DULL HEARTED
Today’s Reading: Jeremiah 51
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
Reynold photographed a Ugandan woman winnowing. Reynold and Kathy are helping to bring church leaders together in several areas to help answer the prayer of Jesus for unity (John 17). In today’s reading Jeremiah says that Babylon is “like a threshing floor” (51:33). This woman is standing on such a floor where the harvest is beaten with sticks and then exposed to a winnowing process to remove the chaff. You can see a bag of charcoal in the background ready for sale.
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verses: Jeremiah 51:17a
“Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge.”
It’s apparent that Jeremiah is trying to get God’s message through, not only to his own people, but to the Babylonians also. Jeremiah is doing his best to awaken the “dull hearted” and to impart knowledge, so he writes the words of this prophecy on a special scroll. Then he arranged to have the scroll taken to Babylon (Iraq), read to the exiles who were already there, such as Daniel and the others, and then, with a stone tied to the scroll, sink it to the bottom of the Euphrates River which flows through the centre of Babylon (Jeremiah 51:63, 64). This picture would probably have been in Daniel’s mind as he opened his window toward Jerusalem three times each day and prayed (Daniel 6:10).
Any of us who take the time and exercise the discipline necessary to read and study the Word of God daily are definitely not “dull hearted” and are not “without knowledge.” For example, we can have our hearts stimulated and our knowledge increased by reading Revelation 17:1 to 18:24. Here we read of a yet future Babylon which symbolically represents an “Evil Empire” (to quote Ronald Reagan) opposed to God. Again, as in the prophecy of Jeremiah, the Lord urgently calls to His people by a Voice from Heaven, “Come out of her, My people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues.” We, as believers in Jesus, the holy Son of God, have a message for the present time, which, if our hearts are not dull, we will heed! The Apostle quotes from Isaiah 52:11 and tells all followers of Jesus to “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord, and do not touch what is unclean.” Paul is referring to the idols of the Greeks and Romans. Read 2 Corinthians 6:11-18. He’s not telling us to enter a monastery or join the Amish. Essentially he’s telling us to be faithful to God in the midst of a Babylonian world all around us.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, I pray that You will help me not to be dull hearted. May I apply myself most diligently to the “knowledge” of You as You reveal Yourself through Your thoughts, which are expressed in all the Scriptures. May my heart be inundated by Your Truth, always perceiving Truth with the insight gained through the knowledge of Jesus, the One who is the “Living Word,” the true and full expression of what You have to say to Your human family. In His Name I pray, Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
I am praying fervently early each morning that God, the Holy Spirit, will use this blog to stimulate hearts (the opposite to “dull hearted”) by providing a practical daily path to “knowledge.” That fisher of men from the Sea of Galilee, Peter, gave his reason for writing his letters. He urged people to “be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets” (2 Peter 3:2a). I try to put myself in his shoes by remembering that the only written Word of God Peter had was his Hebrew Bible. He may or may not have been aware that he was writing a part of the Scriptures of the New Covenant of which Jeremiah had written. The Apostle Paul wrote, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable…” Join me in reading Paul’s words about his Bible (the Scriptures of the First Covenant) found in 2 Timothy 3:14 to 4:5. This speaks to me about the importance of reading even the difficult Scriptures such as Jeremiah 50 and 51.
In the 730 blogs that are taking us on a 24-month journey through all the Scriptures, we are now at 627 posts. I ask every reader to help me to get the word out about these blogs. Remember that anyone can start at any point and two years hence will have completed the entire volume of the knowledge God wants us to read from His Word, the Bible. Readers can take what I have to say as relatively unimportant compared to the actual Bible readings. I started this the day after the 50th anniversary celebrations of the ministry known as Crossroads Christian Communications (for a short video of the inspiration for this blog click here).
Yours as faithfully as God has given me His grace to continue,
David
P.S. It occurs to me that anyone can go back to all the earlier blogs and find any specific reading suggestion and commentary. I’m asking my son, Ron, to explain here how we can do this on our computers. For example, Ron, show me how I can find the longest recorded message of Jesus in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. I know how to find this in my Bible, but how do I find the commentaries from those blogs. Thank you my son!
