Do you make life and death decisions daily? Unless you work in an emergency room or something like it, you probably do not make life and death decisions daily. Even so, few of us make decisions on a daily basis that directly affect our own ability to live or die…or so we think…
Hananiah, a false prophet in the Bible, died within a year, as a result of a decision he made one day. Jeremiah, God’s true prophet, had prophesied doom for the nation of Israel (God’s people) in front of a group of leaders. Jeremiah used a wooden yoke used for oxen around his own neck as a visual aid. He explained that the nation surrounding them was going to take over God’s people because they had turned away from God.
Can you imagine being the bearer of bad news for God? To a leader? That was Jeremiah’s call from God. He did it well. But what he said wasn’t popular! Hananiah didn’t like what he heard and must have thought the meeting was intended to be a pep rally before a battle. So he decided to rally the people behind some better news. He took Jeremiah’s yoke and broke it in front of all the people claiming God would deliver them from their enemies and everything would be fine! Can’t you hear him now leading the chant, “Negative Nancys! Here no more! Debbie Downers! Drown off shore!” The crowd went wild as Jeremiah walked off stage.
The trouble was that Hananiah was wrong, dead wrong! He spoke his desire, not truth from the Lord. Jeremiah left the rally, but sent Hananiah a message saying he would die within the year as a result of his false prophecy. Before Jeremiah left the rally, he responded to Hananiah’s false yet cheerful prophecy reminding the people that God’s true prophet speaks things that actually come to pass.
“But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the Lord only if his prediction comes true” (Jeremiah 28:9).
Sure enough, later that year, Hananiah died. His death proved Jeremiah as God’s true prophet. God allowed a false prophet to die in order to get His people’s attention to save them! Likewise, God allowed His own Son to die in order to save you!
In the moment, during the pep rally, it probably seemed like Hananiah was right. His was the positive message, after all. But the Word of God via Jeremiah actually came to pass.
So how do ancient prophets affect us? I believe we face choices every day that lead to life or death. They may not seem like life and death decisions at the time, but over time, they are. Any triple bypass surgeon will tell you that those surgeries aren’t caused due to one bad decision, but many. Yet it likely was one decision after another and another and another. Likewise, healing for clogged arteries can happen one decision at a time too. That’s a physical health example.
Spiritually speaking, it’s the same. We can make daily decisions that lead us closer to the Lord or further away from Him. We might not notice any outward changes at first, but over time, we could wake up one day wondering how we ended up in an affair, in an illegal business deal, in jail, or stuck in habitual sin. Returning to the Lord happens the same way we fall from Him, one decision at a time, starting with deciding to surrender our lives to Him (again if need be)! One step at a time, one decision at a time. And remember, the God who loved His people so much that He sent prophets to tell them to repent, also sent His own Son to die for your sins. You are to die for. Jesus is big enough to save you–no matter where you find yourself today. The decisions you make today will affect your life. Make decisions that lead to life.
