We Should Know Better
This morning, I was reading in the book of Jeremiah. In the fourth chapter, God tells the people, through Jeremiah,
“For my people are foolish. They know me not; they are stupid children and have no understanding. They are shrewd to do evil but to do good they do not know.” (Jeremiah 4:22, NASB)
As I read this, I thought, “Wait! This says MY PEOPLE!” We would expect to hear that about the no good, filthy, heathen sinners in our world (of which, I am the poster child). God did not say this about them. He said it about His people. Jeremiah was writing to Israel at this time, but we have been grafted in to become part of that people as Christians so he was talking about us.
As I think more about this, I am convinced that He is right. First and foremost because He said it and He is God and He is always right. Additionally, He is right because I can see it even in my own life. I don’t have to ask if this is true of me because I know the answer.
I know how to build computers and fix them when they go awry. I know how to program them, troubleshoot software, build web sites, and even can teach courses on various applications. I know a lot about computers. Not as much as many other people, but enough.
I know about computers, but I don’t know nearly enough about God’s Word. I have two Master’s Degrees and a Doctorate Degree in studying the Bible, but all I have really learned is that I don’t know much. For instance, while I know about computers and can almost make them do what I need them to do, I can’t seem to be able to make someone want to love Jesus more. Many people go to church on Sunday mornings, check the block, and don’t even think of the Lord the rest of the week. They don’t pray each day. They don’t read or study their Bibles. They don’t witness to people about their faith in Christ. They don’t serve in a ministry, meet with a small group, or work to serve others in the church. When you ask them why they don’t teach a class, lead a ministry, or share Jesus with their neighbor, they say they don’t feel like they know enough. I don’t know how to make someone who calls himself or herself a follower of Jesus love Jesus enough to actually follow Jesus. I pray a lot about it, but do I do anything to learn more or even speak up at times when I should? No. Not like I should.
I can manage a budget, lead a meeting, teach a lesson, serve the community, and work either in the spotlight or behind the scenes, but I can’t figure out how to make people want to do right. We invest ourselves in many temporary things. We learn about fantasy football, television, movies, golf, exercise, or any other manner of temporariness, but I don’t know how to make people want to know eternal things. How much to do I labor at it? Not as much as I should.
Many people don’t feel like it is their job. They are children of the King (or call themselves by that title), but don’t love the King enough to serve the King. They feel like they pay their pastors to do the work of the ministry.
They don’t feel like it is their job and they don’t feel like they know enough. They don’t want to do anything to know more, but the excuse for not doing anything is that they don’t know enough. They know the football scores, how their local sports teams are doing, how many mils the County raised their taxes, who has the best chance of winning America’s Got Talent, a number of other things, but they don’t feel like they know enough to serve God by helping their local church.
God. Forgive me. Forgive us for acting so foolishly. Forgive us for being stupid children with no understanding. Forgive us for caring more about the things of this world than about the things of Heaven. Give us the desire to pour ourselves into the pursuit of You. Make us thirst for You like the Psalmist. Make us willing to give ourselves totally to you like the widow at the temple. Make us want to know you and things of you so that we meditate on them like David, are fierce for them like Moses and humbly submit to them like Christ. Let it not be said of us,
“They know me not; they are stupid children and have no understanding. They are shrewd to do evil but to do good they do not know.” (Jeremiah 4:22, NASB)