They Will Not Obey

Therefore you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you.
Jeremiah 7:27

Why would God send His prophet with a word of truth to a people who God says will not hear and obey that word? If the omniscient God says they won’t listen, they will without a doubt refuse to hear, and yet he sends Jeremiah anyway. The word here is reminiscent of the what Paul tells the Jews in Act 28:25-27. It is a familiar pattern because he’s quoting what God said of the people in Isaiah’s day:

So when they did not agree among themselves, they departed after Paul had said one word:“The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers, saying, ‘Go to this people and say: “Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand; And seeing you will see, and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.” ’

So, why would God seemingly waste His servant’s time by sending him to preach the gospel where it would not bring forth fruit? Because God would magnify His mercy and longsuffering as He fully renders the hearers to be without excuse! Men will not go to hell because they don’t know the truth. They will stand before God in judgment knowing they were well aware of the consequences of their disobedience!

Rom 1:18-19 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.” Wow! God has shown it to them!! It’s not that man doesn’t know the truth, but rather that he does know it and yet suppresses that truth in unrighteousness. I remember being lost in my sin and making every effort I could to drown out the knowledge of the truth. I knew I was doing wrong, but every time I sinned, it became a little easier to sin more. I was suppressing the truth in my life until my conscience no longer nagged me about it.

What brought me to my knees one day was becoming fully aware that if I stood before God, I would be justly condemned. Thank God that He opened my eyes to see I was under the wrath of God and without excuse! I knew Rom 2:1 spoke of me: “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.”

Every time God sends His messengers to a rebellious people to declare the gospel one more time, the judgment grows greater when they refuse to hear. The pinnacle of this act of mercy and longsuffering in sending forth His truth is when He sent His only begotten Son as a Light in this dark world. It is refusing to hear Him that will finally condemn a man eternally. “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” (Joh 3:19) Has God in His great mercy declared the Lord Jesus to you one more time today? Then, “Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.” (Psa 2:12)

Jamie

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