If someone asks me which biblical figure I most want to emulate, I genuinely say God and Jesus. Human relationships are so important that they are essentially our whole lives. Having not grown up in a normal family, I always feel lacking in this area. I often struggle with this, but I find strength by recalling how God loved His people.
While meditating on this passage, two questions came to mind. The first was, “Why did Jeremiah ask God to remember and look upon such a miserable situation?” The answer was that God is so full of mercy that Jeremiah believed if he told God about their difficult situation, He would come running to help. We know some people rush to help when they hear of difficulties, while others pass by indifferently as if it’s none of their business. God is more merciful than any human, so Jeremiah prayed, believing God wouldn’t just stand by in such a miserable situation.
The second question was, “Why did a merciful God, who sacrificed His only Son on the cross for us sinners, remain silent while His people were in such a dreadful situation?” Reflecting on the Book of Ezekiel, which is being preached in Wednesday services, I understood why God had to leave the Israelites in such distress. It was to make them yearn to escape from their entrenched sins and to recognize who the Lord God is.
True love does not control unilaterally. It is certainly not indifferent or neglectful. As defined in 1 Corinthians 13, love involves much heartache, patience, and sacrifice. Despite having the power to do anything and the knowledge of everything, God respects the freedom He gave us from the beginning to help us grow healthily. He guides us with enduring patience, deep wisdom, and sacrificial devotion, dealing with the numerous problems that arise from our freedom. The way He loves is truly astonishing. I felt the same overwhelming emotion that Paul must have felt when concluding his extensive explanation of God’s salvation for us.
“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counsellor? Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them? For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:33-36)
