Trust God & His Provision

Introduction

Good morning to everybody. If you will, please open your old testaments with me to Joshua chapter six. Joshua chapter six. While you’re turning there, I just want to let you know how full Kashkinai’s hearts are, to be back with so many people that we love, to meet so many new people that we can love and will continue to. And just let you know how humbled and thankful we are for all the outpourings of love. When John said there was a special guest today, I assumed he was for sure going to wisely say that was Kashka. He did not let me amend that for him here. Couple of housekeeping things. One of them is Elijah told me to say that he did a good job. I will not.

He did an outstanding job last week. I want everyone to know, I know you can see this from the fruits of his labor, that he is pouring in many an hour with Ken and John, who are also, by the way, pouring in many an hour and helping him prepare, and Elijah’s doing a wonderful job. And commend that lesson to you so highly. And if you have not seen it, it is on YouTube. And if you haven’t been on there, go on Facebook. I’ve seen it shared about a thousand times. And so pick up any of those links and you can see Elijah’s good message last week. We are just truly thankful to be with everyone, to be worshiping God wherever it may be. It’s a blessing.

Certainly, this is a special family to Kashk and I in so many ways. But to be anywhere, to be able to be with God’s people, to open his word and study from his lessons for us is just truly an outstanding blessing. Joshua chapter 6 and verse 1, we’re obviously in our Old Testament. Now Jericho was shut up inside and outside because of the people of Israel. Now none went out and none came in. And the Lord said to Joshua, see, I have given Jericho into your hand with its king and mighty men of valor. You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for six days. Now seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of ram’s horns before the ark.

And on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priest shall blow the trumpets. And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, every one straight before him. So Joshua, the son of Nun called the priests and said to them, Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven trumpets of ram’s horns before the ark of the Lord. And he said to the people, Go forward, march around the city, and let the armed men pass on before the ark of the Lord.

And while we know the story of Jericho, we think of Jericho, of course, the fortified city that the Israelites could not quite conquer without God’s help. I want to key our text in this morning on verse two. Before any of the instructions about marching and shouting, before any of the actual marching and shouting, and before any victory comes verse two.

Now it’s an important distinction for us, because a lot of times we alternate between two pretty tough positions. That God is here and just does everything for us, and that’s just it. Or we go to the other hand and we say, Well, God is there, but I don’t really want to call on him. I don’t really, I’m not sure that he’s going to be there for me, and it’s such a minor thing. What can I do? Well, verse two says, See, I have. This is a done deal. God is faithful to his word all the time. He has delivered on his word. Joshua has been leading the people systematically and is going to continue to lead them systematically into the promised land, which, by the way, is keeping another promise of God.

And so in verse 2, when God says, I have given Jericho into your hand, we need to be certain that that is true. But then becomes the awkward dance, where we say, Well, then why are verse three through seven there at all? Why are verses eight through twenty one in the text? Why do the Israelites have to do anything if God has already promised, I will do this great thing. Couldn’t God have just taken down Jericho himself? Of course. Couldn’t God have just told the Israelites to go stand outside, wait for him to knock it down and be done with it? Of course he could have. I don’t have all the answers as to why God did what he did, but we can certainly learn from what he has revealed to us that we can trust God and his provision, understanding that God is the one who sets the terms.

He’s the one who gives the victory. He’s the one who sets the terms of that victory on our half, on our behalf. Told the story before.

And Matt, I know nothing about horses, so I’m going to say it wrong. And it’s just going to be the way it is.

He said, I’m interested in your horse, because he’s already well trained, right? And he said, Yes, but I have to let you know my horse is a little special. You see, I’m a preacher, and so I’ve trained my horse to only go when you say, Praise the Lord. That horse will not budge one inch unless you say, Praise the Lord. And that horse will not stop unless you say amen. No amount of kicking, screaming, beating, anything will stop the horse unless you say Amen. The man said, Well, that’s good for me. I don’t really know anything about horses. So as long as the horse will do what we say, that works for me. And so he bought the horse, and weeks later, before his daughter could finally ride her new biggest treasure, the dad took it out for a spin.

