Jer 24.7 And I will give them an heart to know me, that I [am] the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
In the midst of the many prophecies of judgment given by the prophet Jeremiah, we read in chapter 24 a prophecy spoken to those of Judah who were in Babylonian captivity. They were figuratively identified as good figs. Not only were they told that God would return them to their homeland. They were given a more glorious promise found here in our blog this morning. God says that He will give them a heart to know Him. They would be His people. They would return to Him with all of their heart.
The promise given to these good figs is a beautiful picture of what God does to those who have trusted in Jesus Christ as full satisfaction of their sin debt. Later on in this book, this same promise that is recorded in Hebrews reads “but this [shall be] the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Hallelujah for the new heart and new life that we have in Christ!
Beloved, in Christ Jesus, not only are all of your sins forgiven you, but God has given you a heart to know Him. But according to the parable of the sower, that heart that God has given to know Him can also be choked with cares of this life and other pleasures and pursuits. So, like a “good fig”, draw near to your God this morning with all of your heart. And, as your day unfolds, keep your eyes on Him and lay the stress, cares and allurements of the world at His feet.
