1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. 4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.
5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the LORD. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.
Jeremiah 18:1-10 NKJV
In the illustration of the potter and the clay God makes clear that a nation’s fate depends on the choices of that nation. It seems logical that the same principal would also apply to an individual. This story of the potter remaking the marred vessel into something different does not diminish the power of God to work in our lives, but shows that we have control through our choices as to what happens to us. This control is not necessarily the things that happen to us and for us from moment to moment, but the fate of our salvation. While God wants good to happen to us in that we will accept His gift of life and allow Him to save us, the final result of good versus evil and eternal life versus eternal death rests with us and the choices we make. When we choose to obey and trust God to the best of our ability, we allow Him to work the good in our life that He desires for us. When we turn our back on God and choose to live our lives outside His plan, we place ourselves outside the salvation He desires for us and bring upon ourselves the death we deserve. We are the clay and God works to make us into a beautiful vessel that is useful to Himself and helpful to our fellow men. Our sinful natures and Satan work to mar us with selfishness so that we are useless to God and harmful to our fellow men. God is willing to remake us when we become marred. Second chances and third chances and more chances are common as we struggle with the choices we make from day to day. God wants to build us and plant us so that we will be a vine connected to Him that produces good fruit. When we refuse His love we disconnect ourselves from His sin covering righteousness and are left destitute and naked with only our filthy selves to claim the reward we deserve. When we accept God’s love, we are covered with His clean robe of righteousness and stand clean and whole. The potter can mold us into something that is beautiful.
Lord,
Help me today to allow You to mold my heart into something that will obey and trust You. Help me to choose to follow Your will for my life each moment today. Help me to trust You and allow You to reshape me into the vessel that You know in Your wisdom I can be, to best serve You and help those around me. Forgive me when I refuse You and turn again to follow Your plan for my life. Take away my selfish weakness and give me the strength and courage to stand with You and to walk with You in Your plan for me.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Jeremiah 17:19-27
19 Thus the LORD said to me: “Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, by which the kings of Judah come in and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; 20 and say to them, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter by these gates. 21 Thus says the LORD: “Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; 22 nor carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, nor do any work, but hallow the Sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers. 23 But they did not obey nor incline their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear nor receive instruction.
24 “And it shall be, if you heed Me carefully,” says the LORD, “to bring no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work in it, 25 then shall enter the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, accompanied by the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain forever. 26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah and from the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin and from the lowland, from the mountains and from the South, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and incense, bringing sacrifices of praise to the house of the LORD.
27 “But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, such as not carrying a burden when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.”’”
Jeremiah 17:19-27 NKJV
The importance of the Sabbath as a sign between God and His people is expressed in this passage. The fathers of the Jews of Jeremiah’s day had refused to listen to God and had not obeyed His voice in matters of the law. They did not want to receive instruction and had closed their ears to the words God spoke to them. The Lord through Jeremiah now renews the promise of national sovereignty if Judah keeps the Sabbath. The keeping of the Sabbath would show where the hearts of the people were. If they were willing to obey God in the Sabbath then god would be able to bless them with blessings of prosperity and peace. The prosperity would be shown by the offerings that the people would willingly bring to show God their love at His temple. The peace would be shown by the rulers who lead the people in worship and praise of God’s love and goodness from day to day. By keeping the Sabbath the people would show that they were keeping the covenant established between themselves and the Lord. They would obey the Lord’s instructions not only because of the blessings they gained by obeying, but also because of their love of God and their desire to please Him and recognize His rulership.
Should the people not desire to keep the covenant that God had made with them, then this would also be shown by their failure to honor the Sabbath Day. Instead of blessings, they would receive curses and instead of peace they would have war leading to slavery. This would be the inevitable result of the Jews cutting off the relationship with the God who wanted to bring goodness into their lives instead of evil. As always, the Lord gave them a choice and made the results of the choice plain to all. The choices made by their fathers would not determine their fate, but they could choose for themselves that they would love and serve God. Today we have the same choices. What do we want to be important in our lives and what do we choose to do about the things we consider important?
Lord,
Help me today to choose to obey You because I love You. Help me to open my ears and my heart to Your voice and to Your words. Take away the stiff necked attitude I sometimes have and replace it with a wise attitude of willingness to listen, learn, and obey Your leading.
24 “And it shall be, if you heed Me carefully,” says the LORD, “to bring no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work in it, 25 then shall enter the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, accompanied by the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain forever. 26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah and from the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin and from the lowland, from the mountains and from the South, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and incense, bringing sacrifices of praise to the house of the LORD.
27 “But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, such as not carrying a burden when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.”’”
Jeremiah 17:19-27 NKJV
The importance of the Sabbath as a sign between God and His people is expressed in this passage. The fathers of the Jews of Jeremiah’s day had refused to listen to God and had not obeyed His voice in matters of the law. They did not want to receive instruction and had closed their ears to the words God spoke to them. The Lord through Jeremiah now renews the promise of national sovereignty if Judah keeps the Sabbath. The keeping of the Sabbath would show where the hearts of the people were. If they were willing to obey God in the Sabbath then god would be able to bless them with blessings of prosperity and peace. The prosperity would be shown by the offerings that the people would willingly bring to show God their love at His temple. The peace would be shown by the rulers who lead the people in worship and praise of God’s love and goodness from day to day. By keeping the Sabbath the people would show that they were keeping the covenant established between themselves and the Lord. They would obey the Lord’s instructions not only because of the blessings they gained by obeying, but also because of their love of God and their desire to please Him and recognize His rulership.
Should the people not desire to keep the covenant that God had made with them, then this would also be shown by their failure to honor the Sabbath Day. Instead of blessings, they would receive curses and instead of peace they would have war leading to slavery. This would be the inevitable result of the Jews cutting off the relationship with the God who wanted to bring goodness into their lives instead of evil. As always, the Lord gave them a choice and made the results of the choice plain to all. The choices made by their fathers would not determine their fate, but they could choose for themselves that they would love and serve God. Today we have the same choices. What do we want to be important in our lives and what do we choose to do about the things we consider important?
Lord,
Help me today to choose to obey You because I love You. Help me to open my ears and my heart to Your voice and to Your words. Take away the stiff necked attitude I sometimes have and replace it with a wise attitude of willingness to listen, learn, and obey Your leading.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Jeremiah 17:14-18
14 Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed;
Save me, and I shall be saved,
For You are my praise.
15 Indeed they say to me,
“Where is the word of the LORD?
Let it come now!”
16 As for me, I have not hurried away from being a shepherd who follows You,
Nor have I desired the woeful day;
You know what came out of my lips;
It was right there before You.
17 Do not be a terror to me;
You are my hope in the day of doom.
18 Let them be ashamed who persecute me,
But do not let me be put to shame;
Let them be dismayed,
But do not let me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of doom,
And destroy them with double destruction!
Jeremiah 17:14-18 NKJV
“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me and I shall be saved.” With these words Jeremiah expresses his ultimate trust in God. He does not deny his need for healing or his need for saving. It can even be implied that he recognizes that he cannot heal or save himself. It is the Lord to whom he turns to for the healing he so desperately craves. It is God who can and will save him and upon whom Jeremiah bestows his praise. Jeremiah is challenged by the scoffers. “Where is the word of the Lord?” What proof does Jeremiah have that the words he speaks in the name of God are really God’s words? There are lots of other prophets claiming to speak in God’s name, and they speak smoother, more hopeful, words that the people like to hear. Jeremiah defends his mission, not to those who question it, but he defends it to God. Jeremiah has done his best to be a faithful shepherd, following God as he attempts to lead the sheep of Judah toward the truth. Some may think Jeremiah looks forward to the destruction he speaks of so often. Jeremiah does not desire the doom that he prophecies of, he wants to avoid the darkness and that is why he warns the heedless of what is coming from the north upon them. Has not Jeremiah spoken the words of God faithfully? Has not every word from his mouth been right before God? Jeremiah asks the Lord to take away his fear of the day of doom and to give him renewed hope. As Jeremiah is shown the future, he realizes the hopelessness of the end of Judah if his family, friends, and countrymen do not allow the Lord to heal them and save them.
For his faithfulness, Jeremiah’s countrymen persecute and torment him. His townspeople seek his death. They attempt to shame him and make his mission to be seen as lies and self aggrandizement. Jeremiah’s humanity is shown in his call for vindication and destruction of those who speak against himself and his God. Whether his spirit is totally right in this call for the shaming of his enemies, he remains faithful to the mission of warning and repentance that God has given him. Jeremiah will continue to speak God's words to his fellowmen even if they refuse to listen.
Lord,
Help me today to be faithful to You and the mission You are giving me. Help me to not be dissuaded by those who fight against me and who fight against You. Dismay any who lead Your children in doing wrong, encourage all who lead Your children to right. Help me to stand with You for Your truth. Remove my fear of the day of doom and replace it with Your peace promises.
Save me, and I shall be saved,
For You are my praise.
15 Indeed they say to me,
“Where is the word of the LORD?
Let it come now!”
16 As for me, I have not hurried away from being a shepherd who follows You,
Nor have I desired the woeful day;
You know what came out of my lips;
It was right there before You.
17 Do not be a terror to me;
You are my hope in the day of doom.
18 Let them be ashamed who persecute me,
But do not let me be put to shame;
Let them be dismayed,
But do not let me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of doom,
And destroy them with double destruction!