Matt, I know that’s not how you ride horses. But as they went along, he’s riding, and he couldn’t get the horse to go because he’s thinking, well, shouldn’t this horse just be going? Giddy up, giddy up. But now he remembered, I have to say, praise the Lord. So the horse started to go. And he’s riding along the hillside. This isn’t Florida, obviously. He’s riding along in the hillside, and he sees a cliff coming, and he starts to get a little nervous, but he’s enjoying how obedient this horse is. This horse has been well trained, well bred, and putting him and his daughter in a position of success. He’s riding along, but that hillside, the edge of that hill, is getting ever closer. And he starts to think, I need to stop this horse.

And so he’s talking to himself. He’s saying, Stop, stop. The horse keeps riding. Whoa, whoa. And the horse keeps riding. The man’s getting desperate. Nothing’s stopping. The cliff is getting ever closer. And finally he just begins to pray, Dear God, please just stop this horse. And if not, be with my family. Bless my wife, bless my kids, bless my daughters. Amen. And the man stops right on the precipice of the hill. And he leans over and he goes, Whew, praise the Lord.

1. God Wants What’s Good for His People

God has given us everything that we could need and then some. But there still is a role for us to play. The man didn’t train the horse. The horse was only following his command. The horse could have been a great tool, a great instrument, could have been great fun for his daughter. But the man’s execution was the difference in whether it was enjoyable or it’s having a terrible ending. In Joshua, we see that God has taught us several lessons in the battle of Jericho. Number one, we need to learn that God does want what’s good for our people. He wants good for his people, the Israelites. He wants good for you and I. He wants good for the people we love. But good based upon his definition.

Now, one thing that will help us with Joshua chapter 6 is why is Joshua even in charge of the people? We’ve read earlier about Moses and Aaron. And you think about Aaron was a good priest for the people, by and large. He had some flaws, like we all do. But Moses was an adequate leader. In fact, he was a great godly leader. He was even a prophet that Jesus would be similar to. And yet, why wasn’t Moses leading the people into the promised land? God always keeps his words, right? And God had told Abraham that your descendants would receive this promised land. That would include Moses and the people he was leading. But in Numbers chapter 13 and 14, there were twelve spies, among them Joshua and Caleb, who went into that promised land to take what God had offered, to see how wonderful it was, and they saw that.

But what did they fixate on instead? Not how good the land was, not on all the promises of God. Now, not how God is faithful, but on the giants that were there. And they said, God just sent us to die. He just wants us to die in this wilderness. And in chapter 14, they got the entire congregation of Israel to grumble against God and the leaders, Moses, namely. And among other sins of Moses and the people, God, even though he promised Canaan to Abraham’s descendants, those people did not inherit the promised land. And that leads to our question. Did God not assure them victory like in Jericho? He did. But what happened with the people? They did not trust God to give and to hand over that victory in the manner in which God had specified.

And so this is what we see here in verses 3 through 7. God has a plan for this victory, even though he will keep it. By the way, God did keep his promise, even to those numbers in 13, 14 Israelites. That includes Joshua, who is now leading the people into and through Canaan. It just wasn’t on the time schedule of the Israelites who disobeyed God. So in verse 3, again, he says, You shall march around the city, all the men of war, going around the city once. Thus you shall do for six days. Seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of ram’s horns before the ark, and on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. And when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up, everyone straight before him.

And another thing I don’t know about, besides horses, is building things, certainly walls, but other than IKEA furniture, nothing I know falls down when you shout at it. You look at this and you say, God’s plan for victory is bizarre. Isn’t it? If you’re thinking about military, you often have certain elements of the Old Testament where they catch the enemies by surprise, or they turn them on themselves. They confuse the enemy and fire, can rage and take it out. And while it’s unlikely, and we know God’s the one steering that unlikely victory, we at least understand it. Can I pause it this morning? That there’s really no understanding, marching, shouting and blaring trumpets to knock down a fortified city’s walls. This is only God. And so this helps us.

