Monday, February 17, 2014

Judah's Refusal was Irrational from Jeremiah 8:4-7

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/17/2014 9:53 AM
My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  False Prophets:  the Law
Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Jer. 8:4-7
            Message of the verses:  As I mentioned in our last SD we move into the second main point from Dr. Wiersbe’s outline and commentary on the book of Jeremiah and we will be looking at the first sub-point under that second main point in today’s SD.
            In the last section that we studied we looked at the peoples false reasons why thought that God was not going to destroy Jerusalem and that reason was because the temple was there in Jerusalem and their thoughts were that God could not have His temple destroyed.  Jeremiah dealt with that issue, and now he move on to speaking out against the false prophets who always seemed to give him trouble as we will see as we continue on into his writings.  Jeremiah’s entire proclamation in this second main section centers one just one major question:  “Why did the nation not turn back to God?”  Dr. Wiersbe writes “In answering the question, Jeremiah dealt with three aspects of the people’s stubborn refusal to obey God.”
            Their Refusal was Irrational (Jer. 8:4-7):  “4 "You shall say to them, ’Thus says the LORD, "Do men fall and not get up again? Does one turn away and not repent? 5 “Why then has this people, Jerusalem, Turned away in continual apostasy? They hold fast to deceit, They refuse to return. 6 “I have listened and heard, They have spoken what is not right; No man repented of his wickedness, Saying, ’What have I done?’ Everyone turned to his course, Like a horse charging into the battle. 7 “Even the stork in the sky Knows her seasons; And the turtledove and the swift and the thrush Observe the time of their migration; But My people do not know The ordinance of the LORD.
            We can see that Jeremiah asks three questions in this short section of Scripture and the people ask one question.  Jeremiah is using analogies that come from human life and nature to try and make these people understand the point he is making.  When people fall down don’t they try and get back up?  If men are going on a journey and find out they are on the wrong path don’t they turn around to get onto the right path?  These are questions that are not hard to get an answer from, yet Judah did not understand or would not understand what Jeremiah is asking them.  These questions have to do with human situations, but the real question he is asking is about eternal life and if people cannot answer these simple questions about human life they will not be willing to answer the matters about eternal life which have much more consequences if given the wrong answer. 
            Jeremiah says that these people were like horses ridding into battle without not understanding the dangers that they were facing.  Jeremiah also brings up the migration of the birds and thus is insinuating that the people of Judah do not have the sense that God gave to the birds.  What God gave to the birds was far less that what he gave man for man was created in the image of God, while the birds only had instant.  I believe that there is a reason for why the people of Judah did not understand the matters of eternal life and also did not understand the dangerous situation that they were in and one of the reasons is that they were believing the false prophets and were not trying to understand the Word of God which they had access to.  In the book of Acts we find that after Paul visited the city of Thessalonica he move on to the city of Berea and we find out that the people of Berea studied the Scriptures to see whether or not Paul was telling them the truth, and this is something that the people of Judah should have done, but did not do.
            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Studying the Scriptures is something that every believer should do for this is surely one of the ways that the Holy Spirit can speak to us so that we can find out what He wants to do in our life.
My Steps of Faith for Today:  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Memory verses for the week:  Philippians 2:5-6
5.  Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 Who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Those who hear his teaching but do not do them” (Matthew 7:26).
Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor.’”
Answer in our next SD.

2/17/2014 10:30 AM     

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