The Word Restored

Bobservations Column
By Pastor Bob Lawrenz

In the days of Israel wandering in the wilderness, towards the end of their journey, Moses was called up onto a mountain. And there he received the Ten Commandments, etched on two stone tablets to share with the People. Now safely away from Pharaoh and his army, and Egypt clearly behind them, the Lord knew they would need laws to guide their lives in a land promised to them by God.

But when Moses came down from the mountain, he was incensed by what the people were doing, and threw the tablets down, breaking them to bits. And today in Jeremiah, we learn that the words of God were an offense to those that held power over the people in Jeremiah's day. 

Are we not watching the same thing happen again in our own land today?

Man's actions are offensive to many, and God’s Word is an offense to those who hold sway over others by instilling fear in the weak and slow to understand. Today’s message leaps out of the Bible and onto the front page of nearly every media outlet available. Solomon was absolutely correct: “There is nothing new under the sun.” 

While many believe we are living in the Last Days, today’s message is one of hope in the future. Whether the laws were broken by Moses, by Jehoiakim, or by those that rebel against western society and our culture, the Laws inspired by God can never be erased from the human heart, and they will be restored one day. But let’s be more specific than just “one day.” Moses broke the tablets in Exodus 32, and God etched new tablets in Exodus 34. If we believe the timeline set forth in many Study Bibles, the Law was restored to the people within a year, if not within days. In the Book of Jeremiah, Jehoiakim destroyed the words of God in chapter 36 and they were restored in the same chapter. 

We are told, and we believe that our nation’s laws were originally founded upon Godly principles found in God’s Word. God’s inspiration to mankind is all around us. I believe the restoration of law and order will be soon. God will not put up with His inspired words being set aside, and removing them or changing them comes with heavy penalties in Revelation 22.

"Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but my words shall never pass away.”  (Mt. 24:35 ~ Mk. 13:31 ~ Lk. 21:33).

Today's Audio Message: "The Word Restored"

In chapter 36, once again we see God’s wonderful mercy to a sinful nation.

Jehoiakim was an evil king. Unlike his father, King Josiah who honored the word of God with great reverence, Jehoiakim had great contempt for, and rebellion against God’s word.

Jeremiah is instructed to take a scroll and write down all the words that God gives him to be proclaimed before the unrepentant people of Judah. He sends Baruch, his scribe, to proclaim God's Word to the people, and when the officials in the temple heard, their hearts were stirred wanting to hear more. They receive it, authenticate that it is from God, and take it to the King.

Not everyone welcomes God’s word or heeds His warning. . Jehoiakim did not accept God’s word or His warning. He would not believe that God would make good on His threat and bring the Babylonians down upon Judah. He sought to silence God by throwing His words into the fire. So God speaks His word directly through Jeremiah to Jehoiakim - when you despise and reject the Word of God, you're done! You are cut off permanently - and he was.

One of the ways that God vindicates His own Word is through the fact that He fulfills it. Everything happens just as He promises; and when it’s all over, it will be proven that—as it says elsewhere in Scripture—“Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass” (Joshua 21:45).

God’s Word endures forever. God stands behind His own word, and as we see from this passage, He preserves it, He broadcasts it, He authenticates it, He protects it, and He fulfills it!