Sermon Series: In God We Trust 1 Proverbs 3:5-7 and selected texts The Benefits of Trusting God Pastor Brian Long: January 24th, 2016 Big Idea: Benefits of trust can keep us trusting One year ago we launched an effort to accelerate the pay down of our church house payment. The note we are chasing after to pay down is residual from construction loans to build our current facilities. Last year at this time, our loan balance on our largest note was 939 Balance of loan as of 1/20/16 $324,739.00. Thanks to those involved. If you are not currently part of this Unleashing the Future effort by practicing the 10-520-2 ($10 over and above your current giving per week =520 additional per year X 2 years. Would you consider this? Together we can shred and burn this note within this coming year! Welcome to our final session of our In God We Trust series. So far we ve reviewed the Bible and affirmed that: God is completely reliable and trustworthy. Psalm 145:13, The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does. The Bible repeatedly calls us to trust. Proverbs 3:5-7, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Trust is a learned process practiced in the context of grace and mercy. Colossians 2:6-7, And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day s problems; live in vital union with him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Along the way I ve been trying to emphasize that as we grow in trust and learn to transfer the weight of our trust off ungodly things and onto God, his plan, and his promises there is often discomfort. As we respond to God s directions for life, step out in obedience to trust, we often experience discomfort and inner uneasiness. PLEASE REALIZE when you are developing trust, experiencing discomfort does not indicate a fail, nor is it evidence that something is wrong. It is a
2 natural reaction when we are learning to transfer the weight of our trust off our own understandings onto God s understandings. Don t allow discomfort cause you to go backwards when you really need to go forwards. Now, this week I want to get more specific about how we can learn to trust God in more areas of our lives and in deeper ways in those areas. Specifically, how do we learn to trust God? What does this look like? Continually come to God and his word with openness, and humble teachability (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Regularly invite the Holy Spirit to make our hearts receptive, to guide us, and to empower us to follow God s directions (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). As we discover what Godly living looks like, we step out in obedience putting off the old, putting on the new and practice living out God s calling in our lives (Colossians 3:1-10). When uncomfortable emotions/pressures rise up, we recognize their source as the natural discomfort that is experienced when we are learning to trust God s ways verse our old ways. We refuse to foreclose on choice to trust God. We stay the course, choosing moment by moment to lean into God, consciously allowing the truth about God, his plan, and his promises to quiet our angst and strengthen our trust as we walk in alignment with God. This involves leaning on what we KNOW verses what we FEEL. (Psalm 62:5-8) As we practice this pattern daily, overtime it gets easier and easier, and becomes more and more our way of being. Forget perfection we re talking about direction DIRECTION NOT PERFECTION. We are learning to lean primarily on God. (Refer back to Proverbs 4:5-6). Now let s think through this process using a real life example. What do these components of trust development look like, say in a health challenge?
3 Developing trust in a health challenge News of health challenge comes, and we experience natural internal angst. We search the Scriptures and we discover, or are reminded of some relevant truths: God always loves us, always cares about us, has the hairs of our heads numbered, and promises to hold us in his hands, and never leave us or forsake us (Matthew 6:25-33, John 10:27-30, Deut. 31:6, Psalm 73:23-26). We also learn that we can call on him as our healer and trust his sovereign action in our lives (Ex. 15:26, Isaiah 53, Matthew 8). We also learn that he uses our trust actions in the midst of challenges to encourage and to be an example to others (John 13:15; 1 Cor. 10:1-11; 1 Cor. 11:1; 1 Tim. 4:12; Titus 2:7; James 5:10). These truths provide the motivation and inspiration to heave the weight of our trust onto God. We lean our ladder of trust on God and seek to transfer the weight of our trust onto him by pouring our hearts out to him, asking him to bring healing to our lives, and inviting him to empower us to trust him during the journey (James 5:14-16). We follow through with the best practices of our healthcare providers. As natural angst rises up, we answer these emotions with the truths of God s Word we discovered above in #2. We practice trust and strengthen our ability to trust as we repeat 3-5. Not stressing about perfection rather focusing on direction seeking to lean and trust more and more. Health challenges and trials of many kinds are some of the most difficult schools of trust we can go through, yet they are some of the most productive! This is why James says, 2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance
4 finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If health trials are some of the most difficult trust developing crucibles, I think it s fair to say that one of the most stubborn challenges to our trust in God, is in the are of our money. This is often one of the last areas where we learn to trust, and one of the most difficult to continue to trust God in. So, let s run this process we ve outlined in another real life example of learning to trust God in the area of our money. The Apostle Paul said, 1Timothy 6:17, Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment (NLT). Learning to trust God with money As we study God s Word we discover God s wisdom and direction regarding Money. We learn fundamentals like God is the creator and owner of everything. God says, Everything under heaven belongs to me. And the Psalmist says, The earth is the Lord s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it (Job 41:11b; Psalm 24:1). Whatever it is we have, God calls us to honor him and manage our money according to his directions. Proverbs says, Honor the Lord with your wealth. And the Apostle Paul says, Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (Proverbs 3:9-10; 2 Cor. 9:6-8). As a tangible action or expression of our trust, He calls us to give a portion of what we have for his work in the world. This giving should be the first fruits of what we have and be consistent rather than arbitrary and sporadic. The Apostle Paul coaches the early church with regard to giving, On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned (1 Cor. 16:2).
