The Good and Beautiful God Part 1, Chapter 3 – God is Trustworthy
(Re)cap 1.05.18
Part 1, Chapter 3 – God is Trustworthy
Summary
Just because someone has attributes, it does not automatically equate to
their intent and treatment toward you. A
wise man might give his thoughts or keep them to himself, a wealthy man could
give or keep money, a violent man may choose or not to rob you. Knowing God’s Character is foundational, but
trusting Him and His response is another issue.
Beginning Chapter 3, we start to have a look at how trust works, why it
develops, where it can fall off of the rails, and why it is important to
consider our stance before Father. His
intent is to show and convince us that He is Trustworthy.
Key points
Understanding someone’s character is an important
issue. Knowing what to expect from that
character and trusting it is a whole other issue.
Perhaps one of the main, universal drivers shared by every human is a
desire for the avoidance of pain.
Beginning at that premise, we can possibly trace the beginnings of every
behavior, decision and hope. And perhaps
this is because the existence we experience in life is the polar opposite of
the state of existence for which we were intended – one of peace surrounding a
perfect God Who knows no deficiency. We
just weren’t made for this falleness.
Found both in Scripture and the hopeful tales spun by mankind, in
‘Heaven’ there is no need, pain, loss – only joy, gladness, provision,
peace. It seems in the end, we are all
drawn to this. Even the Lost hope for
the dead to be ‘in a better place’.
A correct understanding of Scripture will repair the fallacies we
attribute to God. Yet, the Goal of God
and His Word are not simply to rescue us from Hell – it is to move us
increasingly into relationship with the God with Whom we will reside, once the
wrath we’re due has been addressed.
The report of Creation heralds perfection. Everything began “very good” (Gen 1.31). Scripture is replete with assurances of God’s
goodness. We are told He is right, fair,
full of mercy, even good intent. There
is little room for argument concerning His Character. However, to varying degrees we are faced with
a disconnect between God’s Character and how we trust He will respond to us. Now, ‘varying degrees’ is an enormous
understatement. As we consider Jesus’
trust of Father and learn to compare it to our own warped state and outlook, we
face a seemingly bottomless chasm of mistrust.
Father understands this, and His work is to continually invite us to bridge
that ravine with Truth and confirmation.
We are His workmanship (Eph 2.10), and the works He brings us to walk in
only succeed as we engage these works trusting Him (Jn 15.5). These exercises build our trust in His
Character and response.
For we are His
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand, that we should walk in them. Eph
2.10
I am the vine;
you are the branches. Whoever abides in
Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do
nothing. Jn 15.5
Father calls each and every human towards a primary
Goal, and every Believer participates in their progress towards that Goal.
Father of course understands this, and goes to endless lengths to help
and to accommodate us towards the Goal.
Laying a foundation of Who He Is through Scripture, the next course of
bricks begins. He teaches us to trust
that He will not keep these attributes to Himself, but instead work to in us to
“taste and see that the Lord is good”.
Oh, taste and
see that the Lord is good! Blessed is
the man who takes refuge in Him! Ps 34.8
God’s goodness is a given, yet not until we would taste and take refuge
are we blessed. Why? Because knowing of His Character is one
issue, while trusting His Character as directed towards us is a whole other
issue.
In the same way that an expert in a field who doesn’t have hands-on
experience is incomplete, so too are we if we thoroughly know the reports of
God in Scripture yet lack a trust borne out of an engaging experience with Him.
How will we grow to know what to expect from
Someone Who is unseen?
So herein lays the problem: How would we hope to grow in our
understanding of and trust in an invisible Person? Without reservation, we can agree that a knowledge
of Him through the Scriptures is essential, lest we would know of and believe
in a God other than the One written of. But
remember, we all begin this Walk ignorant of Him, and ignorant of the
Scriptures.
Consider the universal progression every human is called to tread:
- Recognize there is a God
- See the Scope of His presence and involvement
- See our core opposition to Him and His ways
- Hear His call and His demand to repent and
return to Him - Acknowledge our need for Him
- Ask for Rescue from our fallen state
- Recognize this newly reconciled relationship
- Cooperate towards a progressively changed
‘heart’ - Patiently help others to realize the same you’ve
learned - Prepare to meet Him
Notice that this cycle applies to us across the spectrum – whether we’re
not yet Saved, or if we’ve followed Him all of our life since Salvation. The Lost finds rescue in the cycle; the Saved
finds progressing Sanctification. In
both scenarios, the participant is called to and learns to trust Him.
