The Biblical Roots Of Trust
Trust is an essential component to any relationship. Trust is essential for a relationship to move past a superficial level to a more intimate and personal basis. Our relationship with God is based on our trust that first, He lived and died for our sins and second, He has our best interests at heart and loves us unconditionally.
The actual phrase “Jesus loves me,” cannot be found in the Bible but there are examples that support this fact. In John 13:34 Jesus said, “As I have loved you, you must love one another” and in John 15:9 He said, “As the Father has loved me so have I loved you.” In John 15:13, we read, “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” While He spoke these words to His disciples, it’s clear He was speaking through them to us.
My favorite example of trust comes in Matthew 14 when Jesus walks on the water. After Peter sees Jesus, He tells him to “come.” Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and as he was beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.“You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
The message of this story is clear. We can do great things if we have faith in God. Recall Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” But if we let doubt, worry, fear or anxiety control us then we become weak, self-reliant and are living in the flesh and our ability to accomplish great tasks is severely limited.
There is an old saying that anybody can be the captain of the ship when the water is calm, but the true character of a captain is revealed during bad weather. The same is true of our Christian walk. It is easy to be a good Christian when all is well with yourself, your family and friends. However, how do we respond when the winds of adversity inevitably come? Do we keep our focus and faith in Jesus and stand steadfast on His promises of health and prosperity?
Faith is essential in our Christian walk. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). For we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). Have faith and be blessed as you bless others.
Meet the Author
Todd Shupe is a Men’s Ministry Specialist through the General Commission of United Methodist Men and is in training to be a Certified Lay Minister through the Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. He currently serves as the President of the Baton Rouge District of United Methodist Men and is a Board Member for Gulf South Men and serves on the Action Team for The Kingdom Group. He is a volunteer for the Walk to Emmaus, Grace Camp, and Iron Sharpens Iron. Todd resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
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