Good and Bad Baskets

  • August 30, 2024
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  • John Tillman

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 24.1b-7
1b …the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten. 3 Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” “Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.” 4 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians. 6 My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.

Reflection: Good and Bad Baskets
By John Tillman

When bananas go bad, you can make banana bread out of them. But neglect them long enough and they are so bad that there is no saving them. You just throw them out.

Like Pharoah’s visions of good and bad grain, cows, and bread, Jeremiah sees a vision of baskets of good and bad food—figs.

Both visions overturn our expectations. Pharoah’s vision seems like a vision of destruction but is really a vision of provision. Jeremiah’s vision seems like a vision of judgment but is actually a vision of promise.

By this point in Jeremiah’s ministry, many in Judah and Jerusalem have already been taken captive to Babylon. At first glance, we might interpret the bad basket of figs as representing these exiles.

After all, exile was punishment, right? Judah had become so bad that these people were “thrown out” of Jerusalem into exile…right? The “good figs” must be the people remaining, the people still fighting to save their country…right?

Wrong.

Jeremiah told the last king of Judah, Zedekiah, that God was setting before the city life and death, salvation and destruction. (Jeremiah 21.8-10) This echoes the language of the covenant ceremony Moses planned and Joshua enacted when the people entered Canaan. (Deuteronomy 30.11-20)At that time, the path to blessings and victory was obeying God’s laws and cleansing the land of injustice and unrighteousness. But now, the people of God had become more unrighteous than those they displaced. Those sworn to establish justice abused the poor, the foreigners, and the widows. The figs had gone bad. Too bad to be redeemed. Now they were the unrighteous who needed to be cleansed from the land.

The good figs were in exile. Exile was punishment, but it was also a path of salvation. The unexpected method of salvation was surrender, not conquest. The unexpected place of salvation was Babylon, not Jerusalem. In Babylon, God promised to bless the people, give them a new heart to worship him, and bring them home renewed.

Which basket are we in? Exile, not conquest, is our reality. We are more like Jeremiah and Joseph than we are like Joshua or David.

May we learn the exiles’ lessons. May we live among the ungodly, yet maintain godliness. May we accommodate culture without affirming culture. May we remember that the only Temple we need is Jesus, whom we worship in Spirit and Truth. (John 4.21-24)

Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence
Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness, … make your way straight before me. — Psalm 5.8

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 24 (Listen 1:54)
1 Corinthians 1 (Listen 4:03)

This Weekend’s Readings
Jeremiah 25 (Listen 6:12), 1 Corinthians 2 (Listen 2:26)
Jeremiah 26 (Listen 4:04), 1 Corinthians 3 (Listen 3:05)
Jeremiah 27 (Listen 3:52), 1 Corinthians 4 (Listen 3:15)

Read more about Be Good Figs
In Jeremiah, we find both good and bad figs…The good figs are the Jewish exiles…God had a plan to protect them

Be Good Figs

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Readers’ Choice starts Monday and continues throughout September. Tell us your favorite posts via email, direct message, or the linked form, so we can repost them.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

Bad Shepherds

  • August 29, 2024
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  • John Tillman

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 23.1-4
1 “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.

Reflection: Bad Shepherds
By John Tillman

Sheep are scattering.

Is there a wolf? Is there a fire, a storm, or some other danger? 

No. The flock is scattered by those who are supposed to gather and keep them. It is attacked by those who are supposed to protect them. It is panicked by those who are supposed to provide peaceful shelter. Wicked, foolish, and false shepherds are scattering and destroying the flock.

Most of the priests and prophets we know the names of, such as Jeremiah, Isaiah, and others were faithful shepherds of the people. They instructed the people with wisdom and spoke the words of God truthfully to the people, whether it was good news or bad. A few of the “bad” shepherds are named such as Amaziah, Pashhur, and a few others. But reading between the lines of the Old Testament, there were far more false shepherds than true ones.

When we meet false shepherds in the Old Testament, they are usually pointing accusing fingers at the prophets we know to be true. Imagine standing there. If we weren’t reading the book with Jeremiah’s name on it, how would we tell who was right? There’s no easy answer.

Jeremiah gives some indicators of bad and good shepherds. Many of these line up with Jesus’ descriptions of good and bad shepherds. Bad shepherds cause terror. Good shepherds provide safety. Bad shepherds scatter. Good shepherds gather. Bad shepherds wound. Good shepherds heal. Bad shepherds destroy (or kill). Good shepherds grow. Bad shepherds neglect. Good shepherds tend.

People are leaving the church—many because of “bad shepherds.”

Pointing a finger and blaming “false shepherds” is common in American Christianity. How do we know who is telling the truth? What are sheep like us supposed to do?

Know that God is against the false shepherds. As upset as we may be about harmful or false shepherds, God’s anger is beyond ours and his punishment on them will be beyond what we can imagine.

Know that the good shepherd is still good, even if under-shepherds fail to be so. Don’t allow the flawed and fallen shepherds to obscure the image of the true and loving Jesus. He is still good.

