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Trust and Obey
We recently had a Vacation Bible School (VBS). The last topic we studied was "Trust And Obey".The author of the VBS material chose the story of Hannah as an example. Immediately it is interesting to ask yourself, "Who would I pick as an example?"
You might find yourself struggling for an example. Most likely you'll pick Jesus, and possibly Paul. I pose to you that when you are finished reading this article, you might have a quite lengthy list of people you will pick.
You might also ask yourself questions like "What is trust?" Or even "How do I get trust?"
Trust might actually be an odd word in our society. Even in the New Testament it is not used that often. It is used very often in the Old Testament such as in Proverbs. We are told not to trust princes, money and so on in the Proverbs. We are told to trust God, His word, His salvation and so on.
When you go to define trust you might say it means to have confidence in someone. It is to believe in someone. And the bottom line is, trust is to have faith in someone. If I have trust in someone, I have faith in them. This is where the topic of trust explodes. Suddenly we have related it to a Bible term we are more familiar with.
How do I get trust? The same as I get faith. The Bible tells us
One of our members made an intersting point in the VBS. Using trust and faith as synonyms actually helps us in two ways. I think it helps us better understand trust because we can now use Romans 10:17 to help us learn how to get it. But I think the opposite is also true.
Have you ever wondered why Romans 10:17 works? How can faith come from just hearing? Well this is where the concept of trust helps us understand faith. How do I trust somebody? I learn more about them. I keep having dealings with them, and they always prove themselves true. I hear of others' dealings with them and everyone says how honest the person is.
This is exactly what the word of God does for us. We read repeatedly of the dependability of God. We learn he will not lie. He is righteous. He does love us. He wants to fill all of our needs. As we read, and hear, and keep verifying God's character, we build trust in him like we do any other person who repeatedly demonstrates these good traits. In other words, we gain faith in God by hearing or reading our Bibles.
Relating trust and faith also takes us down one other neat path. Who would you use as an example of someone that trusted and obeyed the Lord. Or in other words had faith and obeyed the Lord. One cannot help but think of Hebrews 11. This passage is often called the "Hall of Faith".
Many names are listed. Some elders, Moses, Abraham, Sarah, Noah, Isaac, Jacob and so on are listed. If you brush up on Hebrews 11, you will have no trouble picking someone as an example of a person who trusted and obeyed the Lord.
There is one other interesting thing about using Hannah as an example of trusting and obeying and then referring to Hebrews 11. Hannah prayed to God for a son. When Eli said it would happen, she did not doubt. Her countenance was no longer sad and she went on with life. Later she knew her husband and they had Samuel. Hannah raised him, weaned him, and gave him to the Lord as she promised.
We know of many women in the Bible who were barren, but one sticks out. This was Sarah or Sarai. When she as told she would have a child she laughed. As time went on she grew impatient and did not trust God's promise. She sent her husband, Abraham, in unto her hand maid.
So isn't it odd when we turn to Hebrews 11 and Sarah is listed specifically for having faith that enabled her to bear a seed. It seems Hannah might have been a better example!!
