“Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Do not fear him, declares the Lord, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand.” – Jeremiah 42:11
There may come a time in your life when every instinct, every experience, and every person around you is screaming for you to take a particular course of action. You’re agitated, afraid, and every fiber of your being wants to completely surrender to that fear. Then you discover that God’s Word, will, or Spirit is telling you to take the opposite course of action. What will you do then? What will you do when every part of you wants to do one thing but God says to do the opposite?
That’s the situation described here in Jeremiah. A small group of violent assassins had done a great evil that seemed likely to have terrible consequences. In murdering the governor, they’d earned the wrath of Babylon. Another group dealt with those rebels, rescuing their hostages. Yet they were terrified to go home and face the looming vengeance of the Babylonians. They desperately wanted to flee to nearby Egypt for safety. Nonetheless they asked Jeremiah for God’s opinion and God told them to do the opposite of their instincts. Rather than flee in fear, they were commanded to go home in integrity, trusting God’s sovereign presence and protection.
What would you do? Think carefully, because there will be plenty times in life, with small matters and large ones, when our fear and dread will be pitted against God’s invitation to trust Him and walk with integrity. Sadly, this group, who heard the direct word of God from the prophet Jeremiah still gave in to their fear, fleeing to Egypt. Jeremiah detailed exactly what was going to happen to them, yet fear still won in their hearts.
Don’t just assume you’d be different. Fear is so powerful. Handling things our way is such a strong instinct. Trusting God is so un-natural. Nonetheless, that’s always the best way! God really is with His people when we master our fears and control our instincts enough to simply obey Him. Commit to trust God. No matter how difficult things may get. Trust God, no matter the consequences. Trust God, no matter how impossible it seems. If God says to do something, do it! #FollowJesus