Jeremiah 32: 39:41
“I will give them one heart and one way,
that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their
children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant that I
will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me
in their hearts that they may not turn from me.”
I
was online reading a well crafted sermon about part b of Jeremiah 32:42 which
is “I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them.” .
The writer went on and on about how faithful God is and He will never lie to us
etc. Since, I did not remember the verse by heart, I pulled out
my Bible to read about Jeremiah 32. Then I realized the writer omitted
the fact that, while God promised to give prosperity to the Israelites, He had
conditions in the previous verses that the writer neglected to mention. While it is true,
God is faithful and will never lie to us, we would do well not to test Him
while we stand on a few words that tickle our funny bones.
He
promised in verses 39-41 that He would give them one heart, and that He would
put His fear in their hearts so they would not turn away from Him. To sum up,
verse 42 cannot be claimed by itself while neglecting the above verses. In
Christianity we miss out on the fact that God Himself has given us a new heart
to learn to fear Him and stay the course so we would not turn away from Him.
This is extremely important. This is why I tell people in my new released
Christian book to examine themselves and if after a decade or more of
Christianity they are still the same old plain Jane or John that accepted
Christ and there has been no awareness of a supernatural transformation, they
ought to go back to the basic.
We
cannot stand there like lost sheep and tell people, oh yeah I am a Christian.
What this claim amount to in your life matters very much to God. His promises
are for those who have God’s fear in their hearts, they are kept in His ways
and they are able to continue the path of Salvation they are on. We tend to
think that the passage in Mathew 7:22 is not for us “Many
will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name?
Didn't we force out demons and do many miracles by the power and authority of
your name?” A lot of us in the church love to think that this passage is
only for some. It is equally for those Church goers who have never gotten to
the point where they were changed by the Salvation they claimed they have
received.
In
the new heart we receive from Him, if we believe, then the next step is to
trust Him and have confidence in Him to walk the walk He put us on. So, we not
only receive conversion by His grace, we learn to walk and persevere through
the Holy Spirit, by His grace, So, if you have not been transformed inwardly because
of what you believe, then I am afraid all your beliefs are floating around your
head and they have not even made ways to your mind, let alone your heart.
Examine yourself, unless you believe in vain.
PRAYER: Father God I pray that together we learn to walk in unison
according to your word. I pray that we would learn to be people after your own
heart. That we would make it our joy to honor your covenant with us so together
we might enjoy the life we have in you now and future blessings awaiting
us. May the ascended Christ help us to examine our hearts so we do not believe
in vain and end up disqualified when it is too late.
Check out my Website www.apprehended,ca
