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Seek the Lord from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

The book of Jeremiah gives us a vivid description of the Lord's backslidden people. They chased every god under the sun except the right One while claiming they followed Him. They had become more corrupt than the people the Lord had driven out before them. There were male and female cult prostitutes, and their new religion involved a lot of sex and babies, which they conveniently offered as a sacrifice to the god molech.

The Lord sent prophets to warn them, but they killed them and chased them out of the temple instead of heeding their words. Eventually, the Lord said, Enough! He decided to reboot the nation and give them seventy years in exile. He arranged for the Babylonians to destroy Jerusalem and carry the inhabitants away to live as slaves in a foreign land.

It was a horrible siege that lasted over two years, and after all the food ran out, the people began eating one another. The people had broken their covenant with the Lord and suffered a terrible judgment, yet, Jeremiah the prophet gave them this word of hope:

(Jeremiah 29:10–13 NKJV)  For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

"You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." So Judah went into exile for seventy years. Then the Lord began to call people to seek Him again and return. Daniel, Nehemiah, Ezra, and others brought reform to the people's thinking, and a remnant returned and began rebuilding Jerusalem. They were dedicated to the Lord for a while, and then when things started going well for them, the cycle began again.

There is nothing worse than a lukewarm, "can take it or leave it" attitude about your faith. The Lord Jesus Christ said it like this:

(Revelation 3:15–17 NKJV)  "I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked"

Jesus was speaking about the Laodicean church. These were people who were supposed to be leading others in the faith. Not unbelievers. This is the blind leading the blind, and you darn sure don't want to follow them where they are going.

Christianity isn't a "set and forget" religion like a crockpot. It's not, "I was saved back in 83," but I never spoke to Him again. I am sorry, the bar is a little higher than that. If that's your attitude, prepare to become vomit. Jesus said this to HIS disciples:

(Matthew 7:15–20 NKJV)  "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them."

Notice that you don't have to be downright evil, just neutral. When the Lord appears, any tree not bearing good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. It takes years for a tree to start bearing fruit, so don't wait until the last minute.

I know we are saved by grace through faith, but faith without works is dead (James 2:24). Oh, but you believe in God? So do demons, and they tremble (James 2:19). I worked with a man who thought he was going to heaven because he laughed a lot and felt he was a good person. Don't count on it. The Lord has a different measuring stick. Jesus continued speaking to His disciples:

(Matthew 7:21–23 NKJV)  "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'"

These were people who called Him Lord but didn't do the will of His Father. They practiced lawlessness, a disregard for His commandments. "Well, I just can't believe my Sweet Jesus meant that!" Let's continue:

(Matthew 7:24–27 NKJV)  "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. "But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."

There is no way to flippantly disobey the Lord's commandments and justify a right relationship with Him. We are deceiving ourselves to think otherwise. The Lord Jesus Christ is returning, and now is the time to prepare yourself for it. 

The Lord is calling people right now to come to Him. That drawing you feel inside of you, seeing this message in front of you, is Him knocking. Don't ignore His call, for when the door of the ark was sealed, those who were outside stayed out there.

(Isaiah 55:6–7 NKJV)  Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.

You can pray this with me if you like:

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I thank You for another day to seek You! Please speak to me in a way I understand. Draw my heart to You and cover me with Your zeal. I want more of You in my life today. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!