Our Daily Bread
“for what is straw compared to grain?” Jeremiah 23:28b csb
Over the past several years, I have become a bread maker. I always was scared of baking bread because of the precision of the ingredients. But when the lockdowns came, I thought I have nothing better to do with my time, so why not start learning? I began researching how to make sourdough starters, flours to use, and tools to purchase. When it came time for learning the method of making a loaf of bread, I was overwhelmed with how many different recipes and correct ways of proofing flour. Everyone's way was the best way of making a loaf of bread!
The same is true in life. There are many opinions about how someone should live their lives. In the time of Jeremiah, the same was true, many false prophets rose up and told the people they should listen to this teacher or this teaching. But all of these are ‘straw’ Jeremiah says. We aren’t horses we don’t eat straw we need bread. God had given them His Word which He called ‘grain’ so they didn’t have to search for truth, He gave it to them. What is man's opinion compared to God's Word? Bread is the stuff of life, and there is nothing quite like the smell of a freshly baked loaf of bread. There is nothing like the fresh manna of God's Word, it fills us up like nothing else. Jesus declared, “Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4 csb We don’t have to be overwhelmed by people's opinions and advice on how we should live, raise our families, and conduct our lives. God has given us His Word to feast on daily. They said, Sir, give us this bread always! Jesus told them, I Am the Bread of Life! John 6:34-35a csb Let us come to Jesus daily and receive our bread!
Agape Pastor Frank
God Sees and Hears
“Lord, You saw the wrong done to me; judge my case. You saw all their vengefulness, all their plots against me. Lord, You heard their insults, all their plots against me. The lander and the murmuring of my opponents attack me all day long.” Lamentations 3:60-62 csb
Jeremiah was a Prophet who was not well-liked by his peers. Why you might ask? Because Jeremiah spoke the truth, it hurt their feelings. The people didn’t want to hear the truth about their condition. As a faithful servant and minister of the Word of God Jeremiah kept speaking truth in love even when they didn’t want to hear it.
As Christians, we can be hated as well for simply being honest, truthful, and caring. The same happened to Jesus Christ. He is the Truth and was hated for it. The religious leaders became plotters, vengeful, and insulting. They blasphemed Christ and accused Him of sin. Yet, He remained faithful to His calling as well. Jeremiah knew the God who sent him to speak to the people was also watching their reactions. God heard the plots they spoke in secret. Jeremiah trusted that God would deal with the scoffers and slanderers in his life. He said in vs 64-65, “You will pay them back what they deserve, Lord, according to the work of their hands. You will give them a heart filled with anguish.”
As a child of God, we can rest with confidence and assurance that our enemies become His enemies. Even when they think they got away with hurting you, the God of Israel saw and heard it all. He misses nothing. Praise God we have a protective Father, and we don’t have to fight our own battles. If you find yourself dealing with people like Jeremiah and Jesus, do what they did, and trust the Father who sees and hears.
Agape,
Pastor Frank