Doubts and Distrust? -What do we do when we cannot trust God?

What do we do when we cannot believe God?

"One of the devil's favorite temptations is the kind we cannot argue out of.

We simply have to believe.

That's what we call faith."

Satan wants to make us doubt God. He wants to get us to the place where we cannot trust God.

How can we win a battle if we cannot trust God?

Examples:

In the garden of Eden, the devil challenged Adam and Eve with this question, "Did God really say? ..." (Gen 3:1) Then he directly contradicted God's words. As an argument, the devil probably won. The only way to win that battle would have been to stop arguing, and claim faith -- "God said it, I believe it, and I'm going to follow and obey Him!"

When Satan tempted Jesus in the desert, logically, Satan's first temptation made very good sense. "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." (Matt 4:3). Logically, it makes sense. Jesus is hungry. He understands that physically, he is near the point of starving to death. As the Son of God, he has the power to turn the stones into bread. And most importantly, what Satan has suggested is not wrong. He's not even suggesting that Jesus do anything bad at all. In fact, it would probably be the smartest thing to do.

But Jesus understood that this temptation was coming from the devil, and should be rejected, even though it made logical sense, and was not sinful. Beware my friends, for the devil may first tempt with things that are not wrong. They help his logical case, and get you used to following him.

Contrary to logic, Jesus clung to the Word of God in faith. And He won the battle.

Recently, I have faced similar temptations. Logically, the devil had a very good point. Intellectually, he had beaten me. In fact, I was inclined to agree with him. I had to tenaciously cling to faith, against my intellect and reason. And I won. Not by argument or debate, but by faith.

Discussion

We cannot win spiritual battles intellectually. "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds." (2 Corinthians 10:4). There is a reason that in God's armor our DEFENSE is called the Shield of Faith. Faith is the only way to win many of these combats. The devil will mess with our mind. We can only win by faith in the Word of God (the sword). (Ephesians 6)

One of the devil's favorite temptations is the kind we cannot argue out of.

We simply have to believe.

That's what we call faith.

We're used to being able to argue to what is right. But what about when we can't? What if there is no good argument? What about when we cannot answer why?

We must believe.

I just want to highlight some words from John chapter 14:

[Jesus] Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.

[Us] Lord, we don't know ... so how can we know?

[J] I am the way. If you really know me, you will know ...

[Us] Lord, show us ...

[J] Don't you believe? ... Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.

Our most important choices in life must be decisions of the will, without the benefit of the understanding.

• Salvation requires an act of the will
• Marriage is a decision of the will without the benefit of understanding. "For better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health." One simply does not know what is coming, but is deciding to be committed and faithful anyway.Too many marriages end because someone starts arguing "I didn't understand what I was getting into."
• Our dedication to the Lord must also be an act of the will, even without the benefit of understanding. He has promised persecution, pain, and that the world will hate us (John 15:18-21).

We won't understand what is happening, or why. But the most important decision is this -- will we serve Him, trust Him, and love Him, even when we don't understand?

Job is a constant challenge to my faith. In the midst of the worst (and no good intellectual argument, and no one could answer why), Job makes the strongest statement of faith:

"Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him." Job 13:15

Thoughts:

"I don't understand," said the blind man.

The guide replied with a chuckle, "That is because you cannot see."

Please listen to this song:

"The Promise" by the Martins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2Irtr3sbBM

What God Hath Promised - Hymn

Verse 1

God hath not promised skies always blue,

Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through;

God hath not promised sun without rain,

Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.

Chorus

But God hath promised strength for the day,

Rest for the labor, light for the way,

Grace for the trials, help from above,

Unfailing sympathy, undying love.

Verse 2

God hath not promised we shall not know

Toil and temptation, trouble and woe;

He hath not told us we shall not bear

Many a burden, many a care.

Verse 3

God hath not promised smooth roads and wide,

Swift, easy travel, needing no guide;

Never a mountain, rocky and steep,

Never a river, turbid and deep.