Jeremiah 10-13
Original post:  August 17, 2014


A brief devotion today:   I think we can derive from chapter 12 a significant life lesson.    Jeremiah asks a compelling question, one that most of us have asked ourselves.   "Why do dishonest non-christian people flourish and prosper while the honest christian people remain poor and struggle?"

In this brief chapter God responds to Jeremiah by saying "they aren't getting away with anything".  This is the dilemma of the human race, we don't see the bigger picture.  We think if someone cheats his neighbor and doesn't get caught for several years he "got away with it".   We think dishonest government workers are "getting away with it" because we don't see them going to jail, or punished in any way.

The reality is quite different than what we perceive.   God has set up a "day of judgment" that cannot be avoided.  Every person will be judged for the way that they conducted themselves while on the earth.  If you cheated people, became very wealthy and oppressed others....your sins will demand an accounting.   Since there is no currency on earth that is valid in heaven, it will be your life as payment.    For the christian, the story isn't much different...because we who have accepted the reality of God the Father, and have turned our lives over to Him also realize that we aren't perfect.   We may not have cheated and lied to the same degree as some others have, but sin doesn't come in degrees.   You sin, or you don't.   And the Bible tells us that "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God."   Therefore, we have the same fate ahead of us as the dishonest person.   But wait, there is one thing that we can offer:   As christians, we have turned our lives over the Jesus Christ.  Therefore, we belong to Him, and He has the authority and the ability to pay our debt.   Jesus has promised to step forward on judgment day and pay the price for our sins.   In fact, He has already paid the price, He has only to mention on that day that we belong to Him, and the judgment will be vacated.   No punishment.

What happens on the earth doesn't always seem fair, but that's because we haven't seen the whole picture.

What if you saw someone cheating on a test in school, or taking something from the grocery store without paying?    You would think they had escaped if they turned in the test, or left the store with the product.   What you don't see is the policeman showing up at their door one week later to remove them to prison.   If you knew that were a guaranteed reality, then you wouldn't be quite as upset when the made it through the first couple of hours.   I think that's what's going on here.

David said in Psalm 73 "I was angry about the way the wicked prospered, until I went into the house of the Lord and saw their fate".    I re-read Psalm 73 this morning, and it goes along with chapter 12 perfectly.    Jeremiah isn't the first to ask the question, and he comes to the same conclusion as David did.     God will be satisfied, as will all who serve Him.  It's just going to happen on a different timeline than what we are used to.     One day soon, it will all be put into the correct perspective.


PR