#DailyDevotion The Lord Just Wants You To Admit Your Guilt So He Can Have Mercy On You
November 3
Jer 3:6—4:2
Jer 3:12-13 Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, “‘Return, faithless Israel, declares the LORD. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the LORD; I will not be angry forever. (13) Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the LORD your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the LORD.
Even during the time of Josiah’s reform, the people of Judah, their hearts were not loyal to the Lord their God. They saw what the Lord did to faithless Israel and they played the whore even more than Israel had done. The Lord calls down his wrath upon Judah as well, when he sends the Babylonians to punish them, as he did by the Israelites by the hands of the Assyrians.
Yet it does not please the Lord God to punish faithless people. The Lord calls to Judah and to Israel to repent, to return to him. The Lord does not remain angry forever. He seeks them to simply acknowledge their guilt concerning the worship of other gods and giving to them what rightly belonged to the Lord.
The Lord though is merciful. It is in character to forgive. God himself will provide a way for Israel and Judah to repent. He sent his son Jesus Christ to be a new covenant. The ark of the covenant which held the law has been done away with. Jesus, in his body is the new ark of a new covenant with Israel, Judah and the whole world. In Jesus we see the mercy of God, the faithfulness of God and the glory of God.
Jesus is Israel who swears, “’As the LORD lives,’ in truth, in justice, and in righteousness.” So as Jeremiah has prophesied, the nations have blessed themselves in the Lord Jesus and in him the nations glory. The apostles and the early Jewish Church swore that Jesus the Lord lives. He is raised from the dead never to die again. They believed this and began to live out this faith and to proclaim this faith. The nations saw and turned to the one true God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus the Lord, still holds out his hands to the children of Abraham in mercy. He still holds out his hands in mercy to the world. Jesus is calling you to return to him in truth, in justice and in righteousness. Just acknowledge your guilt. Mercy is yours to be had.
Heavenly Father, grant us faith to admit our guilt and return to you through your Son Jesus Christ, that we may experience your heavenly mercies, have our guilt and shame removed from us and be gathered unto your holy people to all eternity. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.