Jeremiah 35 | The Witness of Unbelievers to Fathers | 6.4.1997

[music] We're going to be looking at a mysterious group of people called the Rakabites. Jeremiah chapter 35, beginning at verse one. the word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehookim the son of Josiah king of Judah saying go to the house of the recabites speak to them and bring them into the house of the Lord into one of the chambers and to give them wine to drink. Then I took Jaz Jazaniah the son of Jeremiah the son of Azinia his brothers and all his sons and the whole house of the recites. And I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Idalia, a man of God, who was by the chamber of the princes, above the chamber of Mia, the son of Shalom, the keeper of the door. Now, don't you wish to say Bob and George, and it's so hard to try and pretend I'm pronouncing those names. Then I set before the sons of the house of the recabites bowls full of wine and cups. And I said to them, "Drink wine." But they said, "We will drink no wine. For John, the son of Rakab, our brother, our father, commanded us, saying, "You shall drink no wine, you nor your sons forever. You shall not build a house, seow seed, plant a vineyard, nor have any of these, but all your days you shall dwell in tents, that you may live many days in the land where you are sojourers. Thus we have obeyed the voice of Johnadab, the son of Ratab, our father, in all that he charged us to drink no wine all our days. We our wives, our sons, or our daughters, nor to build ourselves houses to dwell in. Nor do we have vineyards, fields, or seeds. But we have dwelt in tents and have obeyed and done according to all that Johnab our father commanded us. But it came to pass when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came up into the land that we said, "Come, let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Calaldanss, and for fear of the army of the Syrians, so we dwell Jerusalem." We're going to need to develop a background here for just a moment in order to get an understanding of what is taking place. Let me give you a brief glimpse into these people called the Rackabites. First let me begin in verse one when he says the word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord. Notice in the days of Jehoakim the son of Josiah. This chapter actually is a flashback because the events that we're looking at here in this chapter chapter 35 and also in chapter 36 actually took place around the year 606 before Christ. which means that these chapters were written some 17 years earlier during the reign of the king Jehakim. We see that in chapter 36:1 when it gives the date it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoakim, the son of Josiah. And so we know that the dating is somewhere around 606 before Christ. So this is what you would call a flashback chapter. And in verse two, the Lord gives a command to go to the house of the Recabites and to speak to them and to bring them into the house of the Lord. Now, the Recoites, who were these people? The Recoites are part of a clan called the Kennites. The Kennites were married to the Barbites, but that comes later on. Actually, they were part of a clan called the Kennites. In 1 Chronicles 2:55, the Bible says the clans of scribes who lived at Yavez and goes on to name these scribes, the Terites, Timothites, the Cathites. These are the Kennites who came from Hamas, the father of the house of Rakab. And so the Recoit were descendants of a people that were called the Kennites. They were a nomadic tribe and were closely associated with the Israelites through Moses's father-in-law, Jethro. In Judges 1:16, it says, "The children of the Kennites, Moses's father-in-law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the people of Judah into the wilderness of Judah." And so these people were related through marriage to Moses. Now, when Israel had left Egypt after Egyptian bondage, these Kennites were very kind to the nation of Israel. In the book of numbers in chapter 10:es 29-33 we see what took place. Now you need to know that in this passage Jethro who is Moses's father-in-law had another name that he was known by. So it's named Ruel. And so it says in numbers 10:es 29-33, Moses said to Hab, "Son of Rel Jethro, the Midionite, Moses's father-in-law, we are setting out for the place about which the Lord said, I will give it to you. Come with us and we will treat you well, for the Lord has promised good things to Israel." He answered, "No, I will not go. I'm going back to my own land and my own people." But Moses said, "Please do not leave us. you know where we should camp in the desert and you can be our eyes. If you come with us, we will share with you whatever good things the Lord gives us." So they set out from the mountain of the Lord and traveled for three days. The ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them during those three days to find them a place to rest. And so they had done good to Moses and to the children of Israel. And that's why later in the history of Israel, the king by the name of Saul remembered their kindness that they had shown to Israel. And in 1st Samuel 15 at verse 6, Saul says to the Kennites, "Go away. Leave the Amalachites so that I do not destroy you along with them, for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came out of Egypt." So the Canites moved away from the Amalachites. Now, they