Understand the atmosphere of the context of this… See the conditions that were going on in Israel that God and the prophet Jeremiah were dealing with. The prophet was interceding passionately in a backslidden era. He was seeking the heart of God to find remedy…
Jeremiah 9:
15 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will feed them, this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink.
16 “I will scatter them also among the Gentiles [nations], whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.”
17 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider and call for the mourning women, That they may come; And send for skillful wailing women, That they may come.
18 Let them make haste And take up a wailing for us, That our eyes may run with tears, And our eyelids gush with water.
19 For a voice of wailing is heard from Zion: ‘How we are plundered! We are greatly ashamed, Because we have forsaken the land, Because we have been cast out of our dwellings.'”
20 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O women, And let your ear receive the word of His mouth; Teach your daughters wailing, And everyone her neighbor a lamentation.
21 For death has come through our windows, Has entered our palaces, To kill off the children; no longer to be outside! And the young men; no longer on the streets!
22 Speak, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Even the carcasses of men shall fall as refuse on the open field, Like cuttings after the harvester, And no one shall gather them.'”
23 Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord.
25 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that I will punish all who are circumcised with the uncircumcised;
26 “Egypt, Judah, Edom, the people of Ammon, Moab, and all who are in the farthest corners, who dwell in the wilderness. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.”
God was responding to a man who was crying to Him over the conditions of the land. War was going on, the land was plundered. Hearts had turned away from the Lord.
Children were dying and the nation’s strength of the young men was dissipating. He was standing “between the porch and the altar” (the place of intercession in God’s courts) crying out.
God was angry because people had turned away from Him, so judgment was coming now for the believer and unbeliever alike. But God has mercy and God has answers because God has a Plan. And God will speak.
With all that deterioration and hopelessness, the prophet cried out in tears. And what did God answer?
Call for the women. If you read the whole passage there, the women were also under attacks and suffering. It was not like they were the stronger of the two at that point.
This was God’s answer and this was part of God’s Plan. Call for the women and give respect to the women. Was there another option? Not here, there wasn’t.
Women are not better than men, nor are men better than women. This was not God’s statement of “Women rule.” In fact we know that God names men as the head of their families. But I believe there comes a time when God thinks we have missed it and when we ask Him for help, He will respond with what HE wants.
The Lord has always wanted balance and respect for all His people. He never denied anyone from any nation who wanted to join the Company of believers if they were really believers. Women don’t have any special graces or charms that touch God more than men do. God wants respect for His grand Creation, in the manner and order that He designed it.
I think it is very interesting at this time in America that the news is full of the story about our country’s loans defaulting having the potential to dramatically the wreck the country even more, and the LDS trial of Warren Jeff facing child/girl/women abuse charges. I think there is something to it. (I have preached this Jeremian 9 message years before, so this did not just come to me.)
God wants honor for the men as well as the women. He wants them to have their respect. This is not about ego, but dignity. But I am making a point beyond that, too. When you look at the Church, the Body of Christ believers, who are crying out long and hard for revival and revolution in our lives, you will start to notice something – the women pray-ers.
The women intercessors are rising up. They are gaining a Godly recognition for their roles in seeking God. This is a sign that revival is coming! God has a fashion and order in the way He does things. We are not self designers in this call on our lives to live before Him and then receive His blessings. There is an order and a plan! And our fullfillments will be found in that.
As God is preparing us for a Visitation, you will find more and more anointing on the prayer groups of the women interceding. They will not be just women only, because God is no respector of persons. Men who are sensitive are not despised by God. He is not blessing hanky-panky (wrong actions) by either gender, but He will address the issues of what means something to Him and the way He wants to see things done.
We have much today going on in the way of social engineering, attempting to reorder the ways of God and it is just not going to work. He can shut it down. He has done it before and He can do it again – dramatically. He will let things go way beyond what most decent people think He will. But that does not mean He is not going to act. His ways are higher and grander than our ways are.
When He talks about us entering into His Life and Blessings, and what it takes, He is sincere. The reality that He is even willing to communicate with us on any level is mind blowing. But He knows what He is looking for. And He gave Scriptures to assist us.
Christians who have been around prayers know that they can change things. Prayers have the potential to do amazing things, but they are not “our” design tools. We are not the Designers. We are co-laborers with a great work in redeeming the earth.
God knows what He wants and He wants both men and women and children respected in the right spirit. We do need to search that out and we do need to follow His order, not in legalisms but in honoring the Life that He has designed.
Look for those weeping, wailing women intercessors and join them and bless them. According to God’s Word, it is going to make the difference.
WINGS in the WIND 