" Rebellion Against the LORD "

Jeremiah 28:12-17   " Then the WORD of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the prophet, after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah saying, Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Thou has broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt make for them yokes of iron. For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the GOD of Israel; I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve him: and I have given him the beasts of the field also. Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makes this people to trust in a lie. Therefore thus saith the LORD; BEHOLD, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shall die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the LORD.  So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month. "

     Rebelling against the LORD is a terrible sin. To teach rebellion against GOD is even more reprehensible. The false prophet Hananiah was guilty of both sins, and GOD condemned him for causing people to trust in a lie (vv.15-16). Hananiah held a respected place in the hearts of GOD's people, and his message was well received. He claimed to be sent by GOD and to have obtained his message from the LORD, but he lied. He deceived himself, and he certainly deluded others. He told the people, the priests, and the rulers what they wanted to hear, not what GOD wanted them to hear. As a result of his compromise, this so-called prophet of GOD was popular among the people, but he caused the Israelites to trust a lie. He taught rebellion against GOD and needed to be exposed and countered by a faithful, true minister of the LORD.

     Once again Jeremiah found himself in a difficult position. He had to face and openly rebuke Hananiah. It was not easy to be a minority voice against the majority in that day, nor is it easy today. As increasing compromise stills the voices of many Pastors and people who formerly cried out against false teachers and apostate churches, the task of faithful watchmen becomes even more difficult but also more important. The question in Psalm 94:16 - "Who will rise up for ME against the evildoers ? or who will stand up for ME against the workers of iniquity ? " - needs to be answered by every believer today:  "By GOD's grace, I will. "  The theological wolves of our day appear as such innocent looking sheep. Spiritual discernment is needed as never before to separate truth from error. If we allow error, we are, in reality, rebelling against the LORD. MHR

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie

Copyright, Feature: A Daily Bible Study Guide.

Used  with  permission.   www.feasite.org

" Diminish Not A WORD "

Jeremiah 26:1-7   " In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah King of Judah came this WORD from the LORD, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Stand in the court of the LORD's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in the LORD's house, all the WORDs that I command thee to speak unto them;  diminish not  a  WORD:  If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent ME of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.

And thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD; If ye will not hearken to ME, to walk in MY law, which I have set before you, to hearken to the words of MY servants the prophets, whom I sent unto you, both rising up early, and sending them, but ye have not hearkened; Then will I make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth. So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the LORD. "

     Many ministers in churches today have a tendency to trim the message of GOD's WORD in order to lessen the possibility of offending their hearers. This proclivity is bolstered by the fact that so many in the congregation desire to hear messages that have been altered in order to emphasize the positive and eliminate the negative. In Jeremiah's day, a similar situation existed, but GOD gave him an extremely specific command. He was to stand in the LORD's house, to speak unto all the people who came to worship , and to  "diminish not a WORD"  of the message GOD had given him (v.2). Just like today, the prevailing  "philosophy of ministry"  during Jeremiah's day presupposed (correctly) that people would be disconcerted if the message from GOD was "too negative."  Jeremiah's proclamation was a case in point. In a day of false prophets, greedy priests, and counterfeit worship, the people still wanted to hear promises of peace and prosperity, not of GOD's impending judgment. No doubt the people of Israel said to themselves, as many do in the church today, "We came to worship the LORD and to be affirmed in our spiritual walk, not to listen to negative warnings."

     In our day, as in Jeremiah's day, we need to  "diminish not a WORD" when proclaiming the Gospel and warning about the wolves in sheep's clothing who are deceiving so many. Our words will not be popular, but they will receive GOD's blessing and accomplish HIS purpose (Isaiah 55:11). A tremendous pressure exists today to  "diminish" the message. Never fall victim to this cunning ploy by the god of this world (the Devil). In the LORD's strength, let us give  "all the counsel of GOD"  and  "[cease] not to warn" (Acts 20:27-31). MHR

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie

Copyright, Feature: A Daily Bible Study Guide.

Used  with  permission.   www.feasite.org