by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
Lamentations 1-2
Now if somewhere along the line you began to think of Jeremiah as hard and cruel, you will change your mind now. He is broken-hearted over his nation, Israel.
The city of Jerusalem had once been called the “perfection of beauty; the joy of the whole earth.” Now it is totally destroyed. The nations around about who have envied Israel’s splendor, now are rejoicing over her destruction. They are “hissing” at her as they go by.
Everyone is in shock. These people have been raised to know that they were God’s special people – called to bring the Messiah to the earth. Even when they were disobedient, they would get warnings but they were still protected.
Yet as the warnings became more persistent, these people refused to listen. When the prophets proclaimed that repentance should come, the majority of Israelites wanted to stone the prophets If they could just shut them up, everything would be ok. They wanted their ears tickled, not wanting to hear the truth.
Well, the prophets were from God, and their word did come to pass. Alas, if only the Jews had listened.
But, as we know, God is not through with His people. As we will see later, He is with them even as they are led off to Babylon.
Hebrews 8
Not only do we have a new High Priest, we have a New Covenant. (In fact the word “testament” is another word for “covenant”).
If the old covenant had been perfect, there would be no reason to replace it, but it wasn’t perfect. In fact, no one ever became righteous by the law. The law pointed out sin, not righteousness.
If only we can get this, our lives will be so different. In this day, “the law is written in our minds and put upon our hearts” (V.10).
Now things are different. Jesus has made us clean by His blood, and His Holy Spirit is living on the inside of us. We are now God’s holy temples, the many mansions of God. (John 14:2).
If we continue by meditating on His Word and spending time with Him, our lives will grow to be more and more pure all the time. His Word feeds our spirits and causes them to grow. As a result, we are not only purer, but also more powerful. We are God’s people.
Spend time with Him, worshipping Him, and there you will see your life changing. You will go from “glory to glory” as you do.
“This is the day which the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24) The dispensation of God’s grace upon His people. The dispensation of His Holy Spirit leading and guiding us into all the truth.
This is our day to rejoice!
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
Jeremiah 51-52
Jeremiah was truly speaking the words of the Lord. As we finish this book, we see that the Babylonian captivity has happened just as he said it would.
The Jews have been taken off to Babylon, and Jerusalem has been burned. The House of the Lord, the king’s palace, and all of the houses have been burned to the ground. The walls have been broken down, and everything has been left in rubble.
Jerusalem, the great city – the one which had been the most glorious place in the earth, now destroyed.
Yet God still has a good plan for His people. As we continue, we will see God’s faithfulness to the children of Abraham. This generation – after many warnings – have refused to honor God. They have sought every other imaginable God, along with the true One.
When we are going through these times in the Jewish history, it’s important not to forget that there is a big plan which our Father is carrying out. He is going to bring a Savior into the earth, and He has to have a holy people to bring Him through.
As the Jews go into captivity, there are some who are being purified because of the experience. As they see what it’s like without God’s tremendous protection and favor, they are learning to really appreciate it.
Our holy God is looking for a faithful people to usher in His Son. This is all part of the process. A few hundred years will pass before the time is right, but His plan will come to pass. And I am so thankful.
I am so thankful for our Father’s faithfulness to us in working His plan to bring his Son to us.
Here we are enjoying His faithfulness. God’s plan is complete, and we are the beneficiaries of it.
I want so much to please Our Father and honor Him in my life. I want Him to be glorified by my being a witness of His goodness toward mankind.
Hebrews 7
We really need to get this, even though it sometimes seems hard to understand.
Jesus is our High Priest, but He is not like the high priests of old. They were ordinary men from the tribe of Levi. When the law was given to Moses, Levi’s tribe was to be the tribe of the priesthood. Nothing was ever mentioned about a priest coming from the tribe of Judah.
Yet Jesus came from the tribe of Judah.
Our Father was signifying that He was changing things. No longer was an earthly man going to be our priest, but a heavenly One. No longer the order of Levi, but the order of Melchizedek.
Melchizedek came out of nowhere. No one knew who his parents were and no one knew where he was going. As Abraham paid tithes to this man, Melchizedek was like the Son of God. (If you want to refresh your memory about this, go to Genesis 14:18-20).
This is also signifying that God is changing from the law to grace. The law never brought anyone to righteousness; it only pointed out sin.
Through Jesus, we receive the gift of righteousness, and we receive His Holy Spirit living on the inside of us. The power of God within us allows us to overcome sin, and it allows us to live in a relationship with Him.
The Old Covenant produced servants of God. The New covenant produces sons of God – and that’s who we are.
Now our priest lives in heaven, seated beside our Father. We can come boldly to Him at any time. He is always on our side, and He is always communicating with us through His Holy Spirit.
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
Jeremiah 49-50
God wants to clear out all of the attitudes which hinder our relationship with Him. He wants a family who spends time with Him, and listens to Him as the Father He is.
