Rejoicing in Evil
I saw another meme today on Facebook that I really liked. And, not only is this statement in the meme a great reminder to all of us, but it coincides perfectly on the passage I am studying in Jeremiah! It is amazing how God works. He brings certain issues or topics to your attention in multiple ways.
So, the meme I saw was this…
I am studying in Jeremiah 11 currently and the passage I happened to read, soon after coming across this meme, was the following:
Jeremiah 11:13-15 King James Version (KJV)
For according to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have ye set up altars to that shameful thing, even altars to burn incense unto Baal.
Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.
What hath my beloved to do in mine house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many, and the holy flesh is passed from thee? when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.
Here is some background to this passage. Jeremiah is a prophet preaching to the people of Judah. He condemns the current state of idolatry and sin in Judah and warns that judgement will come if the people do not repent. In his preaching, Jeremiah acknowledges that the people will not repent and will therefore face God’s judgement. This judgement does come just as promised at the hands of the Babylonians who kill many of the people and take the rest captive. In this chapter specifically, God points out that the people of Judah, by their idolatry and disobedience, have broken the covenant that God had established with them. Despite God keeping His side of the covenant by bringing the Israelites to the promised land, Judah has chosen to reject God. Therefore, God will kick them out of the promised land as that was the punishment God set out for disobedience. As proof of their breach of the covenant, God points to the idolatry that permeates the nation of Judah adding that not only does the society do evil, they REJOICE in evil!
It is this final point here that really caught my attention between both the meme above and the passage I happened to read soon after.
The society of Judah was so sin-sick that they were actually rejoicing in their sin. Their evil had become so common that it was no longer hidden but out in the open and paraded. Not only was Judah relishing in her sin, but she still pretended to worship God at the same time!
This meme perfectly describes OUR current society and so does this passage in Jeremiah. We not only commit sin, but we proudly display it! Homosexuality and gender identity issues are not hidden but proudly incorporated into our society and our school system. Adultery is no longer shamed but common even to the point of dating websites promoting it! Pedophile groups live out in the open on the internet piggybacking on the homosexual movement to gain ground in legalizing pedophilia. Human trafficking is increasing in number and pornography and violence on the TV is the norm. Killing the unborn child is upheld as a right and promoted with events such as “Shout your abortion”. When New York passed their most recent abortion law, they allowed abortions during labor (infanticide) and celebrated the law by lighting up the Chrysler building pink.
Here is another meme that illustrates how our society “rejoices” in sin:
Of course, this is nothing new for the world. As you can see, the Nazi guards were laughing and enjoying their evil as well. But in America, we have been sheltered by our religious foundation. However, that foundation is crumbling before our eyes and soon we will be in a house easily destroyed by even the smallest wind or wave.
Judah was destroyed by their sin! So too will we. It is only a matter of time. Judgement is coming. The Bible details this judgement for us in Revelation (another other passages) just as Jeremiah detailed the judgment Judah would face before it happened. The people of Judah, including the leaders and religious leaders didn’t listen but continued in their sin. Only a small righteous remnant of Jewish believers were left after the captivity and exile. This remnant was able to return to Jerusalem 70 years later. If we want to enter the promised land (heaven), we need to repent and fight the evil infiltrating our society and even our churches. I pray that anyone reading this will be part of the righteous remnant in our society! It is difficult to do in a society where evil is displayed as good but we MUST stay true to the faith – for the sake of our souls!
Do you have a question? Do you have something to add? Leave a comment below or on my contact page! I am more than happy to engage in friendly discussions. Thank you!