What Kind of Clay Are You? Jeremiah 18-19

May the mumbling commence!

What kind of clay are you?  Are you soft and wet so that you are moldable for the Master Potter?  Or are you hard and brittle?  I am thinking these thoughts because of the passages in Jeremiah 18 and 19.  Read them below:

This word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you a message.”  So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at his wheel.  But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

Then the word of the Lord came to me: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?” declares the Lord.  “Like clay in the hands of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.  If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned.  And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it. (18:1-10)

This is what the Lord says: “Go and buy a clay jar from a potter.  Take along some of the elders of the people and of the priests and go out to the Valley of Ben Himmon, near the entrance of the Potsherd Gate.  There proclaim the words I tell you, and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah and Jerusalem.  This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Listen!  I am going to bring disaster on this place that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle.  For they have forsaken me and made this a place of foreign gods; they have burned sacrifices in it to gods neither they nor their fathers nor the kings of Judah ever knew, and they have filled this place with the blood of the innocent.  They have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baal – something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind.  So beware, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when people will no longer call this place Topheth or the Valley of Ben Himmon, but the Valley of Slaughter.

In this place I will ruin the plans of Judah and Jerusalem.  I will make them fall by the sword before their enemies, at the hands of those who seek their lives, and I will give their carcasses as food to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.  I will devastate this city and make it an object of scorn; all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff because of all its wounds.  I will make them eat the flesh of their sons and daughters, and they will eat one another’s flesh during the stress of the siege imposed on them by the enemies who seek their lives.’

Then break the jar while those who go with you are watching, and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I will smash this nation and this city just as this potter’s jar is smashed and cannot be repaired.  They will bury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room.  This is what I will do to this place and to those who live here, declares the Lord.  I will make this city like Topheth.  The house of Jerusalem and those of the kings of Judah will be defiled like this place, Topheth – all the houses where they burned incense on the roofs to all the starry hosts and poured out drink offerings to other gods.’”  (19:1-13)

May we keep ourselves moist and malleable in the hands of the Great Potter, or we will be shattered beyond repair.  Let us not so much seek our own devices and agendas.  Let us instead seek the Lord in all that we do.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out  

The Shoe is on the Other Foot; Obadiah

May the mumbling commence!

Be careful what you do!  One day the shoe will be on the other foot.  What you have done to others will be done to you.  It is the lesson from the nation of Edom, descendants of Jacob’s twin brother Esau.  Read the prophecy of Obadiah from verses ten to fifteen:

“Because of the violence against your brother Jacob,

you will be covered with shame;

you will be destroyed forever. 

On the day you stood aloof

while strangers carried off his wealth

and foreigners entered his gates

and cast lots for Jerusalem,

you were like one of them. 

You should not look down on your brother

in the day of his misfortune,

nor rejoice over the people of Judah

in the day of their destruction,

nor boast so much

in the day of their trouble. 

You should not march through the gates of my people

in the day of their disaster,

nor look down on them in their calamity

in the day of their disaster,

nor seize their wealth

in the day of their disaster. 

You should not wait at the crossroads

to cut down their fugitives,

nor hand over their survivors

in the day of their trouble. 

The day of the Lord is near

for all nations.

As you have done, it will be done to you;

your deeds will return upon your own head.

There was no love lost between Esau and Jacob.  Neither was there love lost between Israel and Edom.  It was like one big dysfunctional family, where Israel almost always had the upper hand.  I find no surprise in the glee that Edom took in the downfall of Jerusalem.  But, like looters, they took advantage of the situation.  They cast lots for Jerusalem and seized their wealth.  They cut down those who were escaping and handed over any survivors to the king of Babylon.  They took an active part in the destruction of Jerusalem.  They were kicking their brother Israel when they were down, and they did so while looking down their noses at them.

Yes, be careful what righteous judgment that you give unto others.  As Jesus said, you will be judged in the same way (Mt 7:1-2).  It will done to you; your deeds will return upon your head.  Let us deal mercifully with others – even those we deem our enemies – because one day the shoe will be on the other foot.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out

When Do We Stand? Daniel 3; Jeremiah 20

May the mumbling commence!

