“Cursed is the one
who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the Lord.…
“But blessed is
the man who trusts in the Lord, whose
confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the
stream”(Jeremiah 17:5, 7–8)
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and
lean not on your own understanding. (Proverbs 3:5)
The Biblical
message says life is not found by depending on ourselves or on the resources of
other men, but it is found in dependence on God. Our prideful hearts may not
like that at all, but loud denial of our need does not change reality. We are
not the self-determined Creators of the universe; we are fragile elements of
creation. We may wish it were not so, but wishing does not change who and what
we are.
However, when we come to Jesus, we
might think that since he was not only human but also divine, there would be no
need for such a dependence in his case. But apparently, his divine wisdom
caused him to see even more clearly how deeply he, as a human, needed to depend
on the heavenly Father. His divine nature did not cause him to pridefully
conclude, as many of us mere mortals do, that he could make it on his own. It
caused him to understand thoroughly that he needed the Father and the Father’s
help and guidance every day of his life. (If he had such a need, what about
us?)
I like the point about Jesus' divine wisdom, his understanding of the spiritual world, was what caused him to see his need for God. I am walking around so out of touch most of the time. It takes such effort to think spiritually. Strengthen us God!
ReplyDeleteAmen & thank you!
ReplyDeleteI really want to ponder all of the ways that I depend on flesh for my strength. My first thought is all of the insecurities that I have about human relationships...wondering what people think about me, fearing that people don't like me, being afraid to reach out in relationships for fear of rejection vs Jesus-because he got his confidence from God was able to give to others and handle the rejection without shrinking back. Please pray for me to get that right in my heart
ReplyDeleteYou are certainly on the right track to turn your mind to Jesus. Perhaps you can get a new perspective on your fears if you see them as those things that make you say with David: "Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay."
ReplyDelete(Psalm 40:17)
Amen Tom. This is one of my favorite DPI books. I treasure them all. Sometimes my confidence is weak, may I totally depend on God. In weakness may he be my strength as I trust in Him. I too, love the psalms. What a heart David had. Can't wait to meet him someday.
ReplyDelete