{"id":4029,"date":"2024-10-11T21:12:51","date_gmt":"2024-10-11T21:12:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/?p=4029"},"modified":"2024-10-11T21:12:51","modified_gmt":"2024-10-11T21:12:51","slug":"from-the-deep-well-of-past-blog-posts-what-has-straw-in-common-with-wheat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/2024\/10\/11\/from-the-deep-well-of-past-blog-posts-what-has-straw-in-common-with-wheat\/","title":{"rendered":"From the Deep Well of Past Blog Posts: What Has Straw in Common With Wheat?"},"content":{"rendered":"

[Every now and then, we like to dip back into the well of past blog posts. This week, Coty is beginning a new series in Jeremiah titled, The Word of Life, the Word of Judgment. <\/em>The theme for this Sunday is “Father, You Have Put Your Words in Our Mouths .” If you can’t tell, the common theme here is God’s Word<\/em>. In light of this, consider this past blog post that observes how Jeremiah 23 reveals the immeasurable worth of God’s Word that he has graciously given to us. Read and be edified.]<\/p>\n

Are you hungry? Why don\u2019t you go collect grass clippings from your lawn, pile them up on your plate, and sit down to a sumptuous feast?<\/p>\n

Doesn\u2019t that sound appealing?<\/p>\n

Which would you choose: That plate of grass clippings, or a loaf of piping hot bread, right from the oven?<\/p>\n

Jeremiah tells us that the Word of God is like wheat, and any other words of advice, of counsel, of experience, are like grass, like straw. The Word of God is that much more valuable than all other words.<\/p>\n

Does that image reflect the relative value you give the Word of God compared to other voices?<\/p>\n

The image comes from the prophet Jeremiah. God gave him a difficult message to deliver to the nation: The Babylonians would come and destroy Jerusalem. The Lord God would bring about this punishment because of centuries of rebellion against Him.<\/p>\n

Jeremiah faithfully delivered the message.<\/p>\n

But many other false prophets were telling the people that all would be fine: They said the attacking Babylonian army would depart, the exiles who had been taken away to Babylon a few years earlier would return, and the kingdom would be secure. They claimed to have received dreams from God revealing these truths.<\/p>\n

In response to these false dreams of the false prophets, God says through Jeremiah:<\/p>\n

Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? declares the LORD. Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:28-29)<\/p>\n

The prophets\u2019 dreams were like straw, like grass \u2013 like that plateful of grass clippings. Those dreams provided no nourishment. As God says a few verses later, \u201cThey do not profit this people at all\u201d (Jeremiah 23:32).<\/p>\n

In contrast, God\u2019s Word is like wheat: Nourishing; satisfying; filling; sustaining.<\/p>\n

And no one would mistake straw for wheat! No one would pick up grass clippings and think, \u201cOh, let me grind this up to make fresh flour!\u201d<\/p>\n

Just so \u2013 if we have eyes to see \u2013 there is a stark difference in value between the Word of God and other writings that claim authority.<\/p>\n

Daily, hourly, minute by minute, words pound against our ears and messages present themselves to our eyes, saying: Buy this! Vote for that! Advocate this! Write a letter about that! Heal your relationships via this technique! Get your life together through that miracle cure! Make a million through this investment! Become attractive through these clothes! Become healthy via this exercise regime!<\/p>\n

Among all those messages, some are totally false. Some are harmful. Some, on the other hand, are useful in one way or another.<\/p>\n

But in comparison to the truths God graciously provides us in His Word, all of those are straw. All are a pile of grass clippings, compared to the satisfying, fragrant, filling bread of His Word.<\/p>\n

And the bread is not just for our personal consumption! His Word, says the Lord, is like \u201ca hammer that breaks the rock in pieces\u201d (Jeremiah 23:29). Picture a sledgehammer, shattering the concrete barriers we have erected between us and God. God\u2019s Word breaks through those barriers, leaving us \u201cexposed to the eyes of Him to Whom we must give account\u201d (Hebrews 4:13). Exposed, we can only fall on our faces before Him, humbly seeking the forgiveness He offers through Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

So we must proclaim that Word, so that it might have its intended, shattering effect.<\/p>\n

Now, the effect of that proclamation is often not pleasant. Indeed, when the sledgehammer is at work, hearers may oppose the Word harshly. This was the case with Jeremiah. He was thrown in prison more than once for speaking God\u2019s Word. He was even tempted to quit speaking. But God would not let him. Jeremiah writes,<\/p>\n

If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot (Jeremiah 20:9).<\/p>\n

God\u2019s Word is like a fire (Jeremiah 20:9; 23:29). It burns within us. Like the Yosemite wildfire, it spreads and spreads. We can\u2019t hold it in. We can\u2019t contain it. We must speak it.<\/p>\n

Many pastors have applied these verses to the preaching ministry. Indeed, my prayers prior to preaching almost always echo Jeremiah 23:29.<\/p>\n

But the Word should be a fire in every one of God\u2019s people. The Word is a hammer, breaking the rock into pieces, whenever any<\/i> Christian faithfully speaks that Word to others.<\/p>\n

So, first: value God\u2019s Word above all the other voices you hear \u2013 consider it like a hot loaf of fresh bread compared to grass clippings. Second, remember that it is like a sledgehammer, which will break down the barriers we erect between ourselves and God. Finally: that Word is a fire within us \u2013 it must come out!<\/p>\n

May we speak that Word faithfully and fully \u2013 so that all might know the difference between straw and wheat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[Every now and then, we like to dip back into the well of past blog posts. This week, Coty is beginning a new series in Jeremiah titled, The Word of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,15],"tags":[822,1404,1712],"class_list":["post-4029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-devotions","tag-jeremiah-23","tag-scripture","tag-word-of-god"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4029","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4029"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4030,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4029\/revisions\/4030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.desiringgodchurch.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}