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The Bible Breakdown
Jeremiah 06: Choose Rest or Chaos
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The More We Dig. The More We Find.
Hello everybody, welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast with your host, pastor Brandon. Today, jeremiah, chapter 6, and today's title is Choose Rest or Chaos. You're at a crossroads. You've got to choose rest or chaos. We're going to jump into that in just a moment, but, as always, if you like what we're doing here and you're new around here, make sure you like, share and subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast it doesn't cost you anything, but it helps us out a lot and the podcast it doesn't cost you anything but it helps us out a lot and make sure you're going to the Bible Breakdown Discussion on Facebook. We have a wonderful team of people that are doing devotions every single day. They would love to hear from you, so make sure you're commenting and you're sharing those posts so we can get more people reading those and engaging with God's Word. And make sure that you let us know what God's doing in your life. It really encourages us and it also lets us know what we need to do more of so we can impact the lives of others. Because, man, the more we dig, the more we find. We have your Bible. I want to open it up with me to Jeremiah 6.
Speaker 1:Remember, the overall theme of Jeremiah is God's light in the darkness, that it gives us a future and a hope. And that's what Jeremiah is doing. As the train of judgment is coming and it's getting closer all the time, jeremiah is still pleading with the people, and this is over a period of like 40 years, like for a long time. Jeremiah is in the city of Jerusalem and he's grappling back and forth with these false prophets. Who is saying everything's fine, everything's okay? And Jeremiah is saying, uh-uh, everything's not fine, everything's okay, it's not okay. Judgment's coming and so we need to get ready to run for our lives unless we turn back to God. And what we're going to see today is we get about halfway through this chapter after he's already talking about all this judgment that's coming and he's saying so listen, this is your last warning. You really got to come back to God. And then he says but you're at a crossroads. You can either choose chaos, all the bad stuff, or you can choose rest and come back to me. You're at a crossroads, you got to figure it out.
Speaker 1:And it reminds me of I had a daughter. I still have a daughter, but when she was younger, we would challenge her. Hey, listen, you need to not do this thing and we knew she wanted to do that thing. Something wasn't good and we would say, hey, listen, here's the thing. If you do the thing, then you're going to get in trouble. If you don't do the thing, you're going to be okay. Like you're at a crossroads here. And man I'm talking about she's a little girl like like four, five years old, you know, and you would see her doing the calculations in her head. So, okay, is what I'm doing? Is it worth the trouble? I'm going to get in. And sometimes she would say yeah, so she'd go do what she wanted to do and she would get in trouble and we'd be like, oh, what is going on here? And that is exactly what's going on with Israel right now is Jeremiah, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is saying these are the bad things that are about to happen to you and you have a choice to make. Please don't choose the bad thing. And they're having to do this calculation and going is it worth it or is it not? And I think that in our lives a lot of times God kind of does the same things Like hey, listen, I got a big idea for you, but you got to decide. What are you going to do? So let's read God's word and see where he says you have a choice to make.
Speaker 1:Jeremiah, chapter six, verse one, says this Run for your lives, you, people of Benjamin. Get out of Jerusalem. Sound the alarm, tekoa. Send the signal to Beth-Hakiram. A powerful army is coming from the north. By the way, that's Babylon Coming with disaster and destruction. O Jerusalem, you are my beautiful and delicate daughter, but I will destroy you. Enemies will surround you, like shepherds camped around the city. Each chooses a place for his troops to devour. They shout prepare for battle. Attack at noon. No, it's too late. The day is fading and the evening shadows are falling. Well then, let's attack at night and destroy her palaces.
Speaker 1:This is what the Lord of heaven's army says. Cut down the trees for battering rams. Build siege ramps against the walls of Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished for. She is wicked through and through. She spouts evil like a fountain. Her streets echo with sounds of violence and destruction. I always see her sickness and sores.
Speaker 1:Listen to this warning, jerusalem, or I will turn from you in disgust. Listen, or I will turn you into a heap of ruins, a land where no one lives. This is what the Lord of heaven's army says. Even a few who remain in Israel will be picked over again, as the harvesters check each vine for a second time or pick the grapes that were missed. To whom can I give a warning? Who will listen when I speak? Their ears are closed and they cannot hear. They scorn the word of the Lord. They don't want to listen at all.
