God is always right

God Does Only Righteous Things

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Lord Our Help and Our Shield

Book of Psalms 115

We have just witnessed nature’s power, and those folks in Florida have seen much more of nature’s power than we have seen.

No doubt many will blame God, and most others will question God’s love and concern for people.

Some will sneer at the mention of the existence of God.

When many of our brothers and sisters are affected, the unbelievers will mock our faith.

We know our God is righteous so everything He does was the right thing to do.

Did God send these Hurricanes, my answer would be no.

Could God have stopped these mighty storms from causing devastation then certainly my answer is yes.

We know that Satan has some powers even over storms just read the Book of Job where a tornado or something similar causes all of Job’s children to die at the same time. There were ten of them.

When tragedy strikes, our first response should not be “Where is God”!

Today’s lesson will teach us that God is great in His moral excellence.

“Mercy and truth” are the foundation of moral greatness!

This was the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Jhn_1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

A man may be capable of making some laws for people to live by, but most of them are seldom based upon righteousness.

Grace and truth came from the Lord Jesus Christ.

The question we should ask when tragedy comes is, how have we treated our Savior?

Have we given Him the glory that He deserves?

*Psa 115:1 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.

Our faith must be based upon the truth or reality.

Without love, we will live in a world of selfishness which we see today.

Selfishness is the essence of sin!

Selfishness is contrary to the law of God!

The reality is that we have no right to question God for any action He might take!

We can ask the Lord any question, but we will not always be pleased with His answers.

We must not show any lack of faith when we are talking to the Lord our God!

If the Lord does not interfere on behalf of His people, we must not think that His attributes of love and faithfulness have vanished.

No matter what is happening in our world, we must give God the glory!

Here in Anderson during the last storm, five deaths were storm related.

We must not condemn God for those deaths, we must give God the glory that there were no more than five deaths here where we live.

When Jerusalem fell to Nebuchadnezzar, we can be sure that many unbelievers were mocking God, but the truth is that God was using the Babylonians to discipline Israel.

Israel had turned to idols but after the conquest by the Babylonians, Israel never turned to idols again.

Sometimes God’s methods may be harsh, but they are effective. Harsh does not ever mean abuse!

As God’s people, we will suffer through trials and tribulations, and unbelievers will mock us, but we must never retreat from our goal of serving the Lord until we get to Heaven.

Why should anyone question our loyalty to God?

We must always do our very best to look like Jesus Christ!

*Psa 115:2 Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?
Psa 115:3 But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.

When we go about our daily routine looking defeated our enemies will ask us, “Where is your God now, when you need Him so desperately?

if we look back at the Jews, we know that they had endured the taunts of the idolatrous nations.

We do not have to go that far today as our Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are blasphemed today.

On that day, the heathen had scoffed at the invisible God.

Keep in mind those who scoffed had to go home and wipe the dust off of some idol who could not even talk to them.

When the Jews returned to Jerusalem, they made a strong confession of their faith and even though they were far from perfect they were not called idol worshipers again.

Though they struggled to put their lives back together they knew to go to God and not go to man.

We have seen over and over again that when we pray, we need to tell God what we are going through.

Yes, He already knows, but He wants us to understand that that is nothing too hard for God!

They happily proclaimed the superiority of the Living God to all who had ears!

When we are true to the Lord, He will be true to us!

It angers the Lord for His name to be blasphemed, and He will show His power by His people much of the time.

If God does not help His children, then Satan and his children will triumph!

Where is God? He is in the Heavens in a place where He can see all His people.

The truth is God does as He pleases all the time.

There is never a time that Jehovah God is wondering what He is going to do next!

Our dearly loved Savior always, ALWAYS wants to help us through this life and He has already prepared for our future non-ending life in Glory.

God not only has the will to help those who love Him, He also has the power to make sure what He does is done right!

Mic 7:10 Then she that is mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her which said unto me, Where is the LORD thy God? mine eyes shall behold her: now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.

Another thing we must understand is that, if we are suffering then it is the will of God and He has a good reason for that suffering.

In most cases it is to bring us closer to Him!

God never lacks the power to end our suffering.

Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

There are no gods who can hinder the work of God!

False gods are either a figment of their imagination or they are pieces of wood, gold, silver, or some other handmade object that can do nothing.

*Psa 115:4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
Psa 115:5 They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:
Psa 115:6 They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:
Psa 115:7 They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
Psa 115:8 They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.

Anyone who comes to us questioning our God, we should ask them about their god!

People may scoff, which is mockery and ridicule, at Jehovah who we worship but the fact remains that He is alive, but He is invisible.

He is invisible for the reason that if He had shown Himself without His glory people would have made an idol of Him and they would have worshipped that idol instead of the invisible God just as people did the pole with a serpent of brass.

Num 21:6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
Num 21:7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
Num 21:8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
Num 21:9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.

What happened?

