Posted on Jun 27, 2018 in Jeremiah: A Walk of Sorrow for a Sinful People |
Read Jeremiah 9:1-26
Jeremiah felt conflicting emotions concerning his people. Lying, deceit, treachery, adultery, and idolatry had become common sins. He was angered by their sin, but he had compassion, too. He was set apart from them by his mission for God, but he was also one of them. Jesus had similar feelings when He stood before Jerusalem, the city that would reject Him (Matthew 23:37).
Posted on Jun 27, 2018 in Jeremiah: A Walk of Sorrow for a Sinful People |
Read Jeremiah 8:4-22
When people fall down or realize that they are headed in the wrong direction, it only makes sense for them to get up or change directions. But as God watched the nation, He saw people living sinful lives by choice, deceiving themselves that there would be no consequences. They had lost perspective concerning God’s will for their lives and were trying to minimize their sin. Are there some indicators that you have fallen down or are heading the wrong way? What are you doing to get back onto the right path?
Posted on Jun 27, 2018 in Jeremiah: A Walk of Sorrow for a Sinful People |
Read Jeremiah 7:30-8:3
The shrines of Topheth, which means fireplace, were set up in the valley of the son of Hinnom, where debris and rubbish from the city were thrown away. This altar was used to worship Molech; a god who required child sacrifice (2 Kings 23). Their valley of sacrifice would become their valley of slaughter by the Babylonians. At the place where the people had killed their children in sinful idol worship, they themselves would be slaughtered.
Posted on Jun 27, 2018 in Jeremiah: A Walk of Sorrow for a Sinful People |
Read Jeremiah 7:16-29
The Queen of Heaven was a name for Ishtar, the Mesopotamian goddess of love and fertility. After the fall of Jerusalem, the refugees from Judah who fled to Egypt continued to worship her. A papyrus dating from the 5th century B.C., found at Hermopolis in Egypt, mentions the Queen of Heaven among the gods honored by the Jewish community living there.
Posted on Jun 27, 2018 in Jeremiah: A Walk of Sorrow for a Sinful People |
Read Jeremiah 7:1-15
The people followed a worship ritual but maintained a sinful lifestyle. It was religion without personal commitment to God. Attending church, taking communion, teaching Sunday school, singing in the choir, are all empty exercises unless we are truly doing them for God. It is good to do these activities, not because we ought to do them for the church, but because we want to do them for God.
