♫ "Ye servants of God, your master proclaim, And publish abroad His wonderful name;
The name all-victorious of Jesus extol, His kingdom is glorious; He rules over all." ♫
Welcome to the program Truth for the World.
Today we're asking the question, "In Whom Should We Trust?"
Where's your trust?
Where's my trust?
Who are we trusting in?
Where are we putting our trust?
You know in the everyday life, in money, license plates, you may see things that say, "In God
We Trust."
Are we putting our trust in God?
We may take it for granted that we should put our trust in God; but should we really;
is that the right place to put it?
Well the Bible is full of examples, showing us we need to trust in God.
So if you have your bible, why don't you open it with me today, as we look at some verses.
We're going to start off in Numbers, chapter 13, and we're going to examine this question
"In Whom Should We Trust?
Do you remember the historical account here of the Israelites who are going to go into
Canaan?
But before they went into Canaan they sent some spies in to check the place out; and
most of the spies that went into the Cain, that went into the land of Canaan came back
with an evil report.
They said, "We can't, we can't conquer it.
The people are too big; it's, there's no use; we're not going to, we're not going to do
it.
Two of the spies thought otherwise.
Let's read about it in Numbers 13 starting in verse 32, "And they brought up an evil
report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land,
through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof;
and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our
own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight."
Well, they didn't have their trust in God; God had been leading them.
And God wanted them to trust Him and obey Him.
But when they went into the land of Canaan they said, "We can't do it, we can't do it.
We're going to be destroyed if we go in there; they're just going to squash us like a bug."
But there were two spies; that did think otherwise.
Their names were Joshua and Caleb.
Let's look at Numbers chapter 14 versus 7 through 9.
Numbers 14 versus 7 through 9, "They spake unto all the company of the children of Israel,
saying, the land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.
If the Lord delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land
which floweth with milk and honey."
Do you see their attitude?
It's different.
"Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are
bread for us: their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us: fear them not."
Well, that's just the opposite attitude isn't it?
Joshua and Caleb said, "We can do this?"
Because why?
The Lord is with us.
See that's where they were putting their trust.
They were putting their trust in God saying, "If we are pleasing to God; really if we trust
and obey, we're obedient to God and pleasing to God and He's with us; then we can do it,
we can get the victory.
But, unfortunately the Israelites, most of them at least, may have listened to the ten
spies that said, "That it wasn't going to happen.
That they couldn't do it anyway."
So for their disbelief, they were told, "They would not be able to go into the land; but
Joshua and Caleb would be able to go."
In Numbers chapter 14, let's notice verse 30.
Numbers 14:30, "Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to
make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun."
Who would get to go into the land?
Joshua and Caleb.
And of course why?
Because they put their trust in God.
If God is going to be with us they said, "We can conquer, we can conquer."
But do we ever stop to think why we should trust in God?
Why not put our trust in other things?
You know some people do; some people put their trust in other things.
So let's look at a couple of those types of things.
Many may trust in riches: many may put their trust in their riches as long as I get enough
money, I'll be OK, if only I could get that money; all my problems would go away.
Well, no they won't!
As a matter of fact you might have a whole case of new problems that come with it.
But the wealth of the world seems to be a lot of times what we act as if that's the
cure all; the panacea.
If we could just get enough money then our problems would be over.
It seems to be the problem solver and some people may put all their trust in riches.
Well, the problem though with riches is that they're uncertain, they're uncertain.
Look at First Timothy chapter 6 verse 17.
First Timothy 6 verse 17, "Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded,"
nor, what?
"Trust in uncertain riches."
Do you see that?
We're told specifically that if you're rich in this world you don't want to trust in those
riches because the adjective describing those riches: is that they're uncertain.
But instead what are we supposed to trust in?
"The living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy."
Why are riches uncertain; because they can vanish in thin air.
In October of 1929 in the United States of America: a lot of people may have woken up
to find all their riches that they had put into the stock market had just went down the
drain, and a lot of people's fortunes may have been lost, literally overnight!
One day it was there, the next day it was gone.
You may have $100,000.00 sitting in the bank and say, "There's my riches; I trust in my
riches."
The next thing you know a tornado goes through and tears your house down, and you have to
use that money to start all over again.
