Jeremiah 17:5-8
Yahweh says:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man,
relies on strength of flesh,
and whose heart departs from Yahweh.
For he will be like a bush in the desert,
and will not see when good comes,
but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
an uninhabited salt land.
“Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh,
and whose confidence is in Yahweh.
For he will be as a tree planted by the waters,
who spreads out its roots by the river,
and will not fear when heat comes,
but its leaf will be green,
and will not be concerned in the year of drought.
It won’t cease from yielding fruit.
This is one of the most important passages in the Bible to me because of how it has helped me with important issues in the culture. There is a war raging and at the base of that war is a philosophy. One side says that we should trust in experts, government officials and clergy. The other side says that we need to stick to the Bible. This passage tells you how to handle this dilemma in no uncertain terms.
It all comes down to one question: “Who are you placing your trust in?” Are you trusting in what a man has said? Or, are you trusting in what God has said? God tells us, through Jeremiah, that the answer to that question will have an effect on your well-being. It’s a critical decision. If you decide to trust in man, you will have a hard life. God tells us that you won’t be able to “see when good comes.” Instead, you will have to live in a place where nothing grows. You will have a bad economy even if opportunity is right in front of you.
If, on the other hand, you choose to put your confidence in God. Your life will be good even if you have to go through a drought. Life will still spring up for you even in the hard times.
Here are some things to consider. When clergy tell you that evolution is probably correct even though the Bible says it only took six days, you have a choice to make. The beneficial choice is to go with what God says and believe in six days. When a scientist tells you that we should worry because of man-made climate change, while the Bible tells us that God is the controller of the climate, the economic choice is to go with what God says in the Bible and not worry. You will probably see more clearly to take advantage of opportunities God has given. If man says that parents shouldn’t spank their children and you read differently in the Bible, your life will be better if you do what the Bible says and your children will grow too. Do you see how important and practical this is? These are only a few cultural issues.
Satan used this very issue to corrupt the human race. He said to Eve: “Did God really say…?” He got Eve and Adam to trust in themselves. When we trust in man, we are cursed and when we trust in God we are blessed.