YEAR 2, WEEK 29, Day 17, Monday, 17 July 2023

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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Monday, 17 July 2023:

Jeremiah 8:5 — Why then has this people turned away in perpetual backsliding?

Continually repeating sin signals a lack of genuine repentance and true fellowship with God.

Jeremiah 8:6 — I have paid attention and listened, but they have not spoken rightly; no man relents of his evil, saying, “What have I done?” Everyone turns to his own course, like a horse plunging headlong into battle.

A person who is not guided by the Spirit is much like a senseless animal, goaded by an evil master, oblivious to the demise that awaits them.

• 2 Peter 2:10-22 — Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones, whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction, suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, while they feast with you. They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness. These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

Jeremiah 8:6 — I have paid attention and listened, but they have not spoken rightly; no man relents of his evil.

The prayers of an unrepentant sinner are not effective, not because God can’t hear them but because He doesn’t honor them. (See comments from Jeremiah 7 concerning abominable prayers of the unrepentant.)

Jeremiah 8:7 — Even the stork in the heavens knows her times, and the turtledove, swallow, and crane keep the time of their coming, but my people know not the rules of the LORD.

All of God’s earthly Creatures obey God and server their created purpose except people. People were created to love and serve God, but mankind has rebelled and subjected all of creation to the consequences of disorder and sin. God has given us His written word, further revealed by the embodiment of His perfect word in Jesus, along with the Counsel of the Holy Spirit, yet, we can’t seem to even find the time to read His word that we would even understand how to fulfill our earthly purpose. If we don’t even know what God’s word requires, how can we possibly serve Him? If God’s commands revealed in His word are not priority in our lives, we will not serve Him, and we have reckoned Him something less than God — this is cosmic treason.

Jeremiah 8:8 — How can you say, “We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us”? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes has made it into a lie….

You don’t really know God and don’t really have wisdom if you don’t obey God. To know God’s word and then disobey God’s word is far worse than having never known God’s word, and far worse still is teaching others to disobey God through your example of sin. Jesus said, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.” (Luke 17:1, 2)

Jeremiah 8:9 — The wise men shall be put to shame; they shall be dismayed and taken; behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord, so what wisdom is in them?

Proper respect for God and His word is the foundation of wisdom. Those who obey God’s word in love are wise. Many people are searching for some higher truth, endeavoring for more education, or seeking some special revelation beyond God’s written word, but they have rejected the most basic truths of God revealed in the Bible. For many Christians, the issue is not in the knowing, it is in the doing. If they would faithfully obey what they already know, they would be ready to receive more, and they would be on the path of wisdom and godliness. God’s word is easy to understand but hard to follow because the issue is not with the head, it is with the heart. The Biblical scholar, the academic, the mystic, the inspirational orator, they are no match for the simple, humble, obedient follower of Jesus who likely goes unnoticed by most.

Any “wisdom” that deviates from the word of God is, in fact, a lie and sin. Contrary, to what Jeremiah prophesied against, 1 Peter calls us to live up to our calling as Priests. That’s right, you are a priest:

• 1 Peter 2: 4, 5 — As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
• 1 Peter 2: 9-12 — But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

If you have ever asked “What does God want me to do with my life?” you need not ask anymore: As His Priest, “proclaim the excellence of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” Your appointment, authority, and ability as a priest does not come from a worldly institution, it comes from God Himself. Be faithful to your calling.

Jeremiah 8:12 — Were they ashamed when they committed abomination? No, they were not at all ashamed; they did not know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they shall be overthrown.

We don’t even realize how calloused our hearts have become and how desensitized we have become to sin. What is shocking is what is no longer shocking to us.

Jeremiah 8:14, 15 — Let us go into the fortified cities and perish there, for the Lord our God has doomed us to perish and has given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against the Lord. We looked for peace, but no good came; for a time of healing, but behold, terror.

The sinner will perish in his false security.

1 Thessalonians 4:1 — …you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.

God expects you to strive more and more to walk with Jesus. Sanctification is a life-long process.

1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 — For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Sanctification is God’s will for your life. What does God want you to do with your life? Become closer and more like Jesus every day, more holy. God has called you to purity and holiness – strive daily for it. Holiness requires self-control. Self-control is key to sanctification, and sexual sin is not only a sign of a lack of self-control and sanctification, it defies the Great Commandment of loving God and others. It is absolutely unthinkable that a Christian would engage in any form of sexual immorality considering that the Christian’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, and sexual immorality would be an utter desecration of God’s temple, the abomination of desolation! “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So, glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19, 20)

1 Thessalonians 4:8 — For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

God has called you to holiness instead of impurity. In urging us to “live in order to please God” and to “do this more and more,” Paul reminds us that the Bible’s instructions are given to us “by the authority of the Lord Jesus.” We are called by God and empowered by God through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit to live “holy” lives. When we sin, we cannot use the old excuse, “The Devil made me do it.” God has given us the power to obey, but we choose not to when, even for a brief moment, something has become more important to us than God. Paul wants us to face the fact that when we sin, we are deliberately denying the Lordship of God and His authority over our lives! He also warns that God will hold us accountable (1 Thessalonians 4:6), though we remain in His love and grace. Furthermore, Paul points out that sin and disobedience have nothing to do with love, and it is impossible to grow in love without growing in holiness and obedience. Sin is not only and offense to God, it also always hurts others (1 Thessalonians 4:6). Sin hurts, destroys, kills. True love absolutely requires obedience to the God who is Love, and our ability to love others is dependent on our love for God.

1 Thessalonians 4:9-12 — Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another…. But we urge you, brothers, to do this more and more, and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.

God wants you to strive to grow in love daily, and to live and inoffensive and unencumbered life, not being dependent upon the sinful world which would influence you to compromise your purity and holiness. God calls us to live quiet lives, working hard to be self-sufficient and to love others. Once again, people often ask, “What does God want me to do with my life?” However, their focus is usually on profession, and they are usually really asking, “How can I be successful in life (by the world’s standards)?” However, Thessalonians’ answer to the question focuses on character rather than competence – “live a holy life.” Thessalonians seems to minimize “professional” success (though we are called to be excellent in all things) – “make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands.” Who you are matters far more than what you do. Find something to do, and do it to the glory of God, not to your own glory. “This only have I found: God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes. Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. (Ecclesiastes 7:29; 12:13, 14).”

1 Thessalonians 4:13 — But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

God does not want you to get wrapped up in the worries of the world or to grieve about things like the world does. Be at peace in the hope which has been given you through the promise of Jesus.

“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 17 July 2023: Today, pursue sanctification as your life goal. Walk today side-by-side with Jesus, seeking to know Him more fully, seeking to grow closer to Him through every experience. Don’t just do good, know Him more and more. Don’t follow anyone else, only Him. Partner with those who have the same goal for life as you — to know Jesus more and more.