Wed.’s Devo - Return to God

Read: Jeremiah 2:31-4:18; Colossians 1:1-17; Psalm 76:1-12; Proverbs 24:21-22 God laments the fact that his people, who he chose, saved and blessed have chosen to forget him. He reveals how they secretly plot to scheme and kill the innocent then act innocent and take no responsibility for the sins. They struck deals with the enemy Egypt but they are going to be as disappointed as they were with Assyria because they will lead them into exile instead of saving them. Israel had tried every god but the only true God. Because of their sins, God didn’t give them their spring rains. *** Jeremiah said all this during the reign of Josiah who was a good king who celebrated the Passover and tried to turn the nation back to God. This shows us that having a godly leader can only go so far. The people have to join him, but their hearts were too far gone. Judah was worse than Israel. Judah had Jerusalem, and the Temple, and the priests. They were the ones who should have stood as a nation who worshipped God in truth but they, like Israel, chose to follow the gods of the nations around them. *** God promised to bring a small remnant back to Jerusalem. When they return, they won’t miss the days when they had the Ark of the Covenant. They won’t need to rebuild it. In that day Jerusalem will be known as the Throne of the Lord. All nations would come and honor the Lord there. Jerusalem was given to them as an inheritance forever!!! *** God made an appeal to the people to return to Him and they responded that they would but they didn’t mean it. If they would return they would be a blessing to the nations of the world and all people would come and praise God’s name. *** Jeremiah begged them to plow up the hard grounds of their hearts and surrender their power and pride. If they don’t, the Lord’s anger would burn like an unquenchable fire. God’s fire comes to the wicked as a consuming fire but it comes to his people as a cleansing fire. His fire burns up his enemies but it enlivens his chosen with power. Jesus came to baptize us with the fire of the Holy Spirit. That doesn’t sound like a destroying fire but a good fire of glory. *** What God was about to do in Jerusalem was going to shock their lying prophets who prophesied in the name of Baal and it was going to shock their politicians. They still had a chance to repent individually but their fate as a nation was sealed. God was bringing judgement upon them by a nation from the north. *** Paul wrote to the Church at Colosseum to warn them of the heresy that was being taught in the church. It was a blend of pagan-occultism, Jewish legalism, and Christianity. Sounds like what is being taught today. It taught that Jesus was not fully God and fully man, but a semi-divine being that bridged the gap between God and the world. Thus, Jesus lacked the authority and ability to meet the needs of the Colossians. They could achieve spiritual fullness through special knowledge and rigorous self-discipline. This was another way of saying that man had to help God out with their own power; God was not enough. *** Paul wrote his letter to expose the heresy, give them the truth and warn them of the danger of returning to pagan ways. It was also to encourage the believer that he was with them and to keep loving one another and living in peace. *** Paul told them that Jesus rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. *** In the Ten Commandments we are told not to make any graven image and worship it. That is because Jesus is the visible image of God. No one would have thought to do an image of a man to worship. Instead they worshipped images of goats and fish and half-human half-animals. *** When Jesus and God created the world they made things we could see and made invisible thrones and kingdoms and rulers and authorities we can’t see. God existed before them all and he holds it all together. *** Lord, give us ears to hear and eyes to see and hearts to understand what You are doing on the earth today. Give us discernment to know good from evil.