This brazen serpent known as Nehushtan, became on object of idolatry and King Hezakiah destroyed it.

2Ki 18:4 He removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of Israel did burn incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.

This brazen serpent upon a pole had a reality as a type of the Lord Jesus upon the cross, when He died for our salvation.

Joh 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
Joh 3:15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

Idols cannot speak, see. hear, smell, feel, or walk.

Yet even today some people still worship idols.

Psa 135:18 They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them.

An idol is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, and anything that you seek to give you what only God can give.

Many today have made themselves to be idols such as so-called movie stars, or some sports figures, and yes, some political figures think they should be worshipped, and we certainly cannot leave out those who worship Satan.

Then there is the idol of money/material things:

We already know what God says about this.

1Ti 6:7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
1Ti 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
1Ti 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
1Ti 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Money is the root of all the evil of today. Most all our politicians are bought out in one way or another.

Other modern idols include, status, physical appearance, entertainment, influence, and yes sex has become an idol which is why abortion is fought so hard along with the LBGTQ is prevalent in our nation and now sex change.

These are all idols that are worshipped by the “now” generation and God is tossed aside as irrelevant in today’s world.

All these people are in for a terrible surprise very soon.

Such gods drag down their worshippers to a level of senseless stupidity!

Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

God does not play around with idol worshippers!

We must trust in the Lord!

*Psa 115:9 O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
Psa 115:10 O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
Psa 115:11 Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.

Trust means we are reliant upon God for all things including life, justice, and our love for one another.

We do not worship a god we have made, but we worship the God who has made us, our Creator, our Maker!

There is only one true God.

There are many today that say all religions worship the same God, but nothing could be further from the truth! They just do not know Jehovah.

God has revealed Himself to us through the Lord Jesus Christ and the Bible if you have a true Bible.

It is true that once we come to know Christ as our Savior, we need to constantly examine our hearts for spiritual idolatry.

Jehovah is also a jealous God! The lost do what lost people do, but anyone that claims Christ as their Savior and falls into the trap of idolatry could come under the truth of God’s jealousy.

Three times these verses say the word trust.

1) God is our help and our shield.

God is safe to depend upon for defense and for offense for all those who love the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

God is also our shield to cover us from danger and to protect us from assault and injury.

2) For all those who preach the truth of the Scriptures, God is also their help and their shield.

3) The Lord has had His mind on us since our creation. The remnant of this world who love the salvation gift of God.

Mat_7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

This one verse should tell all those who think we all worship the same God that it is simply not true. By the way, this was the lord Jesus Himself that was speaking. He knows everything.

We could look at this passage as God’s invitation for Israel to join the Church because it is the Church that God is protecting in this world.

The battles of Israel will show that only the Church is on their side along with Jehovah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Even this week our administration has sent a unit to Israel that can intercept missiles from Iran to try to keep Israel from going after the oil and nuclear sites of Iran.

This is only bribery when Israel should destroy Iran, and this world would be a little bit better because of it.

We cannot trust man, but we can trust God to do the right things.

Many scientists and archaeologists wonder what happened to many old civilizations, but they are not around, and many have no history because God knew no one needed to know how wicked they were.

We should not forget that Iran is that part of old Persia and the other part Iraq is trying its best to get away from the USA and then they will join Iran and Persia will be again and war mongering nation.

God will only bless those who trust Him!

You cannot trust idols because they cannot do anything at all!

The Holy Spirit wants us to grasp the importance of trusting God!

We will face persecution, but we must not falter in our trust for the Almighty God!

If we are worried about what is going on in our nation and in this world, then we do not trust the God of all creation and His plan which He has given us a copy of.

We must have confidence in our Holy God and His Word salvaged by the Holy Spirit and is the truth.

Pro 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

We were once a part of the world but now if you love the Lord Jesus, we are part of Heaven. Ambassadors to this world.

We are always on the mind of our God!

*Psa 115:12 The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.
Psa 115:13 He will bless them that fear the LORD, both small and great.
Psa 115:14 The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
Psa 115:15 Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.

Who does the Lord bless?

He blesses those who trust Him!

Even though Israel does not trust the Son of God, most of them do trust Jehovah (Yahweh).

They reject that they are the same God!

They are wrong to not accept the Messiah, but they will eventually, at least a remnant of them will.

We should keep in mind that this Psalm was probably written for the dedication of the Second Temple after the return from Babylon.

They had been released by the King of Persia who had defeated Babylon.

We could say that God would bless those who had returned with many children for only about fifty thousand had returned of those who were captured.

Israel began to see just how great their God is.

God is always, ALWAYS, working to do good to His people!

God is always, ALWAYS, mindful of the covenants He has made with all His children!

God is always, ALWAYS, mindful of the promises He has made, and He will never break a promise He has made to anyone.

Why is God able to bless so much?

It is pretty simple, God is our Creator, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, and God can do anything He wants to His creation, but He cannot go against His Word!

