Time in God’s Word took me through Jeremiah 23. God is lambasting Prophets who lied to His people—promising wealth, health, and all things happy and popular. God wants to give us good things. This is true. His good things are connected to our spiritual areas of growth. He wants us planted by the rivers of water so we are strong in our faith. He desires to give us a "Blessedness" that offers us His mercy because we show mercy. His biggest promise for his children is the inheritance of His Kingdom as we have entered it and are living as transformed family members. While God desires to give us good gifts, there is no promise for some of the physical things our flesh believes will make us happy. Yes, God also supplies our needs and gives us our daily bread. He gives physical and spiritual good things. The prophets in this text were promising things God did not tell them. They lied, and their lies represented God. God was watching. They spoke from arrogance, that they would not be held accountable. In verses 1-2 " “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the Lord. 2 Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,” says the Lord."
God tells them if they had Prophesied truthfully, they could have saved The People from their downfall. Instead, they chose what was politically expedient over what was true and right. They said things probably like, “God’s will is irrelevant to running Congress.” Things like that might have been the resounding pronunciation, not of sin but the dismissal of God.
1 Kings 22 tells the story of how the prophets lying to King Ahab demanded Micaiah, the true prophet, to plagiarize their lies or be canceled. Micaiah would not lie but spoke the Truth. He spoke about the fall and death of Ahab. That landed him in prison. God’s grace appropriated to him at the time because he stood firm in his humility. He knew he must speak only what God spoke. It did not matter who liked it. He sarcastically said what the prophets wanted him to say. Interestingly, Ahab knew he was not speaking the truth and insisted he only tell him what God said. He did not relent. He would not capitulate. He did not stutter. He spoke truthfully the words of God. This is what Luke 9:23 says, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." He was willing to speak the Truth no matter how unpopular or if it cost him his life.
The other prophets put their fingers in the wind to speak in the direction of the breeze. They set their ears to the floor and spoke the ups and downs of the tumult of the leader's emotions that entered the room. God denounced them! He still denounces lies! God opposes the proud. Micaiah experienced God's grace. He walked by faith and not fear. He knew if God was for him, nothing could be against him. That did not keep him out of jail. The truth cost us. Carrying our cross means willingly going to our death for our Lord.
I end with one of my favorite words of God from Psalm 50:21, “THESE THINGS YOU HAVE DONE, AND I KEPT SILENT. YOU THOUGHT I WAS ALTOGETHER LIKE YOU, BUT I WILL REBUKE YOU AND SET THEM IN ORDER BEFORE YOUR EYES! Now consider this, YOU WHO FORGET GOD, lest I tear you to pieces, and there be NONE TO DELIVER: "Whoever offers praises glorifies ME, And to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God.” I love those verses; they remind me of the fragility of our humanity. We need to be desperate for humility before The Only True God! He gives grace to the humble. That was Micaiah. God opposes the proud. That's where the false lying prophets landed.
He’s slow to judge because his loving-kindness is LOOOOOOONNNNNNNNGGGGG! But it is not perpetual! Father, I don’t think you are altogether like us; that’s why I hold you in “the fear” that brings Wisdom!
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