Mon.’s Devo - God’s Warnings

Read: Jeremiah 37:1-38:28; 1 Timothy 6:1-21; Psalm 89:38-52; Proverbs 25:28 Nebuchadnezzar had taken King Jehoiakim to Babylon and had put King Zedekiah in the office of the king of Jerusalem. The Babylonian army had left because they heard the Egyptians were coming to help the people of Jerusalem and went to fight them. Nebuchadnezzar had promised to come back and burn down the city. Jeremiah had been left in Jerusalem but the leaders still refused to listen to his words. *** King Zedekiah summoned Jeremiah to ask him to pray for them. Jeremiah told him that the Egyptians were not coming to help them but would return to Egypt and the Babylonians would return to Jerusalem and burn it to the ground. *** Jeremiah went to see about the property that he had bought but when he tried to leave Jerusalem, he was arrested by Irijah and accused of defecting to the Babylonians. Jeremiah denied it, but was brought before the officials and flogged and imprisoned in the dungeon of the house of Jonathan the secretary. *** King Zedekiah had him brought to him in the palace to see if God had anything to say to him. Jeremiah told him he would be defeated by the Babylonians, Jeremiah begged to be taken out of the dungeon where the conditions were not livable. King Zedekiah had him moved to his palace prison and be fed a fresh loaf of bread every day as long as they had any left in the city. *** From the palace prison, Jeremiah was able to warn the people that the only way they were going to survive was to surrender to the Babylonians. Otherwise, they would die of war, famine or disease when the city was captured by the Babylonians. When the officials heard this, they wanted to kill Jeremiah for treason. Zedekiah agreed to let them put him in a cistern where he couldn’t influence the people anymore. *** When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian heard they had put Jeremiah in the cistern he begged the king on his behalf. So the king told him to take 30 men and pull him out of the cistern with rags. They pulled him out and he was allowed to stay in the palace prison. *** King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah again and asked for a word from the Lord. He promised Jeremiah he wouldn’t kill him for his answer. Jeremiah told him that if he surrendered to the Babylonians, he and his family would live and the city would not be burned down. But if he refused to surrender, he would not escape and the city would be burned to the ground. Zedekiah told Jeremiah he was afraid if he surrendered the Babylonians, they would turn him over to the Judean’s and they would do even worse to him. Jeremiah promised that wouldn't happen if he obeyed the Lord and surrendered. He told him he would live and it would go well for him. If he refused to listen, all his wives and children would be led to Babylon and he would be seized by the king of Babylon and this city would be burned down. *** Zedekiah commanded Jeremiah not to tell anyone about their conversation but to tell them they talked about not sending him back to the dungeon. Jeremiah did what he asked and remained unharmed in the palace courtyard until the day Jerusalem was captured. *** In Timothy, Paul taught that all slaves or, in our case, people who work for a boss should respect their bosses so as not to bring reproach to God’s name, especially if the boss is a believer. *** Paul gave them basic morals about how to live a godly life. The false teachers were teaching to act godly as a way to become wealthy. Paul taught that true godliness with gratefulness was a definition of true wealth. We came to the world penniless and we can’t take anything with us when we die, so to have enough and be content was great wealth. *** When the desire to be rich is the number one desire, it is a trap that can lead to ruin and destruction. The desire to have money has led many astray. *** The true man of God runs from every evil practice. His pursuit is faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Paul encouraged Timothy to fight the good fight for true faith and God’s commandments. *** Paul told him to teach those that are rich not to be proud or to trust in their money, but to put their trust in God who gives us all we need for our enjoyment. They must use their money to do good and be generous to those in need. By doing this they are storing up treasure for the future. *** Lord, You are the only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords. You dwell in unapproachable light and to you all honor and power exists. We trust in your plan for the world and for our lives. We are your children and live to love and serve you.