Wednesday Reading: Jeremiah 12:7-9
Key Verse: Jeremiah 12:7
7 I have forsaken My house; I have left My inheritance. I have given the dearly beloved of My soul into the hand of her enemies.
Devotion:
How many times can you remember ignoring what your parents have told you just because you think that you know what is best right now? How many of those times do you remember the trouble that you got into because you found out the hard way that what your parents had said was actually best for you? We all do that because it is in our nature now. Right from when Adam and Eve were first tempted by the serpent we have had this sin nature within us whereby we just love to rebel – but what good has it done for us?
God has had to put up with this sort of thing for a few thousand years now and yet He continues to show us His love when we do respond. It is only when we walk away from Him and forsake Him that He allows things to happen in our lives that help to remind us of who He is. When we first start to stray we take a step and wait for something to happen, testing God to see if He will do anything – just as we would do when we wanted to see if our parents were serious about what they had said. The longer and further that we stray from our God the more that we do wrong in front of Him. Yet we do not think about the anger that may be building up...
Right through our bibles we find occasions where God’s people have strayed from Him and He has warned them of the consequences. Throughout the time that He dwelt in the temple He had to put up with people making their own rules and religion based on what He had already done. It is little wonder then that Jesus told them He was leaving Jerusalem! We now live in a time of grace, living under the promise that He carried out for us. That does not, however, give us the right to do what we please and leave God out of our lives! Bring Him back and keep Him close.
Points to Ponder:
How far did you get before getting into trouble?
Are you pushing God too?