How do you and I respond to the pressures of nationalism?  For example, how do you and I respond when the “Star Spangled Banner” is performed?  Or how do you and I respond when it is time to “Pledge Allegiance to the Flag?”  How far do we go to honor our country?  And when does honoring our country get in the way of truly worshiping God?  When was the last time you and I stood for the reading of the Word of God in worship? 

Now, don’t get me wrong.  I love my country of birth as much as the next person, but my true allegiance is to another realm – the kingdom of God.  For this reason, I question exactly how I should respond to those seemingly harmless customs of remembrance for our country in connection to the United States flag.  For this same reason, I could not fathom giving my life over to the armed forces.  I am already a private in another army – the army of God, whose weapons are of the Holy Spirit and the Word not M-16’s and atomic bombs. 

It is good to question allegiance to our earthly nation.  There may come a time when our nation will ask us to do things contrary to the call of the Lord Jesus.  We may find ourselves in the situation like Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael (more commonly known, for some reason, by their Babylonian names Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego).  Read about their response to the call to worship the golden statue from Daniel 3:16-18 –

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king.  But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."  

Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael were willing to face their death in the blazing furnace – whether or not the Lord would save them from the flames.  They knew that God was able to save from any disaster, but their faithfulness did not depend upon their deliverance. 

I read these words and blanch.  I find it incredibly difficult not to stand during the “Star Spangled Banner” and the “Pledge of Allegiance” because I would stick out like a sore thumb.  What will other people think of me?  It is easier to blend in if I stand – even if I don’t put my hand over my heart and look at the flag, which I do not. 

Jesus does not ask us to be chameleons and blend in!  I need to stand for my Lord Jesus even when it will bring me ridicule.  Can I stand for my Lord like Jeremiah did?  Read from Jeremiah Chapter 20:

Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long.  But if I say, "I will not mention him or speak any more in his name," his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.  I hear many whispering, "Terror on every side! Report him! Let's report him!" All my friends are waiting for me to slip, saying, "Perhaps he will be deceived; then we will prevail over him and take our revenge on him." 

But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior; so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced; their dishonor will never be forgotten.  O Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous and probe the heart and mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you I have committed my cause. 

Sing to the Lord! Give praise to the Lord! He rescues the life of the needy from the hands of the wicked. 

Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!  Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, who made him very glad, saying, "A child is born to you – a son!"  May that man be like the towns the Lord overthrew without pity. May he hear wailing in the morning, a battle cry at noon.  For he did not kill me in the womb, with my mother as my grave, her womb enlarged forever.  Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame? (Verses 8-18)

Jeremiah could not keep silent – even when he was ridiculed by all those around him and when he feared for his life.  He knew that he could look to God for protection, and Jeremiah sang praises to Him.  But Jeremiah also bemoaned his birth into the troublesome time.  He found it hard to endure the shame. 

Give us endurance to do your will, O God. 

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out  

Dare to Pray Like Daniel; Jeremiah 46; Daniel 2

May the mumbling commence!

Find yourself in a tight spot?  Take it to the Lord in prayer with your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  God’s hotline is always available, and you never get an answering machine or an automated response system – even when your unfaithfulness has sent you into exile.  Both of the kingdoms, Israel and Judah, were sent into exile in the Babylonian empire. 

It seems that history repeated itself.  Jacob/Israel found himself fleeing for his life from the Promised Land into exile two significant times.  The first time, Jacob was fleeing from his twin brother Esau’s wrath, and Jacob fled with nothing but a stone for a pillow.  But God was with Jacob, just as He promised; and Jacob returned to the Promised Land with a large family and a huge herd of animals (translate that great wealth). 

The second time, Israel/Jacob fled the Promised Land in the midst of a great drought – fled into exile in the land of Egypt.  And the family, over the course of hundreds of years, had become a nation by the time it walked through the Red Sea on dry ground. 

