Today's Reading:O.T. - Jeremiah 19 - 21
N.T. - Romans 8:18-39
Focus Verses: Jeremiah 20:13-14
13 Sing to the LORD! Give praise to the LORD! He rescues the life of the needy from the hands of the wicked. 14 Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!
Insight:
These two consecutive verses may have the most extreme contrast of any two verses in the Bible. In one breath, Jeremiah says, "Praise God!" In the next he says, "I wish I had never been born!" In context, the admonition of verse 13 sticks out like a fragrant rose in a thicket of thorns and thistles. The message Jeremiah had been called to preach was one of doom and judgment. The responses he got from people were rejection, violence, and hate.
Jeremiah's life was filled with sorrow and pain because he was faithful to God's calling and God's message. Yet, in the midst of his pain he resolutely declared, "Sing to the Lord! Give Praise to the Lord!" Though he was suffering, Jeremiah said, "I believe God sees my need and he will rescue me from the wicked." Jeremiah's expression of praise was not a response from a place of blessing and comfort, but was instead a profound statement of faith delivered from the heart and mouth of a person in pain.
Response and Action:
Praise is more than a response to blessing, it is an act of faith! I will praise God in times of blessing, but I will also praise him in times of need. I will sing songs of thanks when I am in a place of ease and comfort, but I will also worship him when I am in distress. My praise will be more than an expression of gratitude for what God has done, it will be a testimony of my faith in what God will do.
O God, whether by life or by death may Christ be exalted in me. You are worthy of my praise at all times. I believe you are faithful to your promises and I will praise you because I believe you will never fail to keep your word. Open my mouth Lord, and my lips will declare your praise! Amen.
Proverbs: 9:12
"If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer."
Resources:
Where Is God When It Hurts?
by Philip Yancey
