BRETT J. ANDERSON
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2019

Lenten Reflection Series

Enemy of the People

3/20/2019

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Jeremiah 18:18-20 (NRSVCE)
Then they said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah—for instruction shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us bring charges against him, and let us not heed any of his words.”

Give heed to me, O Lord,
    and listen to what my adversaries say!
Is evil a recompense for good?
    Yet they have dug a pit for my life.
Remember how I stood before you
    to speak good for them,
    to turn away your wrath from them.


Jeremiah was a prophet. He proclaimed the goodness of God, he called out the wickedness of the world, and he prayed for mercy and salvation for the people of God. And the people hated him for it. He did what prophets are there to do—he disrupted the ordinary ways of the world, for the sake of the ways of God. But nobody likes change. The world hated the mere thought of giving up its wicked ways. So instead of heeding Jeremiah’s pleas, instead of changing their behavior, they instead chose to demonize Jeremiah. Jeremiah is a prophet, and thus ought to be listened to. But if we make him an enemy, if we find a reason (or can make up a reason) to condemn him, we get to keep going about our lives as we always have, in sin.

Is evil a recompense for good? It was precisely because he was good that the people sought to get rid of Jeremiah. The goodness of his words and the goodness of his deeds highlighted the wickedness of their own. I can’t help but think of how we respond now to those who call on us to be better than we are. Do we listen, accept, and learn from what they have to say? Rarely. Do we get defensive, looking for any way to justify the way we are now? That’s certainly more common. But the sad state of affairs is that the most common response is that of the people to Jeremiah. Instead of accepting that we may need to learn or change, and instead of even defending ourselves, we attack. We conspire. We plot. If you don’t think that’s true, go to your local news station’s social media page and read through the comments on any article about a new public policy, or a new project proposal. That will eliminate any doubts about who we still are. We seek to tear down anyone who would even suggest that we ought to be any different than we are, or that the natural order of things can be improved. We are comfortable in our situation and in our behaviors, and we will bring charges against any who would dare to suggest it is not the way things ought to be. Those who challenge us are not allowed to be our teachers, or our advocates. They are only our enemies, just as the people perceived Jeremiah to be.

The takeaway from this is obviously the most difficult bit. We need to work on ourselves. We need to learn how to learn again, how to be like children, how to accept that the way we are right now is not the best we can do or the best we can be. Until the return of our Savior, there is always improvement to be done. We need to open ourselves to the possibility that God is still calling to us with prophetic voices to be better. And we need to help those closest to us to do the same.
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    Day 10: It's Not Fair!
    Day 11: Today Is The Day
    Day 12: Imitation & Humiliation
    Day 13: Daniel's Prayer
    Day 14: Faith Of Abraham
    Day 15: Enemy Of The People
    Day 16: Faith In Action
    Day 17: Son Of His Old Age
    Day 18: A Routine Faith
    Day 19: The Barren Fig Tree
    Day 1: You're So Vain
    Day 20: The Annunciation
    Day 21: Prayer Of Azariah
    Day 22: The Law
    Day 23: Stubborn Wanderers
    Day 24: The Greatest Commandment
    Day 25: Line In The Sand
    Day 26: Ambassadors For Christ
    Day 27: Signs & Wonders
    Day 28: A Helping Hand
    Day 29: In God's Memory
    Day 2: Choose Life
    Day 30: God Changed His Mind
    Day 31: Would I Recognize Jesus?
    Day 32: Vengeance
    Day 33: Go And Sin No More
    Day 34: Susanna
    Day 35: Christ The Serpent
    Day 36: Out Of Order
    Day 37: What's In A Name?
    Day 38: Lament Of Jeremiah
    Day 39: Imitation
    Day 3: Jesus The Bridegroom
    Day 40: Kenosis
    Day 41: Isaiah's Cave
    Day 42: Light To The Nations
    Day 43: In Times Of Trouble
    Day 44: Handed Over
    Day 45: The Humanity Of Christ
    Day 46: Harrowing Of Hell
    Day 47: Peter's Vocation
    Day 4: Trampling The Sabbath
    Day 5: The Temptation Of Christ
    Day 6: Laws And Signposts
    Day 7: The Life-Giving Word
    Day 8: The First Ninevite
    Day 9: Three Keys To Prayer

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