Remember that’s the dilemma is in verse two. If God has given Jericho into our hand, why did the Israelites have to do anything? Well, God’s plan clearly is not something that would allow the Israelites to say, Wow, we busted through the walls of Jericho. No civilization before us has been able to do that, but we did it because of how strong we are. Well, what’d you do, Israel? Well, you know, we marched around it a lot. We blared some trumpets, we all shouted at the same time. No, that was God’s plan for victory. And that victory that God had promised and planned was only possible. The conquering of Jericho was only going to come to fruition when the Israelites obeyed God’s commands, whether it made sense to them, whether it was a sound logical battle plan or not.

And the question is for us today will we do this? Of course, in verse 8, just as Joshua had commanded the people, the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of Ram’s horns before the Lord went forward, blowing the trumpets with the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord following them. The armed men were walking before the priests who were blowing the trumpets, and the rear guard was walking after the ark, while the trumpets blew continually. But Joshua commanded the people, you shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth until the day that I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout. So he caused the ark of the Lord to circle the city, going about it once, and then they came into the camp and spent the night in the camp.

Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the Lord, and the seven priests bearing the seven trumpets of Ramshorns before the ark of the Lord walked on, and they blew the trumpets continually. The armed men were walking before them, and the rear guard was walking after the ark of the Lord, while the trumpets blew continually. And the second day they marched around the city once and returned in the camp, so they did for six days. Certainly, verses 15 through 21 illustrate that they would do everything to the letter of what God had said. And so we’re left one more time with the question now posed differently. Did following God to the letter somehow invalidate the trust that they should have had that God had already in verse 2 promised total victory.

2. God Does Not Need Our Greatness or Strength

And the answer to that, of course, is no. Trust was shown in God by accepting his victory on his terms because he’s the maker. Because he’s the creator. He put them in the position for success, but they still had to walk through the door. And that concept is what we see throughout the scripture. And one of the things we also learn is what God doesn’t need from us. We’re going to look at really two passages the rest of the morning in referencing Joshua chapter 6. Look at the 20th Psalm. Turn with me there. The 20th Psalm and the Sermon on the Mount. The 20th Psalm, God does not need our greatness or our strength. Notice where victory lies. Notice where power and strength originate from. In the 20th Psalm, I’m in the first three verses.

May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble. May the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May He send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion. May He remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices. What do we do? Man’s part in the equation of life is pretty simple and embarrassing, to be honest. In verse 1, where is the Lord answering us? In our day of trouble. God doesn’t get in trouble. Have you noticed that? God’s record on being in control is 100%. We’re the ones who have trouble. We’re the ones who have problems. And so it’s strange then when we start to teach from the scriptures that God needs me. God needs my strength, and I can pull myself up by my bootstraps.

Isn’t that the American Christian ethic? When you’re down and out, you just gotta work harder. You gotta do more. New Testament scriptures do teach in 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 for those who are unwilling to work who are able.

This is not to say do nothing. But the Israelites didn’t do nothing. If they had done nothing at Jericho, what has God shown in Numbers 13 and 14 with the 12 spies he would do in keeping his promises? He’d pass on that generation and give the promise to the next. Doing nothing is unacceptable. But where was the victory at Jericho? It was in God. Where is strength in times of trouble? The 20th Psalm says, the Lord will answer us. The Lord will protect you. He will send you help from the sanctuary, he will give you support. Notice in just those two verses, four references to God’s help. The Lord will answer you, he will protect you, send you help, and give you support. None of that is how great I am.

None of that is how great we are. That’s God will take care of that. Now we’ll break down what is that help in a moment. But may God remember verse 3, all your offerings and regard with your favor your burnt sacrifices. Look at me in Hebrews chapter 11. We see a reference here that helps us put this into practice. In Hebrews chapter 11 in verse 30, and then we’re going to move one verse backwards. Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 30, in this great hall of faith chapter, what does it mean to have that faith that pleases God? Of course, verse 6 says, Without faith it is impossible to please him. We must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.

