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TRUST IN THE LORD

Boyce Mouton · 4 pages · 1,811 words

TRUST IN THE LORD “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God” (Ps. 20:7).

DON’T TRUST IN MILITARY MIGHT

The Midianites had 135,000 soldiers (Jud. 8:10).
Gideon had only 32,000 soldiers (Jud. 7:3).
“The Lord said to Gideon, ‘You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into your hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her’” (Jud. 7:2)
Even though Gideon was outnumbered over 4 to 1, if 32,000 troops defeated the Midianites they still might boast about their own strength and not give God the glory.
God therefore said to send home anyone who trembled with fear. So 22,000 left and 10,000 remained.
“But the Lord said to Gideon, ‘There are still too many men’” (Jud. 7:4).
Gideon took these 10,000 men down to the water for another sifting process. Almost everyone carelessly knelt down to drink with their faces to the water. Three hundred, however, were vigilant. They scooped up water with their hands so they could scan the horizon and keep a watchful eye for the enemy (Jud. 7:5,6).
“The Lord said to Gideon, ‘with the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands’” (Jud. 7:7).
GOD DID WHAT HE PROMISED HE WOULD DO! WITH ONLY 300 MEN GIDEON DEFEATED 135,000 ENEMY TROOPS!
Some put their trust in chariots, and some in horses, but God was teaching Gideon to put his trust in the Lord (Ps. 20:7).

DON’T TRUST IN YOUR SELF

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths” (Prov. 3:5,6).

Moses was the son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Heb. 11:24). He was a very powerful man.
Moses was also educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action (Acts 7:22). Some would say he had every reason to trust in himself.
When Moses saw an Egyptian mistreating a Hebrew he avenged him by killing the Egyptian (Acts 7:24).
“Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not” (Acts 7:25).
The earthly credentials of Moses, powerful as they were, were not sufficient to give him victory.
Because he had killed an Egyptian Moses became a fugitive. He fled to Midian where he lived for 40 years (Acts 7:29,30).
Moses became a shepherd in Midian. This was humiliating for in Egypt shepherds were detestable (Gen. 46:34).
Note - Moses went from his high position as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter to being a lowly and despised shepherd. His humiliation was made worse by the fact that he didn’t even own the sheep he was watching. They belonged to Jethro, his father in law (Ex. 3:1).
To make sure his earthly credentials were invalidated, God commanded Moses to take his shepherd’s staff with him when he spoke to the Pharaoh (Ex. 4:17).
Further reason to not trust in himself came because after 40 years in the desert Moses could only speak with a slow speech and a slow tongue (Ex. 4:10).
GOD BEGAN WITH NOTHING WHEN HE CREATED THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH.
GOD SOMETIMES CHOOSES TO REDUCE US TO NOTHING BEFORE MAKING SOMETHING OF US.
GOD DID REDUCE MOSES TO NOTHING BEFORE USING HIM IN A MIGHTY WAY!
THE SONG OF MOSES MAKES CLEAR THAT HIS VICTORY OVER THE EGYPTIANS CAME FROM TRUSTING IN GOD AND NOT TRUSTING HIMSELF (EX. 15:1-21).
IT IS NOT BY ACCIDENT THAT THOSE WHO MAKE IT TO HEAVEN WILL ALSO BE SINGING THE SONG OF MOSES (REV. 15:3,4).
THEREFORE TRUST IN THE LORD AND NOT IN YOURSELF!

