Who Can We Trust?

Have you considered that we have no real control over our lives?

If we did, we would never catch a cold - let alone have anything bad happen to us. And so . . .

In whom should we trust?

We should trust in God.

God has the control we crave to have, because God is sovereign. God is all-knowing, and He is in control of all things at all times. He is in all places at all times. He knows the beginning and the end.

God is not limited like we human beings are. God is God - and He is eternal. He transcends time and space. He rules time and space.

Isn’t this comforting?

The perfect and holy God has all control. He uses everything that happens to bring about His purposes. And this is what I want to focus on today.

This is in no way meant to diminish the tragedies and horrors that happen in the world today.

The reality is, sin has so corrupted everything in creation. Evil is real. Sorrow is real. Death and disease are real.

Regardless of what people may think of themselves, we are not good, and we do not seek God.  Human nature is so tainted by sin that the only thing we as human beings have been consistent with in our history is hurting one another.

Sin is the root cause of all the evil and death and horrible things that happen in this world. Since Adam's fall it has been rooted in each of us. It is a disease of the soul that will only result in death - spiritual and physical.

Sorrow, grief and tragedy are real, and they leave us staggered.

When we talk about God bringing about His good plan in the midst of tragedy, it is not meant to send the message that we shouldn’t feel the grief. We will, we do, and we absolutely should acknowledge how painful life can be.

But in the midst of pain and tragedy, we who are in Christ can still find peace and comfort in knowing this fact from Romans 8.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28)
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God works for the good of those who love Him.

Who are those who love Him? Those whom He has called to be saved in Christ.

If we are in Christ, we love Christ. We cannot be in Christ and not love Him. If we have been called by God to be in Christ, we can be assured that the love of the triune God holds us even in our worst days.

We may have no control over our lives, but the One who loves us does.

This is why for us who are in Christ, we can endure the tragedy that occurs in our lives: because we know that our loving heavenly Father sees our pain, knows our pain, and is working to bring about His good plan through our pain.

Isn’t this amazing?

We are responsible for the misery in this world through our sin. God, the Holy One,  would have every right to let us suffer - not because He is sadistic and evil, but because we are reaping what we have sown.

It would be justice to let us suffer in this world…because that is how severe our crimes against God are.

Let us not deceive ourselves…our sin has left our souls in blackened grime, in absolute pollution…and we commit crimes of treason against the good, perfect, holy Sovereign King of all things. All we deserve for our sin is suffering and eternal judgment.

And yet - God in His mercy gave us Christ.

He gave us the only way to be forgiven for our sin. He accepted Christ’s perfection, sacrifice, and death in our place.

Christ suffered more for our sin than we who are in Him ever will. Christ tasted the reality of hell as He hung on the cross. As God he endured the infinite ravages of hell. So intense was the suffering of Christ that it wrung the cry “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” from His lips.

This cry was borne of suffering that those who are in Christ will never feel. Christ drank the full cup of wrath so that we wont have to. Even the most severe suffering in this world will not compare to the suffering Christ has experienced - nor what those outside of Christ will feel.

This is the God who works all things together for good for us who are in Christ.

He is Almighty, and we can rest in His sovereignty.

The world may seem out of control - but it’s not. It is in God’s hands. And He is working all things together for His glory and our good.

Reflect on these words in Romans 8:

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18)

Whatever we may be going through, we who are in Christ can be assured of this fact…our pain will not be wasted.

In God’s hands, our suffering is temporary and is refining us. One day there will be a day where there will be no pain or suffering … and we as those in Christ will finally know rest.

Trust God with your lives, loved ones.

​We are in good hands.