Jeremiah 5:25
“Your iniquities have turned these things away,
And your sins have withheld good from you.”
The Bible portrays the devil as a dragon who seeks to defeat the work of God by destroying the followers of God. This fiery beast has opposed the followers of God since the beginning of time. While he is crafty and sly, he seems to revert back to the same old lie whenever he attempts to deceive us. In the garden, he convinced Eve that departing from the ways of God would make life better. She soon discoveredt that true life is not found in freeing ourselves from God, but in walking within the confines of His Word.
People in Jeremiah’s day were buying into this same old lie. In pursuit of life, they were leaving the commands of God and following their own desires. Tragically, they found sin cannot fulfill its promises. The lifestyles they hoped would give them pleasure, only filled them with pain, and led them away from the Lord who made them, and desired to save them. To make matters worse, their sins were ripping them off from life in God, and hardening their hearts against Him.
Thousands of years have passed since Jeremiah’s day, yet this lie is still the number one tactic in the devils playbook. So many refuse to come to Christ, thinking that to do so means to miss out on life. Others, drift from Christ in search of the pleasure sin promises, but can never deliver. It would do us good to remember, freedom is not found in removing all restraints, but in living according to the proper restraints. Just as our bodies cannot survive without air, water and food, so we cannot experience true life apart from Christ, and the boundaries determined by His word.
Pastor Jim
Isaac was ill and thought death was at his doorstep, so he sent his son Esau into the field to hunt and make him his favorite meal. It was his intention, at the meal, to pass a blessing on to Esau. When Rebekah heard his plan, she came up with a scheme of her own. She knew God intended this blessing for Jacob, so she got an animal skin, prepared a meal, and attempted to deceive her husband. Jacob dressed for the part and brought the meal to his father. When questioned as to who he was and how he had acquired the game so quickly, he replied, “it is me Esau, and the LORD brought it to me.”
Jim Gallagher 