Thursday: Swearing Falsely
In Jeremiah 5:1, the Lord tells the people to run through the streets and see if you can find a man, one who does justice and seeks truth, that I may pardon her [Jerusalem]
(ESV). This brings to mind two stories. One is from an ancient Greek philosopher of the fourth century b.c. named Diogenes who, according to legend, used to walk around in the marketplace in the daytime, claiming that he was looking for an honest man.
Image © Review & Herald Publishing from GoodSalt.com
The other story, of course, one that we know is true, is that of God speaking to Abraham, telling him that if He could find 50 righteous men (soon reduced to 10), He would not destroy the city.
The point, though, in the Lord’s words through Jeremiah was to reveal just how widespread the apostasy and sin had become among His people. Was there no one who did justice and sought truth?
Read Jeremiah 5:2-3. What is being said here that shows just how bad things were becoming? (See Lev. 19:12.)
These verses bring up a point that appears all through the book. No matter how deeply fallen the nation had become, many of the people believed that they were still faithfully following the Lord! They were uttering His name, but they were doing it falsely
instead of in truth, in justice, and in righteousness
(Jer. 4:2, ESV) as the Lord had commanded them. They did not listen to the warning coming from God, but they went on in their lives and religious practices as if everything were all right between them and God, when in fact almost nothing was right between them.
The depth of their deception can be seen in Jeremiah 7:4, when the people would take a false comfort in these words, hekhal yhwh hekhal yhwh hekhal yhwh hemma! (This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord
), as if having the temple there were all that they needed in order to ensure that all would go well with them. It’s one thing to know you’re in a crisis; but when you are in one and don’t know it, that’s an even worse situation.
With all the wonderful truth we have been given as Seventh-day Adventists, how can we make sure we don’t fall into a similar deception of believing our unique calling itself is enough to save us?
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Confident about their own righteousness, even if they did not seek to impose their pitiful standards on others, it seemed no one could talk to God’s people. Surely they might use as an excuse to stop their ears the presence of false prophets (Jeremiah 20:6-9), except that they did listen to the sweet talkers.
In the well-known fable of the boy who cried, “wolf” the bored young man on watch several times deceptively shouted, “wolf, wolf” and unintentionally turned off the villagers from listening to him. So when the wolf actually showed up and the watcher gave the alarm no one listened.
May it not escape attention that although the youngster was at fault on previous occasions ultimately it was the people who suffered loss. Many may be turned off from prophets because there are so many of the false variety in the Christian community. Nevertheless there is a need for the watchman and a purpose in the warning (Jeremiah 6:17).
In the end it will be small comfort that one was able to ‘call the bluff’ or identify false messengers on a few occasions only to be destroyed for failure to heed the real warning. The wise note that there are misleading voices in the household of faith, but do not just turn away and blame others for bad reporting (Mark 13:22).
The diligent disciple take time to test the message (1 Thessalonians 5:21). Their safety is worth the inconvenience. They understand there is a real wolf (serpent) posing a real threat (Revelation 12:9, 15). Until the wolf (lion) is dead they will remain sober and vigilant (1 Peter 5:8).
Conscious of their need the faithful listen to the prophets (2 Chronicles 20:20).
There a lot of social injustice nowadays and immorality is rampant and what was deem as evil now is considered a right, what was considered as abomination now is decreed as a norm for it has been legalized, the richer getting richer and the poorer more poorer. Crime is on the rise like no other century of the world's history. Religious propaganda and war are on the increase and it is enough signal for us as Adventist to proclaim the 3 Angels message in its entirety and verity that Salvation is justification by faith in Jesus alone. A call for revival and reformation for we are guilty of being a spectator in the great controversy in our individual lives, family, neighbors and country around us and people are dying of ignorant and their death is on us. It is time we wake up from our slumber of being too self centered and not trying to die for the people within our influence.
May God continue 2 give time and patience 2 study God's word and daily respond. Some of us are kept away by é devil in various way but are blessed when we find time 2 read yo comments. Praise God.
Being a Seventh-Day Adventist will not save us. The Bible says; Believe on The Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall be save. Let us brothers and sisters believe and trust in The Lord in these last days. Let us built our hope and trust in Jesus Christ our Saviour and Redeemer and He will save us. I love Jesus because He first love me.
One way in which we can ensure that we don't fall into similar deception is by constantly checking ourselves with God's character. We have to make sure that we are not just going through the motions by reading the bible and going to church; we have to also practice what we preach. Another commitment we must make is to be honest in the areas of our lives where we consistently sin. All too often I either ignore the sin that I am doing, rationalize that it's not that bad, or say to myself that God will forgive me anyway. But those thought processes were exactly the ones that got the Judeans in the mess that they were in. Lord, help us to inspect ourselves honestly.
Matt 22:37 (Aramaic Bible in Plain English)
"Yeshua said to him, “You shall love THE LORD JEHOVAH your God from all your heart and from all your soul and from all your power and from all your mind.”
Ex 20:4 (NLT)
""You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind . . ."
2 Tim 3: 15-17 (NIV)
"…15 and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.