QT 12/05/2025 Mon. Jeremiah 2. From Faithfulness to Disaster: A Call to Return. 从忠诚到灾难 回归的呼唤.
QT 12/05/2025 Mon. Jeremiah 2. From Faithfulness to Disaster: A Call to Return.
READ http://www.esv.org/jer2
Jeremiah 2 presented God's lament over Israel's spiritual decline.
Jeremiah 2:13 for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water. (ESV)
💡Reflection:
In this passage, God expresses sorrow over Israel's abandonment of Him, the true source of life, in favor of empty idols. The imagery of "broken cisterns" highlights the futility of seeking fulfillment outside of God. Perhaps, some of you have tried very hard in life to purchase or gather “water” of all kinds and pour it (or horde it) into a container—only to find out that the water leaked out faster than you can pour in.
Not only our own cisterns remained unfulfilled, there is that deadening sense of emptiness after all this frantic running in life’s merry-go-rounds. This serves as stark reminder of the dangers of idolatry and the importance of maintaining a faithful relationship with the Creator.
The prophet Jeremiah's message is not just historical (in the past) but timeless (and relevant to readers now. Today, we too may find ourselves turning to "broken cisterns"—temporary pleasures, material possessions, or self-reliance—instead of seeking the living water that only God provides. Such pursuits ultimately leave us spiritually parched.
🐾 Application:
(1) Self-Examination: Reflect on areas in your life where you may have forsaken God's living water for temporary satisfactions.
(2) Repentance: Turn away from these "broken cisterns" and return to God, acknowledging Him as the true source of fulfillment.
(3) Renewed Devotion: Commit to nurturing your relationship with God through prayer, worship, and obedience, allowing Him to fill you with living water—all the goodness that comes with your healthy relationship with God.
🙏Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
We confess that we have often sought fulfillment in things that cannot really satisfy. Forgive us for turning away from You, the fountain of living waters. Help us to recognize the emptiness of "broken cisterns" that exist today in many and various forms, and to return wholeheartedly to You. Fill us with Your living water, Your presence, Your Spirit and your truths, that we may find true satisfaction in Your presence. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Self-evaluate our spiritual state and return to God. Be serious in seeing and emphasising the importance of seeking Him as the ultimate source of life and fulfillment, both for ourselves and those around us.
QT 12/05/2025 星期一. 耶利米书 2.从忠诚到灾难 回归的呼唤.
阅读 http://m.bbintl.org/bible/ncv/Jer/2/
耶利米书第 2 章展现了上帝对以色列属灵衰退的哀叹。
耶利米书 2:13 “因为我的子民作了两件恶事，就是离弃了我这活水的泉源，为自己凿了池子，是破裂不能存水的池子。
💡反思：在这段经文中，上帝对以色列人抛弃祂—真正的生命之源，转而崇拜空洞的偶像表示忧伤。破碎的 “蓄水池”的意象突出了在神之外寻求满足的徒劳。也许，你们中的一些人曾在生活中极力购买或收集各种 “水”，并将其倒入（或囤积）容器中，但却发现水漏得比倒入的还快。
不仅我们自己的蓄水池里的水还没有倒满，在生活的旋转木马中疯狂奔跑之后，还有一种令人窒息的空虚感。这清楚地提醒我们偶像崇拜的危险，以及与造物主保持忠实关系的重要性。
先知耶利米的信息不仅是历史的（在过去），而且是永恒的（与现在的读者息息相关）。今天，我们也可能会发现自己转向“破裂不能存水的池子”--暂时的享乐、物质财富或自力更生，而不是寻求只有上帝才能提供的活水。这样的追求最终会让我们的灵性枯竭。
🐾 应用：
(1) 自我检查： 反省自己在生活中有哪些地方为了暂时的满足而放弃了上帝的活水。
(2) 悔改： 远离这些 “破碎的蓄水池”，回到上帝身边，承认祂是满足的真正源泉。
(3) 重新委身：承诺通过祷告、敬拜和顺服来培养你与神的关系，让神用活水充满你--你与神的健康关系所带来的一切美好。
🙏 祷告：
天父， 我们承认，我们常常在无法真正满足的事物中寻求满足。原谅我们远离你--活水的源泉。帮助我们认识到今天以各种形式存在的“破碎的蓄水池”的空虚，全心全意地回到你身边。用你的活水、你的同在、你的灵和你的真理充满我们，让我们在你面前找到真正的满足。奉主耶稣的名，阿门。
自我评估我们的属灵状态，回到上帝身边。认真看待并强调寻求神作为生命和满足的最终源泉的重要性，无论是对我们自己还是对我们周围的人。
