The Bible Breakdown

Jeremiah 03: Come On Home

• Brandon Cannon • Episode 653

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Speaker 1:

Well, everybody, welcome back to the Bible Breakdown podcast with your host, pastor Brandon. Today, jeremiah, chapter 3, and today's title is Come on Home. Come on home. We're going to see just the kindness of God, how he never stops searching and seeking and drawing us back to Himself. What an amazing thing it is to serve the Lord. And we're going to get into all that in just a second. But before we do, if you're just now joining us, make sure you like, share, subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast. It's free for you, but it really helps us out a lot. Leave us a five-star review on the podcast and make sure you're going to the Bible Breakdown Discussion on Facebook. There's an amazing team of people and they're doing a wonderful job over there, doing devotions every single day, and we want you to comment on those. Don't just read them and go, but comment. We want to create community around the idea of just reading God's word every day, and the more we dig, the more we find.

Speaker 1:

Well, if you have your Bibles, want to open up with me to Jeremiah, chapter three? I want to remind you that the overall theme of Jeremiah is this idea of God's light in the darkness, god's light in the darkness and that it gives us a future and a hope. And what we said was is Jeremiah. He started becoming a quote-unquote professional prophet, did it with his whole life as a young man and he finished after the destruction of Jerusalem. So for 40 years he is being used by God to call the nation back to himself. And it's really sad because when he first began his ministry it was under Josiah, king Josiah, and during that time there was kind of a reformation and a revival. But after the time of Josiah, pagan kings came to power and they slowly kept turning away from God and so he watched the nation in decline. But there's still hope there because even though there's judgment coming, there's still hope that God still hasn't given up on Judah. He's still calling them back to himself. And even though we kind of use this analogy of it's almost like how you see a train coming in the distance and you're on the train track you see destruction coming. Jeremiah is still calling and saying're on the train track. You see destruction coming. Jeremiah is still calling and saying judgment's on its way, but God still wants to heal us, god still wants to forgive us. I'm going to go ahead and tell you we're not going to turn back. We're going to. We're going to keep doing the wrong thing, but it doesn't mean God's changed his mind about us, and that by itself is beautiful.

Speaker 1:

And today's chapter is going to kind of continue from yesterday. Yesterday, god was just. It was just heartbreaking to hear God say what did I do? Why did you leave me? Why have you forsaken me? I've taken care of you and I'll be just so sad. But today we see how, even though all of that's happening, he says come on home. You know, even though you're disgusting and you're terrible, you know, and all this, it's almost like a backhanded compliment, even though you're disgusting and you're terrible. It's almost like a backhanded compliment, even though all this is wrong. Come on home. It's like well, I don't want them in my house. Well, I do, says God. And it reminds me of.

Speaker 1:

I was watching this YouTube video one time and there was this guy who had been on death row and he had done all this stuff wrong and all this kind of stuff, but there was a technicality with his court case and because there was a technicality with his court case, he was allowed to vacate all of his convictions and actually come home, even though most of the people in the community was pretty sure he was guilty of something. He wasn't guilty of that particular crime, right. And so the way the YouTube video went is all the other people were like listen, he can't come to my house because I'm pretty sure he's killed some folks. He just didn't kill that folk, you know. And what I loved about it is, even though that was going on, this guy's mother was like you know what? Yeah, my boy's not a good boy. He's done a lot of bad things, but he's still my baby and it's time for him to come on home. And I remember looking at that and I remember thinking, well, first of all, she's crazy, he is not going to come to my house. But then it reminded me of just the love that a parent has for a child, that when nobody else wants to stick with that kid, there's just something that God puts inside of us that you're always welcome at mama's house. Right, and that's what I feel coming out of this chapter. When it comes to God speaking to his people, he's like look, you got 99 issues. Man, you are disgusting, all these things that you have done. We're going to read about a couple of them, but then the second half is even though all of this is happening, god's like come on home, come on back home. And it's just so powerful. So if you're ready, let's jump into this.

