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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“You
are saying about this city, ‘By the sword, famine and plague it will be given
into the hands of the king of Babylon’; but this is what the Lord, the God of
Israel, says: ‘I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them
in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and
let them live in safety. They will be My people, and I will be their God. I
will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear Me
and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. I
will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to
them, and I will inspire them to fear Me, so that they will never turn away
from Me. I will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in
this land with all My heart and soul.’”
“This
is what the Lord says: ‘As I have brought all this great calamity on this
people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them. Once more
fields will be bought in this land of which you say, “It is a desolate waste,
without people or animals, for it has been given into the hands of the
Babylonians.” Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds will be signed,
sealed and witnessed in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around
Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the towns of the hill country, of the
western foothills and of the Negev, because I will restore their fortunes,
declares the Lord.’”
Jeremiah 32:36-44
This ends today’s reading
from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
In yesterday’s devotion, God made it very clear that He was
not pleased with His people, calling them out for the sins they had committed
against Him, sins that brought on His anger, wrath, and judgment. We saw a side
of God that we should never want to see, a side that we will never have to
worry about seeing if we seek to live in accordance with His will and word, a
will and word that will always lead us to live in righteousness. For when we
live right in God’s sight, we can rest assured we will be in His favor.
But what happens when we do fail and fall, bringing God’s
consequences upon ourselves?
In today’s message, we will see that although we serve a God
who does hold His people accountable for their transgressions, we also serve a
God who shows grace and mercy and forgiveness and pardon, a God who redeems His
people when they fail and fall.
Look again at the closing verses of Jeremiah, Chapter 32:
“You are saying about this city, ‘By the
sword, famine and plague it will be given into the hands of the king of
Babylon’; but this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will surely
gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger and
great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety. They
will be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them singleness of
heart and action, so that they will always fear Me and that all will then go
well for them and for their children after them. I will make an everlasting
covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire
them to fear Me, so that they will never turn away from Me. I will rejoice in
doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all My heart
and soul.’”
“This is what the Lord says: ‘As I have
brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the
prosperity I have promised them. Once more fields will be bought in this land
of which you say, “It is a desolate waste, without people or animals, for it
has been given into the hands of the Babylonians.” Fields will be bought for
silver, and deeds will be signed, sealed and witnessed in the territory of
Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the
towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, because I
will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.’” Jeremiah 32:36-44
Yes, God was handing over the holy, divine city of Jerusalem
and the kingdom of Judah to the marauding Babylonians and their king,
Nebuchadnezzar.
Yes, the city and kingdom would be plundered, razed, and
left in ruins.
Yes, the Israelites would be taken away as captives to
Babylon for seventy years for the sin of worshiping false gods and idols.
All this would happen.
But so would redemption for God assured it by His own words:
“I
will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious
anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live
in safety. They will be My people, and I will be their God. I will give them
singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear Me and that all
will then go well for them and for their children after them. I will make an
everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I
will inspire them to fear Me, so that they will never turn away from Me. I will
rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with all
My heart and soul.’”
“As
I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all
the prosperity I have promised them. Once more fields will be bought in this
land of which you say, ‘It is a desolate waste, without people or animals, for
it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians.’ Fields will be bought for
silver, and deeds will be signed, sealed and witnessed in the territory of
Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the
towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, because I
will restore their fortunes.’”
What does redemption look like?
1. It looks like
restoration.
“I will surely gather them from all the lands where I banish
them in my furious anger and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place
and let them live in safety.”
“I will restore their fortunes. I will give them all the
prosperity I have promised them. Once more fields will be bought in this land.”
2. It looks like
reconciliation.
“They will be My people, and I will be their God. I will
give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear Me and
that all will then go well for them and for their children after them.”
3. It looks like
renewal.
“I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never
stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear Me, so that they will
never turn away from Me.”
4. It looks like
rejoicing.
“I
will rejoice in doing them good and will assuredly plant them in this land with
all My heart and soul.”
Friends, God’s word is speaking powerfully to all people
today. For no one can be taken away so far that His grace, mercy, and
forgiveness cannot reach. The Israelites were removed from the Holy Land and
taken away far away to a foreign country but yet God’s pardon found them there.
It will find you too, no matter what wrongs you may have committed.
Today, I pray you will sincerely repent and fully receive
God’s redemption in your life.
Trust me when I say, He will restore you, He will reconcile
you to Himself, He will renew you because He makes all things new, and He will
rejoice over the opportunity to extend His grace to you, an amazing grace that
saves wretches like you and me, finding those who were lost and bringing them
back to where they can once again live in His favor and blessing.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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