Things can happen and riches are not solid enough a foundation to build upon.
And there are some things in life that money just can't buy.
You know we may hear about the song; money can't buy happiness or the old saying, money
can't buy happiness.
But think about some of the things that you can't do with money: you can't buy more time,
you can't buy more days necessarily upon this earth.
You might be able to pay for some health to keep you alive a little longer or something;
but it can't buy at least your ticket away from death.
It can't buy cures to diseases that we don't have the cure for.
You can have as much money in the world but you may have to sit and watch a spouse or
a loved one suffer with a disease, because your money can't take care of that.
Sometimes your money may not even really be able to restore relationships or friendships
if they're broken.
There are some things that money can't buy.
Look at Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse 26.
Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse 26, "For to the man that pleaseth Him, God giveth wisdom,
and knowledge, and joy: but to the sinner He giveth travail, to gather and to heap up,
that He may give to him that pleaseth God.
This also is vanity and a striving after wind."
To the sinner He gives travailed to gather and to heap up to give to someone else.
You know sometimes people gather all their possessions together, only to end up giving
them to someone else.
And I'm not talking about charity.
You know giving to charity, or helping other people.
Sometimes people amass a fortune only to die and just leave it for other people to sort
through.
And you say, "Well, they spent their whole lives just heaping up those treasures, heaping
them up, and then, and then all of a sudden poof one day they're gone and, and it's now
someone else's treasure, someone else's money.
In the land that you live in, that's the only place where your currency is good.
Have you ever noticed that?
If you go to another country and I've been to a few other countries you, have to be prepared
to exchange your currency, if they use a different currency.
For example, you go from the United States to Canada; you have to exchange your United
States Dollars to Canadian dollars.
And in that regard, what you're seeing is that the United States currency is good in
the United States but in Canada, you have to have Canadian currency.
What does that have to do with anything?
Our citizenship is in Heaven.
Philippians chapter 3 and verse 20.
Look at that verse with me.
Philippians 3:20.
Paul writes, "For our citizenship is in heaven; whence also we wait for a Savior, the Lord
Jesus Christ."
If we're citizens of heaven, if we're Christians, and we're citizens of heaven!
What good is earthly currency going to do us, when we get to heaven?
Why would we heap up treasures here on this earth when we can't spend them in Heaven?
Why would we trust in our riches here on this earth?
You know the Bible says, "To lay up treasure."
Where?
In Heaven.
Reminds me of the old joke is the man who somehow found a way to take it with him.
Scooped up all these gold bars and stuck them in a suitcase and said, "I found a way that
when I die I'll be able to take all my gold with him," so make sure you bury them.
And sure enough he gets up to the gate of heaven and he's lugging this big suitcase
full of gold and someone stops him and says, "Well what do you, what do you got there?"
And he says, "I'm bringing in my treasure."
And they say, "What is it?"
And so he opens it up, and shows them this suitcase full of gold bars.
And the man at the gate says, "Why did you bring a suitcase full of asphalt up here;
where the streets are made of gold?"
The gold currency here on this earth: the dollars, the cents, everything, they're good
here.
But we have treasures that we need to be laying up in heaven because that's where our citizenship
is and that's where we're going to live eternally; if we're Christians.
Notice Mark chapter 10 starting in verse 17.
Mark chapter 10 starting in verse 17.
"And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him,
and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?
And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good?
there is none good but one, that is, God.
Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not
bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and other.
And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.
Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way,
sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven:
and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.
And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that
have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
And the disciples were astonished at his words.
But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that
trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!"
Do you see that?
It's hard for someone that trusts in riches to enter the Kingdom of God.
Jesus didn't say, "If you're rich you can't get in the kingdom of God.
He said, "If you're trusting in those riches, it's going to be hard for you to get into
the kingdom of God."
We don't need to trust in riches.
We need to lay up treasure in Heaven.
We need to think of heavenly things, and try to develop the right Christian life here:
try to bring others with us to heaven if they will listen to the Gospel, so that we can
have more people saved.
Well many also trust in other people.
You know some will take the word of their preacher and just say, "Well I'm going to
go with that."
I may not examine the Bible to see if it's actually true.
I'm just going to go ask the preacher, or they'll ask their relative or their friend.