Jeremiah 17:14-18 NKJV
“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me and I shall be saved.” With these words Jeremiah expresses his ultimate trust in God. He does not deny his need for healing or his need for saving. It can even be implied that he recognizes that he cannot heal or save himself. It is the Lord to whom he turns to for the healing he so desperately craves. It is God who can and will save him and upon whom Jeremiah bestows his praise. Jeremiah is challenged by the scoffers. “Where is the word of the Lord?” What proof does Jeremiah have that the words he speaks in the name of God are really God’s words? There are lots of other prophets claiming to speak in God’s name, and they speak smoother, more hopeful, words that the people like to hear. Jeremiah defends his mission, not to those who question it, but he defends it to God. Jeremiah has done his best to be a faithful shepherd, following God as he attempts to lead the sheep of Judah toward the truth. Some may think Jeremiah looks forward to the destruction he speaks of so often. Jeremiah does not desire the doom that he prophecies of, he wants to avoid the darkness and that is why he warns the heedless of what is coming from the north upon them. Has not Jeremiah spoken the words of God faithfully? Has not every word from his mouth been right before God? Jeremiah asks the Lord to take away his fear of the day of doom and to give him renewed hope. As Jeremiah is shown the future, he realizes the hopelessness of the end of Judah if his family, friends, and countrymen do not allow the Lord to heal them and save them.
For his faithfulness, Jeremiah’s countrymen persecute and torment him. His townspeople seek his death. They attempt to shame him and make his mission to be seen as lies and self aggrandizement. Jeremiah’s humanity is shown in his call for vindication and destruction of those who speak against himself and his God. Whether his spirit is totally right in this call for the shaming of his enemies, he remains faithful to the mission of warning and repentance that God has given him. Jeremiah will continue to speak God's words to his fellowmen even if they refuse to listen.
Lord,
Help me today to be faithful to You and the mission You are giving me. Help me to not be dissuaded by those who fight against me and who fight against You. Dismay any who lead Your children in doing wrong, encourage all who lead Your children to right. Help me to stand with You for Your truth. Remove my fear of the day of doom and replace it with Your peace promises.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Jeremiah 17:12-13
A glorious high throne from the begining
Is the place of our sanctuary.
O LORD, the hope of Israel,
All who forsake You shall be ashamed.
"Those who depart from Me
Shall be written in the earth,
Because they have forsaken the LORD,
The fountain of living waters."
Jeremiah 17:12-13 NKJV
God is our hope. He is the fountain of living waters, giving life to those who accept it. We are like the woman at the well in John 4, living our lives away from God's grace and contemplating the ordinary needs and desires of our lives. We worry about having a drink of water and quenching our physical thirst and Jesus is beside us offering us the living water of salvation that will quench our spiritual thirst for eternal life. The creator God who has reigned over the earth since the beginning and who loves each of His created beings awaits us, to give each the life giving water of His love and peace. Should we forsake Him we will cut ourselves off from life and be left in the despair of our sins. The LORD is our hope, offering us the water from the fountain of life, let us not depart from Him and be ashamed when destruction overtakes us.
Lord,
Help me today to drink of the water that quenches my spiritual thirst. Help me to take the life You offer and allow You to direct my paths. Help me to trust in You and allow Your words to teach me.
Is the place of our sanctuary.
O LORD, the hope of Israel,
All who forsake You shall be ashamed.
"Those who depart from Me
Shall be written in the earth,
Because they have forsaken the LORD,
The fountain of living waters."
Jeremiah 17:12-13 NKJV
God is our hope. He is the fountain of living waters, giving life to those who accept it. We are like the woman at the well in John 4, living our lives away from God's grace and contemplating the ordinary needs and desires of our lives. We worry about having a drink of water and quenching our physical thirst and Jesus is beside us offering us the living water of salvation that will quench our spiritual thirst for eternal life. The creator God who has reigned over the earth since the beginning and who loves each of His created beings awaits us, to give each the life giving water of His love and peace. Should we forsake Him we will cut ourselves off from life and be left in the despair of our sins. The LORD is our hope, offering us the water from the fountain of life, let us not depart from Him and be ashamed when destruction overtakes us.
Lord,
Help me today to drink of the water that quenches my spiritual thirst. Help me to take the life You offer and allow You to direct my paths. Help me to trust in You and allow Your words to teach me.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Jeremiah 17:11
"As a partridge that broods but does not hatch,
So is he who gets riches, but not by right;
It will leave him in the midst of his days,
And at his end he will be a fool."
Jeremiah 17:11 NKJV
This text does not say there is anything wrong with riches, but there can certainly be something wrong with the way the riches are acquired. So often we think our happiness will be complete if we have wealth and riches. We can buy the stuff we crave and have the power and prestige that will cause others to envy and respect us. And it seems that no matter how these riches are acquired, the world looks favorably upon those who have them. When wealth is ill gained through dishonest or disreputable means, the end result is disillusionment at best. At the end of life it truly will not matter how big a pile one has accumulated, but what will matter is the integrity of the life lived. In Luke 12:16-21 Jesus tells of the end of a man who thought that riches were valuable.
16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Whether or not the wealth of a person is honestly gained, in the end reliance on the riches makes one a fool. So one who gains riches without integrity has nothing, and is despised by all who know the truth. All the pretend respect from those who feared them and connived for gain is gone, and all that remains is sadness at what should have been from those who should have been loved and a desire to supplant by those whose greed will cause the same fate. The partridge expects the reward of chicks and the rich expect happiness, and neither will come to fruition with God.
Lord,
Help me today to live my life with integrity so that I may have a reward worthy of You and so that I may serve You in such a way that others can see Your glory.
So is he who gets riches, but not by right;
It will leave him in the midst of his days,
And at his end he will be a fool."
Jeremiah 17:11 NKJV
This text does not say there is anything wrong with riches, but there can certainly be something wrong with the way the riches are acquired. So often we think our happiness will be complete if we have wealth and riches. We can buy the stuff we crave and have the power and prestige that will cause others to envy and respect us. And it seems that no matter how these riches are acquired, the world looks favorably upon those who have them. When wealth is ill gained through dishonest or disreputable means, the end result is disillusionment at best. At the end of life it truly will not matter how big a pile one has accumulated, but what will matter is the integrity of the life lived. In Luke 12:16-21 Jesus tells of the end of a man who thought that riches were valuable.
16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Whether or not the wealth of a person is honestly gained, in the end reliance on the riches makes one a fool. So one who gains riches without integrity has nothing, and is despised by all who know the truth. All the pretend respect from those who feared them and connived for gain is gone, and all that remains is sadness at what should have been from those who should have been loved and a desire to supplant by those whose greed will cause the same fate. The partridge expects the reward of chicks and the rich expect happiness, and neither will come to fruition with God.
Lord,
Help me today to live my life with integrity so that I may have a reward worthy of You and so that I may serve You in such a way that others can see Your glory.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Jeremiah 17:9-10
9 “The heart is deceitful above all things,
And desperately wicked;
Who can know it?
10 I, the LORD, search the heart,
I test the mind,
Even to give every man according to his ways,
According to the fruit of his doings.
Jeremiah 17:9-10
It is not particularly comforting to think that I will be rewarded according to the fruit of my doings. I see little good fruit. Perhaps some malformed apples or a squishy pear or maybe a mold covered orange. How does this text fit in with the concepts of righteousness in Christ, legalism, Christ covering me with His robe of righteousness, and gaining salvation through my works? My heart will deceive me, it is desperately wicked, who can understand it. We see this description of our hearts born out in humanity every day. We are often astounded at the things people do to other people. It is hard to grasp just how anyone could think it is OK to do some of the things that are being done around the world every day to our fellow humans. Even a lot of the things that I find myself doing can seem quite surprisingly confused and wrong when studied in my more rational moments. The heart in this passage represents feelings to me, and I cannot deny that my feelings have much more control over me than I know they should. While I know that Christ wants me to react kindly with others when they insult me, loving them, and treating them as I would want to be treated, the reality is my feelings too often lead me to react in a not so Christian way when I am insulted or treated in a way I consider unfair. Even when time has passes and I have cooled off and prayed for those who use me spitefully, I too often find that my feelings of self justification and reproach for the one I view as mistreating me continue to periodically take control of my thoughts and cause me to once again concentrate on me and the wrongs I felt. I could almost understand it if my brain processed things in the ‘right’ way once it got control, but it seems as though my feelings all too often wrests control from the intellect over and over. I can be thankful that verse ten gives the hope that God searches the heart and also tests the mind. He can understand better than even I can what my feelings are and what my mind tells me is right. He understands my will and my desire to serve Him, and He understands the weakness I have in controlling my feelings. God rewards me according to what is in my heart and in my mind. I may do (and I do) many wrong things. The reasons are varied. I am ignorant of what is right, I have an area where my character has not allowed God total control so He can give me the truth in that area, my feelings overwhelm me and I react wrongly. A baby Christian may not have learned enough today to do the right thing in a particular situation, while a future period of time walking with Jesus will allow them to grow enough that they will be able to see God’s truth and make the right decision. The fruit that we are expected to produce is the fruit that God can see as He searches our hearts and tests our minds. It is not necessarily the fruit that we see or the fruit that our neighbor sees. It is the fruit that God sees, taking into account what is in our hearts and in our minds. Our ways may appear to others and even to ourselves as being in the wrong directions, but God can see the totality of our ways and not just the last few steps that are somewhat wayward. This explains why I cannot judge you. I only see that you have taken a few steps in a direction that will lead to your destruction. I cannot see that in your heart you are following God as best you can. I cannot see that in your mind you have determined to search for God’s truth and follow it wherever He leads. I cannot see that tomorrow you will hear God’s voice and immediately turn back onto the path. I cannot see that a month ago you were heading towards a place that would lead to your destruction and you let God lead you back towards His path. You and I are both walking, and while we often stumble and take wrong turns, God is working to lead us correctly and He understands why we are where we are. As we grow in understanding of His truth and learn to hear His voice and as we learn to allow Him to lead us, our ways will become closer to the Way of Jesus.
