Skip to main content

Jeremiah 11:6-8 - Prophetic reminds us of what we shouldn't forget - Day 196

Good morning sisters and brothers,

Why are we here?  What is our purpose?  These are the questions that people ask and that only the God who reveals hinself in the Bible can truly answer.  Philosophy tries to answer, but starts on faulty foundations.  So we should not be surprised that philosophical answers to these questions are inadequate at best and deceptive at worst.  Today's devotion is on the solid foundation of God and his covanental relationship with man.

Blessings,

Jeff

Jeremiah given task of repeating the covenant that Judah and Israel had already broken over the years.  Listen to my voice and do all that I command you (v4) and Obey my voice (v7).  He is supposed to go to all the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem.

Reminds me of all the reminders in the New Testament.  God doesn't make obedience harder and harder or change the standards.  It is the stubbornness of our evil hearts that is the problem.  Without a regenerate heart all we can ever have is a stubborn evil heart.  The heart is the issue.  Trying to reform behavior without a change of heart is futile.  

I keep coming back to Paul and Romans 6&7.  Obeying the Law cannot save or sanctify because the heart is sinful and cannot obey.  Once the heart is regenerate, obedience is a response.  The righteous by faith, shall live.

It was only when the law came (accomplished its purpose) to Paul that he realized his deadness.

What does this passage teach us about God?

He is the source of the prophet's message.  Jeremiah is not told to come up with a warning that the people will understand.  Jeremiah doesn't get to make the message acceptable to rebels in Judah.

He does not change the terms of the covenant. Go all the way back to Exodus 19:5-6

Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.” 

Application:

We don't get to change the gospel message either.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Revelation 22:3-5 Final and eternal restoration - Day 365

Dear saints in the Lord, Congratulations!  You made it.  We have been through much turmoil in the last year ('20-'21).  But God is faithful to His promises.  I trust that you have been blessed in your reading and have drawn closer to God.   Since we didn't get the blog up and running at the beginning of the challenge, I am going to go back and post entries to cover that first month or so.   Blessings, Jeff Nothing accursed in the city of God, the new Jerusalem.  The presence of sin will be gone.  I am working on memorizing Westminster Shorter Catechism and currently on question 82.  Is any man able perfectly to keep the commandments of God? No mere man since the fall is able in this life perfectly to keep the commandments of God but does daily break them in thought, word and deed. I think our passage today points to the truth of this question.  Do you notice how this answer is not exactly the same as the question. "Any man" bec...
Post a Comment
Read more

Malachi 2:10-12 Here we go again!! Day 363

Good afternoon friends, As we draw to the end of the Old Testament, we see that Judah has rebuilt the temple and the walls of Jerusalem, but they are following in the footsteps of faithless fathers and not in the footsteps of Abraham and ultimately God.  The exile was a low point, but now a new low is about to happen.  The prophetic voice has once again become warning and not encouraging. Faithful reading and preaching of the word is all that keeps us from losing our way.  May we be faithful in our generation. Blessings, Jeff I am sure I have mentioned this before, but it bears repeating.  The section summary, chapter and verse are not in the original language.  They are all rather modern inventions to help us.  For example, the section title here is "Judah profaned the Covenant".  That is OK as far as it goes, but which Covenant?  So let's take a look. Observations Starts with 3 questions but who is asking the questions and to whom are they addre...
Post a Comment
Read more

2 Chronicles 35:23-26 Lament for the last good king - Day 364

Good morning fellow exiles and pilgrims, One more day of devotions.  We are indeed exiles and pilgrims in this world as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.  The 20th anniversary of 9/11 attacks can serve as a reminder that this world is not our home. Blessings, Jeff The lamentations for Josiah written by Jeremiah.  However, the book of Lamentations does not include any reference to Josiah as they are focused on the fall of Jerusalem.  While these lost lamentations were "made the rule" there are only 4 more kings and none of them were good like Josiah and none died in Jerusalem.  The phrase "to this day" generally refers to the time of the author (post exile).  Taken together, it may be that these laments were for the last good king and during the exile the people were longing for the next good king. Zerubbabel in a way was the next good king as temple and Jerusalem were rebuilt. But Jesus truly was the next king and He...
Post a Comment
Read more