It is often difficult for people to overcome their own egos. It is hard for us to admit the mistakes we have made. This is all the more so when those mistakes stem from warnings or advice given to us by others. Usually, we tend to “attack the messenger” rather than “listen to the message”. Yet it may well be that God is at work precisely through those messages that are hard to hear. 

After Jeremiah delivered the Lord’s message of judgement to Judah, the entire nation sought to kill him. However, Jeremiah managed to escape. Tragedy, however, befell the prophet Uriah, who also prophesied in the name of the Lord. He spoke the same words as Jeremiah. This confirmed that the messages delivered by Uriah and Jeremiah were the truth coming from the Lord. This should have been enough for the nation’s leaders to believe and repent, returning to true obedience to Him. Unfortunately, their response was the opposite. They hardened their hearts and even killed Uriah. 

What a missed opportunity for the people of Judah. God gave them a chance through the message delivered by His prophet. Yet the people chose to ignore His message and attempted to kill the messenger. How many opportunities for repentance and personal change do we miss when we choose instead to reject the advice and warnings that come to us? Perhaps God is using those around us to rebuke and remind us. So open your hearts and ears to His rebuke and live according to the path He has shown.