A Life of Trust
Proverbs 3:5-6
Attn grabber (Have volunteer fall backward while you catch them.)
The basis of any lasting relationship is trust.
a. This true in relationships between parents and children, marriage partners and friends.
b. It is also certainly true in regard to our relationship with God, i.e. we cannot have a relationship with a God we do not/cannot trust.
Prov. 3:5-6
c. Many things we can learn here about living a life of trust.
d. 5 truths (Command, Degree, Prohibition, Requirement, and the Reward)
The command – "Trust in the Lord."
A. Commands an action and tells us the object of that action.
B. What does it mean to trust?
1. Trust is a firm belief in the honesty and the reliability of some person or thing.
2. At the very root of the word used in this passage, is the idea of throwing oneself down on the ground, lying extended, and casting all hope for the present and future upon another.
C. "Who do you and I trust?" is a good question for each of us.
1. Our coins say that wee trust in God, but actions don’t show it.
2. We put our trust in too many other things that can let us down i.e. people and things.
3. On April 10th, 1912, the largest, strongest and most luxurious ocean liner in the world sailed from Southampton on its maiden voyage from England to New York.
a. The Titanic was hailed as unsinkable and people believed it.
b. Late on the night of April 14, passengers felt only a slight shudder as the mighty Titanic struck an iceberg.
c. A 300-foot gash had been torn in the side of that ship, however, and the unthinkable began to happen.
d. Because there was so much trust in that ship, an insufficient number of lifeboats were aboard.
e. Some 1500 people died that night because they trusted too much in too little!
4. We too are guilty of trusting too much in too little and the deep waters of this life overwhelm our hopes and dreams and we are sunk!
5. The command is to put our trust in God.
D. Lasting trust is based on knowledge. We must know someone before we can trust them. Therefore we must know God… We know Him by studying His word.
1. Psa. 89: 34-35
2. There we will read the testimony of others.
a. Ask Abraham if God is dependable (Gen. 21:1f)
b. Ask the writer of Hebrews if God is faithful (Heb. 10:23).
c. Ask Paul if God can be trusted (II Tim. 1:12).
3. After studying God’s word, our own experiences will teach us that He is trustworthy.
a. Though there have been times in my own life when I did not understand why things were happening as they were, I have never found God to be less than completely trustworthy.
b. These words by Howard Goodman reflect the personal experiences that produces trust:
"I’ve dreamed many a dream that never came true,
And I’ve seen them vanish at dawn.
But enough of my dreams have come true to keep me dreaming on."
"I’ve trusted many a friend that’s fail me,
And left me to weep alone.
But enough of my friends have been so true blue to keep me trusting on."
I’ve drained the cup of disappointment and pain,
And gone many a day without a song.
But I’ve sipped enough nectar from the roses of life to make me want to live on."
The degree – "with all your heart."
E. Trust certainly comes in degrees, i.e. there are some who we trust much and some we trust little and there are degrees in between.
F. When things are going well, it is relatively easy to trust God; but what about those times when the roof caves in and the bottom falls out?
G. Job 13:15 (Have you noticed that the book of Job does not even try to answer the question why bad things happen, but that it simply encourages us to trust God?)
H. We must strive to develop a trust in God that will sustain us in all situations. Never an on again, off again kind of trust.
The prohibition – "and lean not on your own understanding."
I. Literally – a crutch for support.
1. Here is the problem: sometimes our understanding makes more sense to us than does God’s and it is easier to lean upon it than God’s revelation.
2. Though we would rather not admit it, trusting our own understanding above god’s is a kind of practical atheism.
J. This prohibition means self-surrender, and that is always difficult, for we like to be the captain of own ship.
The requirement – "in all your ways acknowledge Him."
K. To "acknowledge Him" means to "recognize" His presence and will in our lives.
1. Instead of leaning upon our own self-made crutch, we put our full weight down on Him.
2. Psa. 23:4
L. The "all" in this part of the passage makes it a life of trust and not an isolated act of trust.
M. The Oliver Cromwell story.
The reward – "and He will direct your paths."
N. How does He do this?
1. Through His word (Psa. 119:105).
2. Through Jesus’ example (I Pet. 2:21).
3. Through His providence.
a. Though we can never completely understand or explain the providential care of God, we believe that He is at work in our lives.
b. Rom. 8:28
O. The child of God takes his/her cares to the Lord and leaves them there, secure in the confidence that He hears and will answer as is best.
Review
Our submission to the will of God will be in direct proportion to our trust in Him, and our trust in Him will be in direct proportion to our knowledge of Him.
Therefore, we should seek to know God, so that we may trust and obey Him.
Jim Pharr
Lenoir, NC