had an ancestor. We've already seen this man's name mentioned, Jonadab. And Johnadab was a prominent man. He was utilized to be part of the ridding of the nation of Israel of worship of Baal or Baal. In 2 Kings in chapter 10 15 and 16, the Bible says after Jahu left there, he came to Janadab son of Raab who was on his way to meet him. Ju greeted him and said, "Are you in accord with me as I am with you?" "I am." Janadab answered. If so, said Joo, give me your hand. So he did, and Ju helped him up into the chariot. Ju said, "Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord." He had him ride along in his chariot. In 2 Kings 10:23-25, we see Jahu and Janadabad, son of Rakab, went into the temple of Baal. Jesus said to the ministers of Baal, "Look around and see that no servants of the Lord are here with you. Only ministers of Baal." So they went in to make sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jahu had posted 80 men outside with this warning. If one of you lets any of the men I am placing in your hands escape, it will be your life for his life. As soon as Ju had finished making the burnt offering, he ordered the guards and officers go in and kill them. Let no one escape. So they cut them down with the sword. The guards and officers threw the bodies out and then entered the inner shrine of the temple of Bahal. And so the whole point of reading this to you and giving you this short background to identify the Recoites was because their ancestry was filled with integrity. And that's a very important point because I'm going to develop something with you as we go into this Bible study that I think is very very important for us, especially those of us who have a desire to raise not just godly children, but to have an impact, to have an influence on not only our children, but should the Lord Jesus carry for generations that we might have an impact not only on our children, but our grandchildren and great grandchildren throughout our ancestry. Because what we're looking at here today is the fact that for nearly three centuries, the Recoites have been following the command that they received from an ancestor. Three centuries of remembering what he had said to them on one occasion when he had given them commandments. simple commandments basically really don't drink wine and live intents all of your life those are really simple commands and yet they followed these commands for up to this writing it's close to three centuries and I want to develop something from those two commands today that I really think is important for us really important for all of us and even as I was studying this the Lord was giving me insight that I want to strength to you. In order to do so, let me uh continue on here in Jeremiah 35 by reading verse 2 again. It says, "Go to the house of the recites and speak to them. Bring them into the house of the Lord into one of the chambers and give them wine to drink." Notice verse five. He said, "I set before the sons of the house of the recites bowls full of wine and cups, and I said to them, drink wine. Your conviction will always be tested." You can write that down and take it to the bank. Your convictions will always be tested. You will always be tested if you hold fast to something that will demonstrate character or integrity. You will always be tested. If you stand up and say, "I believe in God," you will always be tested. It doesn't matter whether you're an adult on the job. It doesn't matter whether you're an adult who is the boss. It doesn't matter if you're in college or in high school or elementary school. You will always find somebody testing you. If you stand up and say, "I believe in God." If you stand up and say, "But I I trust the word of God." You will always have somebody pushing your conviction. So don't be surprised. And what's amazing is sometimes the Lord is even behind that. Not to cause you to fall, by the way. Not to cause you to fall. The Lord never tempts you with evil, intending to see you fall. But very often, the quality of your life will be demonstrated through the testing of your life. And the quality of your faith is going to be demonstrated by the things you go through. It's easy to say, "I would never fall into sexual sin," as long as you're staying at home. But once you get out of the house or once you turn on the television set and you begin to watch some of the shows that come on into the privacy of your house now it's another thing. It's one thing to say I never will. It's another thing never to. And the Lord allows trials into our lives because the Bible very clearly points this out because it demonstrates the quality of our faith. And so the Lord is actually behind this. He wants to make a public demonstration of the conviction and integrity of these people amongst the Jews called the Recabites. He wants to use them as an example as a living illustration to the children of Israel because the children of Israel had tremendous advantage. They had received the law from Moses. They had prophets amongst them. God had revealed himself in various ways through miracles and signs and wonders. and the nation of Israel had a history of God's presence with them. And yet the Lord is going to use these Recoites to demonstrate to the Jews what true character and integrity is. And so you see that Jeremiah goes and he invites the leadership of the Recabites and brings them into a an area there