2005-05-08 - T-R-U-S-T

Psalm 4, Part 4

How do you spell relief? ”T-R-U-S-T!" The trust needed here is that the Lord is the only one who can provide purpose in life. And to find this purpose, it is first necessary to accept His solution to what truly is man's distress, separation from Him because of sin.

As the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men." (Romans 5:18)

The solution, then, is the death and resurrection of Jesus for that sin. To find relief, first you must come in trust of God for salvation.

"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

The message we must get to the unbeliever is that he will recognize who Jesus is at some point. The choice is, will he accept Jesus freely, having an eternity with him, or by force, resulting in separation from God for all eternity?

"As surely as I live,' says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.'" (Romans 14:11).

Believers: Now what of the second group, the believers? Do we experience distress over the failures of those around us? Are we angered for the honor of God? Are we truly hurting by the realization of the fallen state of the world? I suspect that often the answer is no! We do not choose to see the world as the Lord sees it. We are often unaware of the reality of the state of men that caused Jesus to weep over Jerusalem.

As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace ”but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.'" (Luke 19:41-44).

Yet while we need to be distressed by the condition of a fallen world, as Jesus was, we are not to be overwhelmed by life, by men's actions against God and against us. Rather, we are to find relief from the same source as David. "T-R-U-S-T!” Trust in a God who is in control over all things.

Then Jesus came to them and said, ˜All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me'" (Matthew 28:18).

Comments or Questions?
Geoff

GKragen@aol.com
http://www.cfdevotionals.org