Jeremiah 10:17-11:17
As we reenter Jeremiah part way through chapter ten, the vocabulary changes back from reflections on wisdom to prophetic lament and warning. What is rich about this particular passage is not only the imagery and metaphor employed by Jeremiah, but the glimpse we get into the prophet’s heart and mind. I think this is one of the things I am enjoying the most about this study in this prophet-following a faithful follower of God and learning from his frustrations, struggles, and triumphs.
In verses 17-18, and 22, the focus is the warning of impending judgment on the rebellious people. The rest of the chapter focuses on how that is affecting Jeremiah. Verses 19-21 hint at three things going wrong for the Weeping Prophet: possible physical illness (definite physical anguish), his home has been destroyed (and the families around him are being torn apart), and the general cultural decay wrought by corrupt and stupid leadership.
A good context for this short section is chapter 9:1-2. Here Jeremiah is conflicted between staying with his people and speaking God’s word to them in hope, and fleeing to the desert to escape all the inevitable pain. What does the prophet decide to do? He stays. His faithfulness to God’s call not only lead him through difficult circumstances, it required it of him. “Truly this is an affliction, and I must bear it.” (10:19)
So how does that make Jeremiah feel? It makes him feel like praying death and annihilation upon his enemies. “Pour out your wrath on the nations that know you not…” (10:25). In doing so, Jeremiah stands on solid ground with the other prophets and the Psalmists. Several times in Scripture God’s people pray for these kinds of things in no uncertain terms, and they are never rebuffed for doing so. For instance, “happy is he who…seizes your infants and dashes them against the rocks.” (Psalm 137:8-9)
But what I really want to know is if I should pray this way. I think we should, if we understand properly what these prayers are intended to do for us. First, praying this way teaches us utter honesty with God. We can dig into the ugly and gnarled depths of our selves and yank out the things we don’t even want to acknowledge. And note that the biblical pattern in these prayers is to request that God He resolve them. These are not vigilante prayers.
Secondly, we should learn to pray against God’s enemies this way. This does not mean praying against individuals, but the forces and the “isms” behind them. When was the last time you prayed against the Christian-killing reality of totalitarianism? Or what about the soul-dulling force of consumerism? Psalm 97:10 says, “O you who love the Lord, hate evil!”
And thirdly, praying this way helps make us aware of Christians who really are facing persecution and death around the world simply because they are the people of God. This was the scenario Jeremiah and David faced, and there are countless believers around the world facing the same thing for the same reasons. Pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ!
Is it OK to say these kinds of things? You bet-in fact, it might just be an enriching experience to let some of these things out into the open.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Friday, September 16, 2005
So That Our Joy May Be Complete: 1 John 1:5-10
1 John 1:5-10
If I were to give you a chance to fill in this blank, what word would you use: “In order to fulfill joy in my life, I would say God is ______.” Maybe most of us would choose words like “love,” “faithful,” “gracious,” and so forth. These tend to be the concepts of God that fill our lives with comfort and peace, they are certainly true of God, and John will in fact make a big deal out of “God is love” later in this epistle. At this point, however, John finishes the sentence differently. Following the thought in verse four, “I write these things so that our joy may be complete,” John then says, “This is the message…that God is light.”
As a metaphor for Jesus in the New Testament, light conveys two basic concepts. It first tells us something about the character of Christ-it conveys a fact of His person. But what may be more important about this image is that we know these facts as a result of Christ’s activity in our lives. So light is not just who Jesus is, it is how He works in my life. As a fact about His character, Jesus is absolutely perfect-He is holy. As an image of His activity, Jesus is at work in my life drawing me toward His light and pushing away the darkness.
We should be struck by John’s train of thought-my joy is made complete because God hates sin.
To describe his point, John proceeds to quote three saying that were familiar to the current false teachers.
“If we say we have fellowship with him…” (vs. 6)
“If we say we have no sin…” (vs. 8)
“If we say we have not sinned…” (vs. 10)
The false teachers clearly had a twisted view of sin. They were sure they could live in open rebellion against God’s light and live in spiritual harmony with the Church and with God. They were also sure that they simply did not commit things of which they should be considered guilty.
What may be the most destructive view of sin is one of denial or apathy. As John shows, it tears apart not only the fabric of our own beings, but it tears apart our fellowship with Christ and the Church, and it separates us from God’s boundless forgiveness.
So what happens when we deny or neglect sin? Be aware of the progression contained in these verses:
“we lie and do not practice the truth.” (vs. 6)
“we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (vs. 8)
“we make him [God] a liar, and his word is not in us.” (vs. 10)
But if we take a close and honest look at our own brokenness, a very different world is open to us:
“we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” (vs. 7)
“he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (vs. 9)
So which scenario makes my joy complete? The one in which I have in fact lied so much and so long that I have deceived myself and no longer know the difference between what is true and false? Or the scenario in which I have thrown myself completely upon the matchless grace of God who is faithful and just to forgive me of all my sins and restore my fellowship with His Son and with His people? You be the judge.
If I were to give you a chance to fill in this blank, what word would you use: “In order to fulfill joy in my life, I would say God is ______.” Maybe most of us would choose words like “love,” “faithful,” “gracious,” and so forth. These tend to be the concepts of God that fill our lives with comfort and peace, they are certainly true of God, and John will in fact make a big deal out of “God is love” later in this epistle. At this point, however, John finishes the sentence differently. Following the thought in verse four, “I write these things so that our joy may be complete,” John then says, “This is the message…that God is light.”
