My heart was heavy as I read more prophecy and destruction in the book of Jeremiah. I asked God to help me find some practical truths, and while I am sure there are many, here are two I’ll share.
First, it is so easy to ignore God’s commands! How many chances did people get to repent? So many! And for generations, they just ignored God. I imagine it became easier and easier the long they sinned. Aren’t we the same way? We can live in sin and justify it—we can even twist Scripture to justify it! The deeper we get in a particular sin, the easier it becomes to shut out God’s truth. There was a time in the not-too-distant past (and I say this with a mix of shame and gratitude for God’s grace) that I was not living in a way that was pleasing to God. I felt the Holy Spirit pricking my conscience, but I pushed past it. I had a long list of excuses. And the longer I lived that way, the less I even thought about it. Thankfully, I changed, and I look back and can’t believe that was ever me! But that’s the way sin works. It's so sneaky. How many of us would have been destroyed in Jeremiah’s day?
