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Lamentations 2:14

¹⁴Your prophets have seen for you false and deceptive visions; they have not exposed your iniquity to restore your fortunes, but have seen for you oracles that are false and misleading.

Lamentations is a collection of five poems attributed to Jeremiah and written shortly after the fall of Jerusalem. It was an expression of grief over the fall of Jerusalem and of the faithfulness of God even to a faithless people. In today's verse, Jeremiah reminds the people of one of the reasons for their current state. The prophets of Judah had prophesied false visions. They were telling the people everything was fine and that their attackers would be defeated.

Perhaps worst of all, they failed to expose the iniquity of the people. That was the duty of a prophet, but it was also what made the prophet's calling a difficult one. Jeremiah was thrown in a pit and then confined for being faithful to expose iniquity. People would much rather hear how things will get better than to hear a list of their sins against God. However, facing the truth and changing their hearts would have restored their fortunes.

Is it any different today? The preachers that preach three feel-good points and a poem often have the largest and most wealthy congregations, while the pastor who points out the sins of his flock has a meager attendance. We need Biblical edification and encouragement, but we also need to hear the truth about our sins. That is the path to having our fortunes restored. This is not simply earthly provision, but spiritual health and walking in the calling God has on our lives.

Consider: Are you in a church that addresses the sins of your culture and encourages you to overcome them, or are you in a feel-good church that shares false and deceptive visions?