DID YOU REALLY MEAN IT?
Jeremiah 42 and 43 present an event related to
Judah’s Babylonian captivity.
Judah had been carried away to Babylon.
All that were left in Judah were a small group of the poor that
did not perish, nor were carried away (Jeremiah 52:16, 39:10).
Jeremiah remained in Jerusalem and spoke for the LORD.
On the recorded occasion we find some of the leaders come to
Jeremiah and ask him to inquire of the Lord as to what they should do
(Jeremiah 42:2-3). Jeremiah
offers to pray for them and reveal what the LORD says. (4).
Vs. 5-6, So they said to Jeremiah, “Let the Lord be a true and faithful witness
between us, if we do not do according to everything which the Lord your
God sends us by you. Whether it is pleasing or displeasing, we will obey
the voice of the Lord our God to whom we send you, that it may be well
with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.”
After ten days, Jeremiah has an answer.
They are told to stay in the Land and submit to the king of
Babylon and they would be taken care of and protected by the LORD.
In vs. 12-18 we find a warning if they fail to obey the LORD and
choose to go to Egypt thinking they would find safety there, that they
would face the very things they feared and perish by sword, famine and
pestilence, and that none would escape.
Jeremiah further warns them that they were hypocrites in their
hearts when they came to him to inquire of the LORD, and that they were
not going to obey, therefore they would die in the place they would go
(vs. 19-22).
When Jeremiah finishes speaking these words, the
leaders say to him, “You speak
falsely” and accused him of scheming to deliver them into the hands
of the Babylonians (43:2-3).
They went to Tahpanhes and took Jeremiah with them (43:5-6).
In Egypt, the LORD speaks to them through Jeremiah telling them
that Egypt will fall and they will perish at the hands of Babylon.
After some more words of warning
from Egypt (ch. 44), sadly we do not hear from Jeremiah again, nor of
those who went to Egypt. (NOTE:
The book of Jeremiah is not written in chronological order.
Chapters 45-52 address judgment against other nations, including
Egypt, as well as a description of Jerusalem when it finally fell to
Babylon.)
There are many lessons we can learn from this
account. But here we focus briefly on one.
Do we really mean what we say?
Certainly, in our dealings with others, we must do this.
Jesus Himself taught, “Let your ‘yes’ be ‘yes’, and your ‘no’ be
‘no.’” (Matthew 5:37)
When we make a commitment, to what degree will be go to keep it?
Psalm 15:4, in describing one who may abide in the tabernacle of
the Lord (i.e. in His presence), he is one who honors those who fears
the LORD, and “He who swears to
his own hurt and does not change.”
This is certainly something to think about when we make promises
and commitments to others.
Surely at times, when we agree to help someone, things happen that might
hinder or delay us, BUT did we really mean it?
Do we ever make promises when deep down we have no intent on
helping? Or maybe, we agree
to help thinking everything will progress a certain way, but then things
happen making the task more difficult or requiring greater commitment
than anticipated. Or did we
say something, knowing full well we had no intention of honoring the
promise? How we respond to
our promises reveals a part of who we really are.
This equally applies to our commitment to God.
When one obeys the gospel, it needs to be with a realization that
you are surrendering your life to Him.
It is a promise that He will now be Lord of your life and putting
Him first governs everything that you do.
Romans 6 reminds us that when we were baptized we became a new
creation. Paul was dealing
with some who might reason that sinning was acceptable and maybe even a
good thing (causing God’s grace to abound more – Romans 5:20-6:1).
But Paul reminds them when they became Christians, they put to
death the old man and were baptized into Christ’s death.
They came up out of the water a new creation, raised to walk in
newness of life. (Romans 6:3-4, Colossians 3:9-11)
The rest of Romans 6 reminds us what it means to belong to Him.
We are His servants and must follow His will in all that we do.
He governs every relationship we are in and is a factor in every
decision we make. As Paul
said in Galatians 2:20, I have
been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives
in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the
Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
Yet how many take this vow seriously?
Do we genuinely mean that we now belong to Him, or are we like
the Israelites who came to Jeremiah, with hypocrisy in our hearts?
I fear that many come to God not genuinely committed.
Some are rash in their decision
(e.g. emotional) and not truly realizing the commitment necessary.
As Jesus taught in Luke 8:13-14 in the parable of the sower,
their heart is actually rocky ground or thorny ground, and at the first
sign of trouble they fall away, or they allow the cares of the world to
choke out the pure word of God.
Others come to Him with conditions.
“I will follow you IF…” and then whatever they want to keep
doing, is what they expect God to accept.
Still others come with agendas or insincerely (to please their
parents or friends, for social contacts, etc.)
These attitudes are very much like the hypocritical Israelites
who asked Jeremiah to pray and inquire for them.
What do we do when our call to serve God is NOT the
way we want it to be? That
is when the genuineness of our faith is revealed.
1 Peter 1:6-7, while dealing with how you deal with various
trials notes, that the genuineness
of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though
it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the
revelation of Jesus Christ.
Remember that faith is about trust, and the true character of
that trust is revealed when it is tested.
When you study, either by yourself or someone shows
you, if you find out you need to quit doing something you have always
done or enjoy doing, how will you respond?
Maybe someone comes to you with concerns about some sinful
behavior or attitude they have observed, how will you respond?
What if you discover you have NOT been doing something you ought
to do? How will you respond?
Sadly, there are some who after they become Christians and are
confronted with such things would rather accuse those who challenge
their sinful conduct than to conform to God’s will.
Just like those who came to Jeremiah, they are “hypocrites
in your hearts” (42:20).
So, when you became a Christian, did you really
mean it? Was there a genuine
conviction there? If so, how
are you doing now? Have you
fallen short in this? I believe
that most, (and I will give the benefit of the doubt) when they become
Christians, did not do so as
“hypocrites in your hearts”. They
wanted to do the right thing.
But did they weigh the commitment and consequences?
As time goes on and they meet these consequences, what happens?
How you respond when you hear of the need to change reveals who you
really are. AND you WILL
answer to Him for it (2 Corinthians 5:10).
Think about it, and if you find
something here that applies to you, then let me urge you to repent and
do again the first works (cf. Revelation 2:5).
TATJR