Don’t allow bad shepherds to disciple you. Bad shepherds are desperate for more sheep. They disciple their sheep to be like them: harsh, angry, fearful, boasting, abusive, divisive, paranoid, and power-hungry.

Follow the good shepherd. Only his way leads home.


Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence
Save me, O God, for the waters have risen up to my neck. — Psalm 69.1

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 23 (Listen 7:13)
2 Thessalonians 3 (Listen 2:16)

Read more about Urban Legends and Good Shepherds
You may have been wounded by a foolish or wicked shepherd. But you can still be healed by Jesus, the good shepherd.

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Readers’ Choice starts in September, so it’s time to share your favorite posts of the year. Tell us your faves via email, direct message, or the linked form.

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What Makes a King?

  • August 28, 2024
  • /
  • Erin Newton

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 22:15-17
15 “Does it make you a king
     to have more and more cedar?
 Did not your father have food and drink?
     He did what was right and just,
     so all went well with him.
 16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,
     and so all went well.
 Is that not what it means to know me?”
     declares the Lord.
 17 “But your eyes and your heart
     are set only on dishonest gain,
 on shedding innocent blood
     and on oppression and extortion.”

Reflection: What Makes a King?
By Erin Newton

Money can get things done. Wealth is usually indicative of power. But does having more really make someone a king?

God criticizes Jehoahaz (Shallum) king of Judah for his blatant pursuit of wealth while ignoring the poor and needy. He did not build this wealth in ways that were honorable or right; God calls it “dishonest gain” and “extortion.” This leader used the oppression and dismissal of others to enrich himself.

Jehoahaz is compared to his father Josiah, who is recorded as the king who initiated reforms and religious purification. Josiah defended the cause of the poor and needy.

Both men were made king in the same way—through bloodline. Judah operated under a monarchist government. They didn’t just use wealth to gain their place of authority. There was no bribing of officials or the community to “gain their votes.” So why does God ask if “having more cedar” made Jehoahaz a king?

There are leaders and there are Leaders, the trick is knowing the difference.

Jehoahaz and the dozen or more men before him inherited the leadership of Judah. While there are stories of kingship being granted to younger sons due to death, deception, or divine appointment, Judah followed the general rule that the eldest son became king. But not all kings were the same.

The two books of Kings reveal the ebb and flow of morality in the royal lineage. They were all kings in the same sense, but God does not view them equally.

What makes a king a king? God says kings are those who defend the cause of the poor and the needy. Is that not what it means to know me? True kings are those who know God. Their lives, their efforts, their causes, where they put their money, all these things reveal who is truly a king after God’s heart.

Most of us do not live under monarchies, but all of us are subject to some form of authority, whether it is civil government or church leadership. Some of us are the leaders in organizations, churches, institutions, or departments.

What makes a leader a leader? Knowing God. Knowing that is put into action.

Let us beware of those who pursue personal gains and assume that tenacity is the mark of leadership. Let us beware of our own proclivities to ignore the needs of others when our greed tempts us otherwise. 

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting
With my whole heart I seek you; let me not stray from your commandments. — Psalm 119.10

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 22 (Listen 5:07)
2 Thessalonians 2 (Listen 2:32)

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Tell us your favorite posts from the past year via email, direct message, or the linked form and we’ll repost them in September.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

Read more about Wealth is a Dangerous Tool
Take James’s words to heart…Let them inspire humility and respectful fear. If wealth is a tool, it is a dangerous one

Wealth is a Dangerous Tool

Mock, Mock. Who’s There?

  • August 27, 2024
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  • John Tillman

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 21.1-4, 8-9
1 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. They said: 2 “Inquire now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzar  king of Babylon is attacking us. Perhaps the Lord will perform wonders for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us.” 3 But Jeremiah answered them, “Tell Zedekiah, 4 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you.

8 “Furthermore, tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. 9 Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives.

Galatians 6.7-8
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

Reflection: Mock, Mock. Who’s There?
By John Tillman

Recently many Christians have been concerned about things they believe are “mocking God.” What is “mocking” God and who should be worried about it? We find an example in today’s reading.

Other nations or non-believers sometimes mock God or his people. However, in many cases of “mocking” in the Bible, the targets are God’s prophets, including Jesus and the mockers are God’s people.

During Hezekiah’s reign, an enemy army mocked God. The repentant and faithful king spread the mocking words before God and God destroyed the army. (2 Kings 19.14-19) But in Jeremiah’s day, the kings and leaders were neither repentant nor faithful. Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, seemed sympathetic to Jeremiah, but refused to follow Jeremiah’s advice. Instead, he sent men to Jeremiah asking for miraculous national salvation.

