Jeremiah 19 paints a pretty gloomy picture of the people. God is ticked and tells Jeremiah to preach a sermon of doom and gloom. God is upset because the people just don’t get it. They are doing all kinds of things that are wrong and should not be done. The list seems pretty obvious to us reading today, but I often wonder when the next generation looks at how we lived, if they won’t say the same. What is about those people who lived in the late 90’s and early 2000’s that made them so stubborn to God’s ways? Why couldn’t they just do what God wanted? I am afraid that will be the case – my great great grandkids will look back and say “what a really stupid generation that was”. The problems are somewhat the same:
- “walked off and left me”
- “worshipping strange gods”
- “built altars”
- “massacred innocent people”
- “burned their own children alive”
Ok – so not all of them are the same but the first three probably fit today. In any case – we have a problem and it relates to how our relationship with God happens or doesn’t, which is often more the reality.
Jeremiah really summarizes it as he wraps up the chapter. Here is the crux of it: “They’re set in their ways and won’t budge. They refuse to do a thing I say”. I write often about the importance of spiritual disciples and building godly habits. That is what God is interested in. He wants us to get our lives lined up with Him. He expects us to be willing to change – to put off the old nature and put on the new – to become a new creation in Christ – to learn to walk like Jesus did. That means we have to change. Oh how we hate that word. But it is part of living a growing and exciting spiritual life. It is part of having a healthy relationship with the Father. It is not optional – this change this is required if we are going to become holy and godly and ultimately like Jesus. Time to embrace change. Time to get off the fence and move away from being one set in our ways who won’t budge. God wants to make us new. God wants to change us into the image of His Son. God wants to do a work in us. All that stands in the way is ME.