Lord,
Help me today to listen and learn. Help me to not judge others harshly because of their perceived faults, but help me to encourage all and allow You who knows and understands them to judge them.
And desperately wicked;
Who can know it?
10 I, the LORD, search the heart,
I test the mind,
Even to give every man according to his ways,
According to the fruit of his doings.
Jeremiah 17:9-10
It is not particularly comforting to think that I will be rewarded according to the fruit of my doings. I see little good fruit. Perhaps some malformed apples or a squishy pear or maybe a mold covered orange. How does this text fit in with the concepts of righteousness in Christ, legalism, Christ covering me with His robe of righteousness, and gaining salvation through my works? My heart will deceive me, it is desperately wicked, who can understand it. We see this description of our hearts born out in humanity every day. We are often astounded at the things people do to other people. It is hard to grasp just how anyone could think it is OK to do some of the things that are being done around the world every day to our fellow humans. Even a lot of the things that I find myself doing can seem quite surprisingly confused and wrong when studied in my more rational moments. The heart in this passage represents feelings to me, and I cannot deny that my feelings have much more control over me than I know they should. While I know that Christ wants me to react kindly with others when they insult me, loving them, and treating them as I would want to be treated, the reality is my feelings too often lead me to react in a not so Christian way when I am insulted or treated in a way I consider unfair. Even when time has passes and I have cooled off and prayed for those who use me spitefully, I too often find that my feelings of self justification and reproach for the one I view as mistreating me continue to periodically take control of my thoughts and cause me to once again concentrate on me and the wrongs I felt. I could almost understand it if my brain processed things in the ‘right’ way once it got control, but it seems as though my feelings all too often wrests control from the intellect over and over. I can be thankful that verse ten gives the hope that God searches the heart and also tests the mind. He can understand better than even I can what my feelings are and what my mind tells me is right. He understands my will and my desire to serve Him, and He understands the weakness I have in controlling my feelings. God rewards me according to what is in my heart and in my mind. I may do (and I do) many wrong things. The reasons are varied. I am ignorant of what is right, I have an area where my character has not allowed God total control so He can give me the truth in that area, my feelings overwhelm me and I react wrongly. A baby Christian may not have learned enough today to do the right thing in a particular situation, while a future period of time walking with Jesus will allow them to grow enough that they will be able to see God’s truth and make the right decision. The fruit that we are expected to produce is the fruit that God can see as He searches our hearts and tests our minds. It is not necessarily the fruit that we see or the fruit that our neighbor sees. It is the fruit that God sees, taking into account what is in our hearts and in our minds. Our ways may appear to others and even to ourselves as being in the wrong directions, but God can see the totality of our ways and not just the last few steps that are somewhat wayward. This explains why I cannot judge you. I only see that you have taken a few steps in a direction that will lead to your destruction. I cannot see that in your heart you are following God as best you can. I cannot see that in your mind you have determined to search for God’s truth and follow it wherever He leads. I cannot see that tomorrow you will hear God’s voice and immediately turn back onto the path. I cannot see that a month ago you were heading towards a place that would lead to your destruction and you let God lead you back towards His path. You and I are both walking, and while we often stumble and take wrong turns, God is working to lead us correctly and He understands why we are where we are. As we grow in understanding of His truth and learn to hear His voice and as we learn to allow Him to lead us, our ways will become closer to the Way of Jesus.
Lord,
Help me today to listen and learn. Help me to not judge others harshly because of their perceived faults, but help me to encourage all and allow You who knows and understands them to judge them.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Jeremiah 17:7-8
7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
And whose hope is the LORD.
8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 NKJV
In contrast with the person who trusts in flesh in verses 5-6 and who is a shrub who dwells in the dry uninhabitable places; the person who trusts in the Lord is pictured as being a tree with deep roots planted by the river. When the heat of oppression and tribulation comes this person will not fear, because they trust in the Lord. They will continue to bear fruit, even in the periods of drought when the rains cease. Their leaf remains green because they have a continuous source of life giving moisture. The contrast between those who trust in flesh as opposed to those who trust in the Lord cannot be be more stark. Death opposed to life. A dry empty life as opposed to a sparkling joyous life. Dry twigs opposed to luscious fruit.
Lord,
Help me today to trust in You. Help me to ignore the temptation to trust in myself or some other human for my hope and happiness. Let me put my roots into the ground by the river so I can always tap into the life giving waters that will help me to bear fruit even in times of drought.
And whose hope is the LORD.
8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 NKJV
In contrast with the person who trusts in flesh in verses 5-6 and who is a shrub who dwells in the dry uninhabitable places; the person who trusts in the Lord is pictured as being a tree with deep roots planted by the river. When the heat of oppression and tribulation comes this person will not fear, because they trust in the Lord. They will continue to bear fruit, even in the periods of drought when the rains cease. Their leaf remains green because they have a continuous source of life giving moisture. The contrast between those who trust in flesh as opposed to those who trust in the Lord cannot be be more stark. Death opposed to life. A dry empty life as opposed to a sparkling joyous life. Dry twigs opposed to luscious fruit.
Lord,
Help me today to trust in You. Help me to ignore the temptation to trust in myself or some other human for my hope and happiness. Let me put my roots into the ground by the river so I can always tap into the life giving waters that will help me to bear fruit even in times of drought.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Jeremiah 17:5-6
5 Thus says the LORD:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
And makes flesh his strength,
Whose heart departs from the LORD.
6 For he shall be like a shrub in the desert,
And shall not see when good comes,
But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
In a salt land which is not inhabited.
Jeremiah 17:5-6 NKJV
Verses 5 and 6 contrast with verses 7 and 8. Trusting in man is contrasted with trusting in God. Our fellow humans disappoint us time after time. We place faith in a politician or a family member or our employer to do something for us. Sometimes they seem to come through, more often they don't. Our expectations and our emotional needs are too high for a person to fulfill them. We rely on others to do what we have to do for ourselves or we rely on others to do things that only God can do for us. Too often we rely on ourselves to do things that only God can do for us. We can't save ourselves any more than our significant other can make us happy or someone can gives us enough money to make us content. We are cursed because we wait for good things to happen to us, trusting in someone or something to make things work out for us. Time after time we seek an easy way to reach the success we are sure we deserve, not caring to trust in God to lead us along a path which seems to be difficult and hard from the view we have. God knows what we see is not the reality of what we will experience on the journey if we trust in Him and allow Him to walk with us to guide us and help us. We want to stay in the dry waterless place we are used to and comfortable with in our misery, all the while searching for the water of life in the desert of our own minds. We close our hearts to God as He tries to direct us to take a path that will lead to the life giving water we crave. We may say we trust Him, but we refuse to follow Him to the place we want to go. We desperately need the water of life and we know we need the water to live, but instead of letting God take us to the water, we stay in the desert. We trust in people to give us the water we crave, but seem only to get a putrid sip every now and again while our spirit slowly withers within us. Instead of trusting in God and letting Him show us the path on which we need to walk, our eyes are closed so that we do not see when good comes to us. Those who are sent by God to help us we reject,while being drawn by the arid hope of many who do not love us and who desire to see us fail. If only we will let God into our hearts and let Him open our eyes to see the truth He wants to share with us. He stands beside us with life-giving cool water, waiting to lead us to a place where we will forever have all the water we can possibly need and use. Water that is bubbling up out of Jesus and flowing to us with its life giving properties. Let us drink from that water and not continue to inhabit the parched places in the uninhabitable salt lands of reliance on ourselves and the sinful flesh of those around us.
Lord,
Help me today to drink of Your water. Lead me from the parched dry land of self reliance to the river of Your love and life. Open my eyes that I might see what You know I need to see. Open my heart that I might accept the truth You know I need to have.
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
And makes flesh his strength,
Whose heart departs from the LORD.
6 For he shall be like a shrub in the desert,
And shall not see when good comes,
But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
In a salt land which is not inhabited.
Jeremiah 17:5-6 NKJV
Verses 5 and 6 contrast with verses 7 and 8. Trusting in man is contrasted with trusting in God. Our fellow humans disappoint us time after time. We place faith in a politician or a family member or our employer to do something for us. Sometimes they seem to come through, more often they don't. Our expectations and our emotional needs are too high for a person to fulfill them. We rely on others to do what we have to do for ourselves or we rely on others to do things that only God can do for us. Too often we rely on ourselves to do things that only God can do for us. We can't save ourselves any more than our significant other can make us happy or someone can gives us enough money to make us content. We are cursed because we wait for good things to happen to us, trusting in someone or something to make things work out for us. Time after time we seek an easy way to reach the success we are sure we deserve, not caring to trust in God to lead us along a path which seems to be difficult and hard from the view we have. God knows what we see is not the reality of what we will experience on the journey if we trust in Him and allow Him to walk with us to guide us and help us. We want to stay in the dry waterless place we are used to and comfortable with in our misery, all the while searching for the water of life in the desert of our own minds. We close our hearts to God as He tries to direct us to take a path that will lead to the life giving water we crave. We may say we trust Him, but we refuse to follow Him to the place we want to go. We desperately need the water of life and we know we need the water to live, but instead of letting God take us to the water, we stay in the desert. We trust in people to give us the water we crave, but seem only to get a putrid sip every now and again while our spirit slowly withers within us. Instead of trusting in God and letting Him show us the path on which we need to walk, our eyes are closed so that we do not see when good comes to us. Those who are sent by God to help us we reject,while being drawn by the arid hope of many who do not love us and who desire to see us fail. If only we will let God into our hearts and let Him open our eyes to see the truth He wants to share with us. He stands beside us with life-giving cool water, waiting to lead us to a place where we will forever have all the water we can possibly need and use. Water that is bubbling up out of Jesus and flowing to us with its life giving properties. Let us drink from that water and not continue to inhabit the parched places in the uninhabitable salt lands of reliance on ourselves and the sinful flesh of those around us.
