Psalm 56:11 1 Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. 2 My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride. 3 When I am afraid, I will trust in you. 4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? 5 All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. 6 They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. 7 On no account let them escape; in your anger, O God, bring down the nations. 8 Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll--are they not in your record? 9 Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. 10 In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise 11 in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 12 I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offerings to you. 13 For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. (Psalm 56:1-12, NIV) Introduction A. When we let God be God, we can let people be people. B. The more we trust God s perfection, the better we can deal with human imperfection. 1. There is no other healthy way
2 to survive life in a broken world. 2. Nothing short of the love of God can equip us to love others as we should. C. It is our security in God s perfect love that makes it safe to love those who are not perfect. I. OTHERS A. When our ultimate trust is in God, we re not as vulnerable to the disappointments that are bound to arise in our dealings with others (Psa. 5:11,12; 31:19,20; 37:3,4). 1. When our needs for security and significance are met in God, then we are free to love others realistically and without unhealthy dependence. a. We will make peace with imperfection. b. We ll accept that people cannot be anything but imperfect. c. We will have more realistic expectations of others. it ll not be the end of the world when somebody makes a mistake. d. We will not place upon others the unfair burden of being to us that which God alone can be.
3 e. Our ultimate trust will be in God, not in others 5 This is what the LORD says: Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD. (Jer 17:5, NIV) f. The trust we do extend to others will be safeguarded by our absolute assurance that God will take care of us no matter what happens (Psa. 56:11) 2. But note that our independence from others must not be: a. Defiant. Our liberation from other human beings must not be with an in-your-face I don t need you! kind of attitude. (1) The truth is, we do need others, just not in the ultimate sense that we need God. b. Condescending or patronizing. (1) We must not look down our noses at those around us as if we are the ones strong and mature enough to be patient with the faults of others.
4 (2) The truth is, our own sins are just as serious as those of the people with whom we deal, and others have to exercise just as much patience when they deal with us, if not more so! B. To the extent that our trust is in God, we can be authentically patient and forbearing with His creatures (Eph. 4:1,2; Col. 3:12,13. Cf. 1 Thess. 5:14; 2 Tim. 2:24-26; etc.) 1. We still deeply hurt when others fail us, to be sure. (It s not right to pretend otherwise.) 2. But, in God, we are able to view the reality of this pain from a much larger perspective (2 Cor. 4:16-18). 3. When our earthly treasures are threatened, we won t react as we would if these were our only treasures (Mt. 10:28; Rom. 8:31-39). C. To the extent that we have confidence in God s power to accomplish His purposes in His own way, we ll not be driven by the urge to control what takes place around us, to keep certain things from happening, etc. As your faith is strengthened you will find that there is no longer the need to have a sense of control, that things will flow as they will, and that you will flow with them, to your great delight and benefit (Emmanuel).
5 D. When we have truly entrusted the fulfillment of our deepest needs to God, we won t look to other human beings to provide us with more than they can provide. (Cf. 2 Tim. 1:12; 1 Pt. 2:23) 1. Our expectations of others will be more realistic when we see God as the only Source of what we most deeply need. (2 Tim. 4:16-18). 2. We can be genuinely grateful for the good things we do receive from others, without depending on others provide the perfection that only God can provide (Phil. 4:13,14). 3. Knowing God s perfect love, we ll not place on anyone else the impossible burden of loving us perfectly. 4. The same thing is true of other people that is true of temporal things in general: a. we get the most out of the relationship when we cease to depend on it for our ultimate fulfillment. b. We get the best of what this life has to offer when we pay primary attention to something else: God.
6 E. When we allow God to be to us what only He can be, then we can relax and let other people be what only people can be! II. OURSELVES A. It should remember that trust in God s perfection frees us to see our own limitations in a better way. B. Just as we must learn not to depend on others in an unhealthy way, so we must learn that we should not trust in ourselves but in God (2 Cor. 1:9). C. The humble recognition that we are not God is not confining, but rather empowering (Psa. 8:3-5). 1. The most invigorating thing we can do is to develop a perspective on ourselves that is grounded in reality, the truth about our creaturehood. 2. We do not ennoble ourselves by trying to be God; we do so by being what He made us to be! D. We ll do a better job of being a human being when we quit trying to do God s work and focus on the duties that are truly our own! Cf. Eccl. 11:1-6.
7 Conclusion A. Faith enables persons to be persons because it lets God be God (Carter Lindberg). B. May we be reverently grateful that God is God, and may this recognition help us to be content for people to be people. C. May we have more realistic expectations of those around us and be more patient with their flaws. D. And may we, in recognition of our own creaturehood, strive to be all that a creature can be when made in God s image! (Psalm 100:1-5). 1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. 3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. (Psalms 100:1-5, NIV)