 |
Jeremiah 7:24 "But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward."
Politically if someone is called "progressive," that is usually just code for "liberal." Liberal is an accurate description of someone who is generous (liberal) with the Constitution. However, progressive is a faulty characterization because it equates liberality with "progress." You are not making progress if you are facing the wrong direction. You may be going fast and a lot of things may be happening, but if you are not facing the right direction, it is not progress!
Now, let me ask you a question: Are you any closer to God right now than you were a month ago? A year ago? Your life may be full of activity and progress, but are you facing the right direction? A football player sprinting toward the wrong end zone generates a lot of cheering and excitement, but he is going the wrong way!
In Jeremiah 7, God is speaking to people that would not listen. Back in chapter 3 you will find words like backsliding, turn, turn back, return. (One of my kids used to say "back-slipping." That is a pretty good picture of backsliding!) God called and sent prophets numerous times, but His people would not hear. The reason they would not-and could not-hear is that their backs were turned to God-they were heading the wrong way. Thus, God says in verse 24, "And went backward, and not forward." Which way are you heading this morning-backward or forward?
Jim Marshall, a professional football player for the Minnesota Vikings, is probably best known for one infamous play in 1964. Against the 49ers, Marshall recovered a fumble and ran the ball over sixty yards into the end zone. The only problem was, he ran into his own end zone! He celebrated what he thought was a touchdown; but he actually scored a safety worth two points for the other team! Amazingly, Jim Marshall was not the first player to head the wrong way. Roy Riegels, nearly 35 years earlier, earned the nickname "Wrong Way" for doing the same thing in the Rose Bowl!
Can you imagine the shame of ending up in the wrong end zone? That would be bad news! You may be busy today making progress, but what is important is the direction you are heading. If you are not making progress toward God, it does not matter what you are making progress toward-you are not progressing. Whether or not you are making progress depends on your relationship to the right "end zone." As a child of God, your goal is to be more like the Heavenly Father. Are you heading in the right direction?
|
| |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment