Jeremiah 8
Graves opened to honor false gods verse 1- 3
At that time – says the LORD
they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah
his princes – priests – prophets – inhabitants of Jerusalem
out of their graves – and they shall spread them
before the sun – moon – hosts of heaven
whom they have loved
whom they have served
and after whom they have walked
and whom they have sought
and whom they have worshiped
they shall not be gathered – nor be buried
they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth
AND death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that
remain of this evil family
which remain in all the places whither
I have driven them
says the LORD of hosts
God’s people have fewer brains than a bird verse 4- 7
MOREOVER you shall say to them – thus says the LORD
Shall they fall and not arise?
Shall he turn away – and not return?
Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a
perpetual backsliding ? they hold fast deceit
they refuse to return
I hearkened and heard but they spoke not aright
no man repented him of his wickedness – saying
What have I done? – every one turned to his course
as a horse rushes into the battle
YEA the stork in the heaven knows her appointed times
and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the
time of their coming
BUT MY people know not the judgment of the LORD
False hope in just possessing the Word of the LORD verse 8- 9
HOW do you say – We are wise
and the law of the LORD is with us?
LO – certainly in vain made he it
the pen of the scribes is in vain
The wise men are ashamed – they are dismayed and taken
LO – they have rejected the word of the LORD
AND what wisdom is in them?
Consequences of false hope verse 10- 13
THEREFORE will I give their wives unto others
and their fields to them that shall inherit them
for every one from the least even
to the greatest is given
to COVETEOUSNESS
from the prophet even unto the priest
every one deals falsely
For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of MY people slightly
saying
Peace – peace – when there is no peace (6:14)
Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination?
nay – they were not at all ashamed – neither could they blush
THEREFORE shall they fall among them that fall
in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down
says the LORD
I will surely consume them – says the LORD
there shall be no grapes on the vine – nor figs on the fig tree
and the leaf shall fade
And the things that I have given them shall pass away from them
Realization of final judgment verse 14- 15
Why do we sit still? – assemble yourselves
and let us enter into the defensed cities
and let us be silent there
for the LORD our God has put us to silence
and given us water of gall to drink
BECAUSE we have
sinned against the LORD
We looked for peace – BUT no good came
and for a time of health – and behold trouble
Deadly snakes of Babylon coming verse 16- 17
The snorting of the horse was heard from Dan
the whole land trembled
at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones
for they are coming
and have devoured the land
and all that is in it – the city
and those that dwell therein
For BEHOLD – I will send serpents – cockatrices – among you
which will not be charmed – and they will bite you
says the LORD
Jeremiah grieved with the judgment of Judah verse 18- 19
When I would comfort myself against sorrow
my heart is faint in me
BEHOLD the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people
BECAUSE of them that dwell in a far country
Is not the LORD in Zion? – Is not her king in her?
Why had they provoked me to anger with their graven images
and strange vanities?
Statement of fact verse 20
The harvest is past – the summer is ended – we are not saved
No healing available verse 21- 22
For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt
I am black – astonishment hath taken hold of me
Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then is not the health of the daughter of MY people recovered?
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 1 “At that time,” says the LORD, “they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of its princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves. The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982).
DEVOTION: War brings desecration and horrible acts of violence on individuals and countries. We have seen what people are capable of doing in wars in our recent past. In Jeremiah’s statement the Babylonians would have no mercy on the people of Judah and specifically the city of Jerusalem. Even the dead would be pillaged and left in the open. The judgment of God is complete and terrible. It may be administered by a human agent but the Lord is the one controlling and designating what will occur.
We need to be aware that the Lord is a righteous judge and fully able to judge both the dead and the living. In the New Testament we see the dead raised and their facing of judgement. In Revelation 20:11-15 the dead who are unjust and unsaved will face the judgment seat and be cast into the Lake of Fire. When God calls for the people to be judged it will occur and it will be final.