Notice that Israel is back in a part of the land God had given to them and God will get the remainder of that land that was promised back to Israel.

We may be seeing this today, the Lord giving Israel their entire homeland and the world cannot stop it!

No, there will never be a Palestinian nation within the boundaries of the land God gave to Abraham, the same land God gave to Israel!

When those who hate God scoff at us, we need to stand firm in our confidence in the Lord.

We may go through trials.
We may go through persecution.
We may go through attacks.
We may be oppressed.

God’s purpose for us cannot be defeated!

Nothing can separate us from the love of God!

Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Rom 8:36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

*Psa 115:16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD’S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.

Verse fifteen says it is our LORD who is the Creator of the heavens, and we know of three heavens.

The first heaven is the space where we get our air to breathe and the place where the birds fly.
The second heaven is what we call outer space, a place where all planets, all stars, and anything we find in outer space, and it is immense.
The third Heaven is the place where God dwells with His angels and all those souls who are in that Heaven today.

Notice the Earth is mentioned as the only place God has given mankind to live.

We know the earth is also the Lord’s:

Psa 24:1 The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

This Psalmist has said that God has given the earth to mankind to live upon.

Gen 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Gen 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Gen 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

God has not given mankind any other planet, moon, or star to live.

This earth is where we belong, where we live and work and where our future lies unless we believe all these things and our Creator who made all these things, then our future lies in the third Heaven with our God.

We know that mankind has not cooperated with God on the development of all the resources of this Earth, but they are all gifts from God for our use.

God has given the occupants of Earth the responsibility of overseeing the resources of Earth.

This Earth is the only planet that God gave to be inhabited!

Isa 45:18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.

We need to be sure to know that God only declares things that are right and not wrong!

Isa 45:19 I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth: I said not unto the seed of Jacob, Seek ye me in vain: I the LORD speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.

The trouble today is that a few greedy people have tried their best to gain control of the earth’s resources and for the most part they have, and the governments control the rest.

But you see God has reconciled the world back to Himself by the Lord Jesus Christ.

2Co 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
2Co 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

Now I cannot explain the meaning of all these things, but I know that these words are true.

Jesus Christ (Messiah) came to this earth to establish the only means of salvation which is available to all people.

The desire to let the whole redeemed world know of its redemption should move in the heart of every man but the world is tied up with greed for the resources of our planet, corrupt governments, and immorality.

*Psa 115:17 The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.
Psa 115:18 But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.

It should be obvious that those who are dead cannot praise anyone.

When we die our voices are silenced.

In fact, those who are dead lose all communication with the Lord who died for them.

Isa 38:18 For the grave cannot praise thee, death can not celebrate thee: they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth.

I must never forget my job is to praise my Lord.

No matter what I’m going through, I need to praise the Lord, and I know I do not praise Him enough.

Even when the Lost World scoffs at me, I will praise the Lord!

My opportunities to praise the Lord will cease when I take my last breath, but my blessings will continue because I am a child of God!

Psa 118:17 I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.
Psa 118:18 The LORD hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.
Psa 118:19 Open to me the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:
Psa 118:20 This gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter.
Psa 118:21 I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.

Rev 5:13 And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.

Amen

The Negligent Judge

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

A Father’s Negligence

Book of 1 Samuel Chapter 2

We can describe negligence as being in the habit of not doing what you know needs to be done.

Either from carelessness or intentional. Both these things stem from laziness.

Jas_4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

As High Priest and as Judge, Eli knew exactly what the Word of God taught in these situations.

Eli would Judge other people for things he refused to do himself.

This is a big problem with the judicial system today.

Judges judge other people for things they allow themselves to do or simply because of political beliefs, even if they go against written law.

Our court system is becoming a joke, just like the FBI, the CIA, and the DOJ, all these things caught up in corruption.

Just like politicians who make laws for the people but allow themselves to live by some other standard this also causes corruption,

The Jewess society had become a cesspool of depravity and corruption just as we see today in America.

The Book of Judges describes lawlessness, immorality, violence, compromising the Word of God, and a permissive lifestyle.

If we study the Book of Judges, we see where it describes homosexuality, wife abuse, child abuse, murder, kidnapping, polygamy, greed, idolatry, and civil war between the different tribes of Israel.

Sounds just like the many things we see in America today, because of corruption in our government and the compromising of the Church.

When our government, our schools and much of the so-called Church, fall into sin and commit wickedness (anything that goes against the Word of God) it is a terrible tragedy.

Corruption is so engraved in our government today we may not be able to stop it, but we know these are things that the Bible describe to us that come about in the last days.

The America we once knew may be gone forever and most people do not seem to care.

When our Church leaders become as sinful as the world, then we see the chaos that exists today and we see it all over the world, especially in America.

Eli, God’s High Priest had fallen into the wickedness of his sons, because he knew about it their wickedness and had done nothing about it.

