Trust the Lordship of Christ
Philippians 2:10-11
Isaiah 43:2-3
Romans 10:9
How trustworthy are you? Can you be trusted? Has you life been lived in such a way that people naturally trust you?
A New York City lab claims to have bottled trust. They say: After showering in the morning simply spray a squirt or two of odorless Liquid Trust onto your skin, and then the people you meet during the next few hours will trust you without their knowing why they trust you.
This Liquid Trust is called “oxctocin” and according to the lab has been scientifically proven to be effective. So for $50.00 you can buy Trust in a bottle.
We say that we believe in God and His plan of salvation through His Son, Jesus. But, do we really trust God? Or is our true motto, “In God we nearly trust?”
If you are on a large sailing boat and you sail into a severe storm. Who are you going to trust? A fellow passenger? Someone who knows how to swim? Or the captain and owner of the sailing boat? Because you trust the captain you quickly do whatever the captain tells you to do to keep the boat from sinking. The captain knows more than anybody else on the boat about how to keep the boat sailing through the storm.
We trust the person who knows the most and has had the most experience.
God is the creator of the universe. God is in control. God is sovereign. God is perfect and complete in Himself. God can never be unfair or unjust. You can trust God?
Psalm 115:3 “For our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes.”
Isaiah 43:13 “From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can oppose what I do. No one can reverse my actions.”
Is God trustworthy? Yes,
I. God is Trustworthy
We have the promise in Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” When you fully trust God then you can experience God’s blessing and guidance for your life. God will take crooked paths, circumstances that seem to build walls and put obstacles in your way, and God will make the way straight. God knows the way through the wilderness of life’s challenges.
How would you feel if one of your children or close friend came to you and said, “I don’t trust you anymore?” You would really feel bad. You would wonder what you did and what you need to do to regain their trust.
There are people who are afraid to trust God completely because they are afraid God will require them to do something dangerous or unpleasant. Yes, that may happen. Jesus suffered pain and agony in carrying out God’s will.
But, it’s not God’s plan to make your life miserable, take away your health, wealth, or take all the fun out of your life. Jesus said in John 10:10b, “I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” Jesus always adds more to you than He takes away. God is for you and not against you.
You can trust the Lordship of Christ because God is in control of the universe. Jesus made it clear that he does not let us wander aimlessly through life. Jesus promises that he will never leave us or forsake us.
You can also trust the Lordship of Christ because God is trustworthy and second because…
II. God is Good
Isaiah 43:2-3b “When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, Your Savior.”
In every stage of your life, God promises to go with you – through deep waters or great trouble, God is with you. God calls your name and says, “You are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you.” God is good….all the time…
We tend to look at life through human eyes. How do you explain birth defects, wars, hurricanes that wipe out entire communities or Aids?
We see human life from a time span of 100 years. God sees life from a limitless tire span. One hundred years is like a dot, a split second, on an atomic clock that never stops. We pursue health, income, a peaceful night, and a secure retirement. Our life priorities are about us. God’s priorities are about God.
Because God is in control we can trust Him to do good. Isaiah 45:7, “I am the one who creates the light and makes the darkness. I am the one who sends good times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things.”
God is trustworthy.
God is Good and third we can trust God because…
III. God is in Control
God did not create the universe and then forget it. He continues to be in control of the universe.
When we look at our world, just a fraction of God’s universe, we see wars and rumors of more wars, cruel threats on our freedom from Iran, North Korea and Muslim terrorist. We have a choice – to trust God or worry.
If God is not in control then we have something to worry about. Because God is in control we have the assurance that God is with us regardless of what happens.
What would it be like to live in a carefree environment? A group of futuristic scientists made the commitment to live in an eight story three-acre, glass-and-steel dome biosphere in the Sonora Desert in Arizona. They would be free from the hot burning rays of the sun or blowing sand. They would live in the carefree dome untouched by all outside elements.
The goal was to develop a space-colony prototype at a cost of 200 million dollars.
The scientists moved into the dome in 1991 and planted seeds and grew their food and started to live a life of utopia.
Would you take part in an experiment free from the cares of this life? You would be free from the blistering heat of life, no bank demanding mortgage payments every month. No hospital bills to pay. No school tests to pass or fail.
Max Ladado, in his book, Come Thirsty, writes that most of us have concerns about cancer-causing rays of the sun. Air vents blowing lung-clotting molds. Pasta with too many carbs. There are some who worry they won’t wake up and others worry they can’t go to sleep. One mother worries because her daughter won’t tell her anything. Another mother worries because her daughter does tell her everything.
