Trusting God

SIMPLY TRUSTING

Every child of God knows that we honor our God when we trust him. Trust in the LORD with all thine heart is the desire of every healthy Christian. It sounds so simple. And yet we are challenged day by day with simply trusting.

When all is going well we can speak confidently of our trust in the living God. We quote Scripture, sing songs, and exhort others to trust in the LORD. But what do we mean when say we trust the LORD?

We believe Him. He is worthy of our confidence and so we believe what He says. We believe Him enough to live according to His revealed will.

We believe Him at all times. That is, we believe Him enough to do His will at all times no matter how we feel or the outcome of our obedience. We really do believe that He is right, that His will is best and that He will take care of us. If we do not see the desired result from our obedience, we continue to obey. After all, we trust Him!

We believe Him even when our way is dark, dreary, difficult and uncertain. We trust Him. We know His Word is true just like Himself, and therefore simply trust that His way is right no matter how we might perceive the outcome will be.

Are you simply trusting? It is possible to think you are trusting and yet your experience proves otherwise. If you are really trusting Him you will follow Him. You will not follow your own inclinations. You will not be satisfied simply with comfortable results from your own decisions. You will follow Him regardless of the results, simply trusting that He is worthy of full devotion and that His way is right.

Simply trusting is not always comfortable to our flesh, but perfect peace is promised to those who simply trust (Is. 26:3).

Resting in our Sovereign Christ

WHEN YOUR SHIP IS FULL

And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?  Mark 4:35-41

Here Jesus especially exhibits His sovereign rule.

       He was not shocked by the storm.

       He was not controlled by the storm.

       He was sovereign over that which seemed to be overwhelming and about to destroy.

The disciples exhibit fear in the face of uncontrollable circumstances. Jesus acted in a way that demonstrated to His disciples that He was more than a mere man. The very elements of nature were subject to His word, and still are!

Are you in the midst of a storm? Is your ship filling up? What will you do? What are you doing? Are you afraid? Jesus calls you to trust Him.

      He is not shaken by the events of your life.

      He is not shocked. He is not overpowered. He is not defeated.

      He is asleep – calm, resting, in full control!

There is no better sense in the soul than the sense of confidence that Jesus is present.

      Don’t you know that the latest wave filling your boat is under His rule? 

      Don’t you know that He is just as able to calm the sea as He is to stir it up? 

      Look to Him! Trust Him! Lay down on His pillow and rest!

One great problem that faces every Christian is truly believing and resting in our sovereign Christ. We are more interested in selective sovereignty: Christ doing our will for what we consider our greatest comfort and best interest. We want His sovereign rule to be at our beckoned command.

When we embrace by faith the absolute sovereignty of Christ we demonstrate our greatest concern to be His interest and glory. Living by faith, we really do trust Him and really do believe that He will do what is best, and we are satisfied.

Be clear on this: Christ never presents His sovereignty in order to excuse our irresponsibility. But, as we fulfill His revealed will and make choices in life that demonstrate submission to Him, He calls us to find comfort and encouragement in His sovereignty. What manner of man is this that even the wind and the sea obey Him? With Him in our midst and on our side, what have we to fear?

So, fill up the ship with the waves of life’s trials, discouragements, unexplained or explained difficulties…so long as He is with us, we can be assured that the ship will not sink! He knows how much our ship can take, and will not permit one wave more than we can bear!

How Does Your Testimony Compare?

EXAMINING YOUR FAITH

Have you ever listened to someone else give their testimony of conversion  to Christ and wondered, in light of all they experienced, whether your conversion is real? It is no light matter. If you have never truly been born again you cannot see and will not enter the kingdom of heaven. And so you examine yourself, comparing your own experience with the impressive testimony of whoever, and it seems you come up short. Or, perhaps you are on the other side of the evaluation and feel pretty good about yourself because your experience exceeds the one you have just heard. In fact, you find yourself questioning the genuineness of, whoever.

There is good reason to examine yourself to see if you are truly in the faith (2 Cor. 13:5). You know it is possible to be deceived. You know it is possible to imagine yourself to be something you are not. A true believer is sensitive to this possibility. A lost person really has no interest in examination. So, if you are interested in examining your profession of faith, you have reason to be hopeful.

