Text: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
Trust in the Lord for what?
What does it mean to trust in the Lord?
When should we trust in the Lord?
Why should we trust in the Lord?
How do we trust in the Lord?
What is trust or what does it mean to trust?
If we trust someone, we have complete confidence in them. We truly believe they are honest; their word is good; they can and will do what they say; they are of reputable character, and they are truthful.
Do you know anyone like this? Do the people with whom you associate fit these criteria? Can you and I say we are trustworthy and all these standards apply to us?
We would like to believe that all people are trustworthy, but truth-of-the-matter is, they are not. We may think we are the only one who can be fully trusted, but we are only fooling ourselves.
How many times has someone told you something and then told you not to tell someone else? Then the moment comes when you just can’t keep the information to yourself and you tell someone and follow with the same words, “Don’t tell anyone else?”
When we spread information that is confidential, we have forfeited our trust. When we spread stories or rumors that may hurt someone else, we are gossiping and our reputable character is destroyed.
We are human beings and we have a sinful nature. This was part of our nature before we were ever born. Everyone falls into this category. No person is immune. Guess what? We are all in the same boat.
The only One who is completely trustworthy all the time is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. All three are one in the same. God the Father is our Creator; God the Son came to this earth to pay the penalty for our sins and God the Holy Spirit resides within our heart and is always ready to lead us down the straight and narrow road of this earthly life.
Our Scripture reading indicates that Jesus had many followers. We are told that “great multitudes followed Him” (John 6:2). Were these people following Him because they had great trust in what He was doing or were they following Him because they saw many signs of His performances?
The people saw some of the many healing that took place through Jesus. They saw or heard of the healing of the noblemen’s son; the healing of the man at the Pool of Bethesda; the water that was turned into wine at the wedding at Cana, and other signs indicating authority, power and deity. Did they really trust Jesus or were they merely curiosity seekers?
I believe some were curious about Jesus, but I also believe that some were convinced He was more than just a prophet. There are people today who believe Jesus was a person, but that He was not God. They do not believe in the Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit as being one in the same.
Some believe they are in total control of their life. This is true to a certain point and that point being they have the privilege of making choices. Many times they make choices that will benefit their own desires. Sometimes these choices are made at the expense of other people.
At times a married couple will have issues because one or the other is very demanding or selfish and does not take into consideration the feelings of the other person. At the beginning of the marriage trust is present, but as time moves on, issues such as: coming home late; spending time away from the family; receiving questionable phone calls, mail, email or text messages causes an alarm to sound and the flag of suspicion to surfaces. The issue of trust enters the picture.
It appears that Jesus’ disciples trusted Him and obeyed what He said. He had called them into service and they accepted the call. Each one left their worldly means of livelihood to follow Him. He called them to be “fisher of men” and then taught them what it meant and how it was to be done. He sent them out to preach the message of repentance. They placed their trust in Him.
Then one day “Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples” (John 6:3). He knew rest and relaxation was needed for Him and for the disciples. As He talked to the disciples, Jesus looked out upon the great multitude of people who came to listen to what He had to say and to see the signs He might bring forth. Then he asked Philip this question: “Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?” (v. 5).
Why did Jesus pose this question to Philip? Philip was the one most likely to know where to get food for the people because he was from the closest town of Bethsaida which was approximately nine miles away.
If you stop to think for a moment, nine miles is a long way when your means of transportation are your two feet. Jesus knew this and it was not His intention to send Philip or any of the other disciples that distance to acquire enough food to feed five thousand people.
“But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do” (v. 6). Jesus wanted to strengthen Philip’s faith. I can see the look on Philip’s face when Jesus asked him this question. Philip took the hook, line and sinker with these words: “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little” (v. 7).
Philip was thinking worldly. He was thinking the way we think when we run up against something that seems impossible. You and I face mountains every day that seem impossible to cross over, dig through or go around. Think back a few years when you were young and remember the mountains you thought impossible to conquer.
Maybe you wanted a profession or vocation that required additional education or training and you either didn’t have the money or the means to travel to a different location. Maybe you wanted to marry, but all you could see was the mountain of responsibility. Perhaps the economy was bad, jobs scarce and money nonexistent and you faced the river of troubled waters and you could not see yourself on the other side.
Looking back, you made it through the Great Depression, World War II, Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War. At the present time, we are in the valley of low economy. Jobless rate in the state is 10.8%. May people are jobless and have lost their houses. It is very difficult to get a job.
People are facing mountains of frustration and seas of despair. Most are managing and are not giving up hope. Most know times will get better because God knows our situation and will not let us down. God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).
People should not fear and worry because God is constantly with them. He will supply our needs. This is a promise and He does not break His promise.
This is a time for us to trust in the Lord. The Psalmist said, “Trust in the LORD, and do good….and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Psalms 37:3, 4).
Philip was facing a mountain and did not know how he was going to get by. It would be impossible for him to walk nine miles and bring back food for a multitude of people. He was being tested by Jesus.
When we face a mountain such as this, we too are being tested. Jesus knew what He was going to do, but posed this question to strengthen Philips faith.
As the disciples listened to Jesus and Philip, Andrew spoke up and said, “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish….” (John 6:9). If Andrew had stopped after the word fish, his faith would have demonstrated total trust in the Master.
The times we face a mountain to conquer or a river to cross, we say God will help us. God knows our crisis or our predicament and He will not let us down. It sounds as though we really are sincere.
This is wonderful, however, we are like Andrew and we forget to stop at that point. We continue by adding the little word “if” or “but”. This demonstrates to our Heavenly Father that our faith needs to be strengthened just as the disciples faith needed to be strengthened.
