Sunday, February 2, 2014

God Searches for the Godly from Jeremiah 5:1-6.

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/2/2014 12:59 PM
My Worship Time                                         Focus:  Righteousness:  God Searches for the Godly
Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Jeremiah 5:1-6
            Message of the verses:  In today’s SD we begin the third main point from Dr. Wiersbe’s commentary on Jeremiah for the second chapter of that book.  Chapter five of Jeremiah is the first of what is called “action sermons,” sermons that are found not only in the book of Jeremiah, but also in the book of Ezekiel.  Dr. Wiersbe has an endnote on this subject that I believe is important enough for me to include it in this Spiritual Diary.  In this endnote he tells the names and where the action sermons are found in the book of Jeremiah:  “They are:  the search (Jer. 5:1-6), the soiled belt (13:1-11), the unwed prophet (16:1-9), the potter (18:1-12), the broken vessel (19:1-15), the yokes (27-28), the purchased field (32:1-15), the wine party (35:1-19), the stones (43:8-13), and the sunken scroll (51:59-64).  You also find ‘action sermons’ in the Book of Ezekiel.  Whenever people become so spiritually dull that they can’t hear and understand God’s Word, the Lord graciously stoops to their level and dramatizes the message.”
            Chapter five deals with four sins of the people of Jerusalem, and we will begin with the firth one at this time.
            Investigation:  they were ungodly (Jeremiah 5:1-6):  “1 "Roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, And look now and take note. And seek in her open squares, If you can find a man, If there is one who does justice, who seeks truth, Then I will pardon her. 2  "And although they say, ’As the LORD lives,’ Surely they swear falsely." 3  O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You have smitten them, But they did not weaken; You have consumed them, But they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to repent. 4 Then I said, "They are only the poor, They are foolish; For they do not know the way of the LORD Or the ordinance of their God. 5 “I will go to the great And will speak to them, For they know the way of the LORD And the ordinance of their God." But they too, with one accord, have broken the yoke And burst the bonds. 6 Therefore a lion from the forest will slay them, A wolf of the deserts will destroy them, A leopard is watching their cities. Everyone who goes out of them will be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many, Their apostasies are numerous.’”
            When you look at this short action sermon that Jeremiah has been given by God to give to those living in Jerusalem you may be reminded of what took place in the 18th chapter of Genesis when Abraham had two visitors come to have lunch with him.  One of these visitors was the second person of the godhead, the Lord Jesus Christ who had two angels with Him.  God was about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and He spoke to Abraham about it to which Abraham began to intercede for the cities because he knew that his nephew Lot was living there.  This sermon in our text today God is looking for a godly person living in Jerusalem. And could He find one righteous person living in Jerusalem? 
            Jeremiah could find no person among the poor people and believed that they had not been taught the ways of the Lord.  The rich and nobles knew the ways of the Lord, but turned aside from it for the yoke was too hard to carry.  After taking this survey Jeremiah found no one, what a sad outcome. 
            There was only one thing for God to do and that was allow the invaders to come and to invade the land, and that is what happened.
            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I don’t want to come to the point in my life when the ways of the Lord are too much of a burden for me to carry.  Jesus said that the way of destruction was wide, but the way of eternal life was narrow, and because it is narrow it is hard, but in the end it will be worth it all.
My Steps of Faith for Today:  Proverbs 3:5-6.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible Question:  “Perfect” (James 3:2).  “For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well.”  The word “Perfect” means the following:  “1) brought to its end, finished
2) wanting nothing necessary to completeness
3) perfect
4) that which is perfect
4a) consummate human integrity and virtue
4b) of men
4b1) full grown, adult, of full age, mature
Today’s Bible Question:  “How did Jesus say we may show our love for Him?”  
Answer in our next SD.

2/2/2014 2:06 PM

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