The cycle of knowing, understanding and trusting Him is an upward
ascending and increasing spiral, like a spring small at the bottom growing
larger at the top. As He nurtures us, all
steps of this cycle are played over and over again in an expanding
success. We can even locate ourselves in
this progression before or after receiving Salvation – the cycle number you’re
on might be different, but the process repeats and remains the same because the
Goal remains the same. It is a lifetime-long
road, but He is caring and patient.
To increasingly engage in the above requires trust in God, yet a God we
are to progressively know better. And so
the question was posed: Consider other
people in your life who represented an influence over you. For instance, what characteristics did
(presumably) your Dad have, and how do you recognize the effects your view of
God the Father? Why? Because we begin life ignorant of God,
perhaps first learning about influencing characteristics from our Dads. In traditional families, we will first know
more of our Dad’s/Influencer’s character before learning Father’s. This foundation preemptively colors our
understanding and attitude about authority, grace, God, and how we can expect Him
to respond. Not intended in the least to
be psyco-babble, nor an excuse for our choices, we cannot seem to escape what
even Sesame Street teaches toddlers – to know something new, build upon
something similar you already understand.
From Scripture, we are also instructed to learn from parallels in the
same way – Moses’ instructions of the Tabernacle and Laws were a shadow (Heb 8.4-5),
sound leaders are to be imitated (Heb 13.17), and we have Jesus’ example to
follow (1
Pet 2.21).
Now if He were
on earth, He would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer
gifts according to the law. 5 They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly
things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God,
saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown
you on the mountain.” Heb 8.4-5
Remember your
leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their
way of life, and imitate their faith. Heb
13.17
For to this you
have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example,
so that you might follow in His steps. 1
Pet 2.21
The Influencers in our lives, good or bad, can be a
blessing – take care to test your narrative and weigh it against the true
Model.
We trotted out the question concerning our Dads’ influence on our view
of Father, and got answers across the spectrum – good characteristics leading
us to God, bad traits informing us of a problem in contrast to His traits, and even
a neutral influence neither good nor bad.
In our group’s case, they all influenced our path to God. Perhaps we all know of someone whose Influencers
have helped to spin them off into destruction, or even a very good person who
has still failed to embrace God.
If we agree that the universal progression every person is called to
tread listed above is true, and that our view of God is effected by our Influencers,
then we can acknowledge it is imperative to run all influences – what we read,
hear, associate with, believe – through the sieve of Scripture. We must derive what is called right by the
Truth, and repair our perceptions. On
the topic of trusting Father, what things are snagging you?
A personal experience.
I was gently asked, “I notice you refer to God the Father as
“Father”. Would you please explain
that?”
After more thought, my answer is that I conclude it is Scriptural (Rom 8.14-17),
a term of glad submission and endearment, and an expression of a personal
relationship He beckons me to.
For all who are
led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear,
but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba!
Father!” The Spirit himself bears
witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then
heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with Him in
order that we may also be glorified with Him.
Rom 8.14-17
I perceive a godly Dad as one who strives to be wise, provides
instruction and direction, protects, and insists on God’s way in patience and
love. Imitating Jesus, he would do
everything he could to live up to his role in the world (not just in the home, and
beyond being only a ‘spiritual leader’) as prophet, priest, and king. All of these attributes and responses are
perfectly declared and demonstrated by Father God. I love His Pure dealings with me, and His
forging of these same attributes in me as His child.
Those who have influenced me throughout my life have not been many of
these things – both persons of bad character overall, and even fellow fallen
Believers who are learning holiness like I am.
But in a clear and absolute way, I recount how God has increasingly been
that perfect Father for me. It is not
that He has increased, but instead He has helped me increasingly embrace Who He
fully Is and recognize His dealings with me.
The outcome of any progressively Sanctified heart includes a repaired
understanding of Him, and with repentance, an ever wider lens that sees
Him. Father, our Heavenly Father, works
towards fulfilling His intent to grow each of us this way. He has been consistent and true to me, and
this is why I choose to reverently call Him Father.
Consider early Church father Polycarp’s response to those who would have
him deny Christ. There stood a man who
had learned to trust God, and I want to know Him in the same way.
The proconsul then urged him, saying, “Swear, and I will release thee; —
reproach Christ.” Polycarp answered, “Eighty and six years have I served Him,
and He never once wronged me; how then shall I blaspheme my King, Who hath
saved me?” At the stake, to which he was only tied, but not nailed as usual, as
he assured them he should stand immovable, the flames, on their kindling the
fagots, encircled his body, like an arch, without touching him, and the
executioner, on seeing this, was ordered to pierce him with a sword when so
great a quantity of blood flowed out as extinguished the fire.
My privilege of a growing closeness to Father cannot be special or
unique – I read in the Word that this relationship is intended for every human
being who would embrace Christ, obey the Spirit, and trust Father.