Jesus was about to make this mountain of despair a mole hill of victory. He said, “Make the people sit down” (v. 10). Jesus was ready to strengthen the faith of the disciples as well as the people.
Basically, the disciples offered Jesus nothing. But the little lad present offered all he had, which were 5 barley loaves and two fish. The boy placed his trust in Jesus and gave Jesus all he had.
God does wonders through people like us. We may be like the disciples and offer nothing, therefore, He has nothing to use or we may be like the little lad and offer what little we have. God can do a lot with a little.
What little time we have, God can make good use of it. What little talent we think we have can be used by God to further His kingdom. The little money we have can be multiplied by God to care for His children who are in need.
We must trust God and give Him our all. He created us and He knows us. He knows our thoughts and He knows our actions. We cannot hide anything from Him. He will not force us to give Him anything. We must be willing to give of our own free will. He wants us to trust Him and He will strengthen our faith as He did the disciples.
Poem: “Trust Him”
Trust Him when dark doubts assail thee,
Trust Him when thy strength is small;
Trust Him when to trust Him simply
Seems the hardest thing of all.
Trust Him; He is ever faithful,
Trust Him, for His will is best;
Trust Him, for the heart of Jesus
Is the only place of rest.
Trust Him, then, through cloud and sunshine;
All thy cares upon Him cast –
Till the storms of life are over
And the trusting days are past.
---------------------Gospel Herald
After Jesus received the loaves and the fish, He looked up to Heaven and gave thanks. At that very moment something miraculous happened. The five loaves and the two fish were multiplied right before the very eyes of all those present.
Jesus showed that if we would only trust Him by faith, a little could become much. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). I would venture to say that not a single person in the crowd knew what was about to happen.
The people received as much food as they wanted. They could eat until they were stuffed, uncomfortable or filled. After the people ate as much as they wanted, Jesus said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost” (v. 12).
The five loaves the little lad gave Jesus fed 5000 plus people resulted in leftovers. In fact, we are told twelve baskets of fragments from the loaves were left uneaten. This is telling me that if we place our faith in Jesus and trust Him that He will always provide for us in abundance.
Story: “God Will Provide”
Back in the depression days of the early ‘30s, my husband pastored a small country church. We than had three little children. Many times our weekly income was less than $10.00. One day, we found ourselves out of bread and with only some rancid bacon grease for shortening. I used it, however, in making hot biscuits and we managed to eat some of them for lunch.
Later, as we put the remaining biscuits on the supper table, our five-year-old daughter prayed very earnestly, “Dear Jesus, help us to eat these biscuits or else send us some better ones. Amen!”
Later that evening, the doorbell rang. There, at the door, stood a member of our church who had a bakery route. Before we could tell him our story he began unloading his large bakery basket with all kinds of tempting sweet rolls, buns, biscuits, besides dark and white bread.
“You know,” he said rather apologetically, “I was tired tonight and seven miles out here in the pouring rain seemed so far. I was tempted to wait until tomorrow evening and bring these bakery things on my way to prayer meeting as I usually do.”
Then he added, “But I was strongly constrained to come tonight! Hope you can use these things!”
------------------Anne s. Alexander, in Power
That little child’s faith was strong and her trust in Jesus was deep. In her mind, Jesus was going to take care of their need. In her mind, there was no doubt. It would be so wonderful if adults could have the faith and trust of a child. Doubt is a tool of the devil. “If we doubt, we don’t trust; if we trust, we don’t doubt!”
Scripture tells us that after the men saw what Jesus had done, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world” (v. 14). The men said this because Moses had talked about this during his time. Moses said to the people, “The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me…..” (Deuteronomy 18:15).
Remember that Moses fed the people manna when they were in the desert. Now Jesus fed the people bread. At this point, the people wanted to make Jesus their earthly king, but this was not a part of God’s plan.
Jesus knew what was on their mind, so “He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone” (v. 15). Jesus knew the people trusted Him, but they trusted Him in a worldly way. They saw with their own eyes what He had done. The food was visible. They wanted Jesus as a visible earthly king. He wanted to strengthen their faith.
As night began to close in, the disciples decided to go down to the shore and get into their boat. I don’t believe they forgot that Jesus was still in the mountain, but I think they respected His alone time.
Nevertheless, the disciples moved their boat out into the waters. After a period of time, a great wind began to blow and the water became very rough. Fear crept into their mind. They were three or four miles from the shore at the time.
All of a sudden, “They saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid” (v. 19). Did the disciples lose faith and trust in Jesus. After all, they saw miraculous things He had done. Is it inconceivable or unthinkable that He could walk upon the water? Jesus said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid” (v. 20).
We are just like the disciples in that when we face a spiritual storm in life, we become frightened. We feel like we are in a boat being tossed back and forth, to and fro, and we can’t do anything about it. We react just like the disciples in that we fear what will happen.
This is why we need to trust our life to Jesus because He is the only one who can rescue us. He is the only one who is always near. He is the one who hears when we call out in despair. Jesus is the only one who can bring peace into our life. He is the one who will “…never leave us nor forsake us” (Hebrews 13:5). As soon as we receive Jesus, we are forever in good hands.
I want to close with these words:
Trust in yourself, and you are doomed to disappointment;
Trust in your friends, and they will die and leave you;
Trust in money, and you may have it taken from you;
Trust in reputation, and some slanderous tongue may blast it;
But – Trust in God, and you are never to be confused in time or eternity.
-----------------------Power
Amen.
