There
are some things in life that are good. There are other things in life that are
better, and to
have a better life, you have to let go of the good life.
ILLUSTRATION- Last Tuesday morning I
received a call from a member of our Wesleyan Church in Havelock, which is the
church that I pastored before coming to the Ridge.
Carol
told me that her mother in law was nearing the end of her life, and as her
family was having discussions about final arrangements, my name came up as a
potential candidate to conduct this funeral.
So,
she was calling to see if I was avaiable.
I
struggled with what to tell Carol. Would I perform a funeral for a family that
has little-to-no connection with Jesus, or do I decline and focus on the
district responsibilities that I had that very same week?
You
see, not every decision that you or I have to make is cut and dry.
Not every decision that we have make is
a choice between good and evil, between sin
and righteousness.
Sometimes
the choices that we have to make are between two very good things...
So the struggle comes in knowing what to
do: Choice A-- something good---or choice B-- something good.
If at all possible, when we have the
choice, we should choose better, because, better is just better.
How do we come to that choice? Well,
that's up to you and Jesus, but given the choice between good and better, let's
chose better
The
Psalmist made his choice, and he chose better:
“Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I
would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of
the wicked.” (Psalm 84:10, NIV)
The Psalmist stated that one day in God’s presence
was infinitely better than a thousand days outside of God’s presence.
He had a choice to make, and he chose
better.
Some things in
life are good, other things in life are better, and to have a better life you
have to let go of the good life.
ILLUSTRATION- In order for my wife and I to
have a better night’s sleep we had to give up something good---our double
bed---but what we got in return—a king size bed--- is much better.
In order to have a better life
you’ll have to let go of some good things--- some very good things--- but what
you’ll get in return is something much better.
So,
what might God be asking you to give up? What good thing do you need to give up
in order to enjoy something—or in this case,Someone—better?
As
you know, this series focuses on selected verses in the Bible with the word better in them, so our verse today is
also taken from the book of Psalms.
Psalm
118:8-9 tell us that: “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.
9 It is better to
take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.” (NIV)
This
is an interesting set of verses. The Psalmist is telling us that it’s better to
take refuge in God rather than to trust in people, or princes, or any other
member of the human race.
He
didn’t say “It is good to take refuge in the Lord than
to trust in man …”
He said: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in people.” (Psalm
118:8, NLT2)
In this life we
have choices, and the psalmist wants us to choose better!
The obvious question that I have
in response to this verse is why?
Why is it better to take refuge
in-- to trust in, to confide in, to hope in-- the Lord, rather than to trust in
people?
There are
several reasons as to why it's better to trust in the Lord, but I want to
mention what I beleive is the most significant reason:
Because God will not let you down.
ILLUSTRATION- I’m sure that we all know at
least one person who will tell you that they will do something, and then when
the time comes for that thing to be done, that person is nowhere to be found.
That person
cannot be counted on, because they cannot be trusted to do what they said they
would do.
God isn’t like
that. He is in the business of keeping His word. If God said something will
happen, it will happen, when He said it will happen.
The Bible says: “God is not a man,
that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he
speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?” (Numbers 23:19, NIV)
If God said
something would happen, it will happen, because God always honors His word.
Why
is it “better to
take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people.” (Ps. 118:8, NLT2) Because God is faithful and He
will never let you down.
The
Psalmist, in chapter 27, knew that God could be trusted; that God would not let
him down.
He
said: “The Lord
is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid?
The
Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?
2 When evil people
come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and
fall.
3 Though a mighty
army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will
remain confident.” (Psalm 27:1-3,
NLT2)
How could David
be so confident in hard times? How could he be secure when all hell was
breaking loose around him?
Because he
trusted in God, who was his “light… salvation…. and stronghold” (Psalm 27:1,
NIV)
David could rely
on, trust in, confide in Someone who was more than a man, because he knew God
would never let him down.
David trusted in
God to save him, no matter the situation. He placed his hope in the Lord and
God rescued him.
Who do you trust
today? Have you placed your trust in a particular person, or have you placed
your trust in the Lord?