Lord,
Help me today to drink of Your water. Lead me from the parched dry land of self reliance to the river of Your love and life. Open my eyes that I might see what You know I need to see. Open my heart that I might accept the truth You know I need to have.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Jeremiah 17:1-4
1 “The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron;
With the point of a diamond it is engraved
On the tablet of their heart,
And on the horns of your altars,
2 While their children remember
Their altars and their wooden images[a]
By the green trees on the high hills.
3 O My mountain in the field,
I will give as plunder your wealth, all your treasures,
And your high places of sin within all your borders.
4 And you, even yourself,
Shall let go of your heritage which I gave you;
And I will cause you to serve your enemies
In the land which you do not know;
For you have kindled a fire in My anger which shall burn forever.”
Jeremiah 17:1-4 NKJV
Their sin written with a pen of iron and engraved with the point of a diamond on the tablet of their heart. A sad commentary on what the people of Judah had done to themselves. God wanted to write His words on their hearts and in their minds. Instead they chose to allow their sins to become engraved on their characters, replacing a love and obedience to God with worship of worthless stones and sticks. Instead of teaching their children to revere God and serve Him, they teach their children to think that rocks and wood will somehow have an impact on them. The children remember the false gods and the false worship and teach their children the same fruitless beliefs, as Judah moves farther from God with each bad decision they make. The peace and prosperity of His people is gone because of the choices made by the Jews. Now death, destruction, and calamity is coming upon them. The fire of God's anger will cleanse the land and hardship in a land that they do not know will strengthen them and teach them lessons of God's love and hope. They had chosen to not serve the God who loved and cared for them, now they would serve cruel enemies who would use and abuse them.
Lord,
Help me today to allow You to write Your words on my heart. With Your finger inscribe on me the love and hope and blessings that will be to my good. Help me to give of myself to share your love with others whose needs You show me. Guide me and strengthen me.
With the point of a diamond it is engraved
On the tablet of their heart,
And on the horns of your altars,
2 While their children remember
Their altars and their wooden images[a]
By the green trees on the high hills.
3 O My mountain in the field,
I will give as plunder your wealth, all your treasures,
And your high places of sin within all your borders.
4 And you, even yourself,
Shall let go of your heritage which I gave you;
And I will cause you to serve your enemies
In the land which you do not know;
For you have kindled a fire in My anger which shall burn forever.”
Jeremiah 17:1-4 NKJV
Their sin written with a pen of iron and engraved with the point of a diamond on the tablet of their heart. A sad commentary on what the people of Judah had done to themselves. God wanted to write His words on their hearts and in their minds. Instead they chose to allow their sins to become engraved on their characters, replacing a love and obedience to God with worship of worthless stones and sticks. Instead of teaching their children to revere God and serve Him, they teach their children to think that rocks and wood will somehow have an impact on them. The children remember the false gods and the false worship and teach their children the same fruitless beliefs, as Judah moves farther from God with each bad decision they make. The peace and prosperity of His people is gone because of the choices made by the Jews. Now death, destruction, and calamity is coming upon them. The fire of God's anger will cleanse the land and hardship in a land that they do not know will strengthen them and teach them lessons of God's love and hope. They had chosen to not serve the God who loved and cared for them, now they would serve cruel enemies who would use and abuse them.
Lord,
Help me today to allow You to write Your words on my heart. With Your finger inscribe on me the love and hope and blessings that will be to my good. Help me to give of myself to share your love with others whose needs You show me. Guide me and strengthen me.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Jeremiah 16:14-21
14 “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ 15 but, ‘The LORD lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.
16 “Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the LORD, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. 17 For My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity hidden from My eyes. 18 And first I will repay double for their iniquity and their sin, because they have defiled My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable and abominable idols.”
19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
20 Will a man make gods for himself,
Which are not gods?
21 “ Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know
My hand and My might;
And they shall know that My name is the LORD.
Jeremiah 16:14-21 NKJV
The greatest event in the history of God's people so far was God's bringing them out of slavery in Egypt under Moses. Now God promises that He will bring them back from captivity in Babylon and the other lands where they had been driven. They will speak with awe that God has brought them back from their captivity and once more set them up in the land He had given their fathers. God is pictured as sending hunters and fishermen to search out His people from every hill and mountain and hole in the rock. God will search for them wherever they have gone, to restore them to the land of promise and to restore them to a right relationship with Him. Their restoration will be so complete and so noticeable by the nations around that the Gentiles will be drawn to the restored nation of Israel. When Israel trusts in the Lord and allows God's blessings to strengthen and protect them, then people from all around would be attracted to God and realize that the false religions and false gods they had relied on were worthless and lies. Those honest souls among the enemies of God would recognize the power and goodness of God and be drawn to worship and serve Him.
Lord,
Help me to live my life today so that others may see Your love and grace and mercy. Help me to allow You to shine through me so that Your goodness and love may be seen by all who are in my vicinity. When others see me, have them see You and Your love for them. I am a poor mirror, dark and dirty. Clean me and buff me into a mirror that reflects Your character.
16 “Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the LORD, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. 17 For My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity hidden from My eyes. 18 And first I will repay double for their iniquity and their sin, because they have defiled My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable and abominable idols.”
19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress,
My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and unprofitable things.”
20 Will a man make gods for himself,
Which are not gods?
21 “ Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know
My hand and My might;
And they shall know that My name is the LORD.
Jeremiah 16:14-21 NKJV
The greatest event in the history of God's people so far was God's bringing them out of slavery in Egypt under Moses. Now God promises that He will bring them back from captivity in Babylon and the other lands where they had been driven. They will speak with awe that God has brought them back from their captivity and once more set them up in the land He had given their fathers. God is pictured as sending hunters and fishermen to search out His people from every hill and mountain and hole in the rock. God will search for them wherever they have gone, to restore them to the land of promise and to restore them to a right relationship with Him. Their restoration will be so complete and so noticeable by the nations around that the Gentiles will be drawn to the restored nation of Israel. When Israel trusts in the Lord and allows God's blessings to strengthen and protect them, then people from all around would be attracted to God and realize that the false religions and false gods they had relied on were worthless and lies. Those honest souls among the enemies of God would recognize the power and goodness of God and be drawn to worship and serve Him.
Lord,
Help me to live my life today so that others may see Your love and grace and mercy. Help me to allow You to shine through me so that Your goodness and love may be seen by all who are in my vicinity. When others see me, have them see You and Your love for them. I am a poor mirror, dark and dirty. Clean me and buff me into a mirror that reflects Your character.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Jeremiah 16:1-13
1 The word of the LORD also came to me, saying, 2 “You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place.” 3 For thus says the LORD concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning their mothers who bore them and their fathers who begot them in this land: 4 “They shall die gruesome deaths; they shall not be lamented nor shall they be buried, but they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth. They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, and their corpses shall be meat for the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth.”
5 For thus says the LORD: “Do not enter the house of mourning, nor go to lament or bemoan them; for I have taken away My peace from this people,” says the LORD, “lovingkindness and mercies. 6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried; neither shall men lament for them, cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them. 7 Nor shall men break bread in mourning for them, to comfort them for the dead; nor shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or their mother. 8 Also you shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink.”
9 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will cause to cease from this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
10 “And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ 11 then you shall say to them, ‘Because your fathers have forsaken Me,’ says the LORD; ‘they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 12 And you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, each one follows the dictates of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me. 13 Therefore I will cast you out of this land into a land that you do not know, neither you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods day and night, where I will not show you favor.’
Jeremiah 16:1-13 NKJV
Jeremiah is told that he is not to have a family. There will be terrible things that will happen in Judah when the nation pays for their sins, including slaughter by the hands of Chaldean's, pestilence, disease, and famine. Jeremiah is to show by his life that the seriousness of what is to come calls for sacrifice in his personal life. The horrors of war would cause many to die gruesome deaths. The fruit of Judah's choice to abandon the Lord and serve other gods will cause the normal process of grief and burial for lost family and friends to be ignored. Happiness will disappear from the lives of all the people as the siege of the Babylonians squeezes Jerusalem into the despair of hopelessness. So Jeremiah is told by God to live his life as an object lesson of prudence against the coming calamity.
When the people ask why the trouble has come upon them, Jeremiah is to tell them the truth. Judah has chosen to forsake God and has put their trust in themselves. The false gods with the rites of works is what Judah wants to serve. Instead of following God's law, with the resulting peace and prosperity for the nation, they have each decided to follow the dictates of their own evil hearts. Instead of sharing God's love with each other, the strong abuse the weak and each person struggles for supremacy without regard to what is right or just. The nation makes their choices, and the result will be the inevitable.
5 For thus says the LORD: “Do not enter the house of mourning, nor go to lament or bemoan them; for I have taken away My peace from this people,” says the LORD, “lovingkindness and mercies. 6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried; neither shall men lament for them, cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them. 7 Nor shall men break bread in mourning for them, to comfort them for the dead; nor shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or their mother. 8 Also you shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink.”
9 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will cause to cease from this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
10 “And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ 11 then you shall say to them, ‘Because your fathers have forsaken Me,’ says the LORD; ‘they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 12 And you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, each one follows the dictates of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me. 13 Therefore I will cast you out of this land into a land that you do not know, neither you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods day and night, where I will not show you favor.’
