“Has a nation ever changed its gods? (Yet they are not gods at all.) But my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols. Be appalled at this, you heavens, and shudder with great horror,” declares the Lord. “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”

When the United States was founded, those who traveled here in large part were fleeing religious persecution in their own country. One example is England. The Church of England had become the prescribed religion of the nation, and the Protestants, who did not follow the Catholic system, were oppressed. One of the core beliefs of the Protestant faith back then was that we could have a direct relationship with God. We could read our own Bibles. And we could be a temple to God in our hearts, full of the virtues that God values.

While not everyone was a follower of Jesus in the American colonies, they all came together and found our country on the principles of the Christian faith. They held up Godly virtues to such a high degree that they stated that we were “One Nation Under God”.

In Jeremiah’s time, the Jews were called to be the original Godly nation. God was not only their tradition of deity, but he was active, powerful, and fought their battles for them. He performed miracles on their behalf and they won battles they had no business winning. But over time, they forgot about God and his love and faithfulness to them. And they worshiped other gods. Why? Well, it was likely because their neighbors did this, it met their desire for instant gratification and pleasure, or it was easier when they could pick and choose the gods and rules they wanted to follow. Like build-a-bear workshops, they were, in essence, building their own religion.

But God does not share sovereignty or put up with split loyalty. And he calls them out in the Jeremiah passage through his prophet, Jeremiah. They took a real, tangible, and active God and threw away a relationship with him in favor of gods they made.

And many still do this today. As a society, we make up gods in our own lives. Many have turned from modesty, as called for in the Bible, and flaunt their bodies. Many have turned from honesty, as called for in the Bible, and lie and live lives compromised by the lies. And many have turned from humility and generosity as called for in the Bible by God. They have turned in pride to mainly taking care of themselves and their own. They store up wealth, take rich vacations, and buy bigger houses, all the while watching some of their brothers and sisters in Christ struggle without lending a hand.

And so, as God called out the Jews back then, he is calling us out now. It’s like he is saying to us: “Why have you forsaken me and my commands which are good? Why have you built your own religions and created your own morality — in essence making your own gods? Don’t you know that you are only a broken cistern incapable of holding the water of godly living all by yourself? I was a fountain of it you could dwell in, but you rejected me, and now you are paying the price for your foolishness.”

The good news is, when we fully repent, asking Jesus to rescue us as our Savior and Lord, God welcomes us back into relationship with him because Jesus paid the price for our sinful, corrupted hearts.

So we have a choice as a society and as individuals today: Whose banner will we raise in our souls? Which God will we serve and obey?

Lord, thank you for this image of you as a plentiful wellspring of life-giving water. I want to stay in this spring of water with you that gives life. Take away my selfish ambitions and pride. Give me a humble heart to follow you completely!