In Jeremiah 17 and 18 God states that while those who have sinned will be punished, those who remain faithful will continue to be blessed. He tells Jeremiah that if he remains faithful God will reward his faithfulness. Jeremiah pledges to remain a faithful servant.

God shows Jeremiah a potter who is remaking a spoiled pot. God promises that if the people turn from evil God will not continue to bring disaster upon them. God always holds out the promise of forgiveness if the people recognize their sin.

Jeremiah does not understand God’s mercy. He sees that the people are against him and wants God to deal with them while He is still angry. We, too, have trouble understanding God’s willingness to forgive when we have so much trouble forgiving those who have hurt us. We would much rather that God show His wrath than offer forgiveness.

In John 7 Jesus is getting mixed reviews form the people. Some are enthralled by him others are upset by him. Some believe him to be the Messiah others believe him to be an agent of the devil. To this day, Jesus is seen differently by people. Some know him to be the Son of God while others think he is merely a man. Some do not even believe he ever existed. But Jesus knows that it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we can know him. It is only by the Spirit that we can believe. It is only by the Spirit that our hearts will ever be open to understand who Jesus really is.