READING: Jeremiah 13-16
“They will be like this underwear, of no use at all.”
Jeremiah 13:10
It’s not often you read about underwear in the Bible, but today’s reading addresses that unusual topic. In a dramatic picture to make His point, God told Jeremiah to hide dirty underwear and then retrieve the ruined garment. God’s point was that He had clung to His people, but they had become like that useless garment to Him in their idolatrous rebellion.
It’s the description of their rebellion that convicts my heart today: “These evil people, who refuse to listen to me, who follow the stubbornness of their own hearts, and who have followed other gods to serve and bow in worship—they will be like this underwear, of no use at all” (Jer. 13:10). Refusing to listen to God . . . being stubborn, and staying that way . . . finding other gods to follow . . . and living in great pride before the God who loved them and called them – that’s the picture of their lives.
And, I then must ask if I ever hear God’s Word but don’t follow it. Am I ever stubborn in my rebellion? Do I have any other gods that I follow? Am I ever so arrogant that I choose to remain in my rebellion? I pray that my answers to these questions are always, “no,” but Jeremiah 13 reminds me that even God-followers can fall in that direction.
ACTION STEPS:
- Answer this question: “Where am I MOST rebellious before God today?”
- Confess any pride you recognize in yourself today.
PRAYER: “God, I’m stubborn. Please help me.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Review and catch up day