Monday 7th September
Read Jeremiah 7:1-4
“This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 ‘Stand at the gate of the Lord’s house and there proclaim this message:
‘“Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord. 3 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. 4 Do not trust in deceptive words and say, ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord!’” (NIVUK)
The Temple Sermon of Jeremiah, a sermon we will revisit later (Jeremiah 26), asks questions we sometimes don’t want to answer.
It is a bold sermon. Preached at the changing of national leadership. Preached to people who were conservative, religious and devout. Inescapably delivered as they enter their house of worship. It asks them what they really trust in.
It was unwelcome (cf Jeremiah 26) for reasons that will be obvious as we work our way through it this week. For Jeremiah declares that their religion is entirely false. It is based on a half-truth – and that is a dangerous thing. They believe they are secure because they worship in the temple. They trust in their place of worship to save them (v4).
Their ‘faith’ is not groundless – half-truths always contain some truth after all. As the people approached God to worship Him, they sang songs such as this…
“For the Lord has chosen Zion,
he has desired it for his dwelling, saying,
14 ‘This is my resting place for ever and ever;
here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it.” (Psalm 132:13-14) (NIVUK)
If God has set up an eternal dwelling in Zion, and His temple is there, nothing can happen to them. He promised. He is bound to save them. His faithfulness to His word demands it. It matters little how they behave (v3) so they will behave as they wish. The Temple Sermon, stitch-by-stitch, will unpick their false assumptions. Holiness is not an optional extra in true faith.
