Godly People in an Ungodly World / Jeremiah 29:1-14

If you have your Bibles, we are going to take a wee bit of a detour. Find the book of Exodus, keep going to the right, and stop at the book of Jeremiah. We’re going to be in Jeremiah 29, a passage that, honestly, as I was looking through some of my notes, I have not taught in fifteen years. Yet it’s a commonly referred to passage. Most of you have the bumper sticker, the doily, the bookmark, or something that contains a couple of the verses we’re going to cover in our time together here this weekend.

Historical Context: From Covenant to Captivity

Just to set it up: when it comes to the Old Testament, for the most part, you had people living under what was called the Mosaic Covenant. That was a covenant God gave to Moses, and if you summarized it, it was basically an “if/then” covenant: “If you do what’s right, obey me, and keep me first, then I’m going to take care of you. I’m going to be on your side, and I will be with you. But if you jack it up, turn to other gods, and start messing around, then we’re going to have a problem.” That is my translation, but that is the essence of the Mosaic Covenant.

The people of God, as you can imagine—maybe like most of us—started off pretty well, but over time their hearts began to grow cold. The story you read through in the Hebrew text or your Old Testament is a story of the ups and downs of the people of God trying to learn how to stay consistent in their worship. But as the Old Testament progresses, the leadership becomes corrupt, the priesthood becomes corrupt, and it is a downhill spiral from there.

In 605 BC, God raises up an oppressive kingdom: the Babylonians. They come in and begin the first of three deportations. They literally take the people of Judah, cart them away, and in 605 BC, you have guys like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—which, by the way, are their Babylonian names; Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah get taken captive with Daniel, his fraternity brothers, if you will. In 597 BC, you have the second deportation where tens of thousands of people are taken captive and exiled into Babylon. Finally, in 586 BC—after God in His grace allowed them time to repent, respond to Him, and get back on track—the third and final deportation takes place. Jerusalem is sacked, the city is destroyed, and only the very poorest of the poor are left.

There are three primary prophets who write during this seventy-year period of exile: Daniel, Ezekiel, and a man named Jeremiah. In Jeremiah 29, we catch this narrative mid-story. A lot of history has happened, and the essence of what Jeremiah is saying to a people who should have worshiped God—but chose other gods and have now been taken captive—is instruction on how to be the people of God when surrounded by exile, pagan nations, and pagan gods.

The Two Extremes and the Third Way

God is saying, “Here is how I want you to live when you’re surrounded by captivity.” What He shows them is what I call a third way.

When you talk about how the godly live among the ungodly, people typically behave like oil and water, running to two extremes. One extreme says, “The world is evil! We need to completely separate and remove ourselves. Let’s go buy a cabin in Shaver, stockpile weapons, get emergency survival food, and get away completely.” No disrespect if you own a cabin in Shaver, but you get my point! They are the kind of people who live in a little compound where you better call first before visiting or you might get shot. That is the extreme of total isolation.

The other extreme says, “If a little is good, a lot is fine too, so let’s just fit in.” That was me in my early days trying to take shots of tequila to reach out to my fraternity brothers as a new believer—not a good combination! These are people who don’t live distinct lives, don’t stand out, and don’t influence anyone. They are incognito, compromising completely with the culture around them.

Those are typically the two poles: isolation on one hand, and compromise on the other. But this passage shows us a third way that is neither extreme. It suggests that we can live distinct and set apart as the people of God, while remaining hopeful, faith-filled, prayerful, trusting, and actively engaged in our community, even when surrounded by chaos.

Before we look at the text, we must understand that this passage—I don’t mean to break your heart—was not written directly to you. I know people love to quote verse 11 on graduation cards and say, “Christian, God has a plan for your life!” While there are transferable principles, the original audience was Jewish exiles in Babylon, not a modern believer trying to live godly at GB3. Keeping that context in mind, let’s look at verse 1.

Jeremiah 29:1 (NASB)

Now these are the words of the letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders of the exile, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

Jeremiah sends this letter from Jerusalem to the political and religious leaders and everyone in exile in Babylon.

Jeremiah 29:4 (NASB)

’Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon,

The first thing to notice is that they were not in captivity because they were militarily weak. They weren’t outmaneuvered or outgunned, and the Babylonians didn’t just have better generals. The reality is that God sent them into exile. He had been clear: “Obey me, and we’re good; disobey, and we’ll have a problem.” They had an obedience problem. So God sent them into the wilderness to shape and form them.

Settle In and Seek the Shalom

In verses 5 and 6, God tells them to prepare for a long stay. This is not a weekend trip.

Jeremiah 29:5-6 (NASB)

’Build houses and live [in them]; and plant gardens and eat their produce. ’Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.

This is a generational trip; you are going to need more than a carry-on! To “build” and to “live” are imperative commands. God is saying, “As much as you would like this to be a quick timeout where you sit in the corner for thirty minutes and then re-enter society, you are going to be there for seventy years. Settle in. Sink some roots. Plant gardens and eat the fruit—which takes years. Multiply and do not decrease.”

He commands them to do life in captivity: to live, flourish, prosper, persevere, and enter in. He cautions them not to pull away, isolate, or wash their hands of the city. You cannot fold your arms in protest and throw a tantrum because you find yourself in exile. God sent them there for a redeeming purpose.

Jeremiah 29:7 (NASB)

‘Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’

Seek the welfare of the city. That means work for its betterment. Take the initiative, get involved, and actively engage in activities that raise the welfare of your community.

“Welfare” is the rich Hebrew word shalom. While it is often translated as peace, it means wholeness, well-being, prosperity, safety, satisfaction, and blessing. God says, “Don’t buy a cabin and run away. I didn’t send you to flee; I sent you to influence. Seek the shalom of the city.”

Can I make an observation about our own city? It strikes me most when I’m on an airplane. When I fly, I put on my headphones and give every “leave me alone” signal known to man because I relish being at 30,000 feet with no phone calls or emails. But inevitably, someone starts small talk: “Where are you from?” I say, “Fresno.” They reply, “Oh, Fresno… well, at least it’s not Bakersfield!”

Then you listen to people who live in Fresno describe it. Someone asks, “Doesn’t Fresno have gangs?” And we say, “Well, yeah, but it’s close to the Sierras, close to Yosemite, and close to the beach!” We tend to define Fresno not by what it has, but by what it is close to. Randy White spoke to our staff once and said something that has haunted me: “Fresno has a narrative of self-loathing.” Fresnans love to hate Fresno! We complain about the problems, the neighborhoods, and the issues, but we aren’t part of the solution.

I wonder if we are missing an opportunity to seek the shalom of our city. God wanted you here. I can tell you that with 100% assurance because you are here! But God didn’t place you here just to complain about it; He placed you here to shape it. He placed you here as His follower to pursue the welfare of this city where His church proclaims Christ and makes inroads into dark places.

Getting Our Knees Dirty: Prayer and Leadership

It is not just about what you do with your hands; it is about getting your knees dirty. Many problems in our city cannot be solved by human effort alone. You cannot serve them away or buy them away. Many ills will only be healed when the gospel comes to bear, which means it requires prayer.

Verse 7 commands us to “pray to the Lord on its behalf.” We pray for its needs and its leaders. We have plenty of needs: poverty, spiritual bankruptcy, immigration challenges, racial division, gangs, struggling schools, food deserts, and blighted neighborhoods. What if we asked God to intervene in those areas? That is not something a mayor can just fix by pulling a magical lever in City Hall. We must seek God and ask Him to do an amazing work so that we become a city on a hill in the Central Valley.

We must also pray for our leaders. I love being the chaplain at Fresno State because standing on the sidelines lets you hear the game and the crack of the pads. But I hate hearing that guy in the second row who thinks he can coach because he plays Xbox, yelling, “Run this play!” while choking on his nachos. Buddy, go get a coaching job instead of yelling at the coach!

It is easy to choke on our nachos and complain about our civic leaders: “He should have done this; she shouldn’t have said that.” Time out. Pray for them! Pray for Mayor Brand. Pray for our city council members. Pray for Chief Dyer and Sheriff Mims.

1 Timothy 2:1-2 (NASB)

First of all, then, I urge that entreaties [and] prayers, petitions [and] thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

Romans 13:1 (NASB)

Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.

You pray for leaders with the hope that God guides them, but you also pray knowing that prayer changes you. It reminds you that God establishes authority. When Paul told Timothy to pray for kings, the emperor was impaling Christians and setting them on fire to light his garden parties. If Paul could say pray for him, we can certainly pray for our leaders today.

Matthew 5:44 (NASB)

’But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Christians are often known for what we are against rather than what we are for. Our calling is to honor God in the midst of chaos.

Matthew 5:16 (NASB)

’Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

We don’t want to be believers with giant brains who memorize Scripture but never engage our city. We don’t want social justice without Jesus, nor do we want isolationism. We choose the third way: incarnating Christ into our community and bringing the gospel into the conversation.

The Seventy-Year Promise

In Jeremiah’s day, false prophets were telling the people that the exile would only last a few days, so they didn’t need to settle in or invest.

Jeremiah 29:8-9 (NASB)

’For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, ’Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream. ‘For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them,’ declares the LORD.

God warns them not to listen to those lies. Then comes the promise:

Jeremiah 29:10 (NASB)

’For thus says the LORD, ’When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.

God tells them, “The timer is running. You won’t be here forever, but you will be here for seventy years. So do the work.” Later, in Daniel 9, Daniel reads this exact passage during his quiet time and begins to pray. In Ezra 1, God stirs the heart of a pagan king to release the people to return and rebuild the temple.

Then God gives them this famous word of comfort:

Jeremiah 29:11 (NASB)

‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ’plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

The “I” in this verse is emphatic: “I alone know the plans I have for you.” In their angst, God assures them of His sovereign care. While in exile, pursue the third way: do not isolate, do not assimilate, but seek the shalom of the city, knowing that God will bring you home in His time.

Living as Strangers and Aliens

What does this mean for us today? This world is not our ultimate home. Scripture reminds us that we are strangers and aliens in a foreign land. While we are here, we must not withdraw into holy huddles, nor should we blend in until we lose our saltiness. God has placed us here as salt and light, and we will not be here forever.

John 14:2-3 (NASB)

’In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. ’If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, [there] you may be also.

Acts 1:11 (NASB)

They also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.’

Revelation 21:5 (NASB)

And He who sits on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ And He said, ‘Write, for these words are faithful and true.’

Jesus has promised to prepare a place for us and return. Just as God sent Israel into Babylon for seventy years to seek the peace of the city, He has placed us here for an appointed time. Our earthly tents will one day be replaced by the imperishable.

Until that day comes, let us seek the shalom of our city. Let us be faithful, get our hands dirty in service, get our knees dirty in prayer, and actively pursue the wholeness of our community. Let us stop furthering a narrative of self-loathing and instead rewrite the story, making the gospel known in every corner of our city for His glory.

Closing Prayer

Father in heaven, as we reflect on this text, stir our hearts toward faithfulness in the simple things. Help us realize that You have strategically placed us here. Let us be known not for what we are against, but for what we are for.

Make us a people who pray for our leaders, seek the shalom of our city, and actively invest in its betterment. We pray that years from now, when people speak of our city, they will speak of how the gospel transformed lives and how the people of God showed up in profound ways. Help us to reflect Your glory in every neighborhood. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.