of the temple and he offers them bowls of wine. Notice with me, by the way, that this is a a very tempting thing because those bowls of wine, the scripture says in verse 5, those bowls are full of wine. And so they're filled to the brim, if you will, and he even gives to them the uh the the glasses, the cups, if you will, to drink. So they have full opportunity to fall. Very appealing. And it's a very real temptation. And it's an appeal to a fleshly appetite. combination of the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes. Now in 1 Peter chapter 1:es 6 and 7, the apostle Peter writing in this portion of scripture said this. Peter said, "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire, may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. And so, your faith will always be tested. It will be demonstrating its quality. Who here would go out and buy a product that hasn't had quality control measures done? You go to a car lot, buy a car, you better hope that that car has been tested from A to Z. You go out and buy anything. You buy a haird dryer, you better hope that it doesn't short on you. I mean, everything has to have quality control. We understand that. And under the stress and under the pressure, the weaknesses are revealed or its qualities. And so, that's what a trial is in our lives, guys. So many times we kick against the trials. We say, "Oh, I hate this." We pray, "Oh, God, give me patience." And then we go through a bunch of trials and we get mad. It's like, you know, that old saying, you know, Lord, give me patience now. I mean, we really don't want to go through what it is that is necessary to receive. And I remember hearing a young lady say, I don't ever pray for patience because I know I'm going to go through trial. You're going to go through trial anyway. Anyway, it doesn't really matter. You will go through trials anyway. And the only ones who ever really truly pray for patients are are doctors. And you know that's true. And so the Lord allows us to go through trials. Now, as I was going through this, and I'm going to look at verses 6-10, and I'm going to develop something with you. The majority of our study is going to be here in verses 6-10, and then we're going to conclude. But in verses 6-10, what I really see here, and this is something I really want to give to you, is, and I would say this in this way, it's like advice to parents. It's like advice to parents. And we'll see that as we go through this, because I believe we see this. Notice what happens and we'll look at it clearly in a second here. Verse six, it says, "They said we we will drink no wine. For Johnab, the son of Ratab, our father, commanded us, saying, you shall drink no wine. You know your sons forever. You shall not build a house, seow seed, plant a vineyard, nor have any of these. But all your days you shall dwell in tents, that you may live many days in the land where you are sojourers." And thus we have obeyed the voice of Johnab, the son of Raab, our father, in all that he charged us to drink no wine. All our days we are wives but sons are daughters. Nor to build ourselves houses to dwell in. Nor do we have vineyard field and seed. We have dwelt in tents and have obeyed and done according to all that Johnab our father commanded us. Let's look at this advice to parents. I was speaking to a dear friend of mine just yesterday. His name is Jim. He's a pastor of Calvary Chapel of Ranchukamonga. and Jim and I and uh another Calvary pastor named Randy Walls from Calvary Upland every month get together and and have lunch together and we spend time in fellowship and just sharing what the Lord is doing and it's it's a rich time for me and I I enjoy it and that happens on a monthly basis and just yesterday Jim and Randy and I got together to eat and Jimmy was sharing with me something I'd like to use as an introduction to this advice to parents. Jimmy just this last week was driving on Sunday morning to church. And as he was driving to church, he passed up on the side of the road a freshly placed cross and two young girls were there sitting next to this cross. We all know that often when a young person dies in an accident on the side of the road, their friends will go and erect a cross. And so Jimmy was driving and he passed by and saw this cross there and these two girls. He said, "I got about a block up the road and the spirit said go back." So he said, "I made a U-turn and I came back and I drove up." He said, "Ian, one of my sons and I climbed out of the truck and I walked up to the young girls and I said, "What are you girls doing? What happened here?" and they said, "Well, one of our friends was killed here last night. It was a horrible accident at that spot. The girl's vehicle collided with another vehicle and she was thrown out of her vehicle and she hit her head on the curb. She lay there on the curb, 17 years old, and she laid there in the curb with her two girlfriends holding her hands." Now, we're talking about teenage kids now holding her hands as she breathed her last. And they saw her as she closed her eyes and passed into eternity. And so, they had come just to sit there at that cross that had been placed there to think of their girlfriend that had died just the night before. And Jimmy began to share with them a little bit. Make a very long story short. Jimmy, they told Jimmy, "Well, some of the kids are going to cut school and