This study started in Hosea 8
Jeremiah 11:13
You have as many gods as you have towns, O Judah; and the altars you
have set up to burn incense to that shameful god Baal are as many as the
streets of Jerusalem.
Israel was turned so far from the Lord. He was about to bring affliction
on them so they would either turn to their idols and see they were
worthless, or turn to Him and see His power.
Many are the vanities of hard work without God’s guidance.
Jer 12:13 “They will sow wheat but reap thorns; they will wear
themselves out but gain nothing. So bear the shame of your harvest
because of the Lord’s fierce anger.”
Hosea 8:4 “They set up kings without my consent; they choose princes
without my approval.” – approval is ‘yada’ in hebrew. to know,
intimately, to know well
Psalm 127:1-2 “Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor
in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard
in vain.
“In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat-
for He grants sleep to those He loves.”
This is convicting after fruitless late nights surfing the internet
looking for a good place to buy a radiator. I hadn’t had a quiet time n
4 days. No still, quiet time with Him since Saturday. Last night I was
about to take my computer home to work on some projects, but all I could
feel like God was saying was “I want you to be with me, all of that can
wait.”
Matthew 6:31-33
So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we
wear?’ for the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly
Father knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and His
righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
So if given the option to stay up late making a bunch of money or
sleeping and waking up to have fellowship with God, the latter is the
one to choose. ‘But with that money we could feed the poor or build
great ministries.’ you may say, but without the Lord there would be no
harvest anyway. He KNOWS that we need to feed the poor, He Himself wants
to build great ministries MORE THAN WE DO! (wow. that almost seems hard
to believe)
But unless He Himself is the point, focus, and center of all we do,
it is all a complete waste of His and our time, money, and sacrifice.