And as well-meaning as any of those may be, if they're not teaching what the Bible says,
it's not accurate.
But people may trust in what those people say without examining it for themselves; they
may just go to their pastor or their priest or their preacher and let them explain to
them what they need to know and never bother to go to God's Word to find out if it actually
matches and if it's correct.
That's putting a whole lot of trust in somebody else, especially when your soul is at stake!
Some of the Jews trusted in Moses or Abraham for their salvation.
Take a look at John 5 starting in verse 45.
John 5 starting in verse 45, "Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there
is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
For had you believed Moses, you would have believed me; for he wrote of me.
But if you believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?"
When Jesus said they trusted in Moses; but the problem was Moses wrote about Jesus but
they didn't want to accept Jesus.
How about Matthew chapter 3 starting in verse 7.
Matthew chapter 3 starting in verse 7, "If you believe not his writings how shall ye
believe my words.
Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, we
have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise
up children unto Abraham."
These people were having a little bit, I think, too much trust in Moses or Abraham.
And in standing in front of them was the Messiah, God Himself.
But they may have trusted in their lineage; that they were descendants of Abraham.
And they said, "That, that means we're good, we're protected, we're in good shape."
But Jesus was trying to teach them to repent and prepare for the Kingdom of Heaven was
at hand; they had some things that they may have needed to change to be pleasing to God,
but instead they may have trusted in their lineage or the fact that they were, you know,
descendants of Abraham or they were Jews.
The apostle Paul condemned aligning ourselves with anybody other than Christ.
Notice First Corinthians 1 starting in verse 11.
First Corinthians 1:11.
There we're going to see what Paul wrote to the church in Corinth and the church in Corinth
was having trouble with divisions and relying too much on other people.
In First Corinthians 1:11 it says, "For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren,
by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.
Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas;
and I of Christ.
Is Christ divided?
Was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?"
Do you see what was going on?
They had started aligning themselves with the individual that baptized them.
And Paul here says, "Was, you know, was Peter baptized for you, or rather was Paul crucified
for you?
Were you baptized in the name of Paul?"
Let's read verses 14 and 15.
"I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius; Lest any should say
that I had baptized in mine own name."
Paul is condemning this aligning with people other than Christ; and he, and he puts them
in their place and say, "Why are you saying I'm of Paul; I'm of Cephas; I'm of Christ.
Who was crucified for you?"
Paul says.
"Were you baptized in the name of Cephas?
No, you're baptized in the name of Christ; Christ was crucified for you; you need to
align yourself with Christ.
So Paul gives them the information that they need to stop doing that kind of thing.
In First Corinthians chapter 11 we want to look at verse 1.
First Corinthians 11:1 says this, "Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ."
So Paul says, "I'm following Christ."
How does he want people to act?
The way Paul acts.
Why?
Because Paul's imitating Christ.
He even said, "Be ye imitators of me as I imitate Christ."
In other words, who is everybody pointing to?
Who is everybody looking at?
The answer is Christ.
Paul is imitating Christ; Paul is following Christ.
Therefore he's telling other people follow me, as I follow Christ.
Because it all points back to whom? Christ!
That's who it's about.
And he doesn't want people aligning themselves with the person who happened to be the way;
or happen to be the one who baptized them.
Christ is the only way to the Father in heaven, and others aren't going to be able to save
you.
John 14:6, Jesus said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: No one comes to the Father
but by Me."
And Acts chapter 4 and verse 12 we read this, "Neither is there salvation in any other:
for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be the saved."
So why trust in others?
We need to trust in Christ: put our trust in Christ, and His ability to save us.
Ephesians 5:23 says, "Christ is the savior of the body."
He's the one who's going to do the saving; and He'll save all those who are in the body
which is the Church, Ephesians 1:22 and 23.
Well, many trust in themselves too.
Many may trust in themselves.
And is that going to work?
Well, NO.
If we look at the example of Saul: he had plenty to believe in when it came to himself;
he was in a good state.
In Philippians chapter 3, let's start reading in verse 4.
Philippines 3 and verse 4, "Though I might also have confidence in the flesh.
If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more."
He says, "I've got a lot of reason to be confident in my status here on this earth.
Circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, Hebrew of
the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching
the righteousness which is in the law, blameless."
