Jeremiah 7:1-11

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 “Stand in the gate of the LORD’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah who enter in at these gates to worship the LORD!’” 3 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. 4 Do not trust in these lying words, saying, ‘The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD are these.’5 “For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, or walk after other gods to your hurt, 7 then I will cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever. 8 “Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know, 10 and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’? 11 Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the LORD.
Jeremiah 7:1-11 NKJV

God sent Jeremiah to His house to say His words to those who came to worship. According to the SDA Bible Commentary chapter 7 is the beginning of one of Jeremiah's most striking prophetic sermons and chapters 7-10 is often called the Temple Discourse since Jeremiah spoke it at the gate of the temple. Because of similarities to chapter 26 some believe this sermon was given in the early years of the reign of Jehoiakim.
The people evidently made a pretense of following God. Josiah's reforms had caused many to at least outwardly pretend to follow Him. The temple had been restored and temple services evidently had become a ritual that caused the people to think that they were doing what God wanted. The words spoken by the people must have been the 'right' words, but God wanted Jeremiah to call them to a real relationship with Him that went beyond just speaking the correct things. Their pride in the temple and in their religion caused them to speak glowingly of the temple, but the meaning of the services was ignored. They could make the sacrifices for the forgiveness of their sins without being repentant or forsaking their sins. They did the 'right' things to satisfy the requirements of their religion, then left the temple and acted in ways and did things that went against the law of God. It is like I do the things that I think mean I am a good Seventh-day Adventist; go to church on Sabbath, pay tithe, don't eat unclean foods, avoid going to movies, don't drink alcohol or smoke, etc.; then do what I want in the other areas of my life. I can still be angry with my family and be a gossip and be dishonest in my business dealings and hate my brother because of a wrong he has done me. As long as I keep the rules I think God has given me, and I get to pick which rules I think God has made important, I can act in any way I want in the rest of my life. God told Jeremiah to stand in the gate of the temple and tell the people of Judah that it wasn't good enough to have pride in the Lord's house, they needed to have the Lord take control of their lives and reign in their hearts.
God gave examples of what this heart religion would entail, how they would act if they actually changed their doings and truly did things the way God wanted them to. They would execute fair judgment between a man and his neighbor, bringing peace amongst the people. They would not oppress the weak, there would be no persecuting of strangers or neglect of orphans and widows. They would take care of those who were without the means to care for themselves. They would respect the life that God gave and there would be no killing of the innocent. They would worship and honor God above all and they would not give allegiance to other gods.
God pointed out that they were putting their trust in lying words that would not help them. Instead of allowing the love God showed them fill their hearts and spill out in love for those around them, they went to the house of the Lord, spoke the 'right' words' and went out and broke God's law with stealing, murder, adultery, false swearing, and worship of Baal and other gods. They acted as if God's forgiveness gave them license to do any wicked thing they wanted. God pictures His house having become a den of thieves to them. They were not going to the temple to be forgiven and cleansed from their sins. They expected that by going to the temple they could say the correct words of appeasement to God and then be free to act out whatever wicked desire they had and God would not hold them accountable.
I see that it is my tendency to act as the people of Judah did in the days of Jeremiah. The 'goodness' of anything I do is determined by the motive I have when I do it. Do I worship on Sabbath out of love for God, or do I worship on Sabbath because I want others to see how good I am and because that is what I have become accustomed to do? Do I pay tithe because I want to recognize that everything I have comes from God and I want to keep my heart from becoming selfish, or do I begrudgingly give God His required due, all the while thinking of how I would rather do something else with the resources. Do I follow the health requirements because I want to honor God by taking care of the body He has given me, or do I avoid eating and drinking and smoking the 'bad' things because I want others to see how good I am at keeping the rules? My relationship with God is not determined by how many rules I keep or often I go to church or how often I say the 'right' religious words. My relationship with Jesus is determined by my allowing Him to come into my life and speak to me and how I listen to Him. I have so many faults and commit so many sins. I have no power to change the things I do and no self strength to pick the right paths to walk. Jesus has the power and offers it freely to me, God is ready to wrap His coat of strength around me. I must choose today whether I will allow His power and strength to be a part of me, whether I will allow Him to rule me.

Lord,
Help me today to accept Your love and power and strength for me. Help me to serve You from love and not from a self righteous desire to have others see me as religious. Thank You for Your forgiveness of my sin, help me today to repent and confess. Help me to walk in the paths you lay before me today, that I may be Your hands and feet and speak Your words.