Trusting God
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Trusting God When It Doesn't Make Sense - Part 1
Trusting God When It Doesn't Make Sense - Part 1
Are we living in days where it is harder to trust God than ever before? Is this even a legitimate question? With the advancement in technology we have temptations at our finger tips. We have news of tragedy, crime, war, and disease that gets to us at the speed of light. We have a name for more diseases than any other generation. We have good people and evil people within an arms reach of us all around every day. Our economy is more robust than many cultures in history but it is also more vulnerable than ever. It seems as if we have a flood of cultural conflicts and ideologies at war against our families and children more than ever before. So, is it harder to trust God today than ever before?
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.
The Hebrew word for “trust” is בָּטַח betah meaning to confide in or to set one’s hope and confidence upon. In the Hebrew, it is as if one lays on his back flat on the ground thus removing all fear of falling. It is to place all of your cares on that which is absolute and unwavering. It is to be secure and fearing nothing.
All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts.
This was Messianic prophecy from the Psalmist. Yet, it speaks of the Christ who facing the cross trusted in the faithfulness of the Father to deliver Him the way a newborn infant trust the arms of the mother to tenderly hold them and her breasts to provide life sustaining nourishment.
The word betah also means “to throw in the face” or to seek after with great passion (to humbly get in the face of God). In other words, you cling closely to that which you trust. If you are in open water and fearful of drowning and something came by that was floating you would cling to it.
In the same manner we cling to lots of things like our money, our jobs, our guns and so many other things. But the Psalmist tells us to cling to, to trust in, or seek God more than anything.
Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Abraham, his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones!
It is the strength of the Lord we are to seek and cling to continually. The wondrous works of God, both in Scripture and in our own lives, become like the floating lifesaver ring in the middle of an open ocean.
Speaking of floating life savers, consider Noah. It was not the ark that saved Noah, it was God. It was God who reached out to him. It was God who considered Him at all. It was God who forewarned Noah of impending judgment and presented to Noah a way of escape. It was God who taught Noah what a boat was, what to build it of and how to build it. It was God who revealed Himself to Noah giving Noah hope and someone to put his trust in.
When it came down to it, even after building the ark, Noah still had to put his trust in God. Noah had to “acknowledge God”. If you saw me in Wal-Mart and said something to me and I walked away purposefully not acknowledging you, you would be greatly offended.
Proverbs 3:6 says to “acknowledge God in all your ways.” “Acknowledge” is יָדַע da’e meaning to become acquainted with, to hear, to seek, to turn to and look at. Proverbs says to acknowledge Him in “all your דֶּרֶךְ derekh (ways) or how one “walks” (halak הָלַךְ- manner of living).
How do we do that? Proverbs 3:7 tells us:
First, relinquish your own understanding and wisdom or trying to reason or figure out your “soul-utions” in your life to your satisfaction and trust in God’s knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. Do not trust in your perspective, seek His and cling to it.
Second, fear the Lord. “Fear” יָרֵא yera; יָרֵא אֶת־אֱלֹהִים yera ‘et Elohim, to fear God. To reverence Him, as the avenger of all wrong doing; hence to be godly or to live upright before Him who is holy; to flee all evil, propensity toward or perception of that which is evil or displeasing to God.
Finally, turn from evil (yetza ha ra’). Not to just flee that which is wicked activity but to separate yourself from the inward inclination toward that which is iniquity or the desire to break the Law of God within your heart, thoughts, and words.
It was not the ark that saved Noah, it was God who looked and considered Noah as “righteous” (צַדִּיק tsaddiq or just, maintaining that which is right and loving justice; holding firm to a just cause; or just being obedient).
These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.
God found Noah righteous compared to what?
The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
For some reason, God looked upon Noah and Noah found favor (חֵן hen, grace and good-will). Why did Noah find God’s favor? The answer is found in God’s definition of “righteous”. Ultimately, God found Noah obedient or clinging to and trusting in an ancient way and knowledge of God. We see it in Genesis 6:22.
Noah did this; he did all that God commanded him.
You will not find where Noah argued with God. He never questioned God. He never asked what a boat or rain was. In fact, we don’t even see where Noah is shocked to hear from God as if it were a voice he had never heard before. He never had to ask who this God was. He just trusted and obeyed.
Note Chapter 7:11.
In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened.
Rashi states that the rains started gentle calling the people to repentance. But they refused so the flood waters burst forth. Had they repented, the gentle rain would have been a blessing instead of turning into judgment.
The days we live in are no different than the days of Noah. Noah had no special kind of ability to trust God any different than yours. He just seized the opportunities to grow in that trust. In fact, Noah did so for 600 years. For 600 years his halak or manner of life was continually before the Lord. Like the flood waters, the days of trusting God, even when it does not make sense, are ever increasing. Like flood waters, temptations and fears will rise, but will your faith and trust stay afloat? Will you enter in and let God do as He did Noah?
And those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded him. And the Lord shut him in.
“The Lord shut him in.” אֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיִּסְגֹּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה בַּֽעֲדֽוֹ (Elohim va-yisgor Adonai ba’ado). In other words, God kept Noah secure.
