I REMEMBER THE DEVOTION OF YOUR YOUTH
Jeremiah 2
“‘I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown. Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest; all who devoured her were held guilty, and disaster overtook them,’” declares the Lord.
It is fascinating to listen in to God speaking to Israel; he was so honest and vulnerable and it gives you a deeper sense of what it means when we say that God is love. God had invested so much emotion into his relationship with Israel.
It is not as if Israel was perfect during the wilderness days; but even though they sinned and were terribly punished for their sin, they had repented and trusted him. It was a tumultuous relationship but a very real one and God held Israel dear and protected her from those who would harm her.
“So what went wrong?” God asked Israel. Once life was good and there was plenty of food Israel took God for granted and started looking for other experiences. No one went looking for the God who had led Israel out of Egypt into the fertile Promised Land and soon they left the One True God for idols.
“My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
When you listen to the way God described the apostasy of Israel, the way he likened their infidelity to an animal in heat—“How can you say, ‘I am not defiled; I have not run after the Baals’? See how you behaved in the valley; consider what you have done. You are a swift she-camel running here and there, a wild donkey accustomed to the desert, sniffing the wind in her craving—in her heat who can restrain her? Any males that pursue her need not tire themselves; at mating time they will find her” —you have a deep sense of the betrayal that God feels.
But the final nail in the coffin is the way Israel avoided the issues and blatantly denied any wrongdoing. In doing so, Israel threw away any chance at reconciliation. You might wonder at this and ask how Israel could deny what seemed obvious. The truth is, however, that they have been practising their religion, going through the motions observing all the religious practices. The religious institutions remained but devoid of any integrity.
The love that our God lavishes on us is beyond compare. He is ready to engage with us, to forgive and save and redeem us. It is astonishing that people can treat his grace and mercy like dirt and yet even we, who have known his love in Jesus’ sacrifice, are not immune to such wickedness.
“But my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols. Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder with great horror,” declares the Lord. “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”