Christ Is My Righteousness: Jeremiah 33:14-16

Jeremiah 33:14-16

When we allow it to happen, the work that God does in the life of a believer and the life of the body of Christ is deep and lasting. Near the end of Jeremiah 33, God declares that the day will come when David’s son-the Messiah-will arrive and fulfill every promise he made to his people. The difference between this coming king and the kings Jeremiah has contended with is stark.

First of all, this King is legitimate. After a string of degenerates and half-wits, this King is the rightful heir of David and the unique God-Man among us.

“In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous branch to spring up for David.” (vs. 15)

God speaks this through his prophet at a time when the monarchy seems on the brink of extinction. The rightful king, Jehoiachin, is captive in Babylon and his uncle, Zedekiah, a puppet king set up by Babylon, sits on the throne. Add to this the fact that the exiles have begun and there seems to be no national hope at all.

Secondly, God’s King is a just king. Not only is he righteous and our righteousness, but he is a moral and upright ruler, as well.

“and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.” (vs. 15)

The way The Message puts it is that, “He will run this country honestly and fairly.” What more could an oppressed and battered nation of people want? It can be fairly said that much of the pain and suffering being endured by the masses came upon them because of their corrupt leadership. In stark contrast, God’s King is honest, fair, just, and righteous.

And when the King has come and completed his work, the result is a powerful change of name and character for the people:

“And this is the name by which it will be called, ‘The Lord is our righteousness’.” (vs. 16)

The successful and victorious work of the Messiah leads to a name change-at least, the kind of title that reflects a change. We have already seen that up to this point Judah’s character is clear-they are infamous for their corruption and rebellion. Judah is known for their character of sin (see 17:1). After God does his work, however, they are known for his character. Judah will be known for God’s righteousness.

Before Christ does his work in my life, I am a slave to my passions and corruption. I am by nature an enemy of God (Rom. 5:10, Col. 1:21). But after Christ does his victorious work in my life, I can be called by his name; I can be known for his character.

As a follower of Christ, I am not after my own goodness. A successful transformation occurs when the life and light of Christ is transplanted in me in place of my own brokenness. The life I live is not my own, but is Christ living in me. The Lord is our righteousness-Christ is my life.

Turning My Attention: Philippians 4:4-9

Philippians 4:4-9

As Paul closes this letter to the church at Philippi, he provides believers with several very practical guides to living a life formed by the Spirit of God.  When we think of spiritual formation we often, and unfortunately, think of esoteric practices engaged in by people who are gifted spiritually and who have the time to separate themselves from the “real world.”  In stark contrast to this caricature, however, the life of the ordinary believer outlined in the New Testament is one that is being constantly formed by Christ amidst the contours of our daily lives.  Each and every Christian is called to be a disciple of Christ-no matter your station in life or your personality.

To truly gain a handle on verse 4, we need to recall Paul’s and the Philippians’ condition.  Paul is in prison on his way to the executioner and the Philippians are under persecution, possibly severe persecution.  Given these realities, Paul says:

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.”

Why rejoice?  Certainly it is not because of his or the church’s circumstances; Paul doesn’t even know if this imprisonment will result in his death or his release, so he isn’t basing his rejoicing on the possibility of his legal and political freedom.  Paul has learned to rest his reasons for rejoicing on more solid ground.  His purpose, his meaning in life, his reason for being content and thankful is founded upon nothing else but Jesus Christ.

And this is the first lesson of this passage: Attention determines perspective.  If Paul’s attention were wrapped up in his dire circumstances, he would have no earthly reason to rejoice.  It is the same lesson Peter so clearly learned when he got out of the boat to walk to Jesus during the storm.  As long as his attention was on Christ, he was able to do what made no earthly sense.  When his attention was diverted to the storm, what seemed only natural happened-he began to sink.

The injunction in verse 6 to not be anxious is both very difficult to follow and repeated over and over in the New Testament.  Anxiety is not becoming of a follower of Christ, but it is one of the most natural reactions to life that we all have.  Paul’s antidote to anxiety is simple-prayer.  When we pray and turn our attention to Christ in thankfulness and supplication, the result is the kind of peace that only makes sense if God exists and is truly in control.  We enter prayer full of anxiety.  We exit it with the peace of God.  Paul notes:

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (vs. 7)

The second lesson, then, rises to the surface: Attention determines my peace.  The promise of prayer and the exercise of my faith in God’s Lordship is the kind of peace that transcends my circumstances.

Then Paul enjoins the believers to turn their minds and lives toward things, ideas, and people who exemplify the qualities of God.  When Paul says, “think about these things,” he intends us to dwell upon, even take account of these kinds of things.  In order to live out the commands of 4:8 and 9, we need to take time to list, count out, settle our minds upon, the kinds of things and people who bring glory to God.  We need to do this because what our minds dwell upon shapes our souls.

The third lesson: Attention determines the shape of my soul.  In a set of recent polls, it has been shown that young American males find very few things offensive.  They have been so over-exposed to debauchery, filth, violence, and the sort, that their consciences are no longer pricked.  Because their minds have been so filled with rubbish, their view of what is normal, even moral, has become deeply maladjusted.

On the other hand, when I turn my mind to the kinds of things and people listed by Paul, my soul is formed in the image of Christ, I become more and more human, and I learn how to find God’s fingerprint in creation.

To what am I paying attention today?

A Deep Forgiveness: Jeremiah 33:1-9

Jeremiah 33:1-9

There are moments in the book of Jeremiah where, if you are reading carefully, you might experience a little bit of literary whiplash. These moments, highlighted by God describing judgment and then suddenly speaking of grace and forgiveness, are telling when it comes to the character and activity of God. We read this kind of passage in Jeremiah 33 between verses 5 and 6.

“They are coming in to fight against the Chaldeans and to fill them with the dead bodies of men whom I shall strike down in my anger and my wrath, for I have hidden my face from this city because of all their evil. Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security.”

One moment God describes the judgment he is allowing to fall on Judah, then he suddenly switches to health and healing. If Judah has been so full of rebellion for generations, and the judgment that falls on them is God’s righteous work, how is it God suddenly brings grace and forgiveness?

First of all, we should note that we probably do not understand the fullness of God’s forgiveness until we grasp the depth of sin. The sinfulness of sin illuminates forgiveness. The fact that God forgives his people is not remarkable until we know how deep their rebellion against him really went.

