Matthew 26:33-35 " Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all disciples"
Trust is the basis of any strong relationship. When you ask someone what they look for in a mate trust, honesty, and faithfulness will rank high on the list. These same components are important in our relationship with God; however, sometimes we get it mixed up. Often we cry out to God trying to convince Him that we trust Him, but has He given us a reason not to? Shouldn't we be crying out asking and convincing God to trust us? God is faithful (Deuteronomy 7:9), He does not lie (Numbers 23:19), and you can trust Him (Proverbs 30:5). We are born sinners! Enough said...point blank period! Our sinful heritage makes us susceptible to being unfaithful, dishonest, and none trustworthy; to one another and even to God Himself. On any given Sunday when the deacon says "I will bless the Lord at all times" the entire church will join in to finish "and His praise shall continually be in my mouth". Then by Tuesday some (not all) will have cursed out 3 people; therefore, your word can not be trusted and you are deemed unfaithful! But God knew you would do that and He has forgiven you in advance for it; however, He does expect you to be convicted by it exhibiting an effort to do better.
Take Peter for example. Everyone knows that Peter denied Jesus three times as, Jesus predicted it at the last supper. We often give Peter a hard time for that; however, Peter was one who gave up everything to follow Jesus (which most of would have difficulty doing) and even after the denial he was instrumental in the early days of the church. The character of Jesus shines bright in this scripture in that He didn't treat Peter any differently knowing what was to come. In fact Jesus' character allowed Him to treat Peter according to his character and not his flesh. Peter was convicted by his actions and did what was necessary to find favor in the eyes of Christ again. Jesus knew that it was a part of the plan and He then used that denial to strengthen Peter as a leader during the difficulties in the early days of the church.
What does this have to do with us? Today, denying Jesus isn't merely saying "I don't know Him". Denying Jesus is keeping quiet when you know something is wrong, denying Jesus is behaving in a way you know He would disapprove of, denying Jesus is condoning behavior that is not of Him, and etc. Can God trust you to uphold the ideals He left for us as His people? Can God trust you to keep your word in blessing His name at ALL times? Can God trust you to be faithful to Him even when it means giving up your job in Corporate America to follow Him? Or will you deny Him?
How many times will you deny Him? How many times HAVE you denied Him?
As Marissa mentioned the other day; sometimes God will ask you to give up something with no intention of actually taking it away, but just to see if you're willing to sacrifice. Is your lack of trust in God due to your inability to be trusted? It's something to think about.
#FearlessFAITH
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