Trust Also in Me

                 "Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me” Jhn:14:1

Do we trust in our God? Do we trust our Lord when our lives seemed to make no discernible sense, when we have done everything right and the still the wrong results have occurred?

Do we have trust issues with God?

Circumstances

We can be perplexed by the circumstances around us. Often, these circumstances defy any logic what-so-ever. We look out from our vantage point in life and all we see are events, conditions or persons which tempt us to ask “can I trust God?”.

We can find ourselves asking “where is Jesus in all of this?” what does he want from me? “Why dose Jesus allow such things to occur? Why is this happening to me?

Often, we might be tempted to reach out and attempt to seize control of the situation(s) which we face, and or we default to the use of our own abilities in the face of circumstances rather than trusting in our Lord.

We all face circumstance in this life which defy our understanding and test the mettle of our trust in God, and in these moments, we ask “Lord can I trust you?”

When our circumstances become too much for us to bear or all that we hoped for fails us and life takes an unexpected downturn do we still trust of our Lord?

Whatever the circumstance in which we find ourselves, do we still trust God?

Many Christians throughout the ages have faced situations which were difficult and caused them to do ask “can I trust God?”.

Perplexing Trials

St. Paul wrote of perplexing trials which he and others in the Apostolic Church faced.

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;”2Cor:4:8

St. Paul tells us that they were "hard pressed on every side", that is, they were dealing with multiple problems all at the same time, yet the Apostle states that even though he was dealing with a host of challenges, which in some cases defied logic, they never fell into despair over them.

The Apostle never lost his trust or faith in God, who he knew had the power to bring redemption into any and all challenges in life, in short St. Paul trusted God.

During one of St. Paul’s Sea voyages the ship on which he was a passenger faced a fierce storm upon the sea which caused even the experienced sailors to fear. St. Paul had heard the word of God telling him that all would be speared even if it meant the loss of the vessel. St. Paul encouraged the passengers and crew not to fear,  but that God would intervene and save them alive even if it meant the loss of the ship.

  “So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me”. Acts: 27:25

The ship was lost but their lives were saved just as God had revealed to St. Paul. The Apostle trusted in the word of God because he trusted in God who gave it. He knew that God was true to himself and would not act contrary to his own divine nature and self-revelation.

St. Paul had learned through his experiences with God that God could be trusted, that God always acts for our eternal best good because God is good. St. Paul understood that God’s word reveals who he is, and that in Jesus is where we see God’s self being revealed.

In Jesus we see how God relates to others and his complete trustworthiness, St. Paul knew God in and through Jesus.

“If you have seen me, you have seen the Father”

Trust in the Lord

We can find ourselves leaning to our own understanding defaulting to our Earth bound perceptive, this occurs when we lose trust in our God. This happens when we become distracted and lose sight of who our God is.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” Prov: 3:5

The Proverb admonishes us all to “Trust in the LORD with all your heart”. When we trust with all of our heart, we are trusting God with all of our lives, that is every part of our  lives is given over in trusting God with all of our lives. We understand that he can be trusted for the outcome regardless of the present situations.

When we become distracted by what we face, and there are times when we face things which may cause us to wonder if we can trust in our Lord, or we are tempted to relay on our own devices, and our strengths to deal with these situations especially when God seems to delay in answering our prayers or when painful or uncertain situations continue longer than we feel we can endure.

At times we may be tempted to deal with life’s challenges through the strengths of our flesh, and even if our true motivations for wanting some problems to be resolved may be carnal but only are masked in spirituality we might then resort to the talents, gifts, and resources of the carnal nature under the pretense of wisdom. we “lean to our own understanding”.

 When we turn to the strengths of the flesh, we are like those whom the Psalmist describe who placed their trust in military power which is the fullest expression of straight of the flesh.

"Some boast in chariots and some in horses" Ps: 20:7a

If we read the Psalm we see however where our trust is to be placed with divine assurance that God will save us even when we stumble and fall.

” Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand. Some boast in chariots and some boast in horses, but we will boast in the name of the LORD our God. They have bowed down and fallen, But we have risen and stood upright” Ps:20:6-8

When we face what seems to be unending problems and we grow weary in the midst of such times, we can find assurances that God will sustain us even in the trials and that there will be away of escape for us.

  “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”1Cor:10:13

 Jesus’ Trust

In Jesus’ life here upon the Earth our Lord faced many trails, he faced opposition, he faced critics, and ultimately faced betrayal at the hand of a friend and was abandoned by his Disciples.  Jesus was arrested without  warrant, tried without basis, falsely accused, was denied justice and sentenced to death, died was dead and buried; in short, his whole life fell apart, his success was taken from him and his critics rejoiced over his apparent “failure”.

The Prophet Isaiah foresaw the life of the Messiah and wrote of the contradiction of circumstances which he would face.

“He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth.

By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?” Isa: 53:7-8

Jesus faced great opposition and the barbed comments of critics. Jesus saw his ministry cut off at what should have been, in human terms, the heights of it success, yet in spite of this our Lord never lost his trust in his Heavenly Father.

Jesus never lost trust in God no matter what he faced in during his life here upon the Earth.

At the very cross on which our Lord was nailed even the religious leaders sarcastically noted the trust which Jesus had in his Father.

“He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.” Matt: 27:43

Jesus always trusted God no matter what the outcome of his existing circumstance were. Jesus knew that his Father would, in the end, bring redemption to all which he faced in spite of what the voice critics around him were proclaiming.

Jesus went from having a ministry which challenged the stale notions of the religious establishment and attracting large crowds and generating great excitement and hope among the people, to being arrested, publicly discredited, accused falsely to being pronounced guilt, crucified died and was laid in the tomb, yet through all which he faced he never lost in trust in the Father and in his power to deliver him, even from death and the grave. Simply Jesus trusted God because he knew God, that trusting God is inseparable from a relationship with God.

When we face hardships and we feel discouraged and our trust in God is tested, recall what our Lord Jesus faced and the deliverance which God brought about on his behalf. This same deliverance will be ours as well as Jesus admonishes us.

"Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me” Jhn:14:1

Benediction: May we each and all ever put our trust in our Lord God, and know him that we might trust him today, tomorrow and forever more, Amen.

Rev. Todd Crouch, Norman, Oklahoma.

                       “If It's Not About Jesus, It's Not About Anything!”