Always Trust God First

Verse of the day: Jeremiah 17:7-8 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. ⁸ For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.

Over the past three days we discussed the fruit of the Spirit and how they will be displayed in our lives when we allow the Spirit to do His work in us, and through us. Today we see that the key to the Spirit yielding this fruit in our lives comes from our trust in the Lord and making Him our hope. The Prophet Jeremiah compares two men. The first trusts in the “flesh”, while the other trusts in the Lord. The first man is cursed and is compared to a shrub in the desert (v. 5-6). The second man, which is the one we want to model, is blessed and compared to a tree planted by the river. What a contrast. The one is pictured as a bush that is wild and frail while the other is strong, vibrant and producing much fruit. The one who trusts in the flesh (his own ideas or the help of people over God’s help) are trusting in man who is often unfaithful and unreliable. Man often lacks wisdom and makes decisions based on emotions, and what seems right in their eyes; rather that what is right before God. In verse 9 of this chapter, the Prophet Jeremiah warns that the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, who can know it? God knows it, and searches it. Although it is wise to seek godly wisdom, the Lord should be the One who gets the last word. The person who trusts in the Lord is one that will endure life’s challenges, being anchored in God’s salvation; a salvation that can only be found in Jesus Christ. Our hope is not a dead hope, but a Living Hope, which is Jesus. When we are grounded in the Lord, we have the Living Water abiding in us (the Holy Spirit). When we take in His Word, which is our spiritual nourishment (Matt 4:4), the Living Water uses it to produce fruit in our lives (Gal 5:22-23). Just like a tree that draws water from the river and its leaf blooms consistently, our testimony, when we allow living water to flow through us, will shine consistently in a dark world (John 7:38-39). When we are firmly planted in Christ, abiding in Him (John 15) and the Holy Spirit is flowing through us, working in us, no matter what storm, trial or tribulation we face, we will stand strong and rooted in the Word. Jeremiah equated this to the tree that is not fazed by the heat when it comes because it is being strengthened and cooled by the water its roots are absorbing from the abundant source of water. However, unlike the tree, whose river can dry up, we have a Source that does not run out or dry up. Jesus told the Samaritan woman that He could give her living water and she would never thirst again (John 4:14). Psalm 1 also speaks of the truth that the man that delights and meditates on God’s Word is blessed and will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, bringing forth its fruit, and its leaf will never wither. The bottom line is that God will sometimes put people in our lives to be a blessing. However, we end up in dire straits, when we begin to put more confidence and trust in the creation, and the blessing(s), than we do on the Creator who is the One that sends the blessings.

The greatest blessing man has received is eternal life in Christ. However, in order to receive eternal life, we must call on Jesus, by faith, repenting and confessing our sins, and accepting His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23; 10:13). Would you call on Him today?