“Between a Rock and a Hard
Spot”
Jeremiah
finds himself in a tight spot. He is accused of “demoralizing the soldiers who are left in the city”. The princes
want to put him to death. The charges are correct: Jeremiah has been
demoralizing the soldiers and all who remained in Jerusalem. Jeremiah
disheartened the inhabitants of the city because he told them the truth…He spoke
the words that God wanted them to hear… that everyone who remained in the city
would die. It seems that the false prophets were telling the people that there
was no need to worry, that everything would be fine; Jerusalem would be safe
because their enemy would break off their siege and withdraw from the city. The
false prophets were convincing because… the
people wanted to believe them. They wanted to be lied to in order to keep
the status quo and life as usual. The people wanted to continue on their evil
ways and shun the prophet who spoke the Truth.
Well,
as we read today, his enemies toss Jeremiah into a dry cistern so that he would
die. But, God comes to his aid and Jeremiah is rescued and he continues to
deliver the Word of God to a reluctant people.
Today
the Word of God remains unfashionable. We turn our backs on him in order to pay
homage to the false prophets of our day who say all the right words that keep
us snug and comfortable in the cozy world we have fashioned around us. God’s
Word calls us out from our comfort zone so we can find “life in the fullest” much like the words of Jeremiah called for the
people of Jerusalem change their ways so they can live.
God’s
Word is always relevant. It speaks to us today as it has to the people throughout
the millennia. The challenge for us is to discern what God is saying and then
to live life that way. That’s how we will find true happiness and dispense with
the false prophets who would lead us astray.
Enjoy
the day!
Deacon Tom
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