Speaker 1:

Jeremiah, chapter three. God's word says this If a man divorces a woman and she goes and marries someone else, he will not take her back again, for that would surely corrupt the land. But you have prostituted yourself with many lovers, so why are you trying to come back to me, says the Lord. Look at the shrines on every hilltop. Is there any place you have not been defiled by your adultery with other gods? You sit like a prostitute beside the road waiting for a customer. You sit alone like a nomad in the desert. You have polluted the land with your prostitution and your wickedness. That's why even the spring rains have failed, for you are a brazen prostitute and completely shameless. Yet you say to me Father, you have been my guide since my youth. Surely you won't be angry forever. Surely you can forget about it. So you talk, but you keep on doing all the evil. You can Pause. Now.

Speaker 1:

What God is saying is is you claim that you and me are doing just fine, when you got all these other gods that you're worshiping. And he likens it to saying imagine you've got a man and his wife and the man's like hey, baby, you know I love you. And the whole time she knows he's got like 10 mistresses out there. At some point she's going no, you don't, if you love me, be faithful. And he's like but I love you, I'm going to go see my mistress, right, and that's what God's saying. You're telling me that you and I are cool, but we're not cool. You know that, right. And so God's just kind of exposing why judgment is on its way. Verse 6 says this During the reign of King Josiah, the Lord said to me have you seen what fickle Israel has done?

Speaker 1:

Like a wife who commits adultery, israel has worshipped other gods on every hill and under every green tree. I thought, after she has done all this, she'll return to me. But she did not return. Her faithless sister, judah, saw this. She saw that I divorced faithless Israel because of her adultery. But that treacherous sister, judah, had no fear, and now she too has left me and given herself to prostitution. Israel treated it all so lightly. She thought nothing of committing adultery and worshiping idols made of wood and stone. So now the land has been polluted. But despite all this, her faithless sister, judah, has never sincerely returned to me. She only pretended to be sorry. I, the Lord, have spoken. Now pause.

Speaker 1:

Now, what is this talking about? Again? If you remember, there were two kingdoms. Israel had split into Israel, which is, you know, one kingdom, and then Judah, which was just Judah, and I think it was Benjamin too. So there were two kingdoms. And what he was saying is is that Israel thought it was nothing to just constantly have these idols, and they were destroyed. Assyria came and destroyed them. And he's saying now Judah, the only one left, saw exactly what happened to Israel and they're going. Ah, it's fine, it won't happen to me, but unfortunately it's going to Verse 11,.

Speaker 1:

Then the Lord said to me Even faithless Israel is less guilty than treacherous Judah. Therefore, go and give this message to Israel. This is what the Lord says. Oh Israel, my faithless people, come home to me again, for I am merciful. I will not be angry with you forever, only acknowledge your guilt. Admit that you have rebelled against the Lord, your God, and committed adultery against him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you have refused to listen to my voice. I, the Lord, have spoken.

Speaker 1:

Return home, you wayward children, says the Lord, for I am your master, I will bring you back to the land of Israel. The Lord, for I am your master, I will bring you back to the land of Israel, one from this town and two from that family. From wherever you were scattered, I will give you shepherds after my own heart who will guide you with knowledge and understanding. And when your land is once more filled with people, says the Lord, you will no longer wish for the good old days when you possess the ark of the Lord's covenant. You will not miss those days or even remember them, for there will be no need to rebuild the ark. In that day, jerusalem will be known as the throne of the Lord. All nations will come there to honor the Lord. They will no longer stubbornly follow their own evil desires. And in those days, the people of Judah and Israel will return together from exile in the north. They will return to the land I gave your ancestors as an inheritance forever.

