Look for God – Be Still…

Hebrews 2:1-4 – Listen and Look

Read Hebrews 2:1-4

Now the Preacher, how I’ll refer to the writer of Hebrews, takes our focus off the majesty of Jesus to give us a warning about own lives. Maybe you can recall a time in your life when you felt far from Jesus? The evil one lures us to drift away from God. Being reminded of that is so helpful.

We experience daily attacks from the evil one attempting to take control of our lives and make us forget about God. The Preacher gives us two paths to take to keep ourselves on track. We need to “listen for God” and “look for God” every day.

Jeremiah 29:24-32 – Causing Drama

Read Jeremiah 29:24-32

In our last reading, Jeremiah had sent God’s message to the captives in Babylon to beware of false prophets. Apparently, Jeremiah’s message ruffled some feathers with rival prophets. It would appear Shemaiah is instigating the drama in this reading to take down Jeremiah and get him out of the way.

We know from being on this side of history that Jeremiah was a true prophet speaking the word of God. Others calling themselves prophets in that day were not. God’s doom for them has already been set. Did Shemaiah think he would fool the priest, Zephaniah with these words? “So why have you done nothing to stop Jeremiah from Anathoth, who pretends to be a prophet among you?”

Jeremiah 22:10-30 – The Fate of Three Kings

Read Jeremiah 22:10-30

Jeremiah’s warning is very specific in today’s reading. His prophetic words speak loudest to the three kings involved. But what powerful news to the people who will witness their leadership being taken down exactly as Jeremiah’s words from God predict!

If you haven’t trekked your way through Judah’s history in 1^st and 2^nd Kings, then these names may be a bit unfamiliar. Suffice it to say the reign of these kings did not last for long periods, and there wasn’t a lot of God honoring behavior going on. King Josiah was the last king to seek the truth of God’s wisdom while trying to reform the people.

2 Kings 19:1-19 – Beware of the Weeds

Read 2 Kings 19:1-19

I love how the title of this section in the New Living Translation tells us that Hezekiah is seeking the Lord. That alone is a message we can cling to for ourselves today. Remember we don’t need to be in dire need of rescue to seek the Lord. He is waiting to hear from us every day. But in this reading, Hezekiah’s predicament seemed to be dire. He felt threatened.

The bully king of Assyria had gotten into Hezekiah’s head. All reason and trust in God seemed to have fled from Hezekiah, and he felt desperate. Have you ever felt like everything was crashing in on you, being overwhelmed by your circumstances? Perhaps someone has tried to undermine your faith. I’m pretty sure Hezekiah was questioning his own belief system while feeling the responsibility for his people.