The Forgotten Blush
“Are they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not at all—they don’t even know how to blush! Therefore, they will lie among the slaughtered. They will be brought down when I punish them, says the Lord.” Jeremiah 6:15 NLT
Remember when the teacher called on you in class and you didn’t have the foggiest idea of the answer? Your face turned deep red.
Remember when you did something totally stupid and everyone turned to look at you? Your face turned fire engine red and you wanted to crawl under the table.
Blushing is a natural response to some action that embarrasses or shames you. It is an involuntary reaction to an event and the bottom line is that you can’t control blushing. Charles Darwin called blushing “the most peculiar and most human of all expressions.” Mark Twain said, “Man is the only animal that blushes. Or needs to.” I am pretty confident in saying that most of us have even blushed because we blushed!
Ray Crozier, a psychology professor from England concluded that “blushing evolved as a means of enforcing the social codes to which we humans must adhere for our societies to function in a friendly manner. By blushing when we’re embarrassed, we are showing others that we recognize we’ve just mis-stepped socially, and that we’re paying the price for it. Others who see us blushing after an awkward situation understand from experience the unpleasant feelings we’re undergoing at that moment, and blushing may serve as a nonverbal, physical apology for our mistake.”
Greek philosopher Diogenes once remarked to a blushing boy, “Courage my boy, that is the complexion of virtue.” The late Lucille Ball was reported to have said, “The problem with our world these days is that we no longer blush.” Long before Lucille Ball or Diogenes, long before your first blush, God shared how a whole nation didn’t “even know how to blush.” Awkward social situation blushing is normal and healthy. However, when a culture no longer blushes then you are facing a major spiritual problem.
“Jeremiah, say to the people, “This is what the LORD says: “When people fall down, don’t they get up again? When they discover they’re on the wrong road, don’t they turn back? Then why do these people stay on their self-destructive path? Why do the people of Jerusalem refuse to turn back? They cling tightly to their lies and will not turn around. I listen to their conversations and don’t hear a word of truth. Is anyone sorry for doing wrong? Does anyone say, “What a terrible thing I have done”? No! All are running down the path of sin as swiftly as a horse galloping into battle!” (8:4-6)
Twice the call for spiritual renewal is met with the same response, “Are they ashamed of these disgusting actions? Not at all—they don’t even know how to blush!” Jeremiah confronts a nation that no longer has the moral foundation that produces blushing in its people. They were a nation where the people no longer feared God enough to blush; a nation of people that no longer had tender hearts to their sins that would cause blushing.
Throughout history, people have decided to go their own path, forgetting God and hardening hearts that no longer blushed at their actions. You only have to read the latest headline or watch the morning news to witness in our nation the accusation that we “do not even know how to blush.” “Shamelessness has pervaded the culture. There is no shame in the vilest behavior. There is no guilt in the most evil act. There is no embarrassment when caught in the most abominable conduct.“– Dr. Daniel Merritt
Our generation must choose which path to walk: the ancient path of God or the modern path of evil. Scripture records for us how Ezra felt the shame and embarrassment of a nation that had rejected God’s path. “At the time of the sacrifice, I stood up from where I had sat in mourning with my clothes torn. I fell to my knees and lifted my hands to the LORD my God. I prayed, “O my God, I am utterly ashamed; I blush to lift up my face to you. For our sins are piled higher than our heads, and our guilt has reached to the heavens. From the days of our ancestors until now, we have been steeped in sin. . . .” (Ezra 9:5-7b)
Lord, we need to feel the weight of our sins until we can again blush in your presence. Give us hearts that are tender, lives that are open to you, minds that are pure and life-styles that are God honoring. Let us again come to you in repentance. Let us again seek “the ancient paths, where the good way lies; and walk in it, and find rest for our souls.”
God is great,