The core of the answer to our question is contained in verse 8. Here God describes his forgiveness of sin using each primary concept for “sin” found in the Old Testament thus addressing sin in every way we can imagine it. The NIV translation catches the nuances well:

“I will cleanse them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against me.”

God will cleanse them of “all the sin” they have committed. This act of God refers to the state of our hearts-the sin nature. There are sins we actually commit, and then there is the nature that inclines us to rebel against God. One Puritan theologian described the difference as, “the root and the fruit of sin.” This first promise is to cleanse us from the root of sin.

Then God will forgive all the “sins of rebellion” we commit against him. These are the actual deeds of sin we commit, and these are what we typically feel need to be forgiven. It is easier for us to feel the prick of our rebellious behavior than it is to experience conviction over our sin natures. But God promises to forgive both, and it is this kind of forgiveness that changes my life.

Is learning to live a Christ-like life just a matter of behavior modification? Can we truly say someone is living Christ’s life if they are just a “do-gooder”? The transformation of a disciple of Christ is far more than just the modification of behavior.

Instead, a Christ-like life is one in which the change goes deeper than the surface behaviors of my life. The kind of transformation and forgiveness promised in Jeremiah 33:8 changes my character and inclinations and gives rise to the fruit of the Spirit as naturally as a healthy apple tree produces apples.

Learn to live in this lifestyle of forgiveness-the kind graciously given by God and the kind that is constantly at work in the deepest recesses of my soul to change me and make me new. So be it.

Call To Me: Jer 33:3

Jeremiah 33:3

How well do you think you would communicate with a stranger from a foreign land whose language you did not speak? If you needed to communicate with this person, what kind of effort would it take? No doubt it would require time and a great deal of work on your part to learn the language, the nuance of their vocabulary, and enough about their culture to understand better how they are trying to communicate.

How well do you think you communicate with God?

While Jeremiah is still in prison in chapter 33, God enters and speaks with him again. At this point, God wants to tell his people about the hope and restoration that is in store for them. Though the prophet is locked up in jail with no foreseeable hope of release and the countryside is full of Babylonians waging war against Judah, God has a future and a hope for his people.

When God begins this message to his prophet, he notes something about communicating with him:

“Call to me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” (vs. 3)

When God says, “call,” it conveys a deep and serious request. Sometimes this word is used to describe the roars or groans of animals. This is no half-hearted request, but a petition that has its source in my deepest desires and longings. Oftentimes our prayers are a little half-hearted and full of distraction, so it is no wonder that our communication with God may feel the same way. Have I called to God in the way described to the prophet?

Often Scripture will use the vocabulary of physical hunger to describe this kind of call. We all know what it means to crave some kind of food, but do we know what it feels like to crave communion with God? Psalm 63:1 puts it this way:

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

And what results when we call for God in this way? God says, “and I will answer you.” This is an overwhelming promise and I am not sure we know exactly the extent of this kind of gift.

We might be tempted to think this means God will grant us all our requests if we try hard enough to get them, but the evidence of Scripture and life say otherwise. Instead of this being a promise to give us what we want, I believe it is a promise of communication. When we put the effort in to calling to God as described in Jeremiah 33:3, we learn to talk to someone who is not visible, hear someone who doesn’t speak to me in an audible voice, and touch someone who is spirit. In other words, I learn to communicate with God and gain the ability to see, hear, and touch him in ways I do not now understand.

I communicate well with my wife because we have been talking everyday for over twelve years. I may not hear God answering me in large part because I have failed to put the time into communicating with Him.

Nothing Is Impossible: Jer 32

Jeremiah 32:26-44

One of the more fruitful aspects of studying Old Testament prophets is the conversational relationship many of them have with God. Often, when a prophet prays or asks questions, God answers. In my walk with God, I may not always hear an audible voice answering me when I pray, but I do have the record of God’s responses to His prophet’s prayers throughout Scripture. In this passage, Jeremiah has wondered what God was up to in having him buy a field that was useless to him and for the foreseeable future. Jeremiah opens his prayer in faith by saying, “Nothing is too hard for you.” (vs. 17) And he closes it with a request for understanding, “Yet you, O Lord God, have said to me, ‘Buy the field…’ though the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.” (vs. 25)

God answers by beginning where Jeremiah began. He says:

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?” (vs. 26)

Later, at the end of the prayer, God reiterates to Jeremiah that he will restore the land and bring the exiles back thus making the purchase of the land a fruitful and purposeful act of hope on Jeremiah’s part. But it is the beginning of God’s answer that intrigues me.

Often in Jeremiah’s life he poses direct questions to God and in may of those instances we have God’s response. What is telling about God’s answers to Jeremiah are that he rarely-if ever-directly answers the question. This passage is no exception. Instead of reassuring Jeremiah right up front that Judah will come back from exile and the land will be restored, he asks Jeremiah if he has the faith to leave it in his hands.

Instead of telling Jeremiah exactly when, where and how the exile will end and the land will be restored he essentially tells the prophet, “I can handle it.”

Can I accept that kind of answer from God? Do I have what it takes to press on in life as faithfully as I know how when the resolution to my present need is out there in the unforeseen future? Almost every time God speaks and answers Jeremiah’s prayers for understanding, the gist of the response is that what Jeremiah really needs is faith in God and the strength to persevere. As a follower of Christ I will never have all my questions answered, so what then will be my demeanor toward life? Will I base my relationship with God on blessing and positively answered prayer? Or will I base it on the “rock that is higher than I”? (Ps. 61:2)

In his excellent biography of Oswald Chambers, David McCasland tells a story in which Oswald and his wife, Biddy, visited a sick friend who was close to death. When they returned home, Biddy wondered out-loud about what God would do. Oswald responded, “I don’t care what God does. It’s what God is that I care about.” Oswald’s remark was not intended to be blunt or unfeeling. Instead, it was intended to convey the fact that though God’s actions are sometimes confusing, the Lord himself never is.

I may not always be able to explain God’s timing or actions with regard to my situation, but I can always affirm the truth that with him nothing is impossible. That is the promise and the faith that will sustain me through any and all seasons in life.

A Prayer For The Confused: Jeremiah 32:16-25

Jeremiah 32:16-25

Jeremiah’s cousin, Hanamel, visited him in prison and sold him a piece of the family farm. Jeremiah, under the prompting of God, obliged and sealed the purchase as legally as he knew how and preserved the documents for future generations. The catch is that the land is useless not only to Jeremiah, but to an entire generation of Judeans who are about to be taken off into exile. So why did God ask Jeremiah to buy the land? That is a good question, and one that Jeremiah now poses to God.

