TRUST IN GOD (PART 4)
"Therefore now, LORD, let the thing that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant and concerning his house be established for ever, and do as thou hast said." - 1 Chronicles 17:23 (KJV)
Hmmm! What a confident repose in the Lord by David. Come to think of it: the way God spoke His Word to David isn't any different from the way He's spoken to us! But imagine David's response to God: "Therefore now, LORD, let the thing that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant and concerning his house be established for ever, and do as thou hast said." - (1 Chron 17:23, KJV). Nothing can be more beautiful and no position more strong, safe and secure than for a child of God to put his finger on God's expressed Word or promise and claim it. It's like for one to simply present the check and ask for cash, produce the promise, and claim its fulfillment. This was what David did! But why can't we do the same?
Truth is, David believed and trusted God to keep His Word! This is the marked difference between them that believe God and them that believe Him not. I've always said that there's a whole lot of difference between Bible faith and mental assent; which to me is the counterfeit of faith. It's painful to stress that many Christians today do not function in Bible faith, but in mere mental assent to God's Word. 'Mental assent simply refers to people reading God's Word and agreeing that it is true, but they are agreeing only with their minds, not with their hearts; and that is not what gets the job done. Mental assent is simply a head acknowledgement of what God says. Truth is, it's the heart faith that receives from God.' (See the devotional published on June 11, 2023 for the full exposition on this by using our link: https://wordfortoday.netlify.app/. )
Actually, to trust in God is to believe Him and to keep believing Him irrespective of apparent circumstances to the contrary. Trusting God is an acknowledgement of His unfailing love and power to do what He said to do. It may require that you go through all manner of unpleasantness and sacrifice while trusting Him. Faith, they say shines brightest in darkness, when events of life are dismal, gloomy and frustrating. Under those circumstances, can we like Job say: "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:"? (Job 13:15)
Someone penned the following, to illustrate what it's like to trust God:
“I will not doubt, though all my ships at sea
Come drifting home with broken masts and sails;
I will believe the Hand which never fails,
From seeming evil worketh good for me.
And though I weep because those sails are tattered,
Still will I cry, while my best hopes lie shattered:
‘I trust in Thee.’ (Richard Fuller)
But why trust in the Lord, in spite of apparent adverse circumstances different from what we hope for?
We will discuss this when we come back next time.
PRAYER:
Lord I pray, help me to trust You, no matter what; in Jesus name.