Speaker 1:

I thought to myself. I would love to treat you as my own children. I wanted nothing more than to give you this beautiful land, the finest possessions in the world. I look forward to calling to your calling me father and I wanted you never, but I wanted you never to turn from me. But you have been unfaithful to me, you, people of Israel. You have been like a faithless wife who leaves her husband. I, the Lord, have spoken.

Speaker 1:

Voices are heard high on the windswept mountains and weeping and pleading of Israel's people, for they have chosen crooked paths and they have forgotten the Lord, their God. My wayward children, says the Lord, come back to me and I will heal your wayward hearts. Yes, we're coming. The people reply, for you are the Lord, our God. Our worship of idols on the hills and our religious orgies on the mountains are a delusion. Only the Lord, our God, will Israel ever find salvation.

Speaker 1:

From childhood, we have watched as everything our ancestors worked for, their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters, were squandered on a delusion. Let us now lie down in shame, cover ourselves with dishonor, for we and our ancestors have sinned against the Lord, our God. From our childhood to this day, we have never obeyed him. Wow, you see how God is saying you've done all these things, and he was talking about Judah. And he's saying listen, israel did the things you're doing and I destroyed them. You're going even further and you expect me to let you get away with it. But even though you've done these things, come on home, come on back to me. I still want you. I still want you to call me father. I still want to wipe away your tears, wipe away your shame. I still want you. I love that. I love that God is saying, even in their rebellion, he still has an invitation to restore their hope and a future, to give them a light in the middle of darkness. What does that have to do with me and you today?

Speaker 1:

You remember I was telling you about how I watched that video where, even though nobody else wanted this guy in their house because they're pretty sure he'd done something wrong, the mama said, hey, I don't have a good boy, but it's time for him to come on home. Do you know what I love about God? It's on our worst day he loved us. The Bible says in Romans 5, verse 8, that God demonstrated. He didn't just tell us, he didn't just shout his love from heaven, but he demonstrated. He proved his love for us in that, while we were still sinners, christ died for us. In other words, jesus didn't look on us on our best day and say, well, I guess they're worth saving. But on our worst day before, we wanted him, he wanted us.

Speaker 1:

And here's the thing If you're listening or watching this and you don't have a relationship with Jesus, he wants you. He knows exactly what you've done, he knows where you've been, he knows who you did it with and he says I still want you. I want to wash away that sin. I want to heal you from all of that. I want to set you free, and if it takes the rest of your life on this planet to get you free from all that bondage, I'm in. Let's do it. And so can I tell you. If you don't know Jesus, he wants you. But.

Speaker 1:

But here's one that's also sweet, and that is this If you've come to the Lord but for some reason you walked away from your relationship with Him, you're not close to Him anymore. Do you know what he says? I still want you. You've never been more loved than you are right now. Come on home. I know I see all of that. I see what you've done. I heard what you said about me. I know those things and I'm not happy about them, but I want to forgive you. I still want to be called your heavenly father, I still want to be your salvation. Come on home. Come on home. Maybe that's the word for you today. Come on home. It's time to find peace again. No matter where you are, no matter what you're doing, god wants you. It's time to come home. Let's pray together right now.

Speaker 1:

God, thank you so much for today. Thank you, god, that no matter where we go, no matter how we wander, you still want us to come home. I celebrate that today and I pray for everyone, lord, maybe for those who don't know you I'm so excited that they're listening to this. I pray, lord, holy Spirit, you will draw them to yourself and help them come home to you today, and maybe for someone who is listening, but if they're honest, their relationship with you has gotten cold. They've walked away from you.

Speaker 1:

Maybe the whole reason they're listening to this is to be reminded that you've not given up. You still want them and you're still as close as a prayer. I pray Lord, they will come on home to you today too. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen. I pray Lord, they will come on home to you today too. In Jesus' name, we pray amen. And what God's word says in Jeremiah 29, verse 13,. He says if you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. My prayer is that you find God fresh and new every single day. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow, right Jeremiah, chapter four.

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Brandon Cannon

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