When we come to God in prayer and have something on our mind to ask of him, how do our prayers typically begin? When we have a request of God, what is the content and structure of our prayer? If you are anything like me, those prayers are usually entirely comprised of supplication. Here, however, we have a beautiful example of a prayer from a prophet of God in a time of bewilderment, and in it there is much for us to learn about our prayer lives.

First of all, the final verse of the prayer is Jeremiah’s inquiry. It is posed in the form of an implied question:

“Behold, the siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and because of sword and famine and pestilence the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to pass, and behold, you see it. Yet you, O Lord GOD, have said to me, ‘Buy the field for money and get witnesses’--though the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.” (32:24-25)

We should take note, though, that the request for understanding is the last verse, and only the last verse of the prayer. Here is how Jeremiah begins:

“Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who has made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you. You show steadfast love to thousands…” (32:17-18)

For seven verses, Jeremiah extols God, lists his qualities and greatness, and then gets to his request. He begins by noting that God is the creator of the universe. What that means is that God created not only the heavens and the earth, but he created Jeremiah as well and knows his beginning from his end. Then the prophet praises God for his enduring love to all people. Even in the midst of strife and tumult, God loves his people and he loves Jeremiah.

Through the rest of the prayer Jeremiah praises God as all knowing, for being all powerful, and for being the great History Maker. If God was able to arrange the Exodus from Egypt, certainly he can handle this matter of the Babylonians.

When Jeremiah came to God with a request, his prayer was seven parts praise and one part petition. By focusing his prayer time on God’s greatness and goodness, he put his focus on the important thing-on God instead of his confusion. It has been said that good prayer requires good theology. If we do not know who our God is, then to whom do we pray? If our prayers are small and anemic, it might be because our God is small and anemic.

Begin your prayers this week by focusing your attention on God in all his splendor and love, spend time there before you move on to your supplication, and see if it doesn’t change your perspective and maybe even your situation.

An Act of Hope: Jeremiah 32:1-15

Jeremiah 32:1-15

If you know just a handful of stories or verses from Jeremiah, chances are you know a little of this narrative in which Jeremiah buys a field. As the chapter opens, we join Jeremiah “shut up in the court of the guard” (vs. 2)-he was in jail. The story of his inprisonment is detailed in chapters 37 and 38, but in short, he continued to speak God’s word thereby irritating king Zedekiah and receiving the punishment of being thrown into prison.

While there, God visits him and warns him of his visiting cousin, Hanamel, who is on his way to sell Jeremiah a piece of the family’s property.

Though the basic story of chapter 32 is fairly familiar, its impact does not have its full force until we pay attention to the setting of this transaction. First of all, the visitor is a relative. We last saw Jeremiah’s family in chapters 11 and 12 when Jeremiah learns of their plot to kill him, so it is doubtful that Hanamel has come to Jeremiah out of the kindness of his heart-he needs to make a buck and run. Second, the Babylonians are camped on the land Hanamel wants to sell. The family farm is swarming with angry Chaldeans who are killing and capturing Judeans. Thirdly, Jeremiah is keenly away of the coming exile and the 70 year period in which this piece of land is going to be a desolate waste. And finally, Jeremiah is a condemned man in prison. Even if the land is useful, it is doubtful Jeremiah will ever see it and make use of it.

So what does Jeremiah do?

“And I bought the field at Anathoth from Hanamel my cousin, and weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver.” (vs. 9)

Though this is likely the worst real estate transaction in the OT, Jeremiah buys the field. Another detail is significant. Jeremiah goes through the entire legal rigor necessary for this kind of contract and gives the documents to Baruch to be preserved. Why does Jeremiah buy the field and why does he preserve the documents? The answers are the message.

“For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought on this land.” (vs. 15)

Jeremiah does not buy the land for its immediate promise or investment potential, but in faith hoping in God’s word that the land will again be populated and fruitful. Jeremiah believed God was powerful enough to accomplish His word and he acted on it. This transaction literally makes no sense unless you truly believe the word of God.

In commenting on this story, Eugene Peterson said that Christian hope is an act. If we hope in God, the actions of our lives-the insignificant and the significant-will reflect our hope that God will accomplish His word. Jeremiah’s act of hope was for his fellow Judean prisoners (vs. 12), his future descendants who would again settle on this very piece of property, and for us who need to learn what it means to live a life of hope in God.

One of my favorite quotes goes like this, “Live your life in such a way that it makes no sense apart from the existence of God.” Jeremiah’s purchase of the land makes absolutely no sense unless God exists and is able to fulfill His promises to His people.

Does my life reflect that kind of hope? Is it the case that the only way to explain my life and my choices is to conclude that God exists and that He is faithful?

The New Covenant: Jeremiah 31:21-40

Jeremiah 31:21-40

Covenants were made to be broken. At least you would think that was the case if you tracked the history of all the covenants God established in the Old Testament. Each covenant’s basic structure is, “I, God, will do X and you, human, will do Y.” From Adam to Moses, when a covenant is broken, it is always broken in the same way-people fail. So what good will it do to establish a new covenant? What is the point in God recreating a new covenant when every one so far has fallen to pieces?

Well, the covenant promised in Jeremiah 31 is not only new, it is different from the others. We begin to get this sense in 31:22 where Jeremiah says:

“For the Lord has created a new thing on the earth: a woman encircles a man.”

Jeremiah chose the word for “created” that first appears in Genesis 1:1. This is the sense of “create” in which something completely new happens that only God is able to enact. As for a woman encircling a man, though it is a cryptic phrase it most likely refers to God’s people clinging onto God and not letting go. If they have let go every time in the past, then this truly is a new thing.

In what is likely the theological highlight of Jeremiah, and arguably the theological high point in the OT, Jeremiah declares the new covenant:

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.” (31:31)

In this brief passage in verses 31-34, this new covenant is described in powerful and world-changing language. First, under the new covenant, there is deep reconciliation. God’s covenant is with Israel and Judah-two brother nations who split apart centuries before in violent and bloody conflict. This same theme is picked up in several places in the New Testament (Latin for “New Covenant”) including Galatians chapter 3:

“But now that faith has come…in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (vs. 25-28)

Second, there is deep regeneration. God will write his law on their hearts. Jeremiah has already told us what is currently written on our hearts in 17:1 where he remarks that sin and rebellion are like stone tablets within us.