But here in verse 30, it says, by faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days. Trust and faith are very similar. I understand they’re not identical words, but the idea of having faith in God is similar to the idea of having trust in him. And yet the walls of Jericho fell because God dropped them. We all know that. God did the miracle in Joshua chapter 6. Shouting at walls does not make them fall. And yet, Hebrews chapter 11, verse 30 says, Faith knocked down the walls, but faith that was activated or accessed at what moment? After they’ve been encircled for seven days. Why did that matter? Because those were God’s terms of victory. That was God’s miraculous might. That was God’s strength.

Sometimes what we do is we look at this moment and we do our little circling of Jericho. We walk around and we blare the trumpet, and then we see the good result that God has promised all along for those who trust him and do what he says, and then we start to say, Look how good I am. I should be helping other people. Look at how good this is, and we see people fail, and we say, if they just did what I did, if they just did what I know to be true, then they could have a happy life too. God doesn’t need our strength. God is more than capable of providing for us. Now, look one verse back with me in verse 29. Similar but different instance in the Old Testament.

By faith, the people crossed the Red Sea as on dry land. But the Egyptians, when they attempted to do the same, were drowned. Now again, you think about the parting of the Red Sea. Who did that miracle? It wasn’t Moses’ superpowers, that was God. Now, God used his people, he allowed his people to cross, but God parted the sea and the people crossed. Now, let’s keep track of who’s doing the hard work here. The people in verse 29 walked. God separated the seas. Who does the glory belong to? It’s God. Every time. Now, what would have happened if the Israelites saw the miracle, saw the Red Sea parted, and they just said, You know what? I trust so much that God’s going to deliver me because He’s the one who will answer me.

He is the one who will send support. He’s the one who will give me sanctuary. And they just sat down right at the edge of the Red Sea as the Egyptians were coming for them from behind. What would have happened? I know that one without having to read it. The Egyptians would have killed them, or at a minimum, captured them and brought them back into slavery. How did they cross the Red Sea? By faith, as though it was on dry ground, because God made it so. The Egyptians tried to come after that was not part of God’s plan. And what happened to them? They were all drowned. You see, our strength doesn’t mean anything. But just because I’m not the strongest warrior, just because God’s the one in charge doesn’t mean I do nothing.

3. God Doesn’t Need Our Great Planning and Genius

They still had to walk. The walls of Jericho fell when they had been encircled for seven days by faith. By that same faith, the Red Sea was crossed as though on dry ground. And in both cases, God gave his people victory. Now turn it back with me to the 20th Psalm. God also doesn’t need our great planning. He doesn’t need my genius. In Psalm 20, none of these scenarios in battle are the way I would have depicted how to do this. Separate the Red Sea and get it. I couldn’t dream that big because I couldn’t imagine parting the Red Sea. I certainly would have never envisioned blaring instruments and shouting at walls to make them fall. God doesn’t need that from you and I.

Now this is where it gets a little bit dicey. Because when I put up on a PowerPoint and I say, God doesn’t need our great planning and genius, we all agree. But what does that look like? Well, sometimes I interact with God’s will and I kind of sprinkle a little bit of me in there when I say, okay, well, if someone’s going to be saved, because God’s the one who does the saving and we gotta be like God, I’m gonna read the scriptures and then kind of interpret them the way I feel like. I’m gonna say, you know what, this is great, but if people would do it my way, this would be so much better. If people would just do what I think is best, if they would just look like I do on Sunday or Wednesday, if they would just come the amount of times that I think somebody should come to worship, if they would just participate, they would just look like me, then it would be okay.

And anyone who doesn’t fit that mold, by the way, is at risk. What’s the problem with that? It’s too much me. Too much I. Not enough God. God doesn’t need our opinion on it. He needs our faith and trust. And by needs means if he wants to save us, which he does, he desires that all men be saved, we follow his terms. That’s our need. God has just provided the terms. To be very careful on both sides of the ledger, making God’s kingdom too big and too small. Because it’s not my kingdom to determine the boundaries of. It’s God’s. What can we take solace in in? How can we know we’re speaking and not adding to it? We’ve got to be people of the word. We have to constantly be looking.

