In Hosea 12-14, God's people continually chase the wind of sin and false idols rather than the eternal security found in God. When judgment falls and time has run out, their false idols can do nothing for them. People beg for God's help in distress but then in their prosperity, they become proud and turn away from God forgetting all about Him. God pleads for people to turn to Him before it's too late. Revive means to bring new life and God desperately wants to pour out forgiveness, mercy, healin...
Dec 19, 2023•14 min
In Hosea 10 & 11, God shows His overwhelming love, grace, and mercy for His people. Though judgment falls, those who stand firm and refuse to waiver in faith in God and God alone will be gathered again. When we want nothing but the gifts and refuse the giver and take God for granted, we are choosing to pay the price for our sins ourselves. When we choose to humble ourselves before our Lord and Savior, repent, and turn to Him with all our guts, we are forgiven by the blood of Jesus because He...
Dec 18, 2023•11 min
In Hosea 8 & 9, God reminds His people that we reap what we sow. His children continually chase the wind and seek after vanity, false idols, sin, and wickedness. Therefore, they would reap the whirlwind. They keep flailing around looking for their next fix, their prosperity, their next alliance, their next gold statue - instead of seeking and humbling themselves before God. He is the only One who can forgive us, cleanse us, restore us, and redeem us. He is all that matters but the more prosp...
Dec 15, 2023•11 min
In Hosea 6 & 7, God's people cry out to God for help but are not crying out with broken hearts or surrendered wills. They want happiness, but not holiness. They want their circumstances to change but not their character. They treat God like a lifeguard who should rescue them from danger when they call but never deliver them from their sins. They still love their sin more than God and shed tears of remorse over their suffering rather than repentance over their sin. They want God to act on the...
Dec 14, 2023•11 min
In Hosea 4 & 5, we see that sin not only breaks God's heart, it offends His holiness. Until people truly experience the guilt of conviction, they can't fully enjoy the amazing glory of being made new by the blood and sacrifice of our Lord and Savior. It's a heart change. Passion for God instead of passion for this temporary world full of sin and false idols. When you obey God's Word, you walk in the light and don't stumble, but when you reject the Word, you walk in darkness and can't find yo...
Dec 13, 2023•13 min
In Hosea 2 & 3, Hosea doesn't minimize the holiness of God. God is love and light and in Him there can be no darkness. God is a holy love. When we choose Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are choosing to submit our lives to Him. We should look different and set apart from the evil world we temporarily reside in. We should not love this world or conform to it. Instead we choose to resist temptation and run from sin. We live differently. If we choose sin instead, God will let us have our sin an...
Dec 12, 2023•14 min
In Hosea 1, Hosea brings forth an "action sermon" of God's unconditional unfailing love. God's people were choosing false idols and sin over God and His unfailing goodness. We face temptation of idols every day in our lives and we can choose to stand firm and worship God and God alone. Hosea and his wife give birth to 3 children whose names mean "God Scatters", "no compassion or pity", and "not My people". God pulls away and lets His children have the sin they are fervently choosing over Him for...
Dec 11, 2023•10 min
In Lamentations 4 & 5, Jeremiah compares the previous Jerusalem to Jerusalem now. He sees the consequence of choosing sin over God firsthand and it breaks his heart. The masterpiece had forgotten the Master and tossed Him aside and now they are just left in pieces. He cries out in prayer to God as he and the faithful remnant that remain cling to our unchanging God who is still on the throne. God delights in His children and longs to forgive us and bless us. It's up to us to cry out to him an...
Dec 08, 2023•13 min
In Lamentations 3, Jeremiah shifts as he calls to his mind the faithfulness, mercy, kindness, restoration, and healing hand of the Lord. This gives him hope. Hope is always found in the Lord. Instead of focusing on circumstances or misery, we can focus on God and His faithful strength and might. No matter what happens around us, God is still on the throne and His kindness, mercy, and grace follow us wherever we go. God reigns. Our circumstances and feelings change constantly, but God never chang...
Dec 08, 2023•15 min
In Lamentations 2, all the blessings that were poured out from God, taken for granted, and now removed are lamented. The spiritual leaders gave people false messages that were not the Word of God and the people believed it. Jeremiah gave the true Word of God and warning to turn from sin and evil and back to God. He was rejected and persecuted along with God's Word of warning and the truth of what was coming. God promises forgiveness and restoration if we are willing to repent and turn to Him. He...
