Sunday, March 15, 2015

Trust Issues


Gtcotr/ss031515

Today we will be taking our text from Luke 4. As you turn allow me to read one of my favorite scriptures from:

Deuteronomy 8:3  And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

Story - In June of 1980 God told me that He would make me rich …
·        I believed the word I received from the Lord but I did not understand what He meant by rich nor what I would go through in my making.
o   In time I came to understand that anyone who ends the day with more bread than they have eaten or more joy than they have sorrow is truly a very wealthy person.
o   Rich is what we are when we have more than enough for ourselves so that we are able to share a little of our abundance with those who are poor. This is the abundant life …
o   I later realized that when God said that He would make me rich … He did not say that He would give me riches. The giving or riches can be instant but the making took time and hard work and trust on my part and much patience and grace on His.
·        Just after God spoke to me about making me rich He told me to sell and give away everything we owned and give the money to a Church – it was a Church I had never attended. He told me that He did not want me to be able to say that my hands had gotten me anything but only that “The Lord had provided.”
o   We had completely furnished our house with things we had bought and brought back from Europe. Our living room furniture, dining room table and hutch, kitchen, stereo, pictures, bedrooms, nursery, and even our clothes and children’s toys … we even sold both of our cars, my 4 wheel drive Ramcharger and her Volkswagen.
o   We prayed, heard from God, knew His will, believed and acted on His Word, and we expected His abundant provision … He was going to make us rich and we really expected He would do it immediately.
o   However, our initial expectations were a little off …
o   In fact, we moved into an unfurnished apartment with not even a folding chair. Brenda went to a local grocery store’s dumpster and retrieved boxes which she turned on their sides to make places for the clothes we were believing God to give us any day and more boxes, one big one she made into a dining room table and little boxes she turned upside down for our 2 children to sit on.
o   After 2 months we bought our first piece of furniture was a $5 bean bag we were so proud to own. That was the only piece of furniture we owned for over 7 months.
o   We graduated from that 2 bedroom apartment and moved into a borrowed 23 foot camper trailer.
o   We did not own a car for 2 whole years – even though the Lord gave us the cash and told us to buy and pay for 2 cars during that time and give them away to other people, one of which was a hitchhiker.
o   Although I did not know, I am certain the Lord knew what He was doing.
·        Now, 35 years later, I can truly testify that the Lord has kept His word above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined. He has made me rich.
·        You see … the devil would love for you to have trust issues with God however, the truth is:

The Lord humbles us, and allows us to hunger, and feeds us with manna, which we knew not, neither did our fathers know; that He might make us to know that we do not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD. (Deuteronomy 8:3 Paraphrased)

Luke 4
1 ¶  Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
2  being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.

The 1st Temptation:
3  And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."
4  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, ’Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’" (Deuteronomy 8:3)
5  Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.
6  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.

The 2nd Temptation
7  "Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."
8  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ’You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’" (Deuteronomy 6:13 & 10:20)

The 3rd Temptation
9  Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.
10  "For it is written: ’He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you,’
11  "and, ’In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’" (Psalms 91:11&12)
12  And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, ’You shall not tempt the LORD your God.’"  (Deuteronomy 6:16)
13  Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

What were the temptations and how will we face those same temptations?
1.   Provide for Yourself
2.   Promote Yourself
3.   Prove Yourself

The greatest temptations we face in life come straight from the devil. Satan is constantly trying to get us to make everything all about us. He uses the same tactics on today that he used on both Eve and Jesus. There might be different situations but it’s the same issue …

These issues are Trust Issues …
·        Can you trust God right now?
·        Can you trust God with your destiny?
·        Can you trust God with your eternity?

If the devil can get you to doubt God and make life all about yourself and:
·        Provide for yourself
o   here in this world
o   in the world to come (by works which can never save)
·        Promote yourself out of time or place
·        Prove yourself to the world that you are somebody …
… then he’s got you just where he wants you and he can control your life.

“If you are the Son of God …” – Subtle conversations of seducing spirits questioning God’s character and commitment – We have nothing to prove

We can trust God with our today, our tomorrow and with our forever.

The remedies for us are thus:
·        The Word of God supplies our daily bread.
·        Worship and Service secure our destiny.
·        Relationship assures our eternity.

Let me encourage you to increase your intake of Word, Worship and service to the Lord. And … if you do not have a relationship with God …

It’s hard to trust God for your eternity if you can’t trust Him for your today!

It’s all about souls – God wants to save your soul and the devil wants to destroy it … who are you going to trust?

35 years ago I began a journey of learning how to trust God one day, one step, one issue at a time. I can truly say that the Lord has been faithful to me. He has never failed me or forsaken me and I know you can trust Him today.


What will you trust God to do for you right now?