“And hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with great terror; And hast given them this land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey; And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:”–Jeremiah 32:21–23
In addition to delivering the Children of Israel from the cruel bondage of Egypt, God brought the people into the land of Canaan and gave them victory over their enemies. As a result, they had a place to live that was already developed—cities and towns with houses they did not have to build, and vineyards and farms that were already productive. Yet in spite of the great blessings they received, they quickly turned from following God to worship the idols of the people around them, bringing judgment down on their nation as a result. It is much the same today. We live in a land that has been greatly blessed, yet we are neither grateful nor obedient.
Every time we disobey God, we are showing that we do not appreciate Him, despite the bountiful blessings we have freely received from His hand. The temptation of our hearts is to not only take the blessings we receive for granted, but to believe that we deserve them, rather than recognizing that they are solely a result of God’s love and grace. Paul wrote, “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” (Romans 2:4). God is patient and kind, but He will not tolerate the ingratitude of our disobedience forever.–Copied
