Ruled By Your Own Authority

Jeremiah 5:31

“The prophets prophesy lies, the priest rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way.  But what will you do in the end.”

I remember back in grade school when I witnessed a kid who acted as if he wasn’t under any authority at all. He would disrupt class, make a scene, and talk back to the teacher. As kids, we all loved this guy in a weird way. He had the moxie to stand up to the teacher which was the authority in the room. His grandiose actions often landed him in the principal’s office, facing punishment. We just saw that he wasn’t doing the work the rest of us “good kids” had to do, and for that, he was cool. Whether he believed it or not, he was still under authority that superseded his every action. All the bravado and show were for nothing. In reality, he was the most punished of us all and suffered the most because of it. Unruly kids never got this, and even the good kids didn’t fully understand it. All we saw was someone playing by their own rules, which made him strangely attractive.

Israel was like this. They acted as if they marched to their own rules, making decisions to satisfy their own desires. But in the end, the Lord God was the real authority—a fact they often forgot. By the time Jeremiah came on the scene, Israel was at its worst. The Lord had already declared that armies from the north would take Israel and that the people would serve in a foreign land. Naturally, when Jeremiah prophesied this, they didn’t listen. Like the unruly kid in class, they believed the rules didn’t apply to them.

God’s people were warned repeatedly about their actions. The prophets pleaded with them to return to the Lord, but their words fell on deaf ears—just like the disobedient child who kept getting sent to the office for not following the rules.

When you reach this place of rebellion, you start to put the true priests of God on the shelf and elevate people who “rule by their own authority.” You listen to friends who tell you what you want to hear, validating your actions and assuring you that you deserve to do as you please. After all, in your mind, the rules don’t apply to you, and you love it that way.

To all of us who live under the authority of the living God, I urge you to heed His direction. You are not above the law of God, and your actions have consequences. I once saw a sign that read: “Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes the reason is that you’re stupid and make bad decisions.” Don’t be that person!

The Lord is calling all of us to submit to His way of doing life. The only way to truly understand this is to give every area of your life to Him—especially the parts you’ve tried to keep under your own control.

Today, make the decision to follow Christ. Pick up your cross and follow Him. Funny thing about picking up your cross—you can’t hold on to anything else at the same time. You have to lay some things down. So, lay it down today!

Prayer: Father, I know we all fall away from You at times. Sometimes we forget Your providential hand at work in our lives—both behind the scenes and right in front of us. I pray that I would lay everything down and pick up the cross of Christ, moving forward in faith. Help me to submit to Your authority in every area of my life. When I feel the urge to disobey, give me the wisdom, faith, and courage to stay the course You’ve set before me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.