Looking to the Unseen

Jeremiah 17:5-8

Thus says the Lord: Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. Blessed are those who trust in the Lord,  whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. (NRSV)

Cursed are those who trust in mankind, whose strength is in man’s ability. Trusting in mankind means we rely on man’s ability to resolve issues, to find happiness. Instead of looking to God, we look to science, technology, wealth, worldly power and influence to resolve problems, provide protection, and give us meaning. Does this mean believers are to eschew these things, and the use of these things is contrary to trusting God? Of course not. We live in a material world and therefore science, technology, wealth, human relationships, are all a part of our lives. However, though we live in a physical world, we are also part of a spiritual world. The spiritual realm is just as real as the physical realm. Often we only see the physical world, the things we can see, hear, touch, and feel. Because we are immersed in this physical world and constantly inundated with these physical stimuli, our sensitivity to the physical world is in overdrive. In contrast, our sensitivity to the spiritual world is dull and listless.  

We have not been trained nor sensitized to the spiritual world all around us. We don’t see the Force behind all the physical activities around us. When a physical need is met by a neighbor, or a person is made well by chemotherapy, or a relationship is restored by a counselor, do we see that God orchestrates these things? He uses the physical world and humans for His purposes. Just because we can explain it does not mean God is not in it. Whether a cancer is successfully treated by physicians or “magically” disappears, God is behind it. God routinely uses the mundane to accomplish His purposes for the good of His people. [Spiritual sensitivity must be cultivated. More on this later.]

Therefore, our trust must be in the Source, not in the objects used by the Source. Our strength comes from God and we must look to God for joy, satisfaction, deliverance. If we forget God and start looking to the objects used by God, then we shall be like a shrub in the desert. Our habitat will be a dry and barren land.

In contrast, those who trust in the Lord shall be like a tree planted by water with its roots drawing from the Spring of life. Difficult times will come even for those who trust in the Lord, but the tree will stay green in the year of drought, and it will not be anxious. Those who trust in the Lord will bear fruit even in difficult times because our roots extend beyond the temporal circumstances of life straight into the Source of life. They are able to see beyond the activities of the physical world to the Source behind the activities. And it is in this Source their hope lies. When God Himself is our source of joy and satisfaction, we shall bear fruit in any and all circumstances. God does not change and He is all sufficient.