OK…Ron here. If you go to www.100words.ca, you can type search words into the search bar at the top right, then hit “enter.” The results will show all of the blog posts with that particular word, and at the bottom of the results page you can click “older posts” to keep going back in time for that search. HOWEVER…if you want to be specific with a phrase or specific chapter of the Bible, then add “quotation marks” around the search words. For example, to find a blog regarding the Sermon on the Mount, you could put “Matthew 5” into the search bar (using quotation marks). Then the results will show ONLY the blogs where “Matthew” and “5” are used together in combination (otherwise, without quotation marks, it will show every blog where either “Matthew” or the number “5” was written). You could also put “Sermon on the Mount” in quotation marks. Hopefully that makes sense!
WOW!
I tried the search feature as suggested by Ron today and found reference to the blog of February 18, 2014.
I was surprised to see that the same fascinating winnowing picture was used two years ago. Plus ca change, plus la meme chose?
Thank you for helping me gain knowledge daily so that I am less dull-hearted!
Shalom,
Graham.
God Bless all my fellow bloggers today!
Thank you for all the knowledge and inspiration we have gained to follow the Lord more faithfully. Would appreciate the prayers for a friend who has just been admitted to the hospital with a heart attack. Thank you in advance!
Dear Heavenly Father I bring Ger’s friend before you and ask that Your Presence surrounds them and those ministering at this time. Give peace where there might be fear and a calmness that helps when pain is present. Thank You for healing Lord. In the precious name of Jesus. Amen
Amen I agree together for healing In Jesus name Amen
In agreement with Catherine’s prayer. Lord God, bring a hedge of protection around Ger’s friend. Holy Spirit, come into her/his heart and bring healing power and strength. In the precious Name of Jesus, we pray, amen, amen, and amen.
Amen! agreeing in prayer for Ger’s friend in Jesus Name!
Thank you Pastor David and Ron, for helping me to understand difficult Biblepassiges better without becoming too smart !
Praying for God’s blessing & healing on everyone in need here.
Thankyou Lord Jesus for answering our prayers, Amen!
Very cool about the search engine-been wanting to read again Ann’s story about the eagle-found it in an instant! Praying more fervently that God will enable me to share this blog with others! Blessings David and family and fellow bloggers!!
I pray for healing Ger ‘s friend as well
Amen
Lianne Hog
oops last name spelled Hogg
David
At the recent Missionsfest in Vancouver, I met a staff person from Trinity Western University and introduced her to 100words.ca. and shared how God had saved and is healing your life through the process. This has been a great reading the Scripture Program – yes, even through all the tough books and chapters. As I read Jeremiah, God speaking to the people again and again reminds me of the world we live in today, when more and more of the world is turning a deaf ear to the Lord. Let us continue to pray for a great outpouring of the Spirit of God, bringing an awakening to our own heart and to the world around us. Prayers for Ger’s friend who suffered a heart attack. I just spent 6 days in hospital for the same reason after 6 1/2 years of strict attention to health, exercise and nutrition – doing very well – But the stent that was put in at that time had narrowed and, thank God, the health specialists were able to insert another stent within the old stent. So, this past week, since coming home, I have been in a quiet reflective space as I take this opportunity “to listen” to his still voice and “to hear” as I continue to desire to remain pliable in the Potter’s Hand. Though in hospital, I was quite comfortable without any further pain, and was able to continue to read and keep up with all the chapters in Jeremiah. It is truly a powerful book – a powerful message. Thank you David for your faithfulness, to all the bloggers who are linked together through our Lord and this medium, the excellent photos, and all those involved in making this blog happen. Samuel
Oh Pastor Samuel, I am holding you in very special prayer, on my hands and knees, that this stent will give you many more years, here, on earth as it is in heaven. Praise God you were well taken care of, and are home, now, to rest and be renewed in the quietness of His Holy Spirit, Word and blog. Be rekindled, dear sir. ‘Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with My righteous right hand’ Isa 41:10. “Follow Me. I am the way and the truth and the life.” Jn 14:6
Amen!
God told me to come out from among them and be ye separate
Praise God for Gods Word and directing our path
Praise God !!!!!
Awesome power in the Word and in this blog. Thank you David! And Ron for the search engine instructions. Yes, we are wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus–in our hearts and souls, forever, amen! God’s continued blessings, dearest saints in the Lord!
Nothing will be impossible for you. Matthew 17:20 (NIV)
At the Cross, Hillsong
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00Nci1ATvPg
Thank you dear friends for all your prayers. There was a heart attack but no pain and shortness of breath. I believe your prayers did make a difference and God bless each one of you for your faithful response.
God continue to bless you, Ger, and all those who have physical, emotional, and, financial needs. Nothing really is impossible for God.
Yes, “come out from among them” …staying in the arms of Jesus, rejoicing in Him. A much better place!