As mentioned earlier, these nations which are receiving judgment, represent erroneous attitudes which hinder our walk with our God.
Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Kedar, Hazar, and Elam are types for worldly lusts and mindsets which cause people to despise God’s true church. We see those attitudes throughout our modern society.
Then we get to the “biggie.” Babylon. Babylon is the nation which took Judah into captivity and burned Jerusalem. It literally destroyed the foundations of what God had done in the earth.
The word Babylon is derived from the word Babel. (It actually sits on the site of the Tower of Babel). Remember that story? God confused the languages of the people so that they couldn’t agree and accomplish their evil schemes. The word means “confusion.”
Babylon actually means, “confusion by mixing,” and we can readily see where we are going here. The modern church is confused because of all of the mixing with the ideas of the world. Taking modern ideas and trying to incorporate them into a church representing God’s ideas has created havoc. And many people have been taken into “Babylonian captivity” by trying to do just that.
So how do we get out of captivity? We turn our minds and hearts back to the One True God, and we turn our minds and hearts back to His Word. When people are trying to incorporate current erroneous thinking into their theology, they treat the Bible as if it were just another book. They critique it – and they explain away many of the truths, in an attempt to be intellectual.
That is a dangerous deadend route to take.
God is God! He is the One who is all-knowing, and He has established His Word in the earth in order to share His wisdom with us. So what are we to do? We are to reject the teachings which try to discredit the Bible, and we are to embrace His Word and His Spirit.
Technology has changed. Modes of travel have changed. Modern conveniences have redirected our activities. However, the human heart has not changed. It still has the same issues it did from the fall of man. And God still has the answers.
The theology which teaches otherwise will be overthrown, just as Babylon was. Though it held the Judeans for a while, the day would come when it would be overthrown. And a remnant of people would be allowed to return to Jerusalem to rebuild.
I want to be a rebuilder, don’t you? I want to see the truth return to God’s church everywhere. I want His will to be preeminent in the earth. And I want to see eyes opened to His ways as never before.
Hebrews 6
“And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (V. 11-12)
Faith and patience could be compared to a husband and wife in a marriage. They go together and they both are important.
Without faith, we cannot expect to have the promises of God in our lives. Jesus taught over and over that faith is the key to receiving God’s best.
Yet we also need patience, an attribute which undergirds our faith. With patience working on our behalf, we stay focused and assured even though we don’t see the answer yet. We don’t abort our mission, but we continue to press toward the goal set before us.
Sometimes the best God has for us takes some time to develop. Once when I was praying for my children, the Lord spoke to me. He said, “Marigolds spring up over night. Oak trees take longer.” I have remembered that moment many times when I would be praying for something which seemed to be out of reach.
Let’s allow the time necessary for our Father to bring about His best. Patience, along with our faith, will give Him whatever time He needs to create His best in our lives.
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
Jeremiah 46-48
No more warnings for Judah; they have reaped the reward of their indifference to God. Now attention is turned to Egypt, Philistia, Moab, and others. As we read these judgments, it’s important for us to read on two levels. God is speaking to these surrounding nations of the day. However, He is also speaking to attitudes and positions which apply to every generation.
What do I mean? Well, when the Word speaks of “going to Egypt for help,” it refers to the natural strength of man. From the time of the fall of man, people have wanted to trust in themselves and their own abilities without God. (This attitude in its ultimate form is Humanism, implying that there is no need for God). So as we read the judgments on Egypt, apply these judgments to self-sufficiency. We all have to watch this from time to time.
Next we have Philistia. In the early days of Israel, the Philistines were considered barbaric and violent. They were powerful, and thus greatly feared by the Israelites. So the spiritual parallel here would be people trying to attain their goals with brute force or bullying tactics. Sometimes this bullying can be psychological, and can often achieve a certain amount of success – just because others don’t confront. But it’s totally ungodly. (In fact, force is the technique of the devil).
The third nation we see judged is Moab. Now this is an interesting one, and we need to listen up to what God is saying here. Moab was the incestuous son of Lot, born to his daughter, and the word means, “From Father.” In a spiritual sense, this word can refer to traditions – learned from our fathers.
So what’s so bad about traditions? Aren’t they good? Don’t they keep us grounded? Sometimes.
However, there are times when the traditions of men will completely conflict with what God is trying to do in our lives, and we have to choose.
You may have heard the joke about the lady who always cut off the end of her ham before cooking it – because that’s the way her mother and grandmother did it. Curious about why she would throw away perfectly good meat, her husband went on a pursuit to discover the answer. His wife’s mother did it because her mother did it. So he pursued further to the origin, and found the reason. The grandmother cut it off because her pan was too short.
That’s the way it is with traditions. There may be a good reason, or there might not be.
So let’s apply these concepts to our walk with God. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Your traditions make the Word of God of no effect.”( Matthew 15:6). They ignored the Word in order to honor traditions.