Well, because of their unfaithfulness, both Israel and Judah were sent into captivity and exile throughout the Babylonian empire.  The people of Israel were given a promise, much like the one that their forefather Jacob was given at Bethel when he was fleeing the wrath of Esau.  Read it below from Jeremiah 46:27-28 –

"Do not fear, O Jacob my servant;

       do not be dismayed, O Israel.

I will surely save you out of a distant place,

       your descendants from the land of their exile.

Jacob will again have peace and security,

       and no one will make him afraid. 

Do not fear, O Jacob my servant,

       for I am with you," declares the Lord.

"Though I completely destroy all the nations

       among which I scatter you,

       I will not completely destroy you.

I will discipline you but only with justice;

       I will not let you go entirely unpunished."

“Do not fear,” God says.  “The Great I Am is with you.”  The Great I Am will surely save you and grant you peace and security once again – but salvation and peace will only come after justice has been served through redemptive punishment.  Sore trials were to be ahead for the people of Israel – like the trial that Daniel faced in discerning and interpreting the dream of the king.  Read about it below from Daniel 2:8-19, 23 –

Then the king answered, "I am certain that you are trying to gain time, because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided:  If you do not tell me the dream, there is just one penalty for you. You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation will change. So then, tell me the dream, and I will know that you can interpret it for me." 

The astrologers answered the king, "There is not a man on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer.  What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men." 

This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all the wise men of Babylon.  So the decree was issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to death. 

When Arioch, the commander of the king's guard, had gone out to put to death the wise men of Babylon, Daniel spoke to him with wisdom and tact.  He asked the king's officer, "Why did the king issue such a harsh decree?" Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel.  At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him. 

Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.  He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.  During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven… “I thank and praise you, O God of my fathers: You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king."

Tell the king his dream and interpret it – or die trying.  A tall order!  The men of his court complained only a god could do that – and gods do not live among men.  Indeed, gods do not live.  But Daniel knew of a living God, who had promised to be with him.  In this pressure-cooker-type situation, Daniel called on his friends to gather in prayer.  And the living Lord answered, so Daniel praised Him. 

Yes, dare to be a Daniel – remember the living Lord who is with you, gather together with friends to pray for help, and praise God when he answers. 

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out

No One is Above God's Law; Jeremiah 25, 36 & 45

May the mumbling commence!

Positions of leadership do not make anyone above the Law of the Lord.  On the contrary, being a leader means one is held to a higher standard.  Jeremiah and Baruch found this out as they dealt with King Jehoiakim of Judah.  Baruch also struggled with this higher standard.  Read some excerpts below from Jeremiah 36, 25, and 45:

After they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, they went to the king in the courtyard and reported everything to him.  The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi brought it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him.  It was the ninth month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him.  Whenever Jehudi had read three or four columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe's knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was burned in the fire.  The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no fear, nor did they tear their clothes.  Even though Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them.  Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the Lord had hidden them. (36:20-26)

The king showed no fear – unlike his attendants.  They had trembled with fear when they heard the words of the Lord, spoken through Jeremiah and recorded by Baruch.  The king burned the entire scroll in his firepot, thinking the only thing it was good for was warming himself.  No fire of fear burned within him out of reverence for the Lord.  The king must have thought he was above the Law and that he was exempt from punishment.  The Lord knew differently.  Read from another passage:

Weep and wail, you shepherds;

       roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock.

For your time to be slaughtered has come;

       you will fall and be shattered like fine pottery. 

The shepherds will have nowhere to flee,

       the leaders of the flock no place to escape. 

Hear the cry of the shepherds,

       the wailing of the leaders of the flock,

       for the Lord is destroying their pasture. 

The peaceful meadows will be laid waste

       because of the fierce anger of the Lord. 

