Jeremiah 12: 5

If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?

In the first four verses of Jeremiah 12, we see Jeremiah complaining to Almighty God about the wicked people, how they are prospering, how the faithless are bearing fruit. Even though they have God on their lips, He is far from their hearts. Jeremiah is calling on God to bring down judgment on these wicked people who have surrounded him and were plotting against him (Jeremiah 11: 18-23).

In Verse 5 God answers Jeremiah with the above verse. In this world, we are being persecuted for our faith. We deal with daily sneers for professing our faith in Jesus in the public square. We are dealing with wickedness and faithlessness on a daily basis. However, God is saying that just because a few people are mocking us for our faith, are we right in asking God to bring down judgment on the unrighteous?

Jesus Himself declared that in this world we will have many struggles but be of good cheer because He has overcome the world. He has laid an example for us to follow suit. Jesus could have wiped out the whole mankind with just one word or called on His angels to destroy us. But He didn’t. He didn’t compete with men. Even when the people crucified Jesus on the cross, He didn’t contend with them. He wasn’t racing against men on foot but He was competing with the devil himself for our souls.

The trials and temptations we face in this life are hard. Indeed, we constantly contend with them on a daily basis. If these struggles can shake our faith, then how can we withstand the onslaught of the evil that is coming? A horse represents speed, agility, and an unstoppable force. If the small struggles we face for our faith bring us down and make us question our faith, then how will we stand against the full onslaught of the evil headed our way. The evil one is always conspiring against us. He aspires to see that sooner than later we will be rattled to give up our faith.

We see, just like Jeremiah, the wicked prospering and are frustrated. We consider in our hearts that the unfaithful people are having fun and always enjoying life, while we Christians are always poor, and constantly struggle. Such situations cause many to abandon their faith and follow the world. That is exactly the time when the devil smirks at Jesus.

God points out to Jeremiah that if what we see in the physical realm and get disheartened, then how are we going to face the battles in the spiritual realm? If in a safe country we are stumbling, then how can we stand firm and manage our way out when we are surrounded by hate and persecution? Consider our fellow Christian brother and sister in a region where they don’t have freedom to read the Bible or where Christianity is forbidden.

Do you see and read, dear Saint, the times we are living in? We are constantly facing troubles of all sizes and we get disheartened. If under such small trials, we are troubled, then how are we equipping ourselves to face the bigger ones that are coming our way? Jesus Christ faced the ultimate stronghold when He took up all our sins on the cross, and He came out victorious. Apostle Paul urged Christians in the early church to stay the course and keep the faith despite the persecution. He assured them that God will rescue them. Saints down through the ages have faced several trials. Many were martyred but they gladly bore them all knowing that the One who walked before them has already won the victory. When we face trials, let us learn to look up as our redemption draws near.

In exhortation, Ephesians 6: 10-12: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

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