I've been reading through Jeremiah as part of my chronological journey through the Bible this year. Jeremiah is such a timely book for the days in which we live. I read this passage again just the other day and have been marinating on it.
We are such a people who boast about what we have accomplished. God nails us in verse 23. We boast about our wisdom and knowledge. We boast about our strengths. We boast about our wealth. There is nothing wrong with any of these things, so long as they are not the object of our attention. We must realize that God alone is the one who has enabled us to accomplish, succeed, grow, profit and excel. This is why verse 24 is so important. Our boast as a Christ follower is in our knowledge of Christ as Savior/Redeemer and Lord. It is God who has enabled us, gifted us, saved us and positioned us for greatness according to His will. Our boast is in God alone. We are to boast in our knowledge and understanding of God. It is not that we just know God but that God knows us. It is not just that we understand God but that He understands us. We are to boast in the greatness of our God. He is a god who practices a steadfast, enduring and everlasting love for all of mankind. He is a God who practices justice. He is a God who is perfectly righteous. As God is, so He creates us to be. We, as His disciples, are in the process of reformation. We must allow God to reform us into His original intent for our lives. At the very end of verse 24 we read that God delights in these things.
If we are only calling attention to ourselves, our church, our ministry or our denomination, we have missed it. None of those thing exist apart from God. Because God is God and I am not, He alone is worthy of my praise.
How will you boast in the Lord today?
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