Essence Before Action: Exiled Yet Still Belonging (Part 2)

Scripture — Jeremiah 29:1-7 (NRSV)

These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

Devotion

In part 1, we learned that God sent the Israelites into exile, but God also sent them a letter. They had to own their predicament, but grace and mercy followed them into their circumstances. They had to embrace their frailty but also see that God’s call is irrevocable (Rom. 11:29). Israel is still called to be Israel. If the occupation changes, the call remains the same. They were supposed to lead the nations through their faithful living, which points to the true and living God (Isaiah 42:6, 49:6). And true objective faith is trust that is agile and works even in exile, because they are convinced of God’s presence and they still belong.

The evidence of God’s presence is the letter. If they do not trust God, then it is at best just a letter from Jeremiah. But if “Thus says the Lord of Hosts” wasn’t only rhetoric, then it requires a quality of faith that asks of Israel, how do we lead in this land we now occupy? Jeremiah gave prohibitive reminders in chapter 9 to avoid dependence on their own wisdom, strength, or resources, and instead to learn from God experientially. Typically, driven leaders seek to provide solutions, but often the speed of solving doesn’t account for the possibility that the questions might be wrong. You could expect the Israelites to ask questions like:

• How do we stay to ourselves so we don’t mix with these pagans?
• How can we retaliate against these pagan people who dragged us to this land?
• What rules/laws can we put in place to avoid getting into this situation again?
• How fast can we get back to Israel?

God’s directives undermine their questions. Before they default to comfort zones, seclusion, or elitism, they are reminded of Deuteronomy 6 in a new way. Take heed, oh Israel; even in Babylon you should love God with your heart, your mind, your skillset, and where you walk, and love the Babylonians as yourself.

God told them to build, plant, marry, and get their kids married. Live in pagan land because you are not leaving. Be wholly present, wholly engaged with everyone, including those who do not look like you. They were living in exile, but that does not mean God was not present, nor does it absolve them of their calling. While they could default to becoming critical, they should have remembered why they got there and been humble. Lead with the same love that has kept you as an exile. Your privilege hasn’t kept you; God’s mercy has. And that mercy is fresh every morning (Lam. 3:23).

You would hope that their honest conclusion would be that they couldn’t do it. They were incapable of doing it because they were incapable of doing it when they were in their own land. The situation begs for a better exile; a people who will love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them. People who, when asked to go one mile, will go two (Matt. 5:41); people who are aliens and strangers and know a foreign love; love that will lay down their lives, not take others (1 Peter 2:11; 1 John 3:1-3). People who can lead by living in exile because they know this is not their home (Heb. 13:14-15). What ordinary leadership cannot do by its own wisdom, strength, and resources, faithful Gospel-centered disciples can practice because of Christ who dwells in them.

Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the Theology of Work Project’s online commentary. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Blessing for All Peoples (Jeremiah 29).