5 He promises to bless trustworthy stewards in a variety of ways. Spiritual Benefits of trusting God in tithing/giving Giving out of trust keeps your faith fresh. In giving we renounce any false trust we ve placed in our own resources. You must set aside a tithe of your crops one-tenth of all the crops you harvest each year. Bring this tithe to the designated place of worship the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored Doing this will teach you always to fear the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 14:22-23 NLT; See also Prov. 3:5-6; Malachi 3:8-10; Haggai 1:4-11, 2:15-19; 2 Cor. 8:5.) Giving out of trust renounces love of money and affirms God is first. Paul warns Timothy, For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs (1 Timothy 6:10; See Also 1 Chronicles 29:11-18; Psalm 24:1-2, 50:10-12; Haggai 2:8). Giving out of trust enables us to invest in God s eternal work Jesus said, Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matt. 6:19-21; See also 1 Timothy 6:18-19; Hebrews 6:10). Giving out of trust opens you to experience God s creative provisions. God says, Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe, says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:7-12; See also 1 Kings 17; Proverbs 3:9-10; Haggai 1:4-11, 2:15-19; Luke 6:38; Deuteronomy 28, Phil. 4:15-19, Mark 12:41-44). We invite the Holy Spirit to guide and empower us. We begin to practice regular giving and eventually we experience some natural discomfort or resistance to give. Often anxiety over having enough for us, or fear about the future, or an irresistible craving tempts us, or a
6 number of other reasons we believe justify withholding. These are all the natural discomforts and anxieties that often tempt us to let our ladder fall back to ungodly, self-centered ways of managing our money. We experience some natural discomfort or internal resistance but we remain resolved. When these thoughts and feelings rise up, we acknowledge them for what they are natural resistances to give and we remember God s calling and promises regarding money and we consciously allow the truth about God s money management principles to quiet our angst and we continue to walk in obedience and trust God s ways with our actions of giving as he s called us to give. Over time, we experience the blessings God promises with regard to being a trustworthy steward and it becomes easier and easier to follow through and trust God with our money. In fact, the Bible actually teaches that the more generous we are, the more God gives us to be generous with and so it creates a positive feedback loop that reinforces itself and spirals up to greater and greater blessings. **One of the best ways to learn more about this Financial Freedom Loop is to sign up for the Financial Peace University class that starts soon here at our church. Remember when you practice God s money management principles it s a win, win, win God wins because he has your trust, God s kingdom wins because it has the resources it needs, and you win because God promise to bless those who trust him. And those wins feed on themselves and keep spiraling up. It s an amazing supernatural blessing. Conclusion: GUIDED PRAYER As we come to the conclusion of this series on trust, I d like us to spend a few moments together in prayerful reflection here in LIVE, with our friends in Re:new, and the Chapel. 1. During this series in what area has God been calling you to trust him more? Has it felt as though he s putting his finger on one area in particular where he s calling you to trust in greater ways?
7 Have you felt the emotions that stir doubt, and the impulses to just abandon the effort and just go back to resting the ladder of your life on ungodly things? It s important at this point in your trust growth to acknowledge those uncomfortable feelings and push back against them with truths from God s word. Research them, review them, process them with a Christ following friend or counselor, memorize them, and recite them as often as necessary to enable you to push through and continue to practice trust in God, his promises, and his plan. In the privacy of your hearts, and with your own words, take a moment and share with God your desire to trust him, the fears and worries you have, and present yourself to him to empower you to grow in your trust. 2. As we ve seen in this series, for many of us, one of the most challenging areas to seek to trust God, is in the area of managing our money. Again in the privacy of your own heart, and in your own words, share with God the fears, anxieties, or apprehensions you have regarding regularly giving your money for his work in the world. What makes your ladder shaky as you consider his call to transfer your trust off your understandings on to his understandings regarding money? Since trusting God with your money starts with belief that God is faithful, and is completed by practicing regular giving, invite him to empower you to commit to giving your tithes and offerings regularly back to him as your powerful demonstration of trust in him. TRANSITION PRAYER. And now as we take the next step in our worship this morning.{live RECORDING STOPS} We recognize this is our regular time to worship you and proclaim our trust in you through the giving of our tithes and offerings. May you be honored as we renounce materialism, keep you first in our lives, and do our part to resource your work in the world. Bless each gift and each giver. Church of the Foothills 2015