A Sacred Trust

11/15/2016

My father used to have a “personal proverb” he lived by, a saying I heard him repeat many times when I was young. He said: “Keep your expectations low. Don’t trust anybody, and you’ll never be disappointed.”

To my little ears, this seemed like a pretty good formula for success; after all, who has not been betrayed or disappointed at some point in their life? His proverb, while it reeked of self-protection, seemed a sure guarantee for a pain-free life.

With age came wisdom, however, and after I became a Christian I saw this proverb for what it really was: a lack of faith. To defend self this way is to fail to trust God. It is an atheist’s answer to the problem of pain, and it leads only to isolation and unhappiness.

My father is old now, divorced and with no real friends to speak of. Loneliness and fear have set in, hiding behind his proud proverb, a proverb which, ironically, itself has disappointed him.

A Christian might argue that there is biblical support for my father’s proverb: after all, John 2:24 states that “Jesus would not entrust Himself to them, for He knew all men… He knew what was in a man.” (NIV) Yet to say that Jesus did not trust men at all is a misapplication of the verse.

In context, Jesus was healing many people in Jerusalem at the time of Passover. John 2:23 shows us that people saw the miraculous signs He was doing and believed in His Name. The King James translation reads: "But Jesus would not commit (or entrust) Himself to them.”

According to Barnes's commentary on the Bible, The word “believe” in 2:23 is the same Greek word for “commit, or entrust” in 2:24. Jesus saw that men were enamored of His signs, yet unable (at that point) to fully commit to a true relationship with Him. They loved the gifts, not the Giver.

Jesus wisely did not entrust Himself to the masses, or to those with whom God had not called Him to be friends. He did not, in other words, “cast His pearls before swine.” These were not people who were ready to receive His heart, but only His miracles. But Jesus did commit Himself to some, both human and divine.

Whom Did Jesus Trust?

Lest we think that Jesus lived by my father’s proverb of self-protection, the Bible quickly refutes this idea. There are plenty of examples where Jesus did trust men. Here are just a few of them:

A Sacred Trust - blog post by Deborah Perkins of HisInscriptions.com. Looking at the ways Jesus trusted both God and man. Avoiding the trap of failing to trust in the hopes of not being disappointed. A Bible Study for Christians.

Like Jesus, we humans do not usually entrust our lives to those who are immature or unready. But with those whom God has called us into relationship, we freely share our hearts. To do anything less would be hypocritical and unloving.

Do we run the risk of being disappointed or betrayed? Yes. Judas betrayed Jesus, and every one of the disciples abandoned Jesus in His neediest hours. What, then? Isn’t it better, like my father, to trust no one, so that we are not disappointed?

A Sacred Trust - blog post by Deborah Perkins of HisInscriptions.com. Learning to trust God and men after disappointment. #Christian Bible Study.

A Hope that Does Not Disappoint

Self-protection is the only option available to those who do not trust God. Christians, however, have a better hope – a hope that does not disappoint. (Romans 5:5.) That hope is God.

The great task of the Holy Spirit is to resurrect hope as we trust in God. He must raise the level of our expectations back to their full potential, based on biblical faith. Real faith (which in the Greek language is the same as trust) is only possible when the object of our trust is completely trustworthy, and will never let us down.

So how do we know that God is worthy of our trust? We know because God in Christ died for us, unworthy skeptics, and kept the promises He made to us, even when we betrayed Him. God loved us – trusted us - with His whole being. He believed in us as redeemable, lovable, and even capable of faithfulness to Him.

And we are. Love that gives unworthy beings its most sacred trust is love that has the power to change hearts and lives for the better.

Think of it – was it not those who believed in you along the way who helped shape the person you have become? Was it not the entrusting of sacred things to you that drove you to meet higher expectations, to prove yourself worthy of that trust?

We are created, as human beings, to desire connection, relationship and trust. We long to know that our hearts are safely sheltered, whether we choose to encase them ourselves, or share them with others.

The only one who can shelter our fragile hearts completely is Jesus. We can and should expect Him to guard us, defend us, and protect us like only a true lover can.

Our expectations of men are less, of course, but they should by no means be nonexistent. Men will disappoint, but GOD IN MEN is the most powerful, life-giving force on earth! To cease to trust man is to shut out the provision of God.

God has made a way for Himself to reside in us, human beings we so often discount as worthless. He has chosen to live in us, to love through us, and to work in us.

God in man is quite often the means by which we find joy, not disappointment. He works this way, knowing that our greatest joy and deepest contentment will come through the answered prayers which humble men help fulfill.

God draws us ever closer together as a body – His Body – who, as one with Him, becomes as faithful and trustworthy as He Himself. He shares His secrets with those of us who will listen. He sends us out as ambassadors for Him, carrying the blueprints He paid for with His life.

There is no greater trust relationship than the one we have with our heavenly Father! May we never lower our expectations of what He can do, whether by Himself or through those He calls His beloved children.

Questions for Reflection:

1. Have you ever been hurt or disappointed by someone you trusted? What was the result?

2. Do you believe men can be trusted? How, or how much? Does “God in man” make a difference?

3. If you were God, would you trust men with your “top secrets?” Would you allow men to be the carriers of your heart or plans? Why or why not?

4. In prayer, ask the Holy Spirit to show you your level of expectation or trust in the Lord. Are there areas where you need to rely more fully on Him? Are you trusting in God, or in your idea of what God should be or do for you? (For more on this, click here.) What is one step you could take today to come closer to fully relying on the Lord?