Without Reservation
Selected Passages
January 12, 2003
Introduction
A television program preceding the 1988 Winter Olympics featured blind skiers being trained for slalom skiing, impossible as that sounds. Paired with sighted skiers, the blind skiers were taught on the flats how to make right and left turns. When that was mastered, they were taken to the slalom slope, where their sighted partners skied beside them shouting, "Left!" and "Right!" As they obeyed the commands, they were able to negotiate the course and cross the finish line, depending solely on the sighted skiers’ word. It was either complete trust or catastrophe.
What a vivid picture of the Christian life! In this world, we are in reality blind about what course to take. We must rely solely on the Word of the only One who is truly sighted--God Himself. His Word gives us the direction we need to finish the course. Robert W. Sutton.
Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust Psalm 40:4
It has been said that: Faith is not belief without proof but trust without reservation.
Key Question: Do you really trust God without reservation?
Body
I. You can trust God because He cares for you (1 Peter 5:7)
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
A. Anxiety is a fact of life
1. The meaning of anxiety
a.) Greek understanding: To have a divided mind or to have anxious interest
1.) The concept of a divided mind is to lose focus or to attempt to focus on too many things
2.) Peter is telling these believers to keep their focus on Christ
b.) Webster
Painful or apprehensive uneasiness of mind usually over an anticipated or impending situation
A strong fearful concern
2. The impact of anxiety
a.) Statistics on anxiety
The average person’s anxiety is about…
40% on things that will never happen
30% on things that have happened in the past and cannot be changed
12% on criticism of others that are usually untrue
8% on real problems that will have to be faced
b.) Quotes on anxiety and worry
The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety - George Mueller
Worry pulls tomorrow’s clouds over today’s sunshine – Charles R. Swindoll
Worry is wasting today’s time to clutter up tomorrow’s opportunities with yesterday’s troubles
Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow – Swedish Proverb
c.) The results of anxiety
Anxiety does nothing of benefit for our lives and in fact it is detrimental to our lives. Anxiety steals our joy. Anxiety steals our contentment. Anxiety steals our confidence. Anxiety steals our ability to trust God
Do you really trust God without reservation?
B. The cure for anxiety
1. Give all of your anxiety to God
a.) Peter says to cast all of our anxiety on God. Literally this means that we are to throw every care and every concern that we have to God
b.) God is always ready
Why should we throw our anxiety to God?
2. God cares about you
a.) God cared enough about you to send Jesus to earth, sacrifice Jesus on the cross for your sins and then raise Him to new life from the tomb to defeat death. If He cares this much, how can we think that out daily lives are without His care as well?
b.) God is worthy of our trust; from the big areas of our lives down to the smallest aspects of our daily routine.
c.) God is able to take care of every single aspect of life and we still trust ourselves more than we trust Him.
Do you really trust God without reservation?
II. You can trust God because He supports you (Psalm 46:1-3)
1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
A. God is worthy of your trust
1. God is your refuge and strength
a.) Refuge
1.) A refuge was a place of great power and provision that granted both rest and security.
2.) God allows you to have both rest and security in His presence because he is all powerful, all knowing and ever present
b.) Strength
1.) To have strength means to have enough support and enough supply
2.) God is your source of strength because He offers continued support in every circumstance and supplies for your every need
2. God is always with you
a.) Ever present: Literally the psalmist is saying that God never leaves you and is always ready to give you His help. This means that we are never out of His refuge and strength
b.) Trouble: In times when we have difficulty, we must remember that we are still in the shelter and care of God and ask for His divine assistance
Do you really trust God without reservation?
B. You can have a fearless trust in God
1. There is no reason to fear
a.) Everything has been created by God, everything is under His control and everything is within His ability to handle. So why do we get so worked up and fearful?
b.) There is no situation that life can throw at us that we cannot face with the strength and support of God behind us. All we have to do is ask for it
2. Fear and trust do not mix
a.) If you fear, you cannot trust and if you trust, you cannot fear. Fear is essentially having your focus on your circumstances instead of your creator.
b.) When we go to God in fear, we often make the mistake of letting our fears drive our prayers. Fearful prayers too often focus on our will or our desires and we end up telling God how to help us. God doesn’t work this way. He doesn’t need your help to solve your problems but He does need for you to trust Him.
Do you really trust God without reservation?
III. You can trust God because He guides you
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6
A. Confess your reliance
1. Life is sometimes beyond us
Disasters strike and tragedies happen in our lives. Life can indeed be hard. Life can be uncertain. Life is beyond our control. In times like this, life is beyond our understanding. We are left with raw emotions and tough questions. Answers are beyond us as we grapple with the question of why.
2. Life is never beyond God
Nothing and I mean nothing that we go through in life is beyond God. The truth is that we can and must rely on God in every situation in life. Times that just don’t make any sense in human terms; we need toi trust in God. The more senseless life becomes the greater our need to trust in God.
Do you really trust God without reservation?
B. Commit your resources
1. God wants your all
The writer of Proverbs states it simply and clearly that God wants your full and complete trust. Trust God with all of your heart. We must hold nothing back and surrender to Him all that we are, all that we have, all that we may become because without the presence and guidance of God we will go nowhere.
2. This is trust in all situations
God wants you to trust even when you don’t understand. When life just doesn’t make sense. God wants us to follow Him when the future seems uncertain. It is only when we completely trust God that He to give us the power of His direction and the power of His presence.
Do you really trust God without reservation
