‘But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.’ James 1:22.
If we are going to truly demonstrate our trust in God, we must not only seek his direction, but obey it when he gives it. A Bible search on what it means to love God invariably returns the same answer. That is, to keep his commandments and do as he instructs:
‘If ye love me, keep my commandments … He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.’ John 14:15, 21.
Keeping his commandments is a loving act that comes with the blessing of making our way prosperous and giving us ‘good success’ (Joshua 1:8), or, as is written in Deuteronomy 5:33:
‘Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.’
Christian Israelites believe that the ‘land’, while literal, can also be symbolic of our physical body (it also being made of earth) and that following God’s commandments can lead to us ‘possessing the promised land’ (Leviticus 20:24), or receiving the salvation of the body in the end days:
‘But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.’ Ezekiel 18:21.
In our lifetime, we will face many battles – with ourselves and other people – but we must remember that the battle belongs to the Lord and that he will fight for us. When Jehoshaphat faced a great multitude of war-seeking Ammonites, the first thing he did was seek God’s advice and favour. A priest then told Jehoshaphat:
‘Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s … Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.’ 2 Chronicles 20:15, 17.
Jehoshaphat and his men did as they were instructed and were victorious, just as we will be victorious when we seek God, trust in him and his directions, and obey.
Even if we have been treated unjustly, we need to remember not to avenge ourselves but that ‘vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord’ (Romans 12:19). It is God who will ‘cast out thine enemy’ (Zephaniah 3:15). As is written in Exodus:
‘The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.’ Exodus 14:14.
In other words, there are times when we need to keep still and quiet and let God do the work. Or, to put it another way, we should:
‘Take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.’ Ephesians 6:13.
Overall, trusting in God allows him to do the work that is too big, complex, or worrying for us. While we do our part in seeking and trusting him, and residing in peace, he gladly takes care of things on our behalf and in his infinite wisdom. We can trust that he will resolve our problems in the best possible way, and often in a way we could have never foreseen or contrived ourselves. God knows when we trust him (Nahum 1:7), and is eager to bless us when we do:
‘O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.’ Psalm 34:8.
When we are feeling anxious, trusting in God is the first and most important step we can take to return to peace and confidence.
View other devotionals in this series