CHALLENGE: We live in a period of time where the judgment of God is not as apparent and mercy, grace and love is emphasized. Do not be deceived, God is not mocked! He is still a righteous, holy God who hates sin and will hold us accountable if we do not repent and submit to Him and His word. Take a moment and review your day, week or month and ask the Lord to reveal any sin that needs repentance. He loves to be our advocate (1 John 2:1-1) if we call out to Him! (Dr. Brian Miller – board member)
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 Why then is this people of Jerusalem backslidden by a perpetual backsliding? They hold fast deceit, they refuse to return. (5331 “perpetual” [netsach] means enduring, lasting, continually, pertaining to a period of time, or permanent.
DEVOTION: The LORD warns that the coming army is going to take all the bones of the leaders from their graves and spread them before the sun, moon and stars that they worshipped. This evil family had slide back so far that it was something that was permanent.
They were practicing permanent apostasy. They were a covetous people. They were a people that believed a lie. They continued to think that they were going to experience peace because they were living where the temple was located. They thought they had the law of God, so therefore, they were protected. They found that they only had trouble coming their way.
Jeremiah was upset that they were not saved. He ends the chapter with good questions: Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered? It hurt him to see Jerusalem in such a state.
There are many people today that feel that they have made a deal with God. They will leave HIM alone if HE leaves them alone. They want to sin and still have all the blessings HE promised to those who are followers of HIM.
Some of these people think that because they memorize the Bible and read the Bible through in a year they are on good terms with God. This is not always true. The LORD wants us to apply the Word of God to our life. Also there are some of these individuals who have pride in these facts and think they are better than other Christians, which is a sin.
The children of Judah had the Temple in their capital and the Law as their guide but that wasn’t enough to stop the judgment of God because they had these two things to worship instead of God HIMSELF.
What HE calls SIN they call pleasure. God doesn’t give up HIS holiness to HIS love. HIS love is toward those who are obedient. HIS holiness is toward those who are disobedient.
We are supposed to be a holy people. A holy people are ones that are not living in sin. The children of Judah were living in sin. Some people in our churches are living in sin. If they were genuine believer’s they would experience weakness, sickness and pre-mature death.
If this is not the case – they are not genuine believers. Whom the LORD loves HE chastens!!!
CHALLENGE: If you are not living for the LORD and HE is not chastening you – examine your life to see if you are genuine. Don’t spend eternity in hell because you are depending on something other than the Word of God. There is only so far back you can go before judgment!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. (3467 “saved” [yasha] means deliverance, be liberated, to set free, conqueror, receive help, or preserved.
DEVOTION: The LORD compared the people of Judah to animals. One of the animals is a bird. They are given a brain that tells them when to migrate from north to south. They have this wisdom in their brain since birth. Each season they know what to do.
The children of Judah didn’t know that it was time to return to a proper service of the LORD. They were counting on the fact that they had the LAW of God. In the last chapter they were counting on the fact that the Temple of the LORD was in Jerusalem.
God doesn’t want anyone to count on a place or a book. They are to count on a relationship to HIM that can be based on the book we call the Bible. The Bible informs us on how to have a proper relationship with the LORD. Church is a place we should go to receive further instructions in the Word of God and have fellowship with other believers who are going through the same struggles we are going through on a regular basis. Other Christians can encourage one another in each other’s struggles.
However, this was not the case in Judah at this time. Each individual was doing what was right in their own eyes and leading others in the same direction. All of this was in a direction away from the LORD.
Now Jeremiah shares the fact that the enemy is coming and there is no hope because the people will not repent of their sins. The LORD gave them hope if they would repent. They would not listen because they counted on the fact that the Temple was in Jerusalem which was a symbol of the presence of the LORD. They thought the LORD wouldn’t destroy the place where HE lived. They were wrong.
They thought they would have another time of harvest. This was not going to happen. There was going to be a total destruction of their crop. There was coming a total destruction of their homeland. There was not going to be any deliverance from the Babylonians.
This verse was one that one of my teachers in Conewango made all the students memorize. Virginia thought it was a good verse to remind us that America could face a drought someday. That day might not be far away for us.
CHALLENGE: Our time of harvest is now. There are many that need to become followers of the LORD. Give them the message of Jeremiah. Repent now!!!
