I read this text this morning in my Bible reading time. I went back to an article that I wrote in 2015 and I thought that it would be a good reminder for you as it was for me. It is a little longer than usual, but it has such a powerful message for today. It really spoke to me and I trust that it will speak to you.
“Thus says the Lord: ‘Let not the wise glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches. 24. But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,’ says the Lord.” Jeremiah had been called to prophesy the doom of the southern kingdom of Judah. The northern kingdom of Israel had been carried into captivity about 136 years before that. Over the years, from the time they entered Canaan, the Israelites had forgotten the commandments of God and were living as they pleased. Instead of glorying in the Lord, they gloried in what they wanted to glory in. We can’t be too hard on the Old Testament Jews, for we see the same thing happening today. Each of us needs to reassess what it is we glory in and who it is that we glory in. Jeremiah gave a warning to the people of his day, and it can serve as a warning to us as well. (Notice that Jeremiah was directly quoting the Lord, for he wrote: “Thus says the Lord.” He warned the wise not to glory in their wisdom. The Bible states explicitly that if one wants to be truly wise he will fear the Lord. Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” The greatest earthly wisdom is nothing compared to the wisdom of God, who is all-knowing and all-wise. We would do well to remember this lesson in this computer age when we think we know so much. We certainly have more information today than in years gone by, and we know a whole lot more than people in the past, but we still do not know more than God. We need to remember that true wisdom and knowledge belong to God. Solomon reminds us: “And the knowledge of the holy one is understanding.” All of the wisdom and knowledge of this world should not carry us beyond the knowledge of God. Next, Jeremiah wrote: “Let not the mighty man glory in his might.” We need to remember that the God who is all-wise is also known as the Almighty, meaning that He is all-powerful. All of the nuclear arsenals on this earth are nothing compared to the might and power of Almighty God Zerubbabel was commissioned to rebuild the temple after the Babylonian Captivity of the Jews. He had plenty of opposition to this rebuilding and needed to depend on the power of God to get the job done. Here is what Zechariah wrote in order to encourage Zerubbabel: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.” It is still true that we do not serve the Lord in our own might, but by the might of the Spirit of God. Then, Jeremiah wrote, “Nor let the rich man glory in his riches.” Jesus gave this warning concerning earthly riches: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) If we are tempted to glory in our riches, we need to remember what Paul wrote in Philippians 4:19: “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Finally, in verse 24, Jeremiah tells us what (or whom) we should glory in: “But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the Lord.” The Lord is the true source of our wisdom, riches and might. We would do well to remember this in spite of what the world tells us. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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