I. Introduction

There are people in our lives with whom we have different kinds of relationships. We have loved ones like our family and friends, as well as neighbors, other acquaintances, coworkers, and members of our church community. Among these groups of people, we build varying degrees of closeness, and we know some better than others. To grow with those in our inner circle means that we get to know them better and we build trust and dependable relationships. What does Jeremiah say about how God wants to relate to us?

II. Jeremiah's Prophecy of Doom to the People of Judah

This passage in Jeremiah Chapter 31 describes the words Yahweh instructed Jeremiah to deliver to the people of Judah, the Southern Kingdom of Israel. Jeremiah, who lived during the period right before the Babylonian Exile, prophesied this message of warning and doom to a people who disregarded the presence and guidance of Yahweh through Moses and others called by God, and who engaged in religious and moral impurity. Since the days of Moses, they have shown their persistent failure to live according to the terms of the covenant, says J.A. Thompson in his commentary on Jeremiah. They were incapable of obedience to God, he says; instead, they were accustomed to doing evil, we read in Jeremiah Chapter 13 v 23. As a result of their iniquities, their refusal to acknowledge Yahweh as their sovereign God, and to obey the covenant they received from Moses, God will be their judge and they will be invaded by a foreign nation and will be taken away from their land, into exile, and they will suffer severely. They will be uprooted, torn down, demolished, destroyed, and harmed. The population will be diminished and even the flocks and herds will be significantly reduced. There will be a need to repopulate the land with the Lord's help. Jeremiah then prophesied that there will be restoration, but this restoration is not just about a nation that needs to repent, but every individual has a responsibility to repent and return their hearts and minds back to God.

III. I will write a New Law on their Hearts, says the Lord

These harsh words from Yahweh were not necessarily God's intention with the people of Israel, however their deliberate refusal to be in relationship with God, led to this situation they found themselves in. This, instead, is what God wanted from and with them in these words in verse 33 from God, "This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people". God does not and cannot be distant from them. Then in verse 34, Yahweh declares that they will know God directly, not through someone else. In this context, knowing God refers to having a close, loving, and trusting relationship involving one's mind, heart, and soul. God is willing to forgive and forget their iniquities, they will be in a restored relationship with God, and they will be returned to their homeland yet again. This new covenant will not be written on stone, but on their hearts. They will be a transformed nation.

IV. Conclusion

These words from Jeremiah also come to us today, as individuals, families, neighborhoods, as a nation and as a world. The God of Israel is the God of today, and the love God has for Israel, is the love that God has for the whole world. The covenant God wanted with Israel is the covenant God wants with us. The difference is that we do not need a Moses or a Jeremiah or any other human intermediary. God sent God's Son to bring this good news of the covenant. God's message remains unchanged: God will be our God, and we will be God's people. God wants to be in relationship with us always. Let us therefore renew our relationship with God, with our mind, heart and soul, and may the Holy Spirt help and guide us to live according to the covenant God made with us. Let us love one another the way God loves us and the whole world. Amen.