Saturday, October 24,
2015, 6:30 p.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “For Our Nation.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Jeremiah 2 (Selected NASB).
Youthful Devotion
(vv. 1-3)
Now
the word of the Lord came to me saying, “Go and proclaim in the ears of
Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord,
“I
remember concerning you the devotion of your youth,
The
love of your betrothals,
Your
following after Me in the wilderness,
Through
a land not sown.
“Israel
was holy to the Lord,
The
first of His harvest.
All
who ate of it became guilty;
Evil
came upon them,” declares the Lord.’”
When we first come to faith in Jesus Christ, by the Spirit
of God, and through faith, we die with Christ to sin and we are resurrected
with Christ to newness of life, “created to be like God in true righteousness
and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). We deny self, take up our cross daily, and we follow
Jesus Christ in obedience. Jesus is our hearts’ desire, we love to spend time
with him at his feet, and we want nothing more than to walk in his love and to
bask in his grace. Our minds and hearts are receptive to his voice, and we love
to learn from his word.
It is a lot like how it should be for a new bride and groom.
I would hope that most people go into marriage with the full intention that
this is a lifetime commitment, and that they promise to be faithful to their
spouse, forsaking all others. I would hope that they truly love the person they
are marrying, and that they enjoy being with them, doing things together,
sharing their joys and burdens, talking about what is going on in their lives,
and having shared goals for their future together. I would hope, as well, that
if one of them is a Christian that he or she married another Christian, and
that together they would have fellowship in the Lord and that they would walk
together in faith and in ministry.
Yet, not all marriages begin like that or grow to be like
that. Some begin on a false premise, i.e. they are based in a lie and
deception, and that is how it can be with some who claim to know Christ and who
claim to be in fellowship with him, too. Some people never had the right
foundation, and so the whole relationship with Jesus is false from the start,
and they are only going through the motions of having a love relationship with
Christ, but their hearts are far from God, for they are still walking in the
flesh, and not in the Spirit.
Walking after
Emptiness (vv. 4-6)
Hear
the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of
Israel. Thus says the Lord,
“What
injustice did your fathers find in Me,
That
they went far from Me
And
walked after emptiness and became empty?
“They
did not say, ‘Where is the Lord
Who
brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
Who
led us through the wilderness,
Through
a land of deserts and of pits,
Through
a land of drought and of deep darkness,
Through
a land that no one crossed
And
where no man dwelt?’
So, for those of us who did have the correct foundation, and
who did begin with Christ in true faith, like a bride marrying the love of her
life and finally getting to be with him forever, if we have since strayed from
our pure devotion to our Lord, and if we have gone off to follow after “other
lovers,” why have we? Why have we traded in our husband for another lover? Did
God suddenly change? No! So, why did we leave him? Why did we leave the one who
has given us everything lovely, good, gracious, holy and righteous to go after
what is worthless? I am sure there are many reasons, and the reasons may vary
with each individual, but I believe it is because we were tempted by the flesh,
and we got our eyes off Jesus, and so we yielded to the flesh, and our flesh
liked how that felt, and so we went back for more of the same. The flesh can be
very powerful! And, it can overtake reason.
The point is that this is where many Christians are finding
themselves today. They began well with Christ, but over time the world and the temptations
of the flesh drew them away from their pure devotion to their Lord and husband,
and little by little the trappings of sin began to overtake them once again.
They quenched the Spirit of God when conviction came, for they didn’t listen to
that still small voice speaking reason to their hearts and minds, but they ignored
it, and went their own way instead. Soon they became desensitized to the evils
they were taking into their minds, which probably resulted from a continual
practice of rationalization and justification for continuing in what they know
is wrong. Then, in order for them to be able to continue without feeling bad
about their sin, they accepted a false grace gospel which tells them that God
does not require them to repent of sin or to obey him, so they now believe, in
practice, that God’s grace gives them free license to continue in sin.
So, they forgot their husband, they abandoned him, and they
shut out his voice and his urgings to them that they live holy lives pleasing
unto him, and that they remain faithful to him and not run after other lovers.
And, in his face they chase after other lovers, treating their Lord, their
relationship with him, his Spirit and his word with contempt. They stomp on his
heart time and time again, and lie to themselves and to him, believing that God
is pleased with them no matter what they do, and that he smiles on them and
delights in them, and that he will never be angry with them or judge them for
their unfaithfulness. And, so they go through the motions of having a
relationship with God, but they are truly having a love affair with themselves,
and self-pleasure is what they are truly after.