Because God is in control you can find his dome of protection for your heart. Philippians 4:7 – “His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
The Apostle Paul goes on to say in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
Can you trust the Lordship of Christ? Yes you can because He is in control. But what about when the storms of life come, and turn your life upside down? Do you trust a sleeping Jesus?
Mark 4:35-41 We have the story of a sleeping Jesus. Jesus called the twelve disciples in Mark chapter 3. In the first part of chapter 4, Jesus teaches that there are four responses to the Gospel. Some refuse to hear the good news like hardened soil, others hear the message and receive it with joy but their decision is all emotional with no roots that go deep, the third hearers receive the Gospel but turn from it when the cares of life, wealth and a desire for nice things have a greater influence. The fourth soil is “good soil.” Good soil hears are the ones who hear and obey the message and live a productive fruitful life.
As evening came Jesus asked his disciples to get into a boat and cross the lake. As they were near the middle of the lake a fierce storm arose and waves began to break into the boat until it was nearly full and ready to sink. Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples feared they were going to sink and went to Jesus and shook him awake crying out, “Teacher, don’t you even care that we are going to drown?”
Jesus got up and spoke to the storm, “Quiet down.” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.
The disciples were worried they were going to sink and be lost. They weren’t quite ready to trust a sleeping Jesus. When the storms of life come you have to decide, to trust Jesus or become fearful and worry. If you don’t trust God then you have reason to worry.
The Lord gives us the reassurance, “When you pass through waters I will be with you. And through the rivers, they will not over flow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. For I am the Lord your God” Isaiah 43:2-3
A week or so ago Gay Lorenz, the church secretary, and I were talking about worry. Gay said, “Why pray when you can worry!”
Listen carefully, to worry and fret and become fearful to the point of despair, is to doubt God.
Listen to Phil.4:6, “Be anxious about nothing.” Worry is irrelevant. It changes nothing. When was the last time you solved a problem by worrying. Imagine someone saying, “I got behind in my bills, so I resolved to worry my way out of debt. And, you know, it worked! A few sleepless nights, a day of fretting and hand wringing. I yelled at my kids and took some pills – glory to worry – money appeared on my kitchen table.
A survey was conducted of what people worry about:
• 40 percent never happen
• 30 percent regard unchangeable deeds of the past
• 12 percent focus on the opinions of others that cannot be controlled
• 10 percent center on personal health, which only worsens as you worry about it
• 8 percent concern real problems that we can influence!
There are some things we worry about that are caused by our lack of preparation. I could go all week involved in many activities. Saturday night I realize I need a message for Sunday. I stand up Sunday morning in church and pray. “Dear Lord, give me a message.” A heavenly voice speaks and we listen in amazement, “Tell the people you didn’t study.” Often our anxiety and worry are due to our lack of preparation.
Do you want to worry less then pray more! Take God at his Word,
Philippians 4:6 “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”
James 5:13 “Are any among you suffering? They should keep on praying.”
When storms of life come your can dump your bad news in a vat of worry and pull out a spoon. Turn on the fire. Sir it. Mope for a while. Brood for a time. It won’t be long before you have a delightful pot of pessimism.
Or you can pour your bad news in a pot of prayer. When you receive bad news at the doctor’s office, give the problem to God. Pray in your heart, “I receive the lordship of Christ. Nothing comes to me that hasn’t passed through You.”
When you are in the middle of a bitter conflict, are you willing to trust a sleeping Jesus?
When you’re making a career change, are you willing to trust a sleeping Jesus?
Jesus calms storms in your life. Jesus knows which storms need calming, You can trust Him. We trust Him because He is trustworthy. We trust Jesus because His word is true..
Do you think the Creator of the universe battles anxiety? Do you suppose God ever wrings his hands or asks angels in heaven for antacids? Of course not! God is in control. God enjoys perfect peace. God is perfect peace.
God offers His peace to you. Wars may break out near and far, but don’t panic. God has overcome the world. Don’t worry about anything, instead, pray about everything. God provides the peace. Our part is to trust.
By the way, the biosphere in experiment in Arizona only lasted 24 months. The experiment was a flop. The Biological balance between plants got out of whack. Oxygen dipped dangerously low. Researches squabbled among themselves. The experiment failed and the dome was abandoned.
Here’s the good news. The dome of God still stands. God’s Word says, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” I Peter 5:7
Jesus still speaks to the storms in your life, “Peace be still.” This week you can do as the old time song says: “Put Your Hand in the Hand.”
Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the water.
Put your hand in the hand of the man who calmed the sea.
Take a look at yourself and you can look at others differently.
Put your hand in the hand of the man from Galilee.
