Jeremiah 12
Bible Passage: Jeremiah 12
Jeremiah asked God a question that often plagues the righteous man – why God allows the evil man to prosper?
“If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you,
Then how can you contend with horses?
And if in the land of peace,
In which you trusted, they wearied you,
Then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan?” Jer 12:5
I find the opening line of God’s answer to Jeremiah very interesting.
It feels like God is being sarcastic to Jeremiah…
And when I imagine myself in the shoes of Jeremiah hearing these words, I feel so ashamed of myself. I am not even comparable to Jeremiah as a worker of God.
It is like God saying to me:
“You think you are tired now?
How are you going to keep up with the pace when I expand the church?
How are you going to hold up when the church is being persecuted?“
Are we feeling tired just serving God in church work day by day? Do we feel we are running and getting out of breath? God tells us that we are just running with foot soldiers, and in the future we are supposed to contend with horses!
Oh, the land of peace…. Are we not enjoying peace now? We struggle daily about reading the Bible, praying to God, versus watching drama or a movie, or playing games and listening to worldly music. How will we do in the floodplain of Jordan?
The region around Jordan was thick with growth like a jungle, compared to the rest of the land, because of the occasional flooding of the river unto its banks. It is metaphorically translated as a place of increase and abundance. But such jungle growth also provides cover for predators, particularly lions that hide there to wait for their prey.
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
1 Pet 5:8
It signifies to me as the battleground. It is also a fertile land where a mustard seed can grow into a big tree, but also there will be birds of the air (devils) that will come and make their nests. If we launch out into the deep to fish, we will inadvertently meet with dangers, but that is also where we can have a great catch.
How often have we forgotten that we are Christian soldiers, and God called us in these last days to go out to fight the spiritual battle against Satan and Sin, and pull those in fire out to salvation? Some of us may wish that we will never have to enter into battle, but in reality the whole world is a battlefield.
Let us not waste our time questioning God why He allows the wicked in the world to prosper. It is clear in the Bible that in the last days such injustice will prevail, but this is only temporary, and we should keep our eyes on the spiritual battle and make sure we are on the right side, as the end has already been proclaimed.
The question is, can we keep up with God’s horses? Will lions in the floodplain of Jordan devour us or will we reap harvest?