Key verses:
1. Jeremiah 31:3
I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.
2. Jeremiah 46: 28
Do not fear, O Jacob my servant, for I am with you,” declares the Lord
“Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you,
I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you but only with justice;
I will not let you go entirely unpunished.”
I’ve just finished reading the book of Jeremiah and continuing on Lamentations since it’s connected. Reading Jeremiah opened my eyes and heart to the extend of God’s love for the nation of Israel.
Jeremiah was God’s mouthpiece to tell the Israelites that God would allow the Babylonians to destroy Israel and even told them to submit to the Babylonians because God would restore them later on. Such a negative and difficult message! Would you want to be Jeremiah? By the way, he was called when he was still a child. Jer. 1: 4- 19
God was angry with Israel. Angry is too mild to describe God’s fury. Time and time again, Israel choose to forsake God and worship other gods blatantly. Repeatedly, God showers his love and forgiveness to this nation of ungrateful citizens. God calls them “Unfaithful” Jer. 3:12-14
We next see how Jeremiah’s life was threatened due to his obedience to relay all the negative prophecies of God. He was even thrown into a pit filled with mud that covered him and he nearly died, Jer. 38. God saved him!
What breaks my heart is Jer.36:3.
“Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, each of them will turn from his wicked way; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin.”
Did you see the word “perhaps”? Even though Israel is so rebellious and God plans to punish them, he still hopes that they will repent and turn away from their evil ways. He didn’t give up on them. How can God love a nation like this?
Then the following chapters continued with God telling them NOT to go to Egypt but stay in Israel and be captured by the Babylonians as God would restore them. BUT, once again, they shut their ears and fled to Egypt.
The ending chapters are about God’s judgments on various nations for conquering Israel.
God disciplines those He loves, Hebrews 12:6 - 7,11.
I feel that Israel is an example for us. If God is so gracious and forgiving to one rebellious nation, He will do likewise to us. All of us wander and stray away from the safe and mighty arms of Jesus one time or another. Maybe most of us are not as extreme as Israel, or some of us feel that we’re just like Israel. This book shows and tells us that God loves us still, undeserving as we are. I ask myself often, who am I that this Almighty God loves oh-so protectively?
Even in the midst of punishing our mistakes and sins, He’ll still remind us to return to Him because He still loves us.
Oh… my dear readers, I don’t know how many of you are Christians, or all of you are Christians, but let’s take a moment to thank God for His love for you now, will you?
Next, what are we going to do with His love? Keep it all to ourselves? Nah, that’s too selfish. Hahaah…Let’s “spread a little love around” to everyone around us. Too often, we tell our friends, “I love you/ I miss you”. Only talk and no actions? Let’s be loving to both the saved and unsaved, in our words, thoughts and actions, shall we?
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