Our Old Testament Scripture for this week comes from the prophet Jeremiah, and is one that might be familiar to many. In this brief passage Jeremiah brings up two important spiritual truths. In the first one, he contrasts the life of the godly and blessed person with that of the ungodly, cursed person. The second truth he gives us is that of the condition of our heart. Let’s jump right in and look at these two truths God wants to teach us through His prophet Jeremiah.
The first spiritual truth is the contrast between the ungodly and cursed person (vs. 5-6), and that of the blessed and godly person (vs. 7-8). Have you ever traveled into a desert wasteland, or been in a land that has experienced a long drought? The plant life there is all withered and gray, looking lifeless. Contrast that with trees that grow right near a fresh, flowing river or lake. With a good water source they are lush and productive. No one would plant a fruit tree in the desert wasteland and expect a nice, fruitful crop.
Likewise there are two types of people - those who put their trust in Yahweh, and those who put their trust in people, things, and false gods. Those who put their trust in other men will be barren and unfruitful. Those who trust in Yahweh will be like a tree which has been planted by a flowing river.
Trusting in people in times of trouble will only leave us disappointed, or even in trouble. They will have no strength, like the withered tree in the desert. Those who trust in Jesus will thrive and flourish, like a fruitful tree, with abundant strength for their needs in a time of crisis. We need to be sure to find strength for our life in God, not ourselves or anyone else.
The second spiritual truth that the prophet Jeremiah gave us here is the condition of our heart (vs. 9-10). Just as a cardiologist checks our heart for disease, God looks into our heart looking for, and always finding sin-disease. We all have spiritual heart disease.
Our heart has been inclined towards sin since we were born. It is unreliable, and will lie to us. Our emotions can, and will lead us down disastrous ways if we rely on them (Proverbs 16:25; Ecclesiastes 9:3). There are frequent times when our heart is hurting, or it is attempting to lead us in a sinful way. Beware of following your heart. Instead, that is the time when we need to turn to God for help (I John 3:20).
If there was a way that we could shield ourselves from any outside temptations from the world or the devil, there would still be enough evil within our own heart to get us into deep trouble. That is why Jeremiah here, and later the Apostle Paul and the Lord Jesus tell us quite plainly that our heart is wicked! (Romans 3:10-12; Mark 7:20-23).
We cannot separate our actions from the consequences that will follow. We cannot plant seeds of one kind and expect to bear fruit of another. It is also very important to be careful where, and to what our roots are “hooked” on to. Are they hooked on worldly, carnal treasures, or are they strongly rooted in the Lord God?
God will always supply our every need as we follow Him in faith. He does not promise a lack of trials, but He does promise eventual victory. Which will we choose? Will we choose to continue in sin and yielding to temptation, being that shrub in the desert, and having spiritual heart disease? Or will we choose to turn to the Lord, allow Him to heal our sin-sick heart, and be that tree planted by the river?
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