Date: Tuesday, August 09, 2016
Chapters: Jeremiah 4-6
Message: True Repentance
Hello My Friend,
Repentance, a change of mind, or a conversion from sin to God. When John the Baptist walked the earth he preached the need for repentance, to turn away from sin and to God, as a symbol of their turning to God they got baptized, making way for a new law that would soon take the place of the law of Moses, the law of grace. Baptism has never been about the cleansing of ones sin, it is a public profession that they want God in their lives more than the sin. Today, baptism symbolizes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and our being spiritually baptized in Christ. “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:” - Matthew 3:11.
Repent, To change the mind in consequence of the inconvenience or injury done by past conduct. Jerusalem and Judah was about to be turned upside down for all the wickedness and abominable acts that had been going on there. God's judgment was coming, in the blink of an eye they would be invaded and the city of God would be destroyed and handed over to heathens. Through Jeremiah, God explains why He will not repent of His judgment, but gives the people a chance to repent themselves before the destruction will take place.
“If
thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if
thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt
thou not remove. And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in
judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless
themselves in him, and in him shall they glory. For thus saith the
LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take
away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of
Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can
quench it,
because of the evil of your doings.” - Jeremiah
4:1-4.
“and take away the foreskins of your heart,”
People place a think skin over their hearts when it comes to letting
others in, especially if it happens to be God. If it is one thing I
have learned when it comes to relationships it is that there are a
lot of keys that must be tried in order to get through the lock on
the door of the heart, if a heart has bitterness, anger, or arrogance
there may not be a key that will fit. When we humble ourselves before
God we remove that foreskin. The fire that John talked about is the
same fire that God mentions here, centuries before John was even
born. As God continues, He explains the judgment in detail.
“Declare
ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the trumpet
in the land: cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and
let us go into the defenced cities. Set up the standard toward Zion:
retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great
destruction. The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer
of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to
make thy land desolate; and
thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant. For this
gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the
LORD is not turned back from us. Behold, he shall come up as clouds,
and his chariots shall
be as a
whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we
are spoiled. O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou
mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within
thee? For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction
from mount Ephraim.” - Jeremiah
4:5-8,13-15.
“The lion is come up from his thicket,”
Nebuchadnezzar, was called the lion for his fierceness and strength,
he had great control of Babylon during that time and had control over
many nations. When God gives the green light, another Lion will come
and judge the entire earth, Jesus Christ, and what a roaring Lion He
will be. God has made up His mind and He will not repent of His
decision, but He is giving people time to get saved before that day
comes.
“And
I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written
within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a
strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the
book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor
in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither
to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found
worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one
of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe
of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to
loose the seven seals thereof.” -
Revelation 5:1-5.
I truly believe that had Israel repented the very last second that
God would have spared the nation from judgment, but no matter how
many warnings they got they continued to reject Him. While God did
not repent or change His mind of the judgment He did say He would not
destroy it completely. As Jeremiah pleas with God
to remove the judgment, God tells Jeremiah why the judgment still
stands, but does have some comforting news.
“Nevertheless
in those days, saith the LORD, I will not make a full end with you.
And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the
LORD our God all these things
unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me,
and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in
a land that
is not
yours. Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in
Judah, saying, Hear now this, O foolish people, and without
understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and
hear not: Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at
my presence, which have placed the sand for
the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it:
and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not
prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it? Your
iniquities have turned away these things,
and your sins have withholden good things
from you.” - Jeremiah
5:18-22,25.
“which have placed the sand for the bound
of the sea by a perpetual decree,” Sand, a mass or
collection of particles of stone, it has no control, but God
miraculously uses it to tame the sea, it obeys Him more than foolish
man. Sin deprives us of God's blessings, it keeps us from more than
just earthly things, but heavenly as well. Certainly the things of
this world are not the best things, and we are not to think, that,
because the wicked prosper that God allows their practices. Though a
sentence against evil is not executed speedily, it will be executed,
God is just patient in giving all a chance to repent.
“Therefore
leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto
perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead
works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of
laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal
judgment. And this will we do, if God permit.” - Hebrews
6:1-3.
I'm saved and I can do whatever I want, this is the attitude of
many Christians, who live in the world. They live among the world as
if they do not know Jesus Christ, but they talk about Him, and
proclaim Him as their Saviour. Now, we all sin, and we can fall
tremendously of we are not walking with Jesus daily, but a life with
Jesus is a changed life, one that shows we are not of the world, but
are of Him. We are not to be like the world, if we are than we are
falsely representing Christ, and there will be judgment for that.
Through Jeremiah, God expresses His anger toward
the hypocrites and false
men of God.
“Therefore
I am full of the fury of the LORD; I am weary with holding in: I will
pour it out upon the children abroad, and upon the assembly of young
men together: for even the husband with the wife shall be taken, the
aged with him
that is
full of days. And their houses shall be turned unto others, with
their
fields and wives together: for I will stretch out my hand upon the
inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD. For from the least of
them even unto the greatest of them every one is
given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest
every one dealeth falsely. They have healed also the hurt of
the daughter
of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there
is no
peace. Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination?
nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush:
therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time that
I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the LORD. Thus saith
the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths,
where is
the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your
souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.”
- Jeremiah 6:11-16.
“We will not walk
therein.” They lusted after the things of the world,
and took them. There are so many men and women proclaiming Christ,
living wicked and immoral lives, yet they do not even see what they
are doing is wrong. The problem is, we are lusting over what the
world has, some of the most truly blessed Christians are the most
ungrateful people you will ever see, which is why God's judgment
still stands today. We cannot always have everything we want, but if
we learn to be grateful for what we do have, God will bless us with
more, much more than we want. Repent, turn away from the sinful
lifestyle and return to God, it is not popular, it is not always
easy, but neither is life, at least with Him we have eternal
security.
“But
if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship
one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us
from all sin.
If we say that
we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If
we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that
we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”
- I John 1:7-10.
Jesus Christ Magnified:
“And thou shalt swear, The
LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the
nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.”
- Jeremiah 4:2.Today's Prayer: God, Thank You for showing me that repentance really has nothing to do with my sin, but a changing of my heart toward sin. At times, I know I let the cares of life alter my thinking, I begin to doubt Your presence and even that things will ever change. God, renew my thinking, give me a new way of seeing the blessings that You have waiting for me as I endure my troubles and show the truth to others. Help me to never forget that You are always with me and will help me get through all my troubles. I love You Lord and ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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