They had turned the House of God into a House of Belial.

*1Sa 2:12 Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the LORD.

Belial means wicked, worthless people.
People who did not know the Lord.
People of whom God had saved from their own foolishness many times.

These two sons of Eli were an example of how low the children of Israel had sunk in their relationship with Jehovah God.

This could be why Hannah would have offered her own son Samuel to the Lord.

She could see what her world was turning into, a world of wickedness. We saw these same things today.

We see the America we love turn into a wicked and corrupt nation because of greed and corruption.

God cursed the house of Eli, and we may soon see the curse of God on some such people any day now.

1Sa 3:11 And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle.
1Sa 3:12 In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end.
1Sa 3:13 For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.
1Sa 3:14 And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.
We see how easy it is for the children of Satan to infiltrate the House of God!

Their sin was bad enough for the punishment they would receive, eternal damnation but their greatest sin was the fact they kept other people from coming to the House of God.

They were the children of Satan, yet they worked in the House of God.

They perverted the design of their office by making it for their own benefit.

They served their own lust.

They were despots making their own laws in the House of God and disregarding the Word of God.

They were adulterous.

They brought contempt to the House of God.

The office they held was Holy, but their character was corrupt!

They touched sacred things with unworthy hands.

There is a great enormous difference between what is spiritual and what is official, and we see this in many so-called places of worship today.

On the outside dressed in the attire of a Priest they seemed in tune with God.

On the inside they were full of corruption and death.

Every teacher in the House of God should pay attention to this passage in the Bible and see the importance of living the truth of God and teaching the truth of God.

We also see it is possible for someone to have a pulpit and to have no God; to have a Bible and no Holy Ghost!

It is within the power of the Church to rid the Church of such people! God proclaims to His children this power!

A man’s character is on display within the Church.

Our standard is now and will always be the Lord Jesus Christ!

The wickedness of these two men was shameful.

*1Sa 2:17 Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred the offering of the LORD.

Corruption in the priesthood causes profanity in the people.

Mal 2:8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 2:9 Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.

They did not respect nor regard the God of the House of God!

They desecrated the offerings that were being made to the Lord.

They insisted on receiving the choice meat that belonged to the person presenting that offering.
They sometimes insisted upon some raw meat before the Lord received His portion.(This was the meat that was to be burned as the sweet aroma to the Lord).
They insisted on some of the fat that was clearly prohibited by the Lord. (The fat also was to be burned as part of the sweet aroma before the Lord)
They were willing to commit violence to obtain the best meat for their own families.

The Lord had given to Moses the precise instructions on how these offerings were to be presented and how this meat was to be divided between the Lord and the priests!

They turned the House of God into a house of ill repute!

These two sons of Eli had sunk to great depths of wickedness and many a minister to the house of God have sunk to these same depths of sin!

Remember the murder of the Lord Jesus:

Mat 27:20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.

We must understand the great judgment of the Lord that will come upon these people!

They will face the Lord at the White Throne Judgment where they will be sentenced to eternal damnation!

In between all these things, we continue to read where Hannah continued to check on her son and bring him coats and other things when they came for the yearly sacrifice.

But we also see that Eli knew all the wickedness of his two sons.

*1Sa 2:22 Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Eli had heard of all the things his sons were doing.

Eli had failed his own children!

Eli had become unfit to manage the office of High Priest and as Judge of Israel.

We see that women who came to worship the Lord were corrupted.

We will see that there is nothing more provoking to God, than to profane the House of God and His Holy Word!

We know that sexual immorality engaged in most all the ancient religions.

No where in the Bible do we see these things approved of God.

In fact, the only sexual activity approved of the Lord is that of one man and one woman who are married according to the Word of God.

Worship at the Tabernacle in Shiloh had begun to resemble the pagan worship centers of the Canaanites, but God would not allow these things to go unpunished.

Eli would make a feeble attempt to correct his sons, but he was simply too old and too feeble, and his words were insincere.

*1Sa 2:23 And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people.
1Sa 2:24 Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the LORD’S people to transgress.
1Sa 2:25 If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him: but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall intreat for him? Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORD would slay them.

What is the absolutely worse thing we can do as Christians? Be the cause of someone else’s sin.

Now these two men were not God’s children because they were the children of the devil.

They had no respect for the house of God.

Their sin was against God and Him only, and no one could intervene for them.

Eli’s sin was not only that he reproved them too gently, but that all he did was to rebuke them verbally and did nothing to stop them when it was within his power to do so.

He had the Word of God to guide him, and Laws of Moses were precise in these things, and he was the Judge of Israel and High Priest, but showed partiality because they were his own sons.

We should understand God does not accept our weakness as humans as an excuse for sin!

This should be understood by the punishment upon Eli, it was severe.

We can only conclude that weakness is then sin!

We must never be too weak to do the right thing!

