Trust in YHWH with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. (Pro 3:5-6)Not uncommon. I've even seen it on inspirational wall hangings and such. "Trust in the Lord." Yeah. Good. But ... there's so much more to it, isn't there?
Trust. Trust in the Lord. Trust with all your heart. That's actually a big commitment. There are lots of things we can trust in. People, things, ourselves. No, no. With all your heart, trust in the Lord. Doesn't leave room for all those other things. And that's just the start. "Do not lean on your own understanding." Now, come on. What else do we have to lean on? And why not? Well ... we've got a sin problem, and that makes things ... fuzzy. It makes us "futile" in our thinking (Rom 1:21). It gives us a "debased mind" (Rom 1:28). We have deceitful hearts (Jer 17:9) It requires an ongoing renewing of the mind (Rom 12:2). And, yet ... where do we go first? "Well, is God reliable? I don't know. Let's think about it." We evaluate God. How arrogant! "Yes, He's trustworthy here, but ... not so much over there." "Do not lean on your own understanding." Then, "In all your ways acknowledge Him" Not some ... all. And what is this "acknowledge Him" thing? Literally, it means to know Him. Like the psalmist says: "Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth" (Psa 46:10). Know Him. Commit your works to Him (Psa 37:5; Prov 16:3). In New Testament terms, "Do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31).
It's a much bigger text than "Trust in the Lord." And the outcome is "He will make your paths straight." So here we are, muddling about, trying to figure this stuff out, and there He is saying, "Trust Me ... in everything." We can't seem to figure it out, but we're still pretty sure we can rely on our own understanding.
5 comments:
Strangely enough, I see so many people who insist that their "own understanding" is their final arbiter. That YHWH gave them their "own understanding" for the very purpose of making judgements that might contradict what scripture says.
There are so many deep things to ponder, understand, and determine in this earthly existence, and I believe that sincere, thoughtful people really do wish to think rightly, using their mental faculties to come to the right conclusions about life. To me, thinking rightly is thinking biblically; I set out on that particular avenue in faith almost 50 years ago, and I have not been steered wrong in all that time. Proverbs 3:5-6 was a passage for memorization and reflection from the very beginning of my Christian journey, and it warrants a recommitment on a regular basis, as I constantly need to submit--and resubmit--my understanding of things to God’s Word. Looking back, I can clearly see that trusting in the Lord and the truth of His ways has led me on very “straight paths”--just as He promised in His Word.
As always, we have these true but pithy statements in our culture that have so much more depth when we actually look at the source.
I would definitely agree that thinking rightly is thinking Biblically, which then depends on how we interpret scripture.
Ah, yes, that is where the error can come, for sure. It does seem that much can (and does) go wrong there (as we all know well). Bottom line, the Holy Spirit brings truth (John 16:12-14), and only true believers have His guidance and help in that area (1 Cor. 2:13-15). (Personally, I deem it mostly a waste of time to argue about “truth” with an unbeliever!)
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