Trusting God When It Doesn’t Make Sense - Part 2
Trusting God When It Doesn’t Make Sense - Part 2
A.W. Tozer says that most Christians today treat their spiritual life like a playground instead of a battlefield. These words were never more true than in our time. Yet, we are living in times where demonic forces are outright blatant and in the open and mankind treat them as another form of mere entertainment and choices of personal pleasure. The spirit of apostasy is rampant in the church.
Sadly, professing Christians are even deceived and drawn into compromise and moral confusion not even realizing they have been taken captive. This was the state of Israel in the days of Gideon.
As a result of Israel’s disobedience to the ways of the Lord, they were taken captive by the Midianites and Amalekites. The enemy would devour their crops and destroy their flocks. Then Israel cried out to the Lord. So God sent a prophet and reminded them of why they were in such a mess.
Need God send a prophet to tell us why our nation is in such a mess? Would anyone even listen or would they rebuke him in the name of the Lord?
Nonetheless, in God’s great mercy, He sends the Angel of the Lord to a young man named Gideon. Now Gideon would tend to the grain in hiding from the Midianites. In his story we find that even though he is not a very confident fellow, God calls him a man of valor and calls him to deliver Israel. Gideon is so unsure in his faith that he puts forth to the Angel of the Lord a series of attestations.
Gideon is then put to a test and commanded to tear down the idols of the Midianites that actually belonged to his father, a descendent of the tribe of Manasseh.
That night the Lord said to him, “Take your father’s bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it and build an altar to the Lord your God on the top of the stronghold here, with stones laid in due order. Then take the second bull and offer it as a burnt offering with the wood of the Asherah that you shall cut down.”
Notice that God has Gideon tear down the false gods and build an altar to Adonai in their place and worship Adonai in the land that had been perverted. Not only is this a redeeming act, it is a prophetic act for Israel to be reminded of who their God is and for the Midianites to be reminded of who the God of Israel is as well. There was a distinct difference between the worship of the pagans and the worship of the people of God. But Gideon’s faith is so weak that he obeys God but not in the open.
Followers of Christ, would you say that you have visible faith? Would those around you say that you openly and blatantly trust your God? I didn’t ask if you were blatantly religious and spooky spiritual. I am asking do you have a Rambo kind of trust in God or more of a 007 Secret uncover Agent kind of trust?
In Judges 7, Gideon has been labeled as “Yerubbaal” יְרֻבַּעַל which means “the one with whom Baal contends.” In other words, in the Spirit of the Lord God of Israel, Gideon destroyed their pagan gods and they labeled Gideon as the one who destroys their idols and against whom their idols have no defense.
If only the church today had such a reputation instead of cowering to cultural compromise and spiritual apostasy.
In Judges chapter 6 Gideon has managed to gather a massive army of 32,000 men to fight against the Midianites and the Amalekites. And again, Gideon is uncertain of his calling and purpose so he ask God for more re-assurance. So, up to this point Gideon has had to trust God to know who God is; to destroy the idols; and worship God in spite of the opposition even in his own household. He even trusted God to gather an army. But in chapter seven is where Gideon has to trust God when it makes absolutely no sense at all.
The Lord said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home and hurry away from Mount Gilead.’ ” Then 22,000 of the people returned, and 10,000 remained.
Can you imagine that one day you are hiding in captivity trying to gather just enough to feed your family then the next thing you know you are leading an army of 32,000 men into battle to deliver your people?
With 32,000 you are feeling like Brave Heart! You are painting your face and preparing your big motivational speech. Then all of a sudden God says, you have “too many”. How can you have too many troops to go into battle?
Folks, I have served in the Army up to brigade level. I have worked in logistics and been a battle captain. I understand the relevance of basic load and unit strength. Numbers are important to success on the battlefield. But God tells Gideon, “Too many”. Then after losing 22,000, God does it again.
And the Lord said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Take them down to the water, and I will test them for you there, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ shall go with you, and anyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ shall not go.”
So he brought the people down to the water. And the Lord said to Gideon, “Every one who laps the water with his tongue, as a dog laps, you shall set by himself. Likewise, every one who kneels down to drink.”
And the number of those who lapped, putting their hands to their mouths, was 300 men, but all the rest of the people knelt down to drink water.
And the Lord said to Gideon, “With the 300 men who lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hand, and let all the others go every man to his home.”
So, you are going to face an army made up of two nations of people and instead of mustering 32,000, you send them all home but 300 men? This makes perfect military strategic sense?
Have you ever had such loss in your life that you could not make sense of how God could bring anything good from it? I could imagine Gideon trying to figure out how the loss of 31,700 men was a good thing. But sometimes you just have to trust God even when it does not make sense.
Now we could get into trying to figure out God’s reasoning between those who lapped the water and those who knelt down and drank. But even that does not make a lot of sense to our ways of thinking.
To make it even crazier, God gives Gideon an insane military strategy and expects Gideon to trust Him. The strategic combat plan is to place the 300 men around the enemies camp, simultaneously blow some trumpets, break their lamps and shout! Now if you were one of these 300 hundred men would you think this was a loony way to conquer your enemies. But this is exactly why God chose these men. They followed God’s plan. Are you following God’s plan? You might say, I don’t even know God’s plan. Well friend, it’s in the Bible.
