Tuesday, March 02nd, 2010 | Author:
Skip Moen
and when you seek for me you will find me, when you search for me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13
Seek/Search – How many times have you heard this verse given as motivation for seeking God? It seems to be a favorite when we need exhortation and encouragement. But how many of us know anything about its context? When God tells the children of Israel that they will need to seek Him with all their hearts, His words have a very important setting. Without the setting, the real message gets lost.
Jeremiah was a prophet of the Babylonian captivity. Terrible things were coming upon disobedient Israel. The truth is that God loved Israel so much that He punished them severely in order for them to confront their spiritual adultery. His punishment leveled the once great nation. It sent many to the grave and many more into bondage in Babylon. No one welcomed Jeremiah’s pronouncement. In fact, there were all kinds of self-proclaimed naysayers who told the people that “don’t worry, be happy, God would never do such terrible things.” How wrong they were!
But Jeremiah does not leave Israel with doom and gloom. God will hear them and restore them – after they are obedient to His command about the context. God’s desire for restoration is not unusual, but the context is shocking. It’s found in verse 7. God tells His people to “seek the well-being of the city” of Babylon. Can you imagine that? These people have been hauled off by invaders, and God tells them to actively pursue the prosperity and good will for their captors! He tells them to settle down in enemy territory and do all that they can to make life better for the bad guys. God uses the word that means studying and inquiring into His Law when He tells His people to seek shalom for the enemies. Then – and only then – will they be ready to search for Him.
Oh, by the way, there are two different Hebrew words in verses 12 and 13 translated by the English words “seek” and “search.” The first is baqash. It means to try to obtain, in particular, to obtain the presence of someone. When the people try to obtain God’s presence, He will be prepared to receive them, after they seek shalom for their enemies. The second word is darash, the word used in verse 7 and again in verse 13. Searching for God with all your heart is intimately connected with honoring, examining and obeying His word. Did you notice that God does not ask His people to seek (barash) the presence of the Babylonian conquerors? Pursing presence is reserved for Him. But He does request His people to darash (examine and inquire after) shalom for the enemies. How is that done? By obeying His word, of course.
Go ahead and use this verse when things get tough. But remember the context. Do you expect God to come running to your rescue when your enemies know nothing except your disdain and hostility? Do you think God’s compassion belongs only to you?
Topical Index: Compassion, Enemy
Tuesday, March 02nd, 2010 | Author:
Skip Moen
Newsweek: Law-Enforcement Officials Note Marked Nationwide Increase in Teen Prostitution
Over the last year, local and federal law-enforcement officials say they have noted a marked increase in teen prostitution in cities across the country. They are increasingly alarmed by the trend lines: the kids are getting younger; according to the FBI, the average age of a new recruit is just 13; some are as young as 9. And, while the vast majority of teen prostitutes today are runaways, illegal immigrants and children of poor urban areas, experts say a growing number now come from middle-class homes.
A nation without holiness in its heart will not survive. History has shown over and over that great empires collapsed after declines in personal morality. The Biblical record confirms what historians note. My travels throughout Asia years ago demonstrated that children are only one-step along the road of moral degradation when a culture embraces values that are not based on holiness. We are only following in the steps of our ancestors. Unless God grips a man’s heart, no evil will be forbidden.
America’s new racism is homosexuality. On every side, those who stand up against this practice are treated as the new bigots. We live in a culture whose only goal is to fulfill every desire of man’s heart, a condition that is described quite well in Genesis 6:5. Why are we surprised to find the children are being swallowed up in the storm of sexual frenzy? Our movies portray absolute license, our music heroes and sports figures are shining examples of sexual deception, adultery and uninhibited desire. Even the church has decided to ignore that clear descriptions of the Greek words in I Corinthians. Plurality in moral standards is nothing more than idolatry.
A family I know found their pre-teen daughter in deep depression. She was unable to function because her peers ridiculed her for not being sexually active at age 11. What does such a situation say about the general moral instruction of parents?
Families that believe God’s holiness is the foundation of our behavior will be set upon with vengeance. It has always been so. Those who prefer the dark cannot stand the antagonism of light. Even a child’s candle must be extinguished.
There is much to pray about these days. Not least is the suffering of our children. They carry a weight much too heavy for their shoulders.
Tuesday, March 02nd, 2010 | Author:
Skip Moen
Pull me out of the net that they have laid secretly for me; for you are my stronghold. Psalm 31:5 (Hebrew text)
Net – If you read this too quickly, you will miss the crucial implication. The psalmist is already caught! “Pull me out” implies that he is already in. He has been trapped by that concealed snare. He needs rescue because he is already in trouble.
Typically Christians think of God’s care as preventative. We want God to keep us from falling into the traps. We pray, “God, don’t let me fall. Make me avoid the snares of life.” But it doesn’t always work out that way, does it? One of the certainties of human experience is getting into trouble. It might not be your fault, but when you’re in the net, it really doesn’t matter whose fault it is. You need help. You’re caught. The Hebrew word resheth (net) comes from a root meaning “to take possession.” Perhaps we need to think of life’s traps as anything that takes possession of us. There are a lot more snares out there than we thought, aren’t there?
The psalmist offers an unusual perspective on life’s traps. It doesn’t matter! The psalmist declares that God is his stronghold and he has committed his life to the will of the sovereign One. Therefore, he is redeemed, no matter what the circumstances might be. “Into Your hands I commit my ruach,” is the answer to life’s entanglements. When we really have given ourselves over to Him, the rest is not up to us. It’s not a surprise that Yeshua would remind the crowd about this psalm while He hung on the cross. He was caught in what appeared to be exactly the opposite of God’s goodness. The crowd, including His friends, believed that life had collapsed around him. They all thought the dream was over. But Yeshua says, “I belong to You, Father. You may do what You wish with me because I know You have redeemed me.” It certainly didn’t look like redemption, did it? Yeshua dies! That is hardly the picture of escape from life’s troubles. That’s not what we would call rescue. But by citing this psalm, Yeshua reminds us that being pulled out of the net doesn’t always look like freedom. The stronghold of God is often invisible to the world.
Perhaps you are trapped in life’s net. Maybe you walked right into it, never seeing the snare. Now it looks like it’s too late. The strong cords bind you. You aren’t getting out no matter how much you flail and squirm. This would be a great time to remember the cross. Yeshua wasn’t getting down from that stake in the ground either – but it didn’t matter. “You are my stronghold. Into Your hands I commit myself.” That’s what matters! Being caught is the perfect time to reflect on the real dependencies of life. If you can say the words of the psalmist from the heart, then being in the net is exactly the right place to be.
Topical Index: net, resheth, trap, Psalm 31:5
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