Jeremiah 6:16 – This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls, but you said, “We will not walk in it.”

This precious promise is nestled in the middle of a stormy prophetic sermon in Jeremiah. You will find rest for your souls. Does your soul need rest today? The soul is the place of our emotions and shapes how we see the world. When tired, empty, and dry, life can seem gloomy. When the soul is at rest, we are at peace and have the quiet sense that our lives are in God’s good hands.

How do we experience that rest? In this verse, Jeremiah gives us four verbs. Let’s look at each one.

Stand.  Don’t follow the crowd down the popular pathway. If you went that way, come back and stand again at the fork in the road. Stand your ground for a moment. Jesus said there are two paths. One is broad, paved, and always shoulder to shoulder, but it leads to destruction. He said the other path is narrow, but it leads to eternal life, and few are the ones who find it.  

Look.  As you stand, look for a moment down the broad path. Before you set out, play the scenario out. Where does that road end up, and is that where you want to be in 5 years?  

So, what is a path? It’s a worn way our feet make as we trod the same course day after day. A path is a way of living.

Look at the path before you take it because it leads somewhere: the relationships, the books, the thoughts, the choices.

Ask.  It’s good to ask. I hate asking for anything at Home Depot. I want to find it myself. But when it comes to the path of our lives, good friendships are essential. The broad way looks so attractive, we can convince ourselves that it leads to the fulfillment of our dreams. So, before you set out, ask the right people, “Where is the ancient path?”

“Wait a minute. Isn’t that the long way, the hard road, the life of drudgery and boredom?” No, the ancient path is the good path. 

There are teachers, YouTubers, social influencers, and professors talking about the new way – the new and improved way of doing relationships, sex, morality, and life. They say it’s new and improved.

God’s Word tells us, “Take the ancient one.” It’s been around a long time for a reason. It works. New paths have been blazed over the centuries, but they’re lost now. The ancient one is still around, and it’s the good way, that leads to rest.

Walk. What is the ancient path? It is the way of humble obedience and surrender to God and his good plan for living – his timeless moral statutes. You don’t need to know Greek or Hebrew to figure it out. You read it, and it rings true to your soul. Take that way.

And here’s the promise, “You will find rest.” You’ll find the rest you need to be a courageous witness. 

Jeremiah’s words here point us all to Jesus. Interestingly, the early church was known as the people of the way. We are called to walk with Christ in his way, in his footsteps. We can walk with our Savior step by step and know his rest.

Matthew 11:28-29 – “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Jeremiah’s audience said, “We will not take it.” What about you?