Jeremiah 7:1-7 (ESV)
Evil in the Land
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 “Stand in the gate of the LORD'S house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the LORD. 3 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’
5 “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly execute justice one with another, 6 if you do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, 7 then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever.
Jeremiah was sent by God to the nation of Israel to carry the above message. He went first and foremost to main entrance of the Temple to declare this message. The leaders of the day pointed to the Temple as their saving grace. They mistakenly thought that their “national” relationship with God would suffice them. But, it was their “personal” relationship with God that would condemn them and bring this message. They had the outside stuff in order. But, the inside was corrupt. That is what God is condemning through Jeremiah’s words. Note what he will say later in this section when comparing Israel with other nations:
Jeremiah 9:25-26 (ESV)
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will punish all those who are circumcised merely in the flesh— Egypt, Judah, Edom, the sons of Ammon, Moab, and all who dwell in the desert who cut the corners of their hair, for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in heart.”
God does not want out outward trappings until first our inward heart is as His. Notice God’s rubric for a spiritual person aligned with Him. If our faith is sure and true:
1. It will be demonstrated by the way we live not just the way we worship (v. 3).
2. It will be magnified not by the words preached but by the life we live (v. 4-7)
3. It will demonstrate justice (v. 5).
4. It will demonstrate mercy and kindness (v. 6).
5. It will be blessed with the application of God’s promises (v. 7).
Moses already told them this earlier and Micah the prophet will tell them this again after Jeremiah is dead:
Deuteronomy 10:12 (ESV)
Circumcise Your Heart
“And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
Micah 6:8 (ESV)
He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?
God will hold His people accountable. They will not be able to live a life of form worship. It will have to be the worship of the heart.
John 4:19-24 (ESV)
The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”
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