Dec 07, 2023•10 min
In Lamentations 1, Jeremiah cries out to God. His heart is broken for God's people. What breaks the heart of God should break our hearts too and when God's people choose sin over Him, it breaks His heart greatly. God continually cried out for people to turn from sin and rebellion, repent, and turn to Him but they refused and judgment fell. Sin promises freedom but only brings bondage. God does not want us in bondage. He has a plan for each of our lives and desperately wants us to choose Him and ...
Dec 05, 2023•12 min
In Jeremiah 51 & 52, God continues His message for coming judgment on Babylon. Babylon is full of pride and against God and they refuse to repent and turn to God so judgment would fall. Anyone who put their hope in Babylon would be greatly disappointed. It's the same for our world today. Our hope is only to be in our Lord and Savior and He is returning. His Kingdom will reign but the world we know today will pass away. When we put our hope, trust, and faith in our Messiah, we are safe in His...
Dec 05, 2023•24 min
In Jeremiah 50, God gives Jeremiah a message for judgment against Babylon. Through this chapter, God takes us through two horizons. The current time and place of Jeremiah as well as the coming time of the return of Jesus. Babylon is a nation full of sin and God is dealing with them but Babylon is also a symbol of rebellion against God - the anti-God world system. God will have victory over both as judgment falls. God is everything but idols are nothing but temporary material. When we choose Jesu...
Dec 01, 2023•18 min
In Jeremiah 49, Jeremiah receives messages judgment for the surrounding nations of Ammon, Edom, Damscus, Kedar and Hazor, and Elam. They were all prideful and arrogant nations guilty of great sin including oppression of their people, murder of innocent as well as their very own children, pride, self-confidence, worship of false gods and idols as well as so much more. God gave them time to repent but they refused so judgment fell. When judgment fell, there was nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. ...
Nov 30, 2023•14 min
In Jeremiah 48, God speaks of coming judgment to the nation of Moab. Moab trusts in their false god, their wealth, their comfort, and their self-sufficiency to protect them. Their false gods cannot and does not save them when judgment falls. Only the blood of Jesus and submitting our lives to Him will save us from judgement. God weeps at the judgment that falls because the people facing judgment choose to pridefully love and trust in themselves and their false idols instead of God. God does not ...
Nov 29, 2023•11 min
In Jeremiah 46 & 47, God gives a message of coming judgment for Egypt and Philistia. Egypt who thought they were so big and mighty was overtaken by Babylon. They refused to turn from sin, evil, and wickedness and paid for that sin when judgment fell. They were ready to fight and confident in victory until the battle began. God showed up and took evil out. God said exactly what would happen and it happened. God's Word stands no matter what. God offers us an opportunity to repent and turn to H...
Nov 28, 2023•14 min
In Jeremiah 43 - 45, God's children refuse to listen to His Word and call Jeremiah a liar. Everything Jeremiah has told them would come to pass has happened yet they still choose to stubbornly refuse to listen. God is trying to protect His people by calling out to them to turn from false idols and false gods and repent. Turn to God and be saved. Judgment is about to fall on Egypt as God is about to deal with the sins of Egypt. God's people are determined to go to Egypt despite the continuous war...
Nov 27, 2023•16 min
In Jeremiah 41 & 42, the governor assigned over the remnant of the land of Jerusalem is murdered and the new leader wants to take them all to Egypt. They ask Jeremiah to pray for God's will and direction and claim they will do whatever God says. God says to stay away from Egypt and promises to protect them and keep them safe if they do. They didn't truly want God's direction though. They wanted God's stamp of approval on their own choices for their lives. Their motives for the prayer were im...
Nov 26, 2023•12 min
In Jeremiah 39 & 40, the fall of Jerusalem comes just as God said it would. It wasn't a one day fight. It was a process that happened over time until the city and the Temple was completely taken over by the Babylonians. After warning after warning to turn and repent, all that God said would happen through Jeremiah comes forth because they refuse to turn from sin to God. Jeremiah is shown grace, mercy, and protection just as God promised him. God is faithful to His Word and honors faithfulnes...
Nov 24, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 37 & 38, Zedekiah calls for Jeremiah 4 different times and all 4 times Jeremiah gives the same Word from God without wavering. Zedekiah feared people more than God and refuses to listen out of fear of what people may do to him. God gave Zedekiah one last chance to repent and turn to Him but he still refuses and makes excuses. As a result the whole city as well as the Temple is taken over and completely destroyed.
