May 28

Journey-through-the-Bible-with-us

READING FOR MAY 28, 2026: JEREMIAH 4, MARK 11, PSALM 48:1-8

JEREMIAH 4 First, God appeals to Judah’s free will to return to Him: “If you will return to Me.”  Then He explains why they should return to Him and what it will entail. They will need to get rid of their idols and then amazingly the nations will be blessed by God and boast in Him. Read that part slowly. Might that mean that if we truly put God in place of all our idols (i.e., what- ever truly means most to us) then many others will put their faith in God? So that means the eternal destiny of other people (including family and friends) will be impacted by our turning from idols to God of our own free will. 

In verse four, God has a special message to the men of Judah (and maybe the Yorktown Meth-  odist men).  God asks them (and maybe us) to circumcise their hearts.  He wants their hearts to be clearly marked as set apart for God, not just their genitals. There was no neutral position. If their hearts weren’t so marked, then God’s wrath was sure to spread. There are also only two choices for us because we are born into this world as sinners. This will not change unless we receive Jesus: “The one who believes in Him is not judged; the one who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). 

Verses 5-8 instruct Jeremiah to inform Judah that the destroyer, meaning Babylon, is now on its way to lay waste to the country. It is now time to start the mourning process because they had not turned to God when they had the chance. God said it will be so bad for them that even the king, priests, and prophets will be shocked by the devastation.  Upon hearing this, Jeremiah pushes back at God, accusing God of having deceived Judah before by promising peace (vs 10). This comment by Jeremiah is remarkable in two ways:

  • It is shocking that Jeremiah accused God of deception. Since Jeremiah went on to have a long and fruitful ministry, apparently God can handle this kind of honest feelings expressed by us. 
  • Did God in fact deceive Jeremiah before by saying there would be peace?  At least one commentator thinks this might be a reference to false prophets pretending to speak for God.  This writer believes that because God said Jerusalem would be the “Throne of the Lord” in 3:17, Jeremiah might have thought that would be their immediately future, rather than their eventual future (i.e., millennium).

God doesn’t seem to directly answer Jeremiah’s concern in this chapter. God leaves the impression that there is no time for that kind theorizing at the moment. They have to get ready for the upcoming Babylonian conquest. God does say that this invasion is a direct result of Judah’s rebellion against the Lord (vs. 17-18). Verses 19-26 describe the great anguish Jeremiah feels for the foolish people of Judah.  Is that our feeling today over those we care about who are living for themselves today? “In vain you make yourself beautiful” (vs. 30). 

God clarifies that (vs. 27) the whole land will be desolate, yet it will not be complete destruction. This could refer either to the few people not going into exile or more likely those who will go into exile, but who will return to Judah after 70 years. God’s big plan continues.

READING FOR MAY 28, 2026 CONTINUED: MARK 11, PSALM 48:1-8                                            MARK 11 Up until now, Jesus had been repeatedly preparing his disciples for his upcoming death and resurrection, while downplaying it publicly. In this chapter, he orchestrated an event to call attention to his entrance into Jerusalem that would culminate in the cross. The day for which He came to earth was fast approaching. One detail that Mark mentions but Matthew omits is that the colt chosen for Jesus had never been ridden before. Might that represent the fact that no other person or spiritual being had ever before experienced this kind of willing sacrificial death for the entire world? No one would ever do so again: “Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord; Nor are there any works like Your works” (Psalm 86:8).

An added phrase in Mark’s account about the cleansing of the Temple is, “He would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple grounds.” Another is the reaction of the Jewish leadership: “They began seeking how to put Him to death.” The implications that are more strongly conveyed in Mark than in Matthew are that Jesus really wanted to distance His house of prayer from any commercial activity and that this potential loss of commercial space (and resulting loss of income for the leaders) prompted definite plans for the killing of Jesus.  How might this relate to how we live our lives and view our house of prayer?

It bears repeating from our Matthew study that the fig tree with no fruit represents a supposed follower or nation of God who doesn’t live a life of obedience or bearing spiritual fruit. By condemning this fig tree, Jesus sends a message to his disciples that an unfruitful Christian life is not permissible: “I am the vine, you are the branches; the one who remains in Me, and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown away like a branch and dries up; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned” (John 15:5-6). Note it says in the Mark account the disciples were listening to this condemnation.  Let’s also listen closely and take this to heart.

The unbelieving chief priests, scribes, and elders questioned Jesus’s authority for His actions. As He has consistently maintained, Jesus will not explain certain levels of spiritual truths to those who have already rejected the basic truths provided them. In this case they rejected the message of John the Baptist. Consider Matt. 13:12: “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.”

PSALM 48:1-8 The city of our God here likely refers literally to Jerusalem, with its Temple containing the special presence of God, high elevation, fortified walls, and palaces of the kings of Israel. Yet, in the New Testament we begin to see the concept of God’s city applied more broadly. These additional meanings add richness and hope to the Psalmist thoughts:

  • The people of God: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matt. 5:14).
  • Abraham’s faith destination: “He was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (Heb. 11:14).
  • The new Jerusalem: “I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Rev. 21:2).

We may currently be residents of Yorktown or Muncie, but we should only consider ourselves as resident aliens of these towns: “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our lowly condition into conformity with His glorious body, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:20-21). The City of God is our true home.