. And so it's a series of coincidence that
S2: brought me here. And I want you to know that
S2: God is the master of connecting the points of coincidence
S2: to get us where he wants us to be. These
S2: 3000 people were raising their hands up to God, saying,
S2: when will we leave this city? And Jeremiah is writing
S2: them and saying, God brought you to this city. He's
S2: the one that brought you to this place at this time,
S2: at this season, for this moment. Because God has a
S2: purpose and God has a plan for you in this city.
S2: And I want you to notice that our our circumstances
S2: in life, you live on the block that you live
S2: on because God brought you to that block with those neighbors.
S2: You live in the community that you live in right
S2: now because God wants you in that community right now.
S2: And he brought you there, and he orchestrated for you
S2: to be there. And you say, well, I wish I
S2: could have chosen because I really don't like my neighbors.
S2: And what you're there though. And I'm trying to sell
S2: the house market slow. Hey, you're stuck now, but you
S2: need to acknowledge it's God that brought you there. You
S2: need to understand that it's God that has a purpose
S2: and a place for us. God is sovereign, which means
S2: that he pulls the strings of humanity, that he placed
S2: you in your job and in your neighborhood and in
S2: the place that you're at, because he's got a purpose
S2: and a plan for that. When we acknowledge it, it
S2: changes our perspective. God, you have placed me here at
S2: this place at this time, at this moment, because you
S2: have a purpose and a plan for me at this time.
S2: And Jeremiah is telling these people, reminding these people that
S2: God has brought them there for that moment in that season.
S2: The second thing I want you to remember, when we
S2: have a proper view of the city, Jeremiah says to
S2: them in verse five, build houses and settle down, plant
S2: gardens and eat what they produce. Marry, have sons and daughters.
S2: Find wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage,
S2: so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase
S2: the number there and do not decrease. The second thing
S2: we need to keep in mind when we have a
S2: proper view of this city, is that a proper view
S2: of the city empowers us to get rid of an
S2: alien mentality mentality and settle in long term. He says
S2: build houses and live in them. How many of you
S2: know there's a difference between a renter's mentality and an
S2: owner's mentality? How about it? Hey, when you rent somewhere,
S2: it's a landlord's job to fix it, right? If the
S2: paint is chipping, it's not really your responsibility. If the
S2: yard is a little bit off, you don't. Hey, that's
S2: someone else's responsibility. If the neighborhood is starting to get
S2: bad or someone's not taking care of the house, you
S2: just think to yourself, I'm just going to pick up
S2: and move if I don't like the neighborhood because you
S2: have a renters mentality and there's nothing wrong with renting.
S2: And if you're renting today, I've rented at seasons of
S2: My life. But there's something that changes when you buy.
S2: When you invest money into a property, now you're concerned
S2: about the graffiti on the light post and you're scrubbing
S2: it off. Now you're going to the Caps meetings in
S2: the neighborhood. Now you are concerned about the property values
S2: of your block and your community. Now, if someone turns
S2: their music up loud and is making a lot of noise,
S2: you call the police because you want to. Hey, this
S2: is your neighborhood. This is your house. This is your block.
S2: Because why? You have a vested interest in the place
S2: that you live in. Your mentality has changed from a
S2: renter to an owner, to someone that has vested interest
S2: where you live. What Jeremiah is saying. Build houses. Don't
S2: have a suitcase mentality or renter's mentality. Vest yourself in
S2: where you're living. Build your houses, build a house and
S2: settle in. Establish the stake and say this is my home.
S1: This is bold steps. The Bible teaching of Mark, job
S1: and Mark will continue this message in a moment. Stay
S1: with us. Before we continue the lesson, though, we want
S1: to remind you that you can always find these daily
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S1: Here's Mark Jobe with more on today's bold steps.
S2: Now the second thing that he says, he gives him
S2: another mandate. It's not only the real estate mandate, it's
S2: the business mandate. He says plant gardens and eat their produce.
S2: In other words, learn to make money where you live.
S2: You can work for someone else, and that's good. But
S2: some of you are going to start your own businesses. Uh,
S2: in those days, uh, the way someone started their own
S2: business is they'd get a plot of land and they
S2: would begin to, uh, so in that plot of land
S2: and they would harvest it, and they would eat for themselves,
S2: and they would take some of what they harvested, and
S2: they would sell it to other people. In other words,
S2: he's saying, hey, don't be afraid to make business ventures.
S2: Don't be afraid to find ways of doing business that
S2: will supply the needs of your family and live off
S2: the business that you do. The thing is, when you
S2: own a business, you're more rooted because the people in
S2: that community are your clients. When you own a business,
S2: you you pay property taxes into that area. You hire
S2: people from that area. You make your money off of
S2: that area. You care a little bit more of what's
S2: happening in that area. Why? Because you have a vested
S2: interest there. So he says build houses, start businesses. The
S2: third mandate, he says, is marry and have sons and daughters.
S2: So the third mandate is start families. When someone's just
S2: passing through somewhere, they don't want to get involved in
S2: any long term relationships because they're just passing through. They
S2: don't want to settle down. They don't want to marry,
S2: they want to date, but they don't want to marry.
S2: They want to have fun, but they don't want to
S2: have a household. They. Why? Because they have a temporary mentality.
