Follow Orders
Jeremiah 40 ? 45:5
As we look at our lesson for this week, we continue to see the same pattern repeated over and over. God speaks through his prophet – the people rebel – judgment follows. For some reason, the human race has a very hard time of remembering our history. This is probably why the word “remember” is used a lot in the Bible.
Everything God does is about redemption – even judgment. God wants fellowship with His creation. He is never trying to “get back at us,” but always trying to win us back.
Israel has been taken over by the Assyrians. Judah has been taken by the Babylonians. Jerusalem has fallen. Corrupt leaders try to take advantage of the situation. Amazingly, the remnant even heads back when God rescues them from Egypt.
Through all these years, God has been speaking to Judah. Over a 300-year period, God sent Elijah, Elisha, Jonah, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, and now Jeremiah. The message has been clear – turn, repent – but worship of idols, or what Judah thought important, continues.
Every generation seems to find new and different ways to create and worship idols. Every generation seems to find a way to run and hide from God (Adam did this and blamed someone else).
God told the people of Judah to seek Him with all their heart (Jeremiah 29) and God would eventually deliver them. A new covenant is in existence. It involves what’s in the heart (motive and purity of heart), not outward ritual.
Psalm 78 says that we should tell of the faithfulness of God and His great works to our children. Why? So that the next generation will know who God is. What happened in Jeremiah’s day is happening to us today: Our children and grandchildren are not seeing our faithfulness and not seeing the greatness of God.
What should we do in response to Jeremiah’s message?
1) Ask God to search us (Psalm 139).
2) Lead our churches to seek the Lord.
3) Repent and cry out for God’s mercy on us, our churches, and our country. “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
Barker– Lessons by Ron Barker, evangelism and prayer strategist for the evangelization and missions team of the South Carolina Baptist Convention. Barker also taught evangelism at Southwestern Seminary.