“And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ even as they taught my people to swear by Baal, then they shall be built up in the midst of my people. But if any nation will not listen, then I will utterly pluck it up and destroy it, declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 12:16–17, ESV)
I have not picked up a set of golf clubs in over ten-years now. Once I was an avid golfer, not a good golfer, just avid. When I golfed with others, we would often set up a funny rule, called a mulligan. A mulligan is a do-over for a bad shot. There are a couple theories regarding how the mulligan started. One attributes it to a Canadian golfer named David Mulligan in the 1920s who took a correction shot. So, the practice was initiated and named after him. The question is this. Does God offer a divine mulligan?
Following Jeremiah’s complaint, the Lord reveals His future-plans for the nations. Remember that the Lord called Jeremiah to bring an unpleasant message to Judah. Due to their continued idolatry, and refusal to repent and follow the ways of the Lord, Judgment was coming upon them. It would come by the hands of the Babylonian empire that would conquer and destroy the land. They city of Jerusalem and the temple would not be spared. Moreover, a small remnant of survivors would be deported to Babylon.
Jeremiah bore the brunt of the Jews displeasure with this message. They threatened his life. Jeremiah’s complaint was that the evil ones seemed to thrive while the righteous suffered. So, the Lord spoke this word to Jeremiah.
The Lord would pluck up both Judah and the foreign nations. He would pluck up the house of Judah from the Gentile nations to where they had been dispersed in a season of judgment. He would then restore Judah to the land that He had promised.
The Lord would also pluck up the Gentile nations, but this would be for judgment. Yet later the Lord would have compassion on the nations that would “diligently learn the ways of”God’s people, and “swear by” His name. This seems to refer to the time of Christ’s millennial kingdom. The Gentile nations would have a time to turn from their evil ways unto the ways of God. The ones that did would be restored, while those that did not would be destroyed.
What does this mean for us? Today, multitudes of people have followed their own fleshly ways. They have turned their backs on the Lord and they have only a short lifetime to come to faith in Jesus. Yes, all people have sinned and have fallen short of God’s righteousness. They have a limited time to turn from their own wicked ways and trust in Christ for eternal life. Some will make the decision to believe in Jesus. They will be plucked up to eternal life. However, others will die without Christ and be plucked up to eternal judgment. All people have lived rejecting the blessing of God in Jesus Christ, but others have taken the divine mulligan, the second chance by trusting in Christ for eternal life. We should urge people everywhere and of every nation to take the divine mulligan. Call upon them to quit trusting in their own devices to save themselves and to trust in Jesus Christ alone.
Renewing the Heart 