Ancient Words For Today - 54
Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him... Psalm 37:3-7
In the above verses, King David shares insights about what our response to and relationship with the Lord God should be. These can be summarized with 5 words: Trust, Delight, Commit, Rest and Wait. The sequential order of these action words is interesting.
Trust in the Lord is, and must necessarily be, our initial response. Until we come to the point in our life of putting our faith and trust in God, it is not possible for us to delight in, commit to, rest in, or wait upon Him. Trusting in the Lord first requires that we hear about Him, believe in Him and establish a relationship with Him. We learn from the Apostle Paul that a relationship with God is possible for anyone who calls upon God; no one is excluded, but they must call upon Him:
For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have
not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:12-17
The means by which we can call upon God to have a relationship with Him can never be based upon our own goodness or merit. God has a high requirement that none of us personally can meet: God's standard is perfection. We must come through faith in God's perfect Son, Jesus:
Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. Romans 10:1-4 So, when we Believe in Jesus we are made acceptable to God, He forgives our sins, and we begin a new relationship with Him.
As we grow in our knowledge of God, learning more of His incredible love for us and understanding that He has a good plan for our life, we will begin to delight in Him and our love for Him will grow, bringing us even closer. As we delight in God, He will give us (establish) the desires of our heart. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 God will establish our very thoughts and plans to conform with His will.
As we commit to and follow God's plan (as He reveals it to us) we will experience the good, exciting and abundant life God pre-ordained for us, we will bear spiritual fruit, and be blessed. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
We will also discover that God has perfectly equipped us to carry out His plan and will give us all the resources we need to complete it. We will gradually learn to rest in the Lord, relying on His power and might, trusting Him completely to finish His work in and through us, even if at times it may seem to us like things aren't going so well. It is often during difficult or troubled times that we learn to wait on the Lord, knowing that he is faithful and will bring to pass that which we have committed to Him. Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6
God bless you as you trust, delight in, commit to, rest in, and wait upon Him.