Jeremiah 38:17-21, 23 (King James Version)
17 Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house:
18 But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
19 And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.
20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.
21 But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me:
23 So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans: and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.
Sometimes GOD lays out a choice.
"Do 'this' and 'this' will be what happens to you, but if you do 'this,' 'this' will be your consequence."
To often our first response is to look at both choices and weigh them against what would be most socially acceptable. We don't seem to even hear the outcome of each choice that HE has laid out for us. We complicate it even more by trying to justify the easier choice with "Religious" reasoning.
"I need to be credible to the lost. If I start doing 'crazy' things they will not take me seriously."
Take this example from Jeremiah and King Zedekiah.
Jeremiah was ridiculed by the proper social groups (princes) that surrounded the king. They sent him to a prison to die. All because he was preaching a message that was negative. However, he did not fear mans reproach.
Look at verse 20 in his response to the king. He is saying (in my simplified version), "What can they do to you that is any worse than what GOD has promised if you don't obey?" This is the understanding of his own faith. This is what he lived by.
Later Jeremiah was allowed to live like a free man among the Israelites left in the land after the king of Babylon took over.
King Zedekiah choose to not do the "crazy" thing and everything that GOD told him through Jeremiah came true.
Jerusalem was burned the walls were broken and the people were taken captive. More than that Zedekiah was forced to watch as the king of Babylon killed his sons then gouge his eyes out and drug him away to a dungeon somewhere.
The key to this little message is verse 20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.
Zedekiah was looking at possible issues that weren't even on the table. GOD said "do this, and this will happen, or do this and this will happen."
We have to simplify we have to take GOD at HIS word. HE knows what is going on, and I am confident that HE doesn't miss anything. HE isn't sitting there after the fact saying, "Whoa, didn't see that coming."
17 Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house:
18 But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
19 And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.
20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.
21 But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me:
23 So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans: and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.
Sometimes GOD lays out a choice.
"Do 'this' and 'this' will be what happens to you, but if you do 'this,' 'this' will be your consequence."
To often our first response is to look at both choices and weigh them against what would be most socially acceptable. We don't seem to even hear the outcome of each choice that HE has laid out for us. We complicate it even more by trying to justify the easier choice with "Religious" reasoning.
"I need to be credible to the lost. If I start doing 'crazy' things they will not take me seriously."
Take this example from Jeremiah and King Zedekiah.
Jeremiah was ridiculed by the proper social groups (princes) that surrounded the king. They sent him to a prison to die. All because he was preaching a message that was negative. However, he did not fear mans reproach.
Look at verse 20 in his response to the king. He is saying (in my simplified version), "What can they do to you that is any worse than what GOD has promised if you don't obey?" This is the understanding of his own faith. This is what he lived by.
Later Jeremiah was allowed to live like a free man among the Israelites left in the land after the king of Babylon took over.
King Zedekiah choose to not do the "crazy" thing and everything that GOD told him through Jeremiah came true.
Jerusalem was burned the walls were broken and the people were taken captive. More than that Zedekiah was forced to watch as the king of Babylon killed his sons then gouge his eyes out and drug him away to a dungeon somewhere.
The key to this little message is verse 20 But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.
Zedekiah was looking at possible issues that weren't even on the table. GOD said "do this, and this will happen, or do this and this will happen."
We have to simplify we have to take GOD at HIS word. HE knows what is going on, and I am confident that HE doesn't miss anything. HE isn't sitting there after the fact saying, "Whoa, didn't see that coming."
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