Learn From the Rechabites

The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying, “Go to the house of the Rechabites, speak to them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.” “-Jeremiah 35:1-2

God tells Jeremiah to bring the Rechabites to the house of the Lord and give them wine to drink. And Jeremiah obeys Him. The only problem with this is that they did not drink. 

When Jeremiah tells them the purpose of the gathering, they refuse to drink the wine that was offered to them. They tell Jeremiah that they have never had a drink of wine and didn’t plan to start just because they have been brought to the house of God. (I’m paraphrasing!) But in all honesty, they tell him that they are obeying the traditions or commands of their forefathers and that they would not drink the wine. If you have not read the account of the Rechabites before, I encourage you to do so to get the full story.

God knew this when He had them invited. He wanted to prove a point. The point He wanted to prove was that men will obey an earthly father, even after many years since his departure; but His people would not obey their Heavenly Father. As a matter of fact, He points out that He had repeatedly tried to get His people to obey Him and they repeatedly refused to do so.

God was not pleased with them. He told Jeremiah to tell the men of Judah that He had sent His prophets to tell them on many occasions to repent so that He could bless them, but they wouldn’t listen. They apparently thought God had a different agenda in mind for them, other than blessings.

And He told Jeremiah to tell the Rechabites that because of their obedience to their father Rechab, they would always have a man to stand before Him! Not their obedience to God, but their obedience to their forefather Rechab. There obedience had gotten God’s attention.

Obviously, obedience is pleasing in the sight of God in the natural as well as in the spiritual realm of our lives. When He sees obedience He is pleased, and when He doesn’t see it, He is displeased.

Today, make a decision to seek to be more obedient in your walk before the Lord. Whether at work, at home, at school, in church, or out in society, know that your obedience is a sweet aroma to the Father. Wives obey your husbands! Ouch!! Children obey your parents! Employees obey your employers! Students obey your teachers! Drivers obey the signs! And the list can go on! Don’t let others convince you to do what your Father has asked you not to do, and don’t let them talk you out of doing what He has told you to do.

Obey Him because you love Him! Obey Him because you fear Him! Obey Him because He is your God and King! Obey Him because it’s a blessing in store for you when you obey! Obey Him because He commands it! Wonderful Jesus!