“When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.

Notice in verse 5 the aim in church discipline: ‘so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.’ The local church should discipline its members with a view towards their good. With a view towards their salvation. Paul even goes so far to say in this instance that they are to deliver the sinning man over to Satan himself for the destruction of the flesh. Presumably, he must see the consequences for his sin and what God thinks about it (through the Church), in order to be see clearly and in turn, come to repentance.

Church discipline is not a hot topic today or in any other day. And though we don’t need it to be ‘hot’, we do need it to be normal. For the sake of our good and the glory of God.

And the good of the church community itself is also in view, as Paul makes plain in verse 6-8. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. So if they allow this sinning member to remain in their midst without rebuking and disciplining him, his sin will bring them all down. Their resolve to wage war on sin will naturally wane. So their love for the Lord cannot help but fade.

Notice in verse 7 also that they are to cleanse out the old leaven that they may be a new lump, as they already are. Here is the logic of the New Testament. The church community (and Christian individuals) are to act in line with who they really are in Christ. Through Him we have a new identity. We really are a new community, made us as we are of new individuals. The Lord calls us simply to act in line with reality. Cleanse out the old leaven, because you are a new lump. Be who you really are. Remember Jesus.

And this we are called to do not only in days of discipline, but everyday.

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright.”

Our ultimate trust must not be in the means we employ, but in the One whose blessing we implore. This is a very difficult balance. For on the one hand, though we cannot trust in our chariots and our horses, we must still prepare the chariots and horses for battle. And we must do so diligently. But on the other hand, we prepare in full recognition that the chariots and horses in and of themselves are not enough to bring us the victory. We need blessing from above. We need the Lord to act.

Preparation is vital. But so is the blessing of the Lord. We must be diligent to embrace both realities. For our tendency, it seems, is to embrace one or the other. No matter what the context, there are some Christians who so embrace the reality that God must act on our behalf (that we must trust Him), that they end up despising those who are diligent in training the horses and building the chariots (whether in ministry or any other context for that matter). But on the other hand, there are also many who build the chariots and train the horses without little regard for the blessing of the Lord.

It seems wise to act as if it all depended on our efforts, all the while understanding that our efforts are not the ultimate determination of our destiny. God must act. God must intercede. Our trust is ultimately in Him. We are wise to embrace both realities. And when we do we will work harder than almost anyone, but do so in a humble and dependent way. We will fight with our best chariots and horses, but in full recognition that we cannot win the battle on our home. In order to rise and stand upright, our trust must be in the name of the Lord.

The leaders of the remnant of Judah rightfully come to Jeremiah in pursuit of guidance. They even promise to obey whatever it is that the Lord says to them through Jeremiah. Indeed, they go so far to call the Lord has a witness against them if they do not obey his word.

They, no doubt, at least thought that they were genuine in pursuit of the Lord’s guidance. But deep down, they trusted in their own plans, plans which they were no doubt already devising. Plans which they probably thought the Lord would simply confirm through Jeremiah.

Lest we grow arrogant, let us recognize that we are inclined to do the very same thing. We hold tightly to our plans, even while seeking guidance from the Lord. We really believe ourselves to be genuine, but deep down, we are holding onto our own plans, trusting that they are not merely ‘our’ plans, but the plans of God.

Interestingly enough, the Lord lets 10 days pass before He speaks clearly to Jeremiah. We can’t say for sure what happened during those ten days, but from the result, we can tell that unbelief crept in. Fear took its hold. Various meetings were probably held as it was determined that they could not wait upon Jeremiah or upon the Lord. Sure, all that Jeremiah had previously said to nation of Judah had come true. Yet when he came with a Word from the Lord, the leaders of Judah wanted no parts of it. For it did not align with their predetermined plans. Clearly (at least to them), they knew better than God’s prophet. Indeed, they knew better than God.

