When God Moves His Hand of Blessing

The Destruction of Judah

Book of Jeremiah Chapter 7

There is a phrase in our lesson manual that I really liked. One sign of "spiritual sickness" is that we keep committing the same sins over and over and expect a different outcome each time. What is the logic in doing such things!

God has made sure we have the Books of the Old Testament, so we can see the examples of what sins were done in the past with Israel and the reactions God had to those things, so we can know what God will do today because Jehovah God never changes.

If we cannot learn from all these examples, then what does that say about our "faith"?

God begins in a gentle fashion trying to remind us of our disobedience, but God will use harsher methods until we learn from our mistakes.

If we say we have "faith" in the Lord, then how can we believe the lies of this world?

We should clearly understand a Spiritual change will always have a physical result!

What we have seen with our own eyes is that when this world makes idols as God then we will see what we see today, immoral societies and this cannot be denied.

We must be clear as we witness to those who are lost. Real change can only happen from the inside out and not from outside in!

As we witness we offer, by the Word of God, an opportunity to make a choice. God will always accept the decisions we make. God offers eternal life! False gods offer eternal death and we must choose between these two. Does not seem to be a hard choice, does it?

People perish simply because they make the wrong choices!

We should also understand the true meaning of a hypocrite. Hypocrites are people who pretend to be something they are not. Something like actors.

We absolutely cannot be pretenders and say we love the Lord!

*****Jer 7:1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

Jer 7:2 Stand in the gate of the LORD'S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

Jeremiah was a gentle man and we know that he cried a lot for his nation, but we see that Jeremiah was to be bold when he preached the Word of God! We are to do the same when we witness for the Lord, but the Pastor is to "preach" the Word of God!

Jeremiah was preaching to hypocrites and hypocrites already know what they are, and they need to understand who God is!

It was very important that these Jews understood what was going on in their lives but just as important, what was going on in the world.

As mighty as the Assyrians were who destroyed the Northern Tribes, they had just fell to the Babylonians who were an evil and wicked people.

It was a time when good King Josiah would find his death, getting involved in a war that he did not have to.

Josiah was replaced as Jehoahaz took his throne but even he was replaced 90 days later by Jehoiakim who was another of the evil rulers and he would only rule eleven years.

The threat of Babylon was always present, and Judah would never be able to defend themselves without the Lord God Jehovah, who had already delivered them so many times when they would repent of their evilness.

More important than all these things, attending a worship service in the House of God is useless without repentance and then obedience!

The truth of salvation is that those who can please God will be like God (Christlike)!

When we are not Christlike (Christian) we can never receive the blessings of God.

This is the message the Jeremiah was to preach as he stood in the gates at the entrance of the Temple in Jerusalem.

These people had no problem in attending the worship service at the Temple. Remember they were required by Moses's Law to attend at least 3 times each year in the time of the festivals.

Their problem was that their hearts were not settled on the Lord and as soon as they left for home they would go back to their evil ways and their false gods. (Sounds a whole lot like happens today by many who attend church but are not sincere)

Eventually some false gods were moved into the Temple, which defiled the House of God!

It is an abomination to defile the House of the Lord!

These people are like those today. They are trusting that God will accept, bless, and protect them because they are faithful in their worship, but their worship extended to false gods and false doctrine.

The Lord will have no part of such a thing. There are those today that say there is more than one way to get to Heaven, but the Lord says they are all liars.

What is the truth?

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Those that believe differently are calling God a liar!

This is the same theme that Jeremiah preached in his day. There is only one who deserves our worship and it is Jehovah.

God will never accept our worship until there has been a repentance!!!!!!

In fact, for the Jews they had to repent their sin before Jehovah would allow them to continue living in the Promised Land!!!!!

They would soon realize just how important that this truth really was.

We may have the greatest church in the world and I believe we do, but this church cannot save us.

We may have the greatest preacher in the world and I believe we do, but Preacher Sam cannot save us.

He can only lead us to the one who can, Jesus Christ!

God the Holy Spirit may visit our Church, but He will never stay, because no building can house God!

Also, the Lord Jesus Christ may knock on the doors of every Church but until He is allowed to come in, that Church is not a house of God!

What was Jeremiah's message?

*****Jer 7:3 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

To amend our ways is another word for "repent" because we do not have to power to do anything ourselves!

Joh_15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: "for without me ye can do nothing".

Every house of God in our entire nation can be full on Sunday and our nation would not be blessed unless we know the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Savior!

We should understand that Jeremiah was not preaching that these people could dwell in the Temple, he was preaching that God was not going to allow them to dwell on the land that He had given them unless they repented of their evil and allowed God to dwell in their heart.

This does not ever mean that God would give this land to others. God will never give this land to others because of the promise He made to Abraham!

Gen 15:18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:

Gen 17:7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

Gen 17:8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

God will keep every covenant He has ever made, and He will also never break a promise that He has ever made!

