THE GOD-GIVEN TASK - "What gain has the worker from his toil? I have seen the business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God's gift to man. I perceived that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him. That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away."
What is the difference between faith and trust? Why does it matter? What wisdom are we to gain from knowing the difference? Simply stated, faith is believing while trust solidifies belief over time. Faith begins the process while trust grows and strengthens in response to faith. Case in point, as followers of Christ we believe God's Word to be true, inerrant, and absolute. That is the foundation and premise of our theology. Where trust comes into play is through revelation of Scripture throughout our lives which solidifies our initial faith. We likely do not understand all God's Word has to say nor the reasons why He acts the way He does, but over time we learn to trust because He is graciously sanctifying us through His Word. We must remind ourselves, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). Therefore, we believe the Bible to be the inspired and spoken word of our Creator. Moreover, we believe the Lord not only took on the form of word but also flesh through Jesus Christ, in order to pay the ultimate price for our salvation. "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). These two central truths from John 1 establish the foundation of our faith which trust builds upon over time. Scripture reveals the mind of God through His Word: His will, His purpose, and His sovereignty; and Scripture also reveals the heart of God through His Son: His redemption, His plan of salvation, and His forgiveness, grace and mercy.
Make no mistake, knowing, believing and trusting is a process. We may know what the Bible says, but do we place our eternal faith in its promises and believe what it says is true? We may believe God's Word is true, but what trust is built if we do not submit to its authority and obey its instruction and wisdom through application? We must step forward in faith and trust that God is who He says He is throughout His Word if we are to inherit the blessings He has in store for those who respond to His calling. "Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul" (Psalm 143:8). The example given to us in Joshua 3 paints a perfect portrait of this truth. On their journey to the promised land, the nation of Israel came to the point where they needed to cross the Jordan river, which at the time had overflowed all its banks and greatly exceeded its normal breadth and depth, making it impossible to cross by foot. The most important takeaway from this chapter is that the river did not recede until the feet of the priests carrying the ark of the covenant touched the water. They did not simply approach the shoreline and wait for the waters to stop flowing before they crossed. Rather, God required that their faith in Him be tested to see whether they trusted His Word to be true. Faith required application through trust by taking the first step into perilous water, and we can benefit from their example by applying this principle truth to our lives.
Solomon writes Ecclesiastes 3:9-15 with an accurate perception that God is sovereign and can be fully trusted, for the Lord reveals what we need to know in His time and does not overwhelm us with the crushing weight of infinite knowledge. Therefore, we can enjoy the moments He has given us to enjoy the fruits of our labor because He has provided for our needs. Moreover, we are not burdened by knowing more than we ought and suffering the temptations associated with knowledge, because He is in control at all times and has our best interest in mind. Consider how tempting it would be to live completely and unashamedly for our own selfish pleasure if we knew and day and hour of our passing. Would we have any need for God until the very end? Would we not overindulge ourselves with all the pleasures of life Solomon experienced and repent to God for salvation right before we breathe our last breath? "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?" (Romans 6:1-2). Our dependence on God is due to our inability to save ourselves. Therefore, it is for our benefit that we do not have all the answers to life's questions, because faith and trust are built when we rely on the Lord's wisdom and provision instead of ourselves. It is not easy though. Billy Graham writes of such a faith struggle he had early on in his ministry. He witnessed a fellow evangelist turn from faith in Christ to rest in the false security of science and academia, and was subsequently mocked for the "simple" faith he (Billy) professed in the authority of God's Word. Weighed down and unable to sleep one night, Billy went for a walk and came upon a tree stump. Kneeling down, he laid his open Bible upon it and prayed, "O God! There are many things in this book I do not understand. There are many problems with it for which I have no solution. There are many seeming contradictions. There are some areas in it that do not seem to correlate with modern science. I can’t answer some of the philosophical and psychological questions Chuck and others are raising." But inspired by the Holy Spirit, Billy concluded, "Father, I am going to accept this as Thy Word—by faith! I’m going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts, and I will believe this to be Your inspired Word!"
There is great comfort knowing that who we would consider spiritual leaders have struggled. Whether it be our teaching pastors, ministry leaders, missionaries, etc., there is no substitute for Godly leaders being transparent and vulnerable enough to share their own sins and struggles publicly. In many ways, our respect for them increases as they reveal the frailness of their humanity because we personally identify with their struggles, and in many cases, come to grip with our own sins based on the example they provide through their own testimony. Leaning upon the transparency Solomon expresses, we find comfort knowing that trusting God is sufficient, for the Lord turns ashes to beauty, breathes light into darkness, and raises the dead to new life in Christ. Even creation itself speaks on His behalf, proclaiming the majesty and authority of His name. "For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse" (Romans 1:20). Solomon states plainly that whatever God does endures forever, so we can rest securely not only placing faith in His saving power and majesty, but trusting that the promise of eternity He offers by grace through faith will sustain us through the joys and hardships of our lives. "Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? 'My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives'" (Hebrews 12:3-6).
In the end, our calling as followers of Jesus Christ is to embrace God's Word in its entirety without adding to it or taking away from it, just as Solomon exhorts as well. Let us not gloss over the severity of this issue. The book of Revelation closes with a firm proclamation to those who would undermine the Bible in any way: "I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book" (Revelation 22:18-19). This statement alone proves that God is immune to controversial arguments aimed at discrediting Scripture. His final declaration is that He is sufficient and His Word is true without reservation, excuse or apology. Therefore, we can place complete faith and trust in His grace and mercy rather than our self-sufficiency. "For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:3-7). May we never forget the ultimate price God paid for our freedom and salvation, because "His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire" (2 Peter 1:3-4).
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