Jeremiah 9:5 they wear themselves out with all their sinning. 6 They pile lie upon lie and utterly refuse to acknowledge Me,” says the LORD. 7 Therefore, this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: “See, I will melt them down in a crucible and test them like metal.”
When I think of the lost and wonder “how do they find their way back to You, God?” I always think of this scripture where God says they wear themselves out with their sinning. And I am remedied of the laws of reaping and sowing. If you sow sin, you reap destruction.
For some, they must first walk the path of what doesn’t work, so they can finally get onto the path of what does, the path that is in obedience and surrender to God’s will.
God allows them to find that out because sinning “tires and disgusts” them. God’s law of reaping what you sow is perfect to teach the lost the lessons they are too stubborn in heart to hear but must learn for themselves.
They will sow wheat but reap thorns; they will wear themselves out but gain nothing. They will bear the shame of their harvest because of the LORD’s fierce anger.” Jeremiah 12:13
In Jeremiah 4 God explains what is needed for a lost person to come back to Him.
3“Plow up the hard ground of your hearts! Do not waste your good seed among thorns. 4 O people of Judah and Jerusalem, (surrender your pride and power. Change your hearts before the LORD.) Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and remove the foreskins of your hearts, Jeremiah 4:3-4
Physical circumcision was used to create the Covenant between God and His people because covenants always required cutting and blood, a separation through the cutting. This then became the separation between Jew and Gentile.
When God talks about circumcising the heart, He is still talking about a cutting, a separation. Being separated from things that are not part of His will, His plan, and what He considers will keep you from Him. Look how the scripture says that He will circumcise your hearts so that YOU MAY love Him with ALL your heart, and soul. He knows that those things that we don’t separate from will keep us from being able to fully love Him.
The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live. Deuteronomy 30:6
Note that God says that HE WILL circumcise! That is something to really take note of and ponder. That He is declaring that He is going to do that!
This is not just for the lost spouse. During our time of standing, this is exactly what WE should be doing during our time of waiting. We should be using this time to draw near to the Lord, cutting away all those things that help us separate ourselves as His chosen, set apart from the world, children! Removing from our lives, our hearts anything that is going to keep us from loving Him with ALL our hearts and soul that we may live!
Father,
As Your Word says, YOU will change hearts so that we will be able to love You with our whole heart and soul. (Deut 30:6) We thank You for that cutting that comes in our life, and the life of our spouse so that we may have LIFE.
Please prepare us with the tools so that we may dig up the hard, stubborn places of our hearts, weeding out the thorns so that no seed goes to waste. May we overcome that stiff neck that keeps us from seeking You fully. May we cry out to You over our stubborn necks and yield to You what it takes to become changed. Help us be humble, pliable, and yielding to You Father God. Open our hearts and eyes so that we see how this stubbornness is destroying us, keeping us from You.
As we sow into things that keep us from You, we are sowing seeds that will bring back to us weariness and disgust. I pray for a 100 fold harvest of weariness and disgust upon anything that is being sown in sin. I pray that harvest comes and does what it was created to do, cut away those things in our hearts that are keeping us from You!
In JESUS NAME!!
Amen
BIBLE STUDY–
laah: to be weary or impatient, exhausted, find difficulty, parched, from the root word to be disgusted. Grow weary over failed attempts at consolation ( comfort from suffering).Some examples we see of the word laah being used.
Isn’t it enough to exhaust (laah) human patience? Must you exhaust (laah) the patience of my God as well? Isaiah 7:13
I love how Jeremiah explains his weariness over holding back the Word of God and how this weariness is driving him to say he just can’t do it anymore.
But if I say I’ll never mention the LORD or speak in His name, His word burns in my heart like a fire. It’s like a fire in my bones! I am worn out trying to hold it in! I can’t do it! Jeremiah 20:9
Standing with you,
Sheila Hollinger
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(~Marriage Revealed Ministries Inc. is committed to helping bring healing and restoration to couples who are struggling in their marriage. We do this through the revelation of Who God is and His heart and design for marriage which never intends abuse in any form. If you suspect abuse in your relationship, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or visit them online at thehotline.org~