What went wrong in the Temple of God? The priests were not preaching the truth of God!

*****Jer 7:4 Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, are these.

Those priests were preaching that security is in the Temple, we would say the Church.

We simply cannot trust in religious principles, we must trust in the One who gave us "His" principles, Jehovah!

We must also understand it is each Saint of God who is a Temple of God who gather together to worship that form the Church.

Our job in the church is to be discipled and/or to disciple all others, and to worship the God of truth, whose name is Jehovah!

In fact, we are to worship our Savior "in Spirit and in Truth" because He does not like it in any other fashion!

Everyone is welcome to gather but "in Spirit and in Truth" means though the lost are welcomed, they should not take part in certain parts of the worship, such as Communion until they to have a personal relationship with the Lord.

1Co 11:27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

1Co 11:28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.

1Co 11:29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.

1Co 11:30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.

Baptism is only for those who have invited the Lord into their heart and be "Born Again", then comes Baptism!

Do we come without any preparation of heart? Are we soon weary of the service?

Eze 14:3 Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?

We must know that everyone is welcomed into the church building who are seeking God and in the true Church you can find Him, not because He is present in the building, but He is present in the hearts of so many of those who are also there and there is a "preacher".

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Rom 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

Rom 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?

Rom 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

A heart that is prepared is a heart open to accepting the Lord Jesus Christ!

*****Jer 7:5 For if ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbour;

Jer 7:6 If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:

Jer 7:7 Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.

Christianity has to do with being like Christ in His character and in His conduct!

Christianity is that which binds us to our Savior.

Christianity is holding onto to the robe of Christ and refusing to let go.

Christianity is not in emotion but is in knowledge, the knowledge of our Creator.

Jesus says it plainly:

Joh_14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

Joh_15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.

The first step in becoming a Christian is having the right view of sin!

Sin is like a cancer that you will want to get rid of but only the Lord can wash you clean.

Psa_51:2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

Joh_13:8 Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.

We must come out from the world and live a separated life from those still in the world.

2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

When we are like Jesus Christ we will then hate sin without hating the sinner!

We will realize our battle is not with other humans, lost or saved, our battle is with principalities and powers and the rulers of darkness in this world we live in now!

Eph 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Eph 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

The nation of Judah had left their first love and now, they oppressed the weak, they shed the blood of the innocent, and they were worshipping idols.

We simply cannot allow anything to come between us and our Lord Jesus Christ no matter what it is!

Had these Jews listened to the words of Jeremiah and applied them to their lives they would never have been removed from their land no matter how powerful Babylon was at this time.

What did they do? They ignored the Word of God given to Jeremiah and they continued to follow in the ways of sin by listening to false words.

We must understand that our salvation, our peace, and our security, come from a personal relationship with the Lord and not in some building or the land that we dwell in.

Neither was this true for these Jews and the Temple of God and the land promised to Abraham!

It is so easy to fall into this trap because lies can sometimes make you think you are about to win the lottery.

*****Jer 7:8 Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.

What is the truth of the Scriptures?

Psa 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.

Psa 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

Psa 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

We live in a world that has forgotten how to be wise.

We live in a world where almost every nation is in competition with every other nation, when they should be helping one another!

Then the Lord just ask them point blank.

*****Jer 7:9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;

Jer 7:10 And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations?

Jer 7:11 Is this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the LORD.

We are fools to think that God operates by some universal law made up of how we feel about Him!

God does as He pleases with everything that He says or that He does. God does not make up new laws as time goes by.

God does just as He has written it down for us. Every Word is a Word of Truth!

1) We cannot trust anyone who goes against the Word of God!

2) We certainly cannot trust anyone who rejects the Word of God!

3) We must be aware that anything we place between ourselves and the One True God, has become an idol!

When a so-called Christian allows himself or herself to do any of these things listed in this passage, they have rebelled against God's Commandments the most critical one being "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me".

When we do these things, we have rejected our God who is also our Creator!

If you really want to get on the wrong side of God, then do all these things and then gather in the house of God saying you are what you "aint"!

We are not delivered from sin, to just sin at our will!

It is when we have left the building we call Church, or Temple, or by any other name, that we enter into our mission field to serve the Lord and not to serve sin!

If you are a Christian, then you need to look into your personal mirror every day to see for yourself if you are what you say you are.

When we make the house of God into a den of robbers we have defiled our place of worship!

God always has His eyes on His children not to see if we are doing wrong but to see if we deserve His blessings.

God's House is not a sanctuary for robbers and murderers!

To be saved by the "Grace" of God is not so we can have a license to sin!

The house of God is not the place to seek impunity for our abominations, it is the House where we are to seek to gather so we can worship God in Spirit and Truth because this is the way we can please Him in our worship!

If we have served our abominations, then we need to get on our knees and beg forgiveness from the Lord and then do our best to not sin again.

