God says through the prophet Jeremiah, "My people have commited two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." (Jeremiah 2:13). It is important, I think, to notice that God reminds us that He is the fountain of living waters. He has created us and fashioned us in such a way that the nourishment that satisfies us at the deepest level of our existence is Him. He has created us to relate to and enjoy intimate fellowship with Himself.
The problem for most, God says, is that we have forsaken Him. We have turned away from God, who is the one who can bring us the greatest joy and satisfaction in our lives. In forsaking God, we have found our lives to be missing something and we have gone looking for something else to satisfy the thirsting of our spiritual appetite. God says we have dug wells that are broken and will not hold water. We have attempted to fill the emptiness with all kinds of substitutes, pleasure, food, power,activities, drugs, alcohol, pornography, and multitudes of other things. Ultimately, while they may bring a moment's pleasure, they can not satisfy the emptiness in our lives that results when we leave God out.
It is interesting in this passage in Jeremiah that vs. 11 implies that not even unbelievers change their gods. As God wrote these words it would apply to Israel. God's chosen people were forsaking their God, not the other nations. The result, according to v. 14 is that Israel has become enslaved to their sins. In seeking a modern application, is it not an acknowledgement of the power of habits and behaviors to enslave us? As we look upon a society that acknowledges physical addictions, and psychological dependencies, have we overlooked the reality of spiritual slavery to sin?
When we habitually leave God out of our lives and turn instead to other "gods", whatever they might be, do we not become a slave to that behavior? I Thes. 5:23 says, "Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (ESV). God's Word acknowledges that we are three dimensional. We have a physical, a soulish, and a spiritual dimension. We can develop physical and psychological dependencies on a behavior or a substance. But we can also become enslaved to a behavior spiritually. In that sense it is a very real spiritual addiction.
If we return to God we can find the spiritual refreshment that we truly desire. Jesus said in John 7:37, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." (ESV). Notice that there are no prerequisites placed on coming to Jesus except to be thirsty. "Whoever" includes anyone and everyone. All you have to do is be thirsty. That is the beginning place, to acknowledge the need.
The same Jesus who said that, also said, "Whoever the Son sets free, is free indeed." (John 8:36). There is hope and there is help for anyone who is willing to come to God through the Lord Jesus. You can find the spiritual satisfaction that we all long for at the deepest level of our lives, and if you have become enslaved, or addicted, you can find freedom. May God bless you as You look to Him.
For help, email me at bradbessent@msn.com