Third there is a deep act of intimacy. We will all know God and no one will need to teach his neighbor about him. Instead of needing to be reminded of God on a regular and daily basis, we will enjoy such intimacy with him that we will be continually in His presence.

Fourthly, there is a deep satisfaction for sins and this is where we realize what has changed so dramatically with this new covenant. In his last conversation with his disciples, Jesus speaks of his death and resurrection and says:

“This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

What is so new about this covenant is that it is not between God and humanity-it is between God and Christ. This covenant cannot be broken by my sin and rebellion; I am not on pins and needles waiting for the other shoe to drop. I am the blessed and undeserving recipient of the benefits of a covenant between two other parties. Christ fulfilled this covenant and sits at the right hand of God waiting his reward. You and I partake in this unlimited forgiveness and grace through the loving act of a merciful God who has created something new upon the earth.

Suffering and Despair: Jer 31

Jeremiah 31:15-20

Many times we know segments of Old Testament Scripture because of their usage in the New. When we read Jeremiah 31:15, it rings familiar in our ears, but probably because of where it is in the book of Matthew. Well, Jeremiah is the first place we encounter this well-known passage and he has something particular to communicate to us. This part of his dream (vs. 26) begins:

Thus says the LORD:
"A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are no more."

Rachel refers to the beloved wife of Jacob, and the mother of two children-Joseph and Benjamin. As the mother of Joseph, her appearance here is significant for being the matriarch of Joseph’s two children Manasseh and Ephraim. These two tribes become the dominant two in the northern kingdom of Israel by the time they are taken into captivity by Assyria. By telling us he hears Rachel weeping for her children, Jeremiah is referring to how long-gone and dispersed the northern kingdom of Israel had become in the last two hundred years. Literally, only God knows where her children are.

Ramah is a geographical location just north of Bethlehem significant for being the place where Rachel gave birth to Benjamin, died as a result, and was buried. Jeremiah, in this dream, hears Rachel mourning from her grave for her lost children.

But there is more to Ramah than its historical significance for Jeremiah. In Jeremiah 40:1 we read that he is taken captive by the conquering Babylonians and taken to the way station for exiles in Ramah. Ramah, for Jeremiah’s contemporaries, was one of those places where you knew for sure the effects of the siege warfare and famine. Here exiles are processed and learn for sure their family members are dead or gone and that their lives are about to be forcibly changed forever. Jeremiah did not just hear Rachel from the grave, he stood next to grieving mothers who had their children ripped from their arms and would not be consoled.

These are the images Matthew calls to mind in chapter 2 verses 16-18 when Herod slaughters all the male children in Bethlehem 2 years old and younger. But NT authors rarely refer to just a single OT verse when they quote OT passages. Matthew, though he hears the weeping, also hears something else-he hears the rest of the passage in Jeremiah beginning with verses 16 and 17:

Thus says the LORD:
"Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,…
There is hope for your future,
declares the LORD.

When the Messiah was born, a great slaughter ensued because of an evil king, but the Messiah was born. And this Messiah would bring light and life to all, including the Bethlehem infants.

Scripture recognizes and validates the reality and the depth of suffering and evil. Scripture allows us to grieve and mourn when necessary and appropriate. But Scripture does not let us stay there; we are not to despair of all hope. Suffering is real, but is it never the last word. The Puritan Matthew Henry said, “we can mourn, but we cannot mummer.”

In Anne of Green Gables, Anne asked Cuthbert this question, “Can’t you even imagine you’re in the depths of despair?” The wise Cuthbert responded, “No I cannot. To despair is to turn your back on God.”

And I Will Be Your God: Jeremiah 30-31

Jeremiah 30:18-31:14

After 29 chapters of warning and judgment, we now find ourselves in the middle of a section of Jeremiah where God promises blessing and wholeness for His people. Between chapters 30 and 31, the promised graces bestowed upon Judah and Israel are a redemption of the people’s behavior before the exile, and what was lost in the exile. Over and over, the curse is turned around as God blesses His people. In what might be the most radical of these reversals, God says:

“Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel!” (31:4)

Keep in mind that for centuries, God has warned an adulterous people that their whoring after other gods would lead to their corruption and their destruction. Israel was anything but a virgin.

But that is exactly how deep the forgiveness of God goes. Israel was not suddenly worthy of this renewed status-God bestowed it upon them in an act of love that we can only vaguely comprehend. A wicked and adulterous people received the grace and forgiveness of God, returned to their homeland, and became the favored and forgiven people of God once more. That same grace is available to each and every sinner while they are still sinners.

As a powerful commentary on the reversal of the curse, God says:

“And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.” (30:22)

The phrase, “I will be your God” becomes a refrain for not only Jeremiah but for another prophet during the exile as well. In 36:24-31 Ezekiel says:

“You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. And I will deliver you from all uncleanness.”

In this passage especially, the curse is reversed in terms of not only the specific sins and consequences perpetrated and suffered by Israel and Judah, but on a much deeper level as well. A deliverance from “all uncleanness” is a promise to not only modify my behavior, but to modify my desires as well.

Though I may not always commit certain sins, I may certainly be drawn to them. If I am smart I modify my actions and routines in order to avoid situations that put me in a position of temptation. That is behavior modification, and it is good as far as it goes. But the work of the Spirit in my life wants to go deeper.

Imagine a situation in which your natural inclinations-your natural and instinctual responses-are Christ-like. In some scenario in which you might have been tempted to rebel in the past, rebellion now actually cuts against the grain of your desires. In this position, it is hard to sin and easy to be Christ-like.

This is much of what the Spirit is at work at in my life, as I become one of the people of God and learn how to live like God has become my God. With the Spirit resident in my life, I have a taste of that final, blessed moment when we will see God face-to-face and the curse will be completely gone. What Jeremiah promised comes to fruition in Revelation 21:3-4:

“Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning or crying or pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Fear Not: Jeremiah 30:1-17

Jeremiah 30:1-17

This chapter begins a very distinct section within Jeremiah sometimes called “The Book of Consolation.”  There have been glimmers of hope so far in his book, but here it hits the surface and become the focus of attention.  In the next four chapters, Jeremiah concentrates on the hope in store for God’s people, even though they find themselves in exile.

