A Roaring Lion

In today's passage from Jeremiah, the enemy who is about to attack Judah is compared to a lion. This brings to mind another verse found in the New Testament, I Peter 5: 8 - 9: " Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, stand firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings".

Today's passage is a prophecy of the invasion of Babylon, which by the way, is in what we know today as Iraq.

"A lion has come out of his lair; a destroyer of nations has set out. He has left his place to lay waste your land. Your towns will lie in ruins without inhabitant. So put on sackcloth, lament and wail, for the firece anger of the Lord has not turned away from us. ' In that day', declares the Lord, ' the kings and officials will lose heart, and the priest will be horrified, and the prophets will be appalled".

The Lord told them to put on sackcloth - that was a sign of repentance, and that's what he keeps trying to tell us over and over again. I can't stress enough, the importance of taking God at his Word, and that our greatest need in this country is to repent. We saw firsthand on 9/11/01, how a great enemy sought out to "lay waste" to our land, and if anyone thinks that he isn't still over there calculating his next plan of attack, I would dare to say that you have your head in the sand.

Just as the people of God in Judah were warned about the attack that was to come upon them because of their continual sin, so are we warned all throughout the scriptures, about the consequences of sin. Ignorance is not going to be a valid excuse when one stands before the Lord in that final day.

It's no accident that Satan, the enemy, is referred to as a roaring lion in both of these texts. Jesus told us that "Satan has come to steal, kill and destroy".

Here's the good news! Jesus told us in John 16: 33, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world!". I pray today that you will seek this peace of Jesus that he speaks about - it's a peace that lives in our hearts, that gives us hope for our future with Him. Get to know God through his Word, and get before him to find out what his will is for your life. As he said in the opening passage from I Peter, we need to stay alert and have on the armour of God ( Ephesians 6), so that we have the right equipment to fight this spiritual battle with.

Preparing to Do God's Will

Back to the 1st chapter of Jeremiah - verses 11 - 16, God is telling Jeremiah of the coming invasion of Babylon into Judah.
Verses 17 - 19 tells how God spoke to Jeremiah to prepare himself for this battle.
"Get yourself ready. Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified of them, or I will terrify you before them. Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land - against the kings of Judah, its priests and its officials, and the people of the land. They will fight against you but will not overcome you for I am with you and will resue you", declares the Lord."
These verses can be applied to our every day life, and in particularly I see them as vital to the believers who are in America and facing all kinds of problems with our economy, with our leaders who are adamant about passing and upholding laws that are morally wrong, etc.
We are to do as Jeremiah did, and take a stand against the sins of our nation. We have the power to voice our opinions in casting our votes at the election polls; we have the ability to write our men and women in Congress and let them know how we stand on the issues. If we continue to sit back and say or do nothing, then we can expect for the things of God to continue to be slowly erased from our country's moral code as the founding Fathers penned.
These verses can also be applied to one's personal battles, whether they are emotional, spiritual, or physical, as in sickness and such. God wants to be a part of our lives, and go to battle for us and with us when we face the trials of life. Here he is telling us specifically how to go into those battles. The Bible isn't just a book of stories of long ago - it's our handbook for life - our guide to daily living and is full of God's practical ways of dealing with things. An open heart to hear His word is all that's needed to see and put to practice what He's directing us in.
"Get yourself ready" = Put on the Armor of God - Ephesians 6
"stand up" = the original Hebrew means - to declare
"terrified" = the original Hebrew means - confused, fearful, beaten down, discouraged, scared
"fortified" = the original Hebrew means - the most strong, inaccessible
"kings of Judah" - refers to Molech - a false god that was worshipped, and children were sacrificed to him.
"officials" = the original Hebrew means - head person, those who were put into rank, masters
"overcome" - the original Hebrew means - have power or prevail
Lets re-read that with the original words put in:
"Put on the Armor of God and delcare to them whatever I command you. Do not be confused or fearful, beaten down, discouraged or scared of them, or I will terrify you before them. Today I have made you the most strong and inaccessible to stand against those who have rank and power. They will fight against you, but the will not have power or prevail over you, for I am with you and will rescue you, declares the Lord.
We are in a spiritual battle - we each have our own personal battles, and we have them as a whole in our country. We as believers have the power of the Holy Spirit of God, and are to draw on HIS strength, power and His Word to go into these battles, because if we try to do it on our own strength, we will be overcome and defeated.
What is the stronghold in your life today? Is it an addiction, financial hardships, sickness, relationships that are in upheaval.....whatEVER it is, the Lord is showing you how He will prepare you and be with you as you take a stand against these things that are trying to invade and destroy your life.
I pray that the peace of God, that the power of the Holy Spirit, will be made manifest in your life today, and throughout this week.

Janelle