Good Morning Friends,
“In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: ‘Take a scroll and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now. 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.’ So Jeremiah called Baruch son of Neriah, and while Jeremiah dictated all the words the LORD had spoken to him, Baruch wrote them on the scroll. Then Jeremiah told Baruch, ‘I am restricted; I cannot go to the LORD’s temple. So you go to the house of the LORD on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the LORD that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who come in from their towns.’” (Jeremiah 36:1-6)
You can’t say that God didn’t warn the people of Judah about what was ahead if they did not repent and turn back to Him. Nothing that came upon them should have been a surprise to them. Jeremiah wasn’t the first prophet to be sent to warn them, but even Jeremiah’s preaching should have been enough for them to repent.
But the people of Israel did not repent. At least, the vast majority of them did not. Perhaps there were a few that listened to Jeremiah’s words. Perhaps there were small pockets of repentance and revival. But for the most part the people ignored Jeremiah and the predicted discipline came upon them just as he had said it would. They weren’t ready. They should have been, but they weren’t because they did not listen to God’s Word through Jeremiah.
In the Garden of Eden, God told Adam and Eve what would happen if they ate of the forbidden tree. They were warned. They just didn’t listen!
In the days before the flood of Noah, God had Noah preach among the people for 120 years before the rains started. They were warned. They just didn’t listen!
We live in another day in which God has made clear what is ahead. For individuals, the warning has been given. Death will overtake each of us and after death comes judgment for those who do not know Jesus. We’ve been warned. Still too many don’t listen! And for the whole world, we’ve already been warned about the end. A day of reckoning is ahead for the whole world. We’ve been warned. Still too many don’t listen!
There will be no excuse for those who face God’s judgment. They’ve been warned. Don’t be among those who didn’t listen!
His, by Grace,
Steve
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