A Feigned Return

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I'm reading through Jeremiah right now, on my way through all of the Old Testament prophets. Learning about the history of Israel's conflicts is a very interesting subject, as there are many parallels that I see between their situation and our own country. While I would not accept the idea that the Church of today has taken the place and the promises of the Jewish people of the Old Testament, I do think there are many things we can learn from their situations and relationship with God.

In Jeremiah 3, God is speaking through the prophet Jeremiah and telling Israel that she has continually "played the harlot" and refused to come back to Him. He also describes "her treacherous sister Judah" who "hath not turned unto Me with her whole heart, but feignedly," (3:10). That, in and of itself, is an interesting aspect of this chapter. In the very next verse God says, "The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah." (vs. 11). This reminds me of what God said to the church of the Laodiceans:

"I know thy works, that thou are neither cold nor hot: I would thou were cold or hot. So then, because thou are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth." (Revelation 3:15-16)

The reference to Judah as turning to God "feignedly" is something I think it's good to keep in mind for us not just as individuals, but also as a country. We've continued to turn our backs on God as a nation, and we have to be careful about those in our country who would make false concessions towards a return to our godly heritage, our Christian forefathers. Some things may appear to be advances, but are in reality a grudging head-nod. A good example would be the placing of the Ten Commandments in the courtroom. In the case of Judge Roy Moore, those Ten Commandments actually had purpose and meaning, and they would be followed, thus making it more than just a "lukewarm" acknowledgement, but with most other judges, to every unbelieving government official, it is simply a vague and meaningless reference to our former nation, which once existed for the glory of God.

This is not a discouragement, but an encouragement. There have been advances in some areas for those of us fighting to return our nation to her godly roots, but let's pray that it is a true advance, and not "feignedly" turning to God.