Jeremiah 16:1-13 NKJV
Jeremiah is told that he is not to have a family. There will be terrible things that will happen in Judah when the nation pays for their sins, including slaughter by the hands of Chaldean's, pestilence, disease, and famine. Jeremiah is to show by his life that the seriousness of what is to come calls for sacrifice in his personal life. The horrors of war would cause many to die gruesome deaths. The fruit of Judah's choice to abandon the Lord and serve other gods will cause the normal process of grief and burial for lost family and friends to be ignored. Happiness will disappear from the lives of all the people as the siege of the Babylonians squeezes Jerusalem into the despair of hopelessness. So Jeremiah is told by God to live his life as an object lesson of prudence against the coming calamity.
When the people ask why the trouble has come upon them, Jeremiah is to tell them the truth. Judah has chosen to forsake God and has put their trust in themselves. The false gods with the rites of works is what Judah wants to serve. Instead of following God's law, with the resulting peace and prosperity for the nation, they have each decided to follow the dictates of their own evil hearts. Instead of sharing God's love with each other, the strong abuse the weak and each person struggles for supremacy without regard to what is right or just. The nation makes their choices, and the result will be the inevitable.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Jeremiah 15:19-21
19 Therefore thus says the LORD:
“If you return,
Then I will bring you back;
You shall stand before Me;
If you take out the precious from the vile,
You shall be as My mouth.
Let them return to you,
But you must not return to them.
20 And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall;
And they will fight against you,
But they shall not prevail against you;
For I am with you to save you
And deliver you,” says the LORD.
21 “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked,
And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”
Jeremiah 15:19-21 NKJV
Jeremiah has allowed his discouragement to move him away from God. The constant rejection of the people to the messages God has shared through him has evidently affected his relationship to God. God does not reject him and write him off. God reminds Jeremiah that he needs to move back toward God. Perhaps Jeremiah has been tempted to speak words to the people that they want to hear and that will cause them to think better of him and not want to kill him. It is a danger that I'm sure is common among God's spokesmen, to speak words that people want to hear. They then speak nice words back to you and everybody feels good. The only problem is when these smooth, pleasant, words are not the message God wants spoken. The message God wanted Jeremiah to speak were not pleasant for those who were to be the recipients. The sins of Judah were leading them to destruction and most had fallen so far away from God that they didn't even admit that they were sinning. Whether their minds had grown so used to the vile that they could not recognize the precious, or whether they had wholly embraced the vile, they were in need of God to rework their hearts. God had chosen Jeremiah to be the person who pointed out the need for repentance and who told them the way that they needed to go. Jeremiah did not need to get closer to the peoples viewpoint, he needed to stand close to God, speak God's message, and those with honest hearts would come to Jeremiah and embrace God's message. God reminded Jeremiah that Jeremiah needed to stand with God, and God would make him a fortified bronze wall that could not be overcome. God would save Jeremiah from those who attempted to stop the message God wanted shared. Jeremiah would be delivered from the wicked and redeemed from the grip of the terrible. In his discouragement it might seem that the evil was too strong, but God assures Jeremiah that God is stronger than any evil and He will make Jeremiah a bronze wall against the wicked.
I too become discouraged. I am weak and I can allow myself to be diverted from the mission that God has given me. God calls me to return to him. Come, He says, stand with me. Don't allow your mind to become so muddled that you cannot discern between the vile and the precious. Stand with Me and I will show you the precious. Let the true word be your focus and I will make you strong. Those who attempt to destroy you will not prevail against you, for I will save you. Jesus is the cure for discouragement. When my eyes leave myself and behold Him, then my discouragement will fade away in the power of His love. I fail because I care more about myself and what others think about me than I do about the truth that God is sharing with the world. Right thinking will lead me to see the right path that God puts before me. I cannot control what others do, I can only choose to stand with God and follow the path He sets before me.
Lord,
Help me today to return to you. Help me to accept Your love and Your strength in my heart. I am weak, you have promised strength. Put a new heart and a new spirit within me today, with new intentions that will bear fruit of acts of service for You. Help me to keep my eye on the precious and to become like the precious Jesus, standing with You and sharing Your love with those you want. Help me to look at Your life and Your truth and Your message and open my heart to be willing to allow You guide me in all that I do. Thank You for Your message of hope in Jeremiah.
“If you return,
Then I will bring you back;
You shall stand before Me;
If you take out the precious from the vile,
You shall be as My mouth.
Let them return to you,
But you must not return to them.
20 And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall;
And they will fight against you,
But they shall not prevail against you;
For I am with you to save you
And deliver you,” says the LORD.
21 “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked,
And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”
Jeremiah 15:19-21 NKJV
Jeremiah has allowed his discouragement to move him away from God. The constant rejection of the people to the messages God has shared through him has evidently affected his relationship to God. God does not reject him and write him off. God reminds Jeremiah that he needs to move back toward God. Perhaps Jeremiah has been tempted to speak words to the people that they want to hear and that will cause them to think better of him and not want to kill him. It is a danger that I'm sure is common among God's spokesmen, to speak words that people want to hear. They then speak nice words back to you and everybody feels good. The only problem is when these smooth, pleasant, words are not the message God wants spoken. The message God wanted Jeremiah to speak were not pleasant for those who were to be the recipients. The sins of Judah were leading them to destruction and most had fallen so far away from God that they didn't even admit that they were sinning. Whether their minds had grown so used to the vile that they could not recognize the precious, or whether they had wholly embraced the vile, they were in need of God to rework their hearts. God had chosen Jeremiah to be the person who pointed out the need for repentance and who told them the way that they needed to go. Jeremiah did not need to get closer to the peoples viewpoint, he needed to stand close to God, speak God's message, and those with honest hearts would come to Jeremiah and embrace God's message. God reminded Jeremiah that Jeremiah needed to stand with God, and God would make him a fortified bronze wall that could not be overcome. God would save Jeremiah from those who attempted to stop the message God wanted shared. Jeremiah would be delivered from the wicked and redeemed from the grip of the terrible. In his discouragement it might seem that the evil was too strong, but God assures Jeremiah that God is stronger than any evil and He will make Jeremiah a bronze wall against the wicked.
I too become discouraged. I am weak and I can allow myself to be diverted from the mission that God has given me. God calls me to return to him. Come, He says, stand with me. Don't allow your mind to become so muddled that you cannot discern between the vile and the precious. Stand with Me and I will show you the precious. Let the true word be your focus and I will make you strong. Those who attempt to destroy you will not prevail against you, for I will save you. Jesus is the cure for discouragement. When my eyes leave myself and behold Him, then my discouragement will fade away in the power of His love. I fail because I care more about myself and what others think about me than I do about the truth that God is sharing with the world. Right thinking will lead me to see the right path that God puts before me. I cannot control what others do, I can only choose to stand with God and follow the path He sets before me.
Lord,
Help me today to return to you. Help me to accept Your love and Your strength in my heart. I am weak, you have promised strength. Put a new heart and a new spirit within me today, with new intentions that will bear fruit of acts of service for You. Help me to keep my eye on the precious and to become like the precious Jesus, standing with You and sharing Your love with those you want. Help me to look at Your life and Your truth and Your message and open my heart to be willing to allow You guide me in all that I do. Thank You for Your message of hope in Jeremiah.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Jeremiah 15:15-18
14 And I will make you cross over with[a] your enemies
Into a land which you do not know;
For a fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”
15 O LORD, You know;
Remember me and visit me,
And take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In Your enduring patience, do not take me away.
Know that for Your sake I have suffered rebuke.
16 Your words were found, and I ate them,
And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O LORD God of hosts.
17 I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers,
Nor did I rejoice;
I sat alone because of Your hand,
For You have filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain perpetual
And my wound incurable,
Which refuses to be healed?
Will You surely be to me like an unreliable stream,
As waters that fail?
Jeremiah 15:15-18 NKJV
"Your words were found and I ate them. Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart." Despite the negative reactions of others to the word of the Lord, Jeremiah grew to love the word of God. It became his encouragement and hope. While others ignored or laughed at or fought against or reviled the word of God, Jeremiah came to understand and appreciate the love God was showing His people through the messages of reproof and repentance. As he became closer to God, Jeremiah was separated from many of those around him. He did not sit and fellowship with those who made light of God and those who were fighting against God. As he grew in his relationship with God, he became indignant with those who refused to accept God's words and who made light of the warnings that were predicted to come upon Judah. His relationships with men became painful because of the lack of spiritual understanding and acceptance on their part. As Jeremiah stood with God, he became distant from those who stood against God. To Jeremiah it seemed like there was nothing to remove the loneliness except God and God's word. He begged God to remember him and to keep him close. The rebuke he suffered at the hands of men he put in God's hands. God would be responsible for the outcome for what others did to him, Jeremiah clung to God and His word. Trust in God was Jeremiah's defense against the persecution of his fellow Jews. Jeremiah was content to be called by the name of God, as a child of God he stood with God and walked with Him.
Lord,
Help me today to study Your word and allow Your word to become my joy and rejoicing. Give me the strength and wisdom to trust in You. Turn my heart from the things of the world and make me rejoice in my relationship with You. My pain You want turn to joy and my wounds You desire to heal. Help me to accept the love You show me and help me to share Your love with those around me.
Into a land which you do not know;
For a fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”
15 O LORD, You know;
Remember me and visit me,
And take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In Your enduring patience, do not take me away.
Know that for Your sake I have suffered rebuke.
16 Your words were found, and I ate them,
And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O LORD God of hosts.