they'll be here tomorrow." Jim gave him a card and said, "Listen, if you need to talk, this is the number. Give me a call." And the next day, Jim said that he was driving by about 15 kids had cut school and they were there by this cross. He said, "I walked up." He said, "And you see all these kids and these kids are are what what are called today stoners." He said, "You go walking up there." He said, "And they're they're you know, they're they're lost children." He said, "And I walked up to this one young boy," he said, who was standing there just emotional. And Jimmy said, 'I put my arm on his shoulder and I said, 'So, what's your name? And the boy told him his name. And Jimmy said, I just put my hand on his shoulder. And I said, you know, you know, the Lord will take care of this. And he begins to share. And he said, this young man just put his arm around me, he said, and just wouldn't let go. And and and Jim was sharing about the agony in a lot of kids' lives. You know, guys, they don't have dads. A lot of the kids don't have mamas. A lot of the kids have been basically just thrown out of the houses. Their only family today is is a friendship that they have. It's very unusual for a child to be raised in the home of two people who've been married through their lifetime. Most of them come from homes that have been broken and they don't have trust. A lot of them have been abused. It's it's a it's a very common thing as you know. And this little guy probably hadn't had a man put his arm around his shoulder. Who knows since when? And Jimmy says, you know, he said he just wouldn't let go of me. And I began to share with him. He said, and I shared with the kids. And this young boy says, can you can you come to the funeral, please? Would you be at the funeral? And Jim said, "I'll be there." And he shared again with the kids and said, "If you need anything, just let me know. I'll do what I can." kids went off to school apparently and told one of the counselors there who in turn gave a call to Jim and said, "We'd like to refer some of the kids who are grieving to you if that would be all right." And so Jimmy said, "I I sure would." And the lady on the other end of the line said, "Well, praise the Lord." And Jimmy said, "Oh, you're a Christian, huh?" She goes, "Absolutely." And so Jimmy was sharing with me how as he was there and these 15 kids had shown up that these two girls came pulling up and he gave them a ride home. And he said, "We we went home." He said, "And we were sitting down in the front lawn at their house. You see this little girl who passed away apparently had just been kicked out by her dad from the home and for drug usage. And the father said, "I just can't take it anymore. you're going to have to leave. And he had just been kicked out. And that's basically his last memory of his daughter. He did what he thought was the right thing. I would not fault that father for a moment. The daughter is abusing drugs, disrupting the house. The father says, "What can I do? If you don't want to live here under the rope in the proper way, honey, then find your road." Unfortunately for her, that was the road. But you know, these two girls were there talking to Jim and they said, "You know, we went to church the other day and we heard the invitation given. I wish we'd have gone forward to get right with God." And Jimmy looked at him and said, "Well, honey, you don't have to be in church. Do you want to give your heart to Jesus right now?" And they said, "You know what? We need to can we give our hearts to the Lord?" And Jimmy led these two little girls to Christ. And you want to know something? As Jim was sharing that his eyes got wet with tears, you know, and the Lord began to minister to me about this lost generation of children. Kids with no dad. Kids who could never ever say, you know, my father told me to abstain from wine. They can never say that because they don't even know who pop is. And some who do have dad, dad never talks to them and never takes the time to share of the important things. And so as I was reading this passage, guys, I have to be honest with you. The Lord spoke to my heart and he said, "This is the advice of a father. This is the advice that these kids took almost three centuries before and faithfully lived out." And they're simple commands. There are four things I want to give you here. Four things that I call advice to parents. Four things here that can radically change a kid's life. Four things that you can impart to a child that you can live out and impart to a child. Now obviously the underpinning here and that's the reason I gave to you such a long introduction though it really wasn't long but it was several scriptures and all the underpinning was the integrity and character of the man. A man who hated idolatry and was willing to jump into a chariot with a king by the name of Jahoo. And Joo was just using this man by the way just to build up his reputation by being with a godly person like this this man Johnab. Because Jah was not a godly man himself but the reputation of Johnab was greater than that of the king. And so the king that's why the king said will you climb on my chariot and go with me. Why was that? So that when people see you with me, I will immediately be borrowing your reputation and your integrity. Because I didn't take you through the rest of the story cuz Ju never really did clean up the idolatry in