Learning To Trust God Series

INTRODUCTION:

Ready to Fall—Ready to Catch: Have some of the kids fall backwards being caught by their parents. Trust develops naturally in an environment of love.

This morning we are “Learning to Trust God;” this is the 4th message in the series from Proverbs: Wisdom for Right Living. We’ll be looking at the 6th key to having wisdom for our daily lives, but before we do let’s quickly review the first five.

Key #1: Start with God; Fear the Lord. (Proverbs 1:7)

Here is the foundation to wisdom: you must begin with your personal relationship with God with the fear of the Lord. Remember, the fear of the Lord is active; our lives will be changed from the inside out.

Key #2: Learn wisdom from those who fear the Lord. (Proverbs 1:8-19)

Don’t go it alone. Surround yourself with those who fear the Lord.

Key #3: Answer wisdom’s call; wisdom is found in our daily choices. (Proverbs 1:20-21)

Jesus gives us wisdom in our daily routine; He reveals the mind of God for our lives. Wisdom is not earned it is practiced daily.

Key #4: Remember the Law of the Harvest; consequences follow your actions. (Proverbs 1:22-33)

Blessings for those who fear the Lord:

1. You will receive God’s Spirit.

2. You will be kept safe and receive God’s peace.

Key #5: Let authentic love lead you everyday; make love your guide and your motive. (Proverbs 3:3-4)

Love should be used only in the context of relationships; we should express our love for God and other people—not things.

Don’t limit who you love. Love should be given to anyone with the capacity to return love—that’s everyone.

• Proverbs 3:5-8 [5] Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; [6] in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. [7] Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. [8] This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. (NIV)

Key #6: Depend fully upon God alone; in everything rely upon God with absolute confidence and hope. (Proverbs 3:5-8)

Remember what I said at the beginning with our kids? Trust develops naturally in an environment of love. Let me put it another way: TRUST IS A LEARNED BEHAVIOR.

Susie is one of the most trustworthy people I know; I trust her with my life. Imagine she is in a long line at the bank. The individual behind her is holding $1,000 cash with a completed deposit ticket. This person is obviously anxious and in a hurry, so Susie politely offers to help; “if you are just depositing your money I could take care of it for you.” What do you think the odds are for a complete stranger to hand over $1,000 and then go on with their day without giving a second thought to their money? Yet is Susie any less trustworthy if the individual refuses to give her his/her money to deposit? No, the person just has not learned to trust Susie. (You say, “What are the odds of something like that happening?” I handed my deposit to a woman at the bank while I was waiting in line on Friday for her to take care of for me.)

Trust doesn’t come naturally to any of us; trust has to be learned. In the same way we learn to trust our parents or other people in our lives we must also learn to trust God.

The nation of Israel had to learn to trust God. These are the people who called out to God for deliverance from the land of Egypt; “Oh God save us!” God responded to the cry of the people and sent them a deliverer named Moses (maybe you’ve heard of him?). After 10 plagues upon the Egyptians the nation of Israel is finally given their freedom. Just a few days after leaving Egypt these people find themselves trapped. With their backs up against the Red Sea they see Pharaoh and an army of chariots coming to take them back into captivity. Does anyone remember what happened next? Yes, God opened a way for the people through the Sea and then swept Pharaoh’s army of chariots under the waves as the Sea came crashing down upon them.

• Exodus 14:31 And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant. (NIV)

The people learned to trust God. After everything they had been through they finally came to the point where they had confidence in God. Unfortunately this same group of people later forgot the lesson they had learned. When they came to the promised land they did not trust God to give them the land. Instead they believed the “giants in the land would squash them like bugs.”