Today’s Scripture Reading (March 13,
2014): Jeremiah 28
There is a
tension between what we can do and what we should do. And often we hear the
comment that just because we can do something does not mean that we should do
it. In science, the comment often comes in regard to advanced weapons of war –
especially weapons of mass destruction. It was the argument that surrounded the
development of the Hydrogen and Atomic Bombs. It is also the argument that
continues to surround the question of Atomic Energy. We know the positive uses
of atomic energy, but we also know the negative uses in war and the great
dangers that atomic energy presents to the human race - and so the question
remains – just because we can, does not necessarily mean that we should.
In national
finances, the question is asked with almost every budget. Just because we have
the money, or in a lot of cases are able to borrow the money, that does not
necessarily mean that the money should be spent in these areas. Can does not
mean should.
As a prophet,
the tension was immense between can and should. The king would pressure the
prophet to speak in favor of his policies and the future of his nation. And it
was not just an egotistic wish that the prophet would stroke the ego of the
king. But if the prophet would stand with the king, it gave a very positive
energy throughout entire reach of the nation. So the pressure to support was
considerable. And the prophet had to make a choice. He could support the king,
but should he? And the question was really settled by the prophet’s
relationship with his God. The prophet was supposed to speak with the voice of
God, but that assumed that the prophet was close enough to God to be able to
hear his voice.
Hananiah
removes the yoke from the shoulders of Jeremiah and breaks it. The message was
that Jeremiah was clearly wrong. Hananiah asserts that he had heard the voice
of God and God wished to support the king. And deep down I think that Jeremiah
wished that Hananiah was right, he wished that he could give support to the
king – even if the king was not honoring God. But Jeremiah had heard the voice
of God, and the prophecy was that Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was not fighting
against the wishes of God. The yoke that was about to be put on the shoulders
of Judah would not be so easily broken just because Hananiah wished to do it.
We are still
charged with speaking the will of God into our culture, no matter how
uncomfortable that might make us. Speaking to the world about a God who loves
them is always what we should – and can – do.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading:
Jeremiah 29
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