Jeremiah 6

“Who can I speak to and give such a warning that they will listen? Look, their ear is uncircumcised, so they cannot pay attention. See, the Word of the Lord has become contemptible to them – they find no pleasure in it. But I am full of the Lord’s wrath; I am tired of holding it back.” Jeremiah 6:10-11a (HCSB)

For all of my adult life, I have been in the Christian music business. Writing songs leads to recording; recording leads to touring, and touring has led me through the doorways of over 1000 churches in all 50 of our United States. The Lord has given me a privileged survey of the “church-at-large” in America, and one consistent trend I have noticed is a departure from the Bible. More and more, I see preachers who use the Bible to teach lessons but have no strategy to comprehensively teach the whole counsel of God to their congregations. Less and less does a pastor even carry his Bible to the pulpit. So, is it any wonder that today’s Church strives for cultural relevance more than Biblical adherence? They are more preoccupied with “not offending” non-believers than with offending God. When did systems & processes replace soul-winning and proclamation?

What is sad about today’s chapter is how it seems to describe the present-day Church in America as much as it describes ancient Judah and Jerusalem. Why wouldn’t people accept Jeremiah’s message? They could not distinguish Jeremiah’s words from those of the false prophets and wicked priests.  

“For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for gain, and from the prophet even to the priest, everyone deals falsely. They have healed the brokenness of my people superficially, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ but there is no peace.” Jeremiah 6:13-14 (NASB)

And why couldn’t they distinguish truth from falsehood? Because they had abandoned the Word of the Lord, the ancient path which leads to what is good.

“This is what the Lord says: Stand by the roadways and look. Ask about the ancient paths: Which is the way to what is good? Then take it and find rest for yourselves. But they protested, ‘We won’t!’ I appointed watchmen over you and said: Listen for the sound of the ram’s horn. But they protested, ‘We won’t listen!’” Jeremiah 6:16-17 (HCSB)

Notice that Jeremiah alludes that there is more than one “ancient path,” but only ONE leads to what is good. Jesus says,

“…I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6 (HCSB)

Why do we believers study God’s Word every day? To honor, worship, and obey Him, to nurture our personal relationships with Him so we won’t get fooled again!

“Listen, earth! I am about to bring disaster on these people, the fruit of their own plotting, for they paid no attention to My Word. They have rejected My instruction.” Jeremiah 6:19 (HCSB)