Judah’s kings and religious leaders made Jeremiah and his prophecies objects of mockery. The previous king, Jehoiakim, burned a scroll from Jeremiah. (Jeremiah 36.22-26) They branded Jeremiah a traitor, bound him as a prisoner, physically assaulted him, and threw him in a pit. In the midst of all this, they ask a favor from God. One of those sent to Jeremiah, Pashhur, previously had Jeremiah beaten and bound. (Jeremiah 20.1-6) 

These leaders wanted the good old days God back without obeying God’s scripture or his prophets. They didn’t want Babylon to defeat them or humiliate them, but they didn’t have a problem beating or humiliating the prophets who called them to repent. They were the ones mocking God, his prophets, and the scriptures.

When Paul wrote, “God cannot be mocked,” (Galatians 6.7-10) he was not talking about unbelievers mocking God. Paul warned the Galatian believers that investment in fleshly, worldly things, would not yield spiritual, eternal things. To expect so, is to mock God. This is the kind of mocking Christians should be most concerned about.

When outside forces mock God, whether those forces are cultural, governmental, or individual, we can lay those words before God, mourn, and respond like Jesus. Jesus was explicitly turned over to forces like these to be “mocked, and flogged, and crucified” (Matthew 20.19) and we can expect similar treatment.If we are mocked by the world or other believers, let us respond as our mocked savior did. “Father forgive them…” (Luke 23.34)

Do not mock by expecting miraculous, national salvation without personal repentance.
Do not mock by investing in worldly things, expecting spiritual fruit. 
Do not mock God’s prophets or God’s mercy.


Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence
Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; touch the mountains, and they shall smoke. — Psalm 144.5

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 21 (Listen 2:35)
2 Thessalonians 1 (Listen 1:52)

Read more about Tortured Prophets Department
Why do we torture the poets, prophets, preachers, and protestors? We don’t have to be Taylor fans, but can we please avoid becoming Amaziah?

Tortured Prophets Department

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Readers’ Choice starts in September. Tell us your favorite posts from this past year via email, direct message, or the linked form, and we will repost them.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

Keeping the Sabbath by Action

  • August 23, 2024
  • /
  • John Tillman

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 17.21-23
21 This is what the LORD says: Be careful not to carry a load on the Sabbath day or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem. 22 Do not bring a load out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your ancestors. 23 Yet they did not listen or pay attention; they were stiff-necked and would not listen or respond to discipline.

Mark 3.4-5
4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. 
5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

Reflection: Keeping the Sabbath by Action
By John Tillman

There is more than one way to desecrate the Sabbath.

The way of “keeping the Sabbath holy” that we commonly think of is by limiting what we do. We refrain from doing work. We focus on spiritual matters. We prioritize worship. This is the kind of warning that Jeremiah was sent to cry. “Stop the clamor of commerce.” “Stop the wheels of wealth accumulation,” the prophet says. But Jesus defines a second requirement to keep the Sabbath holy. 

To Jesus, keeping the Sabbath holy meant staying in step with God’s Spirit and leaving undone nothing that the Spirit commanded. His stinging question about what is lawful on the Sabbath goes unanswered by the teachers of the law, not because they don’t know the answer, but because they don’t like the answer they would be forced to give.

Jeremiah banned commerce on the Sabbath because the day was intended to be about the worship of God and enriching the community rather than one’s self. Instead, over the centuries, the restrictions of the Sabbath had become excuses for selfish inaction. The experts of the law used their expertise to dodge responsibility rather than shoulder it and to accumulate wealth and power rather than honor God with it.

There’s more than one way to make Jesus angry. 

Inaction in the face of someone needing help is one very reliable way. Jesus burns with anger for their heartlessness, but it’s more than activism—Jesus takes action. When we get angry, we tend to cause harm. When Jesus gets angry, he heals.

Jesus was angry because these teachers were doing what the wealthy of Jerusalem were doing in Jeremiah’s day. They were tying up heavy loads for others to carry, (and on the Sabbath, no less) but would not lift a finger to help them.

Keeping the Sabbath holy, maintaining God’s justice, and establishing righteousness are not passive, actionless, states of spiritual attainment. God’s holiness moves. God’s righteousness rolls like a river. God’s justice falls on the wicked.

May our holiness surpass that of the religious leaders, as Jesus prayed it would. 
May we not live in prayerlessness during the week and expect God to show up on the weekend.
May we fulfill the Sabbath by worshiping in spirit and truth.
May we not desecrate the Sabbath with inaction in the face of need.


Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons
Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek you be disgraced because of me, O God of Israel. — Psalm 69.7

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 17 (Listen 4:50)
1 Thessalonians 2   (Listen 2:53)

​This Weekend’s Readings
Jeremiah 18 (Listen 3:40), 1 Thessalonian 3 (Listen 1:44)
Jeremiah 19 (Listen 2:58), 1 Thessalonian 4 (Listen 2:24)

Read more about Who is the Sabbath There For?
Our rest, observed rightly, is an act of faith in God’s holiness and an act of kindness to all around us.

Who is the Sabbath There For?

Read more about Readers’ Choice
We need your suggestions for Readers’ Choice, which starts in September. Tell us your faves via email, direct message, or the linked form.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA