Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Day 234: Jeremiah 13, 14 and 15


When the enemy attacked, a woman with seven sons felt faint because they would all die (NCV, Jeremiah 15:9).

Having seven sons was a Hebrew word picture of perfect security. A mother’s retirement plan was her sons – with her husband gone they would care for her in her old age. The unspoken message here is that even if one of her sons (or, God forbid, more than one) preceded her in death, she could rely on the others for her needs. But Jeremiah’s grim warning is that during the siege of Jerusalem all seven of her sons would be KIA, and her social security would be no more.

The Scriptures are replete with warnings about putting our trust in the wrong things. Hezekiah reassured the kingdom during the Assyrian siege a hundred years earlier: With [them] is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles (2 Chronicles 32:8). The psalmist wrote: Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God (Psalm 20:7). Jesus warned us not to put our trust in treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal (Matthew 6:19).

There are many securities in which we can put our trust: a bank account, insurance, a job, a spouse (and of course these are good things), but they can all fail us. When our trust is in the Lord, though everything else in our world should fall apart, God will never let us down. When everything else is gone, God will still be on our side.

What does your life say about in what (or whom) have you placed your trust?

No comments:

Post a Comment