Speaker 1:So now I am filled with the Lord's fury. Yes, I am tired of holding it in. I will pour out my fury on children playing in the streets and on gatherings of young men, on husbands and wives and on those who are old and gray. Their homes will be turned over to their enemies as their fields and their wives, for I will raise a powerful fist against the people of the land, says the Lord. From the least to greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. And the prophets to priests, and all of them are frauds. They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wounds. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace. Are they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not at all. They don't even know how to blush. Therefore, they will lie among the slaughtered and they will be brought down when I punish them, says the Lord. This is what the Lord says.
Speaker 1:Stop at the crossroads and look around. Here it is. Ask for the old, godly way and walk in it. Travel its paths and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply no, that's not the road that we want. I posted watchmen over you who said listen for the sound of the alarm, but you replied no, we won't pay attention.
Speaker 1:Therefore, listen to this all you nations. Take note of my people's situation. Listen all the earth. I will bring disaster on my people. It is the fruit of their own schemes. Because they refuse to listen to me, they have rejected my word and there's no use offering my sweet frankincense from Sheba. Keep your fragrant calamus imported from distant lands. I will not accept your burnt offerings. Your sacrifices have no pleasing aroma for me. Therefore, this is what the Lord says I will put obstacles in my people's path. Fathers and sons will both fall over them. Neighbors and friends will die together. This is what the Lord says. I will put obstacles in my people's path. Fathers and sons will both fall over them. Neighbors and friends will die together. This is what the Lord says.
Speaker 1:Look, a great army coming from the north, a great nation is rising against you from far off lands. They are armed with bows and spears and they are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like a roaring sea and they ride forward on horses. They are coming in battle formations planning to destroy you. Beautiful Jerusalem. You have heard reports about the enemy and we wring our hands in fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped us, like those of a woman in labor. Don't go out to the fields, don't travel on the roads. The enemy's sword is everywhere and it terrorizes us at every turn. O my people, dress yourselves in burlap and sit among the ashes, mourn and weep bitterly for the loss of an only son, for suddenly the destroying armies will be upon you.
Speaker 1:Jeremiah, I have made you a tester of metals that you may determine the quality of my people. They are the worst kind of rebel, full of slander. They are as hard as bronze and iron and they lead others into corruption. The bellows fiercely fan the flames and burn out the corruption, but it does not purify them, for the wickedness remains. I will label them rejected silver, for I, the Lord, am discarding them.
Speaker 1:Wow, notice how he is saying. You're at a crossroads. You can choose what he said, the old, godly pathways and there's joy and peace and rest. But if you go this way, I love you, but I'm going to judge you, I'm going to be just, I'm going to let the bad things happen. And here's the thing about God's word All the promises of God are yes. All the promises of God are yes. That means the good ones and that means the bad ones. And God says I want rest for you, but if you don't turn back to me, then I'm also going to keep the promise and I'm going to let what needs to happen happen.
Speaker 1:And so the answer for that is choose. Choose the right way, choose what is good, just like I was telling you with my daughter. We would, we would tell her baby we want you to choose the right way, make the right choice. But it is for you to choose. You can choose peace or you can choose discipline Please choose peace. And she would do the calculation and go. But you know, I really want you know. And then we would say okay, and no matter how much it hurt us, we had to teach the lesson.
Speaker 1:And here's the thing is I wonder how many times God is like I love you so very much, but there's a price to pay for the sin that you are continually falling into. There's a price, there's a price, there's a price. And so I wonder if, today, if you are grappling with something that you know God wouldn't smile at, you know it's a sin, but it's medicating a broken place in your life what if you turned that over to God? Because I wonder if God would say I don't want you to suffer the consequences, I don't want it. I don't want it, I don't want it. But sin is not free. It costs somebody. I paid the price for your sins to wash them all away, but if you don't give them to me, you got to pay for them. So my question for you today is to grapple with as we finish this is there anything in your life that God wants you to turn over to him? And if so, can I tell you he's not mad at you. He loves you, but he wants you to turn it over to him.
Speaker 1:Today let's pray, god. Thank you so much for today. Thank you that you are with us and you are for us. I pray today, god, that we will be honest, be transparent and open to you. If there's anything in our lives, god, that we need to turn over to you. I pray we will do it today so we can have that peace and that joy that you want for us. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. God's word says in Jeremiah 29, verse 13,. He says this if you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I love you. I hope you find the Lord new and fresh every day. I'll see you tomorrow for Jeremiah, chapter 7.
