Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Obey the Whole Gospel

Jeremiah 36

21 The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi brought it from Elishama’s room and read it to the king as all his officials stood by. 22 It was late autumn, and the king was in a winterized part of the palace, sitting in front of a fire to keep warm. 23 Each time Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king took a knife and cut off that section of the scroll. He then threw it into the fire, section by section, until the whole scroll was burned up. 24 Neither the king nor his attendants showed any signs of fear or repentance at what they heard. 25 Even when Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah begged the king not to burn the scroll, he wouldn’t listen.


King Jehoiakim is not unlike most of us who claim to be part of God’s Kingdom today. Lots of us choose to ignore or “cut out” the parts of God’s Word that don’t suit us. When we ignore those sections of Scripture or worse yet, when we deliberately live in the opposite way that we are supposed to, we are throwing those parts of the Holy Word of God into the fire of our own self-importance and delusion. Can anything but disaster await us just as it did King Jehoiakim and his followers? Lord, it is my desire to follow Your Word. Even, no especially the parts of Your Word that are difficult or that challenge my desire to be the boss of me. May I submit everything to You, Lord, and may I obey Your Whole Gospel.

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