17 I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers,
Nor did I rejoice;
I sat alone because of Your hand,
For You have filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain perpetual
And my wound incurable,
Which refuses to be healed?
Will You surely be to me like an unreliable stream,
As waters that fail?
Jeremiah 15:15-18 NKJV
"Your words were found and I ate them. Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart." Despite the negative reactions of others to the word of the Lord, Jeremiah grew to love the word of God. It became his encouragement and hope. While others ignored or laughed at or fought against or reviled the word of God, Jeremiah came to understand and appreciate the love God was showing His people through the messages of reproof and repentance. As he became closer to God, Jeremiah was separated from many of those around him. He did not sit and fellowship with those who made light of God and those who were fighting against God. As he grew in his relationship with God, he became indignant with those who refused to accept God's words and who made light of the warnings that were predicted to come upon Judah. His relationships with men became painful because of the lack of spiritual understanding and acceptance on their part. As Jeremiah stood with God, he became distant from those who stood against God. To Jeremiah it seemed like there was nothing to remove the loneliness except God and God's word. He begged God to remember him and to keep him close. The rebuke he suffered at the hands of men he put in God's hands. God would be responsible for the outcome for what others did to him, Jeremiah clung to God and His word. Trust in God was Jeremiah's defense against the persecution of his fellow Jews. Jeremiah was content to be called by the name of God, as a child of God he stood with God and walked with Him.
Lord,
Help me today to study Your word and allow Your word to become my joy and rejoicing. Give me the strength and wisdom to trust in You. Turn my heart from the things of the world and make me rejoice in my relationship with You. My pain You want turn to joy and my wounds You desire to heal. Help me to accept the love You show me and help me to share Your love with those around me.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Jeremiah 15:10-14
10 Woe is me, my mother,
That you have borne me,
A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth!
I have neither lent for interest,
Nor have men lent to me for interest.
Every one of them curses me.
11 The LORD said:
“ Surely it will be well with your remnant;
Surely I will cause the enemy to intercede with you
In the time of adversity and in the time of affliction.
12 Can anyone break iron,
The northern iron and the bronze?
13 Your wealth and your treasures
I will give as plunder without price,
Because of all your sins,
Throughout your territories.
14 And I will make you cross over with[a] your enemies
Into a land which you do not know;
For a fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”
Jeremiah 15:10-14 NKJV
In verse 10 Jeremiah seems to be discouraged. The messages from the Lord telling of the sad things that are coming has made him unpopular. While he is faithful to pass the messages along from the Lord, he is not appreciated by the recipients of the messages of warning. The people curse him and plot to kill him. He is held in the same contempt as if he were either a loan shark or a deadbeat who refuses to pay legitimate debts. When we are faithful in obeying and following the Lord, it is natural that those opposed to God will be opposed to us. Discouragement at being unfairly reviled by others is also natural. Those who seem to most hate us are those to whom we are trying the most to help and to whom we are called upon to pass along God's words for their betterment. We are faithful in our duty, yet it seems the only reward we get are attacks upon us and our character. Jeremiah was hated for the messages he spoke. The leaders of Judah and the common people alike grew to hate him. He called for repentance, and most did not want to repent. He pointed out that the end of God's patience was coming with disastrous results for Judah, but everyone preferred to think that peace would be upon them despite their wickedness.
In verse 11 the Lord gives Jeremiah a word of encouragement. God tells Jeremiah that while those who should have been his friends curse him, those who are considered his enemies will help him. It is a prophecy to him of the treatment of the Babylonians after the capture of Jerusalem when Jeremiah was given his freedom while the people were taken away to their captivity. While the rest of the people lose everything they consider worthwhile at the hand of the Chaldeans, Jeremiah is allowed to choose for himself where he will go and is treated with respect. I understand Jeremiah's discouragement, as such feelings come upon me when I try to do good and am rewarded with what seems to me to be unfair resentment or mistreatment by others. It is a common theme in the stories that God has given us. Noah, Joseph, Moses, Elijah, and most of all Jesus, were all rewarded for their goodness with evil, often by those whom should have been most grateful. When I look upon their lives and the struggles and the faithfulness that they demonstrated I can be encouraged. The final reward of those faithful to God will be glorious. Sometimes we are rewarded on this earth and sometimes we are only rewarded in the next life. Hope is expressed to Jeremiah of better treatment ahead, and I can also have hope that God will be with me and reward me.
Lord,
Help me to trust in You when things seem dark and hopeless. Help me to know that just as You were with those in times past, so You will be with me. I know I need to be faithful to You, give me the strength and the courage to obey You in all that I do. Give me the strength and wisdom to walk with You through any troubles that come upon me. Give me the character that Jesus had, so that I may be a faithful child to You.
That you have borne me,
A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth!
I have neither lent for interest,
Nor have men lent to me for interest.
Every one of them curses me.
11 The LORD said:
“ Surely it will be well with your remnant;
Surely I will cause the enemy to intercede with you
In the time of adversity and in the time of affliction.
12 Can anyone break iron,
The northern iron and the bronze?
13 Your wealth and your treasures
I will give as plunder without price,
Because of all your sins,
Throughout your territories.
14 And I will make you cross over with[a] your enemies
Into a land which you do not know;
For a fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”
Jeremiah 15:10-14 NKJV
In verse 10 Jeremiah seems to be discouraged. The messages from the Lord telling of the sad things that are coming has made him unpopular. While he is faithful to pass the messages along from the Lord, he is not appreciated by the recipients of the messages of warning. The people curse him and plot to kill him. He is held in the same contempt as if he were either a loan shark or a deadbeat who refuses to pay legitimate debts. When we are faithful in obeying and following the Lord, it is natural that those opposed to God will be opposed to us. Discouragement at being unfairly reviled by others is also natural. Those who seem to most hate us are those to whom we are trying the most to help and to whom we are called upon to pass along God's words for their betterment. We are faithful in our duty, yet it seems the only reward we get are attacks upon us and our character. Jeremiah was hated for the messages he spoke. The leaders of Judah and the common people alike grew to hate him. He called for repentance, and most did not want to repent. He pointed out that the end of God's patience was coming with disastrous results for Judah, but everyone preferred to think that peace would be upon them despite their wickedness.
In verse 11 the Lord gives Jeremiah a word of encouragement. God tells Jeremiah that while those who should have been his friends curse him, those who are considered his enemies will help him. It is a prophecy to him of the treatment of the Babylonians after the capture of Jerusalem when Jeremiah was given his freedom while the people were taken away to their captivity. While the rest of the people lose everything they consider worthwhile at the hand of the Chaldeans, Jeremiah is allowed to choose for himself where he will go and is treated with respect. I understand Jeremiah's discouragement, as such feelings come upon me when I try to do good and am rewarded with what seems to me to be unfair resentment or mistreatment by others. It is a common theme in the stories that God has given us. Noah, Joseph, Moses, Elijah, and most of all Jesus, were all rewarded for their goodness with evil, often by those whom should have been most grateful. When I look upon their lives and the struggles and the faithfulness that they demonstrated I can be encouraged. The final reward of those faithful to God will be glorious. Sometimes we are rewarded on this earth and sometimes we are only rewarded in the next life. Hope is expressed to Jeremiah of better treatment ahead, and I can also have hope that God will be with me and reward me.
Lord,
Help me to trust in You when things seem dark and hopeless. Help me to know that just as You were with those in times past, so You will be with me. I know I need to be faithful to You, give me the strength and the courage to obey You in all that I do. Give me the strength and wisdom to walk with You through any troubles that come upon me. Give me the character that Jesus had, so that I may be a faithful child to You.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Jeremiah 15:1-9
1 Then the LORD said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before Me, My mind would not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth. 2 And it shall be, if they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the LORD:
“ Such as are for death, to death;
And such as are for the sword, to the sword;
And such as are for the famine, to the famine;
And such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.”’
3 “And I will appoint over them four forms of destruction,” says the LORD: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 I will hand them over to trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.
5 “ For who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem?
Or who will bemoan you?
Or who will turn aside to ask how you are doing?
6 You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD,
“ You have gone backward.
Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you;
I am weary of relenting!
7 And I will winnow them with a winnowing fan in the gates of the land;
I will bereave them of children;
I will destroy My people,
Since they do not return from their ways.
8 Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas;
I will bring against them,
Against the mother of the young men,
A plunderer at noonday;
I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them suddenly.
9 “ She languishes who has borne seven;
She has breathed her last;
Her sun has gone down
While it was yet day;
She has been ashamed and confounded.
And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword
Before their enemies,” says the LORD.
Jeremiah 15:1-9 NKJV
The discussion between the LORD and Jeremiah is apparently continued from chapter 14. God invokes the names of two of Israels revered leaders of the past and states that not even if Moses and Samuel stood with the Jews would He change His mind toward the people. The wickedness of Manasseh is cited as being reason for God's judgments. Perhaps this portion of Jeremiah occurred early in Jeremiah's ministry as part of the reformation efforts under Josiah. The reign of Manasseh was so wicked and led the Jews to embrace such wickedness it seems that nothing can bring them back from the precipice of the disaster the nation is to be subjected to. God promises a winnowing, where the chaff will be blown away. Since the majority of the people have turned away from God and forsaken Him, what will remain of them? Fear, death, destruction is promised to those who are proud in their rejection of the Lord. God is issuing what may be the final warning. The mercy of God cannot override the justice of God. How Jeremiah must have felt a great sadness at the message of despair he is called upon to deliver. Surely Jeremiah searches the faces of those to whom he speaks, looking for signs of an awakening to the danger that is surrounding the people of Judah. Jeremiah longs for the people to see the results of the path they are choosing, that they will turn back to give God the honor and respect that will lead to the saving of his homeland. God promises only woe upon them for their rejection of Him and His saving grace. The Jews have reveled in their wickedness and their rejection of God during the light of the relative peace of the day. Now night approaches, and the light God wishes to send upon them is being rejected. Jeremiah can see the darkness approaching, the people see only the desires of their hearts and plot against each other and against God.
Lord,
Help me today to listen as You warn me of the future. Help me to trust in You and to give all my being to You. There is no hope and there is no salvation apart from You. You know your plans for me, plans for peace and not of evil. You want to give me a future and a hope. Help me to accept the hope and a future of eternity with You. Help me to seek You with all my heart, and fulfill Your promise that I will find You. Renew me today, with Your spirit filling me with Your love and giving me the courage to share Your love with all whose paths cross mine today.
“ Such as are for death, to death;
And such as are for the sword, to the sword;
And such as are for the famine, to the famine;
And such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.”’
3 “And I will appoint over them four forms of destruction,” says the LORD: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 I will hand them over to trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.
5 “ For who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem?
Or who will bemoan you?
Or who will turn aside to ask how you are doing?
6 You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD,
“ You have gone backward.
Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you;
I am weary of relenting!
7 And I will winnow them with a winnowing fan in the gates of the land;
I will bereave them of children;
I will destroy My people,
Since they do not return from their ways.
8 Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas;
I will bring against them,
Against the mother of the young men,
A plunderer at noonday;
I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them suddenly.
9 “ She languishes who has borne seven;
She has breathed her last;
Her sun has gone down
While it was yet day;
She has been ashamed and confounded.
And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword
Before their enemies,” says the LORD.
Jeremiah 15:1-9 NKJV
The discussion between the LORD and Jeremiah is apparently continued from chapter 14. God invokes the names of two of Israels revered leaders of the past and states that not even if Moses and Samuel stood with the Jews would He change His mind toward the people. The wickedness of Manasseh is cited as being reason for God's judgments. Perhaps this portion of Jeremiah occurred early in Jeremiah's ministry as part of the reformation efforts under Josiah. The reign of Manasseh was so wicked and led the Jews to embrace such wickedness it seems that nothing can bring them back from the precipice of the disaster the nation is to be subjected to. God promises a winnowing, where the chaff will be blown away. Since the majority of the people have turned away from God and forsaken Him, what will remain of them? Fear, death, destruction is promised to those who are proud in their rejection of the Lord. God is issuing what may be the final warning. The mercy of God cannot override the justice of God. How Jeremiah must have felt a great sadness at the message of despair he is called upon to deliver. Surely Jeremiah searches the faces of those to whom he speaks, looking for signs of an awakening to the danger that is surrounding the people of Judah. Jeremiah longs for the people to see the results of the path they are choosing, that they will turn back to give God the honor and respect that will lead to the saving of his homeland. God promises only woe upon them for their rejection of Him and His saving grace. The Jews have reveled in their wickedness and their rejection of God during the light of the relative peace of the day. Now night approaches, and the light God wishes to send upon them is being rejected. Jeremiah can see the darkness approaching, the people see only the desires of their hearts and plot against each other and against God.
Lord,
Help me today to listen as You warn me of the future. Help me to trust in You and to give all my being to You. There is no hope and there is no salvation apart from You. You know your plans for me, plans for peace and not of evil. You want to give me a future and a hope. Help me to accept the hope and a future of eternity with You. Help me to seek You with all my heart, and fulfill Your promise that I will find You. Renew me today, with Your spirit filling me with Your love and giving me the courage to share Your love with all whose paths cross mine today.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Jeremiah 14:19-22
19 Have You utterly rejected Judah?
Has Your soul loathed Zion?
Why have You stricken us so that there is no healing for us?
We looked for peace, but there was no good;
And for the time of healing, and there was trouble.
20 We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness
And the iniquity of our fathers,
For we have sinned against You.
21 Do not abhor us, for Your name’s sake;
Do not disgrace the throne of Your glory.
Remember, do not break Your covenant with us.
22 Are there any among the idols of the nations that can cause rain?
Or can the heavens give showers?
Are You not He, O LORD our God?
Therefore we will wait for You,
Since You have made all these.
Jeremiah 14:19-22 NKJV
Jeremiah calls on God in his distress at the word God has given him. Has God utterly rejected His people? Jeremiah begs God to not throw away His people. Jeremiah acknowledges the sins and wickedness of Judah, he also acknowledges Gods wondrous power. He asks God to remember the covenant that He made with the Jews. Peace is desired, but only trouble is seen. It is not, Jeremiah admits, God who is at fault. The people of Judah and their leaders have sinned almost continuously against God. They are full of wickedness and they are unrepentant. Jeremiah still begs God to remember them in a favorable light. Jeremiah decides that because of God's greatness that he can see, namely the power of God to control the rain, that he will trust in the Lord. Jeremiah is willing to wait for an answer. God is powerful and Jeremiah has learned to trust Him, he will wait for God and trust God to fulfill His word.
Lord,
Help me to wait on You. I want an answer now and I want an answer that meets my expectations. Please help me to be patient and wait on You to give me the correct answer at the correct time. Help me to trust in You, that the love and goodness that You have shown in the past proves your good intentions for me. I am impatient and ignorant of what Your plan for me is. Help me to trust that Your love for me will cause my good, if I walk with You and allow you to guide me in my paths.
Has Your soul loathed Zion?
Why have You stricken us so that there is no healing for us?
We looked for peace, but there was no good;
And for the time of healing, and there was trouble.
20 We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness
And the iniquity of our fathers,
For we have sinned against You.
21 Do not abhor us, for Your name’s sake;
Do not disgrace the throne of Your glory.
Remember, do not break Your covenant with us.
22 Are there any among the idols of the nations that can cause rain?
Or can the heavens give showers?
Are You not He, O LORD our God?
Therefore we will wait for You,
Since You have made all these.
Jeremiah 14:19-22 NKJV
Jeremiah calls on God in his distress at the word God has given him. Has God utterly rejected His people? Jeremiah begs God to not throw away His people. Jeremiah acknowledges the sins and wickedness of Judah, he also acknowledges Gods wondrous power. He asks God to remember the covenant that He made with the Jews. Peace is desired, but only trouble is seen. It is not, Jeremiah admits, God who is at fault. The people of Judah and their leaders have sinned almost continuously against God. They are full of wickedness and they are unrepentant. Jeremiah still begs God to remember them in a favorable light. Jeremiah decides that because of God's greatness that he can see, namely the power of God to control the rain, that he will trust in the Lord. Jeremiah is willing to wait for an answer. God is powerful and Jeremiah has learned to trust Him, he will wait for God and trust God to fulfill His word.
Lord,
Help me to wait on You. I want an answer now and I want an answer that meets my expectations. Please help me to be patient and wait on You to give me the correct answer at the correct time. Help me to trust in You, that the love and goodness that You have shown in the past proves your good intentions for me. I am impatient and ignorant of what Your plan for me is. Help me to trust that Your love for me will cause my good, if I walk with You and allow you to guide me in my paths.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Jeremiah 14:11-18
11 Then the LORD said to me, “Do not pray for this people, for their good. 12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.”
13 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’”
14 And the LORD said to me, “The prophets prophesy lies in My name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, whom I did not send, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not be in this land’ — ‘By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed! 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; they will have no one to bury them—them nor their wives, their sons nor their daughters—for I will pour their wickedness on them.’
17 “Therefore you shall say this word to them:
‘ Let my eyes flow with tears night and day,
And let them not cease;
For the virgin daughter of my people
Has been broken with a mighty stroke, with a very severe blow.
18 If I go out to the field,
Then behold, those slain with the sword!
And if I enter the city,
Then behold, those sick from famine!
Yes, both prophet and priest go about in a land they do not know.’”
Jeremiah 14:11-18 NKJV
It seems strange to me that the Lord tells Jeremiah to not pray for the people and for their good. God tells Jeremiah that He will not listen and that He will not accept their offerings. When Jeremiah says that prophets are telling the people that they will have peace, God says the prophets are liars and will be destroyed in the coming war along with the people. I do not understand why God tells Jeremiah to not pray for them. Is it too late for the leaders and the people to turn back to God? Have they passed the point of being able to repent and be forgiven. Form the other calls to obey God and repent in the book, some which seem to come later and closer to the doom which was Judah's fate, I think there was still hope. Perhaps the refusal of the people to turn from their wickedness and heed the warnings God has given them to this point has frustrated God. Perhaps God speaks in such a way to show the seriousness of the situation in which Judah finds itself. They can only turn their backs to God and refuse His love and help so long, before the judgment will come. God wants them to know that it is not play. They cannot pretend any more. It is time for them to be honest with themselves and their God.
Lord,
Help me today to listen to both Your words of comfort and Your words of judgment. Help me to understand the seriousness of the situation the world is in today, and help me to prepare my heart by accepting Your love and Your truth. Guide me, lead me, save me.
13 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’”
14 And the LORD said to me, “The prophets prophesy lies in My name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart. 15 Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, whom I did not send, and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not be in this land’ — ‘By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed! 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; they will have no one to bury them—them nor their wives, their sons nor their daughters—for I will pour their wickedness on them.’
17 “Therefore you shall say this word to them:
‘ Let my eyes flow with tears night and day,
And let them not cease;
For the virgin daughter of my people
Has been broken with a mighty stroke, with a very severe blow.
18 If I go out to the field,
Then behold, those slain with the sword!
And if I enter the city,
Then behold, those sick from famine!