God knows we are not perfect, but He also knows what we are capable of and He intends for us all to be fishers of men!

Isa 29:13 Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

Going to Church to worship does us no good at all if we are not living for God the rest of the time.

God will not accept our worship if we are living in sin and you cannot get into Heaven without a good relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ!

We can never say that God has not warned us of those who would teach lies for the truth!

Then the Lord says, if you think the Temple, the House of God is more important to you than truth of God then just go down to Shiloh.

*****Jer 7:12 But go ye now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.

When Joshua brought the children of Israel into the promised land, the Tabernacle was set up in Shiloh.

Jos 18:1 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them.

In the time of Eli, the High Priest, God gave the Ark that was kept at Shiloh to the Philistines and it was not recovered until David brought it to Jerusalem.

We should remember the Ark contained the broken tablets of Moses to remind them it was best to honor the 10 Commandments.

1Sa 4:10 And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

1Sa 4:11 And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

Psa 78:58 For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

Psa 78:59 When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

Psa 78:60 So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;

Psa 78:61 And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.

Psa 78:62 He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.

Psa 78:63 The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.

Psa 78:64 Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.

We should be able to see that God's favor is not in some building or any place of worship.

In fact, God's favor is not tied down to any location at this time.

We should understand that God will not spare His wrath to those that rebel against His Words!

What are we to do in the House of the Lord?

Deu 12:11 Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD:

Deu 12:12 And ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you.

Shiloh became a mass of shapeless ruins!

And what did the Lord say?

*****Jer 7:13 And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not;

Jer 7:14 Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.

God said He would do the same thing to the Temple that King Solomon built by the plans of King David which the Lord said Himself was worldly, which means there is no need for the beauty and worldly objects in any place of worship.

We know that King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Temple in the days of Jeremiah.

Again, we see that we are undeserving of the "Grace of God" and God's has limits to His mercy.

We know that the Lord Jesus said where two or three gathered in His name He would also be there, and this is the beginnings of the Church.

The place of this gathering is not important but the fact that we are to gather together is important.

Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

We are to gather more often and not less often as we can see the day of the Lord approaching!

Worship without true repentance and then obedience will be empty, useless, and worthless in the eyes of the Lord.

God would also remove Judah from of the Promised Land.

*****Jer 7:15 And I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

Jer 7:16 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.

Once God has decided what He is going to do with a certain group of people, it is useless to pray for them.

These Jews were unwilling to repent and to obey the Lord, so it would do no good for Jeremiah to pray for their forgiveness.

There are times when it becomes useless to pray for certain people but now is not the time for the church to stop praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ and also for the lost.

God has told us to continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, so it is not time to stop preaching for the Children of the Nation of Israel.

There will come the time when those who are evil are beyond repentance, but God has not told us to do so yet!

These are the type of things that would make Jeremiah cry and maybe we should do the same for those who refuse to repent, especially those on our own family!

When God says to quit praying for certain people, He will also pull back the Holy Spirit from the convicting work that He does.

Gen_6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man,

Today all those who have itchy ears and control the preaching of the Pastor should take note, because their prayers will become useless. There will be no benefit come from their prayers.

When you refuse to hear the truth of God then God will refuse to hear from you, it just that simple!

Jeremiah knew God always has remnant who remain solid in the Word of God, and he could pray for those!

The real truth is when the Lord commands His servant not to pray for sinners and He ceases to correct them, then we can be sure the wrath of God is very close!

Eze 16:42 So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry.

Remember the wages of sin is death and these who refuse to repent are already sentenced to death and they will get nothing else from the Lord but will join the false trio in the burning lake of fire!

The Lord will simply say " I never knew you".

God is not angry with those who are lost He has already passed His judgment.

God will always be angry with those who sin and claim to know the Lord in a personal way.

The Lord will save all those who call upon His name, but the Lord will reject all those who refuse to call upon His name again it is just that simple!

Amen

Let's Pray!

God's Love Brings Forgiveness

God's Offer of Forgiveness

Book of Jeremiah 3

If we do not know by now, the Lord loves to forgive. We talk many times how the Lord when on the cross reached back to get all sin of the past and looked forward to gather all sin from the future and took all that sin to the grave with Him no more to be remembered, if we would repent and accept the Lord as our Savior!

This is true of the Church Age, but it is true of all remaining ages.

All the words in this wonderful book we see of Jehovah talking to Jeremiah are the same words Jeremiah is to preach to Judah.

To his credit King Josiah had an unwavering loyalty to Jehovah God.

2Ki 23:25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.

Josiah was only 8 years old when he took the throne of Judah and 8 more years passed until He devoted his life to Jehovah and a short time later he died in a battle trying to stop Egypt from open passage through the land of Judah.

The wrath of the Lord had already been kindled against Judah for the evilness of King Manasseh and the whole nation of Judah had turned away from the Lord.

