| “And seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not: for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the Lord” (Jeremiah 45:5). |
| These words were said by Jeremiah to a young man by the name of Baruch, who was a scribe that did some of the writing for Jeremiah. He was evidently very upset by the condition of things among the Jews at that time, and had talked about it. |
| We are not told just what “great things” Baruch had been thinking about, and what he might have wanted, but the Lord told Jeremiah to warn Baruch not to seek great things. Why would the Lord say this to a young man? When we are young and healthy, we are accustomed to looking ahead in life, and wanting to use our time and energy to make something of ourselves. |
| However, the Jews were about to be carried away into captivity by the Babylonians under King Nebuchadnezzar. They had continually worshiped idols and dishonored the Lord, to the point where the Lord could not call them His people outwardly any longer. Jeremiah knew this, even though the king of Judah and many of his advisors did not believe it. But Jeremiah knew that the kingdom of Judah was at an end, and that it was not the time to seek great things. |
| So it is for you and me today. Ever since the Lord Jesus was crucified this world has been under judgment, and it is only a matter of time until the Lord carries it out. God has been gracious and has waited nearly 2,000 years while the gospel goes out. We can be thankful for this, but it is not a time to be seeking great things for ourselves in this world. It is a time to be serving the Lord and seeking His interests in this world. Yes, we need a house to live in, food to eat, and clothes to wear. We need a job to earn our living, and it is right for us to work and support ourselves. But to look for great things down here is to do so in a world that rejected the Lord Jesus, and that is now under judgment. How much better it is to use our time for the Lord, and to lay up treasure in heaven! |