He Will Contend
(vv. 9, 18-19, summary of vv. 20-37)
“Therefore
I will yet contend with you,” declares the Lord,
“And
with your sons’ sons I will contend…
“But
now what are you doing on the road to Egypt,
To
drink the waters of the Nile?
Or
what are you doing on the road to Assyria,
To
drink the waters of the Euphrates?
“Your
own wickedness will correct you,
And
your apostasies will reprove you;
Know
therefore and see that it is evil and bitter
For
you to forsake the Lord your God,
And
the dread of Me is not in you,” declares the Lord God of hosts.
Scripture teaches us that God disciplines those he loves,
and that he reproves and scourges those who are his. “He disciplines us for our
good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems
not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it,
afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (See: Heb. 12:3-11).
We also have much teaching in the New Testament in which we are urged to
forsake sin and to obey our Lord, to no longer walk after the flesh, but to
conduct our lives according to the Spirit. There are also many warnings given
to Christians concerning what will happen to them if they do not remain in
Christ, and if they do not continue in him to the end. And, in Revelation 2-3
we have recorded for us seven letters Jesus wrote to the churches. In five of them
he confronted them with specific sin, called them to repentance, and warned of
judgment if they did not repent. So, this idea of God judging his wayward
people is in the New Testament, too. In other words, God still takes sin
seriously, and he is a jealous God.
What he is saying to his wayward people here is that they
have brought this judgment upon themselves by forsaking their Lord when he was
leading them in the right way, and by choosing to willfully run after “other
lovers.” He is giving the same message to his backsliding (adulterous) people
today. He is saying that it will not go well with those who forsake their Lord
(their husband) and have no awe (reverence, respect, and honor) of him. The
description he gives us here in this chapter of their adultery against their God
just breaks my heart, and brings much tears to my eyes. They had a covenant relationship
with God, i.e. they married him, and vowed fidelity and loyalty to him, and
that they would forsake all other lovers, but they broke off that relationship
with their Lord and said to him, “I will not serve you.” When a man chooses his
other lovers over his faithful commitment to his wife, he is saying, “I will
not be married to you. I choose my other lovers instead.” This is what it is
like when we refuse God’s voice, and we go after the gods of this world,
instead of giving God our heart’s devotion.
Yet, not only did they defy their Lord, refuse his voice,
ignore his calls to repentance and to faithful obedience, and continue to bed
themselves with prostitutes, but they pretended like God was ok with them, and
that everything was good between them and God. They looked clean and righteous
on the outside, in other words, but inside they were full of wickedness. And,
that is where many are today who call themselves Christians. It is just like a
spouse saying to his or her mate that if he or she has to make a choice, they
will choose their other lovers in place of their spouse. In other words, it
doesn’t matter how many things we do “for God,” or how many sacrifices we make,
how many church services we attend, or how much money we put in the offering
plate, or how much Bible knowledge we have, or how many ministries we are
involved in. All our righteousness is filthy rags in God’s sight. He doesn’t
want what we are willing to give up for him. What he wants is our hearts.
As well, these who run after other lovers oftentimes will
live in self-denial, making excuses for their sins, calling them something else
such as “I just messed up,” or whatever makes it feel like it wasn’t really
sin. Those who live with sinful addictions are notorious for minimizing the
seriousness of their sin, refusing to see it for what it is, calling each
sinful act isolated, and claiming God’s forgiveness each time, but being
unwilling to really repent (turn from the sin). So, God is saying, “Look at
what you have done! See it for what it is! Stop living in self-denial. Stop
making excuses for your sinful behavior. Own up to it.” Yet, many are saying, “It’s
no use! I can’t help myself. I’m a sinner, so I am going to sin.” And, so they
turn their backs on God, yet when they are in trouble, they ask him for him to
save them. They don’t respond to correction. They lie, cheat, steal, manipulate
and have all kinds of tricks they use for trying to work their way around the
correction. They feel God’s grace gives them the freedom to roam, so believe they
are innocent; that God is not angry with them. Yet, he will judge them for
this. Yet, even in judgment, he is reaching out his hands of mercy, calling his
children to repent, and to return to him, because he still loves them.
For Our Nation /
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: we’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
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