Call to Me!

Call to Me!

Jeremiah 33:3

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”

What a wonderful verse from God’s Word: it’s one in a long line of scripture calling us to pray… Like Jesus’ words from Matthew 7:7, “Ask and it shall be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.”

Or maybe Mark 11:22-24, “Have faith in God… whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

Or even 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Today our Second Lesson from the prophet Jeremiah, was spoken during one of the darkest times in Israel’s history. Jerusalem was under siege, the people were suffering, and Jeremiah himself was imprisoned. And in the midst of such bleak and dismal circumstances… God gave Jeremiah this astonishing promise: “Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”

Of course, these are not just ancient words spoken to a prophet thousands of years ago—they’re words to us today. God calls His people to pray, He assures His people that He will answer, and He promises a revelation… a revelation of His purposes that are far beyond our understanding.

It’s worth our noting that God Himself initiates the invitation. “Call to me…” That tells us something important about prayer. Prayer is not our invention… nor is it something we initiate. Prayer is God’s invitation to engage with Him… it’s the means by which God chooses to commune with his people – and to include His people in the work of the Kingdom of God. The Westminster Catechism tells us (Q.178) that: “Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God, in the name of Christ, by the help of His Spirit, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of His mercies.”

God could have chosen to instruct Jeremiah to do any manner of things! But he didn’t. God called Jeremiah to do ONE thing. “Call to me…” IN other words, to PRAY!

Jeremiah was not called by God to call on politics, or on his family, or on the government, or anything else in this world. He was called pray. To call on God; to place his hope in God; and to call upon the Lord.

And the same can be said of us! Our greatest resource in this life, is not in our strength, our education, our wisdom, our wealth, or our institutions. Our greatest resource, as followers of Christ, is humble, dependent prayer.

John Calvin said: “Prayer is the chief exercise of faith, and the way in which we daily receive God’s benefits.” (in his Institutes, Book III, Chapter 20)

To neglect prayer, then, is to reject the believer’s source of power and strength; and to live as practical atheists, as if God were absent and could do nothing about our situation. To embrace prayer is to confess that our help comes from the Lord.

Of course, the Lord does more than just invite Jeremiah (and each of us) to pray. God says, “Call to me… AND… I will answer you.” I. Will. Answer. That sounds like a promise to me!

In fact, it’s the covenant faithfulness of God, on full display! He binds Himself by His Word. He does not say, “I might answer,” or “I will consider your request,” but “I will answer.”

Of course, we’d be wise to remember… God answers our prayers according to His will, not ours. Jesus taught us to seek God’s will in our prayers (“thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven”). He then lived that teaching as he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before his crucifixion, “Father, if it be possible, may this cup pass from me… nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done.” (Matthew 26:39) The Apostle Paul said he pleaded with the Lord (in prayer) to remove his “thorn in the flesh” – and God answered, “My grace is sufficient for you.” (2 Cor. 12:9)

In other words, God answers prayer according to His wisdom, His timing, and His redemptive purposes.

His answer may be yes, no, or wait, but God is never indifferent to our prayers. For the believer, God’s seeming delays are not denials but preparations. When God answers our prayers, be it yes, no, or wait… there’s something to be learned. An opportunity to grow in our faith and in our dependency upon our Savior.

That’s why the promise of Romans 8:28 is one of the most pivotal and essential Truths of God’s Word, “God works all things for the good of those who love Him, and are called according to his purposes.” “All things” includes our prayers! So regardless the answer, God always works for our good, and His glory.

Of course, if God had stopped right there, this promise would be among the greatest contained in God’s Word. But He offers Jeremiah yet another promise: “Call on me, and I will answer you… I will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.”

What are these “hidden things”? In the context of Jeremiah’s situation… they were God’s promises of deliverance… of restoration—the return of God’s People from exile, the rebuilding of Jerusalem, and above all, the coming of the Messiah, the Righteous Branch, who would reign forever (Jer. 33:14–16). Jesus. These are the things that were promised; but were yet to be revealed.

For us today, the “hidden things” are the depths of God’s wisdom in Christ. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:9–10: “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit.”

When God calls us to prayer, He is not just offering comfort for our present trials and worries; He is inviting us into the mystery of His eternal purposes in Christ. He unveils to His people the gospel—that the eternal Son took on flesh, bore our sins on the cross, and rose again for our salvation. This is the greatest “hidden thing” now revealed to those who receive Christ as Lord.

All of this the begs the question… How faithful are we in prayer? How can we know that we’re being faithful in prayer as God’s People?

1. Pray with confidence. God invites you to call on Him. He never grows tired or weary of your prayers. He delights in them.

2. Trust His answer. Even when His response is not what you expect, remember: the God who gave His own Son for you is working all things for good… ultimate good.

3. Seek Christ above all. The deepest revelation God gives is not about our circumstances, but about His Son. Prayer is not a tool to bend God’s will to ours, but a means to conform our hearts to Christ.

My friends, Jeremiah 33:3 is an amazing promise. In Christ, God has already given the greatest answer to our cries for mercy. He has revealed the hidden mystery—Christ in us, the hope of glory.

So let us be a people of prayer. Let us call to the Lord with boldness, confident that He hears, that He answers, and that He will reveal to us the riches of His grace in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.