The people of Jeremiah’s day were told that they were going to be in exile for some time. Many of them did not want to believe this and there were prophets who were more than happy to tell them that it would not be long before they were returned to their rightful place in the sun. But God condemned those prophets and emphatically declared that the people would remain were they were, under the authority of a pagan ruler until he decided otherwise. There are those today that are so convinced of the nearness of the return of the lord Jesus Christ that they insist we should disengage from the world we are in and live in seclusion, uncontaminated by the world. God’s command to us is the same as it was for the people of Jeremiah’s day. Get involved in your world.
There are specific areas of life that we are to be involved in including society, commerce and community. God commanded the people to build houses and to live in them, they were to plant crops and to eat their produce and they were to marry, have children and even grandchildren. They were expected to get involved at every level of life. In this time in which we wait for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ and the coming of his kingdom we are to engage in everyday life and be part of the community in which we live.
While we are confident in the return of the Lord, and eagerly anticipate it, knowing that it could happen any time, we are to live as if we could be here for a while. We are to show our commitment to our community by building houses and living in them. Living is not just sleeping the night or having a holiday, it involves doing all those things that comprise normal life: conducting business, recreation, buying and selling and so on. A good member of the community takes responsibility for the place in which they live, they will probably be involved in Neighbourhood Watch, the school P&C, local sport, and will vote in local government elections. Building a house suggests permanency, we are not just passing through – we live here.
Anyone who plants a crop expecting to eat its produce knows that there is time involved. In order to succeed with our produce we will need to buy and sell with other producers. We will want to sell our excess, at a profit, in order to buy what we need and have a little left over. We will have to buy fertilizers, hire equipment and maybe employ labour. In short we will be involved in commerce. While we live in our communities, buying and selling with those that live there, we will also engage in raising families. The fact that we are to expect to be here some time is reflected in that not only should we seek a husband or a wife for ourselves, but also for our children and their children. We are not only to live as families but we are to expect to grow. God told the people of Jeremiah’s day that they were to multiply, right where they were. To grow and not to decrease.
God does not want us to withdraw from our world; he wants us to live in it engaging fully in all its aspects. That includes the places we work and the communities we live in. His expectation is that we will be salt and light and salt is of little value if it remains in the saltshaker. We must be sprinkled throughout our world, having an effect wherever we are and in whatever we do. In the time we are here before the return of the lord Jesus Christ let us commit ourselves to be being valuable members of our community, contributing to their benefit and being a blessing to all those that live there. Look for ways that you can be used by God to bring his peace to your workplace, society and the community of which you are a part, and then expect God to use you for his glory.
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