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Trust By
Patricia Dailey, | |
Blessed is
the man that trusteth in the Lord, For he shall
be as a tree planted by the waters, and that
spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall
not see when heat cometh, and shall
not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall
cease from yielding fruit. Jeremiah 17:7, 8 |
| BLESSED IS THE MAN THAT TRUSTETH IN THE LORD, AND WHOSE HOPE THE LORD IS. To “trust” in the Lord is to: ·
Lean
on Him ·
Rely
on Him ·
Be confident
in Him ·
Have
faith in Him It’s wonderful to be able to lean on the Lord, rely on the Lord,
have confidence in the Lord, and have faith in the Lord. When we do, we will be
like a tree planted by the waters – finding plenty of water for nourishment that
our leaf may be green, and that we be able to bear fruit. When the heat comes,
it won’t affect us. Proverbs 16:20 He that handleth a matter wisely shall find
good: and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he. I’m going to keep repeating this so that by the time you finish reading
the message you will get the message, and begin to trust in the Lord: ·
Leaning
on Him ·
Relying
on Him ·
Having
confidence in Him ·
Having
faith in Him. In other words, you will have your belief and faith firmly fixed
in the Lord. You will be happy because you are trusting in the Lord: leaning on
Him, relying on Him, having confidence in Him, and having a firm faith in Him. Many of God’s people lack this trust. They can’t seem to lean on
the Lord, rely on the Lord, have confidence in the Lord, or have faith in the
Lord. Instead, they put their confidence
in man, leaning on the arm of flesh. The Bible would tell us that such a man is cursed: Jeremiah 17:5 Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that
trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the
Lord. Now remember, man is frail. Man often forgets this, forgets that
he can’t do everything, forgets that only God is able to do everything. Man cannot create stars or planets . . . or people. Oh, man can create
things such as paintings, inventions, crafts: but he cannot create a universe
or another person. God is the creator of the universe, and God created man. There is
nothing that God cannot do. Nothing is too difficult for Him to do. God has no
limitations, though man often limits Him. And another thing about God is that
He cannot fail. Man will fail you, but God will never fail. When we put our confidence in man we often find that he will fail
us, that he is not faithful, that he cannot always be trusted. Proverbs 25:19 Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of
trouble is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint. You may place your confidence and trust in man to do something for
you – and then they never show up! And, if you’re not careful, you can get hard
feelings against that person because they let you down. One thing about it, God never, never lets us down. He is a faithful
God. What He said He will do He will do. And when we trust in Him, lean on Him,
rely on Him, and have confidence in Him – we will find that He won’t fail us. Jeremiah 17:5 Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that
trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the
Lord. Our hearts depart from the Lord when we fail to trust Him, turning
to lean on the arm of flesh. Instead of leaning on God, instead of relying on God, instead of
having confidence in God, we depart from Him to lean on the arm of flesh, to rely
on the arm of flesh, to have confidence in the arm of flesh. I told you by the time you finish reading this message you’ll never
forget what it means to trust in the Lord! Psalm 62:8 Trust in Him at all times; ye people, pour
out your heart before Him: God is a refuge for us. Selah TRUST IN HIM AT ALL TIMES Lean on the Lord, rely on the Lord, have confidence in the Lord,
and have faith in the Lord at all times. Yes, trust in the Lord at ALL times – even when everything seems
to be going wrong, when the trials seem to get so heavy that you think you can’t
take any more. When you trust in the Lord, lean on the Lord, rely on the Lord, and
have confidence in the Lord – He will not fail. Man may fail you, but God will
never fail you. If anything has happened in your experience where you feel that God
has failed you, know that it is you who have failed. Perhaps you thought things
should have worked out in a way that was contrary to the way God had already planned
for them to go. Listen, trust in the Lord at all times! That’s a big order – but
if you couldn’t do it He wouldn’t have told you to do it. The Scriptures are filled
with encouragement to trust in Him. I have had some pretty heavy, difficult trials – but I have never
gone through all that Job went through. He surely had some heavy trials. Job lost
his livestock and all his children in one day: and, as if that weren’t enough,
he lost his health – afflicted with boils from the crown of his head to the soles
of his feet. Job 13:15 Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him:
but I will maintain mine own ways before Him. This thing didn’t just lift. Job had to endure for quite a time,
and he couldn’t understand what was happening! Job 1:1 There was a man in the Yes, Job really loved God: So, when all of this came upon him, he
couldn’t understand why he was afflicted like this. He didn’t know that God had
given Satan permission to touch him: to touch his possessions . . . and his family
. . . and his body. The Lord allowed this. He permitted this to happen to Job. And, sometimes,
the Lord permits Satan to touch one of us. We don’t always understand why we are going through such a hard trial.
We might ask God why. We might ask Him many questions about the trial we are enduring.
