Jeremiah 44:1-30 – Have it Your Way

Read Jeremiah 44:1-30

stairway in black & white appearing to go into the sky

God loves these people despite the fact they turn on him so blatantly! I feel sorry for Jeremiah being caught up in the flight from Judah to Egypt. I keep hoping that he is one of the ones who’ll get away and be able to return to Judah, escaping the death and suffering his people will encounter because of their choice to continue with the idols.

What were these people thinking? What was it about idol worship that was so attractive? Maybe it was easy and helped them “fit in” with their neighbors. How could they disrespect God on purpose? Can you sense Jeremiah’s own hostility toward his fellow Judeans? This will be Jeremiah’s last address to the rebellious Jews in Egypt.

Jeremiah 10:1-16 – What’s an Idol?

Read Jeremiah 10:1-16

Big gold plated dollar sign with people praying to it

What a description the LORD gives us of idol worship in Jeremiah’s day! Can’t you just picture how easily random pieces of wood became something people worshipped? So much emphasis was also placed on predictions of the stars that people’s minds were clouded from what mattered.

Our reading not only reveals idolatry for what it is in God’s eyes, but it reminds us who is sovereign and what we can do to help people who are misled by idols. It does us good to strengthen our own devotion to read Jeremiah’s words mixed in with God’s messages.

1 Corinthians 10:1-22 – Being Tempted

Read 1 Corinthians 10:1-22

direction signs that say "over here" and "no this way"

There is a lot going on in this reading, and we’ll reflect on a couple things I have missed before. What was it that spoke to you today? It’s cool that the Holy Spirit will reveal new insights to God’s word each time when we allow him to speak to our hearts and minds. Sometimes we need to slow down so we can listen for what the Spirit is prompting us to hear.

Did you notice how Paul uses the story of the Israelites in the wilderness to help illustrate the whole food issue he’s been talking about? Keep in mind that the majority of his audience would be Gentiles, so using “our ancestors” is a nice way of bringing them into a story they were not originally part of.

1 Corinthians 8:1-13 – What’s Your Idol Meat?

Read 1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Paul deals here with another burning question on the minds of Corinthians dealing with the problem of food sacrificed to idols. I can’t say that this is something I’ve ever thought of, and I’m pretty sure it’s a new one for you, too. But taken in context, it was a very real problem in Paul’s day. The concept applied here can speak to other issues we may be facing.

While the Corinthian’s question was specific about food, Paul wants them to look deeper. Paul wants them to understand that God isn’t going to smite us if we eat such food. “It’s true that we can’t win God’s approval by what we eat. We don’t lose anything if we don’t eat it, and we don’t gain anything if we do.” It comes down to “how does our behavior affect others?”

2 Kings 10:18-36 – The Final Purge

Read 2 Kings 10:18-36

garbage worker brushing question mark bubbles into a pile

Jehu’s rampage to cleanse Israel was finished…almost. Why did he leave the golden calves in Bethel and Dan? Despite that, God was pleased. “You have done well in following my instructions to destroy the family of Ahab. Therefore, your descendants will be kings of Israel down to the fourth generation.”

In this climactic act of violence, Jehu rids Israel of all Baal worship. Tragically, it sounds like a lot of people lost their life that day. Yet, I can almost imagine the sky looked a little brighter and the sun shone more brilliantly that day with so much evil purged from society. Unfortunately, a “weed” was left behind to grow and spread again.