Any of us who have grown up in a church environment know how many customs are involved. There are customs of worship, order, sacraments, and doctrines. There’s really nothing wrong with all of that.
However, when our customs are held higher than what God says in his Word, we are in trouble. He won’t be able to teach us anything, and we won’t grow in our walk with Him.
So let’s stay meek and teachable. Let’s allow our Father to guide us into more and more of what He wants us to know. Our ancestors didn’t know all there was to know about God – and neither do we. Let’s reach out for all that He has for us, and stay pliable in His hands.
Hebrews 5
Jesus changes the priesthood. During the Old Testament all of the priests came from the tribe of Levi. They were holy men, but of course, they were not perfect. They had to sacrifice a lamb for themselves as well as for others.
When Jesus completed His earthly mission and sat down beside His Father, He became our High Priest, but not like the earthly one. He is perfect. He paid the price once for all sin for all eternity – for those who receive the gift.
Paul begins to admonish the listeners because he wants to reveal more of his revelation, but feels hindered. The Hebrews need elementary principles explained again and again. Only through listening and applying the Word to their lives will they grow. They will be able to have “solid food” and not just “milk,” when they apply what they have learned.
That applies to us too. We should strive to practice what we know, so that we too can grow up and be ready for the meat of the Word.
That’s what I’m striving for.
by Suellen | Project 2013: Read The Bible
Jeremiah 43-45
Famous last words, “I’ll do whatever you say, Lord.” How many times are promises made to the Father which are not kept? (Maybe we have been guilty of that ourselves from time to time). In an emotional moment, there is nothing we won’t do. Then the promise gets harder, and… you know how it is.
Well, that’s the way it is with Johanan and all the “proud men” who are left in Judah. (43:2) Afraid that they will suffer a fate similar to Gedaliah, these men plan to go to Egypt. However, the Word from God as spoken through Jeremiah is “Don’t do it. If you go, I can’t bless you.”
Do they listen? Of course not. These “proud men” are just like the “proud men” of any era. They think that they are too smart for God’s man.
So they go to Egypt and even take Jeremiah with them.
Our Father’s plan had been to leave in Judah a remnant to “keep the fires burning” for His land. They would be blessed and be forerunners for the return of His people several decades later. However, not listening to Him, they forfeit that blessing.
Egypt, like Judah, is to be ravaged by Babylon. Alas.
There are times in our walk with God when we think we know what we should do, but He has other plans. Sometimes those plans may seem illogical, but if we know for sure that He is leading us in a certain direction, we must go there. Only our Father knows the end from the beginning, and His way is always the best way.
We must listen to Him.
Hebrews 3-4
We come to the most important principle in the Word for a successful Christian life. We come to the principle of Faith.
We often think of sin as mistreatment of others, or of unholy living. And indeed those things are sin. Yet God considers the greatest sin to be doubting Him.
The children of Israel are our example. When the Lord reached into Egypt and dramatically delivered this nation, He displayed great signs and wonders. There was no question left that God was God and all-powerful. He showed His ability for all the people to see. (Just think about seeing a great sea part in the middle, with the water standing up on either side so that they could walk across on dry ground).
So the Israelites come to the border of the Promised Land, and they send spies to see what the land is like. One from each tribe goes into the land and looks around. All of them come back reporting that the land is magnificent. The produce is huge and it’s generally a terrific place.
However, there are some giants there, and that sways most of the spies. 10 of the 12 spies report that the giants are too big and that they feel like grasshoppers in their presence. There are only two brave, faithful men in the bunch. Joshua and Caleb report that there are indeed giants, but they know that the mighty God who delivered them out of Egypt will carry them into the Land of Promise.
The majority of spies influence the masses of people, and they cry all night – blaming the Lord for bringing them out of Egypt just to die in the wilderness. Shocking! Such disbelief! So the Lord refuses to take them in. They cannot enter in because of unbelief.
So it’s your turn. Do you believe God? I mean really believe Him? Do you believe for miracles in your life and the lives of those around you? Do you believe for healing? Your family delivered? Your needs met?
When we are walking in God’s will, there are blessings which are promised to us. That’s our Promised Land: the land of our promises from Him. Now there are giants there (demonic forces which try to keep us from receiving), but we can conquer them if we believe Him and His Word. The key is having faith in what He says.
One of the most provocative scriptures in the Bible is Hebrews 4:2. “For the gospel was preached to us as well as them, but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.”
We have a part in what our God does for us. He has promised us lots, but we have to mix those promises with our faith. Only when we believe what God says, do we profit from what He says. In fact, when we don’t believe Him, we displease our Father greatly.
This is a principle which we would do well to meditate on again and again. I would suggest reading and re-reading these two chapters until we “get it.”
When we become people of faith in God, we will see Him work amazingly in our lives. So let’s go after it!
Our God can do anything in our lives when we put our trust in Him.