It doesn’t hurt to ask Him why. It doesn’t hurt to ask if it’s because we have sinned – because if
that’s the case, we want to know so we can make it right. But if it’s just that God has allowed us to go through a hard time,
we have to trust Him. We have to lean on Him, rely on Him, have confidence in
Him, and have a firm faith in Him. Know that, no matter what happens, God is going to turn it around
and use it for good in our life – Romans 8:28. JOB’S COMFORTERS When we read the book of Job we see where he went through a terrible
time in his life. And, as though all he went through wasn’t bad enough, he had
his “comforters,” who came against him with many accusations. When you’re going through a hard trial, you’ll always find those
who are Job’s Comforters: those who say you must have done something wrong
for this to happen to you! You wouldn’t be so sick if you hadn’t sinned! But . . . they forget that we are all born unto troubles – Job
5:7. And sometimes those troubles come in bunches.
Sometimes it never rains but that it pours. But, in spite of it all, Job said, Though He slay me, yet will
I trust in Him. Even if God took his life, Job was still going to trust Him.
He wasn’t about to let down on leaning upon God, relying upon God, having confidence
in God, and having faith in God. THOUGH GOD SLAY ME, YET . . . Can we come to this place in our experience when facing heavy trials?
When it seems like we can’t take much more, can we say, Though God slay me,
yet will I trust in Him? You don’t hear too many of God’s people talking like that. Why? Because
they’re not really leaning upon God: they’re not relying upon God, not having
confidence or faith God. Instead of trusting in God, they’re trusting in the arm
of flesh – only to find out: the arm of flesh will fail. Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and
lean not unto thine own understanding. We are to trust in the Lord with all of our heart. If we did
this we wouldn’t be leaning on the arm of flesh – while, at the same time, trying
to trust in the Lord. We would find the Lord leading us through our trials. But, too often, God’s people are leaning to their own understanding,
relying on their own insight. We need to look to the Lord in the time of troubles: whether it be
sickness, sorrow, a time of need, family problems, or some other trouble that
we find ourselves facing. Too often, though, when troubles come our way we lean on the arm
of flesh, we lean to our own understanding. We fail to remember that God is faithful
to His Word. What He has promised He will do – for those who place their trust
in Him. He will see us through – when we trust in Him with all of our heart,
when we lean on Him, rely on Him, and have our confidence and faith in Him; not
leaning to our own understanding or insight. Proverbs 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall
direct thy paths. One thing we want to do is to know God, and to know Him in
a way where we have that faith to lean on Him, to rely on Him, to have confidence
in Him. Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the Word of God. We need to study the Scriptures, searching God’s Word, asking God
to enlighten our understanding to see how He really blesses those who will lean
on Him, rely on Him, and have confidence and faith in Him. When you acknowledge Him in all your ways, He promises to direct
your path. In other words, put it into His charge. Don’t worry about it. He will
take care of you, and He will direct your paths. Acknowledge Him: know Him, recognize Him. This is what you have to
do: yet, many don’t take the time to know God as they really should know God.
They don’t take time to study the Scriptures and find out who God really is; don’t
take time to find His attributes. TRUST
. . . AND DO GOOD Psalm 37:3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt
thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Trust in the Lord! I’m going to tell you again: lean on the Lord,
rely on the Lord, have confidence and faith in the Lord! Now, this Scripture goes on to say that we are not to just trust
in the Lord, but also to do good. You can't be doing evil and think that the Lord
is going to help you just because you say you’re trusting in Him. If you place your trust in the Lord and you love the Lord
with all your heart, then you are living for Him, and you are doing good. If you
do this, you will dwell in the land, and verily, thou shalt be fed. No matter what land you may live in, no matter how hard times may
be: when you trust in the Lord, and do good, leaning on Him, placing your trust
in Him, relying on Him, and placing your confidence and faith in Him, you will
be fed. I’ve put my faith and trust in the Lord all these years, and I haven’t
gone hungry. Oh, there are times when I have fasted and felt hungry as the result
– but that’s not because God hasn’t provided for me; that’s because I have been
fasting and praying. The promise is that we shall be fed when we trust in the Lord, when
we lean on the Lord, rely on the Lord, have confidence in the Lord, and have faith
in the Lord – and do good – then we shall dwell in the land, and we shall be fed. TRUST
. . . AND GIVE IT ALL TO GOD Psalm 37:5 Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also
in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. Instead of taking control of your way, commit it unto the Lord –
put it in His charge, trust in Him. When you do this you will find that your ways
are pleasing to Him. Commit your way unto the Lord;
trust also in Him… There’s that word again. There are so many Scriptures that tell us to trust in the Lord. He
tells us to trust in Him, to lean on Him, to rely on Him, to have confidence in
Him and to have faith in Him – not in the arm of flesh: but in the Lord. Trust also in Him; and He shall
bring it to pass. It’s wonderful
the blessings that come forth when we place our trust in the Lord – because we
lean on Him, rely on Him, have confidence and faith in Him. GOD
– OUR SHIELD! Psalm 115:11 Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord:
He is their help and their shield. Know in the battles you face, in the problems you face: the Lord is your help and your shield! Yes, He is our shield. He protects us. That’s what a shield is for,
to protect. Today we find that many policemen are given a bullet-proof vest to
protect them from bullets. It’s a shield to keep them from getting killed when
someone shoots at them. GOD
– OUR HELPER! God is our helper and our protection when we place our trust in Him.