As a metaphor for Jesus in the New Testament, light conveys two basic concepts. It first tells us something about the character of Christ-it conveys a fact of His person. But what may be more important about this image is that we know these facts as a result of Christ’s activity in our lives. So light is not just who Jesus is, it is how He works in my life. As a fact about His character, Jesus is absolutely perfect-He is holy. As an image of His activity, Jesus is at work in my life drawing me toward His light and pushing away the darkness.
We should be struck by John’s train of thought-my joy is made complete because God hates sin.
To describe his point, John proceeds to quote three saying that were familiar to the current false teachers.
“If we say we have fellowship with him…” (vs. 6)
“If we say we have no sin…” (vs. 8)
“If we say we have not sinned…” (vs. 10)
The false teachers clearly had a twisted view of sin. They were sure they could live in open rebellion against God’s light and live in spiritual harmony with the Church and with God. They were also sure that they simply did not commit things of which they should be considered guilty.
What may be the most destructive view of sin is one of denial or apathy. As John shows, it tears apart not only the fabric of our own beings, but it tears apart our fellowship with Christ and the Church, and it separates us from God’s boundless forgiveness.
So what happens when we deny or neglect sin? Be aware of the progression contained in these verses:
“we lie and do not practice the truth.” (vs. 6)
“we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (vs. 8)
“we make him [God] a liar, and his word is not in us.” (vs. 10)
But if we take a close and honest look at our own brokenness, a very different world is open to us:
“we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” (vs. 7)
“he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (vs. 9)
So which scenario makes my joy complete? The one in which I have in fact lied so much and so long that I have deceived myself and no longer know the difference between what is true and false? Or the scenario in which I have thrown myself completely upon the matchless grace of God who is faithful and just to forgive me of all my sins and restore my fellowship with His Son and with His people? You be the judge.
Friday, September 02, 2005
What Does God Value? Jeremiah 9:23-24
At the end of Jeremiah chapter 9, the language changes from prophecy and lament to reflection on wisdom. The passage we are looking at breaks down into two sections: what humans boast about in themselves, and how things are different for followers of God.
The first list contains three items-wisdom, might and riches. Wisdom is the Hebrew word for “skill.” We tend to believe that through technological, political, or scientific advancements, we will be able to save ourselves. Might is simply the word for strength. Our culture idolizes the physically fit exactly because they are physically fit. What an incredible character trait to have!
The third item on the list, riches, is also plain to see. For many in our culture, wealth has become a surrogate for significance. We believe that a little more-a little more of anything-will fill us with meaning and purpose. We wrongly assume that significance is measures in dollar amounts, notoriety, corporate promotion, fame, etc.
God, however, sees things differently. Note how the second list in our passage is introduced:
“…but let him who boasts, boast in this, that he understands and knows me…”
The first step of wisdom in a rebellious world is to grasp how different God’s character is from ours. So what marks that character? What is wisdom for the faithful?
Justice and Righteousness mark God’s character, and should mark the character and actions of His followers, but for present purposes I want to focus on the first item on the list.
God practices “steadfast love.” This is a hard word to grasp in English, but one commentator describes it this way, “[it is] that inner aspect of character which prompts God or man, quite apart from any constraint of law, to show kindness, friendship, and magnanimity to another….It is the virtue that knits society together.” It is a display, even a disposition, of love where none is required, demanded, or even deserved.
Imagine living a life where traits like justice and righteousness come flowing from your very core-they come naturally from your character and disposition. Imagine a life in which the fruit of the Spirit come easily from you-they come flowing from an abundance of “steadfast love” at work within you.
As foreign as that sounds to us, it was the life Christ lead, and it is the life we are called and empowered to lead as we follow Him. Reflecting on whether all this can be said of your life, ask yourself, what do I value?
The first list contains three items-wisdom, might and riches. Wisdom is the Hebrew word for “skill.” We tend to believe that through technological, political, or scientific advancements, we will be able to save ourselves. Might is simply the word for strength. Our culture idolizes the physically fit exactly because they are physically fit. What an incredible character trait to have!
The third item on the list, riches, is also plain to see. For many in our culture, wealth has become a surrogate for significance. We believe that a little more-a little more of anything-will fill us with meaning and purpose. We wrongly assume that significance is measures in dollar amounts, notoriety, corporate promotion, fame, etc.
God, however, sees things differently. Note how the second list in our passage is introduced:
“…but let him who boasts, boast in this, that he understands and knows me…”
The first step of wisdom in a rebellious world is to grasp how different God’s character is from ours. So what marks that character? What is wisdom for the faithful?
Justice and Righteousness mark God’s character, and should mark the character and actions of His followers, but for present purposes I want to focus on the first item on the list.
God practices “steadfast love.” This is a hard word to grasp in English, but one commentator describes it this way, “[it is] that inner aspect of character which prompts God or man, quite apart from any constraint of law, to show kindness, friendship, and magnanimity to another….It is the virtue that knits society together.” It is a display, even a disposition, of love where none is required, demanded, or even deserved.
Imagine living a life where traits like justice and righteousness come flowing from your very core-they come naturally from your character and disposition. Imagine a life in which the fruit of the Spirit come easily from you-they come flowing from an abundance of “steadfast love” at work within you.
As foreign as that sounds to us, it was the life Christ lead, and it is the life we are called and empowered to lead as we follow Him. Reflecting on whether all this can be said of your life, ask yourself, what do I value?
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