Be sure to read Jeremiah 35 first, below is the text.

Loyalty is the ability to stick with something even when you know that there is trouble ahead, perhaps death. Faithfulness is the spiritual form of loyalty that God expects from all of us.  Part of Jeremiah's original purpose in God's service was to find the Faithful.

The LORD said to me:

¹"Search Jerusalem for honest people who try to be faithful. If you can find even one, I'll forgive the whole city. ²Everyone breaks promises made in my name." ³I answered, "I know that you look for truth.  Jeremiah 5

I don't know if the Recabites in Jeremiah 35 arrived in time to save the city. I think they arrived to come into the city for safety, hoping that they would be protected there, but they do appear to be faithful. In keeping with the letter of the law, God said that if he found one person in Jerusalem that was honest and trying to be faithful, then he would forgive the whole city. But the Recabites were not Jerusalem insiders. Too bad for Jerusalem. They were nomads. That's why they were not grape growers, winery owners, tent dwellers, not home builders.

Like so many childrens stories in church today, the story of the Recabites is a a story of the lesson and outcome of obedience. It is a stark reminder that obedience leads to life, disobedience leads to death. Obedience is linked to faithfulness. And in the case of the Rechabites, God makes a promise that their service will be continuos and not destroyed in the coming destruction. Their highest value was faithfulness to their ancestors guidance, some 200 years earlier. In response to this faithfulness, God would continue to be faithful to them.

There is a difference it seems to me between blind obedience and informed obedience. I'm afraid that blind obedience may not be sufficient for God. Take the case of the elder brother in the story of the Prodigal Son. He appears to be totally obedient, even contesting his younger brothers disobedience as disqualifying him for his father's respect and return to the household. The elder brother holds up his obedience as a sign of his faithfulness. I don't think it is enough. I think the elder brother resented obedience. He performed in an outwardly obedient manner while harboring resentment toward his family. He wanted something that someone else had. His obedience was in league with his wants. This may appear to be obedience. I think it can be seen as disobedience.

Obedience is nothing if it is not a response of love toward our all knowing Father. That kind of obedience is priceless and cannot be measured. It is the kind of character that changes families and builds nations. If we take Jeremiah 5:3 seriously, it is the one thing that would have saved Israel from certain destruction.

I'm suggesting that the outward appearance of obedience is not the measure God uses to determine faithfulness. That is a human measuring tool. A poor one at that. The Rechabites were successful at long term faithfulness. They had a secret skill you might say. They knew how to stick to something over the centuries. They could only do this by informed experience. How can a group of people keep it's ways alive if they are not based on successful values and meaningful outcomes? They can't. They will fade away over time. The Rechabites were successful at faithfulness. For this they are rewarded.

How does one become successful at this faithfulness and pass it on to the next generation? This is a good question. Maybe a life changing question. In fact, I suggest it is a prime question. Whatever the answer, hopefully God does not need to search elsewhere this week for faithfulness; He can find it right in your own home or tent, right in your own heart. What are you faithful to today. Whom do you place all your faith in? What is the source of your life and liberty? The provider of all your needs? Your informed obedience will be a response to those correctly answered questions. Your future is secure in those answers if answered correctly.

We do not need to combine the texts above and fore-go faithfulness. Eat drink and be merry and tomorrow we die. We need to continue faithfulness to the sweet end of all things. We are not worried about the end, but being faithful to the end. There is a big difference and that difference makes all the difference in what reward we receive in accordance with what kind of obedience we display. Love to obey, obey to love.

Jeremiah 35

The Recabites

 ¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD during the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: ² "Go to the Recabite family and invite them to come to one of the side rooms of the house of the LORD and give them wine to drink."

 ³ So I went to get Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons—the whole family of the Recabites. ⁴ I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the room of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah the man of God. It was next to the room of the officials, which was over that of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper. ⁵ Then I set bowls full of wine and some cups before the men of the Recabite family and said to them, "Drink some wine."

 ⁶ But they replied, "We do not drink wine, because our forefather Jonadab son of Recab gave us this command: 'Neither you nor your descendants must ever drink wine. ⁷ Also you must never build houses, sow seed or plant vineyards; you must never have any of these things, but must always live in tents. Then you will live a long time in the land where you are nomads.' ⁸ We have obeyed everything our forefather Jonadab son of Recab commanded us. Neither we nor our wives nor our sons and daughters have ever drunk wine ⁹ or built houses to live in or had vineyards, fields or crops. ¹⁰ We have lived in tents and have fully obeyed everything our forefather Jonadab commanded us. ¹¹ But when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded this land, we said, 'Come, we must go to Jerusalem to escape the Babylonian ^[a] and Aramean armies.' So we have remained in Jerusalem."

 ¹² Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying: ¹³ "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go and tell the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem, 'Will you not learn a lesson and obey my words?' declares the LORD. ¹⁴ 'Jonadab son of Recab ordered his sons not to drink wine and this command has been kept. To this day they do not drink wine, because they obey their forefather's command. But I have spoken to you again and again, yet you have not obeyed me. ¹⁵ Again and again I sent all my servants the prophets to you. They said, "Each of you must turn from your wicked ways and reform your actions; do not follow other gods to serve them. Then you will live in the land I have given to you and your fathers." But you have not paid attention or listened to me. ¹⁶ The descendants of Jonadab son of Recab have carried out the command their forefather gave them, but these people have not obeyed me.'

 ¹⁷ "Therefore, this is what the LORD God Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on Judah and on everyone living in Jerusalem every disaster I pronounced against them. I spoke to them, but they did not listen; I called to them, but they did not answer.' "

 ¹⁸ Then Jeremiah said to the family of the Recabites, "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'You have obeyed the command of your forefather Jonadab and have followed all his instructions and have done everything he ordered.' ¹⁹ Therefore, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'Jonadab son of Recab will never fail to have a man to serve me.' "