It's Thursday, August 11th, 2022. Thank you for joining me each morning as we walk through God's Word together. Even though some believe in Christ, a tendency to "moonwalk" can develop. We want it to look like we are walking forward when in reality, we are actually going backward. Could it be you? Read on …
Today's Reading:
Jeremiah 7,8,9; John 13
Scripture
"But this is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.' Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward.” (Jeremiah 7:23-24)
Observation
I remember when moonwalking became all the rage. I think Michael Jackson was the first to do it, and all the kids tried to copy that. Even I worked hard at perfecting it … when no one was looking, that is! It was the art of walking backwards and making it look cool while you’re doing it.
There are many Christians that are great at moonwalking. That’s what Jeremiah says, anyway. When God speaks to us and gives us the promise of well-being, yet we choose to do it our way, we actually go backwards, not forward (Jer. 7:24). The Lord was not speaking here to non-believers! He was talking to Israel, the people of God who experienced His miracles in their past. They were the ones whose parents and grandparents saw His provision. Yet, they chose to live according to their own counsel within the house of God.
The elder brother in Luke 15:28 had this same “moonwalking” disease. He refused to see things his father’s way. The way the older brother saw things was, to him, more accurate than the way the father saw them. Therefore, he became resistant to the father’s reasoning. It is still not known if the elder brother came around to the father’s way of thinking. He’s probably still moonwalking today.
Application
We Christians can make God’s Word a ceremonial issue rather than a life-changing adventure. We hail Him as King, but He doesn’t rule and reign in our lives. He really doesn’t have the final say. When this happens, we take up the moonwalking posture as we cordially greet one another on ceremonial Sundays and then walk backwards home. We confess with our mouths but compromise with our feet.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I don’t want to treat You as ceremonial royalty, honoring You with my mouth while dancing my heart backwards away from Your Word. Help me to obey Your voice and walk in Your ways, not my own. I incline my ear to You and honor you as the True King!
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