DON’T TRUST IN EDUCATION

There was not one scholar among the original 12 apostles.
Jesus prayed all night before choosing them (Lk. 6:12-16). These men were considered “unschooled and ordinary” (Acts 4:13). Jesus did not choose these men by accident! They were like sheep in the midst of wolves and had to place their total trust in God (Matt. 10:16).
Yet Jesus revealed things to these “little children” that were hidden from the wise and learned (Matt. 11:25). When we trust in God we can also become wiser than our teachers (Ps. 119:99).
Paul was the exception. He was highly educated and thoroughly trained. He studied under a famous teacher named Gamaliel (Acts 22:3). Paul was a good student and advanced in Judaism beyond many Jews of his own age (Gal. 1:14).
Yet, Paul considered his earthly credentials as rubbish and refused to put any confidence in the flesh (Phil. 3:2-16). Paul did not trust in his education!
Paul wrote: “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Cor. 2:4).
It is the plan of God to choose what is foolish, shameful, lowly and despised to achieve victory (1 Cor. 1:26-31).
THEREFORE TRUST IN THE LORD AND NOT IN YOUR EDUCATION!

DON’T TRUST IN YOUR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS

In reality, “All of our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Is. 64:6).
Jesus told of two man who went up to the temple to pray. One trusted in his own righteous and prayed about himself: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get” (Lk. 18:11,12).
The other man was a sinful tax collector. “He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me a sinner’” (Lk. 18:13).
Jesus said: “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Lk. 18:14).
THEREFORE TRUST IN THE LORD AND NOT IN YOUR OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS!

DON’T TRUST IN YOUR MONEY

A man once came to Jesus concerned about money. (See Luke 12:13-21).
He wanted Jesus to tell his brother to divide the inheritance with him.
Jesus warned him against greed and said that a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.
Jesus then told of a rich farmer who harvested a bumper crop. He trusted in his money and mistakenly thought his wealth would give him security.
The rich man said: “This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there will I store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself. ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat drink, and be merry’” (Lk. 12:18,19).
Many would admire such a “successful” man, but Jesus said he was a fool! He died that night and left all his earthly possessions to someone else!
Jesus concluded: “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God” (Lk. 12:21).
There will come a time when money will fail (Gen. 47:15), but Jesus never fails! (Is. 42:4).
THEREFORE TRUST IN THE LORD AND NOT IN YOUR MONEY!

DON’T TRUST IN THE GOVERNMENT

Civil government is ordained by God (Rom. 13:1-7).
Human governments, however, make mistakes and do not last forever.
The devil took Jesus up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. He said to Jesus: “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will be all yours” (Lk. 4:6).
First, remember that the devil is a liar and the father of lies (Jn. 8:44). It is quite probable that he lied to Jesus about these kingdoms just as he lied to Eve about the forbidden fruit.
Even if he could give Jesus all those kingdoms, however, it would still have been a bad bargain. All those kingdoms are gone. They were only temporary. They are now buried in the ash heap of history. It is foolish to give up an eternal kingdom for ones that are temporal.
In the United States native Americans trusted the government to take care of them. They went wrong to do so. They went quietly to Indian Reservations believing empty promises. The government failed them. Every one of those government reservations is a disaster.
On January 8, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson initiated his war on poverty. He believed the government could “…not only relieve the symptom of poverty, but cure it and, above all, to
prevent it.” He was wrong! After 50 years the government has failed the poor. They have spent $21.5 trillion on the war on poverty and still lost the war. Poor people are worse off now than when the program began. Don’t place your trust in governments!
Your government may fail you, but Jesus never fails!
THEREFORE TRUST IN THE LORD AND NOT IN YOUR GOVERNMENT!

YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WHEN YOU PUT YOUR ULTIMATE TRUST IN GOD

As you know it was a lack of trust in God that caused Adam and Eve to sin in Eden. God commanded: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die” (Gen. 2:16,17).

They made the fatal mistake of trusting Satan more than they trusted God!

Do you trust God?

If you do trust God you will certainly do what He says whether you understand it or not!

“This is what the Lord says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight declares the Lord’” (Jer. 9:23,24).

YOU CANNOT GO WRONG TRUSTING IN THE LORD!

(This study was written by Boyce Mouton. No rights are reserved! You are encouraged to use this material in whole or in part for the glorification of Christ and the advancement of His Kingdom)