Nov 24, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 35 & 36, God tells Jeremiah to give an example of what obedience looks like. A family who strictly obeys a family tradition will not budge from it out of respect for their family. God's children, however, are warned over and over again to repent and turn to God but they stubbornly refuse. People who want nothing to do with God are loyal to traditions which are temporary. If Christ followers but the kind of discipline and commitment to their spiritual walk that athletes do, our na...
Nov 22, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 33 & 34, Jeremiah is given another message of hope with the coming peace and prosperity of the nation. The message speaks hope for those in exile with Babylon and also to all of us in the hope and promise of our coming Messiah. He speaks of healing, restoration, peace, prosperity, cleansing, forgiveness, joy, glory, and total honor, gratitude, and awe of God across all the nations on earth. This has not happened yet so we know it is coming! Warning after warning is given of the c...
Nov 21, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 32, God gives Jeremiah an action sermon. He is told to put his money where his mouth is and buy a piece of the land all who stand firm in faith would be returning to. He is in prison when his cousin visits him and he buys the land investing in the promised future of God. People can imprison God's workers, but they cannot stop God's Word or His will. Faith is obeying in spite of consequence. God is greater and mightier than any one of our earthly problems or circumstances. Nothing is ...
Nov 20, 2023•13 min
In Jeremiah 31, God gives a message of hope for the exiles. A message of complete and total restoration that is still coming to this day. A day is coming when the faithful remnant will be gathered and Jerusalem will be restored. It will be a day of rejoicing, comfort, peace, unity, and happiness. All people will embrace Jesus. His covenant is written on our hearts, not on stone tablets. It's personal. Jerusalem will be called the "Holy City" and it will truly be holy because Jesus will reign in ...
Nov 19, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 30, God gives Jeremiah a message for God's people who are now in exile. He brings a message of hope, redemption, and restoration. He is not only speaking of the redemption from the current exile of Israel, but also the coming our our Messiah. He says there's going to be times coming that are so hard, it's as if men are trying to give birth. But hold tightly to God, stand firm in faith, and refuse to be shook by the world around us because glory is coming. Jesus is returning. God's pe...
Nov 17, 2023•10 min
In Jeremiah 28 & 29, Jeremiah is given a Word from God regarding the false prophets telling lies in the name of God who did not send them. They will be judged for their actions against God. Jeremiah writes a letter of hope to the exiles who are now in Babylon. He encourages them to pray for the enemy, stand firm in faith, and trust God. We are called to do the exact same in our lives today.
Nov 16, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 26 & 27, the Temple priests, prophets, and people sentence Jeremiah to death because he keeps warning them of the coming judgment. The false prophets are telling them want they want to hear but Jeremiah is telling them what they need to hear. Jeremiah speaks for himself in the hearing and makes sure they understand he'd rather die being faithful to God than to be unfaithful and live. He was sent by God and was trying to rescue them from judgment if they'd just repent. If they kil...
Nov 15, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 25, God gives Jeremiah 2 messages. One for the Jewish nation of Judah and the other for the Gentiles. He lets the Jewish nation know they will be in for 70 years of exile as God is allowing Babylonia to take them captive. If they submit to God's will and choose God and God alone, they will be rescued and set free from captivity and Jerusalem will be restored. If not, they will face the wrath of judgment. The Gentiles nations will be judged at the end of the 70 years as well if they d...
Nov 14, 2023•15 min
In Jeremiah 23 & 24, God gives warning to the false prophets proclaiming their own ideas and false confidence as though they were words from God. God will hold them accountable for their sins and for leading His children astray. God shows Jeremiah two baskets of figs. One basket has really good figs while the other has totally rotten disgusting figs. The good figs represent those who have submitted and will be held safe in exile under God. They will be gathered together and return to Jerusal...
Nov 12, 2023•13 min
In Jeremiah 22, God gives Jeremiah a message for the kings of Judah. The last 4 kings who reigned before the Babylonian exile were wicked, evil rulers. Jeremiah spoke the truth of their fate and exactly what God told him to say. These 4 kings robbed, exploited, and oppressed the poor, the widows, and the orphans. They murdered innocent people. They worshipped material possessions, false idols, and false gods. They could have repented, turned from evil, and chose God and their coming judgment wou...
Nov 10, 2023•12 min