What did God say? His instructions for Joshua were very strange and weird. If I was in the camp, I don’t know, there’s a few of you out here, I know you well enough, who would be with me and go, I don’t think Joshua heard that right. He wants us to do what? For how long? He wants us to shout at the walls? Can we get an explanation for that? Sometimes we do. Sometimes in scripture we have an explanation for why God has the standards that he does. And I think that’s a blessing to us. Other times, God’s will is just clear. And he doesn’t owe us an explanation because he’s the creator. He’s the one who separates the Red Sea. He’s the one who does all the heavy lifting.

God doesn’t need our thoughts on his plan. Notice with me the real problem in the 20th Psalm in verse 7. Rather than God who gives support and sanctuary and help and answers in the day of trouble. Some, verse 7, trust in chariots and some in horses. But we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. O Lord, save the king. May He answer us when we call. I think one of the things that often happens is we look at God’s plan and we say, I know I shouldn’t add to it. And I gotta be careful not to take away from it. But I have some thoughts. I have some concerns. They put it this way, just in a worldly way.

When’s the last time you ask someone to do something? Parents, if you stare at your kids, just know that’s okay because I’ll laugh at it. You ask someone to do something, and they just said, okay. Yes. Not when does it need to be done? Not some sort of extraneous detail, not do I have to? Just yes. Now, take that and apply it to God’s word. And when God has revealed his word, the creator of the heavens of the earth, he’s given his will. He says, This is what I need, this is what I want, and we go, does he need that? Does God really mean that we have to do this? Do I have to act in my community this way? Do I have to serve others?

Do I have to wash feet? Do I have to be sacrificial? Do I have to let someone else strike the other cheek? Do I have to? And of course, we know that’s missing the boat. If you’ve ever asked someone to do something, particularly not related to you, and they say, Do I have to? You kind of think the initial reaction is, you know what, it’s fine, I’ll just do it. I’ll take care of it. I apologize for the inconvenience. Whether, depending on how good your heart is, you might mean that sincerely or sarcastically. But you kind of lean back and say, Well, I’ll do it. But we treat God as if he’s just another person who asks us to do some things, and we kind of take what we like and we leave out what we don’t like.

4. Removing All Doubts and Fears

And we enforce what we like on others, and we don’t enforce what we don’t like on others, because of course that would mean I have to do some things I’m uncomfortable with, or I don’t understand. Because the prophet would say in Isaiah 55, God’s ways are higher than our ways. So are his thoughts higher than our thoughts. It’s not even close. Again, conceptually we get this, but the question would be: do I live out a way that God doesn’t need? Do I try to flex my personal strength? Do I flex my planning and genius? Do I get preoccupied with my thoughts? Four things the lesson will be yours, and what does fully trust in God look like? One of them is removing all doubts and fears.

Now, this is this is the goal, right? This is not to say, all right, I heard the sermon today, I have to have no doubts and fears. That’s not good. I have a lot of doubts and fears, I am doomed. Remember, the 28th Psalm, verse 1, 2, and 3, who’s there to help? God. He will answer, he will send support, he will give you sanctuary. God is here to help you. Let’s look at what Jesus says. Matthew chapter 6. Matthew chapter 6 and verse 25. Now here is a very direct command of Jesus. There is really no way to skirt around this. There’s no loophole. And many of you who have the red and black print, this is in red. Every loophole I’ve ever heard on not obeying the scripture does not stand here in Matthew 6, 25.

Jesus is speaking and he’s very clear. Unfortunately, it’s a tough one. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Let’s get down with me to verse 30. If God so clothes the grass of the field which today is alive and tomorrow is sown to the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or what shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your Heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Did you see that at the end of verse 30? O you of little faith. Of course, we know the answer to doubt and fear that’s outlawed in verse 26 is verse 33. What do we do instead of doubting? Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. And then what will God do? The miraculous, the hard part. All that you need, all of these things shall be added to you. If we’re honest and we say, okay, well, raise your hand if you’ve ever worried about something, right?