S2: I'm not here for long. And what Jeremiah says is, hey,
S2: don't be afraid of long term commitments. Don't be afraid
S2: to put that, that that that long term commitment. Find
S2: a wife, start a family, get married. And so Jeremiah
S2: is telling these people, hey, don't be afraid of taking
S2: on that kind of responsibility, because ultimately a city is
S2: made up by the fabric of its families. Then he
S2: not only gives them the family mandate, he gives them
S2: the heritage mandate. Not only should they marry and have
S2: sons and daughters, it says, find wives for your sons
S2: and give your daughters in marriage so that they too
S2: may have sons and daughters, increase their number and do
S2: not decrease. I have a ten year old son, my youngest.
S2: His name is Grant and he's ten. When he was
S2: about 5 or 6 years old, we were talking and
S2: for some reason he was concerned about how he was
S2: going to pick his wife in the future. And it
S2: really was bothering, like, how will I know she's the
S2: right one, dad? And it was kind of concerning him
S2: a little bit this, you know, how he would pick
S2: the right wife. And I said to him, son, I'll
S2: make a deal with you. Listen, I know you well,
S2: and I think I have a pretty grasp of a
S2: good grasp of women's personality and who they are. I
S2: tell you what I said. I will pick your wife
S2: for you. Okay. It seemed to relieve him a little bit.
S2: He said, okay, dad. I said, let's shake on it.
S2: So we shook on it. And, um, now that he's
S2: ten years old, he's he's trying to get out of
S2: the deal a little bit. He's kind of pushing back
S2: on it. And I tell him, son, a deal is
S2: a deal. You said I could pick your wife. I'm
S2: planning on picking your wife. No getting out of this deal.
S2: So it's a done thing. We shook on it. So
S2: it's a done thing. But in essence, what he says is,
S2: you know, be involved in the process of helping your
S2: sons and daughters get married, uh, establish a heritage in
S2: that city. Uh, don't be afraid of planting your roots
S2: in a place and having sons and daughters and grandsons
S2: in that city. Uh, because it's a good thing. Establish
S2: and grow. What he's talking about is not having a
S2: temporary mentality, not being afraid to do life in the
S2: place that God has called us to, to say, this
S2: is our city, this is our community, and this is
S2: where we will do life. And then he says something
S2: very powerful. The third thing, in a proper view of
S2: our city, look at what he says in verse seven.
S2: He says also seek. And in our English Bible it
S2: says the peace and prosperity. But this the Old Testament
S2: was written in the Hebrew language. And in the Hebrew
S2: it's just one word, and the word is seek the shalom.
S2: Have you ever heard that word shalom? If you're around
S2: the Jewish culture, they'll say shalom as a greeting. The
S2: word shalom is an interesting word because the word peace
S2: doesn't quite describe it. It's just part of it's peace,
S2: part of it's justice, part of it's prosperity. Other places
S2: it's translated seek the good of the city. It means
S2: the favor, the well-being, the blessing of the city. So
S2: he says to these people that are in a city
S2: that they don't like, in a big city that they
S2: don't really feel is their city, that they came from
S2: another place that they feel like they're just temporarily there.
S2: He says, I want you, you 3000 that are there,
S2: establish yourselves, settle yourselves in, and seek the good of
S2: the city that God has placed you in. I love that.
S2: And then he tells them, why. Listen, he says, which I,
S2: the city to which I have carried you into exile.
S2: Pray to the Lord for it. For what? For the
S2: peace of this city. Listen. Because if it prospers, you
S2: too will prosper. Do you hear what he's saying? What
S2: Jeremiah is saying is that even though you weren't born
S2: in this city, since you live in this city, this
S2: is now your city, and you are to seek that
S2: means intentionally and aggressively pursue something. You are to seek
S2: the good of this city, and you are to pray
S2: for the peace of the city and the good of
S2: this city. Because your destiny is tied in to the
S2: destiny of this city. Because if it prospers, you also prosper.
S2: This is huge. You see, I believe that as followers
S2: of Jesus Christ, as a community of faith, God has
S2: placed us in this, in this city. And oftentimes, the
S2: church gathers within four walls of its own buildings and
S2: worships and has a relationship with God. But then almost
S2: feels like if we go out into that big, bad city,
S2: it's not our problem. It's not our issues. Uh, that
S2: that's not our concern. But in reality, what God is saying.
S2: I love what it says in in Romans it says
S2: the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in
S2: the Holy Spirit. We are people of the kingdom of God. Therefore,
S2: our values need to be the values of righteousness, peace,
S2: and joy. And wherever we go, we help bring the
S2: values of the Kingdom of God. That means that as
S2: a community of faith and as as people that embrace
S2: the kingdom of God, that we are to be praying.
S2: Part of our mandate is that we are to pray
S2: for the shalom, the peace, the goodwill of Chicago. That
S2: should be a part of our daily prayer. Oh God,
S2: we pray for this city. So this isn't just for Chicagoland.
S2: If you live in the East Coast or West Coast
S2: or down in Florida, if you're in Ohio, or if
S2: you're in Indianapolis area, or maybe internationally, you're in Malawi,
S2: Africa listening to this, or maybe you're in Nigeria or Niger,
S2: or maybe you're in Mozambique or Ghana, or maybe you're
S2: in Singapore listening to this message. Listen, this is for you.
S2: Bring the shalom of God to wherever you live.
S1: All right. Thank you. Mark. You're listening to Bold Steps
S1: with Mark Jobe. And the end of a message today
S1: titled Getting the Big Picture. As you know, we're able
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S1: will offer us a picture of the time around the
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S1: it good. We really should perhaps be calling it bad.
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