Jeremiah 7:1-7 – Offer God only sincere worship

In Jeremiah 7, God highlights how wrong the worship of the people of Judah was. The first seven verses show how presumptuous they were in their worship. Guided by God Jeremiah was directed to stand at the gate of the temple to address the people. He was to tell them to amend their ways and not live presumptuously. Those conceited believers deceptively presumed that they would be immune from any destruction since the temple was in Jerusalem. God made it known in no uncertain terms that unless they amend, He would not let them remain in Jerusalem. He admonished them to stop being deluded by the false prophets. Provided they changed in their attitude and repent, their repeated proclamation of “the temple of the Lord” being in Jerusalem would still not cause it to be spared from judgment.

In verses 5-7, God highlighted three things that they needed to change if they wanted to remain in the land. Firstly, we for them to practice justice between themselves and their neighbors. Secondly, they must not oppress foreigners, orphans, and widows. And thirdly, they must stop shedding innocent blood to offer to the false gods as the pagan did.  In other words, God was showing them that the length they could dwell in the land was conditional on how they conducted themselves. They were expected to live righteously as He had prescribed.

 

Worship is a critical part of a believer’s life. And it is important who we worship. We will take on the character of the person we worship. Besides, our attitudes, characters, and how he would relate to others are often shaped by our worship. It is therefore vital that our worship of God be genuine. Sadly, the worship that the people of Judah offered to God was far from sincere. Hence God decried the way they behave. What’s more important as we meditate on a passage like this is to ask ourselves “how’s my worship? Jesus in John 4 tells us that God is looking for worshippers who would worship God in spirit and in truth i.e. in sincerity, honesty, and in integrity. Are we offering God sincere and honest worship?