“The sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have kept the command that their father gave them, but this people has not obeyed me. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them.”
(Jeremiah 35:16–17, ESV)
There was a commercial years ago about smoking. It pictured a father and young son leaning upon a large tree. The father reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, took one and lit it up. Then the son took a small stick that was laying on the ground and held it like a cigarette, pretending to smoke it like his dad. The point of the advertisement was that the father’s actions in smoking would influence the son’s behavior that might lead to the same later in life. It was a powerful picture of the influence one’s actions can have on another.
Our actions often speak louder than our words. They become object lessons for others with tremendous influence. The object lessons of one’s life can either be a good influence or one that is bad.
Here the Lord used the actions of Jonadab’s sons’ obedience as an object lesson to point Israel’s failures to obey the law. Jonadab had commanded that his sons would never drink wine and they were obedient to the father’s desire.
The Lord used their obedience as an object lesson for Jeremiah to contrast the obedience of this family with the disobedience of Judah. The Lord had Jeremiah take the sons of Jonadab into a room in the Temple and asked them to drink some wine. Yet they rejected the prophet’s offer since their father had ordered them to never drink wine. The sons gave an illustration of strict obedience to their father’s command. Their obedience to their earthly father was in stark contrast to the response of the people of Judah’s response to the commands of the Lord. Jonadab’s sons were obedient to their father while Judah as not obedient to the Lord their God.
The result of Judah’s disobedience was disaster for the nation. As a result of their disobedience the Lord made this declaration.
“Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them.”
Yet because of the Jonadab’s sons’ obedience, blessing would come upon the line of the Rechab, Jonadab’s father.
“to the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father and kept all his precepts and done all that he commanded you, therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall never lack a man to stand before me.’” (Jeremiah 35:18–19, ESV)
What is the point for us? It is that our actions provide a strong message to those around us. The message can have an influence for good or for evil. Thus, let us pursue a consistent testimony of God’s grace working in us as believers. We may not realize it, but people are observing us all the time. They look for consistency in our Christian example. This consistency is only possible as we walk by the Spirit, demonstrating the manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit in our lives.
Renewing the Heart 