Title Jeremiah 35 Lessons from the Rechabites
Content [Introduction]
一. Obedience and godliness of the Rechabites (1-11)
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Not a Rechabite Jew, but a descendant of the Kenites as a descendant of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law.
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Jeremiah put a bowl and a cup full of wine before the Rechabites without asking if they would like to drink wine. And recommended to drink.
The Rechabites refused Jeremiah's invitation and did not drink. The reason they did not drink is because Jonadab, the son of their ancestor Rechab, established the law on godly living and followed it until the time of King Jehoiakim.
The Rechabites have kept the orders of their ancestor Jonadab for about 250 years. The content of the command is that you must not drink wine, you must not sow, you must not plant or plant vineyards, and you must live in tents.
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The life tenets that the Rechabites adhered to can be summarized into four things. ① I do not drink wine. This was to prevent drunkenness as a controlled life. It means that the saints should not get drunk on anything in the world and live a life with an alert mind at all times.
② Do not build a house. This symbolizes that they will not be greedy for earthly riches that come from being settled somewhere on earth. Also, do not put your hope in the world, but set your hope in heaven and live in tents and sojourners in the world (1 Peter 1:17; Hebrews 11:13-16).
③ He dwells in tents. The ancestors of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob also lived in tents and lived the lives of strangers and pilgrims on earth. And he did not possess anything that could hinder his view of heaven, his eternal resting place. This will also prevent you from clinging to the temporary and missing out on the eternal.
④ Do not sow. Do not try to live with your roots in the world, but only look to God and live as God leads. In the Old Testament times, drinking wine was not considered a great sin, but neither priests nor Nazarites did. Pious people carried out the tradition of not drinking wine. Also, although the Bible does not say to live without building a house, they are telling us not to build a house, but to live in tents and live a godly life so that we can live as strangers in the world and hope for the kingdom of heaven.
Likewise, we also have many orthodoxy pertaining to godliness that are not explicitly stated in the Bible. For example, not smoking, not drinking alcohol, having social gatherings, offering temper, three-day worship, putting the almsgiving box, not putting the almsgiving envelope on the pulpit, etc. God blesses us when we keep these traditions pertaining to godliness.
Our saints must learn that the descendants of Rechab have inherited the good tradition of living a godly life from their ancestors. The Rechabites have maintained a tradition of piety for 250 years that the Jews are ashamed of. No matter how famous a prophet advised him to drink, he did not drink wine because he was convinced that the godly life handed down from his ancestors was very important, and while living in this world, he did not put any hope in the world and lived a temporary sojourn like a stranger. Therefore, God was pleased with the godly lives of the Rechabites (18:19). James 1:27 "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." We must stay away from the worldly life, turn away from sin, and live right before God. You cannot lead a godly life unless you gradually turn away from sin. Romans 13:13-14 says, “Walk modestly as in the daytime, not in licentiousness and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in strife and envy, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not seek the lusts of the flesh.
二. The people of Judah rebuked God for their disobedience (12-17)
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Israel should have obeyed God's command more than the Rechabites were completely obedient to the command of their ancestors. Nevertheless, they did not heed the Lord's command.
Although the Rechabites are not the Jewish people, they have kept a good tradition from their ancestors, so God took the Rechabites and taught them to the Jews. Today, although God instructs and exhorts us diligently, there are many things that do not obey His Word and fail to keep the doctrine of godliness. I must repent of this sin and stand upright.
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God diligently sent His servants the prophets to the people of Judah to tell them the word of God and the doctrine of godliness, but they did not listen and were not taught.
Turn from the evil way and change your deeds, and turn from your deeds and ways that are not in the sight of God and walk in a way that is worthy of God's command We must throw away words and thoughts that are not proper before God. We must put away all bitterness, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander in us (1 Peter 2:1).
You must not serve other gods, you must not serve idols. Today, there are many people whose money becomes an idol, themselves become their idols, people become their idols, and their jobs and power become their idols. If you have no intention of obeying God and follow your own stubbornness, you are serving idols (1 Samuel 15:23). Pride and covetousness are idols (Colossians 3:5).
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The descendants of Jonadab the son of Rechab have been doing well what their ancestors commanded them for a long time, but the people of Judah did not listen to the word of God or the instruction of godliness. Therefore, God said that he would bring disaster on the people of Judah. When God frequently rebukes and counsels, if you do not listen and disobey, you will end up with disaster.
three. Allowing the Rechabites to stand before God forever (18-19)
God declared a disaster for the Israelites, but He blessed the Rechabites, who had been following good lessons about godliness from their ancestors, that they would never cease to stand before God forever.
A godly life is pleasing to God, and among the descendants who keep it, those who stand before God will never cease to be blessed. God calls and uses people who will stand before God from a godly family, and he calls and uses people who will stand before God from a godly denomination.
Therefore, we should always lead a godly life and make sure that the godly life is passed down to the next generation. Abraham's devout life went down to the twelve tribes of Israel. From a place of godly life, there are those who keep the truth, there are martyrs, and there are those who reveal the truth. There is a way to receive disasters by living an ungodly life without keeping the word of God, and there is a way to receive blessings through godly teaching and keeping God's word well. We, too, must obey God's Word and keep the teachings on godliness so that those who stand before God will receive the eternal blessing from among our descendants.