Has there been a time when you learned from your mistakes? Soon after receiving my drivers’ license it was a snowy winter day. I was coming home from school and I came up over a top of a hill. There on the hill was a man parked the road in my lane. I put on my brakes and slid right into his car. What I should have done was just steer around him because the road was snow packed and icy. A few years later it was winter again. As I approached the sharp turn at the bottom of a small hill I tried to stop, but it was too icy. I was now heading for a utility pole. I took my foot off the brake and turned the corner without incident. I remembered to take my foot off the brake and just pump the brakes. I had learned from my previous mistake.
In our reading today, the false prophet Hananiah had been called out by the true prophet Jeremiah for giving a false prophecy to the people of Judah. 15 Then Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord has not sent you, but the people believe your lies. 16 Therefore, this is what the Lord says: ‘You must die. Your life will end this very year because you have rebelled against the Lord.’ ” 17 Two months later the prophet Hananiah died. [1] Jeremiah 28:15-17
Hananiah had a short period of time learn from his mistake and turn from his sin. The Scripture does not say if Hananiah turned from his sin or continued to go in the wrong direction.
As life goes by, we all sin and make ongoing mistakes. The question is: are we teachable as the Lord corrects us from the mistakes that we have made? What is the Lord trying to correct in your life? Are you listening to His correction? How would your life change if you humbled yourself and asked the Lord to help you be teachable?
Lord, forgive me for my sin and my stubbornness. Help me, Lord, to have a teachable heart so You can transform me into the person You want me to be.
If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. 1 John 1:8-9
To hear the story of Jeremiah, listen here:
If you would like more teaching on Jeremiah listen here:
[1] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Je 28:15–17). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.
Peterson, E. H. (2005). The Message: the Bible in contemporary language (1 Jn 1:8–9). Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.