God’s pronouncement of judgment on the sins of His Old Testament people continues from yesterday’s reading, and is specifically addressed to “all you men of Judah who enter these gates (of the Temple) to worship the Lord.” He complained about their trusting in “deceptive words.” Their trusting, their denials, would not save them from judgment. They were trusting in the idea that God would not forsake and destroy His Temple. They were trusting in their assertions that they were saved, even as they continued to sin. They were trusting in God’s promise to give Abraham’s descendants that land forever, which translated to them that they would never lose it. God has not changed; do you suppose that He will accept our deceptive assertions any more than He accepted theirs?
Continue to take a close look and give thoughtful, inquiring consideration to the sins of God’s Old Testament people. In what ways do they sound like what is going on in the church? In your own heart and life? God doesn’t want us going through the motions any more than He wanted it from His Old Testament people.