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: 22 Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? Why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered. (6875 “balm” [tsariy] means a kind of balsam, salve, medicine, any of various aromatic, balsam, opobalsamum, mastic, resinous substances used for healing and soothing, or medicament)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were always moving away from God instead of toward HIM. They were always looking for new ways to worship or be religious without really following the LORD. They were at the present moment sinning to the point where the LORD was going to send judgment but they didn’t seem to care.
The problem is that even today those who claim to follow the LORD are not willing to change some things that they know the LORD does not approve of in their daily lives. They seem to think that God doesn’t see all that they are doing and HE is just looking at the good things that they do once in a while that should please HIM.
The problem with Israel and those who are not truly worshiping the LORD every moment of every day is that the LORD does look at their entire life every minute of it and sees what is going on.
We need to realize that the only way that we can please the LORD is to keep short accounts with HIM which means that we confess our sins daily and act regularly to please HIM and not just ourselves.
It is not easy to be a genuine believer but that is the life that the LORD will bless now and for eternity. Trying to fake a Christian life is only fooling the person trying, not the LORD.
If the church is not healthy it is because the individual members are not healthy and to be healthy takes living each day with the attitude of pleasing the LORD.
Is it your goal to please the LORD each moment of each day? If it is your gold HE will notice and bless you. If it is not your goal and all you want to do is live a part time life, HE will have to correct you into thinking properly. If you are not a genuine believer it will not really matter to you or HIM.
CHALLENGE: The choice is yours and it is a daily choice to follow the LORD. HE will forgive genuine believers as HE sees they are trying to live a life that is pleasing to HIM. HE will chasten genuine believers to cause them to repent and return to a faithful following of HIM.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
Comfort myself verse 18
My heart is faint in me verse 18
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Law of the LORD verse 8
Word of the LORD verse 9
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 1, 3, 4, 7- 9, 12- 14, 17, 19
LORD of hosts verse 3
Judgment of the LORD verse 7, 10- 13, 17
Law of the LORD verse 8
Word of the LORD verse 9
LORD going to give wives to others verse 10
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 14
LORD our God verse 14
LORD in Zion verse 19
Provoked to anger verse 19
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Dwell in a far country verse 19
Animals created by the LORD
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
False gods: sun, moon, stars verse 2
Served false gods verse 2
Walked after false gods verse 2
Worship of false gods verse 2
Evil family verse 3
Slidden back verse 5
Perpetual backsliding verse 5
Deceit verse 5
Refuse to return verse 5
Spoke not right verse 6
No man repented verse 6
Wickedness verse 6
Turned to their own course verse 6
No knowledge of God verse 7
Not obeying law of the LORD verse 8
Rejected the Word of the LORD verse 9
Reject wisdom verse 9
Covetousness verse 10
Prophets and priests deal falsely verse 10
healed the hurt of daughters of
MY people slightly
Promise false peace verse 11
Abomination verse 12
Not ashamed verse 12
Neither could they blush verse 12
Sinned verse 14
Provoke the LORD verse 19
Graven images verse 19
Strange vanities verse 19
No saved verse 20
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Repentance verse 6
Peace verse 11, 15
Health verse 15, 22
Comfort verse 18
Saved verse 20
Healing verse 22
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Kings of Judah verse 1, 19
Princes verse 1
Priest verse 1
Prophets verse 1
Inhabitants of Jerusalem verse 1, 5
Bones of dead in Jerusalem spread before sun verse 2
God’s people verse 7, 8, 11, 19, 21
know not the judgment of the LORD
claim they are wise
claim that the law of the LORD is
with them
rejected the word of the LORD
Pen of the scribes = vain verse 8
Wise men are ashamed verse 9
dismayed and taken
Cast down verse 12
Consumed verse 13
Things given by LORD shall pass away verse 13
LORD has put us to silence verse 14
given us water of gall to drink
Sinned against the LORD verse 14
Looked for peace and no good came verse 15
Looked for a time of health but had trouble verse 15
Dan verse 16
land devoured the land
Heart faint in them verse 18
Cry of the daughter of people verse 19
Zion verse 19
Harvest is past verse 20
We are not saved verse 20
Hurt of the daughter of my people verse 21
Astonishment has taken hold of Jeremiah verse 21
No balm in Gilead verse 22
No physician in Gilead verse 22
No health of the daughter of my people verse 22
No recovery verse 22
Animals created by the LORD
Stork verse 7
Knows appointed times
Turtle verse 7
Crane verse 7
Swallow verse 7
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
Out of the graves verse 1
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QUOTES regarding passage
