Welcome to Nick Stevens, long-time member at Hope Church as well as Chair of the Hope Church Leadership Team. He will share his reflections on the readings from Jeremiah 1-6.
SCRIPTURE: Jeremiah 2:20-37
OBSERVATION:
From verse 20 right through to verse 37, God gives example after example of Israel’s lack of regard for the God who saved them from the yoke and from bondage. Israel promised to not transgress but again and again breaks her word. In verse 27 God is pointing out that some have even gone so stupid as to honoring trees and stones as their parents….as if stones and trees can give them ‘life’. And yet when things get hard, God knows that Israel will expect to be saved by him. God is mocking the many ways in which Israel has replaced him …..yet the very real pain and hurt that this brings to God is evident in the message and just oozes out of the words….ver 32 …”yet My people have forgotten Me days without number”.
APPLICATION: do we, (do I) really think that much about the pain and the sorrow that we bring to God’s heart when we sin? Am I aware of how sad (angry?) it leaves him when I don’t give him the honor that he deserves and demands?
PRAYER:
Lord…..I just shiver when I think of the things that I do (or don’t do) that make you sad and angry with me. I confess they are many and often. Please forgive me and help me to always reach for your loving, forgiving hand so that together, we may try again.
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
Often we have a picture of God as a mean, harsh Father, restricting us from having fun. In reality, God is a perfectly just, fair and loving Being that always does what is right and good. God does not NEED us, but has chosen to relate with us, to bless us and be blessed by us. It is in this context that God’s pain is expressed, “what have I done to deserve this rejection? what do the other ‘gods’ or ‘pleasures’ give you that I didn’t? where does running after those things leave you?” God’s judgment is not revenge, it is the reluctance of a loving father allowing us to experience the consequences of our foolish choices. Punishment is the result of foolish choices, not God’s way of getting back at us.
When I think of God’s anger, I need to think of God’s pain, like the pain of a betrayed spouse, whose partner was unfaithful to them. God does not hate us, He loves us, and that is why He is so grieved when we ignore Him, blame Him, or use Him only when we need Him.
PRAYER:
Lord, You came to me when I turned from You. You keep on coming to me, with tears in Your eyes, appealing to me to come back. My love is lukewarm, I confess this. But I want the fire rekindled, and I need Your help. Help me to love You! Amen.