ROOTED - Wednesday, May 6, 2026

Jeremiah 7:8-10; 16-19

8-10  “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9 Will
you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to
Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, 10 and
then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name,
and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations?

16 “As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or
prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you. 17 Do
you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of
Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers kindle
fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of
heaven. And they pour out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke
me to anger. 19 Is it I whom they provoke? declares
the Lord. Is it not themselves, to their own shame?

Reflection: A Strong Warning

Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro

The other day I heard an old message by Pastor John Piper (who, as
many of you know, is my hero… the person I want to be when I grow up). He posed
this question (I am paraphrasing): Suppose you could go to heaven and there
would be no sickness, all the friends and family you have ever had would be
there… no more sadness or anxiety, no fear or guilt, all the comforts you have
ever wanted, along with happiness forever… but Jesus was not there! Would
you still want to be there? Would that satisfy you? That is, do we want
Jesus and our Christianity because of the benefits… or do we truly want
Jesus? Is Jesus what we are after? Is Christ our ultimate desire of our
hearts? I must confess that this question gets to the core, does it not?! It
really causes me to evaluate my own heart.

Jeremiah is speaking to people who are caught up in the trappings
and the benefits of God but really have no heart for God himself. Their hearts
are after Baal and the “queen of heaven” (a pagan goddess cult, likely Ishtar,
the Babylonian fertility goddess). They lived in such a way that was contrary
to their call to love God, and yet they would “stand before me (God) in this
house” only to “go on doing abominations.” God is so fed up with the hypocrisy
that he tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people or intercede for them, “for I
will not hear you.” And I wonder if the modern church of God is similar to the
people Jeremiah speaks against. We want the benefits of Jesus, and like the
trappings, but when it comes to Monday-Saturday we seem committed to our own
idolatries. We run the risk of being an abomination to Jesus like the Children
of Israel were. So, I ask myself, “would I be happy with a Heaven without
Jesus?” Do I want Jesus for what he offers, but reject Jesus on his own?

Prayer

Lord,
may we evaluate our hearts today. Show us where we stand in our desire for you…
not for the benefits you offer!