As hard as Josiah tried to rid his nation of idolatry, he just did not have enough time and repentance was far from this nation.

2Ki 23:27 And the LORD said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.

Those that repented would be spared, but Judah as a nation refused to repent and the Lord would do to them as He had informed Jeremiah!

*****Jer 3:6 The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.

I believe the Lord is saying to Jeremiah, are you aware of the things going on around you?

A pastor from Peru sent me a message the other day and in it I found these things.

1) Adultery is openly allowed in South Africa. Adultery cannot be used as an excuse for divorce.

2) During the Obama presidency the only way for any country to have a good relationship with America they had allow homosexual marriage. I don’t thoink this is the way President Trump.

3) In Germany it is no longer against the law for incest to take place. Siblings can marry, Mothers and sons, and dads and daughters.

4) City of Miami has allowed that open sex in public not to be a crime.

5) Canada now allows bestiality and just so you know they dont mind running up the price of things that are sent to America except for prescribed drugs and thats because they want the drug trade.

6) In Spain, pornographic movies are authorized viewing in secondary schools and universities.

7) Prostitution for minors has been authorized in Nigeria. Marg Luker states that every young lady from the age of 10 starts feeling the need for sexual pleasure and no one should hinder her from discovering how her body works.

8) Finally, the US have authorized and made public satanic churches. There is one in Columbia SC as well as in 30 more states.

We might ask ourselves, are we sure we are aware of the things that are going on around us just as God asked Jeremiah.

We should repent ourselves that all these things have happened, and we are not even aware of them taking place.

God said Israel (the Ten Tribes) had played the harlot, which means they had left their first love.

God had asked them to repent but Israel had refused.

*****Jer 3:7 And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.

The people of Judah had failed to learn from the mistakes that the Northern tribes had made.

They had not only committed Spiritual adultery they had become an immoral society.

The Old Testament we have today is full of people being bad examples, but the Old Testament is also full of how God handled these situations.

We will first learn that if we will repent we will be forgiven but if we refuse to repent we will see the wrath of God!

God had turn the northern tribes over to the evil Assyrians and then the Lord had punished Assyria by allowing Babylon to defeat them because they had mistreated God's people and it would be the same for Babylon when God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to defeat Judah.

1) So, Judah had failed to learn from Israel's sin. (Note the words backsliding and apostate)

2) Judah had failed to learn from God's discipline of Israel. The nation was destroyed, and people exiled to Assyria.

We should also recall that God had promised that the Messiah would come through the family line of King David, so they felt that God would never allow Judah to be destroyed.

When we think we can out think God we are on a downward fall.

3) The people of Judah had become hypocrites, claiming to worship Jehovah, they had defiled the land with the untold idols of the nations around them.

King Josiah felt that the things he had done by destroying may of the idols and repairing the Temple had solved the biggest problems but even he was deceived by his own people.

4) The people of Judah had become much guiltier than the people of the Northern tribes.

It should be obvious to us that backsliding will bring the wrath of God!

The children of Israel had forgotten their own history had broke down the nation of Israel until May 14,1948

Today we have failed to learn from Bible history and our own history and now our history as a nation is being erased.

*****Jer 3:8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.

Jer 3:9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.

We should know by now the terrible things that follow the footsteps of wickedness and pure evil!

We are already reeling from the wickedness we see in our nation today.

We should also understand that to be evil and immoral is one thing but to claim to know the Lord in a personal relationship and be wicked and immoral is far worse!

Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

Gal 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

Gal 1:8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

Gal 1:9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

*****Jer 3:10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD.

That word "feignedly" means, "not just to tell a lie but to tell a lie in the sanctuary of God". When we heap lie after lie upon the altar of God and our own fire has gone out and our faith non-existent, then we certainly deserve what punishment God brings down upon us!

A true hypocrite will never object to go where the music is good and loud and the preaching is pointless!

These people can sit like a true Saint of God while their heart is far from loving the Lord and plotting their next mischief out in the world and most probably against that true Saint of God.

There is the rededication to the Lord that is not sincere.

There is the going to church which is not a true church.

There is a supposed calling of God that was just an excuse to do the work of Satan!

What did the Lord say?

*****Jer 3:11 And the LORD said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.

Israel without the kings in the line of David.

Israel without the Temple of God.

Israel without the Levites and the true priests of God.

Israel without a nation such as they were, to be an example of the wrath of God on His own people.

Israel who confessed their sin but refused to repent.

To Judah who refused to confess their sin because in their mind they had no sin to repent from.

Israel was certainly more justified in their sin than treacherous Judah!

2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

What is more wonderful than we realize? Jehovah God is so wonderful that He will even offer us a chance to repent!

*****Jer 3:12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever.

Jer 3:13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD.

The message of repentance is not heard in many of the pulpits today but without repentance there can be no forgiveness.

Repentance signifies a change of the mind!

