But What Will You Do When the End Comes?

An appalling and horrible thing
    has happened in the land:
the prophets prophesy falsely,
    and the priests rule at their direction;
my people love to have it so,
    but what will you do when the end comes?


Jeremiah mentions the false prophecies being prophesied within Israel and the poor instruction of the priests. All the prominent leaders are doing their own thing and instructing the Israelites to do things that were not pleasing to God. Based upon previous passages in Scripture, it was probably obvious to the Israelites that the instruction was bad or misleading, and they most likely chose to pretend like the information they were given was accurate. That also seems to be the case when God says, "My people love to have it so."

And wouldn't people love it if our actions were condoned instead of condemned? What if the police officer stopped you for speeding and said, "You were going 60 in a 40, when the horsepower of your car shows me you could have been going a lot faster. Don't let that vehicle go to waste. Use it and enjoy its abilities." What if your boss for a major corporation caught you sleeping on the job and said, "I get it. I do it too. Gotta catch up on sleep sometime. Just make sure to get your daily work done, and you can sleep as long as you want!" You'd feel good about these reassurances to do wrong disguised as good. Speeding impacts others around you and could be deadly. It should never be condoned. Sleeping on the job means you're stealing time from the company- it doesn't matter what your boss says unless he personally owns the company. 

So yes, we would love to hear others affirming our sins and allowing us to commit them instead of feeling shameful, and that's what the world does to us today. The world says things like "Porn is okay. Everyone watches it. It's healthy. View it." or "Monogamy is old school. Polyamory is socially tolerable now. Try it out." We have the choice to give into the world's ideas or to refrain, but as God reminded the Israelites, "But what will you do when the end comes?"

Sin does provide pleasure for a limited amount of time. It ends. It grows old. It leaves you hanging. Suddenly that high you had on it or the happiness you received from it is gone, and you keep chasing it, but it's not the same anymore. Some of y'all might not get to that point though. What happens when your life is shortened unexpectedly?

It can happen. I'm a fairly healthy-looking 20-something who recently found noticed my birthmark was beginning to grow abnormally. I figured it wasn't a big deal, but I went and had it checked out, which led to a biopsy and a surgery all within a couple of weeks. The abnormal growth was the most severe form, and I was told it would have led to melanoma cancer had it not been removed. Some people experience abnormal skin cells that could potentially lead to cancer, but the site is a mild form, unlike mine. I had the worst case. I could have developed cancer and not known it for quite some time. I rarely look at that birthmark, but God allowed me to examine it one day and notice something wasn't right before it became a serious issue.

If it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone. One moment you think you're young and invincible, and then the next God shows you that that's not the case. What happens when you fulfill your sinful desires only to realize you made a mistake and your life has been cut off short? What happens when you die in sin, and you wake up at the judgment seat? It's too late to repent.

God reminded the Israelites of this. Yes, you have the choice. The choice to keep on sinning or to stop and follow God. But if they chose to keep it up, God warned them of the consequences- the end outcome. Eternity in hell. 

Time is short. God is gracious, and He gives us chances. But sometimes enough is enough, and there are no more. I would urge you to stop the sin. It's not worth it. Pick up the cross of Christ. That is worth it, and it's something I don't regret.