26 April Daily Manna
TEXT: Jeremiah 21:1-14
KEY VERSE:
And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath ( Jeremiah 21:5)
Satan is blamed for everything evil. A thief who is caught red-handed with stolen items blames the devil for ‘pushing’ him into the act. This happens often whenever people need a convenient scapegoat to bear the blame for their shortcomings and fallings in life. While there is a certain sense in which that can be true, it fails to take into consideration all the other issues, including our own personal responsibility for our actions.
Jeremiah told a stunned delegate from Zedekiah, king of Judah, that God Himself was fighting against Israel for their utter disregard for divine instructions and their woeful practice of idolatry. With this revelation, Israel was now doomed to surrender to their enemies, go into captivity and have their beautiful cities and the temple burnt with fire.
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God promised to withdraw His protection over His own people, assist the Babylonians in gaining access into the city and ensure Israel was defeated. Only those who surrendered to the Babylonians were guaranteed their lives. The king of Judah together with his counsellors were worried about the Babylonians who were already laying siege to Jerusalem without considering that their main enemies were themselves and that God was responsible for this Scourge.
Most times, we blame the devil for being behind our troubles. If it is not the devil, then it must be the work of an enemy somewhere, perhaps a witch or wizard in the village who has cast a spell on us. But the first thing to do whenever things go wrong is to look inwards, pray and find out if our ways are right with God.
“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: The route to hell comes after plying the road of procastination.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Joshua 5-7