We should remember the time of Aaron and his two sons.

Exo 28:43 And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in unto the tabernacle of the congregation, or when they come near unto the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die: it shall be a statute for ever unto him and his seed after him.

There is no one who can come to our defense when we sin against God!

God will certainly be the Judge of those who sin against Him.

It is known today as the White Throne Judgment, and it is real!

But Samuel continued to grow in the Lord and grow in favor of those who met him.

*1Sa 2:26 And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.

Samuel grew up at the Lord’s House. This is the same place we can grow.

Samuel grew in the Lord’s sight. The Lord was pleased with Samuel. We too are to grow in the Lord’s sight. He has His eyes on all His children.

Samuel grew by the Lord’s Grace. We can only grow in the Grace of the Lord by the Lord Jesus Christ.

Samuel grew to serve the Lord. This is our one and only job. To serve the Lord and He will teach us.

God sends His messenger to Eli.

*1Sa 2:27 And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh’s house?
1Sa 2:28 And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?
1Sa 2:29 Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
1Sa 2:30 Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
1Sa 2:31 Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father’s house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house.
1Sa 2:32 And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.
1Sa 2:33 And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age.
1Sa 2:34 And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.
We know there is a sin unto death and to Eli, this weakness as Judge and High Priest of Israel was his sin unto death.

God sent a messenger to tell Eli of his punishment. He had already been warned.

Notice this messenger was a prophet, and he was precise in using God’s actual words.

In the title “man of God” this prophet joins the ranks of Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and many others.

This prophet challenged Eli and his sons to remember the history of the priesthood.

God had chosen Levi and it had begun with Aaron.

They were to follow the righteous ways of Aaron and not their own ways.

Today, all leaders of the Church are to follow the Lord Jesus Christ and not their own ways.

Then, this prophet pronounced the charges against Eli and his sons.

They showed disdain for the Tabernacle, the offerings, and the sacrifices.

They profited off the people by theft of the choice parts, even Eli was guilty in this sin.

Eli had eaten these things knowing what his sons had done.

The prophet of God then passed God’s judgment.

1) The house of Eli would be cut off from the priesthood.
2) His descendants would be held in low esteem and condemned.
3) His descendants would live only short lifespans.
4) His descendants would witness the blessings of God on the ones that replaced them.
5) The descendants of Eli would live in sadness and grief and die in the prime of their life, none living to old age.
6) Eli’s two sons would both die on the same day.

We should understand every human being will be judged for the things they have done while they lived!

The judgment of the world will take place!

Eli’s sons did not believe in this judgment, but it still took place and they both died on the same day.

The one thing all humans know is that one day we are going to die!

It is during this time of life that we can decide where we will spend eternity.

Many people do not believe in the afterlife, but this is like believing that all the things we see on this earth and in the heavens, all came from an accident.

Heb 9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
Heb 9:28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

2Th 1:6 Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;
2Th 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
2Th 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
2Th 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
2Th 1:10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.

God only does things that are righteous!

God is faithful and He expects us to be faithful!

*1Sa 2:35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.
1Sa 2:36 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests’ offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.

We see the promise of the Priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This promise would be first fulfilled with Samuel, then Zadok, and then the Lord Jesus Christ with an unending priesthood.

He would be a very special priest.
He would be obedient doing exactly the Word of God.
His priesthood would last forever.
Everyone in this world would come and bow down to Him.

Fulfilled first in Samuel.

1Sa 3:1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.

Fulfilled next in Zadok.

2Sa 8:17 And Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were the priests; and Seraiah was the scribe;
2Sa 8:18 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief rulers.

Ultimately fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Supreme High Priest.

Php 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Php 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
Php 2:7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
Php 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Php 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
Php 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
Php 2:11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Amen

God’s Message of Love

/ Bobby Mayfield / 1 Comment

God’s Message of Love to His People

Book of Jeremiah 2

Verses 4-9, 13, 21, 26-32, 35

We already know that the Nation of Israel had been divided at the end of the rule of King Solomon. One called Judah consisted of 2 tribes and the other called Israel consisting of 10 tribes. The men of Israel had long been carried off by Assyria and the women left behind and provided with other men and this area became known as Samaria. This was the reason there was so much, uncalled for, hatred of the Jews and Samaritans.

These things happened because the ten tribes of Israel had abandoned Jehovah and had chosen false gods.

Judah had now become more sinful than Israel had been!

Judah had forsaken the Lord Jehovah for a multitude of false gods, yet they still claimed to be the children of God.

It was an insult to God for the people of Israel to neglect God and forget Him. No one acknowledged his kindness, and no one acknowledged His great love He had for them. Today we would say those who backslide away from the Lord.

I said no one, but God always has a remnant who stands by him.

Let’s Begin:

*****Jer 2:4 Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:
Jer 2:5 Thus saith the LORD, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?