Israel. He used this man for his own purposes. The first thing I would lay for you here as a foundation is the integrity of the father who is a man of integrity. And as a man of integrity and a man of character, his children listen to him. the the people that he passed this on to saw in him this character. It's one thing for me to tell my kids something. It's another thing for me to live in such a way that they know it's true. All of us, all of us know what it's like in one way or another. If it weren't our parents, perhaps it were some adults that we knew. Perhaps it was somebody that we knew from the parents of one of our friends. But we've seen hypocrisy. Remember remember what it's like. I'm I'll probably 47 years old pretty soon. Sometimes it's difficult to remember what it's like, but I do. I do remember what it's like. I do remember looking at adults and wondering, "Why do you tell me not to smoke pot when you're smoking cigarettes? What do you tell me not to smoke pot when you drink? You're getting bombed and you're telling me not to get loaded? You've got to be kidding. I used to think, why are you telling me that I need to go to church when you haven't been in your life? It makes no sense. Why are you telling me you hate my music? Listen to the garbage that you play on the radio. You got to tell me something about music. And that and then most of us, if we just think for a moment, some of us adults, if you think for a moment, it's true. It's true. Every generation suffers with rebellion. I was rebellious. The generation coming up, they're rebellious. My dad's generation was rebellious. During my dad, when my dad was growing up, they had what they call the zoot suit. Some of you may remember that one. The zoot suit. Hey, there's one out there. No, dad. No, they had the zoot suit. My dad didn't wear a zoot suit, but he had a friend who had one. And his friend said to my dad, "Could you please take care of my suit because my dad doesn't want this in the house?" So my dad brought it to his house. My dad tells me my grandfather saw the zoot suit and took a pair of scissors and just chopped it up. And so every generation going back to Adam and Eve has had some form of rebellion. And so we have that today. But what I see today that is different than mine is the absence of fathers. It's the absence of fathers. It's the rampant divorce. It even affects the church. It's a lack of relationship between dad and son. Mother and son. Dad and daughter. Mother and daughter. The anger. How can I How can I be successful in communicating the things that are most dear to me? One, be a man of integrity, a person of integrity, if you will, so that they know the things that you're saying are true. And you're not just telling them to do this so it makes it easier to live with them in the house, but it's true. It's what you built your life on. And as we look at this, he gives them some simple commands. I want you to notice these commands here. By the way, when it says in verse 6, they said, "We will drink no wine." For John Adab, the son of Raab, our father, commanded us, saying, "You shall drink no wine, you nor your sons forever." And the second command, "You shall not build a house, so seed, plant a vineyard, nor have any of these. All your days you shall dwell in tents." Two simple commands. Don't drink wine, and don't build a house. Now, what is this all about? Let's look at it. Why these commands? Abstain from wine and live intent. Well, first when he said abstain from wine, you need to know that wine is associated with a lack of self-control in scripture. Wine is associated with a lack of self-control in scripture. And also wine was attached to the idolatrous worship of the pagan god. And so when they received this command, abstain from wine, in essence, he was saying, live a life that is self-controlled. Live a self-controlled life. The Bible in Proverbs, and I'll give you a few scriptures here if you're taking notes. In Proverbs 20:1 says this, "Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler. Whoever is led astray by them is not wise." Proverbs 23 20 and 21. Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat. For drunkards and glutton become poor, and drowsiness clothe them in rags. Proverbs 23:es 31-35. Do not gaze at wine when it's red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly. Sounds like a commercial. Why? Well, in the end, it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will see strange sights. and your mind imagine confusing things. You'll be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of a rigging. They hit me, you'll say, but I'm not hurt. They beat me, but I don't feel it. Anybody know what he's talking about? I think anybody here who's drink drunk, gotten drunk before knows exactly when and and when will I wake up so I can find another drink. Anybody who's ever been drunk knows exactly what he's talking about. You're numb. You feel like you're dizzy and you're confused. And if somebody punches you cuz you're getting smart, I don't feel it. And that's basically the way that it is. And he says, "When you're doing this, you are simply not wise." Anybody argue with that? If you do, I've told you before, I spent about five years of my life from 15 to 20 finding out exactly what he's saying is true. Alcoholic the age of 16 or so, drinking as much as I could, not only of what I would buy, but if you walked away