And then Saul realized that he was wrong, he realized that he was persecuting Christ
and persecuting God.
He may not have believed Jesus was God, but he did later, and he realized that he was
wrong for persecuting the church.
And the point is he could have stayed in this high stature position, of this Jewish stature,
this Pharisee stature; where he had this high regard perhaps from his fellow people, had
a good education, and just had a good position in life.
But you know he gave all that up, in order to follow Christ.
He realize the truth and realize that he'd actually been persecuting God.
So let's look back at Philippians chapter 3 now continuing in verse 7.
Philippians chapter 3 in verse 7.
Now what is he saying?
"I had all this stature," BUT!
Now Philippians 3:7, "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ."
I gave them up.
For whom?
For Christ.
"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of
Christ Jesus my Lord."
I give it all up, he says, "To know about Christ, for whom I have suffered the loss
of all things."
Well are you sad about it Paul?
That you've suffered all things.
No, he continues and says, "I do count them but dung, that I may win Christ."
The comparative here: I would rather have Christ than all those things.
Verse 9, "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness."
You see he's not going to trust in himself, is he?
Not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law.
He wasn't going to point to himself anymore and say, "Look at me I'm keeping the law,
and I'm doing a good thing."
But now he's going to have the righteousness; which is through the faith of Christ; the
righteousness which is of God by faith.
Saul could have probably trusted in himself because of his high stature, but he said,
"You know what, all that doesn't matter that stature any more.
I would rather know Christ."
We don't want to trust in ourselves.
Can we really trust in ourselves to save ourselves?
We need Jesus.
We need Jesus.
And our final point, our trust really must be in God, and His word; a trust must be in
God, and His word.
God has the power of life and death.
In Second Corinthians 1 notice verses 9 and 10.
There it says, "But we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust
in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death,
and doth deliver: in whom we trust that He will yet deliver us."
We trust in God; not ourselves.
We trust in God for that resurrection as Christians.
The Resurrection one day that will bring us to eternal life.
In Second Timothy 1 notice verses 10 through 12.
Second Timothy 1:10 through 12, "But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Savior
Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light
through the gospel: Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher
of the Gentiles.
For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know
whom I have believed."
And who do you, who is that?
It's talking about Jesus; well do you trust in Him?
Sure do.
He says, "I'm persuaded that He is able to keep that which I've committed unto Him against
that day."
He's putting his trust that Jesus will deliver; Jesus will deliver.
God can save; God can save.
First Timothy 4 verse 10 says, "For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because
we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, specially of those that believe."
In skipping to Romans 1:16, Paul says, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ:
for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first,
and also to the Greek."
The power is in the Gospel and we need to trust in Jesus.
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
No one comes to the Father by him.
Therefore we need to read His Word.
We need to understand what we need to do, in order to go to heaven.
We need to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
We need to repent of our sins, turn away from our sinful life; in order to follow Jesus.
And we need to confess that Jesus is the Son of God before men.
Then we need to be baptized: immersed under water for the forgiveness of sins.
And then God will add you to the church, Acts 2:47, which is His body, Ephesians 1:22 and
23; where Jesus will save you.
Jesus is the savior of the body, Ephesians 5:23, and we need to continue living faithfully:
staying true to His Word, and putting our trust not in riches, not in others, and not
in ourselves; but trust in the One; The Way.
The One who can lead us back to the Father, Jesus the Christ.
Are you trusting in Jesus the Christ and the word that God has delivered us?
If not, start putting your trust there in order that you may have eternal life.
If you would like to learn more about God's Word with a free Bible correspondence course,
then write us at: Truth For The World, P.O.
Box 5048, Duluth GA 30096, the United States of America.
Or visit us online at truthfortheworld.org.
Truth For The World is a work of the Duluth Church of Christ, in cooperation with churches
of Christ throughout the world.
♫ "Ye servants of God, your master proclaim, And publish abroad His wonderful name." ♫
For more infomation >> Too Much Information in the workplace: Why we're campaigning - Duration: 1:56. 
For more infomation >> We Graduated! 🎓 [SEASON 2 FINALE] - Duration: 6:31. 
For more infomation >> This school year may be ending but we have lots to do for next year. - Duration: 1:43. 
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét