Phone A Friend

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” (Jeremiah 33:3, ESV)

Years ago, there was a television show called “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” The contestant would be asked a series of questions that needed to be answered in succession to get to the million-dollar question. Anywhere along the way a false answer would disqualify the contestant. However, in the series of questions, each contestant would be given one opportunity to get help through “Phone a Friend.” Here the contestant could call another person to get the answer that they did not know.

The Lord had revealed to Jeremiah great and unknown things regarding Israel. He revealed that the Northern Kingdom, Judah, would be conquered by the Babylonians, the city of Jerusalem destroyed, that in seventy-years the Jews in Babylonian captivity would return to their land and rebuilt it, and that God had a future glorious plan for the entire nation.

This verse that the Lord gave Jeremiah we often use in a personal application when we want to seek answers from the Lord. Often in life, we will need direction. We need to know what the Lord wants us to do in many situations. We sometimes are puzzled by the various trials that come upon us. So, we call upon the Lord for answers.

This calling upon the Lord is not just something for Jeremiah or other prophets, or the Apostles. It is for us today. After all, did not James tell us,

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” (James 1:5, ESV)

Yes, we are to call upon the Lord in times of trials, in times of temptation, in times when we need to know what to do, and in many other situations. Yet there is something different in the way we are to use this awesome privilege of calling upon the Lord. For the prophets, revelation was given of future events. For the Apostles and prophets, divine revelation was given and this recorded in the Scriptures.

You see, we have the complete revelation of God already. If we search the Scriptures, if we study them, we have the wisdom of God for every area of life. What we are missing is understanding this wisdom and how to apply it in life’s trials, temptations, and decisions. This is where the word of God, the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit, and our calling upon the Lord come together. This is to bring us into conformity with God’s will in the various situations of life.

So yes, if we call upon the Lord, He has provided us the great and awesome things to understand that which is formerly unknown. We will not be fortune-tellers, as the Bible as already revealed what we are to know about the future. Yet we will be granted the wisdom needed for life and the Holy Spirit will guide us in our moments of need.