The Lord's Constant Leading by Discipline in My Life
Scripture Passage: Jeremiah 21:1-10 (NASB)
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchijah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, saying, 2 “Please inquire of the Lord in our behalf, because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us; perhaps the Lord will deal with us in accordance with all His wonderful acts, so that the enemy will withdraw from us.”
3 But Jeremiah said to them, “You shall say to Zedekiah as follows: 4 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: “Behold, I am going to turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you are making war against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the wall; and I will gather them into the middle of this city. 5 And I Myself will make war against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, and in anger, wrath, and great indignation. 6 I will also strike the inhabitants of this city, both the people and the animals; they will die of a great plague. 7 Then afterward,” declares the Lord, “I will hand Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants, and the people, that is, those who survive in this city from the plague, the sword, and the famine, over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, to their enemies, and to those who seek their lives; and he will strike and kill them with the edge of the sword. He will not spare them nor have pity nor compassion.”’
8 “You shall also say to this people, ‘This is what the Lord says: “Behold, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. 9 Anyone who stays in this city will die by the sword, by famine, or by plague; but anyone who leaves and goes over to the Chaldeans who are besieging you will live, and he will have his own life as plunder. 10 For I have set My face against this city for harm and not for good,” declares the Lord. “It will be handed over to the king of Babylon and he will burn it with fire.”’
SUMMARY
King Zedekiah sent priests to Jeremiah asking that he pray for the withdrawal of Babylon, the enemies that were making war against Judah. However, the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord spoke a message of God’s judgment on Judah, the plague, the sword, the famine, and war against Judah with God’s outstretched hand and a mighty arm, in anger, wrath, and great indignation. Anyone who stays in the city will die, but anyone who surrenders will have his own life as plunder.
MEDITATION AND REFLECTION
Verse 8 drew and kept my attention this morning, and I slowly read this passage a few more times. “Behold, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death.” For the people of Judah, God revealed through Jeremiah His judgement. God would hand them over to the king of Babylon. For me, God reveals through Jeremiah the way of life is through walking with Jesus Christ and the way of death is walking with my own will and strength. That has been the message God has been speaking to me almost daily through the book of Jeremiah when I meditated for the past two months. I got distracted so easily by my own thoughts and emotions. Oftentimes, I find myself in need of this daily reminder. It seemed very redundant and repetitive. However, God knows me the best. He knows that I constantly seek my own strength and ability to walk my daily life. My lack of willingness to surrender completely to my Lord is just like the king and priests of Judah in the time of threat of Babylon. I often pray to God and ask God to deal with me in accordance with His wonderful acts. I am ignorant and in denial of God’s will and His great plan is to carry out the salvation of His people. I once again ask God to help me repent from my sinfulness and turn my attention to Him.
APPLICATION
I noticed the difference when I intentionally set apart time to chew on God’s words, meditate deeper, and wholeheartedly worship God during my quiet time. There are so many distractions in my life that are so loud and draw my attention away. I have to intentionally block them out so that I am not walking in the way of death, unable to resist the temptation to conform to the world. I cannot do this with my own strength, but only with help of the Holy Spirit.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your daily reminder through the book of Jeremiah. Your words have so much wisdom to guide my life through. Help me know Your will and come to You daily to be fed by You. Not to follow my thoughts and my way, but to truly walk with Jesus Christ. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.
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