Like a lion he will leave his lair,

       and their land will become desolate

because of the sword of the oppressor

       and because of the Lord's fierce anger. (25:34-38)

If you have people in your care, it does not mean that you can take advantage of them – use them for your own gratification.  Leaders are not entitled to leisure as they people they lead toil to sustain a wasteful and resplendent way of life.  And, as Baruch found out, neither do the prophets and their servants find themselves above the Law of the Lord.  They will not be removed from the suffering any more than the king would.  Read from another passage:

This is what Jeremiah the prophet told Baruch son of Neriah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, after Baruch had written on a scroll the words Jeremiah was then dictating:  "This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to you, Baruch:  You said, 'Woe to me! The Lord has added sorrow to my pain; I am worn out with groaning and find no rest.'" 

 The Lord said, "Say this to him: 'This is what the Lord says: I will overthrow what I have built and uproot what I have planted, throughout the land.  Should you then seek great things for yourself? Seek them not. For I will bring disaster on all people, declares the Lord, but wherever you go I will let you escape with your life.'" (45:1-5) 

Wherever we go the Lord goes along with us to protect our lives – even when He sends us away for punishment.  The Lord does not use exile and famine to tear down for spite’s sake.  Though tearing down does happen because of the rotting foundation of idols that we have chosen, the purpose of tearing down those parts of our lives is to rebuild our lives anew – stronger for the foundation will be the everlasting foundation of the Lord and His Word, which will never fail.

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out

Uttering Worthy Words; Jeremiah 7; 35

May the mumbling commence!

Oppression was rampant in Jeremiah’s day.  Those who were vulnerable were in great peril.  People would rob, steal, murder, commit adultery and perjury, and follow other gods.  They would do all these things then run unto the Temple of the Lord and think they were safe (Jeremiah 7:1-10).  And the Lord spoke through His prophet Jeremiah these words which were quoted by Jesus at the cleansing of the Temple:

Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the Lord. (7:11)

The people of Judah thought they were playing some kind of game!  There is no place safe to hide from the wrath of the Lord when we do evil in His eyes.  How much less would the very House where God had placed His Name provide protection?  It is near impossible not to get sullied when living with such a people.  The evil is a tangled web to live in.

We, too, live in a tangled and sticky web of evil.  To maintain our high standard of living (in comparison to the majority of the rest of the world) we crush others – many times unknowingly.  We want high paying jobs, but we do not realize what these high paying jobs cost those most vulnerable.  We want quality goods at bargain prices, but we do not see the sweat shops that make these affordable goods possible.  The high cost of low prices, indeed!

Jeremiah was no different in his day.  In Chapter fifteen of his book, Jeremiah rues the day he was born.  The Lord was afflicting him.  Listen to the Lord’s answer to Jeremiah’s pleas for rescue:

"If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me;

if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,

       you will be my spokesman.

Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them. (19b)

When our webs of sin and deceit become so intricate, the Lord sometimes uses a people who are not His people to show the meaning of faithfulness.  The Lord did just this with the Recabite family in Jeremiah Chapter 35.  Read about it below:

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD during the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:  "Go to the Recabite family and invite them to come to one of the side rooms of the house of the LORD and give them wine to drink." 

So I went to get Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons-- the whole family of the Recabites…  Then I set bowls full of wine and some cups before the men of the Recabite family and said to them, "Drink some wine." 

But they replied, "We do not drink wine, because our forefather Jonadab son of Recab gave us this command: 'Neither you nor your descendants must ever drink wine…  We have obeyed everything our forefather Jonadab son of Recab commanded us. Neither we nor our wives nor our sons and daughters have ever drunk wine…

Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:  "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go and tell the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem, 'Will you not learn a lesson and obey my words?' declares the Lord.  'Jonadab son of Recab ordered his sons not to drink wine and this command has been kept. To this day they do not drink wine, because they obey their forefather's command. But I have spoken to you again and again, yet you have not obeyed me.  Again and again I sent all my servants the prophets to you. They said, "Each of you must turn from your wicked ways and reform your actions; do not follow other gods to serve them. Then you will live in the land I have given to you and your fathers." But you have not paid attention or listened to me.  The descendants of Jonadab son of Recab have carried out the command their forefather gave them, but these people have not obeyed me.' 

