But Jeremiah said, “They shall not deliver you. Please, obey the voice of the Lord which I speak to you. So it shall be well with you, and your soul shall live.
Jeremiah 38:20
Jeremiah had told King Zedekiah the Lord wanted him to surrender to the Chaldeans if he wanted to survive. He had assured him that the Babylonian army would sack the city if they didn’t surrender. Zedekiah was afraid of the people who had already defected. He feared the Chaldeans would turn him over to the previous defectors for them to torture. Jeremiah gives the king advice that we can use.
The advice: Obey the voice of the Lord… so things will be easier on you and so that you will live. We face the same choice as we walk with Jesus today. We can obey His voice or walk in fear of those around us. When we obey His voice we find that even the circumstances that God has sent to turn us from choosing the wrong things in our lives can work out well for us bringing life with the choice. When we fear others it costs us more than obeying the Lord.
Zedekiah was afraid of the captives. When he tried to escape his whole royal court was destroyed, his sons were killed before him, and then the Chaldean’s blinded him so that the death of his sons was his last sight before chaining him for transport to Babylon for their king. Zedekiah could have been another exile in Babylon for 70 years. His sons could have survived to give him more descendants. Instead he lost everything and was imprisoned until he died.
This is a very clear principal for us to learn. Obey the Lord to be living, free, and blessed. Obey the fear of others to be grieved, blind and imprisoned. Walk in obedience to Jesus today. Hear His voice inside of you resonate as you read His word, listen to good teaching, or when a good friend speaks His word to you. Then obey that voice! Lord, help me hear and obey.
Prophetic Advice,
Pastor Jason
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