Repentance signifies a submission by separating yourself from sin which can only be done with the help of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As Jeremiah walked toward the north, he was to proclaim in the ears of Judah and Benjamin the sin of the ten tribes of Israel, the northern tribes that were now in captivity, sin that was not near as bad as the sin of Judah.

The ten tribes had not claimed Jehovah and worshipped false gods, they had just rejected Him altogether.

Judah was still claiming to serve Jehovah, but they worshipped false gods.

We should be able to see the difference here and these Jews should also see the difference.

The main ingredient in salvation is to realize that we are sinners. Once we realize we are sinners we will then realize we need a Savior and that Savior is the Lord Jesus Christ and yes, we can say Jehovah, they are one and the same!

The hand of judgment will never fall on those who repent their sin at the proper time!

Repentance is a complete change of mind that brings a complete change of direction!

2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Those who refuse to repent will certainly see the judgment of God!

Another truth about our Savior, He has as much "Mercy" as He has "Grace"!

We must never miss the fact that God would rather bless us than to chastise us!

We must also know that God would rather save us than send us to the "Burning Lake of Fire"!

1Ti_2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Compare:

2Th_2:10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

We will all commit Spiritual Adultery if we rebel against the truth of God!

*****Jer 3:14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:

Jer 3:15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

It would be good for us to remember that God will never break any covenant He has ever made. This is the reason God can say "I AM" married to you.

The perfect marriage of one man and one woman will be to the death and the Lord is perfect!

BUT, Since the Lord can never die and He can never sin, His covenant is unbreakable.

It is only our own sin that can cause our death if we fail to repent before our own death!

Repentance means to be set free from Satan's chains, Satan's captivity!

Repentance means God will give us true shepherds, (Pastors).

Every time a sinner repents and returns to His Creator, the family of God grows because God can never lose any of His children.

Joh 10:25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.

Joh 10:26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.

Joh 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

Joh 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Joh 10:29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

Joh 10:30 I and my Father are one.

Everyone who has called upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation can then freely walk into the throne room of God!

Everyone who has called upon the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation will also witness God establish His Kingdom upon this earth!

We also know that the Lord has already begun to bring His people back to Israel, one from a city and two from a family, till they all return to the Promised Land!

*****Jer 3:16 And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.

We should understand that in the 1000 years of the Kingdom of the Lord, there will certainly be no need for the Ark of the Covenant because the covenant Maker will be with them!

The Ark of the Covenant symbolized the presence of Jehovah and He will be with them in His person.

The Ark of the Covenant symbolized a blessing because the Lord will only abide with His chosen people.

The Ark of the Covenant symbolized their Leader, because the Ark always led these Jewish people through the wilderness a cloud by day and a light by night.

The Ark of the Covenant symbolized their wanderings were over because the Ark would would reside in the center of the camp!

The Ark of the Covent was always a token of "Good" to the children of Israel.

Understanding these things, we should better understand Revelation 11:19.

Rev_11:19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the true Ark of the true Covenant.

*****Jer 3:17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.

We know that during the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ , He will sit upon the throne of David in the city of Jerusalem.

This will be God's residence for 1000 years and the Church will be with Him!

During this period, the King of Kings, The Lord of lords, will rule with a rod of iron which means, "neither shall they walk anymore after the imagination of their hearts".

We will all know just exactly what we are to do, no questions to ask!

The Lord Jesus Christ is holy in His being and His rule will be a holy rule.

*****Jer 3:18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.

There are no lost tribes of Israel because the Lord knows exactly where they are located.

The two kingdoms that were once divided will then be united like they never have before!

Jer 50:20 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.

Not only these things but Church and Israel will be united all of us understanding the Word of God!

Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Gal 3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

Gal 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

When God forgives, God then grows His family!

What is forgiveness? Without forgiveness there could be no justification!

It is because of forgiveness that we are no longer condemned to pay the wages of sin, which was death!

Because of forgiveness we get to witness the absolute "Grace" of God, which is the Lord Jesus Christ!

Amen.

Let's Pray!

God's Love Brings Repentance

God's Message of Love to His People

Book of Jeremiah 2

Verses 4-9, 13, 21, 26-32, 35

We already know that the Nation of Israel had been divided at the end of the rule of King Solomon. One called Judah consisted of 2 tribes and the other called Israel consisting of 10 tribes. The men of Israel had long been carried off by Assyria and the women left behind and provided with other men and this area became known as Samaria. This was the reason there was so much, uncalled for, hatred of the Jews and Samaritans.

These things happened because the ten tribes of Israel had abandoned Jehovah and had chosen false gods.

Judah had now become more sinful than Israel had been!

Judah had forsaken the Lord Jehovah for a multitude of false gods, yet they still claimed to be the children of God.

It was an insult to God for the people of Israel to neglect God and forget Him. No one acknowledged his kindness, and no one acknowledged His great love He had for them. Today we would say those who backslide away from the Lord.