6–7 God waited for the people to amend their ways; he listened in vain for some word of repentance and confession of guilt (v.6). They acted mindlessly. As a war horse rushes into battle, they impetuously followed their own way regardless of the consequences. The figure stresses their determination to keep on in sinning. Even subhuman creatures (v.7) know how to follow their instincts better than Judah follows the way of the Lord. Migratory birds recognize and follow the seasons of their migration instinctively. The stork, dove, swift, and thrush regularly return to Palestine every spring. They know more about God’s appointed way for them than Judah knows about God’s appointed way for her (cf. Isa 1:1–3). Man, created so much higher than the lower creation, drifts so much farther than it does when he loses his moorings in God. (Feinberg, C. L. (1986). Jeremiah. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel (Vol. 6, p. 435). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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8:4–7. God asked a series of questions to expose Judah’s stubborn refusal to turn back to Him. When people fall down they try to get up again. If someone turns away from the right path he tries to return as quickly as possible. But though most people learn from their mistakes, Judah refused to return. Failing to acknowledge any wrongdoing, she pursued her own ways with determination like a horse charging into battle. Even migratory birds observe the time of their migration, but Judah did not realize that it was time to return to her God. She had even less wisdom than a bird! (Dyer, C. H. (1985). Jeremiah. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1141). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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Having shattered the popular illusions about the temple, Jeremiah then exposed the false prophets who constantly opposed his ministry and led the people astray. He raised a number of questions in this section, but the whole proclamation centers on one major question: “Why did the nation not turn back to God?” In answering the question, Jeremiah dealt with three aspects of the people’s stubborn refusal to obey God.
Their refusal was irrational (vv. 4–7). Jeremiah used analogies from human life and nature to illustrate his point. When people fall down, they get up again. That’s the sensible thing to do. If they find themselves walking on the wrong path, they retrace their steps and get on the right path. Conclusion: if people can be sensible about these everyday matters, why can’t they be sensible about eternal matters, especially since the consequences are much more tragic?
They were like horses rushing into battle, having no idea of the dangers involved. Horses are trained to obey and may not know any better, but people made in the image of God ought to know where they’re going. In fact, the people of Judah weren’t as smart as the birds! (See Isa. 1:3.) God gave the birds the instinct to know the seasons and the times of their migrations, but He gave people so much more: a spirit within to hear God’s voice and understand His Law. Made in the image of God, men and women ought to be as obedient to divine instruction as birds are to natural instinct. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Decisive (p. 46). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books)
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Ver. 6. I hearkened and heard, &c.] These are either the words of the prophet, as Kimchi and Abarbinel think; who listened and attended to, and made his observations upon, the words and actions, conduct and behaviour, of this people, of which he gives an account: or of the Lord himself, as the Targum; who hearkened to the language of their hearts and actions, and heard the words of their mouth; all that they spake against him, against his prophets, and those that feared his name; all their lying words, their false swearing; all their oaths and curses, and every idle expression that dropped from them; all which he takes notice of, and men are accountable to him for them: but they spake not aright; what is so in the sight of God and good men; what is agreeable to right reason, and the word of God; they spake what was contrary to all this. Wicked men neither think aright, nor act aright, nor speak aright. No man repented him of his wickedness; of his heart, of his lips, and of his life; no man can repent of himself; no man truly does, without the grace of God: saying, what have I done? which question an impenitent man does not put; but when it is made, the true answer to be returned to it is, that which is contrary to the nature of God; which is a breach of his law; which a man has reason to be ashamed of; at which he may be astonished, it being so exceeding sinful; that which cast the angels out of heaven, Adam out of paradise, and wicked men down to hell; which is deserving of the wrath of God, and eternal death; for which a man can never make atonement himself; and by which he is undone, to all intents and purposes, without an interest in Christ, and salvation by him. Every one turneth to his course; which is not a good, but a bad one; sin is a way, a road, a path, in which men walk; a course, a series of sinning, a progress and persisting in it; such as the course of this world, and this course is evil, Ephes. 2:2: as the horse rusheth into the battle; which denotes their swiftness to commit sin, the pleasure they take in it, and their inattention to danger, and death by it; see Job 39:21–25 or overflows; the impetuosity of the horse is expressed by the overflowing of a river. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 5, p. 449). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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6. I hearkened and heard] God, before passing sentence, carefully listens to the words of the people. Cp. Gen. 11:5, where the Divine judgment is preceded by the Almighty going down to see the tower.