That’s a risk. Because if I ask you if you’ve worried about something, and you’re in church and you don’t put your hand up, that’s that’s a double sin, right? Lying in church. Can’t do that. We all doubt. We all have worries. What catches my attention though is in verse 25, what the worries Jesus says are even not applicable. It’s not okay to worry, even if it’s about what you eat, drink, or what you will wear. And by the way, this isn’t the fun conversation that’s going to come in about an hour that goes, where do I want to eat? That’s a different kind of worry and problem. This is, is there food for me? Can I survive? Do I have the basic necessities of life? Jesus says, Do not be anxious about your life.

That’s a straight sentence. It’s in red, and yet it’s very hard to deal with, isn’t it? He gives a lot of reasons why not to worry. Number one is in verse 26. Look at the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor gather in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. If God can take care of nature, he can take care of us. How many times does God have to prove he loves his people? And he doesn’t just love us in theory. He doesn’t just love us when we’re perfect. In fact, he sent Jesus to die for us while we were sinners. In Romans chapter 5, verse 6, 8, and 10, we’re described as enemies, sinners, ungodly, over and again. And this is the exact time that God did what in verse 8?

Demonstrated his own love towards us. While we were sinners, Christ died for us. We were reconciled when we were enemies, weak and ungodly of God. Then we were made whole, reconciled with our great God. What is better than that? We have to remove the doubts and fears. Not because we’re great and we’re gonna figure it out, but because God is not only real, he’s not only there and cares, he has promised to take care of you and I.

What percentage of the time? Every single time. When God says it, it’s done. Then why would I worry about these things? Number one, I can be distracted. Maybe it’s like Peter in Matthew chapter 14 when he’s the one who gets out of the boat. He has the only faith when Jesus is walking on water. The eleven cowardly disciples stay in the boat, but we jump onto Peter because once he gets out, he’s actually doing the miraculous thing. He’s walking on water for a couple moments at least, and then what happens? He sees the wind and the waves. His eyes are distracted from Jesus, who was working the miracle through him, and he began to sink. And what did Jesus say to him, just like he says here in Matthew chapter 6?

5. Remove All Pride

Why did you doubt? Why do you have little faith? The solution is to seek first the kingdom of God as righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Another thing to do is to remove all pride. Look at me at Matthew chapter 5. Matthew chapter 5. Think about Habakkuk, right before Judah fell. Habakkuk’s told in chapter 1, when he speaks to God in verses 1 through 4, God, you are letting so much wicked win. The wicked are surrounding the righteous. Injustice is going forth everywhere. And God actually replies to him, which is amazing. And he says in verse 5, I have a plan for this, Habakkuk. You keep saying I have no plan. I have a plan. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.

Verse 6, what’s God’s plan? To send Babylon. Now by the way, Habakkuk’s going to tell God how much he doesn’t like that plan. And you know how much that changes of God’s plan? Zero, because God is God. He sets the standard and the rules and the plan. But in verse 11, the Babylonians are described by God as people whose own strength is their God. Their own might is where they put their faith and their trust. Matthew chapter 5, notice what we’re supposed to look like as followers of Jesus. He opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who have persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad. Your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Trust in God isn’t having it all figured out. Trust in God is knowing that God’s the only one with it figured out. Man puts our strength in literal strength, in looking like a leader, in looking like what society wants me to look like, act like, talk like, be like.

What does Jesus want? He’s very clear here. Poor in spirit, those who mourn, meek, hunger and thirst for righteousness, and key in with me on verse 7, 8, and 9. Blessed are the merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers. This doesn’t look to me like the Samson of the 21st century, does it? The peacemakers. I think the peacemakers are really important because peacemakers are not those who keep peace. They don’t just allow it to be a peacemaker makes peace, which means we are called, you see this in Isaiah chapter 1, you see this throughout the prophets. We are called to not just be peaceable people. Paul says that in Romans chapter 12, but to make peace, which means we have to see there are battles going on, battles that matter, by the way, according to who?