Therefore, this is what the Lord God Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on Judah and on everyone living in Jerusalem every disaster I pronounced against them. I spoke to them, but they did not listen; I called to them, but they did not answer.'" 

Then Jeremiah said to the family of the Recabites, "This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'You have obeyed the command of your forefather Jonadab and have followed all his instructions and have done everything he ordered.'   Therefore, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Jonadab son of Recab will never fail to have a man to serve me.'"

God will punish His own when they err, and God will reward those who have not accepted His call to be His own when they do right. 

O Lord, help us to see the way we live as you do.  Help us to untangle ourselves from the evil around us so that we may speak worthy words and return to you. 

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out

Should I Stay or Should I Go; Jeremiah 8-9; 26

May the mumbling commence!

Should I stay or should I go?  It is an extremely relevant question when you know that the Lord will be bringing judgment and wrath on the people around you.  It would be great to be born with an innate sense to know when to remain and abide in a situation and when to pack up and leave.  In this sense, the animals have it easy.  Think about it, and read from Jeremiah 8:7.

Even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons,

and the dove, the swift and the thrush

       observe the time of their migration.

But my people do not know the requirements of the Lord.

There is much to learn from the animal kingdom, from the natural world that the Lord had created around us.  We can learn the lesson of who we can trust.  Read from Jeremiah 9:23-24.

This is what the Lord says:

"Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom

or the strong man boast of his strength

or the rich man boast of his riches, 

but let him who boasts boast about this:

            that he understands and knows me,

that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, 

             justice and righteousness on earth,

for in these I delight," declares the Lord.

We will find our answer to the question should I stay or should I go by seeking to understand and know the Lord.  The Lord alone is the one we can boast in and trust – even when the Lord sends us to a people with a message that will not be received kindly.  Notice the juxtaposition of Jeremiah with Uriah from Jeremiah Chapter 26 (and know that the parenthetical parts of Scripture do not mean they are unimportant).

Then Jeremiah said to all the officials and all the people: "The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the things you have heard.  Now reform your ways and your actions and obey the Lord your God. Then the Lord will relent and not bring the disaster he has pronounced against you.  As for me, I am in your hands; do with me whatever you think is good and right.  Be assured, however, that if you put me to death, you will bring the guilt of innocent blood on yourselves and on this city and on those who live in it, for in truth the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing." 

Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, "This man should not be sentenced to death! He has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God." 

Some of the elders of the land stepped forward and said to the entire assembly of people, "Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah. He told all the people of Judah, 'This is what the Lord Almighty says:

'Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble,

the temple hill a mound overgrown with thickets.' 

"Did Hezekiah king of Judah or anyone else in Judah put him to death? Did not Hezekiah fear the Lord and seek his favor? And did not the Lord relent, so that he did not bring the disaster he pronounced against them? We are about to bring a terrible disaster on ourselves!" 

(Now Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath Jearim was another man who prophesied in the name of the Lord; he prophesied the same things against this city and this land as Jeremiah did.  When King Jehoiakim and all his officers and officials heard his words, the king sought to put him to death. But Uriah heard of it and fled in fear to Egypt.  King Jehoiakim, however, sent Elnathan son of Acbor to Egypt, along with some other men.  They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who had him struck down with a sword and his body thrown into the burial place of the common people.) 

Furthermore, Ahikam son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, and so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death. (Verses 12-24)

Though Jeremiah and Uriah faced the same threat, they reacted to the threat differently.  Jeremiah stayed, knowing that being in the hands of the people was trumped by being in the hands of the Lord.  Jeremiah was safe.  Uriah fled in fear for his life but lost it instead.  Hmm…  Didn’t Jesus say try to save your life and you will lose it; give up your life for the sake of Jesus and you will find it?  Should I stay or should I go?  Trust the Lord; and, then, you’ll know.

Enough mumbling for now… 

Peace Out