It is worthwhile to note that as the chapter opens, Jeremiah addresses this section to both Judah and Israel.  This is the first substantial reference to the long-gone northern kingdom.  The idea is that both Israel and Judah are now in the same condition-entirely decimated as a result of exile-and that God’s promise of hope applies to all His people.  Israel, though long gone into Assyria, has not been forgotten by God.

Jeremiah, though, sees the turmoil and difficulty the nation is currently in.  He sees the best, brightest and strongest doubled over in pain as if they were women in labor: “Ask now, and see, can a man bear a child? Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor? Why has every face turned pale?” (vs. 6)   When women go through labor they bring forth life, but when Judah’s warriors went through their labor, it only produced death and destruction.

But that is not the whole story.  God will rescue His people from their captivity in order to return them to their homeland to serve Him.  As with the prophecy of the yoke in chapter 28, God’s people will either be slaves to their sin, or will willingly serve their God.

Then Jeremiah says, “fear not.” (vs. 10)  The command, “fear not” is the most repeated command in all of Scripture.  Of everything commanded by God, the prophets, the apostles, angels, and others, “fear not” shows up more often than anything else.  This communicates at least two very important things.  First, the most common human condition is something like fear and anxiety.  And second, it is the emotion or reaction to life that is least warranted for a follower of Christ.

God just doesn’t give us the command without any support behind it, however.  Later in this little section, He tells us why we should not be afraid.  He says in verse 11, “For I am with you to save you.”  “I am with you”: those have to be the four most encouraging words in Scripture.

They show up at pivotal points in the lives of God’s people.  When Jacob was fleeing from Esau to only God knows where, God showed up in the wilderness and told Jacob that He was with him wherever he went (Gen. 28:15).  When Moses stood before the burning bush full of excuses, God told him that He was with him (Ex. 3:12).  After Moses died over a million people stood on the edge of the Promised Land.  The burden of their futures fell on one man, Joshua, and what do you think God’s message was to him? (Joshua 1:9)  When Mary and Joseph faced a complicated and problematic social situation with the birth of their child, what did the angel tell them to name him?  His name was Immanuel-God was with Mary and Joseph.

And when the disciple Matthew reflected on his life with Jesus and composed his book-when he arranged the beginning, middle and end, and included the stories and discussions he wanted us to hear-what was the last thing he wanted you to hear Jesus say?  “And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

God With Us-In Exile: Jer 29

Jeremiah 29

Exile can’t be easy.  Different landscapes, different languages and accents, different customs and food, and foreign sights and sounds can add to a sense of displacement and anxiety.  Add to that the fact that the people of Judah were forcibly removed from their homeland and family and taken to the homeland of a brutal dictator, and you have a recipe for cultural and personal destruction.

Here in chapter 29 Jeremiah sends a letter to the exiles to give them God’s word for the near future.  His address adds to the sense of devastation when he says, “to the surviving elders of the exile.” (vs. 1)  The fundamental message of the letter is straightforward if not surprising to the community in exile.  Keep in mind the message of the false prophets Jeremiah has been countering for years.  Recently, in chapter 28, we heard Hananiah promise a short and relatively pain-free exile.  Jeremiah predicted 70 years.

The message of the letter is that the exiles should settle in and sink roots in the area and the culture.  They should build houses, plant gardens, eat their harvest, and marry off their children; they should live as God’s people in a foreign land.  At the end of the chapter, Shemaiah writes back to the priest in charge of the Temple in Jerusalem and tells him he should do something about this troublemaker, Jeremiah.  Shemaiah is bothered by the long exile message, and intends to get rid of the messenger.

But Jeremiah’s message is clear-God will be with His people while they are in exile, not by taking them out of exile.  His plan for them is that they live as His people in a foreign and pagan culture.

Into this context comes possibly the best-known verse in Jeremiah.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (vs. 11)

Many people have memorized this verse for personal edification and comfort, and it is true that God does pay this kind of personal attention to us.  But two things should be understood about what Jeremiah means with this verse.  First, the application is primarily corporate.  God’s promise for a future and a hope is for the whole nation 70 years from now.  This means that there are exiles hearing this promise that will not live to see the day it comes to pass.  But that does not leave them out of God’s pledge.  If they build a godly culture in Babylon, then there will be a faithful and strong remnant that will return to rebuild the Judean culture and religion after they are gone.

Secondly, it is a promise to people who are in exile and who will be in exile for a while.  It is not a promise of immediate removal from exile, but of God’s faithful presence with believers who turn their entire attention and being upon Him in the midst of it all.  He tells them:

…you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me. When you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you…(vss. 12-14)

God is with me even now.  It matters not how deep my sorrow or confusion, and it matters not how vexing my situation.  All I need to do is turn myself to Him and seek after Him with all my will, intellect, emotions, and desires-everything.  Then, He will be found by me.

Reconciliation with God: Jeremiah 28

Jeremiah 28


More than once Jeremiah comes into conflict with false prophets.  Most times they are anonymous, but here we meet one in particular who is unhappy with Jeremiah’s message in chapter 27.  There Jeremiah wore an oxen yoke before the king and the region’s ambassadors to invite them to join him in submission to Nebuchadnezzar.

As chapter 28 opens, we should keep in mind that several weeks, if not months, have passed.  Jeremiah is still wearing the yoke, and it gets to Hananiah.  He meets Jeremiah in the Temple court and confronts him with his own message.  In the course of two verses, 3 and 4, he contradicts all the major points in Jeremiah’s message from the last few chapters.  Hananiah is tired of the bothersome prophet and he is tired of the yoke.  Hananiah’s next move is to take the yoke from Jeremiah’s neck and smash it to pieces (vs. 10-11).

The first thing that strikes me about this confrontation is the difference between Hananiah and Jeremiah.  If all we had of this book was the first two-thirds of this chapter, it would be hard to tell God’s true prophet from the false prophet.  They both have prophetic names, they both sound alike in their proclamations, and they both make use of the yoke-the symbolic tool.  The difference, though possibly elusive, is crucial and profound.

Part of Jeremiah’s response to him is a history and theology lesson wrapped up in a couple of short verses.  Here is how the Message puts parts of verses 7-9:

But listen to me, listen closely. Listen to what I tell both you and all the people here today: The old prophets, the ones before our time, preached judgment against many countries and kingdoms, warning of war and disaster and plague. So any prophet who preaches that everything is just fine and there's nothing to worry about stands out like a sore thumb.

