Exiles

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Scripture: Jeremiah 29:4-7 (ESV)

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

Devotion:

            Today’s scripture finds the nation of Israel in exile in Babylon. Jeremiah writes a letter to them explaining how they should live in this strange new land where they now find themselves. Does this scripture apply in any way to us today? I believe it does.

            Today we live in this world which is rapidly becoming increasingly hostile toward the Christian faith. We will feel more like strangers and exiles as time progresses. The world will continue to grow away from our God while we hopefully will be maturing in our walk with Jesus Christ. As a result, we will feel alienated from the culture around us. Today’s scripture passage provides a useful lesson in how to behave in a world slowly losing its moral and intellectual bearings.

            This scripture advises us to be engaged with our surroundings. While we may not be able to participate in some activities that many in the culture participate in. We should feel free to live our lives as Christians as openly as possible. We are to be a witness to our culture. Our words and actions should let the world know that we are the way we are because we live for Christ not for ourselves the way the culture does.

            We are to pray for the well-being of our culture. Just as Jesus taught his disciples that they (and we) are to pray for enemies, so we must pray for the world in which we find ourselves. This we may find is difficult at times, but the Hebrew verb for pray here is a command not a suggestion. As we bring our culture to God, we should be hopeful that we will be permitted to live out our faith as the Lord leads us.

Prayer:

            Heavenly Father, hear our prayer today. May we as Christians seek to be salt and light to a world that thinks it can survive without you. May we be found supporting those things in the world which are good and refusing things that are bad. Help us to be discerning in our interactions with the world. May we always pray for our culture to turn and seek you once again. May you find us, Lord, to be a faithful remnant in a hurting and lost world. Amen.

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