Jeremiah 17 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

Jeremiah 17:5-8

This is what the LORD says: “Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the LORD. That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.

 

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”

 

Such a stark contrast between the outcomes, all because of who we trust and put our faith in. It can be easy to put our hope and trust in those things that we can see physically, but it’s the one who puts it in the hands of the Lord that reaps the true reward. How can we expect to receive peace, eternal security, provision, and prosperity from someone who doesn’t have these things themselves? Love, Salvation, peace, grace, and mercy didn’t originate with us but rather was brought and given to us by the LORD.

 

This is the analogy the Lord gave me about these two verses today: in a nursery, the babies don’t look to each other to change them, feed them, provide and care for them, but they look for someone bigger than them, greater than them, more in control than them, someone who knows more than them. For a baby to look at another baby to save them is ludicrous, right? But that’s no different than when we look to the world to do what only God can!

 

We can love on one another, encourage one another, share with one another. We can do all sorts of things for and with one another, but we can’t be each other’s gods. We can wear a lot of hats, we can fill a lot of roles, but we can’t sit on the throne. That’s reserved for the Lord and the Lord alone!

 

Isaiah 43:10-12 - “But you are my witnesses, O Israel!” says the LORD. “You are my servant. You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other God— there has never been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the LORD, and there is no other Savior. First, I predicted your rescue, then I saved you and proclaimed it to the world. No foreign god has ever done this. You are witnesses that I am the only God,” says the LORD.

 

God bless! I love you all! Glory, Honor, and Praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

 

Jeremiah 17:10

“I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve."

 

Does the Lord like what He sees in you? Are your motives and thoughts pleasing and pure? Or are they driven by worldly things and lusts of the flesh?

 

One of the ways to tell whether you’re operating in the flesh or in the Spirit is asking yourself, “How do I respond when something doesn’t go my way or catches me off guard?” What are your thoughts like when this happens? Are they condemning, judgmental, self-righteous, or accusatory? Or are they forgiving, understanding (not condoning), loving, and compassionate? One of these ways comes from a heart filled with the love of Christ, and the other filled with the love of the world!

 

Trust me, we can’t operate like the better option on our own. It takes daily surrender, repentance, and constant help from the Holy Spirit to do it, but it is possible to walk and respond more like Jesus than the world we live in! It’s not our job to change our hearts. Only the Lord can take our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh, but it is our job to determine what we allow into our hearts! Every TV show, every Facebook post, every song, every word you speak or hear is planting a seed! You are either sowing righteousness or unrighteousness, life or death, worry or worship, fear or faith! You cannot go both up and down at the same time; it’s impossible. You have to choose one! Remember, it’s not our job to grow our heart but to guard it!

 

Proverbs 4:23 - Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

 

Matthew 15:18 – “But the things that come out of a person's mouth come from the heart, and these defile them.”

 

Whatever is in your heart will set the course for your whole life, so we better make sure it’s the Lord and not the land!

 

God bless! I love you all!! Glory, Honor, and Praise forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit! 

 

 

Jeremiah 17:14

Heal me, LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.

Jeremiah’s words are so powerful, beautiful, and true! It is God alone who heals and saves. We cannot find true healing and salvation in anyone else than Christ alone! He is our Redeemer, our Defender, our Healer. and our God. He gave freely that we may live freely in Him. It can be so easy for us to forget this or get off track. We live such busy lives with so much commotion clamoring for our attention that we forget this simple yet profound truth. It always has been and always will be all about Him – Who He is, what He has done, and what He has promised.

Too often, we turn to ourselves, to the world, and to those around us for the things only God can give us. It’s easier to go to someone or something that is seen versus the One who is unseen, but the One who is unseen holds all authority, power, and dominion. He must be the One we run to in the good times and the bad. He must be our first choice every time, for when we choose to run to anything other than Christ, we choose to delay His movement in our lives.

I love these words Jeremiah penned through the leading of the Holy Spirit so many years ago. They still ring true and hold the same power and promise they did so long ago! I would encourage you to pray this verse and hold fast to the One who gave it to you, for He gave it to us for a reason! All glory to God in the highest and peace to all those who are found in Christ Jesus! Will you come and find your peace with God through Him?

Luke 2:14- “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among people with whom He is pleased.”

Nothing pleases the Father more than obeying and following the Son! God bless! I love you all, but His love offers peace with God through His blood! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!