not aright] Or, not-right; which in the Hebr. idiom means that which is utterly wrong.
no man repented] The original phrase is very striking: No man had pity upon his own wickedness. If men understood the true nature of sin, the sinner would repent out of very pity upon himself.
as the horse rusheth] Lit. overfloweth. It is a double metaphor; first, the persistence of the people in sin is compared to the fury which at the sound of the trumpet seizes upon the war-horse; and then its rush into the battle is likened to the overflowing of a torrent, which nothing can stop in its destructive course. (Barnes, A. (1879). Notes on the Old Testament: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Jeremiah, Lamentations & Ezekiel. (F. C. Cook & J. M. Fuller, Eds.) (p. 171). London: John Murray.)
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It is not because Jehovah delights in judgment (“His strange act”) that His people must be so visited. It was the inevitable result of their own waywardness. Theirs was a “perpetual backsliding;” and though oft pleaded with, they repented not, but “every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into battle” (chap. 8:5, 6). Though they boasted of their wisdom, they had not the discernment of the migratory birds. “Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle-dove and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but My people know not the judgment of the Lord” (ver. 7). Of the same character was the Lord’s word to the scribes—“Can ye not discern the signs of the times?” Yet they said, “We are wise, and the the law of the Lord is with us;” but the word of God was practically written in vain for them—not denied, as it is not always denied to be His Word to-day, by many who politely bow it out and profess veneration for it while walking in disobedience to it. “Peace, peace,” such may say, but true peace there is not. Priest and people alike deal falsely with the Sacred Oracles; as a result, the time of visitation cannot be long delayed. (Ironside, H. A. (1906). Notes on the prophecy and Lamentations of Jeremiah (pp. 51–52). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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Although the Bible is still a bestseller, its popularity isn’t keeping Western society from crumbling morally and spiritually. There appears to be no connection between what people say they believe and the way people act.
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The false prophets, who claimed to be writing and speaking in the name of the Lord, deceived the kingdom of Judah. They were men whose personal lives were godless, whose hearts were covetous, and whose remedies for the problems of the nation were useless. Their ministry was popular because they majored on the superficial and marketed whatever good news the people wanted to hear (see 5:12; 14:13–15; 27:8–9; 28:1–17). Jeremiah pictured these men as deceitful physicians (6:14; 8:11), empty wind (5:13), dispensers of chaff (23:28), ruthless, selfish shepherds (23:1–4), and infected people spreading disease (23:15, NIV). God had not sent these so-called prophets (14:14; 23:18, 21; 29:9, 31), nor did they receive their messages from God (23:25–28).
In fact, the people of Judah weren’t as smart as the birds! (See Isa. 1:3.) God gave the birds the instinct to know the seasons and the times of their migrations, but He gave people so much more: a spirit within to hear God’s voice and understand His Law. Made in the image of God, men and women ought to be as obedient to divine instruction as birds are to natural instinct. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be decisive. An Old testament study. (45). Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books.)
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Messages from the Messiah’s Life: The First Temple Cleansing
“For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.” (Psalm 69:9)
After spending a few days at Capernaum, Jesus, His family, and His disciples traveled to Jerusalem to observe the Passover (John 2:12-13). The huge temple complex, rebuilt by Herod, had been turned into something akin to a religious shopping mall, with stalls and booths surrounding the outer court with vendors who “sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting” (John 2:14).