When we don’t trust God and things do not go the way we expected or thought God should do things, we doubt it was God or help Him out by going to our strategy or “Plan B”.
And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see an almond branch.” Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”
The Hebrew word for almond is שָׁקֵד shaqed. It is the first to awaken or bud. From the root is derived the words שָׁקַד shaqad meaning to watch over.
You can never make sense of the supernatural by trying to rationalize it through the natural. The ones who drank שָׁקָה shaqah (synonymous with שָׁתָה shatah) meaning to drink) the water by lapping trusted in the watchful eye of the Lord.
Do you trust in the watchful eye of the Lord? He is watching over His word to perform it. Do His words abide in you? If so, you have nothing to fear but the Lord Himself.
You shall fear the Lord your God. You shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear.
Like Gideon, you don’t need an army. You don’t need a plan B to His plans. All you need do is follow His plan and trust in the Lord even when it does not make since.
If God can use Gideon imagine what He could do with your trusting Him. If God can conquer two nations with 300 men who trusted His plan, what could God do with a church that embraced that same unthinkable trust in the power of their God?
Trusting God When It Doesn’t Make Sense - Part 3
Trusting God When It Doesn’t Make Sense - Part 3
We can look throughout the Scriptures and find some of the worst situations where from our perspective it would have taken impossible faith to trust God. For example, the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness as God sustains them. Israel standing at the Red Sea with Pharaohs armies seeking to wipe them out and God parts the waters and provides safe passage. Sampson, after having disobeyed God multiple times in his lust is given the strength of God once more to redeem his legacy. Little David, the outcast among the family radically faces the giants of the Philistines and conquers them with a single stone and slingshot. Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his only son trusting that God would resurrect him if need be. Esther facing death as she takes her petition before the king uninvited. Telling one of the most powerful kings in history that even if he throws you in the fire your God will save you. And if He does not, He is still Lord of all. Or how about, being a pagan woman who has lost everything but you make a vow to your mother-in-law based on your trust in her God. In the end, from your line comes the Savior of the world.
But out of all the stories of great faith and trust in God, the most profound and most incredible would be to live your entire life in a town that was looked down upon and was said that nothing good could ever come from that little town.
Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
How about to be considered a nobody from a family of simple craftsmen. To be despised among your own kind. Hated so much that they want to kill you in the worse way possible.
He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Then they beat you worse than any man has ever been beaten to the point you are unrecognizable. They nail you to a tree for public display. They put your lifeless body wrapped in a tomb and seal it with the largest stone they can find. Yet, up until your last breath, you are trusting God that He can overcome.
When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Now as believers, we know the rest of the story. But I cannot think of a worse situation to trust God in than death. Because without Christ, trusting God in death just does not make sense. But He was not just trusting that the Father would overcome His death but that His death would indeed overcome the power of sin. In fact, He had many others trying to convince Him that this way was not God’s plan because it did not make sense to them. They tried to convince Him that there had to be a better way that made more sense. But He stuck to God’s plan.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In the power of His last words “It is Finished” we find the strength of hope, faith and trust in Adonai. The root of the word “finished” is the word kala כָּלָה meaning accomplished, to cease, determined, complete, spent, destroyed.
If death is the consequence of sin, Jesus went to the root of that which stills away from us eternal life in the presence of God. He restored that which was lost in the Garden as a result of sin against a Holy God.
So what was the “It” that was finished?
Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
It was the power of sin that separates us from a Holy God that Christ destroyed. Some would say that the power of sin that was destroyed was that God no longer counts sin among us at all. Therefore, no matter how you live in rebellion to God’s ethics, you are good to go. But if you read the Bible at all you would know that this is a fallacy. That is like someone being accused of murder but there was a mistrial so he figures he can go on killing. That’s insane.
Cheap grace doctrine is a means to escape suffering that transforms us in the flames of righteousness where resurrection life is found.
God gave man dominion over the very thing he was created from. But he was created in the image of the Creator not the creation. He was given authority to rule over the flesh not be ruled by it.
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
Christ overcame not only the finality of death but the strength of the draw of sin. Through His victory we were given the way back to righteousness in Christ Jesus. It does not mean that we will not face trials, temptations and despair sometimes. But it does mean that we can have the same hope that Christ had and we also can grow to trust as He trusted even on the cross.
Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.
Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Christ has finished the redemptive plan of God. But you have to choose to walk it out every day in the same hope and trust that He had even until His last breath. He trusted God when it made the least sense ever and yet He overcame death and sin.
You too can trust in the faithfulness of God even when it does not make sense at all. Sometimes it may not make sense to uphold a moral standard in a world of compromise. Sometimes it may not make sense to restrain from fleshly pleasures and appetites when the world and even some professing Christians tell you it’s alright to compromise just a little. It may not make sense to hold fast to your integrity of the Word of God when it might cost you everything or even when no one else will know.
But brothers and sisters in Christ, it only makes sense to stand firm in this faith when nothing else makes sense at all.