Strange Obedience

Jeremiah 24:5-10
(5) "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.
(6) I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up, and not tear them down; I will plant them, and not uproot them.
(7) I will give them a heart to know that I am the LORD, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.
(8) "But thus says the LORD: Like the bad figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah the king of Judah, his officials, the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.
(9) I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive them.
(10) And I will send sword, famine, and pestilence upon them, until they shall be utterly destroyed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers."

As we've seen, God intended for Jerusalem to get sacked. He commanded the faithful to be led away by the invading Babylonian army. Here we see that He compares those who are led away to good figs. But those who stay are bad figs and are destined for utter destruction.

If I were in Jerusalem at the time my inclination would be to stay. I would want to put up a fight to show my faithfulness. I would want to demonstrate bravery, which is a character trait that every culture seems to honor. But this passage tells me that staying for a fight would lead to my destruction.

Isn't it this way with Jesus? We can try to do things our way, but all that will do is lead us to our own destruction. But if we yield to Him in complete surrender we will end up having life. It won't be the life we originally planned, but it will end up being a lot better than getting lumped in with the bad figs.

I encourage you to surrender to Jesus if you haven't already.