To God and His Word. And we have to be willing to step in that gap and make peace. Not just stay out of it and go, well, I’m just gonna, I’m gonna stay a peaceful person while these people fight and tear themselves apart. No. We need to trust that God’s way is best. And so when he reveals his word, I’m willing to stand up for it no matter the cost. I look at society that seems to be tearing itself up, the very fabric from the foundation on down. And it’s easier just to say nothing. That can be cowardly. Sometimes it can be wise, but sometimes it’s cowardice. I don’t want to involve myself in things that are difficult because I disagree with people. I don’t want to step in because it will damage me.

6. Listening and Submitting No Matter the Mission

People won’t agree with me, people won’t like me. That’s pride. God doesn’t need that. There’s no room in God’s plan for my pride. He needs my trust and obedience. Two more points in the lessons, yours. One of them listening and submitting no matter the mission. In Matthew chapter 7, we’ll just look at these two passages to conclude. Verse 24 through 27 first. Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.

And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell. And great was the fall of it. There’s only one difference in the good foundation and the one that was destroyed, the one that was ruined. Everyone heard what Jesus said. We all get do not be anxious about your life. We all understand, trust and obey. We all understand without faith it’s impossible to please him. The difference are those who do what he says. Verse 26 Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. It doesn’t say when you agree, when you like it, when it’s convenient. Jesus calls us to listen and to submit, no matter the mission.

James chapter 2, we certainly know that passage highlights the idea that faith without works is dead. But the context of it really in verses 14 through 17 are as a Christian, when you see somebody in need, if you say, hey, I see that you need some things, I see that you’re cold and hungry, be warm and filled. That’s not faith. Faith is to provide warmth. Faith is to provide the food that those who are in need are lacking. We’re supposed to serve. We’re supposed to submit whether it makes us comfortable, whether we agree with it or not. Because God said it, and we will do it. Ultimately it comes down to do I trust God for his victory or not. The words of verse 21 through 23 are striking.

Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter. A passage can’t be much more plain than that. There is a separation. There is a dividing line between saved and lost, and it’s those who have faith, it’s those who trust, it’s those who are described in the last phrase of verse 21 as those who do the will of the Father who is in heaven. For the peacemakers, the pure in heart, the merciful, for those who see the Red Sea parted and they walk across by faith. Those who hear Joshua’s plan as revealed by God to march around Jericho and to shout at it and the walls will fall.

Conclusion

That is possible, but only on God’s terms. And so we think about a passage like Romans chapter 6, where the New Testament Christians and the church at Rome are asking, should we sin more to get more grace? Because we trust God. We trust his grace, we trust his mercy. Should we sin more? And Paul says, certainly not. May it never be. No, of course not. But he says there’s salvation, and it’s possible when we’re baptized by being buried into his death, sharing in it, sharing in that burial itself, and being resurrected a new man. The most important event in the history of the world is not just creation. It was that God sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. We can be saved, not because it’s great, not because we’re powerful, not because we’re geniuses who figured it out, but because God’s plan is there for us.

You want to have your sins forgiven? Connect with that most important miracle in the history of the world. Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Baptism is that way. But to be baptized, you’d have to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. You have to be willing to confess that He is Lord and that His way goes, whether I like it or not, His will be done. I need to repent of my sins. My way doesn’t work. When I fail God, when I’m like the ten spies that rejected him by faith, I’ll miss out on the promised land. I’m going to do what God says. I’m going to be baptized. If you’ve never become a Christian, that opportunity is here for you. But if you are a Christian and you find yourself doubting, know that Jesus forgives.

And one way that God encourages us to help one another is that He gives help through the prayers of the congregation. James 5 16, we are to confess our sins to one another. But even most importantly, 1 John 1 and verse 9, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. That option is here and now. There’s no reason to doubt. There’s no reason to be uncertain. We can trust God and His provision and have salvation. If we can help you at all anyway, come forward as we stand and sing.