16 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. 17 They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’”
18 For who among them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see and to hear his word,
or who has paid attention to his word and listened?
19 Behold, the storm of the Lord!
Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intents of his heart.
In the latter days you will understand it clearly.
21 “I did not send the prophets,
yet they ran;
I did not speak to them,
yet they prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,
then they would have proclaimed my words to my people,
and they would have turned them from their evil way,
and from the evil of their deeds. Jeremiah 23: 16-22 ESV
Jeremiah 23: 16-22 To Those Who Despise The Word Of The Lord
I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
2 I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.
3 On the day I called, you answered me;
my strength of soul you increased.
4 All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of your mouth,
5 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.
6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,
but the haughty he knows from afar. Psalm 138: 1-6
"You are always quoting scripture,' my friend said, 'I don't have time for that, I need a fresh word, to hear from God daily, about things that matter now." That is probably a little paraphrased, but this is the sentiment that I heard often in the Pentecostal movement, a desire for fresh revelation, fast food style, experience based, emotionally tested, "relevant" to what I want, or sorry, "need" right now. Everyone was shooting from the hip, yet trying to prove themselves most spiritual, wise, like sages, with the ability to answer all of life's most important questions, like:
What color car is the spirit leading me towards? Who am I supposed to marry? Sadly, since they were cut off from scripture, because that is a slow process, and not a lot of time for it with the schedule of entertainment that we were trying to keep, we were ripe for those going around saying, "thus says the Lord,' or 'I have a word for you." I remember going to Benny Hinn's church with a neighbor when I was young, and there were these guys there breaking handcuffs, tearing phone books in half, along with many other feats of strengths, and then this older gentleman got up and started reading from the Bible. He read for quite some time, and shockingly, at a church of all places, this made people mad, including my neighbor. She came for the show, to be emotionally charged, and this guy reading Scripture was a buzz kill. Benny, one of the better known charlatans of that time, seemed to want to get the crowd amped again as well, and once the show was well under way again, then he started calling out people in the audience who could give various amounts. "The Lord showed me, that you can give a thousand." It turned in to a big fundraiser.
Jonathan Edwards third test was: Does it Point people to the Scriptures? He derived this question from 1 John 4:6 where the apostle John said, "We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error." This is hard for all the cults to accept, that divine revelation ended with the apostles. They all subscribe to the idea of apostolic continuation in one form or another. The Roman Catholic church holds that the Pope is Christ here on earth, and places it's dogma and traditions over God's word, because where scripture and Roman Catholicism disagree, they side with their tradition. They also believe that the Pope has apostolic authority, that all the popes are in a line starting with Peter, and all represent the head of the church. According to their doctrine they also hold to Papal infallibility, so when the Pope speaks "ex Cathedra" in his office as head pastor over all the church, he speaks without error. This led to some very dark ages, where men were not encouraged to read for themselves, to have the Scripture in their own language, and it was at the penalty of death if you printed the Bible in another language, or spoke against the rulings of the Papacy. Then, by the grace of God, came the Reformation, which put above the church, the word of God, to which the true church would hold itself accountable.
All the cults receive extrabiblical revelation. The Mormons have the writings that Joseph Smith says came from writings inscribed on golden plates, that were buried by an early American named Moroni, who came back later as an angel and took Joseph to these gold plates. Smith then took this message and translated it into English. Ok, and I am Harry Potter, but no, really, I'm not. He considered himself a prophet of God, but as mentioned in my last post, he fails on the first two questions. This supposed prophet had many other revelations, like his prediction that Jesus would return before the year 1891, or that one of the so called "apostles" in his organization, David W. Patten, would go on a mission in 1839, but he died in 1838.
The Jehovah's Witness, Watchtower Society, is also built on extra Biblical revelation, and easily fails the first question about pointing to the true Christ. They also have predicted His return though, one early time was in 1914, that didn't happen, so move it forward to 1915, then be a little more conservative, and go with 1925, then 1935, 1951, 1975, 1986 and the year 2000. Currently they are expecting the end of the world in 2033, since that will mark 120 years since the first foggy prediction, and that will correlate with the time it took Noah to build the ark. Like the Mormons, they also deny the deity of Christ.
Seventh Day Adventist have predicted Christ return in 1843, and when that didn't happen, there is always 1844.
Benny Hinn predicted that Fidel Castro would die in the 1990s, but I think he actually died in 2016.
