Jeremiah 20 & 21

In Jeremiah 20 we read about Judah's imminent exile to Babylon.as well as the persecution of Jeremiah. God has grown tired of the idolatry of His chosen people and Jeremiah has had enough of the persecution wrought by God's chosen people. Judah has run out of excuses and soon must be punished in a most severe way. We get a glimpse into the tortured and weary mind of Jeremiah. He is a despised man because of the message of judgement he brings. He feels so tortured that he wishes he was never born.

I can't say that I relate to Jeremiah's suffering. I tend to be a person that runs from conflict. I keep my mouth shut and head down. But Jeremiah couldn't even keep his mouth shut. He said that he was physically unable! He called God a liar in one breath and then praised him in another. Talk about a conflicted man! Have you ever felt conflicted when you thought about God and the circumstances of your life? I know I have. When everything is going great one moment I praise His name but then when everything seems to be falling apart I can doubt His goodness. Praising Him in the bad times takes more strength than I can muster. A lot of times I find myself in need of Godly counsel and Jesus loving friends to pull me out of my dark times. God has given me those people and I hope you have those people in your life as well.


Thus says the LORD: 

"Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of            death."


In Jeremiah 21, we see God giving His people the choice He has always given them. He's warning them that if they stay in the city, they will surely die but if they go out and surrender they will live. They will be exiled but they will live. These words can be found all the way back in the beginning of the story in Genesis. God gives the first couple a choice. They chose wrong and thus began their exile from the garden of Eden. God sets before us the same choice. The way of life- Jesus who in John 14:6 says that HE is the way, the truth, and the life. Because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus we can choose the way of life.
Have you chosen the way of life?