In Jeremiah 12, we read how Jeremiah taught the people the importance of maintaining right relationship with God. This teaching is of vital importance to us today. It is important for us to maintain that right relationship with God as well. Jeremiah 12.7-9 reads…
“I will forsake my house, abandon my inheritance; I will give the one I love into the hands of her enemies.
My inheritance has become to me like a lion in the forest. She roars at me; therefore I hate her.
Has not my inheritance become to me like a speckled bird of prey that other birds of prey surround and attack? Go and gather all the wild beasts; bring them to devour.
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The people of Israel had lost their focus on God. They had turned against Him and turned toward foreign gods. They had become a people that had become “like a lion in the forest” toward God, roaring at Him rather than upon the evil in the world.
Even though He loved His people, God was going to give them over to the hands of their enemies because of their wickedness.
God continues in verses 10-13…
Many shepherds will ruin my vineyard and trample down my field; they will turn my pleasant field into a desolate wasteland.
It will be made a wasteland, parched and desolate before me; the whole land will be laid waste because there is no one who cares.
Over all the barren heights in the desert destroyers will swarm, for the sword of the Lord will devour from one end of the land to the other; no one will be safe.
They will sow wheat but reap thorns; they will wear themselves out but gain nothing. They will bear the shame of their harvest because of the Lord’s fierce anger.”
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This loss of focus came partly from the errant teachings the people had received. They came in to the fields of God and ruined what God had planted in the people. Even though these teachers planted seeds in the minds, these seeds only produced thorns. There was a lack of care upon the people.
What this can tell us is that we are to be aware of the teachings we hear. Even pastors will lead people in the wrong direction if not truly led by the Lord. Many are out to make a name for themselves or to build an organization that impresses. However, if the focus is not upon God, their work will come to nothing.
In spite of the loss of focus on the Lord, God continues in verses 14-17…
This is what the Lord says: “As for all my wicked neighbors who seize the inheritance I gave my people Israel, I will uproot them from their lands and I will uproot the people of Judah from among them. But after I uproot them, I will again have compassion and will bring each of them back to their own inheritance and their own country. And if they learn well the ways of my people and swear by my name, saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives’—even as they once taught my people to swear by Baal—then they will be established among my people. But if any nation does not listen, I will completely uproot and destroy it,” declares the Lord.
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This can mean that even if we fall away, God can still have compassion on us and bring us back into a right relationship with Him. He says that He “will uproot the people of Judah from among them. But after I uproot them, I will again have compassion and will bring each of them back to their own inheritance.” Even though they once were taught to worship Baal, they would have the opportunity to be reestablished among the people of God through His compassion for them.
This gives us hope for all who have yet to call on the Lord and accept His gift of eternal life in Him. All will have the opportunity to reestablish their relationship with God if they are open to His leading.
Just a Thought…
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