But in your examination you must not compare yourself with others. This is dangerous. Wouldn’t it be disastrous to get to the end, stand before the judgment of Christ and be shocked that someone you thought you far exceeded in genuine Christianity was welcomed, and you were rejected? It could also happen that one whose verbal testimony you thought far exceeded yours, and stirred up doubt about yourself, is turned away and  you are welcomed.

You must judge yourself by God’s standard. Do you honestly recognize that God owes you nothing but death and condemnation (Rom. 6:23)? Have you submitted yourself to God’s righteousness in the Lord Jesus (Rom. 10:3,4)? Have you surrendered your own efforts to attain God’s favor while at the same time turning away from all that would separate you from Him (Rom. 5:20-6:2)? Are you coming to God through the only One who is able to present you faultless (Jude 24; Heb. 7:25)?

If you can honestly answer “yes” to all the above, then you ought to also be seeing other indicators in your life that the Spirit of Christ is in you (Rom. 8:9). How about: a hunger for His Word (Acts 2:41; 1 Peter 2:1-3), a longing to do His will (1 John 2:15-17; Gal. 2:20), an increasing distaste for sinful pleasures (Rom. 12:1,2), a love for other believers (1 John 4:7,11), fruits of the Spirit increasing (Gal. 5:22,23), and increasing dependence upon Christ (John 15:5; Philip. 4:13)?

Is the faith of the Son of God at work in you?

PRAYER SHOULD BE JOY

PRAYER SHOULD BE JOY, NOT DRUDGERY

My Thoughts Provoked by Mike Reeves

(http://www.theologynetwork.org/christian-beliefs/the-holy-spirit-and-christian-living/getting-stuck-in/how-to-enjoy-your-prayer-life.htm)

What is prayer to you? Is it merely something you do, along with many other “Christian” things? Is it part of the Christian check list, something you do to get it done? Or, is it truly an expression of your relationship to God…do you pray as dependent ones who are actually relating to God?

Prayer requires and assumes a relationship: Luke 11:2, Our Father… We know there is no access to God without a qualified High Priest: Hebrews 4:14-16. Approaching God apart from Jesus (in Jesus’ name) is to approach Him only as Almighty Judge. Approaching God through Jesus is to know and approach Him as our Father.*

Our access to God is not merely to give a list of petitions. We are approaching our Father. We are part of His family: adopted by His grace, He chose to include us.

God has manifested Himself to be relational through the dependence the Son expressed upon His Father while He was on earth. John especially emphasizes this point throughout his gospel account: Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: (John 5:19; see also 8:19,29). The relationship that we observe between Jesus and His Father while He was on earth is the nature of our relationship to God through the Son: John 17:20-23. Prayer is engaging in this most intimate relationship. Prayer is enjoying what the Son has always enjoyed: communion with the Father! (Note: this is not to say we cannot speak to the Son and the Spirit who are equally God, but that our primary attention in prayer is to the Father.)

Prayer requires faith (John Calvin said it is the “chief exercise of faith.”): not simply believing that what we ask will be given, but that as we speak we believe we are heard by God as our Father. We have nothing to prove to Him. The Son has satisfied all that is needed to engage in this relationship. We have the right to be called the sons of God because of Jesus Christ. When we pray there is no need to convince God that He should hear us. We’ve been adopted. We are going to our Father.

Jesus wants us to think this way as we pray. Listen Jesus’ words recorded by Luke (11:5-13): And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.  I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

The Father will not refuse good things/needs to his children who cry out to Him: ask, seek, and knock. In the context of teaching the disciples how to pray, Jesus speaks about an earthly father’s kindness to his child. Our Father in heaven is incomparably kind! What greater gift can He give than Himself? Luke 11:13, tells us that He will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask. If He gives the Holy Spirit to those who ask, what lesser good gift will He withhold? You can go to Him at any time, for every need, and for any reason, as a child would go to a father. Jesus wants us to think of prayer this way! Our Father…

Apply the command to pray without ceasing to this relationship aspect of prayer. Why would we not frequently go to our Father in prayer if we really believe He has brought us into such a familial relationship? Why would it be a drudgery to pray? Could it be that we think our relationship to God, and His response to us, depends upon us? Or, perhaps we think that praying is a futile attempt to get God’s attention? But, if we think of prayer as we should (Our Father), we can go into His presence in prayer with thanksgiving and joy! We can and should view prayer as a joyful privilege, not a dutiful drudgery.

