Psalm 6│Jeremiah 5.20-31│Galatians 4.21-5.1│John 5.30-47
Preparing for the harvest
'The harvest' by Camille Pissarro, 1830-1903, Musée d'art Bridgestone, Tokyo, Japan
Jeremiah 5:20-31 is not an easy passage. As we
read it, we might struggle to identify how it relates to us and we might want
to distance ourselves from it. It refers to “stubborn and rebellious hearts”,
people that have “turned aside and gone away”, and a corrupt nation where “the
prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people
love it this way”. There are a couple of verses, however, that should speak
directly to our hearts in these challenging times: “the Lord our God, who gives
autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of
harvest. Your wrongdoings have kept these away; your sins have deprived you of
good”. The Lord gives us suitable seasons for the harvest, He gives us what we
need when it is needed, even when we do not know why it is needed. But we must
not forget the hand of God.
Just as during the wet and grey Brussels autumn
we struggle to find a reason for all that rain, so we now have a hard time
understanding why we are being tested by this season of hardship. In the last
year, our lives have been challenged by COVID-19 restrictions and it has been
easier than ever to forget that the Lord is good. God is with us, not against
us. God assures us what we need, and we need to trust that the weeks of harvest
will come after this time of struggle.
The passage ends with a question that we can’t
avoid: “But what will you do in the end?”. What will you do in the end?
Originally, these words may be construed as a challenge to those who defy the
Lord. Perhaps they remain so, and we cannot afford to forget the consequences
of our own greed. However, I also see this as both invitation and opportunity:
a reminder that, while we wait for the season of harvest, we can choose to live
out our days with love for God and neighbours, instead of anger for the season
of rain. The fact that it is posed as a question allows us - no matter our past
- to side with the oppressed, fight for justice, and proliferate good. Out of
His sheer love for us, He will always give us that choice; all we need to do is
accept His invitation.
Anna
De Marchi
No comments:
Post a Comment