Yes, both prophet and priest go about in a land they do not know.’”
Jeremiah 14:11-18 NKJV
It seems strange to me that the Lord tells Jeremiah to not pray for the people and for their good. God tells Jeremiah that He will not listen and that He will not accept their offerings. When Jeremiah says that prophets are telling the people that they will have peace, God says the prophets are liars and will be destroyed in the coming war along with the people. I do not understand why God tells Jeremiah to not pray for them. Is it too late for the leaders and the people to turn back to God? Have they passed the point of being able to repent and be forgiven. Form the other calls to obey God and repent in the book, some which seem to come later and closer to the doom which was Judah's fate, I think there was still hope. Perhaps the refusal of the people to turn from their wickedness and heed the warnings God has given them to this point has frustrated God. Perhaps God speaks in such a way to show the seriousness of the situation in which Judah finds itself. They can only turn their backs to God and refuse His love and help so long, before the judgment will come. God wants them to know that it is not play. They cannot pretend any more. It is time for them to be honest with themselves and their God.
Lord,
Help me today to listen to both Your words of comfort and Your words of judgment. Help me to understand the seriousness of the situation the world is in today, and help me to prepare my heart by accepting Your love and Your truth. Guide me, lead me, save me.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Jeremiah 14:10
10 Thus says the LORD to this people:
“Thus they have loved to wander;
They have not restrained their feet.
Therefore the LORD does not accept them;
He will remember their iniquity now,
And punish their sins.”
Jeremiah 14:10 NKJV
They have loved to wander, they have not restrained their feet. Each day we make choices. We may like to blame others for the results of our choices, bad things happen to us because of what others do, and we like to think we have no control over the things that happen. That thinking absolves us of responsibility and we are the victim. And it is true that others may do bad things to us or those we love. It is our response and our attitude, how we choose to react to the things that happen that determines our path in life. In the book Swift Arrow, George is taken prisoner and lives for many years with Indians in the Midwest far from his home in Pennsylvania. He eventually returns home, but now looks somewhat like an Indian. George's father berates him when they meet after the many years apart, because his father thinks he is an Indian and he hates the Indians because they had taken his son away from him. This is a natural reaction, but the hate he had harbored for so many years made him hate his son upon there meeting because of who he thought his son was. (Once George convinced his father of his identity, happiness reigned.)
We must make choices every day, for God or against God. For most, our natural inclination is to wander away from God. Our culture and our sinful nature tells us that all the shiny things we see around us are what we want. So we wander here and there, searching for wealth and happiness. Even when we see glimpses of the truth, that happiness is in being in a relationship with God, too often we do not restrain our feet. We keep our fruitless searching for happiness, seemingly unable to sit with the Lord and let Him into our hearts. God calls us and teaches us. We must choose to listen and learn. Everyday we must choose. We should choose wisely and accept God into our hearts and walk in the path He sets before us. One choice leads to what we desire, the other leads to punishment and suffering.
Lord,
Today help me to choose You. Help me to have an attitude of thankfulness to You and praise for You. Forgive me for my iniquity and remember my sins no more, giving me a clean heart that loves and obeys You in all that I do.
“Thus they have loved to wander;
They have not restrained their feet.
Therefore the LORD does not accept them;
He will remember their iniquity now,
And punish their sins.”
Jeremiah 14:10 NKJV
They have loved to wander, they have not restrained their feet. Each day we make choices. We may like to blame others for the results of our choices, bad things happen to us because of what others do, and we like to think we have no control over the things that happen. That thinking absolves us of responsibility and we are the victim. And it is true that others may do bad things to us or those we love. It is our response and our attitude, how we choose to react to the things that happen that determines our path in life. In the book Swift Arrow, George is taken prisoner and lives for many years with Indians in the Midwest far from his home in Pennsylvania. He eventually returns home, but now looks somewhat like an Indian. George's father berates him when they meet after the many years apart, because his father thinks he is an Indian and he hates the Indians because they had taken his son away from him. This is a natural reaction, but the hate he had harbored for so many years made him hate his son upon there meeting because of who he thought his son was. (Once George convinced his father of his identity, happiness reigned.)
We must make choices every day, for God or against God. For most, our natural inclination is to wander away from God. Our culture and our sinful nature tells us that all the shiny things we see around us are what we want. So we wander here and there, searching for wealth and happiness. Even when we see glimpses of the truth, that happiness is in being in a relationship with God, too often we do not restrain our feet. We keep our fruitless searching for happiness, seemingly unable to sit with the Lord and let Him into our hearts. God calls us and teaches us. We must choose to listen and learn. Everyday we must choose. We should choose wisely and accept God into our hearts and walk in the path He sets before us. One choice leads to what we desire, the other leads to punishment and suffering.
Lord,
Today help me to choose You. Help me to have an attitude of thankfulness to You and praise for You. Forgive me for my iniquity and remember my sins no more, giving me a clean heart that loves and obeys You in all that I do.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Jeremiah 14:1-9
1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts.
2 “Judah mourns,
And her gates languish;
They mourn for the land,
And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.
3 Their nobles have sent their lads for water;
They went to the cisterns and found no water.
They returned with their vessels empty;
They were ashamed and confounded
And covered their heads.
4 Because the ground is parched,
For there was no rain in the land,
The plowmen were ashamed;
They covered their heads.
5 Yes, the deer also gave birth in the field,
But left because there was no grass.
6 And the wild donkeys stood in the desolate heights;
They sniffed at the wind like jackals;
Their eyes failed because there was no grass.”
7 O LORD, though our iniquities testify against us,
Do it for Your name’s sake;
For our backslidings are many,
We have sinned against You.
8 O the Hope of Israel, his Savior in time of trouble,
Why should You be like a stranger in the land,
And like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?
9 Why should You be like a man astonished,
Like a mighty one who cannot save?
Yet You, O LORD, are in our midst,
And we are called by Your name;
Do not leave us!
Jeremiah 14:1-9 NKJV
Drought is devastating to any land and especially so to an agricultural based society. Evidently this was a very serious drought as people searched for water and found none. Crops withered and died as the rains did not come. The animals, both domestic and wild, suffered from the lack of food and water. It can be the same with us when we have a lack of God's word in our lives. When we wander away from God and don't commune with Him through His word and through prayer, we create a drought in our lives that is spiritually comparable to the lack of water in a farming community. The fruit that should be produced in our lives dries and withers and eventually we will die spiritually if we don't allow God's word and Spirit to come back into our hearts.
Jeremiah's prayer in verses 7-9 admits the sins of Judah, recognizes their only hope for restoration is the Lord, and calls upon Him to save them. The drought was both physical, in the lack of moisture, and spiritual, in the lack of communication with God. Jeremiah reminds God that the Jews are called by His name, and begs God not to leave them. God is still with them, but through their iniquity and the closing of their hearts to God's messages and love, the people are building walls between God and themselves. They are choosing, and they are choosing against God. The drought is another warning of what their lives will be like without God. Jeremiah sees their need is to come closer to God and allow Him to save them. Will the Jews allow God to work for them and give them the rain of His love they so desperately need?
Lord,
Help me today to allow You to water my soul with Your love. Help me to accept the gifts You desire to give me. Help me to accept the opportunities to serve You that You place before me today. Heal my spirit and forgive my sin. Do not leave me.
2 “Judah mourns,
And her gates languish;
They mourn for the land,
And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.
3 Their nobles have sent their lads for water;
They went to the cisterns and found no water.
They returned with their vessels empty;
They were ashamed and confounded
And covered their heads.
4 Because the ground is parched,
For there was no rain in the land,
The plowmen were ashamed;
They covered their heads.
5 Yes, the deer also gave birth in the field,
But left because there was no grass.
6 And the wild donkeys stood in the desolate heights;
They sniffed at the wind like jackals;
Their eyes failed because there was no grass.”
7 O LORD, though our iniquities testify against us,
Do it for Your name’s sake;
For our backslidings are many,
We have sinned against You.
8 O the Hope of Israel, his Savior in time of trouble,
Why should You be like a stranger in the land,
And like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?
9 Why should You be like a man astonished,
Like a mighty one who cannot save?
Yet You, O LORD, are in our midst,
And we are called by Your name;
Do not leave us!
Jeremiah 14:1-9 NKJV
Drought is devastating to any land and especially so to an agricultural based society. Evidently this was a very serious drought as people searched for water and found none. Crops withered and died as the rains did not come. The animals, both domestic and wild, suffered from the lack of food and water. It can be the same with us when we have a lack of God's word in our lives. When we wander away from God and don't commune with Him through His word and through prayer, we create a drought in our lives that is spiritually comparable to the lack of water in a farming community. The fruit that should be produced in our lives dries and withers and eventually we will die spiritually if we don't allow God's word and Spirit to come back into our hearts.
Jeremiah's prayer in verses 7-9 admits the sins of Judah, recognizes their only hope for restoration is the Lord, and calls upon Him to save them. The drought was both physical, in the lack of moisture, and spiritual, in the lack of communication with God. Jeremiah reminds God that the Jews are called by His name, and begs God not to leave them. God is still with them, but through their iniquity and the closing of their hearts to God's messages and love, the people are building walls between God and themselves. They are choosing, and they are choosing against God. The drought is another warning of what their lives will be like without God. Jeremiah sees their need is to come closer to God and allow Him to save them. Will the Jews allow God to work for them and give them the rain of His love they so desperately need?
Lord,
Help me today to allow You to water my soul with Your love. Help me to accept the gifts You desire to give me. Help me to accept the opportunities to serve You that You place before me today. Heal my spirit and forgive my sin. Do not leave me.
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