I said no one, but God always has a remnant who stands by him.

Let's Begin:

*****Jer 2:4 Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:

Jer 2:5 Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?

We must first understand that the Lord will only forget those things that He chooses to forget! It should be obvious that as the children of God we are always under His watchful eyes.

These people had broken off their commitment to God!

We should ask ourselves, just what kind of relationship do we have with our Savior? I know the Lord prefers an up close and very personal relationship with each of us.

An atheist denies the existence of God.

An agnostic believes that no one can even really know if there is a God.

If we admit we believe that God exists but we ignore and neglect Him what does that say about us?

If we say we believe God, then maybe we should obey the words He says.

If we came face to face with the Lord today, would He take us on to Heaven with Him or would He reject us as we have rejected Him?

Would He ignore us as we have ignored Him?

When we make a genuine decision to follow the Lord but then pull away, what does that say about our love for Him?

The Lord God Jehovah promises to be faithful to us if we will commit to be faithful to Him.

Our relationship with the Lord must be based on "faith"!

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

If we please the Lord with our faith, then the Lord will please us with His promises and He promise us eternal freedom to be with Him wherever He is!

Unfaithfulness is such a terrible sin that this will be the thought behind the very first message given to Jeremiah by God the Holy Spirit!

2Ti_3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

It behooves each one of us to listen to what God has to say!

How can anyone take a piece of wood and carve out a figure and call it a god with power?

How can anyone take a stone and carve out a figure and think of it as a god with power?

How can anyone take a mold and pour melted silver or gold and say it is now become a god with power?

To put it bluntly, how could an educated people believe such things as this?

How can an educated people look at all that we can see with our eyes and say these things happened by accident?

God says it right, those who believe such things are vain. Vain means worthless.

The Apostle Peter said:

1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

The children of Israel were brought out of Egypt with the power of God and they witnessed powerful wonders that could not be explained other than to say they came from Jehovah God. This was the first time they had met their Savior!

Exo_6:3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

God had made a promise to Abraham and Sarah and God will always keep all His promises!

*****Jer 2:6 Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?

What is wrong with a people who will not concern themselves with the truth, after all the things their forefathers had witnessed of the truth of God.

The wilderness journey of the nation of Israel was the birth of the Nation that God had charged with preserving the Word of God.

As many has 600,000 may have died on the journey, yet as many as 600,000 were also born on this journey, so we could say that the nation of Israel was "born again" as they traveled from the death of Egypt to the life of the Promise land but so many had forgotten the truth of the wilderness journey!

Some Christians do the same today. They forget what they use to be before the Lord broke our chains of captivity to Satan.

They had forgotten that the Lord had warned them that this would happen.

Deu 8:13 And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;

Deu 8:14 Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;

Deu 8:15 Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;

Deu 8:16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;

Deu 8:17 And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

God had given Israel a land that was to be their own land and it was a plentiful land.

To me it seems that as we get older it is our memories that must sustain us until the Lord takes us home. Here we see a nation who had rejected their own memories and made the present the truth.

We see this same thing happening in our nation today as our history is being erased by those who reject the truth!

We have forgotten the birth of our own nation and the struggles to build our nation into a great nation but now a nation falling because we have forgotten our past and are trying to live in today, which has become very evil!

*****Jer 2:7 And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.

We should understand that everything we see, and all the land belongs to Jehovah God and He allows us to live on it.

When we defile God's land then He will deal with us just as He dealt with Israel back in this day of Jeremiah!

We can just imagine that these words of Jeremiah from the Holy Spirit would not go over well with these people, who still felt they were giving God the Glory with their false worship.

The Lord insisted that Jeremiah be obedient, and he would, because he still loved the Lord and He knew these Words of the Lord were true.

In most every case we just feel like we are incapable to do what God ask us to do. I know I have felt this way myself. If we use the Word of God and much less of our own words things will usually be alright.

The truth is, it is always best to submit to the will of God! We are all called to share the Word of God! We must also remember that the Word of God will cut deep to most of those who hear it!

As we study these lessons in the Book of Jeremiah we are looking into the past of Israel. There were many of these Jews in the time of Jesus and in our day that know another promise, that has not yet taken place.

Act 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

When we realize that the nation of Israel ruled their own destiny and things would have been much different if they had remained true to the Lord.

We could also say this about our own selves and our own nation, today!

When we do not learn from our mistakes as a people and as a nation, the results will be very similar, but God's patience will not last forever.

When the Lord says that His heritage has become an abomination, He is not talking so much about the land, it is the people.

*****Jer 2:8 The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.

All those who were set aside to teach the people the Word of God, were themselves worshippers of Baal!

How can we not see a comparison to the church that exists today? Certainly not all but more and more as time passes.

