Dear ones in Christ,
God loved His people, the Israelites so much. And he wanted them to hear His voice and live according to that. But God says, “What iniquity have they found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?” Moreover they chose gods who were not gods, and have turned away from the Living God. My people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. So God called Prophet Jeremiah which he was of small age. In Jeremiah 1:7 God said, “say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak”. God honored Jeremiah as a prophet.
Jeremiah warned the people of Israel by the words which God spoke to him. In Jeremiah 2:13 God said, “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water”. Even we, when God separate us from this sinful world and lead us, when we turn away from him, we should come back to God and hold him firmly, so that he may not hate us. We should not choose the foreign gods that is the broken cisterns. We should not seek after the worldly things which cannot satisfy us.
Let us see what the broken cisterns are:
The abundance of riches:
Psalms 52:5, 7 says, “Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.” Many people do not depend upon the living God, but choose the abundant riches which are the broken cistern. Again in Proverbs 17:23, we read, “A wicked man taketh gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment”. Again in Mark 10:24, we read, “How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God”. So never trust in the broken cistern which is the abundant riches.
Trusting the thoughts of the hearts of the princes :
In Psalms 146:3, we read, “Put not the trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help”. Again in Psalms 10:4, 6, we read, “The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved: for I shall never be in adversity”. In Proverbs 28:26 we read, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely shall be delivered”.
Trusting the strength of the weapons and those who protects us:
In Isaiah 31:1 we read, “Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord ”. In Psalms 20:7, 8 we read, “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God”.
Trusting the knowledge, wisdom:
In Isaiah 47:10, 11, 12 we read, “For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me”. We should not leave God and trust in our knowledge and wisdom. This is like the broken cistern.
Trusting the sword, spear, and foreign gods:
The Philistine Goliath defied the Living God. In 1 Samuel 17:45, we read, “Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied”.
Trusting the man:
In Jeremiah 17:5, God says, “Cursed be the man trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord”, Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. In Jeremiah 17:13, we read, “O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters”.
My dear friends who read this! The people of Israel turned away from the living God and chose to trust in the abundance of riches, the thoughts of the princes, trust in the strength of the weapons, trust in their knowledge and wisdom, trust in their sword, spear, shield and upon foreign gods which were broken cistern and they lost the glory of God. Let us live a life just as we read in 1 Timothy 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called”. Again in 1 Timothy 6:17, we read, “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches”. Let us put our trust upon the living God who gives us all things we are enjoying in abundance. Maranatha!
