I will admit--I am one of those people who will tell you when you have broccoli in your teeth (as discretely as possible, of course!). I will step on the toilet paper that's stuck to the bottom of your shoe so that you stop dragging it along. I will give these warning signs because I would want you to do the same for me.
Broccoli and TP are relatively simple things to warn people about. Others aren't so straightforward.
In today's passage, I noticed that there were a few people who gave and received warning signs. Throughout much of this book, Jeremiah has been warning God's people about coming consequences for their desertion of God's ways. In this passage, Jeremiah is literally taken from the dungeon to the palace...and ended up in both places because of forewarning God's people. He felt compelled to deliver the truth, when it was despised--and eventually, telling the truth was rewarded.
In another part of the passage, a man named Gedaliah was given a warning that a guy named Ishmael was out to kill him. Instead of killing Ishmael prematurely--when given the opportunity--Gedaliah didn't do anything. After another man gave him a warning sign and offered to kill Ishmael, Gedaliah said, "Don't do it. I forbid it. You're spreading a false rumor about Ishmael." He was a foreigner placed in charge of the poorest of the poor in Israel. And he treated them well, giving them the freedom to care for their land.
These stories and their implications about warning signs are interesting to me. The moral of Jeremiah's story seems clear-cut: Tell the truth no matter what. When you're compelled by God to speak, do it.
The moral of Gedaliah's story? To be honest, it wasn't clear to me at first. Should Gedaliah have heeded the warning? Should he have fortfied the city or gone into hiding? Perhaps. However, I admire his heart--Gedaliah seems like a guy who tried to believe the best about others. He didn't want to kill someone based on a rumor. And in my book, it's better to be a little hope-filled and naive than a judgmental murderer.
Perhaps I'm raising more questions than providing answers in this post. The implications for giving warning signs seem relatively clear from Jeremiah's example, but the implications for receiving warning signs may be a bit muddy. Here are some questions that have helped me accept and reject warning signs...or heed them with cautious grace:
- Is the warning sign you're getting consistent with God's Word?
- Is the warning sign consistent with the work of the Holy Spirit in your heart? (I realize that may seem like an odd question for some readers, but it's a very important one for those who will get it.)
- Is the warning sign consistent with the gut check of your conscience?
- Do you have an option to proceed with a "cautious grace" approach? (For example, in the case of Gedaliah, a cautious grace solution could have been to prepare for an attack, but not to proactively kill Ishmael.)
- Is the warning sign based on solid facts or evidence--not just rumors or feelings?
At any time--whether you're giving or receiving some warning signs--prayer is the best first choice. God promises to give wisdom to those who honestly ask for it. Sometimes we just need to request wisdom and then actually look for answers.
Tomorrow: Jeremiah 42-45
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