#DailyDevotion Are You Recognizing The Signs The Lord Has Given Us? Are You Repenting?
November 4th
Read Jer 5:1–19
Jer 5:5-10 I will go to the great and will speak to them, for they know the way of the LORD, the justice of their God.” But they all alike had broken the yoke; they had burst the bonds… (7) “How can I pardon you? Your children have forsaken me and have sworn by those who are no gods. When I fed them to the full, they committed adultery and trooped to the houses of whores. (8) They were well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for his neighbor’s wife. (9) Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD; and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this? (10) “Go up through her vine rows and destroy, but make not a full end; strip away her branches, for they are not the LORD’s
In Jeremiah’s day, Israel had already been carted off by the Assyrians. But Judah did not listen or learn the lesson from that. Indeed the Lord had said that she had done far worse things than Israel afterwards. They were supposed to be the people of God, the Lord but they acted as bad or worse than their pagan neighbors. Indeed they worshipped foreign gods and looked to them for every good. They were so blinded by their sinfulness they could not and would not listen to the warnings the prophets that were sent to her, to have her repent. They didn’t believe the warnings and thought they were full of hot air.
Because of this the Lord would send a foreign nation, the Babylonians to conquer them. If they wanted to serve foreign gods, they could serve a foreign nation too while they were at it. The Lord would decimate the Jews but not totally annihilate them. For the Lord remembered his promise to his servant David and Abraham that a seed from their line would be a blessing to all nations. That blessed seed is Jesus, the Christ of God. Son of Man and Son of God, Jesus would win the victory for the Jews and this fallen world over sin, death and the power of the devil, by his life, death and resurrection. Now forgiveness of our sins, life and salvation are proclaimed to you this day. Repent, acknowledge your faults, your sins and believe for Christ’s sake they are forgiven and the Father in heaven is at peace with you, for He is.
He also warns us that if we do not repent, even though he sends us war, disease, calamities and the like to call us to repentance, we will be swept away like the nations Israel conquered who sinned likewise. We will be destroyed and enter eternal perdition like the Israelites and the Jews who did not believe the Word of the Lord and were wiped out and/or sent into exile never to be seen or heard from again.
But you don’t have to perish. The Father of lights has sent his Son, Jesus, to bring you into his heavenly kingdom. This is something you can trust.
Lord God, Heavenly Father, grant us such faith that recognizes the evil we see perpetuated in the world as a call to repent of our sins and to put our faith in your Son Jesus Christ, that we may enter into your eternal mansions when he returns for judgment. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.