We must first understand that the Lord will only forget those things that He chooses to forget! It should be obvious that as the children of God we are always under His watchful eyes.

These people had broken off their commitment to God!

We should ask ourselves, just what kind of relationship do we have with our Savior? I know the Lord prefers an up close and very personal relationship with each of us.

An atheist denies the existence of God.
An agnostic believes that no one can even really know if there is a God.
If we admit we believe that God exists but we ignore and neglect Him what does that say about us?
If we say we believe God, then maybe we should obey the words He says.

If we came face to face with the Lord today, would He take us on to Heaven with Him or would He reject us as we have rejected Him?

Would He ignore us as we have ignored Him?

When we make a genuine decision to follow the Lord but then pull away, what does that say about our love for Him?

The Lord God Jehovah promises to be faithful to us if we will commit to be faithful to Him.

Our relationship with the Lord must be based on “faith”!

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

If we please the Lord with our faith, then the Lord will please us with His promises and He promise us eternal freedom to be with Him wherever He is!

Unfaithfulness is such a terrible sin that this will be the thought behind the very first message given to Jeremiah by God the Holy Spirit!

2Ti_3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

It behooves each one of us to listen to what God has to say!

How can anyone take a piece of wood and carve out a figure and call it a god with power?
How can anyone take a stone and carve out a figure and think of it as a god with power?
How can anyone take a mold and pour melted silver or gold and say it is now become a god with power?

To put it bluntly, how could an educated people believe such things as this?

How can an educated people look at all that we can see with our eyes and say these things happened by accident?

God says it right, those who believe such things are vain. Vain means worthless.

The Apostle Peter said:

1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

The children of Israel were brought out of Egypt with the power of God and they witnessed powerful wonders that could not be explained other than to say they came from Jehovah God. This was the first time they had met their Savior!

Exo_6:3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.

God had made a promise to Abraham and Sarah and God will always keep all His promises!

*****Jer 2:6 Neither said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?

What is wrong with a people who will not concern themselves with the truth, after all the things their forefathers had witnessed of the truth of God.

The wilderness journey of the nation of Israel was the birth of the Nation that God had charged with preserving the Word of God.

As many has 600,000 may have died on the journey, yet as many as 600,000 were also born on this journey, so we could say that the nation of Israel was “born again” as they traveled from the death of Egypt to the life of the Promise land but so many had forgotten the truth of the wilderness journey!

Some Christians do the same today. They forget what they use to be before the Lord broke our chains of captivity to Satan.

They had forgotten that the Lord had warned them that this would happen.

Deu 8:13 And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;
Deu 8:14 Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;
Deu 8:15 Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;
Deu 8:16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;
Deu 8:17 And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

God had given Israel a land that was to be their own land and it was a plentiful land.

To me it seems that as we get older it is our memories that must sustain us until the Lord takes us home. Here we see a nation who had rejected their own memories and made the present the truth.

We see this same thing happening in our nation today as our history is being erased by those who reject the truth!

We have forgotten the birth of our own nation and the struggles to build our nation into a great nation but now a nation falling because we have forgotten our past and are trying to live in today, which has become very evil!

*****Jer 2:7 And I brought you into a plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.

We should understand that everything we see, and all the land belongs to Jehovah God and He allows us to live on it.

When we defile God’s land then He will deal with us just as He dealt with Israel back in this day of Jeremiah!

We can just imagine that these words of Jeremiah from the Holy Spirit would not go over well with these people, who still felt they were giving God the Glory with their false worship.

The Lord insisted that Jeremiah be obedient, and he would, because he still loved the Lord and He knew these Words of the Lord were true.

In most every case we just feel like we are incapable to do what God ask us to do. I know I have felt this way myself. If we use the Word of God and much less of our own words things will usually be alright.

The truth is, it is always best to submit to the will of God! We are all called to share the Word of God! We must also remember that the Word of God will cut deep to most of those who hear it!

As we study these lessons in the Book of Jeremiah we are looking into the past of Israel. There were many of these Jews in the time of Jesus and in our day that know another promise, that has not yet taken place.

Act 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
Act 1:7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

When we realize that the nation of Israel ruled their own destiny and things would have been much different if they had remained true to the Lord.

We could also say this about our own selves and our own nation, today!

When we do not learn from our mistakes as a people and as a nation, the results will be very similar, but God’s patience will not last forever.

When the Lord says that His heritage has become an abomination, He is not talking so much about the land, it is the people.

*****Jer 2:8 The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.

All those who were set aside to teach the people the Word of God, were themselves worshippers of Baal!

How can we not see a comparison to the church that exists today? Certainly not all but more and more as time passes.

In fact, it is becoming against the law to teach the truth of God and many are pushing this to the limit because they serve sin and the father of all sin Satan, the Devil!

Israel, the nation that had been set apart to serve the Lord, had themselves become a wicked nation.

What is sin? Sin is the departure from God and the truth of God!

