October 26, 2006 - Jeremiah 9-11 and I Timothy 6
In this passage of the book of Jeremiah he comes out very plainly to identify the sin that led the people of God away from Him. I urge each of us to hear what he said to Israel and what he is saying to us today.
Jeremiah 9 focuses on lying. That was the sin that sunk Israel, and it is the sin that sinks people today. They bent their tongues for lies, and they did not stand up for truth. (v.3) He goes so far as to say that through "deceit" they refuse to know Me. (v.6) They were lying to themselves, lying to others, and lying to God. Their deceit was such that they told themselves that they were believers, when they were not, so their lying kept them from knowing God. Isn't that the case today? I believe it is still the problem now. We must not fall for Satan's trap that lying is not so bad. When truth slips, everything and everyone slips away from God.
That is how the people could turn to idols. In Chapter 10 Jeremiah points out that the gods did not make the heavens and the earth. (v.11) However, the people worshiped them. They told themselves they were real or that it did not really matter, because it was a custom of the land. (v.3) Whatever falsehood they began to believe, it led them to compromise and then to depart from God completely. We have the same danger today. In fact, Jeremiah 11 details that the children of Israel broke their covenant, and God would not hear them any more. Is there any more desperate news? I do not believe so. They were cursed for their rejection of His laws. (v.3) He would not listen to them. (v.11) Do you see the effects of lying and deceit? Please, cling to truth and put away lying in any form.
I Timothy 6 concludes this first letter to Timothy. Here Paul continues to direct his son in the ministry to godliness. The truth of the matter is that godliness is not a means to earthly wealth. (v.5) God does not intend to bless us materially because we become like Christ. He wants us to see that the love of money is one of the huge problems in this world. (v.10) It leads to all kinds of evil. He wants all of us to see that godliness linked with contentment is a key to living like Jesus. Therefore, he even tells Timothy to warn the rich not to trust in riches. We need to hear this truth today, because most of us are rich today by most standards, and we can be tempted to trust in money instead of the Lord. That is always a huge mistake.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Jeremiah 12-14 and II Timothy 1.
Jeremiah 9 focuses on lying. That was the sin that sunk Israel, and it is the sin that sinks people today. They bent their tongues for lies, and they did not stand up for truth. (v.3) He goes so far as to say that through "deceit" they refuse to know Me. (v.6) They were lying to themselves, lying to others, and lying to God. Their deceit was such that they told themselves that they were believers, when they were not, so their lying kept them from knowing God. Isn't that the case today? I believe it is still the problem now. We must not fall for Satan's trap that lying is not so bad. When truth slips, everything and everyone slips away from God.
That is how the people could turn to idols. In Chapter 10 Jeremiah points out that the gods did not make the heavens and the earth. (v.11) However, the people worshiped them. They told themselves they were real or that it did not really matter, because it was a custom of the land. (v.3) Whatever falsehood they began to believe, it led them to compromise and then to depart from God completely. We have the same danger today. In fact, Jeremiah 11 details that the children of Israel broke their covenant, and God would not hear them any more. Is there any more desperate news? I do not believe so. They were cursed for their rejection of His laws. (v.3) He would not listen to them. (v.11) Do you see the effects of lying and deceit? Please, cling to truth and put away lying in any form.
I Timothy 6 concludes this first letter to Timothy. Here Paul continues to direct his son in the ministry to godliness. The truth of the matter is that godliness is not a means to earthly wealth. (v.5) God does not intend to bless us materially because we become like Christ. He wants us to see that the love of money is one of the huge problems in this world. (v.10) It leads to all kinds of evil. He wants all of us to see that godliness linked with contentment is a key to living like Jesus. Therefore, he even tells Timothy to warn the rich not to trust in riches. We need to hear this truth today, because most of us are rich today by most standards, and we can be tempted to trust in money instead of the Lord. That is always a huge mistake.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Jeremiah 12-14 and II Timothy 1.