ANTICIPATING HORSES & THICKETS
The prophet Jeremiah, like many who were tasked with the role of being a prophet to Israel, carried a heavy burden. He carried both the weight of the state of the people of Israel, but also the burden of the message that God had spoken to him. Jeremiah felt that judgment was coming only because God allowed Israel’s wicked to prosper.[1] Surely, if God would deal with all of the bad guys as they deserved,[2] then Israel wouldn’t be so bad—and perhaps not so deserving of judgment.
God’s response has been striking me lately.
If you have raced with runners and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in a peaceful land, what will you do in the thickets of the Jordan?[3]
God says, in other words, “If you are struggling with this, how are you going to deal with what is coming?” On one hand, this seems a bit out of touch with Jeremiah’s complaint. On the other, I think he really strikes at the root of the matter here.
Even though Jesus told us that suffering would come as a result of being his disciple—that hatred and even martyrdom would come—it is very challenging to believe Him at times. It is hard to believe that circumstances in our lives will be so radically different than they are now. This was true of some of the first disciples as well. Peter had to remind his audience,
Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you, as if something unusual were happening to you.[4]
Paul had to bring the same reminder.
In fact, when we were with you, we told you in advance that we were going to experience affliction, and as you know, it happened.[5]
Yet, keeping this in mind can prove more difficult than it should. Those of us in more peaceful Western contexts often subconsciously normalize our experience of following Jesus. Using the language of Jeremiah, we make a ‘peaceful land’ the backdrop onto which we project the life of discipleship. The atrocities of northern Nigeria, Mozambique, and across much of the Middle East seldom make their way into our newsfeeds because the algorithms know—they know that we find these things weird and abnormal. They are uncomfortable to us because deep down we suspect, we hope, that our discipleship setting in the West is the new normal. Spoiler alert: it isn’t.
I am certainly as guilty as my neighbor of subconsciously exempting myself from suffering for the Gospel. I don’t reject it. I believe it when I read it. Yet, most of my days are spent trying to figure out how to walk with Jesus as though my current setting was going to be my context for following Jesus forever. And herein lies the warning: horses and thickets are coming. As Jeremiah was busy trying to figure out how to get the bad guys out of power, God interrupts to remind him that things aren’t going on like this forever.
Jesus and His apostles framed life in the same way for those who took the plunge of becoming His disciples. James began his letter with a well-known statement,
Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.[6]
Endurance, of course, is only valuable if you know that you will be encountering greater difficulties than you are now. James placed value on present difficulties precisely because greater trials were coming, and the current problems were the way disciples might prepare for them. This passage in James concludes with,
Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him.[7]
If peace is temporary, and security is certain to dissipate, then wisdom beckons that we use this time to prepare for more difficult times ahead. Projecting the current peace and security onto the future is folly.
The reason this requires wisdom and intentionality is because trials don’t necessarily produce endurance in anyone. You must submit to God in the trial in order to grow in humility and perseverance. Running with footmen in peaceful cities can, but doesn’t necessarily, prepare you for horses and thickets. Some grow embittered in trials and forfeit the grace of God that might be gained in the trial. Wasting the small trials that we currently experience cripples us to endure the days ahead. These days require intentionality and wisdom.
Paul has always stood out in my mind as having a unique grace to maintain this type of focus amidst intensely challenging circumstances. Acts 20 holds a special backdrop to this part of the Apostle’s life. Preparing to leave some dear friends in Ephesus for what is likely to be the last time, Paul tells them,
And now I am on my way to Jerusalem, compelled by the Spirit, not knowing what I will encounter there, except that in every town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions are waiting for me.[8]
What has struck me here is that the Holy Spirit was continuously reminding Paul that things were going to get worse. We know of many difficulties that Paul encountered during his journeys. Paul was sustained by the Spirit’s gentle nudge, reminding him that these current hardships were mere “light and momentary afflictions.”[9] The regular reminder, “in every town,” that chains and afflictions were coming was a gift that grounded and sobered him.
Returning to Jeremiah, the reminder that running with horses and trying to walk through thickets was what awaited Jeremiah was imagery intended by God to encourage him to deal with present “light afflictions” differently. We need wisdom from God as well. Greater challenges are coming whether we recognize it or not. The present circumstances can either prepare us to stand in coming trials, or they can make us resistant to the grace of God. My exhortation is to not waste your peacetime. Don’t waste your minor trials. Lean into God with humility, submit to Him in the trial, grow in integrity and faith. Horses and thickets are approaching.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
[1] Jeremiah 12:1
[2] Jeremiah 12:3
[3] Jeremiah 12:5 CSB
[4] 1 Peter 4:12 CSB
[5] 1 Thessalonians 3:4 CSB
[6] James 1:2-3 CSB
[7] James 1:5 CSB
[8] Acts 20:22-23 CSB
[9] 2 Corinthians 4:17