Jeremiah 17:19

Jeremiah 17:19 says, Thus said the LORD unto me; Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by the which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem;  Jeremiah was told by God to go and proclaim His word in the gates where the leaders of the country went in and out.  They could not miss God's message.  We need to make sure that those in power today cannot miss God's message to us today.  Verse seventeen declares, And say unto them, Hear ye the word of the LORD, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates:  God told Jeremiah to call on the kings of Judah and all of the people who passed through the gates to hear God's word.  Jeremiah was to start from the highest ranking people and to spread the word downward.  We today usually start from where we are and spread God's word upward, but the important point is that God's word is spread throughout the land.  Verse twenty-one adds, Thus saith the LORD; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem;  God told Jeremiah to tell the people to observe the sabbath as God had instructed them to do.  God had not changed His law, but His chosen people were ignoring it.  Verse twenty-two continues, Neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers.  God just continued to to remind them of the requirements of the Sabbath.  They were to do no work on the Sabbath.  Verse twenty-three proclaims, But they obeyed not, neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor receive instruction.  God told Jeremiah that the people did not only did not hear, but that they deliberately chose not to hear.  We may proclaim God's message on every street corner, but some people are always going to chose to not hear what God has to say.  They will not even incline their ear to hear God.  Verse twenty-four adds, And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me, saith the LORD, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but hallow the sabbath day, to do no work therein;  God then had Jeremiah tell the people what He would do if they began to observe the Sabbath again.  Verse twenty-five continues, Then shall there enter into the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: and this city shall remain for ever.  God said that if the people of Judah would begin to observe the Sabbath again, which would be a sign that they were obeying His commandments, then there would be a king in Judah forever and the nation would survive.  We as God's people must obey His commands if we are to survive spiritually today.  Verse twenty-six declares, And they shall come from the cities of Judah, and from the places about Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the plain, and from the mountains, and from the south, bringing burnt offerings, and sacrifices, and meat offerings, and incense, and bringing sacrifices of praise, unto the house of the LORD.  God said that if the people began to observe the Sabbath in faith that people would come from throughout the land to bring their offerings to God.  The requirement was really quite simple- the people of Judah were to obey the LORD and He would bless them.  The same is true today.  Verse twenty-seven concludes, But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.  Just as obedience to God's word had its reward, disobedience had its consequences.  This also has not changed.  If we are to receive the gifts of God, we must first be obedient to God, beginning with accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.