“This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘As my anger and wrath have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem, so will my wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You will be an object of cursing and horror, of condemnation and reproach; you will never see this place again.”’
~ Jeremiah 42:18
Hi James and Ellen,
Have you ever asked your dad and/or ma what you should do about doing something – and then you did not do what your dad and/or ma suggested that you do? Have you ever asked your teacher what you should do about doing something – and then you did not do what your teacher suggested that you do? Have you ever asked God what you should do about doing something – and then you did not do what you know that God told you to do? If you ask your dad and/or ma what you should do about doing something – do you think that you should always do what your dad and/or ma suggests that you do? If you ask your teacher what you should do about doing something – do you think that you should always do what he or she suggests that you do? If you ask God what you should do about doing something – do you think that you should always do what you know that God has told you to do? Ask your dad and ma if they have asked God about doing something – and then did not do what they know that God had told them to do. What do you think will happen if you do not do what you know that God has told you to do? God’s specially chosen guys and gals would find out what God does when they kept on doing what He had told them not to do. Jeremiah 42 recounts a visit that God’s specially chosen guys and gals made to Jeremiah to ask Jeremiah to ask God what they should do about doing something. God’s specially chosen guys and gals already knew what they wanted to do but . . . God’s specially chosen guys and gals were hoping that God would put His stamp of approval on what they wanted to do. Jeremiah told God what the Israelite people group’s guys and gals – God’s specially chosen guys and gals, had asked that he ask Him. By this time God – because His specially chosen guys and gals were always disobeying Him, had already had a good number of specially chosen guys and gals taken away by the Babylonian army to be slaves in Babylonia. God had the Babylonian army leave a few of His specially chosen guys and gals in the land that God had given them to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . Jeremiah – one of God’s prophet spokesmen, had spent his life telling God’s specially chosen guys and gals what would happen to them if they did not faithfully obey what God had told them to do. The Babylonian army left Jeremiah in Jerusalem with some army officers and a few other guys and gals. God’s specially chosen guys and gals who the Babylonian army left in the land that God had given them to always have to live in as their very own land if . . . were called a remnant. This remnant of God’s specially chosen guys and gals wanted to know from God what He wanted them to do. These specially chosen guys and gals thought that they had a choice of staying in the land that . . . or heading to Egypt. The remnant of God’s specially chosen guys and gals told Jeremiah that they would obey whatever God wanted them to do as they wanted God to be happy and pleased with them. The remnant of God’s specially chosen guys and gals had seen what had happened to family members and friends who were carried off by the Babylonian army to be slaves. These God’s specially chosen guys and gals did not want this to happen to them but . . .
Do you think that God reads hearts? Do you think that God knows what minds are thinking? Do you think that God knew what was written on the hearts of the remnant of His specially chosen guys and gals who were still living in the land that . . . do you think that God read the minds of the remnant of His specially chosen guys and gals who were living in the land that . . . God knew that His specially chosen guys and gals were hoping that He would give His okay to what they wanted to do. God knew this because He had written that hope on their hearts. God knew this because He had put what to ask Him in their minds. What God wanted His specially chosen guys and gals to do was to live in the land that he had given them to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . but . . . God still wanted His specially chosen guys and gals to learn more about Who He was as their Father God. Even though God’s specially chosen guys and gals really wanted to obey God, God’s specially chosen guys and gals still wanted to do what they thought was best for them to do – which to head for Egypt. Ten days after Jeremiah had asked God for the remnant what God would want them to do – which was to stay in Judah and Jerusalem or head for Egypt, and they would do it, God told Jeremiah what the remnant of His specially chosen guys and gals would do. Verse 18 says “This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘As my anger and wrath have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem, so will my wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You will be an object of cursing and horror, of condemnation and reproach; you will never see this place again.”’ God made it very clear through Jeremiah to His remnant of specially chosen guys and gals who were still living in . . . the consequences that He already had in place when . . . when He expected them to stay in the land of Judah and the city of Jerusalem.
How do you think that God feels when His specially elected guys – like your grandpaa, do not do what He has asked them through others to do? When your grandmaa and grandpaa went on a summer team to Colombia in 1976, the summer team’s leader – Bill Pencille, told your grandmaa and grandpaa not to pray for open doors but instead pray for closed doors. Your grandmaa and grandpaa have ever since asked God to close the doors that He does not want your grandmaa and grandpaa to go through. This means that if God leaves a life or ministry door open for your grandmaa and grandpaa to go through, God is telling your grandmaa and grandpaa to go through that door. Your grandmaa and grandpaa know that if they do not go through a door that God opened for them to go through that . .
Jeremiah 42 (171)