from the table and left what you had, I drank what you had, too. I used to drink a half gallon of wine on Friday night and a quart of beer. Used to mix them together and that was what I bought. I used to buy this cheap wine. It cost a buck 69 a gallon a red mountain. We'd put lemons and stuff in it to try and make it taste better and we down that stuff. It was horrible. They brought spinyatta out and all this other garbage. That's when they began to make soda pop wine for kids. Because the real stuff, nobody would really drink. So what did they do? They brought out Boon Farm and all of this stuff, apple and cherry wine and, you know, crackling rosé and all of these different things. It would bring out, they weren't for adults, they were for kids because the first time you tasted the alcohol, normally it wasn't a good taste. The same is true when you smoke your first cigarette, your body tells you this is not good. You know, if you thought for just a moment about it, I'm burning some leaves and some paper and sucking that in and I paid this much for it and it will kill me. Your brain is not in operation here. I mean, if you sit down and did a skit about that, how stupid it is. Burn some leaves and some paper and suck it in and choke for a while, but you're going to get addicted and eventually maybe die. People really don't think about it that way because right now it's still sophisticated. That's why I agree with this movement against the Joe Camel thing because it's absolutely true. 91% of kids who are being interviewed today know who Mickey Mouse is. And 91% know who Joe Camel is. And that image is selling cigarettes, selling death to children. Absolutely. There's no doubt about that. This desire to smoke and look sophisticated and all that. I went through that. I used to pick up cigarette butts out of the out of the gutter when I was 12 years old and I would smoke them. I would find bottles of wine that were discarded in fields and I would drink it when I was about 10 and 11 years old. I know what I'm talking about. I used to do that and it's a horrible way to live and it's a stupid way to live. But I did live that way and I would find this stuff and I would drink and it didn't really matter to me at all. And so when you do drink when you drink, you lose self-control. A lot of times we make excuses for the things that we're doing. We say, "Well, it's the wine." No, it's me and the excuse of wine. I remember my mom and my dad before they were saved. And when I was a a young boy, less than 10 years of age, my mom and dad had a group of their friends over at the house and they had served vodka and different things to these people. And one of the people who was there at the at the party was kind of acting tipsy and bumping into things and saying nasty little things and all. Oh, excuse me. It's it's the alcohol, you know, making me say this and act this way. My mom went into the kitchen and the only thing this person had been drinking was orange juice, but they thought it was vodka and orange juice. And it just demonstrates that people once they're under that impression that they're drunk gives them an excuse don't do dumb things, stupid things. And so it's true. It's true. It is not wise to involve yourself to drink. Proverbs 31:es 4 and 5 says, "It's not for kings, oh LMuel, not for kings to drink wine, nor for rulers to crave beer, lest they drink and forget what the law decrees and deprive all the oppressed of their rights. For the righteous man or woman, drinking wine is not necessary." You see, some people drink so that they might laugh and enjoy themselves. Some will drink so they might have a little peace and relaxation. But for the righteous person, listen, for the righteous person, joy, peace comes from the spirit of God. So if I want my children to have a godly heritage, I command them in the name of Jesus, don't drink. Don't drink. Abstain from wine. Now I can tell you this quite honestly. I hate I hate alcohol. Not just for David. I hate alcohol. I wish there weren't any. I've seen too much pain caused by the drinking and for people to argue it's okay to drink a little bit. Amazing to me that people would actually take that line. No, don't drink a little wine. Be filled with the spirit is what the apostle Paul says. And so that's what we as godly parents should be encou encouraging our children to be filled with the spirit. Receive the power of God into your life. Walk in the spirit of God. In Ephesians 5 when he says at verse 18, don't get drunk on wine. He said that will lead you to debauchery. Instead he said be filled with the spirit. In Psalm 4 6 and 7, many are asking who can show us any good? Let the light of your face shine upon us, oh Lord. Listen, you have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound. I don't need to go to a party and drink to be happy, but I have people I know who did and do. There are kids today who think that they've got to go and drink at the party to have a good time. You don't have to do that. Some choose to do that. But look what it's causing. It's causing kids to climb in cars to drive drunk and get killed at the age of 17. Too much to live for. There's too much hope that God gives to us. And that's what I encourage my children to. One, encourage your child to a spiritfilled life. Secondly, when he speaks about living in tents and planting no vineyards, city living was recognized as a