In the Old Testament, we see how God chose Israel to be his special people so they could be a blessing to the world. Their covenant relationship was often pictured as a marriage. God would provide, protect, save, and lead them to a better home. They were to love the Lord God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. Together, their numbers would increase, and their descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens.

Well, what started off as ideal quickly turned into an ordeal. She left the Lord and gave her love away to worthless idols. Jeremiah said it was like committing the sin of adultery. Even worse, she became ensnared in prostitution, giving her devotion and affections away for material gain and riches, which never came. Like a senseless hoard of violent thugs, the idols rapped God’s bride and stole her treasures.

And so what was God to do? Jeremiah continues on this theme of a broken marriage in chapter 3.

Jeremiah 3:1 – “If a man divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, should he return to her again? Would not the land be completely defiled? But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers— would you now return to me?” declares the Lord.

Finally, the Lord brings up the dreaded “D” word, the one marriage counselors tell you never to use in a fight. But his wayward wife had left, returned, and went again so many times; what was the Lord to do? The people of Judah wanted an open marriage with God, so you could “spouse swap” whenever a hot one came along. She wanted to share her devotion to God with other deities, with an open-door policy.  

But God is a jealous God. He wants what is best for his people. He will not share his love and blessing with any worthless rival.  

Jeremiah brings up a well-known marriage law from Deuteronomy 24:1-4. If a husband and wife divorced, and the wife remarried, it was over for good. The first husband could never take her back again. To swap spouses willy-nilly would degrade the woman and the institution of marriage. Jeremiah’s audience would have looked on such behavior as an abomination. Their answer to his question, “Should he return to her again?” would have been, “Absolutely not!”

So then he asks, “But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers – would you now return to me?”

A little historical background to help us understand Jeremiah’s message. The king of Judah, at this point, was the excellent king Josiah, a reformer who wanted to turn the nation back to God. The book of the law was found buried in the temple. Mandates from the king were issued to come and offer sacrifices and celebrate Passover. But you can’t mandate love and devotion. The people followed the orders and gave the obligatory nod, but their hearts were not in it. Their feet left the temple courts and quickly returned to the high places.

And so the Lord asked, “Do you really think you can just return to me any old time you want, any way you want?”

At this point, we expect the Lord to have the divorce papers ready for her to sign so he can move on with his life. But to our shock and utter amazement, there is a gracious invitation to come home!

Jeremiah 3:14 – “Return, faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband. I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion.

Return? Yes! The word return is used 5 times in chapter 3 (vv. 1, 12, 14, 22). I think we hear the heart of a spurned but faithful husband for his bride, “Return. Come home!”  

Who can understand the greatness of the love of God?  

Oh, the deep, deep love of Jesus

Vast, unmeasured, boundless, free

Rolling as a mighty ocean

In its fullness over me

Underneath me, all around me

Is the current of Your love

Leading onward, leading homeward

To Your glorious rest above

Our Savior isn’t going to come after you and grab you by the hair of your head, kicking and screaming, to lock you in the basement. He’s waiting with open arms for you to return to him.

Returning is what repentance is all about. It’s coming home to where your heart belongs.  

Acts 3:19 – Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.

So, how does true repentance happen? First, it is a work of grace. God opens our eyes so we can see our lives from his perspective. The blinders are removed, and we see how our sins have hurt us and the people we love. We take note of the time wasted and the resources consumed. 

Then there is a healthy, godly sorrow, a sadness over wrong choices, and missed opportunities. Sometimes, our eyes become fountains, and we weep because we can’t believe how blind we were. But, as the tears fall, we feel the heaviness in our souls begin to wash away.

Genuine sorrow for sin is where the healing begins. By the Holy Spirit, a miracle happens. Grace stirs on the inside, and we make a decision to change our ways. There is a mental shift, and we move in a different and better direction. We sever our ties with the idols of this life and run into the arms of our loving Savior, Jesus.

About a year ago, I felt a powerful desire and even passion for a new truck. I spent too much time on my phone, lusting over them. I noticed almost every truck passing me by on the road and stared at them while waiting at stop lights. And one day, at an emotionally low point, I stumbled into a CarMax dealership.

I walked out with a beautiful, silver flatbed with a nice growl whenever I hit the gas pedal. But I found something out about sexy trucks. It takes about $90 to fill it up. And for some reason, my insurance went sky-high. 

I noticed something about day two. I had no peace or joy. This thing that had gotten ahold of my heart didn’t do what it said it would do. And now I had an enormous bill to pay, and my wife wasn’t happy. You see, in my rush to satisfy my lust for a four-wheel drive, I had forgotten my promise to Wendy. We had agreed months before that she would get the next new car in our house.  

Thank God CarMax has a 30-day return policy. I fought it. I really did. I didn’t want to give up the shiny, sexy, silver toy. But on day 30, I walked into the dealership and gave them the keys. They were not happy in the least and made it as difficult as possible. But I walked out, ready to come back home. As I got in my paid-for Nissan NV 3500 with 180,000 miles on it, a peace that passes understanding came all over me. And for the first time in 30 days, I had the joy of the Lord. And I rolled down my driver’s side window and began singing a praise song of love to the Lord. I felt like a 16-year-old in my soul. I wanted to hug my Nissan, but first, I needed to wash it. Dirty or clean, it didn’t matter. I was free indeed!

It’s time to return. What idol are you in love with? Will you come home?

In John 8:36 Jesus said, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”