On the eighth day of Christmas, my Bible said to me...when God is at work, the enemy counterattacks. God is stronger!
Today's Reading: Jeremiah 31:15-20
Thus says the Lord:
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
she refuses to be comforted for her children,
because they are no more.”16 Thus says the Lord:
“Keep your voice from weeping,
and your eyes from tears,
for there is a reward for your work,
declares the Lord,
and they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
17 There is hope for your future,
declares the Lord,
and your children shall come back to their own country.
18 I have heard Ephraim grieving,
‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined,
like an untrained calf;
bring me back that I may be restored,
for you are the Lord my God.
19 For after I had turned away, I relented,
and after I was instructed, I struck my thigh;
I was ashamed, and I was confounded,
because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
20 Is Ephraim my dear son?
Is he my darling child?
For as often as I speak against him,
I do remember him still.
Therefore my heart[a] yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,
declares the Lord.
Devotional Thoughts
I'm quite sure you've heard references from Jeremiah 31 before. It is a promise of great joy, when God restores his people, promising to turn their weeping into joy and their sorrow into dancing (the acceptable kind, Baptist brethren!). In verse 31, we have the first mention of the new covenant, which Jesus instituted at the Lord's Supper. This new covenant would not be on stones but written in the hearts of men by the Holy Spirit. It is a positive and uplifting passage.
In the middle of this passage of wonder and joy, there is a sad and sorrowful portent of the most horrible moment of the Christmas story. Verse 15 is quoted in Matthew 2 when Herod, in his desire to kill the baby born king of the Jews, sends the soldiers to kill all the babies in Bethlehem. Imagine all the weeping, bereft families in that little village after Herod's cruel henchmen went through and did their unspeakable deed.
No holiday is more sentimental that Christmas. Peace. Good will. Family gatherings and fun times. We watch movies about people whose lives are changed simply by catching the "Christmas spirit." But there is nothing sanitary and saccharin about the real Christmas story. Nothing.
God sent his Son into this world as a declaration of war against the rebellion of man and the dominion of Satan over the world system. Light shone in the darkness. Righteousness came against the predominant wickedness of the world. Mankind had run from God and God sent his own Son to bring him back.
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But the darkness was not going to succumb without a fight. Sin, Satan, death, hell, and all the forces of evil would put up a fierce fight against the work of God. From the moment God came to earth incarnated in human flesh, all the enemies of God came together to fight back.
The first and cruelest of the attacks took place in Bethlehem, prophesied by God through Jeremiah, and caused great weeping.
Do not be surprised when life is a battle. It is not supposed to be easy. We Americans have this strange idea that life is meant to be smooth, that the committed and obedient Christian will see God make everything work out. That is never the way of things in the Bible. :When God is at work, so is the enemy. When good is taking place, evil is counterattacking. Hardships, suffering, difficulties, and even persecution are normal for the people of God when they are serving him.
Don't be surprised at sin's counterattack. But remember this. Satan brought every force of evil against the work of Christ and caused great pain, but God still accomplished his great work. God won. And though Satan may cause hurt and pain in your life, God will accomplish his purposes through you if you remain faithful.
Satan can never win.
Thank you, Father, for your power over Satan, over sin, over darkness, death, and every form of wickedness. Help me to realize that when you are working in me, the enemy will work against me, and you will overcome him!
Think and Pray
Have you bought into that false idea that God will always make everything easy and simple for you?
Remember that when God works in you, the enemy comes against you. Pray for the strength to overcome and stand strong.
Carol of the Day
No more let sins and sorrows grow,Nor thorns infest the ground;He comes to make His blessings flowFar as the curse is found,Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.
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