“‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be as a prize to him.” Jeremiah 21:8-9
You have a decision. A grand army stands outside of your city, a sea of trained soldiers stand at the ready, swords gleaming in the morning sun, eager to lay siege to all. Their plans are to burn and destroy the entire city, home by home, leaving no chance of future inhabitation by other peoples. And your fate? Well, all people within the city are to be put to the sword…all. And even if some survive, lack of food and fresh water will end them, if the coming disease doesn’t. But there is an option. You could leave the current safety of your city walls and surrender, white flag waving in that morning sun. But if these brutal enemies are willing to kill you inside of the city, what guarantee do you have that they will not take your life outside of the city? You don’t. And if you choose to insert yourself into chapter 21 of Jeremiah and live the situation the Israelites were faced with, you have only one real decision. What do you do with the Word of God and the decision it presents?
By the time of Jeremiah chapter 21 Jeremiah had been preaching of God’s forthcoming judgement for a whopping 20 plus years. His continued message being one of repent of your sins, your idolatry, and your prideful arrogance and turn back to the Lord…and be saved. But if not, judgement is coming. And we see judgement finally arrive in chapter 21, in the form of a mighty Babylonian army led by the fierce and relentless King Nebuchadnezzar. And as God’s judgement finally materializes in this physical army, an interesting thing happens, the flame upon the stovetop gets turned up to 10. Jeremiah’s prophetic message now carries much more personal emphasis and reality as the people frightfully peer over the walls of Jerusalem and see the enemy standing just outside. And it thus sets up a sentence from the Lord that should have not only sent chills down the spines of the Israelites…but ours today…‘I am setting before you the way of life or death.’
The irony of the Lord’s statement follows in the next verse, ‘whoever stays in the city will die by the sword, but whoever surrenders will live.’ I have a question for all of you red-blooded Americans that have been taught to fight and struggle to the bitter end…since when has surrender ever been good? Since when has surrender ever been the honorable and proud way? And since when has surrender ever given life? And if you’re honest, it is in this view of surrender that we see so many in our world today living in bondage with ongoing sin. For you see, this situation in Jeremiah 21 is a massive foreshadowing of spiritual redemption through the Lord Jesus Christ. Sin is our enemy and it lies right outside our personal city gates. Sin will burn, destroy, and kill all we know and all we love, including our families and those around us. It is relentless in its attack and will leave entire lives as burnt out cities, ravaged by the sword. And folks, the only way to truly conquer sin is something that goes against the very grain of our sin-fueled pride…surrender. When we struggle against sin, our only hope of success is in surrender…surrendering to the work of Jesus Christ upon the cross.
You cannot conquer the mighty enemy of sin in your life today. Your sin separates you from a perfectly righteous God, a separation that will follow you into eternity if that sin is not dealt with. And that is the very reason God sent His only Son here to this planet. Because He so loved the world, He gave His only Son so that whoever calls on Him in faith will not perish, but live, eternally. Your only hope of victory over sin today lies in the same place it lied for the Israelites in chapter 21 of Jeremiah…surrender. Admit that your sin controls you and on your own you cannot erase it, control it, or make it appear as righteous before God. It is an eternal blemish that you cannot erase. But in the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ, you don’t have to. God made an eraser, an atonement, a propitiation for all of your sin, past, present and future…Jesus Christ. But in order to accept Jesus’ work, you must not continue the prideful fight, but instead surrender.
Give up the fight, and simply look to the Word of God…and believe. In great faith believe that God knows better, He knows that in your surrender comes your true victory. God knows that only through surrendering to Jesus Christ will true victory be found. Today, God has laid a decision at your feet, the way of life and the way of death. Whoever stays in their sin without Jesus will die. Yet for whoever surrenders to the saving grace of Jesus Christ, their life will be spared and be as a prize to him indeed.
May your surrender today be a sweet victory through Jesus Christ ~ Dan
“For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 16:25
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