Ostensibly, these vendors were there to facilitate the thousands of visitors who had come to observe the Passover and offer sacrifices and contribute payment for certain vows and “redemption” fees identified by the Old Testament laws (Leviticus 27). However, the system had been corrupted by “heavy burdens” of usurious temple fees levied by the priesthood (Matthew 23:4).
Jesus became incensed by the open corruption and flagrant violation of God’s instructions, and making “a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise” (John 2:15-16).
What a sight this must have been! Just a small taste of the “zeal of thine house” (John 2:17) turned this one man into a flurry of power that stunned a host of vendors, priests, and temple guards. One day, “the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever” (Revelation 15:7) will be unleashed on Earth. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). (HMM III, The Institute for Creation Research)
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GOD’S SPECIAL PEOPLE
Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation,a peculiar people. 1 Peter 2:9
The doctrine that Christians are God’s special people is given in a very remarkable way in John 17, but it is taught everywhere throughout the New Testament. It is found, for instance, in that mighty first chapter of the Epistle to the Ephesians, but especially in Paul’s prayer for the church at Ephesus. He prays that the eyes of their understanding may be enlightened. He wants them to grasp this truth with their minds and with their understanding because it is so vital. He prays that they may know what is the hope of their calling and then, second, what are “the riches of the glory of his inheritance”—God’s inheritance—“in the saints.” I want you to know, he says, and to see yourselves as God’s inheritance. I want you to grasp this idea of God’s special people. It is his prayer, above everything else, that these people might know this.
Consider, too, what he wrote to Timothy. Timothy was very troubled and worried about certain things that were happening in some of the churches for which he was responsible, and Paul in effect said, “Timothy, you need not be troubled, ‘The Lord knoweth them that are his.’” God knows His own people, and that means that He not only knows them, but He looks after them, He keeps His eye upon them. Then in Hebrews 2:13 these words are applied to the Lord: “Behold I and the children which God hath given me.” That is how the Lord Jesus Christ refers to Christians and to the members of His church. Peter also writes on the same theme in his epistle: “Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9), which means a people for God’s special interest and possession. God has chosen and marked out and separated a people for Himself.
A Thought to Ponder: Christians are a people for God’s special interest and possession.
(From Safe in the World, pp. 34-36, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Setting Up House
A man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife. GENESIS 2:24
On the morning of our oldest daughter’s wedding, I sat on a picnic table near our backyard fire pit and wept. This was the very place where we’d shared hundreds of family experiences together over the years, but I knew my relationship with Ashley, who I called “My Princess,” was about to change—forever.
Genesis 2:24 instructs newlyweds to “leave” their parents. This doesn’t mean cutting off your relationship with them but instead committing to place a higher priority and loyalty on your spouse. This was what Ashley was about to do. As you think about your parents, here are some healthy boundaries that will enable you to leave, cleave, and protect your marriage:
1. Never speak disrespectfully about your spouse to your parents. Early in our marriage, I shared one of Barbara’s weaknesses with my mother. I was astounded at how quickly Mom rushed to my side, like a mother hen coming to shelter her wounded chick. My mom never forgot that weakness. As a result, I promised Barbara I would never again discuss negative things about her with my mom.
2. Be deliberate in the way you plan your holidays. At some point, it will be time for you to start establishing your own traditions in your own family. And even when those traditions include visiting with parents and inlaws, keep your stay brief.
3. Don’t depend on your parents for finances. There may be a rare situation where their assistance may be appropriate, but if you depend on them habitually you can play to a weak spot in your parent’s lives where they create “emotional IOUs.” And if you’re the parent or in-law in this scenario and your children don’t build these hedges around their own marriage, be mature and loving enough to build them around yourselves. Encourage your children to leave, cleave and establish their loyalty to one another.
DISCUSS
How well have you done in leaving and cleaving? What still needs some adjustment? (Moments with You Couples by Dennis and Barbara Rainey)
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