SLIGHTLY HEALED

"They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace." (Jeremiah 6:14; 8:11)

THE ROAD UPON WHICH THE HOLY PROPHETS TRAVERSED was a difficult one. Their's was not a life of ease, and their ministry cost many of them their very lives. A considerable portion of their ministry was actually against the leaders of God's people. These were leaders who exploited the people instead of feeding and caring for them. They delivered a message that sounded impressive, but yielded no godly and lasting results. They offered answers that did not satisfy, and solutions that did not work. The irony of it all was that this was done in the name of the Lord. In pious tones, the false priests and prophets announced God had revealed to them what they were saying, and told them what they were declaring.

JEREMIAH WAS CALLED OF GOD when young, and charged with ministering during times when the people of God were being led astray by those pretending to be from God. The situation had gotten so bad, that God was going to chasten His people. Their religion had lulled them into a spiritual sleep, so that they could not even recognize when God was talking to them. In His assessment of them the Lord said, "behold, their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken: behold, the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach; they have no delight in it" (6:10). His fury was about to break forth, because He was "weary with holding" it in (6:11). Their homeland and their houses would be turned over to their enemies, and God would stretch out His hand "upon the inhabitants of the land" (6:12).

WITHIN THE INHABITANTS OF ISRAEL, from the least to the greatest of the people, everyone was given over to "covetousness." Also, in the religious structure of things, "from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely" (6:13). How could these things be? What caused sin to break forth in such unrestrained measures. God had given them a law with judgments and statues that were righteous (Deut 4:7-8). He had protected them from the enemy, fought for them, and blessed them with abundance. They alone had heard the voice of God (Deut 5:26,27). He had even sent discriminating rain upon them, singling out areas for special blessings (Amos 4:7). God also sent His "servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them" (Jer 7:25; 25:4; 26:5; 29:19; 35:15; 44:4). He sent them in plenty of time to stop sin from erupting. He sent them early enough to thwart the rise and dominance of sin. They came early enough to turn the people from waywardness.

WHY, WITH ALL OF THESE ADVANTAGES, had the people fallen into such a state? If the answer to waywardness is comfortable circumstances, protection from the enemy, and good health, why didn't it work for Israel? If hearing from God is the solution to protection, why wasn't that the case with Israel? If having a good and righteous law is sufficient, why did Israel lapse into degeneracy? Our text provides some answers to those questions.

THE LORD CHARGED THE PROPHETS had "healed also the hurt of the daughter of My people slightly." Other versions read, "healed the brokenness of My people superficially" (NASB), and "They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious" (NIV).

BEHIND THIS ASSESSMENT the fact that sin wounds the human spirit very deeply. Transgression is never on the surface. It always reaches into the recesses of the heart. That is why surface solutions only cause more damage. A healing that is "slight" is one that is only on the surface – like smearing some make-up over a deep and life-threatening wound. When the brokenness and hurt of God's people is treated superficially, they are moved to simply try and forget the situation, without ever having it addressed. Jesus came to "HEAL the brokenhearted" (Lk 4:18), not simply to put a band-aid on the condition. In Jeremiah's day, the prophets were telling the people "Peace, peace," when none existed in their souls. In a way, they were showing the people how to pretend, how to act as though everything was all right, when it was really all bad.

THERE IS AN IMPORTANT TRUTH TO BE SEEN HERE. Surface solutions give strength to sin. To put it another way, if people are not changed, they will actually get worse. God will not allow superficial remedies to bring eternal resolutions. An uncircumcised ear, cannot be resolved with a hearing aid. A little bit of time given to the Lord will not offset the effects of a lot of time given to the world and to its lusts.

THIS IS THE DAY OF FAST-PACED LIVING, instant food, and quick resolutions. It is a time when seven minute devotions are in vogue, and twenty minute sermons are intended to offset the effects of two hour movies and three hour super-bowls. It is a day of "slight" healing, neatly ministered by trained pseudo-psychiatrists who hawk their wares under the name of Christian. If the church has trouble with zeal and persistence, it can call for a motivator, or a good stand-up comedian who can make them laugh and forget their miserable condition. Some can even be lulled into comfort by a n expert storyteller. The only real qualification is that the solution must be brief and pleasant.

THE WOUND CAUSED BY SIN cannot be healed in such ways. Neither, indeed, does lasting and keeping peace come by such means.

– Given O. Blakely