Jer. 40:1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after that Nebuzar–adan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah, which were carried away captive unto Babylon. * 2 And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The Lord thy God hath pronounced this evil upon this place. 3 Now the Lord hath brought it, and done according as he hath said: because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you. (KJV)
In chapter forty of Jeremiah we find an unsaved Gentile correcting a faithful Jew. This Babylonian was both right and wrong, depending on how you read the text! He spoke to Jeremiah, God´s faithful prophet and we must be careful when we read, ¨because ye have sinned.¨ Jeremiah was a Jewish Believer but he was a faithful one and the guilt was not his personally but rather collectively.
Jeremiah had been left in the cistern to die because he told the King and all the people the truth, just the way God had told him to. So, while the sin might not have been his personally, as a member of the Jewish people, the sin was his. This is a hard teaching today because nobody in this society is willing to be accountable for their actions but in the end of it all, every one of us is responsible for not only our actions but also for how our actions affected others! Crying out that my mommy made me do it, to God, will never fly!
Of particular interest in this passage of scripture is the fact that the followers of Jehovah God are being observed. I look around and I see that folks are paying attention to what I am doing and what I have to say, the same is true of you! The world is Spiritually aware and ignorant at the same time and the very moment you proclaim to be a Christian, eyes begin to observe. They watch to see if you are like them or are you different.
I worked for eleven years for the Japanese company, Nippon Express, USA. The Japanese Nationals rotated out to go home every few years and as a result there were always new people coming from Japan to work. I learned from one that in the Arrival Orientation that the new arrivals, Buddhists, were cautioned that if they did not want to learn about Jesus, they should not get close to Bill Taylor. And during my tenor there I know that one, for certain, went home a Christian convert, maybe more. My point is that God has called us to be different and we are not the only ones that know that. When we proclaim the name of Christ and yet live like the Devil, people see that.
I have taken the scriptures that call for me to live a holy life, one separated from the people around me, to be serious and I endeavor to live that way. Today there are News stories about the unfaithful, i.e. Benny Hinn, and the Priests that wreck the lives of you boys and young girls and these lead to TV shows and movies that people accept as being the norm for all Christian believers. Now, I used a name and that is usually not accepted but before you become upset with me, I will not answer replies about that sinner, he needs to deal with his press!
The point is that every single one of us are an influence on every soul we meet or even just cross their path and we need to wake up and live for God or no matter how much we believe in grace, we will all go to hell. Today, we, the righteous, are suffering for the sins of the unrighteous, just as Jeremiah did.
My prayer is for you to live for God, that you might receive the blessing I have.
