I thought the following verses highlighted a too often heard view when it comes to religion or following Jesus.

We will not listen to the message you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD! We will certainly do everything we said we would: We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and will pour out drink offerings to her just as we and our ancestors, our kings and our officials did in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food and were well off and suffered no harm. But ever since we stopped burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have had nothing and have been perishing by sword and famine. Jeremiah 44:16-18

Basically what these people are showing us is that their goal is self fulfillment or happiness. Their ultimate goal in life is to ensure that they are OK, that they are looked after and that they prosper. Therefore, when they think about the god they wish to serve, they will ultimately serve the god that leaves them the most fulfilled. They will be dedicated to that god but their dedication to that god will not be coming from a place of devotion but rather it is conditional on their self fulfilment.

So, when Jeremiah tells them they should turn from giving offerings to the Queen of heaven they say no. Why?

When they do burn offerings life is good

When they don’t burn offerings life is bad

I mean the logic isn’t hard to understand. At my core I would rather have life going well than life being hard. But I don’t follow God conditionally, I must follow Him unconditionally. Why?

Because that is how he loves me – unconditionally. We can’t have a ‘if this then that‘ relationship with God. The outcome can’t be how we live our lives with Jesus!