source of temptations and so nomadic living resulted in no vineyards and no wine. The question is, well, why live in tents? Well, first, a tent is a simple structure. So if I'm going to encourage my children to godly values, I will encourage them one, don't drink wine, and two, live a simple life. Live a simple life because a tent is a simple structure. So this will encourage a virtue of humility and will encourage the virtues of simplicity. Materialism was combed by encouraging them to live in tense. Materialism is destroying kids today. Some are not wanting to graduate from high school. Some graduate from high school with no hope because they don't figure they're going to be able to get as much as they want. Speak to your kids and listen to what they're saying. They don't want to graduate from high or they hate it while they're in it. man, when that day comes to graduate, they know they're on the street. And they know that they've got to work a full-time job. And they know that a high school diploma doesn't necessarily guarantee very much anymore. They also know that if they go to college, they're going to be under stress. They also know four years of college may have to lead to six years. My daughter was going to one of the local colleges here. In order for her to graduate with a four-year degree, it's going to take between five and a half and six years. because it's overcrowded. She can't even get her core classes because there's a line waiting the moment registration happens. And so she has to take all these other elective classes. Can't even get the classes she needs. She says to get a four-year college degree. Marie graduated out of the same college in four years. To get a four-year college degree, it's going to take her six years to get it. And so a lot of the young people today as I'm seeing them are thinking in terms of well if I get this degree then I can get the money. If I get the money I have the nice car. And so the second thing that he wants to encourage them to one walk in your spirit. Two don't be a materialist. Don't be a materialist. Don't get caught up with all this outward appearance working all of your life to have something that eventually just rots or breaks down on you. So living in a tent, remember a tent is a simple structure. Materialism was combed in this manner. In Luke 12:15 when Jesus was speaking, Jesus said this. He said, "Watch out. Be on guard against all kinds of greed. A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. You are not what you wear. You are not what you drive. You are not where you live. You're beyond all of that." And so one of the things that I'm trying to train my children in, and I encourage all of us to do the same kinds of things because it's biblical, to live a simple life, not to be a materialist. A third thing when you speak about tents, remember tents weren't comfortable to live in as a home. So what's the result? Well, the result would be that they weren't pampered. They lived what would be called, it used to be called a hearty life. They weren't pampered. They were willing to sweat. I encourage the kids to get calluses. They're good for them. To get back. It's good for them to work and stand up at the end of a day and say, "Man, Dad, oh, this hurts." Yeah, it does, doesn't it? Part of the curse, son. Enjoy. If we hand our kids too much too soon, they don't know the joy of working and accomplishing. They don't know what it's like to save and to save and to save and then finally go out and buy something that they bought with their own allowance, with their own money that they they earned. The joy of being able to purchase something, there's nothing wrong with that. But if I'm always handing them things, I've discovered with my own children, perhaps some of you have discovered, if I hand them something, it's normally the wrong color, wrong size. It wasn't exactly what they wanted, and they want something else. It's never enough. It's never costly enough. It's never the right thing. And so, you know what? Living in tents, because tents were not necessarily the most comfortable thing in the world, taught them to be a hearty people. taught them to be industrious, to work, and to be willing to suffer, to be willing to to ache. You know, these other people are living in nice homes, but they're living as nomads in tents and they remain strong and they were developing their character. So, don't be afraid to struggle. Be content. Another thing about a tent, it's not permanent. A tent isn't permanent. It's something that you set up and take down. So in living in tents they were taught to remain flexible and not to take root in the world. So what do I say to my kids? Children please don't fall in love with the world. Don't fall in love with the world. Don't look to Madonna as a role model. Don't look to these women who flaunt their sexuality and go outdressed or half-dressed and say this is the way you ought to be. Please don't use the world as a model. Pour into your children values that are eternal. Pour into them the spirit of God. Please pour in them a simple life pushing them away from the material. Pour into them the love of the Lord. Pour into them prayer. Pour into them support. Pour into them a heart that is willing to hear and a directive so that they might know which way to go. Be there with them. Because if you do that, if you teach them these simple simple lessons, if you teach