One of these two will lead you
to a hopeless end; the other One will lead you to endless hope.
The Bible says: “You will keep in
perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!
4 Trust in the Lord
always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.” (Isaiah 26:3-4, NLT2)
God doesn’t want
His people placing their trust in other people, because other people will,
eventually, let you down, but not God. His track record is perfect.
He has never lied,
nor has He ever He let anyone down.
Why is it better
to take refuge in the Lord rather than to trust in people? Because God will never let you
down. Ever.
Some of us need
to be reminded of this truth. God will never let you down.
Some of you might
be hearing this truth for the first time: God will never let you down.
While your
spouse, parent, BFF, boss or co-worker will let you down, know that God will
never let you down.
He might not
respond in the way you thought He would or should respond, but God will never
let you down.
The Bible
reminds us that: “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.
2 So we will not
fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.
3 Let the oceans
roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!”
(Psalm 46:1-3, NLT2)
When all hell breaks loose in our
lives, God will be there, because He can be trusted at all times, in all times.
Some people in
this room today are not trusting in God. Some are trusting in people. Some are
trusting in their own strength, in their own works.
Some are trusting
that their good deeds are good enough or will be enough to earn God’s approval.
But, when is
enough, enough? When do you stop working?
When do you stop
trying to earn God’s approval? You stop working the moment you begin trusting God.
The Bible
reminds us that “…it
is by grace you have been saved, through faith-- and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God-- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Eph.
2:8-9, NIV)
The reason that it’s better to
take refuge in the Lord rather than trust in people, is that no one but God,
through Jesus, can save you from a life of sin and shame and pain and regret.
You see Jesus
has not come to ruin your life; Jesus has come to give you a better life.
And to receive
this better life, you’ll have to let go of the good life that you currently
have.
To get a better life, you’ll
have to let go of the good life of trusting in people in favor of the better
life of trusting God.
The Bible tells
us that “It is
better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.” (Psalm
118:9, NIV)
Why is it better?
Because God will not let you down.
There are at
least two types of people in this room today: those who are trusting in God,
and those who are not trusting in God. I would like to say a word to each:
To those who are
trusting in God: don’t give up! Continue asking, continue seeking and continue
knocking.
Continue calling
out to God in times of penalty and in times of want.
Continue seeking
after God with all your heart; continue to thrive right where you are, because
God will not let you down.
To those who are
not trusting in God—let it be known that you are selling yourself short. You
are settling for less that God’s best for your life.
God doesn’t want
you to place your trust in another person; because another person will
eventually let you down.
God wants you to place your
trust in Him, and in so doing, find the better life that He has for you.
Remember: “A single day in
your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else!” (Psalm 84:10a,
NLT2)
If you are
placing your trust in someone other than God, you are missing out on His
presence and you are not living the life that God intended for you to live.
The Good news is
that no matter where we are; no matter who we are, we can always turn to God.
We can always
turn our attention to, and place our trust in, God, because: “It is better to
take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. (Psalm 118:8,
NIV)
If
God has been tugging on your heart about your need to trust in Him more, and
trust people in less, I want to encourage you to take a step of faith and pray:
“God, take my
life. Take all of me, take my life, it’s all for you, help me to take refuge
in— to trust in, to place my hope in, to find comfort in—You, rather than in other
people”
The
Bible tells us that this is better than placing our trust in people, because
people will let you down, but God never will.
If
you need to place your trust in, give your life over to, God, please do so as
the band leads us in our closing song today, and remember: to get a better life, you have to let go of
the good life, and the Bible tells us that it’s better to take
refuge in the Lord.
Did
you know that Psalm 118:8 is the exact middle of the Bible? There are just as
many verses before this verse as there are after this verse.
And the middle verse
in the Bible tells us that it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.
If
God says that it’s better to trust in Him than to trust in anyone else, He must
have a reason for it, right?
He
must want us to live a better life!
Why settle for
the good life of trusting in someone who will let you down, when you can have a
better life and trust in God who will never let you down!
Know
that it’s not too late to come away with God. You can still talk to Him and
trust Him with your very life….
you are invited to follow my blog
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