Trusting God: Intro & Chapter 1

Introduction

Since last October we discussed our way through the book Knowing God by J.I. Packer.

I’d dare say that we have not gotten the full grasp of who He is.

And this getting to know Him will be a lifetime pursuit.

But now that we have established at least a baseline idea of who this God that we serve is, the question I want us to consider is, “Do I trust Him?”

Trust is a delicate thing.

It can be lost in the blink of an eye.

But it can take a considerable amount of time to gain.

Even when you’ve been wronged and have fully forgiven someone for what they’ve done, if a similar situation shows up again, you will be at the very least reluctant to trust them!

But our God, who is sovereignly reigning over EVERYTHING, is worthy of nothing less than our complete trust.

We’ve seen that time and again, but we also look to difficult times that we’ve experienced and wondered why we had to go through that.

Adversity is difficult even when we know God is in control of our circumstances.

But the knowledge that God is in control can tend to aggravate the pain we experience in those times.

We ask ourselves, “If God is in complete control, why did He allow this to happen?”

This is one of the questions we will be answering as we study and discuss together in the coming weeks.

I will admit that I have been deeply challenged and convicted in reading this book.

Some of the ways that we question God are so very subtle.

Trust & Obey

The two questions that are asked early on are really the same question with different emphasis...

Do you trust God?

Is He dependable?

And the emphasis shift...

Do you trust God?

Do you have confidence that He will keep His promises?

Even in the face of adversity, does He have your full trust?

Have you bowed before His sovereign throne echoing the prayer of Christ in the Garden, “Not my will, but yours’ be done” (Matt 26:39 & Luke 22:42)?

Or are we more inclined to demand our way and distrust what might look like a long hard road?

One of the key Scriptures that Jerry Bridges pointed to in chapter 1 was Ecclesiastes 7:13.

Ecclesiastes 7:13 ESV

Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked?

There are several things to realize from this verse alone.

We most often think, and have the expectation of, God making things straight.

Paving the way ahead of us smooth.

But He has the power, the authority, and the sovereign will in bending our lives any way that He sees fit.

We look at this verse and recognize God’s power and our inferiority.

But then we go and try to straighten out what He has made crooked.

Thi

Let’s be honest about something. It is often more difficult to trust God than to obey Him.

We have been given the Word of God to show us His will and call us to obedience

The Bible is rational and reasonable while the circumstances that we are asked to trust God in often appear irrational and inexplicable.

When we look at the law, we recognize that it is good for us, even when we don’t want to obey it!

Even in the midst of tragedy, obedience is worked out within well-defined boundaries of God’s revealed will (Scripture).

Trusting God, on the other hand, is worked out in an arena where there are no boundaries and plenty of unknowns!

While these difficulties seem insurmountable, trusting is just as important as obeying.

When we disobey God we defy His authority and despise His holiness.

But when we fail to trust God we doubt His sovereignty and question His goodness.

But we have to remember that trust is not tethered to understanding.

How many times have we asked, or been asked by, loved ones for trust when the entire situation is not laid out neatly for us to understand?

My daughters don’t understand the depths of depravity in this world. But they trust dad, even when I can’t explain every detail to them of why they can’t go here or there, watch this or that, or participate in certain activities.

We have to be ok with our limited understanding.

3 Truths from Scripture

In learning to trust God, we come face to face with 3 biblical truths.

God is completely sovereign

God is infinite in wisdom

God is perfect in love

Scripture gives countless, and clearly stated, examples of each.

And, thus, they must all 3 be approached and treated as absolutely truth.

God in His love always wills what is best for us.

In His wisdom He always knows what is best.

And in His sovereignty He has the power to bring it about.

God does not exercise His sovereign authority on a whim.

He only uses it in such a way as His infinite love deems best for us.

And in such a way that brings Him the ultimate glory.

Conclusion

It is only by God’s grace worked out through the Holy Spirit applying Scripture to our hearts that we are able to trust God in adversity.

We don’t know what the next month, week, day, or hour holds for us.

But, thankfully, we don’t have to.

We serve a God who does.

And He does it perfectly.

Let’s discuss around our tables.