The existence of a god who is all powerful, knows our future, and is everywhere could either be the cause of complete comfort or absolute terror. The difference between these two sides is whether or not you can trust God to watch out for you and for the good of others. If God doesn’t love us, but still holds absolute power, then we’d be living under an unbeatable and all knowing dictator. What a terrible reality that would be. And this picture is often times what nonbelievers think of such a powerful God. Fortunately this is not the case. Praise God.
Reason #1: God is good
Many will turn to the “evil” and “terrible” things that God did in the old testament and plans to do in the end times. Of course God looks bad if you look at all those things and read them out of context. However, when you put it all into the context of the whole Bible, we see a very different story. Look at the beautiful creation he made. Look at how he paints the trees in the fall and the flowers in the spring. Isn’t it crazy how everything we need to survive is beautiful? Food, water, plants, friendships, family, sleep, etc.
Jesus makes a good point in Matthew 7:11 “ If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” God didn’t just make the bare minimum for us to survive. He went above and beyond because he wanted us to have good lives. If God is good and wants good for us, isn’t that a strong reason to trust God?
Reason #2: God is perfectly just
God punishes evil. That’s good, isn’t it? Of course we don’t like when we are punished for our own wrong, but we must remember that God punishes for the purpose of guiding us. God knows the best punishment for us. He isn’t harsh, he knows exactly how far to go and never overreacts. He isn’t a bad parent, he disciplines us in a perfect way so we can grow as much as possible.
He sees everything and punishes accordingly, but he also rewards accordingly. No good deed goes unnoticed by God. I’m sure you’ve had times with your parents where you got punished unjustly, or never got rewarded for something good you did. Wouldn’t it be nice to never have to worry about that again?
On top of this, God punishes those who truly deserve it. “Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever” Psalms 37:27-29. Whether it’s a physical punishment, an emotional punishment through a torn conscious, or even a spiritual punishment of being separated from God, he will punish the guilty. What a comfort we can have that in the end, good will win. He won’t let evil live on.
Not only can we trust God to deal with us perfectly according to our needs for our good, we can also trust God to enact justice against wickedness.
Reason #3: God loves us
The best test as to whether or not someone cares about you is the question “would he/she take a bullet for you?” You can’t give up more than your own life. Or wait, perhaps you can. You could give up the lives of your own family. Well, God passes on both accounts. Not only did he give up his own son, he came himself. He went out of his way, and engineered a way so that he could actually die. You can’t get more loving than that. Jesus took the bullet for us so that anyone who trusts in Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection, could be saved from their sins and restored into a right relationship with God.
That’s some insane love.
And he still loves us even though he knows completely and absolutely everything you have and will ever do. How many people do we hide bits and pieces of ourselves from? How many of our friends would still love us if they knew everything? What a beautiful thing that God knows all of this and is still willing to come and die for us. Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Surely we can trust God if he loves us this much.
Reason #4: God knows the future
You might have an amazing friend, but no matter how amazing they are, their ideas might not be the best. I’ve had friends recommend that I invest in stocks which end up tanking after I invest. However, God knows the future. He knows your future. He knows what job will be the best fit for you. He knows which man/woman would be best for you to marry because of what your future holds.
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” Jeremiah 29:11. What a comforting thought. Following God isn’t just a hopeful thing. We know he has a plan. How could we not trust God if he knows the future?
Reason #5: God knows you
God knows you. Not just your name and your past. Not just your thoughts. He knows your heart, what you desire, what you crave, where you are weak, and what is holding you back. The God of the Bible plots out a life for us that will safeguard us from our own weaknesses and temptations. He engineers a path that fulfills our present desires and the desires we will have in the future.
Mind you, these might not be the desires you think you have. I often desire to have a million dollars, but what if those million dollars end up costing me my friendships and my relationship with God? In the end, this isn’t good for me. Though I desired it, I wouldn’t actually want it if I knew what it would do to me.
You can trust God
What a great God we have. He is good in nature. He fights against evil, while also disciplining us appropriately. Our God loves us beyond anything we can fathom. He knows our future. And, he knows our hearts and what is best for us. How could we not trust God? How could we not trust his calling for our lives?
What about you? What are some other reasons why you trust God?
If you didn’t read last weeks post, I’d strongly encourage you to check it out by clicking here Discovering God’s Calling for Your Life