Jeremiah reminds him that the role of prophet is to warn people of their rebellious behavior, and that the prophet preaching only “peace and safety” is the odd man out.  As a result of such behavior, we know that the prophet has at the core of their message a theme of turning away from sin and toward God.

In a way, Hananiah’s message is actually accurate.  All the things he says God will do, God eventually does.  All Hananiah gets wrong is the timing and the process.  He preaches a message of prosperity and blessing without outlay; a message of success without responsibility; a message of reconciliation without repentance.

On the other hand, Jeremiah’s message has been clear.  God wanted a blessed and intense relationship with His people, but their behavior was driving a wedge between them.  If they repented and turned to Him, He would forgive and bless.  If they continued in their sin they would simply suffer the consequences.

Because of God’s great love and His initiation, we have a chance at that blessed and passionate relationship.  And just as with our meaningful relationships with other people, we sometimes need to examine our behavior and turn ourselves toward that person to reconcile.  Take advantage of what is available to you with God by laying aside all those empty and meaningless things that steal your soul and your relationship with Him all at the same time.

Bringing God's Kingdom to Bear: Jeremiah 26

Jeremiah 26

Jeremiah faced death. It wasn’t disease resulting from the Babylonian sieges, or threat to his life from the warfare that seemed to rage throughout his adult life; it was from the priests and false prophets of his day who took him to court in a capital case. In chapter 26, God has Jeremiah speak some pretty serious and devastating words over the Temple in Jerusalem:

Thus says the LORD: “If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, and to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have not listened, then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth.” (vs 4-6)

The allusion to Shiloh would have hit the priests right between the eyes. Shiloh was the first place the Arc of the Covenant was housed, and in a very real sense, the place where God was worshiped and where He dwelt. In standard fashion, however, the people rebelled against God, the Philistines attacked, Shiloh was destroyed, and the Arc was captured. (1 Samuel 1-4) The Temple was not safe because the Arc of the Covenant dwelt there.

The scene in chapter 26 turns into a courtroom drama. The priests and prophets bring a case of blasphemy against Jeremiah before the town judges. There are witnesses invoked and Jeremiah provides his own defense. His defense, by the way, is exactly the right one for this circumstance: “not guilty by reason of obedience.”

But most compelling to me is the precedent that is cited, and how it comes to the fore. The city officials recount the story of Micah the prophet and Hezekiah the king, and even quote Micah 3:12. In the story, God’s prophet speaks to Hezekiah what Jeremiah spoke to Jehoiakim. In Hezekiah’s case, he repents and God spares his people. The conclusion the officials draw is that the wise course of action would be to listen to Jeremiah and not put him to death.

I absolutely love what just happened. Jeremiah’s life was spared because the “people in the pews” knew their Scripture, were able to comprehend and apply it, and were even able to quote it. It wasn’t the priests or prophets who applied God’s word, it was the commoner, the individuals who were not professional theologians or spiritual leaders, but who had grown wise in their knowledge and application of Scripture who brought God’s kingdom to bear in a life-threatening situation.

In this context I think it is useful to ask a question. What do you need from God to know what He wants from you? Do you need a cloud-parting, thunder-clapping, audible voice 5 out of 7 days of the week? I know it would be nice, but it won’t happen.

The people we watch do God’s will in Jeremiah 26 knew God’s word, and thus, knew what God wanted them to do on that day. Rightly comprehending the Word of God is in a very real and deep sense rightly comprehending God’s will.

The Yoke of Christ: Jeremiah 27

Jeremiah 27

This chapter gives us another “illustrated prophecy” of Jeremiah’s to the rulers of his day. In this case, it involves not only the king of Judah, but the ambassadors of several small surrounding nations as well. And Jeremiah’s prop of choice this time is a piece of farm equipment-he enters the king’s chambers wearing a yoke meant for two large oxen. God never said being a prophet would be easy…or cool.

Jeremiah’s message is simple: surrender to the coming Babylonian army or suffer the consequences of a loosing battle. Notice that with this message, the illustration of the yoke is not one of impending doom and destruction-it is an invitation. The yoke is intended for two oxen, so there is one free opening in the yoke and Jeremiah invites the king and ambassadors to join him in willing submission to Nebuchadnezzar. In verse 8 he says:

But if any nation or kingdom will not serve this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, declares the LORD, until I have consumed it by his hand.

God has given the region to the Babylonians and there is nothing Zedekiah or the other nations can do to change that. They, however, feel differently. We know from the Babylonian’s own records that at this time they are facing battle on their eastern border, battle with the Syrian army, and an internal insurrection all at the same time. So it is not surprising that Zedekiah and the others feel confident of their chances to throw of the Babylonian yoke. Throw in the mixture the false prophets who are telling Zedekiah what he wants to hear, and he is sure there is a third way out of this situation.

But Jeremiah is persistent about his two options. Either Zedekiah goes with God and remains in his own land, or he takes his fate into his own hands and suffers the fortune of the looser in battle. (2 Kings 25 details Zedekiah’s rebellious choice and his fate worse than death.) Both choices are yokes, but one leads him to safety and the other to doom.

Paul has something similar to say about the choices before all of us in Romans 6:16-18.

Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Like Zedekiah we want to be in charge of our own destinies, to be absolutely autonomous. But also like Zedekiah we have only two choices set before us. Either we enslave ourselves to our own shortcomings, passions and sins, or we willingly take on the yoke of Christ and open ourselves to abundance, grace, forgiveness, and life eternal. The autonomous choice is blindness and death; taking on the yoke of Christ is life more abundantly. Christ spoke to his disciples saying this,

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:29-30

Cup of Wrath Cup of Grace: Jeremiah 25

“Cup of Wrath, Cup of Grace”

Jeremiah 25:15-38

In this passage we observe a kind of parade of nations as God prophecies through Jeremiah the judgment that will come upon not only Judah, but on all the surrounding nations and finally Babylon itself.

Except for a couple of points of interest, this passage reads like a typical judgment chapter in the Old Testament prophets, so it is tempting to pass on its significance.  First of all, it goes to great lengths to describe not only God’s heavy judgment, but the depth of sin as well.  We learn, through the weight of the judgment how weighty sin is: the punishment fits the crime, so to speak.  It is a lesson throughout the book of Jeremiah that judgment is neither arbitrary nor pleasant for God.  It is always the just response to rebellion after God has pleaded with His people over and over to repent.