In fact, it is becoming against the law to teach the truth of God and many are pushing this to the limit because they serve sin and the father of all sin Satan, the Devil!

Israel, the nation that had been set apart to serve the Lord, had themselves become a wicked nation.

What is sin? Sin is the departure from God and the truth of God!

We should understand that no matter how evil our leaders, or our church leaders become, we are still responsible for our own relationship with the Lord!

Sin can be described as going from things that are real to depending on things that are unreal and vain!

If our Heavenly Father had some sin within His being, we might have grounds for our sin but in all the years since our creation no sin has been discovered in the Lord!

The priests did not seek the Lord nor call upon Him!

The judges who handled the Laws of Moses did not regard Jehovah God!

The pastors, another word for shepherds, did not pasture the flocks of believers.

The prophets only prophesied of Baal and led the people to false gods!

When we forget and erase our history, we are headed for destruction!

It had been Jehovah God who had set the people of Israel free and brought them to a land of milk and honey.

The leaders of Israel had led the people of Israel in a revolt against the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

We live in a land today that is ruled by those who have reprobate minds and our own President is treated has one who is hated by those who reject him in the highest office in the land. Our Congress and Senate has become a place where fools gather to do nothing!

I never knew such foolish people exists as those who are against the laws of the land and the laws of our republic!

What kind of God do we serve? The God of love who will offer chance after chance until He has had enough of our rebellion!

*****Jer 2:9 Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.

Israel had backslidden several times since leaving Egypt, but they soon returned to Jehovah but this time there was no sign of them returning to the truth of God.

It was the Lord Himself who gave these words to Jeremiah and these charges were brought no only against the parents but also to the children and those children's children.

Children normally will follow the teaching of the parents and many as we know will follow in the footsteps of their parents and grandparents!

We are never to think that any child will be disciplined by the Lord for the sins of the parent.

Each of us will live or die by our own mistakes in serving the Lord or in not serving the Lord!

What God is saying is that the discipline of this nation would last a long time. We already know that besides being in siege for a period, they would spend 70 years in captivity until the time God brought Cyrus onto the scene.

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

God will not tolerate this sin for very long!

*****Jer 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

This verse was not part of our lesson but let's look at it anyway.

Those who are lost who go around switching from one false god to another, only commit one sin and that is the sin of unbelief which will indeed bring their eternal death.

When any Christian forsakes the One True God, they have committed at least two sins.

Once we have been introduced to the Lord then it's time to make a choice.

We can continue to live in sin or we can accept the truth of God and be gloriously saved!

What we cannot do is claim to follow in the ways of Jesus Christ and remain out in the world, like so many we see today.

Judah currently was still claiming Jehovah, but they were serving Baal. God simply will not allow this!

What did the Lord teach that Samaritan woman at that well in Samaria?

Joh 4:13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:

Joh 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

There is nothing in this world, no water, no idol and no false god that can bring eternal life, for these things are only broken cisterns that can hold no water.

We must drink from the living waters that flow from the Lord Jesus Christ!

Those cisterns were used to collect rain water because water was a scarce thing at the time of Jeremiah and these people knew exactly what Jeremiah was talking about because it was the absolute truth.

Isa 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Isa 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

Another Scripture that is not in our lesson verse 21.

*****Jer 2:21 Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?

A noble vine, here is a healthy vine or some would say tree, but it will not show its death in the short term. Some time must pass by before it will be noticed that it is dying. Sometimes it cannot be revived and sometimes it will still produce fruit, but the fruit will not be of good quality, or not even edible.

God says Israel was a noble vine, from the right seed but turned out to be a degenerate plant, a strange looking vine that produced wild grapes as is said in another Scripture.

A so-called believer who does not retain the truth of God and veers from the truth of God will never reach its full potential!

How was Israel described:

Isa 5:1 Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:

Isa 5:2 And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.

Isa 5:3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

Isa 5:4 What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

Isa 5:5 And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

Isa 5:6 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

Isa 5:7 For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

We must understand as Christians we must not follow this same path to destruction!

*****Jer 2:26 As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,

Jer 2:27 Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.

The children of Israel were all in a shameless pursuit of false gods trying to satisfy the lust of their flesh instead of giving themselves over to serve the Lord.

Verse 25 said they had loved strangers(false gods) and after them would they go.

They were in direct denial of Jehovah forgetting the wonders of their escape from Egypt and the miracles in the wilderness.

They had forgotten the great battles where God had fought for them.

They had forgotten the manna from Heaven and the water from the rock.

They had turned their back on God and had turned to animals such as a bull.

They had turned their back on Jehovah and turned to carved stones or carved wood and who knows what they said were now their gods.

They were not even ashamed! Even a thief is ashamed when they get caught but not these Jews, who were not ashamed that they had left the Lord for false things.

They had not been obedient to the Lord and it was Jeremiah who would point out all these things to them jeopardizing his own life, but God would be with him and they could not harm him even if they tried and they did try.

It is hard to imagine those who go back out in the world after they have known the Master, but it happens all the time.

Immorality has proven that it destroys nations throughout history and therefore an attempt to erase our own history continues to take place.

We live in a world that will be happier when us older Christians die off and then they can deal with a younger generation that has been taught lies and not the truth!

They worshipped these idols with the honor due to our Heavenly Father!

What is a backslider? Verse 27 says "they have turned their back unto me and not their face"

How can we call ourselves Christians if we are afraid to come face to face with our Lord and Savior!

They would in fact call upon these things to help them in a time of trouble, but no man-made god can help anyone, and our world today is filled with many man-made gods.

You cannot be a Christian without your Heavenly Father!

Isa 64:8 But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Isa 64:9 Be not wroth very sore, O LORD, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.

Until we accept the truth of our Father in Heaven, we will never know our Lord and our Savior!

Joh_6:65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

Joh_10:30 I and my Father are one.

There is no God except the Triune God, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost! Not three gods but One God in three persons!

*****Jer 2:28 But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.

The Lord in ridicule said, you have more than enough gods, that you made with your own hands, call out to them and see if they can save you.

Even in this day of Jeremiah, it is said that the non-Jews had above 30,000 false gods, that they worshipped. Much more than enough if they had any power which was impossible, for they had no power at all!

Then the Lord said, "wherefore would you plead with Me".

When we push the One True God away, why then should He help us in our hour of need.

Here in America, The Lord has been removed from and pushed away from us, until something happens such as a Hurricane, or the death of a child, or all the school shootings, then He gets the blame by non-believers.

Why should He stop any of these things in our land when He has been told to leave?

While our nation is so deep in sin and immorality, why would the Lord ever listen to any of our prayers.

He will only listen to the prayers of His children and that one who prays the sinner’s prayer. He will not act on prayers to those who reject Him!

Psa 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Do not come to the Lord or even call upon Him if you are not willing to worship Him and Him only!

*****Jer 2:29 Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.

The Lord does not expect perfection, but He does expect our worship, which means we ask for forgiveness when we know we have failed Him in any way.

2Ch_7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

*****Jer 2:30 In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.

We should understand that with every sin comes the chastisement of God and these people had been chastised repeatedly but it had brought no positive results this time.

They just placed their trust in other people and other nations and other gods.

Remember sometimes they would turn to Egypt for help against the Assyrians.

They would turn to other nations for help when they had the God of their forefathers who had shown Himself invincible to people who trusted Him!

Once a great nation under King David and King Solomon even when he had done wrong he had kept the nation safe from invasion.

The worship of false gods had only brought emptiness, distrust, restlessness and betrayal.

They could not even trust each other.

These things sound familiar to us today!

When they had sinned the prophets of God had preached repentance, but they did not want to hear such things and they killed the prophets of God like lions in search of their prey.

They still thought of themselves as good and decent people, but goodness will never bring salvation!

God had pity on them because He still loved them even though they desired to be free of God and His commandments.

Again, this sounds like the America we live in today.

2Ti_4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

2Ti_4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

These people had forsaken Jehovah God!

*****Jer 2:31 O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?

Jer 2:32 Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.

When the Lord speaks through His prophets, He is asked questions from His people, many times that the answer is a simple "No".

If we have something to ask the Lord, then ask. He already knows what the question is, and He is always the answer!

Just ask, why delay because of shame?

**No, the Lord has never been a wilderness to Israel. We see Israel to day and as Christians we know what God is saying is true, but it was just as true in the time of Jeremiah.

**No, the Lord has never been a land of darkness. The Lord has always been a bright shining light for all people who placed their trust in Him!

We must never treat the Lord like He has left us when He never will leave us.

If we cannot trust the Word of God and the promises He makes, then we are a pathetic people!

When we place ourselves above the god we serve, it should be obvious we have taken on the traits of Satan!

Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

When we take on the traits of Satan then we will suffer with him in the burning lake of fire. "The wages of sin is still death"

Eze 28:18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

What would Judah see for her iniquities?

Eze 28:7 Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.

Assyria lay to the North of Judah and had already captured the ten tribes but now Babylon had captured Assyria and it was this powerful nation that God called upon to punish Judah for her sins.

They would be captives throughout Babylon for 70 years.

Why do the guilty always declare their innocence?

*****Jer 2:35 Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.

Just as in America today, people will always try to justify their sinful behavior. Not very many thought they deserved to see the wrath of God.

Again, we see this happening right before our eyes!

We must never forget that any act of sin, no matter how small is enough to be rejected by the Lord if we refuse to repent.

Preaching on repentance is not heard from many of the pulpits today.

When we are short of God's glory, we are unacceptable to our Holy God!

We must wear the righteousness of His Dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ!

In the day of Jeremiah these people turned everywhere except toward the Lord!

Amen

Let's Pray!