Archive for October 2020

Jeremiah 10-11,  Ecclesiastes 3:16-22,  John 1:43-51,  James 2:14-26   Jeremiah 10-11:   All true spirituality begins with an open ear to what God is saying. “Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you” (10:1). Are we listening to what God is saying? Are our ears attentive to the Scriptures? Do we set aside time not…

Jeremiah 7-9,  Ecclesiastes 3:1-15,  John 1:35-42,  James 2:1-13   Jeremiah 7-9:   Jeremiah is told to make a public pronouncement—to stand “in the gate of the LORD’s house” (7:2). He is publishing a press release in the religious media; he is hammering his 95 theses to the door of Wittenberg. What is it that he must so…

Jeremiah 5-6,  Ecclesiastes 2:17-26,  John 1:29-34,  James 1:19-27   Jeremiah 5-6:   The prophet depicts a running to and fro on the streets of the city looking for just one person who is doing what is right (5:1). But none can be found! For surely they use the religious jargon (“As the LORD lives”), but they swear falsely (5:2). How common…

Jeremiah 3-4, Ecclesiastes 2:1-16, John 1:19-28, James 1:12-18 Jeremiah 3-4: We begin to see why he was called the weeping prophet! One controlling metaphor goes through these chapters, a picture that is common to the prophets in general, a picture of the rebellion of God’s people: adultery, prostitution, sexual immorality. “You have played the whore with many lovers”…

Jeremiah 1-2, Ecclesiastes 1, John 1:1-18, James 1:1-11  Jeremiah 1-2: The “weeping prophet.” Why should we read such words that are only bound to make us miserable? Well, to begin with, the purpose is not depressive but repentant. The key call to Jeremiah has a dual purpose (a doubled-edged sword): “…to pluck up and to break down, to…