Secondly, Jeremiah uses the image of a cup of wrath.  A fairly common image for the Old Testament prophets, it is designed to give us an image of a goblet filled to the brim and overflowing with wine.  Jeremiah is vivid in his description of this cup.  He says:

16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I am sending among them.

and…

27 Drink, be drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of the sword I am sending among you.

These are images, not of someone who has had “one too many,” but of something akin to alcohol poisoning.  The rebellious decisions made by these people have destroyed them.

This, however, is not all there is to be said about this cup or wrath.  Isaiah 51:17-23 also describes this time in history for Judah with the same image.  But near the end something drastic and unexpected is recorded.

22 Thus says you Lord, the Lord, your God who pleads the cause of his people: “Behold, I have taken from your hand the cup of staggering; the bowl of my wrath you shall drink no more…”

How is it the cup is simply taken away from sinful and rebellious people?  The answer lies in a prayer spoken by Jesus moments before his trial and crucifixion.  In Matthew 26:39 He prays, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”  You see, Jesus saw this cup of wrath, being poured out on Him, and shook.  Pastor Philip G. Ryken says of this moment, “But were we to watch and pray, to kneel beside our Savior in the grass, to hear his cries of anguish, and to see the bloody sweat upon his brow, then we would see the fearfulness of God’s wrath.  And then we would know the sinfulness of our sin.”

Jesus has not only taken away this cup of wrath, He has provided a cup of a new relationship, the one provided by his blood shed on the cross.  This is a cup of forgiveness and grace, of relationship with the God of the universe Himself.  The English poet George Herbert saw this truth and wrote in his “The Agony”:

Love is that liquor sweet and most divine
Which my God feels as blood; but I, as wine.

He Purchased the Refuse: Jer 19

Jeremiah 19

This chapter closes out the image Jeremiah has been using since the beginning of chapter 18: the Potter and the clay. Whereas we watched the potter remake wet clay in the last scene, here Jeremiah is commanded to buy a finished pot, take it to the gate where trash was dumped, and smash it into a pile of useless pieces. The wet clay was able to be remade-this pile of pottery shards is worthless.

God tells Jeremiah to take several of the local religious and civic leaders to the Potsherd Gate overlooking the Valley of Hinnom. Hinnom shows up several times in the Old Testament, and thought its name is a simple family name, its reputation becomes something rather singular. This is the city garbage dump. It is not only where the potters would dump their cracked pots, but also where the city would burn the bodies of criminals and diseased animals. Additionally, and maybe ironically, over time Hinnom becomes a locus for pagan worship and idolatry. Topheth, also mentioned in this passage, is probably the specific location in Hinnom where most of the idol worship took place.

And this was not your garden-variety idol worship. This was a place of infant sacrifice. Jeremiah mentions that, “they have filled this place with the blood of innocents…[and have burned] their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal.” (vs. 4-5) These idols to Baal were made of iron and were built in such a way that the arms of the idol were extended over a fire at its feet so that the arms would become hot as brands. Then the children were placed on the arms as sacrifices to false gods.

Before we are too quick to condemn them, our culture is not all that different. What we lack in overt brutality, we make up for in well honed subtly. We still crush the skulls of infants and dismember them in worship to the gods of convenience, work, money, self, and so on. We just do it now in a way that placates our sensibilities.

Though Jeremiah’s parable here is dark and brutal, and speaks of Judah’s imminent demise, it is part of a larger thread in Scripture-a thread of redemption. In Matthew 27, Judas is wracked with guilt over his betrayal of Jesus and returns the blood money to the chief priests in the Temple. They don’t know what to do with the money, so they buy the potter’s field as a burial ground-the same field where Jeremiah shattered a pot almost 600 years earlier. And then in John 18, Jesus is arrested to be crucified in the Valley of Kidron-the NT name for what we know as the Valley of Hinnom. When Jesus was arrested, he could probably look up and see where Jeremiah had stood announcing doom.

In a very real way, the first thing purchased with the blood of Christ was the refuse-the broken and useless shards that no one else wanted or had any use for. What was a lost cause was redeemed-bought back for God’s purposes-as the cross of Jesus Christ.

We often have shards in our lives-those moments in our past that seem insurmountable and unforgivable. Or they may be broken pieces to our lives today that seem too painful, confusing, frustrating or useless to be of any good. Take heart-what seems to be a garbage heap of uselessness was purchased as something valuable and meaningful to Jesus Christ.

Encountering Jesus: Matthew 2

Matthew 2:1-12

This advent season, we are going to approach the Christmas story through the lenses of the other people and characters involved.  There is a lot to learn in how people encountered the birth of Jesus Christ.

In the account of Jesus’ birth in Matthew chapter two, we have three distinct groups or individuals mentioned besides Mary and Joseph.  First, we encounter the Magi from the east.  There is a lot of mystery surrounding these men, and that may actually lead us to some interesting conclusions about their relationship to Jesus.  All we know for sure is that they come from the east, they were likely Chaldean or Arabian by descent, and that they were aware of what was happening in the birth of Jesus Christ.  The journey they endured took a significant amount of effort and time.  We learn later in chapter 2 that Herod is worried about baby boys at and under the age of two, so their journey brought them to Bethlehem up to two years after Jesus’ birth.

The second group we read about is often overlooked in the story-the scribes and priests.  When Herod hears of the Magi’s visit, he is concerned about the birth of a king and asks the experts in the Law where the Messiah is to be born.  Note two things about their reaction to the question.  First, they know exactly where he is to be born.  Second, they don’t go.

And thirdly, Herod provides a fascinating and tragic story.  Historically, we know this Herod died a suspicious and hated ruler.  By the time of his death he had assassinated at least three of his own sons, several wives, many beloved local tribal and political leaders, and several hundred baby boys in Bethlehem.

Observing Herod, we have our first lesson in encountering Christ.  Herod reacted in fear and hatred.  Ironically, Herod understood the Kingship of Jesus better than most Christians do.  He knew that if this child were to grow to be King, his power and sovereignty were gone.  The birth of Jesus meant he was no longer King.  Likewise, the birth of Jesus means I am no longer the sovereign of my own soul-Jesus, and no one else, is King.

