Prosperity

Jeremiah

If you were in church this past Sunday, you might have been as disturbed by God as I was. We read this.

Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper. Jeremiah 29:7

The context of what God spoke through Jeremiah is this. The People of God chose to ignore God’s admonition to return to godly (holy) living. You see, God’s People had gotten lazy and took their choosiness as entitlement and quit caring about acting rightly with others and with God. The People of God did what felt good to them. And they lost everything (as God predicted) and went to live under their conquerors.

Then God says, “Help your conquerors flourish. Pray for them. Your destiny is tied up with them. Even though they brought you low, you now must work with them. This is Plan B. Remember; you chose to thumb your nose at plan A.” “By the way, this will take a while. No quick fixes.”

Today, we are the People of God. We often do what feels good and, while we tip our hat to God a lot, don’t take God too seriously by changing the trajectory of our lives as a result of the freedom Christ gives us. We elect people who “hope other elected officials fail.” We turn a blind eye to the hunger, homelessness and lack of healthcare in our own backyard. And we are fearful an angry a lot.

Sounds like Jeremiah is speaking to us.

I wonder if we should listen and act?