If it’s our time to go, no matter what, we will take that last breath. We are told in Hebrews
9:27 that it is appointed unto man once to die.
When He says it’s time to go home, nobody can hold us back. But, in the mean time, He will protect us. He is our help and our
shield. Hebrews 13:6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my
helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. Believe this. Trust in this promise: lean on it, rely on it, place
your confidence and faith in it. The Lord is your help and your shield! Isaiah 41:10 Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not
dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea,
I will uphold thee with the right hand of My righteousness. Here, again, the Lord promises to help us. First of all, if we are
to lean on this promise, if we are going to rely on it, if we are going to place
our confidence in it – we must place our faith and trust in what He has said here.
When we do this, we will find that the Lord is there to help us. Yes, we need to stand on the promises which the Lord has given us. Psalm 121:2 My help cometh from the Lord, which made
heaven and earth. Where is my help coming from? Not from the arm of flesh! One who
is leaning on the Lord, trusting in Him, relying on Him, placing their confidence
and faith in Him – their help is coming from the Lord which made heaven and earth.
Their help isn’t coming from the arm of flesh, it’s coming from God. Psalm 25:1,2 Unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust
in Thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. O my God, I trust in You! Can you really say that today from the depths
of your heart, and say it in truth? I lean on You! I rely on You! I place my confidence
in You! I have my faith firm in You! If this is true of you, nobody, not even
the devil, can rob you. The devil isn’t going to sink your ship. You’re not going
to go shipwreck if you are leaning on the Lord, relying on the Lord, placing your
confidence and faith in the Lord. When one’s faith is firm they are not shaking.
They are not believing one minute, and the next minute doubting. Their faith is
firmly fixed in the Lord. There will be those who come against us just because we are leaning
on God, because we are relying on God, because we are having confidence in God
and placing our faith firmly in Him. They think we have gone off the deep when
we’re not trusting the arm of flesh, but are choosing to trust the living God. Acts 20:24 But none of these things move me, neither
count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and
the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of
the grace of God. God did not fail the Apostle Paul. God took care of him. Oh, yes,
Paul suffered reproach. He suffered many things – but, through it all, God used
it to save souls. Didn’t the jailer and his household get saved in Acts 16? Paul and
Silas had been beaten and thrown into prison, but God used it to reach this jailer
and his household. Paul was firm in his faith. He was firm, standing and believing.
Yes, he leaned on the Lord, relied on the Lord, had confidence in the Lord, and
had a firm faith in the Lord. II Timothy 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things:
nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded
that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day.
That’s quite a confident statement for Paul to make. Is this true of you, too? It can be! Paul was just as human as you
are. You want to be in the place where you can say this, and really mean it. Paul suffered many things: but he wasn’t ashamed of Jesus. Oh, if
we only had a fraction of what Paul had. YOU,
TOO, CAN HAVE GREAT TRUST IN GOD! Actually, we can have all that Paul had. We have the same God; and
we can be just as determined as he was to lean on the Lord, rely on the Lord,
have confidence in the Lord, and have a firm faith in the Lord. Isaiah 26:3,4 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose
mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. Trust ye in
the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. Why are we going to have perfect peace? Because our mind is stayed on the Lord, trusting in Him – we are
leaning on Him, relying on Him, having confidence in Him, and our faith is firmly
fixed in Him. When we are trusting in the Lord, we’ll find everlasting strength.
We’ll just keep getting strength and more strength and even more strength. Yes,
we will have the spiritual strength we need to continue on. It will always be
there for us – if we are trusting in the Lord. Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom
shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? His strength is there for us. We can be strong in Him and in the
power of His might. He will strengthen us spiritually, and also strengthen us
in the times when we need physical strength. This is a man who is happy because he trusts in the Lord, and we
read in Blessed is the man that trusteth
in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by
the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when
heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year
of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. When a tree is planted by the waters it finds plenty of water for
nourishment, finds the very thing it needs for the leaves to be green and able
to yield fruit. And when the heat comes this tree won’t be affected. We’re like that tree when we trust in the Lord, lean on Him, rely
on Him, have confidence in Him, and have a firm faith in Him: we won’t see when
heat comes, and we won’t cease from yielding fruit unto the Lord. |