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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Tuesday, 11 July 2023:
Jeremiah 2:2 – “Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem, Thus says the LORD, “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness, in a land not sown.”
“Even when our hearts grow cold toward God and our devotion to Him weakens, His love remains steadfast. We may forget God, but He remembers us.
God was concerned because the people of Judah had allowed their hearts to drift far from Him. In a powerful moment, God shared His heart with His people, recalling what it was like when they first began loving Him. He remembered how they had loved Him, as a new bride loves her husband, with excitement and enthusiasm for the future. He recalled the kindness they had expressed as they willingly followed Him wherever He led them. God reminded them of the love they had once had for Him, so that the memory might rekindle feelings of devotion and their hearts might return to Him.
If you do not guard our heart, you will grow cold in your love for Christ. A time may come when He approaches you and reminds you what your relationship was once like. Do you recollect the joy that permeated your life when you first became a Christian? Do you recall the youthful commitments you made to Him, pledging to do anything He told you to do? Do you remember the thrill you experienced each time you came to understand a new dimension of His nature? Spiritual memory is important. You may not realize how far you have drifted from God until you contrast the love you are expressing to Him now with that of earlier days.
God has not changed. He is the same Person you gave your heart to when you became a Christian (Mal. 3:6-7). If your love for God is not as intense as it once was, return to Him. He will restore the intimate fellowship you once shared with Him.” (Henry T. Blackaby)
Jeremiah 2:6 – They did not say, “Where is the Lord who brought us up from the land of Egypt, who led us in the wilderness, in a land of deserts and pits, in a land of drought and deep darkness, in a land that none passes through, no man dwells?”
Our relationship with God is meant to be very personal and real, the defining experience of our life. Jesus said, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:3) Eternal life began the moment you were saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and you are meant to know Him more and more each day and make Him known more and more each day as you walk with Him through life and experience Him.
Christianity is not just doctrines to believe (though doctrine is important), habits to practice (though habits are important), and sins to avoid (though avoiding sin is important). Our religion is about relationship, everything designed to help us draw closer to Jesus in loving unity and with each other in Him. Also, God intentionally uses our life experiences to grow us in Christlike character – nothing is random, and we are not mere victims. (see Romans 28, 29) However, if we don’t guard our hearts, our “religion” can become heartless habits, empty rituals and prideful legalism, and our churches can become organizations that promote merely moralism rather than genuine relationship with Christ. If we aren’t careful, our giving can become burdensome, futile attempts to earn God’s favor or ease our guilty consciences rather than opportunities to express our love to Him and to care lovingly for others; our prayers can become hurried, rote mantras rather than intimate two-way conversations with Him; and our obedience can become self-righteous legalism rather than the natural response of someone who eagerly seeks to serve the One they love.
Called by God, Jeremiah spoke to a people who had replaced genuine relationship with empty ritual, and they had grown so comfortable in their condition, they didn’t even notice their separation from God. They attended worship services, studied, prayed and gave, but their activities were hollow, futile and powerless.
Is it possible to pray, to attend a worship service, or to give an offering yet not to experience the presence of God? It certainly is possible! And that has been the sad commentary on many a Christian experience. Don’t settle for a religious life that lacks a vital relationship to Jesus Christ. When God is present, the difference will be obvious.
- Revelation 2:2-5 — “I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”
Jeremiah 2:13 – …for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.
“There should never be ‘dry spells’ in the Christian life. God said that He would be like an artesian well in the life of a believer. Artesian wells bubbled forth with a cold, fresh, never-ending supply of water from the depths of the earth, quenching any thirst and always satisfying. This is the picture of the spiritual refreshment that belongs to the person in whom the Holy Spirit resides.
Have you ever heard people say they are experiencing a dry spell in their Christian life? What are they saying? Are they saying that the Lord ran out of water? It should never cross your mind that the fountain of living waters residing within you should ever be reduced to a trickle. You don’t need to run all over the country trying to find sources of spiritual refreshment. Conferences, retreats, and books can all bring encouragement, but if you are a Christian, the source of living water already resides within you.
Have you exchanged the living fountain for man-made cisterns that cannot hold water? Why would you exchange an artesian well for a broken water tank? Artesian wells do not dry up. Broken cisterns do. If you are experiencing spiritual dryness right now, is it because you have been attempting to find your source of spiritual refreshment from man-made sources, which will fail you every time? Jesus extended an invitation to you when He said: ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink’ (John 7:37). Have you been refreshed by the living water only Jesus can provide?” (Henry T. Blackaby)
Colossians 4:2 – Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
How is your prayer life? Today’s readings tell us to continue “steadfastly” in prayer, from the Greek word proskartereō, which means to powerfully persevere with continuous diligence and courage, never growing faint or quitting. This is not casual prayer but rather deeply earnest, fervent prayer, a relentless struggle in prayer as described in Colossians 4:12. The prayer described here is persistent and enduring – “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Are you praying continuously, earnestly, and fervently?
Today’s readings tell us that when you pray, you should “be watchful” in your prayers. Anticipate God’s answer to your prayers, and pay attention. God may (likely) answer your prayer in ways you never anticipated. The Bible also tells us to pray with thanksgiving. This involves trusting God with all your circumstances and genuinely believing that He will work all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Thanksgiving also involves trusting that God’s “No” response to some of your prayers is far better than the “Yes” for which you had hoped. Are your prayers full of thanksgiving?
“Pray also for us….” (Colossians 4:3) Finally, if you do a word search in the Bible for “pray,” you will find the vast majority of verses on prayer involve praying for someone else and for the advancement of the Kingdom, rather than on personal wants, desires, and concerns. Also, most praying is done in fellowship with other believers. Isn’t this the example Jesus gave us in the Lord’s prayer? ‘Our Father, (not My Father)…. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven…. Just give me what I really need today and nothing more (daily bread), and help me forgive others and abstain from sin.’ Today’s readings give an example of group prayer for others and for the advancement of the Gospel – “Pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak…. always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.” (Colossians 4:3, 4, 12) Notice that, surprisingly, Paul didn’t ask his fellow believers to pray for his release from prison. His prayers were not self-centered by rather Christ-centered. For what and for whom are you praying earnestly, fervently and thankfully, and why?
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 11 July 2023: Today, examine your prayer life, and “continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” Focus your prayers on the advancement of the Gospel and the needs of others.
Defenders Bible Reading Plan 