Today’s
Scripture Reading (May 18, 2017): Lamentations 2
A few centuries ago the debated question was whether or not it was
possible that the earth actually circled
the sun. The discussion was fierce. After all, the Bible said it was the sun
that was in motion. And the Bible
couldn’t be wrong. The Bible isn’t – but it does often describe what it is that
we see and to some degree what it is that
we feel. And no matter what the truth is – what we see is that the sun is in
motion.
So Jeremiah continues his lament, and his cry is that God has left Israel
– and has even abandoned his own temple and sanctuary. But the reality was that that was simply how it looked
and felt. The truth was that Israel had long ago walked away from God.
He had become nothing more than jewelry that they wore through life; a name
that they mentioned and a tradition that they kept.
But the reality was that whether God had walked away, or whether the
people had, the result was still the same. There was a distance between the
people and God. The question that Jeremiah, and we, often seem to ask is “what
is it that has caused God to walk away.” But in actuality God wasn’t the one in
motion – the people are. We are the ones that have stopped taking the things of
God seriously. We have walked away – it just feels like he has.
God has never wanted to be a compartment of our lives. He is not a charm
we wear around our neck or a tradition that we keep. He is God; the author, creator and the critical component of who we are. He has never walked away – but we
continually do.
We may feel like God has abandoned us.
But the question that we really need to
begin to ask is this – to where is it that I have moved? Because God has made a promise to us that he will always
be close if that is where we want him to be.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Lamentations
3
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