Jump Start # 651

Jeremiah 6:16 “Thus says the Lord, “Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”

This week we have taken a look at several Old Testament passages that are rich with thought and meaning. Our verse today is taken from a series of problems found in Judah that the prophet Jeremiah was trying to awaken the people to see and repent. They refused. They dug their heels in and became stubborn spiritually. Some people are like that. They’d rather be wrong with God than change. They’d rather take their chances and continue their current direction than obey the Lord.

In our verse, Jeremiah pleads for the old ways. We often hear older people talking about the good old days. When grandpa starts reminiscing about the old days the grandkids run and hide. They don’t want to hear all those stories of how things were so much better than they are today. Grandpa even forgets how hard things were. Age and time has a way of making the past look better than it really was. Most wouldn’t want to go back to the days of the outhouse, no air conditioning, black and white TV with about 4 choices of stations, no computers, cell phones, ipods, ipads. Many folks with serious ailments and health issues would not be alive if they had those things in the good ole’ days. Medical advancements have allowed people to survive and overcome extreme health issues. We can do more, go further and faster than ever before. Just last Sunday, someone in India listened to a sermon from our pulpit LIVE. Now, that’s amazing in my book.

Jeremiah is not talking about the good ole’ days like grandpa does. He is not nostalgic and missing his childhood. Jeremiah has the spiritual ways in mind. The Judah of Jeremiah’s day was not the spiritual nation as years before. More than that, Jeremiah has in mind the standard, or God’s law. Seek the ancient paths, is not so much about what we did in the past, but what was in the past. God’s way, God’s law, God’s truth. These people left that. They move on. As some put it today, “they simply outgrew the Bible.” That’s a dumb idea. No one outgrows the Bible. That’s some cute expression that a clever writer came up with to justify making changes in worship and spiritual behavior. God’s word is not a pair of pants that a person outgrows, like boys do to their jeans. What the writer didn’t have the nerve to really say was that he no longer believed in the Bible. He no longer excepted the Bible as THE way. He now had his own god and his god isn’t into obedience and rules and laws and all those stuffy things. His god is into having a good time. Happiness is the theme. You see, a person doesn’t out grow the Bible, they simply quit believing it.

The pleas of Jeremiah are for the ancient path. That well worn path, similar to what David wrote when he said, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…He guides me in the paths of righteousness…” The ancient paths were well worn and true. They lead to places. Long before the days of highways and interstates, paths were the roadways people traveled. In the pastures, paths is where shepherds lead their flocks. The ancient paths represents God’s word. Tried, true, trustworthy and dependable—that was God’s word. Those ancient paths led to God. They led to what was right and good and noble. Jeremiah was trying to get the nation away from idols and back to God. The avenue that would get them there were the ancient paths.

We need to hear those words today. What we need is to get back to God’s ancient paths—the Bible way. We don’t need new things, it’s the ancient things. Back to the ancient paths of Bible preaching. Teach the word. Make it plain and simple. It worked then and it will work today. The Bible way is the sure way. It’s a path first marked out by our Savior. It’s the way that He traveled.

New and different ways of presenting worship are not always the best. In fact, some can be just plain wrong. New ideas…new methods…new, new, new—it seems we tire of the ancient paths. This is not a call for dry, stale and boring—not at all. Toast needs some jelly on it, but do not stray from the ancient paths of God. God’s way is the only way.

Jeremiah’s people didn’t get it. Our verse even states that. The verse ends with, “we will not walk in it.” Stubborn. Dumb. Death sentence. History tells us that the nation was taken in captivity for 70 years. Life changed. Many died in a foreign land. Many died in the capture of their nation. They resisted God and they lost.

It’s the ancient paths that will save us. It’s the ancient paths that will lead us home to God. Seek them…want them…follow them and then stay on them.

Roger