Thursday 9 Mar 2023

March 9: Jeremiah 17:5-10

Key Verse: Jeremiah 17:9
The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

Devotion:
When we read verses like these we probably think of cities like Sodom and Gomorrah, but these words were given to Jeremiah concerning Jerusalem and Judea which were supposed to be the God-fearing places in Israel. This shows us that we all can fall astray and we all have evil inside of us; which is why we need Christ to save us from that internal core.

Jeremiah’s word came from God as a warning to the people who were continually doing their own thing. We do get carried away when we think we know best. The more we think about it the more we tend to go astray; and it is not because we want to go astray but more because we cannot but help it sometimes!

God wants us to seek forgiveness from all the things we think about, not just the things we end up doing wrong. This is the warning coming from Jeremiah here – that what we think can and does lead us astray. The sooner we pick up on that the quicker we can realise how much of a part Christ must play in our lives!

God looks deep into our hearts and souls to see what we are like. He can see everything. Christ came to make a difference, and the difference He made was to stand as our advocate – to be the one willing to stand up for us and prove our innocence because He took on the debt we owe for our guilty deeds and thoughts!

Points to Ponder:
How often do you think about something wrongfully?

Will you accept Christ’s offer of forgiveness?