We should understand that no matter how evil our leaders, or our church leaders become, we are still responsible for our own relationship with the Lord!

Sin can be described as going from things that are real to depending on things that are unreal and vain!

If our Heavenly Father had some sin within His being, we might have grounds for our sin but in all the years since our creation no sin has been discovered in the Lord!

The priests did not seek the Lord nor call upon Him!
The judges who handled the Laws of Moses did not regard Jehovah God!
The pastors, another word for shepherds, did not pasture the flocks of believers.
The prophets only prophesied of Baal and led the people to false gods!

When we forget and erase our history, we are headed for destruction!

It had been Jehovah God who had set the people of Israel free and brought them to a land of milk and honey.

The leaders of Israel had led the people of Israel in a revolt against the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:
Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

We live in a land today that is ruled by those who have reprobate minds and our own President is treated has one who is hated by those who reject him in the highest office in the land. Our Congress and Senate has become a place where fools gather to do nothing!

I never knew such foolish people exists as those who are against the laws of the land and the laws of our republic!

What kind of God do we serve? The God of love who will offer chance after chance until He has had enough of our rebellion!

*****Jer 2:9 Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children’s children will I plead.

Israel had backslidden several times since leaving Egypt, but they soon returned to Jehovah but this time there was no sign of them returning to the truth of God.

It was the Lord Himself who gave these words to Jeremiah and these charges were brought no only against the parents but also to the children and those children’s children.

Children normally will follow the teaching of the parents and many as we know will follow in the footsteps of their parents and grandparents!

We are never to think that any child will be disciplined by the Lord for the sins of the parent.

Each of us will live or die by our own mistakes in serving the Lord or in not serving the Lord!

What God is saying is that the discipline of this nation would last a long time. We already know that besides being in siege for a period, they would spend 70 years in captivity until the time God brought Cyrus onto the scene.

Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

God will not tolerate this sin for very long!

*****Jer 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

This verse was not part of our lesson but let’s look at it anyway.

Those who are lost who go around switching from one false god to another, only commit one sin and that is the sin of unbelief which will indeed bring their eternal death.

When any Christian forsakes the One True God, they have committed at least two sins.

Once we have been introduced to the Lord then it’s time to make a choice.

We can continue to live in sin or we can accept the truth of God and be gloriously saved!

What we cannot do is claim to follow in the ways of Jesus Christ and remain out in the world, like so many we see today.

Judah currently was still claiming Jehovah, but they were serving Baal. God simply will not allow this!

What did the Lord teach that Samaritan woman at that well in Samaria?

Joh 4:13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
Joh 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

There is nothing in this world, no water, no idol and no false god that can bring eternal life, for these things are only broken cisterns that can hold no water.

We must drink from the living waters that flow from the Lord Jesus Christ!

Those cisterns were used to collect rain water because water was a scarce thing at the time of Jeremiah and these people knew exactly what Jeremiah was talking about because it was the absolute truth.

Isa 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Isa 55:2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

Another Scripture that is not in our lesson verse 21.

*****Jer 2:21 Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?

A noble vine, here is a healthy vine or some would say tree, but it will not show its death in the short term. Some time must pass by before it will be noticed that it is dying. Sometimes it cannot be revived and sometimes it will still produce fruit, but the fruit will not be of good quality, or not even edible.

God says Israel was a noble vine, from the right seed but turned out to be a degenerate plant, a strange looking vine that produced wild grapes as is said in another Scripture.

A so-called believer who does not retain the truth of God and veers from the truth of God will never reach its full potential!

How was Israel described:

Isa 5:1 Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:
Isa 5:2 And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
Isa 5:3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
Isa 5:4 What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?
Isa 5:5 And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:
Isa 5:6 And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
Isa 5:7 For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

We must understand as Christians we must not follow this same path to destruction!

*****Jer 2:26 As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,
Jer 2:27 Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.

The children of Israel were all in a shameless pursuit of false gods trying to satisfy the lust of their flesh instead of giving themselves over to serve the Lord.

Verse 25 said they had loved strangers(false gods) and after them would they go.

They were in direct denial of Jehovah forgetting the wonders of their escape from Egypt and the miracles in the wilderness.

They had forgotten the great battles where God had fought for them.

They had forgotten the manna from Heaven and the water from the rock.

They had turned their back on God and had turned to animals such as a bull.
They had turned their back on Jehovah and turned to carved stones or carved wood and who knows what they said were now their gods.

They were not even ashamed! Even a thief is ashamed when they get caught but not these Jews, who were not ashamed that they had left the Lord for false things.

They had not been obedient to the Lord and it was Jeremiah who would point out all these things to them jeopardizing his own life, but God would be with him and they could not harm him even if they tried and they did try.

It is hard to imagine those who go back out in the world after they have known the Master, but it happens all the time.

Immorality has proven that it destroys nations throughout history and therefore an attempt to erase our own history continues to take place.

