They Will Not Listen
Jeremiah 6:10-11 ESV
“To whom shall I speak and give warning,
that they may hear?
Behold, their ears are uncircumcised,
they cannot listen;
behold, the word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn;
they take no pleasure in it.
Therefore I am full of the wrath of the Lord;
I am weary of holding it in.”
There are many professers of faith in Jesus Christ who claim
God as their Lord, but who deny him by their lifestyles. They know right from
wrong. They know what the Scriptures teach. And some of them are even teachers
of the Scriptures, so they are not lacking in knowledge.
But they don’t want to hear the truth, for the truth is too
convicting, and they don’t want to be convicted of their sinful lifestyles, so
they shut up their ears so that they don’t listen to the truth. They take no
pleasure in the truth for the truth confronts them in their sins.
They are those who are spiritually fruitless, who are
intoxicated to sin and to sensual pleasure, and to sexual immorality, and to the
high (like a drug) that they get from doing what they know is evil. But that is
where they are stationed, in agreement with a lie which gives them permission
to live in sin.
Some of them make no secret of the fact that they are living
in sin, because they believe a false gospel which tells them they can live
however they want but that heaven is still their eternal destiny. Others want
to give an impression of being righteous, so they hide their sins in secret.
Many of them are living in immorality and in adultery
against their spouses, too. And the adultery does not have to be in a physical
relationship. It can be a romantic affair or flirtation, or in the mind only,
or acted out in self-gratifying ways, or it can be the habitual viewing of pornography,
etc.
And since they don’t want their spouses to know what they
are doing in secret, they lie to them bold faced, and they put on a show (a
performance) of righteousness, and of faithfulness, hoping to fool their spouses
into thinking that they are being faithful. And this is running rampant.
Everyone Deals Falsely
Jeremiah 6:13-15 ESV
“For from the least to the greatest of them,
everyone is greedy for unjust gain;
and from prophet to priest,
everyone deals falsely.
They have healed the wound of my people lightly,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
when there is no peace.
Were they ashamed when they committed abomination?
No, they were not at all ashamed;
they did not know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,”
says the Lord.
Not everyone deals falsely, but it surely appears that way,
at times, for even among Christians, and within the gatherings of the church, lying
seems to be very commonplace and quite acceptable, especially if they can then
cloak it as a “white lie.” But it is still a lie.
The biggest and most severe lie right now is this false
gospel that is being spread far and wide, which gives its adherents a
guaranteed entry into God’s heaven regardless of how they live their lives here
on this earth. For, they are being led to believe they can be “saved” and still
make sin their practice.
Thus, those who are teaching this false gospel are not
leading them to repentance and to deliverance from their slavery to sin, but
they are putting a “Band-Aid” over their sins to try to make them feel better
in their sins, so that they won’t feel shame for their sins, but will feel
accepted by God.
But this false gospel, which is a half-truth (half lie)
gospel, which makes it a lie, is a cheap substitute (replacement) for the true
gospel of our salvation. For, it is man-made, and it appeases people in their
sins, and it is designed to appeal to those who want heaven, but who want their
sins, too.
Thus, those who are addicted to sin, who are intoxicated
with sin, are being drawn to this cheap substitute for the true gospel of grace,
like a person is drawn to another lover outside of his/her marriage. They are “in
love” with this other gospel because it doesn’t make them feel bad about their
sin.
Thus, they are also deliberately and premeditatedly
continuing to make sin their practice, only now alleviating the guilt of their
sin with this other gospel and with this other Jesus/God. Thus, they are taking
their stand on a lie, and they are choosing their allotment, which is not
eternal life with God.
The Ancient Paths
Jeremiah 6:16-17 ESV
Thus says the Lord:
“Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
I set watchmen over you, saying,
‘Pay attention to the sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, ‘We will not pay attention.’”
This happens to be one of my favorite Bible passages, at
least the first part of it where it talks about the “ancient paths.” So many
people today are following after lies instead of truth, which means they are
following after a modernized and adulterated gospel and not the true gospel of
grace.
So, this is a strong encouragement here to examine the
direction that you are going, or that you should be going, and for you to take
the path of righteousness and not the “path of least resistance.” For, the “good
way” is the way of holiness, not the way of appeasing your flesh.
For, the “ancient paths” are the paths of righteousness, holiness,
godliness, uprightness, honesty, integrity, morality, decency, and
faithfulness. They are the ways the New Testament Scriptures teach that we must
walk in, i.e., that we must conduct our lives in habitually.
The “ancient paths” are those which lead us down the path of
dying with Christ to sin and living to Christ and to his righteousness. They
lead us to walk in obedience to our Lord and to humbly submit our lives to his
will and purposes, too. And they teach us to honor God and to respect him.
But the sad reality here is that many people who profess
faith in Jesus Christ are refusing these “ancient paths” because they are
convinced that they no longer apply to their lives. For they see their freedom
from sin as mere forgiveness and the hope of heaven when they die.
So, they don’t pay attention to the truth which teaches we
must die with Christ to sin and be raised with Christ to newness of life in
him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. They refuse to
repent of their sins or to walk in obedience to their Lord, for they feel they
are not required.
So, even though the Lord is still sending out his “watchmen”
(and women), who are refuting and exposing the lies, and who are expounding the
truth of the gospel, still the majority of professers of faith in Jesus, at
least in America, are still not paying attention, but they are going their own
way.
He
Gives Purpose
An
Original Work / June 9, 2012
“Listen to Me when I’m calling to you.
Obey freely My word.
Follow Me in all of My ways.
Do all that I say.
Hear Me gently whisper to you
My will for your life and future.
Give all of your life and heart to
Follow Me always.”
Repent of your sins and worship Jesus.
He’s your Lord and Master.
He died for your sins so you could
Live with Him today.
He has a plan for your life and
He gives purpose and direction.
He gives meaning to your life,
So follow Him today.
“I love you so much I gave My life for
You to walk in My ways,
Living for Me each day as you
Bow to Me and pray.
Witness for Me of your love for Me and
Of My grace and mercy,
How I died to save you of your
Sins now and always.”
No comments:
Post a Comment