None of these guys are big on Sola Scriptura:
God's word states very clearly:
…20But if any prophet dares to speak a message in My name that I have not commanded him to speak, or to speak in the name of other gods, that prophet must be put to death.” 21 You may ask in your heart, “How can we recognize a message that the LORD has not spoken?” 22When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD and the message does not come to pass or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.… Deuteronomy 18: 20-22
So enough intro, to the text we go:
16-17. Filling you with vain hopes - Don't listen to these guys who are appealing to your flesh, your ego. What they are saying is not what is actually going to happen.
They speak visions of their own minds - They had a thought and expressed it. They were given a platform to speak and so they did so, but it wasn't from the mouth of God. You wanted your ears tickled, to hear good news and they could form those words with their mouth. This is a bold challenge on Jeremiah's part, because in essence, he is saying that he is speaking on behalf of God, Who is saying that these are not His prophets, for their words are not from Him.
They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, "it shall be well with you" - Here is the opening for the false prophets, the people despised the actual word of God. God's word speaks volumes about sin and judgment, repentance and the law. It shows man that he is not in a good place with God, it calls God holy and all of mankind fallen. So now look at Jeremiah and look at the other prophets, who is saying what lines up with what God actually says? The wages of sin is death, and look at the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah. They had access to God's written word, the law, that which had passed the test of time, but they despised it, and in doing so, they could not judge who was a false prophet and a true messenger of God. They wanted new revelation, not to hear the voice of God, but to hear a different message.
…6But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here of whom we can inquire?” 7The king of Israel answered, “There is still one man who can ask the LORD, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good for me, but only bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.” “The king should not say that!” Jehoshaphat replied. 8So the king of Israel called one of his officials and said, “Bring Micaiah son of Imlah at once.”… 2 Chronicles 18: 6-8
…2Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. 3For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires. 4So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.… 2 Timothy 4: 2-4
And to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, "no disaster shall come upon you" - "Ah, the answer is inside you, search your heart, you have a big, good heart, everything you need is there." That's what the world tells us and your heart will probably agree. We love compliments, hate authority, love being considered right even more than actually being right. What does God's word say?
…7But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. 8He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit. 9The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?… Jeremiah 17: 7-9
…9Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities. 10Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 11Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me.… Psalm 51: 9-11
Our modern culture thinks follow your heart is supreme wisdom for living. The Bible says, there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death (Proverbs 14:12 – repeated for emphasis in Proverbs 16:25). - Enduring Word
18-20. Behold a whirlwind - God's wrath was always intended against sin, and though He tarry in His patience they should not mistake this for license.
1Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: 2“Who is this who obscures My counsel by words without knowledge? 3Now brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall inform Me.… Job 38: 1-3
In the latter days you will understand it clearly - Frightening, though they have declared themselves to be the voice of God, yet they ignored His true voice, His word. When their end comes, the latter days, so will their understanding, but it will be with the horror of their wages.
21-22. Yet they ran, yet they prophesied - They had no commission from God, but they ran ahead, no word from God but they prophesied.
But if they had stood in my counsel, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people - This is what one called by God does, proclaims the word of God without apology. People have such a warped view of the Holy Spirit today, putting to Him the blame for their vain imaginings and foolish dribble. Anyone that plays down the Scripture is not doing so by the Spirit of God, and anyone who does not want their ministry to fall under the authority of Scripture is not operating in the Holy Spirit. They are no different than the world, and the world will always want to disarm you, to have you leave your sword sheathed. You need to know God's word and know it well, because the same people who will not care to hear about it from you, will have no issue in pulling from it out of context. "Preachers" have gotten up on stage and "preached" whole sermons on "you have not because you ask not", but look at the rest of the text, you will not see the words Mercedes Benz, Ferrari, House in the Hamptons, nothing about a good looking husband or a new bass boat, there are far more important things.
…2You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may squander it on your pleasures. 4You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.… James 4: 2-4
…19We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture comes from one’s own interpretation. 21For no such prophecy was ever brought forth by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.… 2 Peter 1: 19-21
…16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints.… Ephesians 6: 16-18
…16But not all of them welcomed the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” 17Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. 18But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”… Romans 10: 16-18
14Remind the believers of these things, charging them before God to avoid quarreling over words, which succeeds only in leading the listeners to ruin. 15Make every effort to present yourself approved to God, an unashamed workman who accurately handles the word of truth. 16But avoid irreverent, empty chatter, which will only lead to more ungodliness,… 2 Timothy 2: 14-16
They would have turned them from their evil way - They would have preached repentance. True shepherds would always lead away from the place where the sheep would meet the wrath of God, by warning of that just wrath, of God's holiness, and their utter inability to please Him with their own works.
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