Jeremiah 44:17 "But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil."
Pragmatic Help
As Americans, we like things that are practical. I've been reading a biography of a great world leader, and I must admit that the rituals, pomp, and ceremony in other cultures are wildly different than what life is like for a Tennessean! Much of what we enjoy and work with on a daily basis is pragmatic-that is, "if it works, do it." That can be good if you are talking about business and hard work, but that type of mentality is deadly if you use it to guide your life.
Be careful to not mistake something that works for something that is right. We are so accustomed to asking, "Does it work?", but the real question is, "Is it right?" Living by what works, instead of what is right, is faulty, short-sighted, and damaging!
When I read the passage in Jeremiah 44, my first reaction was, "What?!" The children of Israel worshipped an idol precisely because, in their eyes, it worked for them. They concluded that life was better because of what they practically gained. An idol never gave them food or protection; God did! When you live by what works instead of what is right, you develop a faulty view of what is true.
Doing things that don't work is not a virtue, nor is it smart. However, doing things that work simply because they work is wrong and foolish! What you think "works" may be short-sighted in the larger scheme of things. We can be guilty of the same foolish thinking that Israel had in Jeremiah 44. For example, does telling the truth work for you? Sometimes lying works (in the short term), but God clearly says, "Thou shalt not bear false witness." Telling the truth may not work for you, but telling the truth is right!
Don't let your sense of what works cloud your sense of what is right. Rely on God's perfect standard, the Bible, to answer the question of right or wrong; then work by His strength to make things work.
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