Of course the people didn't want to hear anything that Jeremiah had to say. They were into all sorts of evil behaviors, building altars to Baal and sacrificing to him, making idols and worshipping them, and not following the commandments, turning their minds and hearts from God.
It wouldn't be long before the error of their ways led to disaster and they were overtaken, Jerusalem destroyed and those who were not killed, sent into exile or slavery.
We often think that if we offer sacrifices of money or time we can somehow "buy" our way into heaven. Some people deprive themselves as a sacrifice, or purposely inflict pain on themselves as the early ascetics used to do.
Now, I'm not suggesting that all sacrifice is wrong, in fact, sacrifice for the right reasons is quite acceptable especially during this season of Lent. The key is that it be done for the right reason.
We can't buy our way into heaven; Jesus already did that for us. But we know that loving God includes loving our neighbor. Because of that, we can sacrifice our time to help others; we can donate money to help those who are in need; and we can pray.
The most important thing we can do is to listen to the voice of God. The voice of God tells us to love – love God and love neighbor. Everything falls into line when we do this.
We give time to God; we don't lie, cheat or steal from our neighbor. We pray for our enemies; we forgive those who have hurt us.
It's easier to offer sacrifices than to do the right thing. However, that would put us in the same category as the Israelites. It's our choice.
