Devotions

“I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn” (Jeremiah 31:9, NKJV).

The people of Ephraim, the largest tribe of Israel, were perhaps the closest to God’s heart. The Lord had an eternal plan for this very blessed tribe, but Ephraim kept backsliding and grieving God. The people sinned more than anyone in Israel, but did God abandon Ephraim? Just the opposite. God said that they were to be a free and ransomed people. They would live among fatness, meaning, God’s greatest blessings (see Jeremiah 31:14, KJV).

What did God see in Ephraim? They had a repentant heart, a shame for sin, a willingness to return to the Lord. In spite of all their failures, this one trait attracted God’s heart to them! When a strong, prophetic word came forth, they responded. When they were rebuked, they wept over their sin.

At the height of their backsliding, God said, “Is Ephraim [not] my dear son? Is he [not] a pleasant child? For though I spoke against him, I earnestly remember him still; therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him” (Jeremiah 31:20). God was saying, “In spite of Ephraim’s shortcomings and failures, I see a repentant spirit, and I will not take away my tender love. My eternal purpose for Ephraim will go on as I have planned.”

Beloved, God has a plan for your life. He is going to accomplish all his purposes for you, no matter what you are going through or how severe your trial. God has put a lot of thought into planning your future.

I have a word for some who are reading this message right now: You cannot judge God’s eternal purpose for you by what you are feeling or thinking. God wants to say to you, “Keep your heart humble before me. Trust my Word about my nature, that I am a tender, loving Father who has invested much in you. I am not about to let you go. You are my delightful child, and I will deliver you.”

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11).

The Father has two kinds of love: a general love for all sinners and a special love for all who are in his family. God’s general love for mankind can be embraced by anyone who comes to him in repentance, but God’s heart is also filled with a distinctive, exceptional love for his children.

God has always had a chosen people for himself upon whom he bestowed his great love. Israel once was the sole object for this special love: “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. The Lord did not set his love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the Lord loves you ... [He] has brought you out with a mighty hand ...” (Deuteronomy 7:6-8, NKJV).

God directed these words to Israel. Yet, if you have received Jesus as your Savior and Lord—if you have been adopted into God’s family, and he is your loving Father—you too must come to grips with how special you are to him!

You are the recipient of God’s extraordinary love, and here are his words to you: “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, his own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2: 9-10).

At one time, you were not an object of his special love, but now you are! You have been reconciled to the Father, and he loves you deeply right now, at this very moment. He has set his love upon you, and he delights in you.

These are the generations living today and the general time frames in which they were born. Which one are you?

Greatest Generation (1901-27)
Silent Generation (1928-45)
Baby Boomers (1946-64)
Gen X (1965-80)
Millennials or Gen Y – (1981-96)
Gen Z or iGen – (1997-2010)
Generation Alpha (Born after 2010)

I’m a proud boomer. We came of age in a turbulent era and think we’re kind of hip. I mean, we invented rock and roll and were in charge when the internet went global! You’re welcome.

That said, I have some bad news for my fellow boomers. We’re now the old guys five slots back from the newest generation. We’re more associated with hip surgery than with the Summer of Love.

Here’s the serious part: According to a 2018 American Family Survey, the fastest-growing group of people on the religious horizon is the “Nones,” those who check “none” on surveys that ask for their religious affiliation. It’s an irony that in our quest to make the gospel more relatable to new generations, we’ve made it feel out of reach.

It isn’t that people aren’t curious and desperate for God. Rather, it’s that children are raised more and more in environments where God is never even mentioned. Even worse, if they do eventually make their way to a church, they have a lot of questions, but they’re met with smiles and platitudes. A millennial told me recently that many of his peers don’t feel they can voice their questions to believers. Why? Maybe it’s because too many have prioritized relevance over faith. Maybe they haven’t even looked for the answers themselves.

C. S. Lewis’s book Mere Christianity is adapted from a series of radio broadcasts he made during World War II. Both the book and the broadcasts were sensations because they voiced the hard questions. He knew his topic well from his own mighty struggle with the ideas of God, suffering, salvation and life in general.

Do we know our topic, the magnificent gospel message? Does it even matter how much we know? Be assured that it matters very much to the person who is longing to learn about Jesus. Peter thought so too. In 2 Peter 1:3-11, he urges us to keep reinvigorating our faith and be ready to share it. He sums it up with “Therefore…be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election” (2 Peter 1:10, ESV).

Wise words, at any age.

A concerned husband went to see the family doctor. “I think my wife is deaf,” he said. “She never hears me the first time I say something.”

“Go home tonight,” the doctor suggested. “Stand fifteen feet from her, and say something. If she doesn’t reply, move five feet closer and say it again. Keep doing this so we can get an idea of the severity of her deafness.”

The husband went home and did exactly as instructed. “Honey, what’s for dinner?” he said. No response, so he moved five feet closer and asked, “Honey, what’s for dinner?” Finally, he moved right behind her and asked the question again.

“For the fourth time,” she said, “chicken!”

Guess who was actually the deaf one?

We can laugh over this story, but it tells an important truth: we always assume it’s the other person who has the problem.

Jesus addressed this issue in the last part of the Sermon on the Mount. “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:1-3, ESV). As the great nineteenth-century preacher Charles H. Spurgeon aptly put it, “None are more unjust in their judgments of others than those who have a high opinion of themselves.”

I have asked couples in marriage counseling to name their ‘logs’ before telling me their spouse’s ‘specks.’ It’s amazing how hard it is for them to think of their own issues. F. B. Meyer, once said, “When we see a brother or sister in sin, there are three things we do not know and [must] keep in mind before we pass judgment: First, we do not know how hard he or she tried not to sin. Second, we do not know the power of the forces that assailed him or her. Third, we do not know what we would have done in the same circumstances.” Good words to remember.

If you want to judge, judge yourself first. Logs before specks. You’ll be so busy getting rid of your own log that you won’t have time for others’ specks. Get this and you will build deep, meaningful, long-term relationships.

_{After pastoring an inner-city congregation in Detroit for thirty years, Pastor Tim served at Brooklyn Tabernacle in NYC for five years and pastored in Lafayette, Louisiana, for five years. He became Senior Pastor of Times Square Church in May of 2020.}