Echo Chambers

Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. 17They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’ 29Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?" (Jeremiah 23:16-17, 29)

We live in a world of echo chambers. Echo chambers are those places where our words go unchallenged because they fall on ears all-to willing to hear what we have to say. The phrase is used a lot with people who editorialize on Facebook and other social media platforms. God, however, is talking about echo chambers in the time of Jeremiah.

The prophets, it seems, are directing people down a path of self-destruction by telling them what they want to hear. They continue along their paths in direct opposition to the Word of God. God tells them that His Word can and will destroy, "like a hammer breaks the rock in pieces." We hear what we want to hear and listen to those who tell us what we want to hear, sometimes in direct conflict with the Truth.

We can hear God's Word, and if we listen to the message of men, know what we are hearing is not necessarily the full truth in terms of those who speak to our desires.

The writer of Hebrews says it this way in chapter 4:12: "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." Like the message in Jeremiah, God's Word can be divisive and heal all at once in the same passage. The heart of the hearer, softened by the Spirit, is responsive or the heart of the hearer is hardened by refusing to be open to the truth and God's Spirit.

The next time you read or hear something that doesn't sound right, ask a friend whom you trust shoot straight with you and won't supply you with thoughts to fill your echo chamber. Or, be that friend who speaks the truth in love. Seek God's Word to see what He has to say on the subject. Pray for direction and seek God's Spirit daily to put you on the right path.

Pray with me: Gracious Father, we can be evil. Even when we believe what we are saying is true, our hearts are corrupted by sin. Help us to speak Your Truth by relying on Your Word and Your Spirit. We pray that you guide us in godly, healthy talk and that we turn away evil or not get involved in conversations that aren't healthy. In Christ's name we pray, Amen