“In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit” (Judges 21:25). This verse gives a very telling description of Israel and the people of Israel prior to Saul becoming king. By the time of Jeremiah, the actions of the people really had not changed. Turning away from God, disobeying his word and living lives of sin had become the culture of the land.
As I wrote those three sentences, I was painfully aware of how similar our own nation has become to those days in Israel. Almost daily, the citizens of our country renounce some portion of the Bible as being outdated and no longer valid in our age of “enlightenment.” Tolerance has replaced obedience. Certainly we are moving rapidly to an “everyone did as he saw fit” mentality and culture.
With that in mind, this week’s study from Jeremiah becomes very important to us. My prayer is these verses in Jeremiah 8 and 9 would cause our own hearts to break over our own sin and for the lostness that dominates our nation.
One of the basic principles for a trial lawyer is never ask a question in open court you do not already know the answer to. In Jeremiah 8:4-7, God gives Jeremiah a series of questions to ask the people of Judah. They certainly are rhetorical in nature for God already knows the answers, but it is time for the people to awaken to their sinfulness. Each question deals with the rebellion and sinfulness of the people.
Perhaps the most frightening portion of this passage is the phrase found in verse 6, “No one regrets his evil, asking, ‘What have I done?’” The people of Judah no longer experienced guilt or felt shame from their sinning and turning away from God. This had become their acceptable standard of conduct. Jeremiah’s job was to wake them up to the emptiness of their outwardly religious covering that was missing an inward obedience and faith.
For thought: How many people will be in attendance at a church in our nation on a given Sunday? They appear as religious men and women. And yet, when they return home or to work, their actions, words and beliefs indicate a life far removed from the teachings of our Lord. How many of those people are in your class, your church, your neighborhood or your family? What questions would you ask them today to awaken them to their precarious religious position?
Were the people of Judah unwilling to see their lives and their country as it really was or had they lived this life of sinfulness so long they really believed it was all right? We might do well to ask the same question of our own nation? Do we believe the institutional church is more concerned about maintaining its presence and keeping the denominational laws than genuinely obeying God and following his will? Can we continually overlook the sin that engulfs us while trying to stay politically correct by closing our eyes to Scripture? That was the case with Judah. Is it also the case with us?
Because of Judah’s unwillingness to repent and turn back to God, the Lord stated “I will gather them and bring them to an end” (Jeremiah 8:13). The end of that same verse states, “Whatever I have given them will be lost to them.” God was sending judgment and destruction upon the people he had chosen, upon the people he had blessed and upon the people he had brought to a promised land.
For thought: If God would bring judgment upon His chosen people because of their sin, why would we believe that our nation is exempt from such judgment?
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Jeremiah often is referred to as the weeping prophet. In Jeremiah 9:1, Jeremiah expresses the result of his own broken-heartedness over the lost of Judah. He expresses his tears continued throughout the day and night over Judah.
Why is Jeremiah so stricken by God’s judgment upon Judah? After all, Judah was receiving the consequences of her actions. Sometimes we forget there are consequences for our actions. God does not tolerate or accept sin. We have been given the way of forgiveness for our sin through faith in Jesus, but that does require our turning away from our sin and back to God. Judah had not done that.
If we read Jeremiah 8:18-22, we see Jeremiah was heartbroken because God was heartbroken. God’s desire is that all people respond to him in faith and obedience. Like an earthly father whose child rejects the father’s love and gifts, God is heartbroken by our rebellion against him. Jeremiah’s faithfulness to God placed within him the pain and sorrow the Father of all feels from our sinfulness.
For thought: I wonder how long it has been since we really were heartbroken over the lostness in our nation and in our world. Do we pray for the destruction of our enemies through judgment or for their conversion to God through faith in Jesus Christ? Do we long for the sinful to get what they deserve, or do we pray for them to become recipients of God’s grace and mercy as we are?
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