Encountering Jesus means not just coming to terms with my Savior, Redeemer, and Friend, but with my Lord and my King as well.

The priests and scribes reacted with distracted apathy.  They knew exactly where, Herod had given them the when, but they made no attempt to make their way to the Messiah.  Their preoccupation with their religiosity blinded them to THE moment in their nation’s history.  There is nothing wrong with religious ritual, but it is intended to be a means to Christ, and not an end in itself.

Our religious observance should be a tool in the hands of God to help us encounter Jesus Christ.  Once it becomes an end in itself, it becomes a blinding idol.

I am going to use the phrase “spiritual endurance” to describe how the Magi encountered Christ.  They had no political, military, religious, or social investment or expectation in the birth of the Messiah.  They did not journey in order to find their next political savior.  They endured their long and arduous journey to do nothing but worship.  They did not ask a thing, demand a thing, and they did not leave with a thing.  They endured the journey to do nothing but present gifts to a baby-to worship the King.

What am I willing to endure just to worship?  I am typically more ready to endure in order to ask, expect or even demand of Jesus, but can I be like the Magi and endure all time and hardship to do nothing but worship my King?

Contagious Worship: Jeremiah 17:26-27

Jeremiah 17:26-27

At the tail end of a passage in which God teaches on the topic of keeping and breaking the Sabbath, there is a final blessing added to the community that faithfully keeps it. Here God promises that if the people of God worship Him the way He ought to be worshiped, people will come from the surrounding nations to worship with them.

26And people shall come from the cities of Judah and the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the Shephelah, from the hill country, and from the Negeb, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and frankincense, and bringing thank offerings to the house of the LORD.

The problem Judah has with surrounding nations at this time is not that they are being ignored, but that they are flocking to Jerusalem to destroy them. Jeremiah has made it clear time and time again that Judah has turned its back against God, and that foreign nations are coming to enact judgment on their sins.

As we noted in the previous section, God uses some surprising language regarding the Sabbath. It is the kind of language we would expect to be connected with murder or idolatry. But nonetheless, this rather strong language applies to the keeping and the breaking of the Sabbath. Ultimately, keeping the Sabbath is an act of outward faithfulness expressing an inward disposition of worship and sanctification. We keep the Sabbath-we observe days and times of worship-because we are willing to prioritize our lives around God, and not vise versa. We stop the routine of our week, take ourselves someplace other than work, school, or any of our other normal destinations, and take ourselves to worship.

Judah was failing to worship on the Sabbath. According to scholars, the Sabbath command was unique among the ancient Jews. In fact, the only other culture to pick up on the same notion is the New Testament Church. The Sabbath made the Judean culture different, but different in such a way as to be a symbol of God’s lordship. Without the Sabbath, and by conducting commerce on the day of rest, Judah became just like any other culture.

When we take our time and energy to worship, we make ourselves different. And we are different in a way that points to the lordship of Christ. Some say sticking out might be a bad thing-it might attract the wrong kind of attention or repel people from the church. But that is not what God promised. He promised that proper, enthusiastic, whole-hearted worship would draw the nations in.

People were born to worship. The church of Jesus Christ should be able to point them to the one worthy object of worship; our worship can be and should be contagious. May we learn to lift up Christ and allow Him to draw all people to Himself.

Clearing a Path: Jeremiah 17:19-27

Jeremiah 17:19-27

This little section of Jeremiah contains some teaching and warning about a very specific violation: the breaking of the Sabbath. Of the Ten Commandments, the Sabbath law is maybe the most difficult for us to wrap our lives around, and the one we might be most inclined to think no longer applies to us. But we must be careful with such inclinations. In the Old Testament we discover that the Sabbath is a pervasive reality in the life of the observant Jew. And in the New Testament, it is an assumed observance amongst Christians. The biblical teaching about the Sabbath begins in Genesis 1 and wraps up in Revelation 22; it is a thread throughout literally the whole Bible.

So what does Jeremiah have to tell us about the Sabbath? Here, Jeremiah confronts a culture that has become accustomed to working and bearing burdens on the one day God instituted for rest. And the warning is introduced by some pretty stark language-the kind we might expect when God wants to talk about idolatry or murder.

21. Take care for the sake of your lives, and do not bear a burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. 22. And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath or do any work, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers.

When God begins to promise the blessings attached to Sabbath observance, the first one listed is that the rightful kings will be able to come in and out of the gate. The imagery is crucial. As long as there is clutter in the streets and the gate the king cannot enter, but if the clutter is cleared, the king will freely come and go.

24. But if you listen to me, declares the LORD, and bring in no burden by the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but keep the Sabbath day holy and do no work on it, 25. then there shall enter by the gates of this city kings and princes who sit on the throne of David,…

The Sabbath is ultimately about setting ourselves aside from the rest of the world and focusing our time and attention on God. It is ultimately about worship and sanctification. We deliberately take our time and our energy and clear a path for God to reenter our hearts and minds. The imagery used by Jeremiah says this very thing: if the streets of the city are full of wrongful clutter, the king cannot come and go. But if the people properly worship God and remove the market from the streets on the Sabbath, the rightful king will reign.

Ours is a cluttered life. We are constantly plugged-in and we are constantly in touch with just about any part of the outside world through 24/7 media, cell phones, and ubiquitous access to the World Wide Web. Each of these vies for our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical attention. For us, then, a Sabbath act of worship will likely involve the deliberate clearing of the clutter so the King can come and go.

We need to take purposeful and effective steps to disconnect ourselves from the mindless flotsam we live in. So how can we, in a culture so different from the ancient Jewish culture, affect Sabbath in our lives? I have three suggestions, and they may be ones you have heard before.

First, we should pay attention to prayer in our lives. Instead of praying out of habit or circumstantial compulsion, we need to pray deliberately. It can and should act as divine water washing out the debris in our hearts and minds. Secondly, Scripture reading is reorientation. Being so inundated with the pagan culture’s worldview, reading Scripture should help reorient us toward God’s point of view. And thirdly, corporate worship is a whole-body/soul experience in which we take our time, our mental and emotional energy, and we worship God with brothers and sisters in Christ.

Are the pathways in your heart and mind filled with the kind of flotsam and jetsam that hinders the coming of your King? Do you hear the blessing promised by God for clearing out the clutter and allowing Him to enter? May we pay more attention to the Sabbath and the kind of relationship with our Lord it promises.