Seth Buckner/Heritage Baptist Church
Ants are remarkable creatures. Although tiny, they display great organization, industry, and strength that is fascinating to study. More than 12,000 species are found throughout the world. If ants could talk, they might say, “You forgot to wipe your counter. I am going to go tell a thousand of my friends!”
I still remember the birthday gift my parents gave me: my very own Uncle Milton’s Ant Farm. It was so much fun assembling the tubes and watching the ants travel through them. I am sure this is «ant abuse» today, but I grew up in a different era. Maybe I should not tell you what I did on the sidewalk with a magnifying glass!
I used to put food out to attract the ants so I could watch them. It was amazing to see so many ants show up quickly. Ants seem to communicate faster than Instagram or Facebook! They stay focused on what is essential: gathering enough food for the colony to eat.
One day, I came across an ant battle between two colonies. I had only seen this once, and it was amazing to see the soldier ants battling it out. Plenty of ants are in the world, and they get in each other’s way occasionally. Biologist E.O. Wilson estimates the total number of living ants to be between 1 and 10 quadrillion. That is about one million ants per human.
I grew up in Kentucky, where the ants are much milder-mannered. You could safely let one crawl in your hand. In Texas, the ants are a lot less friendly. This brings new meaning to the phrase, “Ants in your pants!”
Ants are amazing creatures that God has made. The Bible lists them in two passages. The first one is Proverbs 6:6-8: “Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.”
Why would the Bible tell us to “Go to the ant”? Their example is helpful in the areas of hard work, preparation, and teamwork. When the Bible points us toward something, we should pay attention.
For example, certain ants in South and Central America lie down in the potholes that stand between their army and food. Their bodies form a makeshift bridge, allowing other ants—sometimes numbering over 200,000—to progress faster to the source of nourishment. When the raiding party accomplished its mission and was returning to its nest, the faithful few climbed out of their holes and followed the raiders home.
Ants are almost anywhere except Antarctica and some islands. They can carry items fifty times their weight. If I did that, it would mean I could carry around 10,000 pounds! Now you know what I weigh!
The second passage mentioning ants is Proverbs 30:25: “The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer;”
Most of you would remember Aesop’s Fables and the story of the ant and the grasshopper. The grasshopper sang his way through the summer while the ant worked. When the winter arrived, the grasshopper suffered while the ants had plenty.
We learn from the ant the value of hard work, teamwork, and selflessness. Second Thessalonians 3:10 says, «For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.» We would be a better society if we returned to this biblical admonition. A disciple can learn much from one of God›s tiniest creatures if we take the time to do so.
There is a story of a man who could not believe in Christianity because he could not imagine a God who would humble himself in such a way as to die on the cross. One day, the man came upon an anthill. He tried to get close enough to it to study it, but every time he bent low, his shadow caused all the ants to scurry away. He thought, “The best way to know that colony of ants would be to become an ant somehow.” That was the moment at which his turning to Christ began. Philippians 2:8 says, “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”