Scripture: Jeremiah 33:14-16
Part of the context which must be considered in reading this
passage is that a new church year is beginning, and this reading is for the
season of Advent where the focus is on the coming of Jesus; both as a baby in
the incarnation and as a glorious judge in the second coming. Jeremiah’s prophecy
points us to those events.
Most of Jeremiah’s ministry dealt with prophesying doom and
punishment for God’s people because of their sin. It is largely a sad book, and
Jeremiah is often referred to as, “The Weeping Prophet.” Chapters 30-33 stand
in stark contrast to the rest of the book. Here God promises hope and salvation
to His people. The verses appointed for this week point to days which are coming
that will see God keeping His promises to His people as He raises of a
righteous Branch which will spring up from David. It is a reference to the king
that will sit on David’s throne forever, whom we know to be Jesus. The passage
prepares us to receive this King and to watch for Him, reminding us that He
won’t be like any earthly king for He will be our righteousness.
Teaching
“The days are coming,” says the Lord through His servant
Jeremiah. This is not a phrase like people often use that, “someday,” they’ll
do this or that thing they’ve put on some kind of bucket list. This is God’s
way of saying that the time in imminent. Even so, imminent for God does not
always seem so imminent to His people. It would still be almost six-hundred
years until the righteous Branch would spring up.
This coming king would be different from any other that had
yet been born. For one thing, this king would be righteous and just in a way
that no other king had been before. Indeed, He would save God’s people and
would be their righteousness.
Life
As followers of Jesus our language is often influenced by
the way the Bible uses words. One of those words is righteous. In the 1980’s
and ‘90’s we might have heard someone talking about an intense or incredible
experience as being, “righteous,” but this is a word that doesn’t get much use
today. The word itself actually means to be right with God, or to do what is
right. It is somewhat synonymous with being holy. But here is what is so
special about this passage. It does not say that we will do righteous things,
or even become righteous. It says, “The Lord is our righteousness.” In other
words, it is what God does that makes us righteous, and that is ultimately true
in Jesus’ perfect life, death and resurrection.
Prayer
Lord God, You raised up the righteous Branch when Jesus was
born. He is our righteousness.
Lord Jesus, thank You for removing the burden of trying to
become righteous by our deeds and for giving Your life in such a way that You
have become our righteousness.
Forgive us, O God, for trying to satisfy You with our
righteousness and for imagining that we can somehow be good enough to satisfy
Your justice.
O Holy Spirit, help us to comprehend and be amazed by the
truth that the Father has kept His promises and given the Son to be our
righteousness, and grant us faith to trust in Him so firmly that our faith
changes the way we live and our lives testify to Christ’s righteousness which
is available to all. Amen.
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