August 10: Jeremiah 10-13

August 10, Jeremiah 10-13

Jeremiah 10 Again, God is warning the people of Israel to give up their love for their idols. Their idols are keeping them from Yahweh. The Israelites have become like surrounding nations and following man-made ways. This was one of the leading causes of their love for their idolatry. God called them to be different and they are just like the world around them. They do not realize that the idols that they worship are useless. They have to be carried and cannot speak - they are powerless, and yet the Israelites bow to them and worship them. Jeremiah confesses that there is no God but God in Heaven, everything else is an imposter. God tells Jeremiah to tell the people that their false gods shall die and be wiped out by God. He is the Creator and Sustainer, they are nothing. Sure, there are some skilled craftsman that have made the idols - but man in and of himself is stupid & without knowledge, apart from God. 

Man will follow the wrong paths apart from God. God directs our steps! Jeremiah wants to make sure that his heart is right before God as well and wants God to pour out His wrath on nations that do not obey Him…

Jeremiah 11 God told Jeremiah again to go and remind the people of Judah that they have broken their covenant with God (remember that they just renewed their covenant vows with God through the King Josiah…).  All they need to do is obey God and follow him. Obey His voice, yet they did not. Because they have broken the covenant over and over again, God will bring destruction to them. Again, Jeremiah is warned that he is to not pray for them - God will not even listen to Jeremiah’s prayers because of His anger against them. 

There were some that were plotting against Jeremiah, but God affirmed that He will protect Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 12 Jeremiah stated tat many were just offering lip-service to God, which made them fake followers. But Jeremiah’s heart was right with God, so Jeremiah also wants God’s enemies set apart for destruction. It is just hard for him that some of God’s enemies are his fellow countrymen. Even Jeremiah’s family will betray him and are not to be trusted. Brutal.

God was in the process of ‘cleaning house’ for the disobedient but is willing to bring them back in if they repent and turn to Him. If not, they will be destroyed…

Jeremiah 13 God asked Jeremiah to do what seems to be some strange actions. Even when God asked it of him, he obeyed. What was Jeremiah to do? Go and buy a dirty pair of underwear and put it on. He obeyed. Then God told him to take the dirty underwear and put it in a rock, hidden. He obeyed. Then he was told to go get it again. He obeyed. The underwear was ruined by this time. What was the point? Like the underwear that is spoiled, so is the relationship between God and His people. They wanted to do evil and serve other gods, so like the loincloth that was ruined - the people are also worthless. 

Jeremiah again calls the people to repentance and to give glory to God. He warned them again about the upcoming judgement. Their sins are before God and it was only a matter of time, unless they repented. God was going to reveal their sins and they would suffer for it. They would be scattered because they have forgotten the Holy God and trusted in lies. God will expose their whoredom after other gods. They will continue in their sin!

To sum it all up: 

• Our culture has also inherited many things from the customs of the world and we tend to act a lot like them.
• Regardless of what God is calling you to, obey. Even if it seems stupid and ludicrous, you must trust in God’s Sovereign plan for you and trust that God is working things for His purposes!
• Repent from your sin! Obey God. Let’s not complicate things:)