Tag: prophet jeremiah

Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            Even in the darkest of moments in time there is still the remote possibility of hope.  On this Holy Saturday while we remember the darkness in between Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, one of the important angles to keep in mind is how the original disciples must have felt on this day.  We, of course, know the end of the story.  We know that Christ is about to be risen from death and that the tomb will be empty.  But Peter, James, John, and the rest of Christ’s followers had no idea this was going to occur. 
 
            Let’s take the thought even a bit further:  what was Jesus experiencing during this time in the grave?  I know it is a crazy thought, but Jesus completely and fully entrusted himself to the Father.  Did he ever have a doubt or wonder if things would shake out as we now know they would?  Sometimes we might lose sight of the reality that Jesus is quite fully a human with all of the limitations that go with it.  Christ knows full well how difficult it can be to live life on this earth surrounded by sin, evil, and trouble.  He knows what it feels like to be afflicted, to be forsaken, to be profoundly touched by the sin of others.
 
            But suffering does not have the last word.  “My soul continually remembers it [affliction] and is bowed down within me.  But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope:  The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” These are not just words from the prophet Jeremiah; they are the thoughts of Christ himself.  Jesus placed his faith and hope in the Father.  The disciples placed their faith and hope in Jesus.  We, as well, must discover that darkness and death never have the last word.  The last word is always and forever GRACE.  It is the mercy of God that trumps death and every evil practice and each sinful agenda.  Wait for it… wait for it….
 

 

            Almighty God, grant that in your mercy I might obtain the result of your passion:  forgiveness of sins and new life in Jesus Christ, who loved me and gave himself for me.  Amen.

Jeremiah 3:1-5

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
            We all have needs.  As human beings, each one of us has some deep hunger for love, intimacy, attention, affirmation, and encouragement.  When these needs are met within gracious and loving relationships, especially in the marital bond, then there is genuine happiness and flourishing.  But when our deep wants go unmet over a stretch of time, smiles are replaced with furrowed brows and confident strides give way to slumped shoulders.
 
            We feel deeply and are moved at the visceral level of our being because we are made in the image and likeness of God – a God who himself feels and has great emotion.  Perhaps we too often think of God as some disembodied ethereal brain who has no feeling.  I would hope that today’s Old Testament lesson would put a collar on such notions.  God entered into a loving covenant relationship with Israel.  Yet, over time, the Jews looked for their relational, emotional, and spiritual needs to be met in other gods other than the One true God.  And it pained God.
 
            God felt quite deeply about this turning away from him.  The Lord responded to his people like a jilted lover who is agonized by their acting the part of a whore – looking for their needs to be satisfied elsewhere.  It seems to me that God is so profoundly hurt because he knows that our deepest and greatest needs can only really be met through him.  We unequivocally need God.
 
            To put it in the stark terms of Jeremiah’s prophecy:  Are we playing the part of a whore, running after all kinds of other relationships and things that we wrongheadedly believe will meet the needs of our lives?  Do we sell ourselves to others in order to make a living?  Have we sought other lovers and forsaken our first love of Jesus?  It behooves us all to connect with our longings and needs, and allow the God who delights to meet those needs into the core of our being.
 

 

            Jealous God, you are zealous for your presence to be known in the lives of all your creatures.  Help me to know the deepest needs of my life.  May I find in you the desire of my heart and let you fill me with your infinite grace, love, mercy, and attention so that I will know true peace and joy, to the glory of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Jeremiah 29:1-14

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            Jeremiah 29:11 is a familiar verse to many Christians for whom their life assurance and confidence is built:  “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”  Yet, less well known is the command of verse 7 which frames and gives the meaning to the assurance:  “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”
 
            The ancient Jews had experienced the heart-wrenching experience of having the Babylonians come and destroy Jerusalem and carry them into exile to Babylon.  They grieved and they lamented, and rightly so.  But there came a time for the Jews to cease their disappointment and despondency and turn their inward focus to the outward focus of prayer for their captors.
 
            It is human nature to fold our arms and be sullen when things do not go our way.  Put yourselves in the shoes (or sandals) of the Jews.  They lost their home and their lives were completely turned upside-down.  Perhaps you can relate to them.  Maybe there are times when you feel like you are in exile, far from where you want to be.  God is calling us all as his people to be concerned for the communities where we live and work, and to pray for their welfare, even if they have caused us harm.  When we do this, we participate with Jesus in loving our enemies and praying for those who persecute us.  Our welfare is inextricably bound up with the community around us.
            Gracious God, you have called me to a ministry of prayer.  Give me a heart of concern for my community and my nation.  I pray for them, that they might prosper in the knowledge of Jesus Christ and come to faith in him.  Amen.

Jeremiah 19

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            There is a prophetic rhythm in the Old Testament between judgment and grace, wrath and mercy.  This chapter in Jeremiah is clearly in the groove of judgment:  “This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel says: ‘Listen!  I am going to bring on this city and the villages around it every disaster I pronounced against them, because they were stiff-necked and would not listen to my words.’”
 
            Judah and Jerusalem had the Temple, the covenant, the promises.  The problem was not that they had forgotten these realities because they continued to offer their sacrifices and attended much of their religious practice.  The issue was that they sacrificed to other gods and practiced the ways of religions other than the worship of Yahweh.  The ancient Jews used the worship of the one true God as a sort of rabbit’s foot to do whatever they wanted.  They believed that since they offered worship to the LORD, the rest of their time and money was theirs to do with however they chose.  They were wrong.
 
            Jeremiah prophesied judgment on them for not giving their whole selves to God and for not listening to God when he repeatedly called them to repent from such proclivities.  What we must continually grasp is that God is the Lord over all our lives, not just part of them.  God cares deeply about everything we do and say.  It is a travesty and offense to God when we have an attitude that we put in our time going to church and give a portion of money in the offering plate, and the rest of our lives is for us to with as we please.  Everything belongs to God, not just the “religious” parts.  This is a message not just for ancient people, but for all of us today who claim the name of God. 
            O God Almighty, all things belong to you, and you deserve my exclusive praise and adoration.  I unreservedly give my life to you, body and soul, so that I will serve my faithful Redeemer, the Lord Jesus, every day in every way.  Amen.