Jeremiah 22:3-9

First attempt at reading scripture without being told. All because I was bored waiting for my family getting ready for Sunday mass! I asked the Holy Spirit to guide me in finding what message is in store for me today. I realized it didn't need to be a long prayer for me to be heard :) I opened a page somewhere in the middle, and with my eyes closed, I unknowingly pointed to the verses:

Thus says the LORD: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. For if you will indeed obey this word, then there shall enter the gates of this house kings who sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their servants and their people. But if you will not obey these words, I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation. For thus says the LORD concerning the house of the king of Judah:
"'You are like Gilead to me,
like the summit of Lebanon,
yet surely I will make you a desert,
an uninhabited city.
I will prepare destroyers against you,
each with his weapons,
and they shall cut down your choicest cedars
and cast them into the fire.

"'And many nations will pass by this city, and every man will say to his neighbor, "Why has the LORD dealt thus with this great city?" And they will answer, "Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God and worshipped other gods and served them."'"

I have always been told that our God is a loving and forgiving God. His love is without restrictions nor conditions, and even if we choose to disobey Him, He remains at the sidelines, eagerly waiting for us to come back so He can continue to shower us with everything that we'll ever want and need in this life.

However, going back to His fold will require us to think, act and say things in a certain way. It may seem like posing conditions, but isn't it that when you profess your love for someone, you do certain things for them because you want them to be happy? You are never obliged to do so, but you're willing to do them anyway, and it doesn't take much effort from you, because you're happy making other people happy. It should be the same with our relationship with Him, isn't it?

I dunno how often the Bible said that God will do awful things to those who worship other gods than Him, but I'm sure it wasn't just once. Now it may seem this contradicts the concept of a loving and forgiving God. When you think about it, however, it's the life worshipping other gods that will destroy us and reduce us to uselessness. Why? Because only God promises eternal life, only our God promises salvation. In this generation, it's the gods of wealth, power, and anything else that puts ourselves first rather than Jesus or other people. Up front, they're too good to be true, but that's all there is to it. Just like anything else on this earth, it's fleeting and temporary, and we'll no longer have use for it eventually. Who wants to get stuck with that?

There is so much to gain on His side, but even I still struggle not to stray on the path I've recently taken. Really takes a conscious effort to keep straight. I still believe in His promise though, and that's what keeps me going.