We live in a world that will be happier when us older Christians die off and then they can deal with a younger generation that has been taught lies and not the truth!

They worshipped these idols with the honor due to our Heavenly Father!

What is a backslider? Verse 27 says “they have turned their back unto me and not their face”

How can we call ourselves Christians if we are afraid to come face to face with our Lord and Savior!

They would in fact call upon these things to help them in a time of trouble, but no man-made god can help anyone, and our world today is filled with many man-made gods.

You cannot be a Christian without your Heavenly Father!

Isa 64:8 But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
Isa 64:9 Be not wroth very sore, O LORD, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.

Until we accept the truth of our Father in Heaven, we will never know our Lord and our Savior!

Joh_6:65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

Joh_10:30 I and my Father are one.

There is no God except the Triune God, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost! Not three gods but One God in three persons!

*****Jer 2:28 But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.

The Lord in ridicule said, you have more than enough gods, that you made with your own hands, call out to them and see if they can save you.

Even in this day of Jeremiah, it is said that the non-Jews had above 30,000 false gods, that they worshipped. Much more than enough if they had any power which was impossible, for they had no power at all!

Then the Lord said, “wherefore would you plead with Me”.

When we push the One True God away, why then should He help us in our hour of need.

Here in America, The Lord has been removed from and pushed away from us, until something happens such as a Hurricane, or the death of a child, or all the school shootings, then He gets the blame by non-believers.

Why should He stop any of these things in our land when He has been told to leave?

While our nation is so deep in sin and immorality, why would the Lord ever listen to any of our prayers.

He will only listen to the prayers of His children and that one who prays the sinner’s prayer. He will not act on prayers to those who reject Him!

Psa 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

Do not come to the Lord or even call upon Him if you are not willing to worship Him and Him only!

*****Jer 2:29 Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.

The Lord does not expect perfection, but He does expect our worship, which means we ask for forgiveness when we know we have failed Him in any way.

2Ch_7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

*****Jer 2:30 In vain have I smitten your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your prophets, like a destroying lion.

We should understand that with every sin comes the chastisement of God and these people had been chastised repeatedly but it had brought no positive results this time.

They just placed their trust in other people and other nations and other gods.

Remember sometimes they would turn to Egypt for help against the Assyrians.

They would turn to other nations for help when they had the God of their forefathers who had shown Himself invincible to people who trusted Him!

Once a great nation under King David and King Solomon even when he had done wrong he had kept the nation safe from invasion.

The worship of false gods had only brought emptiness, distrust, restlessness and betrayal.

They could not even trust each other.

These things sound familiar to us today!

When they had sinned the prophets of God had preached repentance, but they did not want to hear such things and they killed the prophets of God like lions in search of their prey.

They still thought of themselves as good and decent people, but goodness will never bring salvation!

God had pity on them because He still loved them even though they desired to be free of God and His commandments.

Again, this sounds like the America we live in today.

2Ti_4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
2Ti_4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

These people had forsaken Jehovah God!

*****Jer 2:31 O generation, see ye the word of the LORD. Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land of darkness? wherefore say my people, We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?
Jer 2:32 Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number.

When the Lord speaks through His prophets, He is asked questions from His people, many times that the answer is a simple “No”.

If we have something to ask the Lord, then ask. He already knows what the question is, and He is always the answer!
Just ask, why delay because of shame?

**No, the Lord has never been a wilderness to Israel. We see Israel to day and as Christians we know what God is saying is true, but it was just as true in the time of Jeremiah.

**No, the Lord has never been a land of darkness. The Lord has always been a bright shining light for all people who placed their trust in Him!

We must never treat the Lord like He has left us when He never will leave us.

If we cannot trust the Word of God and the promises He makes, then we are a pathetic people!

When we place ourselves above the god we serve, it should be obvious we have taken on the traits of Satan!

Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

When we take on the traits of Satan then we will suffer with him in the burning lake of fire. “The wages of sin is still death”

Eze 28:18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

What would Judah see for her iniquities?

Eze 28:7 Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee, the terrible of the nations: and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness.

Assyria lay to the North of Judah and had already captured the ten tribes but now Babylon had captured Assyria and it was this powerful nation that God called upon to punish Judah for her sins.

They would be captives throughout Babylon for 70 years.

Why do the guilty always declare their innocence?

*****Jer 2:35 Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.

Just as in America today, people will always try to justify their sinful behavior. Not very many thought they deserved to see the wrath of God.

Again, we see this happening right before our eyes!

We must never forget that any act of sin, no matter how small is enough to be rejected by the Lord if we refuse to repent.

Preaching on repentance is not heard from many of the pulpits today.

When we are short of God’s glory, we are unacceptable to our Holy God!

We must wear the righteousness of His Dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ!

In the day of Jeremiah these people turned everywhere except toward the Lord!

Amen

Let’s Pray!