Today’s Reading, Jeremiah 4-6
Focal Scripture: Jeremiah 6:27 “I have appointed you to be an assayer among my people — a refiner — so you may know and assay their way of life.”
Through the course of my life it has become apparent that God uses me to expose hidden things amongst people. Almost every place I have been, I have had the responsibility of seeing major problems and bringing them to light. It is never comfortable and it has never been a task I would volunteer for in my life. Sometimes when the truth is found out people do right and address the problem. Other times the truth has been hidden and I have been labeled a trouble maker for exposing what I have witnessed. These situations test myself and the people who are confronted with the problem.
In today’s reading we see the job of Jeremiah. He has been appointed an assayer to the people. This means he is a person who will test a metal to see how pure it is and if there are any imperfections. He wasn’t assigned to do this to metal but his own countrymen. His job was to see how pure their life and faith were. Jeremiah would examine their life and expose everything in it publicly.
What we must learn from this scripture today is the sobering fact that people have been called to this task. You will have people in your life who will test you and expose your sin. You will have people who will refine you and reveal your impurities. This will cause pain and it will cause self reflection. However, don’t miss the fact that the metal and the assayer are being tested at the same time. You can only know what to look for if you have exposed that in yourself first.
The challenge we have as believers is to allow God to use us to help refine others. This is a noble task but also a lonely task. You are often unliked because of your mission. You are misunderstood because people think you enjoy exposing sin. Then having hard conversations with groups of people showing where refinement must come biblically.
Stay true to the task if that is what you’re called to do for Christ. Lean on him and trust the process. Be an instrument for his glory and his good. Find no joy in exposing sin in others. Weep for them and have a soft heart for those who need to make difficult decisions. Then know you must allow the same truth in your own life.
Tomorrow, I plan on reading Jeremiah 7-9
