“Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before Me, My mind would not be favourable toward this people.” Jeremiah 15:1 NKJV
The word of the Lord also came to me, saying, 2 “You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place.” 3 For thus says the Lord concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning their mothers who bore them and their fathers who begot them in this land: 4 “They shall die gruesome deaths; they shall not be lamented nor shall they be buried, but they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth. They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, and their corpses shall be meat for the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth.” Jeremiah 16:1-4 NKJV
“‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’ 11 then you shall say to them, ‘Because your fathers have forsaken Me,’ says the Lord; ‘they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 12 And you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, each one follows the dictates of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me. ” Jeremiah 16:10-12 NKJV
Father God,
What a hard commandment, when a sign of God’s blessing was children. And what a gruesome message. But then Jeremiah has been saying the same impending judgement all his ministry. Return to You, God, keep Your law and live in the promised land with blessings. You God have always made it quite clear. But Judah says, there are so many distractions. Is that a valid excuse? No. But we can’t see God, so maybe other Gods we can see idols of, may be just as good? No. We can look after ourselves. We don’t need a God who demands obedience. No.
Sounds very familiar to today. Bu we believe You walked this earth, born one of us, dying for us and sending Your Spirit to give us Your life. We saw You in Jesus the perfect representation of Your being (Hebrews 1:3). Learning from Your Spirit to do what is right and good is not too difficult with You. And You, Father God are slow to anger and always ready to forgive (Nehemiah 9:17). You even forgave Your enemies in Nineveh!
Today we do not like to dwell on the opposite of life in Christ. Death and destruction. We tend to speak more about the positive. Choosing faith in You and all it brings. But it is still there. So help us, Your church and all Your people around the world speaking of the choice. To choose Christ and choose life above death and destruction..
In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Worship Wednesday 15th July 2026
I love this hymn, tough I have not heard it ssung for a few years. It challenges my thoughts. Did I choose God in Christ or did he choose me? Or both? I just experience the results.
O what a wonderful, wonderful day, day I will never forget;
After I’d wandered in darkness away, Jesus my Savior I met.
O what a tender, compassionate friend, He met the need of my heart;
Shadows dispelling, with joy I am telling, He made all the darkness depart.
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul,
When at the cross the Saviour made me whole;
My sins were washed away and my night was turned to day,
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul!
Born of the Spirit with life from above into God’s family divine,
Justified fully thru Calvary’s love, O what a standing is mine!
And the transaction so quickly was made, when as a sinner I came,
Took of the offer, of grace He did proffer, He saved me, O praise His dear name!
Chorus
Now I’ve a hope that will surely endure after the passing of time;
I have a future in heaven for sure there in those mansions sublime.
And it’s because of that wonderful day, when at the cross I believed;
Riches eternal and blessings supernal, from His precious hand I received.
Chorus
Lyrics: John W Peterson