Oftentimes, the Lord will let a certain period of time pass before granting clarity. We genuinely want His guidance, but during the period of waiting, our hearts are exposed. God ordains these periods of waiting because He loves us, because He wants to expose the various things in which we trust, our various idols. For only then can he call us to repentance and uproot them from their deep place in our hearts. We are wise to delay our various meetings of ignorance until we hear from the Lord. When it comes to big decisions, wisdom dictates that we spend time on our knees first.

Finally, note that the leaders of Judah had become hardened to the Word of the Lord through Jeremiah. Though everything he said had come true, they would have no parts of it. Their hearts had grown dull. Their capacity to trust in the Lord and to obey His Word (and the two go hand in hand) had shriveled up. As far as they were concerned, their only hope was to trust in themselves and the plans of their devising.

So sad is the human condition! Rather than humbly looking to the Lord and obeying His Word, we are inclined to look to and trust in ourselves. Let us repent of our arrogance, confront our various idolatries and wait until the Lord clearly speaks. For in the end, it is the only way to go.

“Then the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.’”

More than a few things could be said about this text, but note especially the responsibility one has as the leader of one’s house. Eli is never said to have blasphemed the Lord. Only his sons. But as the leader of his house (and the priesthood) Eli is held responsible for such blaspheming. “He who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.” So Eli has sinned time and again by enduring the sins of his sons rather than adequately dealing with them both.

If their is a problem in my home and the Lord comes to my house, no matter who answers the door, He will ask for me. Not because the woman (wife, mother) is inferior, but simple because the Lord has called men to lead and to be responsible for everyone under their charge. Men ought to tremble at such a reality and to recognize how diligent they must be to faithfully lead their wife and children in the knowledge of the Lord and obedience to Him.

Men must recognize that their influence over the home is so great that any issue found within it ends up being a reflection of an issue of their own.

“She [Hannah] was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. And she vowed a vow and said, ‘O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”

If Hannah had not endured years of life with a barren womb, would she have made such a vow? Would she have had such a change of heart apart from her great struggle with barrenness? Possibly, but It certainly seems quite unlikely.

And so change for us oftentimes comes through our being backed into a corner, so to speak. It comes through desperation. Radical, life-altering decisions are often made out of great longing, as we really our great need for change. I, personally, don’t really like it this way, but it seems to be a normal course for learning and living well.

Hannah’s struggle with barrenness led her to give her first male child to the Lord–a male child who would grow up to be the leader of Israel. Though our struggle might not lead to such a radical step, the course of change might seem quite radical to us. And because the Lord loves us, He might ordain a great deal of struggle for us until we make that radical call. Until we make the change that is good for us and that will bring glory to Him.

“When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened on his hand. When the native people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, ‘No doubt this man is a murderer. Though he has escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.’ He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. They were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. Buth when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.” (verses 3-6)

First, note that the native people had an innate understanding of justice. The word is even capitalized in the ESV text, and probably rightfully so. For to these people, justice was more than a concept. It was probably a name for a worshiped deity.

Right and wrong are written on the human heart. Image bearers, no matter how far in darkness, know when someone does them wrong and cannot help but look for justice.

Second, realize that their worldview was much too simplistic. In their minds, if something bad happened to a man, that man must be receiving punishment for a past evil. This fallen world is much more complicated than that. Good things happen to evil people. And bad things happen to those who walk in righteousness. Yet the Lord is behind it all, working all things according to the counsel of His will–for the good of His people and the glory of His name.

Any theology of suffering that does not have a great deal of tension within it, cannot be the real thing. For the Scripture’s theology of suffering will cause us much tension within.

Third, recognize Paul’s wonderful opportunity to bear witness to the One who suffered under great injustice, so that we might not receive the punishment our sins deserve. For the statement the native people make about Paul is more or less correct. He was a murderer. Paul could tell them this, but then he could point them to the One who was murdered on his behalf. He could tell them of Jesus Christ, the One who took Paul’s sin (and everyone else’s) upon Himself, so that we might become the righteousness of God.