God is really good at the game of Risk

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Jeremiah 46.

“The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations” (Jeremiah 46:1).

It turns out that God had a message for the whole world, not just Israel or Judah. God speak of judgment for Egypt, Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Syria, Persia, and Babylon. Their violence, cruelty, pride, oppression, and idolatry has not gone unnoticed. Don’t worry. God will deal with them.

As I read through these chapters, I jotted down two notes in my journal. First, God is not a spectator in human history. He doesn’t passively watch it unfold. He’s the star. He’s on the stage, causing and working through current events.

My second note is, “God is playing the game of Risk.” Risk was one of my favorite childhood games. We left the Risk board on a basement table, since an ongoing game might take days to complete. Ours was an original game with wooden pieces representing armies and tens of armies. Risk taught me geography and strategy, along with statistics and luck. With a large enough army, I could defeat anyone, even if the dice seemed to be against me.

When it comes to God, there’s no luck or odds. He’s in control of the board, and he comes out on top. I too often forget about God’s role when I read the news. For better or worse, he’s behind all the headlines. He’s not a passive observer of human ambition. God is the headliner, the main event, and the star of the show. Nothing happens outside of his control. There may be a lot of players in the game of Risk (I think six is the max), but when it’s all said and done, God always wins.

My memories of playing Risk with my brother and sister and neighborhood friends helps me understand the Old Testament. There are lots of nations in play, we think it’s all random and luck, but God reveals himself and his plans as nations rise and fall.