In Possession of a Whore's Forehead!

"You have had a harlot's forehead; you refuse to be ashamed." -- Jeremiah 3:3b

What a scathing indictment! It is the ultimate of all reprimands -- the Mt. Everest of all circumstances in which a harsh rebuke has been issued!

Here is a culture that prides itself on being identified as the people of the living God of Israel -- the God Who had been their God for centuries dating back to the time when this God had called their ancestor, Abraham, and had established a covenant with him. This covenant assured Abraham that his descendants would be as the stars in the sky in terms of numbers and they eventually would own and occupy territory which stretched from the Euphrates River in the East to the Mediterranean Sea in the West. This last part about territory and the future glory of Jerusalem has yet to be fulfilled.

This God had spelled out specific spiritual, moral, and ethical standards which the people were expected to fully implement in their way of life and relationships with each other. How the people responded to this revelation and expectation by God was extremely critical for their ongoing existence and survival.

As time passed they gradually adopted lifestyles and worship practices of the heathen peoples surrounding them. Still claiming to be God's people they began sacrificing their children to a god named Molech and engaged in temple prostitution as well as sexual immorality in their relationships. The day of worship was increasingly desecrated and greed began to dominate as leaders and people focused on selfish desires at the expense of fellow citizens! Idolatry became a pandemic condition with God declaring,

"As the thief is ashamed when he is found out, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they and their kings and their princes, and their priests and their prophets, saying to a tree, 'You are my father,' and to a stone, 'You gave birth to me.' For they have turned their back to Me, and not their face. But in the time of their trouble they will say, 'Arise and save us.' But where are your gods that you have made for yourselves? Let them arise, if they can save you in the time of your trouble; for according to the number of your cities are your gods, O Judah." -- Jeremiah 2:26-28

Now then, hit the FF button on your remote and speed into the 21st Century in the United States of America.

There, do you see them? They stand out clearly -- you know, those footprints on the path before us which we are travelling? Those were made by the ancient Israelites in the 6th and 5th Centuries BC!

We are proud of our heritage and it is not uncommon to hear expressions such as "God bless America!" and "We are a Christian nation!"

What other nation has "In God We Trust" stamped on coins and printed on currency? What other nation has citizens placing hand over heart and in pledging allegiance to its flag and to the republic for which it stands repeats a phrase such as this -- "...one nation under God...?"

But as we travel the same path as those 6th Century BC Israelites we find much duplication:

• we too destroy children -- about 100,000 unborn are mangled and murdered each month of the year!
  
  
• we too engage in idolatry with money being but one of many powerful gods to which we pay homage in our culture -- church, government, business, entertainment, and the many professions have all been impacted by the invasion of the "gods" that compete for our time, energy, and loyalty!
  
  
• we too engage in widespread sexual immorality involving many varieties of expression with "sexual buffets" being accepted as "normal" and our young getting sexually involved at younger and younger ages as time passes. An interesting by-product has also been taking place -- it's called STD's (sexually transmitted diseases) with some incurable and a couple or so proving to be fatal!
  
  
• we too desecrate the day of worship having turned it into a day of business activity, fun, and games with less than half our population entering a place of worship on any given Sunday!
  
  
• our professed "religion" too often resembles a trumpet with an uncertain sound which is interpreted by the world to mean, "Sin all you want -- God just wants you to be happy doing what you do and when it's over, He'll welcome you through the pearly gates of heaven!"
  
  
• we brainwash the majority of our young into believing their ancestry is traced back to a couple of wriggly organisms in a slime pit millions of years ago!
  

What objections can you raise as to why Almighty God should not say to us in these United States as He said to those in the ancient kingdom of Judah long ago, "You have had a harlot's forehead; you refuse to be ashamed."?

And we dare not -- in fact, we must not think of the possibility of God bringing judgment on a republic known as the United States, right? It's just too unsettling -- it makes us react like a worm on the surface of a hot skillet!