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*The distinction between God as our Father and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ must always be understood. Our relationship to Him as Father depends upon the eternal relationship of the Son to the Father. So, if we say “my Father” in the personal and intimate communion with God we have in common with all saints, we must not forget the unique relationship that is eternal between the Father and the Son, Who is only begotten.

Love and Faith

FAITH-BASED  LOVE

We sing, Oh the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free, as if we really believe it. At times it rolls off our tongues from a heart that is swelling with the sense of that amazing love. But then, there are those times when we are only mouthing the words. The sense is gone.

Should you speak of His love for you only when you feel it? Should you speak of your love for Him only when you feel it?

Is the depth of God’s love for you determined by your sense of it? Is your response to God’s love for you determined by your sense or your level of emotional connection to His love for you?

Could it be that keeping yourself in the love of God (Jude 20) has more to do with faith than feelings? And, could it be that as feelings fluctuate, faith keeps you consistently responding to His love which you have come to know and appreciate, and which you prayerfully seek to comprehend more fully (Eph. 3:18,19)? And then as you dwell upon that love that you know by faith, is it possible that emotions will follow that will increase your delight in Him, and motivate you toward more fervent devotion to Him and service for Him?  (2 Corinthians 5:14)

As you think about this concept of relating to God’s love with the kind of consistency that faith produces, perhaps you can apply it to your human relationships. Your love for one another, and especially your love for your spouse, is to mirror God’s love for you, and your response to His love.  It is the Spirit of God who places this love in our hearts (Rom. 5:5; Gal. 5:22).

So, should you say to your wife, I love you deeply, even though your emotions or feelings are not necessarily connecting with that concept at the moment? Remember, God’s love for you is not simply an emotional statement. God’s love has been, and is, demonstrated! Thus, if you are loving as He loves, you should say and do, whether you feel it or not! In fact, if you say you love her deeply and then treat her in unloving ways, you words are mere words.

Thankfully, God’s love for us is more than mere words! Neither is He void of emotion. May the love He has made known to you through faith be manifested in your relation to others, especially your spouse.         

Help for Hopelessness

I have noticed that the top downloaded sermon from the messages that I have preached and loaded on to Sermon-audio is one regarding hope. There may be more than one way to interpret that little piece of data, but it directs my mind to conclude hope is one of the great needs of our day.

Hopelessness is an awful feeling. It can come for various reasons. It can be as brief as a passing sense at the thought of an enormous task facing you, or  the dark abyss into which one tumbles who has entered a season of depression. A season of depression also has numerous causes, from hormonal or medical roots to a devastating personal or family loss. The sense of guilt over one's sinful choices, or the sense that one is too great a sinner to ever be accepted by God can cause a sense of hopelessness. 

When hopelessness is the result of something other than a medical root, the solution must always be sought through means other than medication.  Hope is a by-product of faith, which is able to latch on to the possibility of that which seems impossible. When faith grips truth, hope will be kindled and increase until one is once again living with a positive sense that there is a way out!

Hopelessness will be exaggerated in one who places his faith in speculation rather than truth. Once speculation has been uncovered as a deception, or a lie, faith is weakened and hope fades. But when truth is the object of faith, then come what may, hope is kept alive and despair or depression is kept away.

Thy word is truth are words spoken by Jesus. He is the One who also said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. The word is the revelation of Jesus Christ. If you are listening to Him, you are listening to truth. Faith in Jesus Christ is faith in the truth. He is an anchor to the soul of every one who believes in Him. 

Despair and depression, kinfolk to hopelessness, are best dealt with by looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Listening to Him as the wonderful counselor we hear, come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Jesus Christ gives hope to the struggling soul. 

Are you struggling with hopelessness? Jesus says, come unto me! Ignore the voices of detractors and naysayers who prefer to create questions and stumbling-blocks, and keep you in a place of hopelessness. Don't let doubts and questions lead you away from Him who is the truth. Hope will increase as your confidence in Jesus increases. 

I know! I've been in the dark place of doubt, where nothing seems right and all is confusing-a place of hopelessness! Hope is found in the God of hope. Trust in Him and hope is sure to increase. With the increase of hope there will be increase of peace and joy! 

If you are going through a dark night of the soul, keep looking unto Jesus. You can't see Him? Keep looking! This is the way of faith. You will see Him clearest at the cross! Run to the gospel and hope will return and grow. Don't stop looking. Endure to the end! We are saved by hope!