them, if you follow the ways of the violent man, then you're going to be living by the sword. And Jesus said, "Those who live by the sword will die by the sword." So peace, not violence. Learn to turn the other cheek. Be willing to be embarrassed. Don't fight for nothing. Learn. I got to tell you something, guys. I believe so very strong. I believe so very strongly that God wants to bring a revival in the young people. I'm starting to see hope. Young people are hungry spiritually. They don't have anybody telling them right from wrong. The teachers won't do it anymore. Maybe they think they can't. But that's where we come in. That's where we parents come in. So, you open your house to your your kids' friend. They make a lot of noise and make a big mess and they eat your food and belch and leave and don't even say thank. But I would just assume they'd be there than someplace else. Pour these things in. Pour into them the desire to live for the Lord. Pour the spirit. Tell them stay away from the drugs and the alcohol. Walk in the spirit. Teach them to be simple in their life. Teach them to be tough and strong and be willing to sweat. Teach them not to love the world. Because in doing so, you're teaching them things that last. And that's what they're pointing at when they say, "Our father taught us these things. Our father taught us to do these things. We've held fast to these things. We've never stepped away from these things. And this is what has made this this tribe, this clan, this family, this people a strong people." And so he's saying that the father had through his responsibility encouraged them in the things that would ultimately benefit them. The Bible says in Proverbs 23:24, "The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice, and he who beggets a wise child shall have joy in him." Now, the response was, "We have obeyed the voice of John Adab, the son of Rahab, our father. For all of these years, we have remained faithful to his words, and as such, we've been preserved from the social and the religious decay of the world around us." But they said in verse 11, "It came to pass when Nebuchadnezzar came of Babylon came up into the land and we said we have to move into Jerusalem. But even while we're living here in the city temporarily, we still refuse to drink wine. And we know that we're only sojourners. We're pilgrims. We're just staying here temporarily. We're getting out as soon as we can." That's what it's like for me, by the way. I'm a I'm a sojourer. I'm a pilgrim. This world is not my home. I'm just passing through. I've got a more permanent, enduring place called heaven waiting for me. And that's why I encourage our kids to that. Now, you're thinking, "Pastor, you only went to verse 11." Let's read the last, and I'll close with four thoughts. Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. 1 2 3 4 5 Five thoughts. Then came the word of the Lord to Jeremiah, saying, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Will you not receive instruction to obey my word, says the Lord." The words of Johnab, the son of Raab, which he commanded his sons not to drink wine are performed, for to this day they drink none and obey their father's commandment. Although I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, you didn't obey me. I have also sent to you all my servants, the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, "Turn now, everyone from his evil way. Amend your doings, and do not go after other gods, to serve them. Then you will dwell in the land which I have given you and your fathers. But you have not inclined your ear, nor obeyed me. Surely the sons of Johnab, the son of Rakab, have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded them, but this people has not obeyed me. Therefore, thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, behold, I will bring on Judah and all of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, all the doom that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken to them, but they have not heard. I have called to them, but they have not answered. So, the Lord says, I'm going to bring condemnation on you. Why? Well, first, because the Recabites have followed the lead of a non-inspired human leader, but you have rejected me, and I am your God. Secondly, because Johnab gave his orders only one time, but I have repeatedly given you the same instructions, yet you failed to obey. Thirdly, Johnab's commands were obeyed for many generations, but you have generations of repeated failure. And fourth, the Recabites are going to be rewarded, but you, Israel, will be doomed. They listened, they obeyed, they were blessed. You ignored, you rejected, you are condemned. And that's the way it works, guys, in the old and the new. When you hear what the hol hol holy spirit says and you reject what the spirit says, there's only one thing awaiting us, and that's judgment from the Lord. And he says in verses 18 and 19, Jeremiah said to the house of the recites, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, because you have obeyed the commandment of Johnab your father, and kept all his precepts and done according to all that he commanded you. Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Jonadab, the son of Recab, shall not lack a man to stand before me forever. I will accord them favor. They will worship me as their God." What a wonderful promise to the Reabite.