Jeremiah 24:7 “I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.”

We have direct evidence of the accuracy of this chapter, talking about the two different groups of exiles to Babylon, because Daniel was in the first group, as were his friends who survived the furnace ordeal. (Daniel 3) That’s all the more reason for believers today to be encouraged by this verse, because it was fulfilled back then, and God can fulfill it again today. God does enable us to know Him from our hearts, and not just as intellectual knowledge. There is a world of difference between knowing about God and knowing God. I’ve overheard people telling other people about me, when I had no idea who the speaker was! They evidently knew about me, but they didn’t know me, because I didn’t know them. God, being omniscient, knows everything about us, but Jesus said that if we fail to relate to Him in trusting obedience, He will say He “never knew us.” (Matthew 7:23) It is only when we have a reciprocal relationship with God that we truly become His people. The more you come to know God, the more intimately you want to know Him. The Bible repeatedly uses the image of husband and wife to describe the relationship of God to His people, and we tend to get uncomfortable with that, but from the perspective of over 42 years of very happy marriage, I find it a very comforting picture indeed, because marriage is all about relationship. Many marriages break up because the relationship never goes beyond the physical, and therefore cannot withstand the pressures of life. Our relationship with God is not physical, (or at least not sexual) but it should reach to the very core of our being and extend from there to every part of our lives. To the degree that is true, we will enjoy the peace, joy, and everything else God has prepared for us that can be had no other way.

Well! I didn’t expect to write on that! Once again I have been blessed by my upbringing. I saw my parents’ relationship (though I was certainly not privy to their bedroom) and I realized what a blessed thing it was. I’m sure that’s a major reason I got married at 20, because I couldn’t wait to have such a relationship myself. By God’s grace I have indeed received overflowing blessings through my marriage, and it is heartbreaking to see how many couples settle for so much less. As a pastor, I seek not only to help couples understand the marital relationship, I seek to help believers understand the relationship with God that is available to them. Perhaps one reason they have trouble grasping the concept is that they have hardly ever seen a Biblical marriage! I must be careful not to come across as boasting, but allow the Holy Spirit to use me to generate a hunger for more of God in each person to whom I minister, so that we may all turn to Him with our whole hearts, as this verse says.

Father, thank You for pointing this out this morning. It certainly fits with what You were saying about fatherhood yesterday. I can’t get this through to people just by telling them, but You can use me to open people’s eyes and hearts, and that’s what I’m asking You to do. May we as a church be totally in love with You, holding nothing back from You, so that You may do in and through us all that You desire, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!