Our Father, Untrustworthy?
We can only trust our Father to the degree that we know Him, and He only reveals Himself to us through His means.
Miles J. Stanford preaches on the profound love of God, emphasizing that He not only gave His Son for us but also continues to pursue us with His grace until we are transformed by His divine nature. He highlights the importance of knowing God through His Word, Spirit, and Son, leading to a life of patience and companionship with Jesus Christ. Stanford encourages trusting in God's wisdom, power, and goodness, finding rest and delight in surrendering our will to His unfailing guidance and care. He concludes by stressing the call to fellowship with God, sharing in His joy and trust, and finding common happiness in the Father and the Son.
Text
"The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants; and none of them who trust in him shall be desolate" (Psalm 34:22).
We can only trust our Father to the degree that we know Him. And He only reveals Himself to us by His means. That is by the Word, by the Spirit, and hence by the Son-in that sequence.
"Could it be possible that God would so love an individual as to give His only Son to die for him and still love him to the extent of following him with the pleadings and drawings of His grace until He has won that soul into His own family and created him anew by the impartation of His own divine nature, and then be careless as to what becomes of the one He has thus given His all to procure?" -L.S.C.
"A life of patience intervenes between the day of illumination and the day of glorification. I am not to count on a path of pleasure-a path of ease-a path of prosperity-on being more distinguished tomorrow than today; but I am to count on a path of patience. And is not there glory in that? Yes, there is companionship with the Lord Jesus Christ." -J.G.B.
"Let my circumstances be what they may, if I can see them ordered for me unfailingly by One in whom infinite wisdom, power, and goodness combine, and whose love toward me I am assured of, my restlessness is gone, my will subjected to that other will in which I can but acquiesce and delight." -F.W.G.
"We are called to fellowship with God, and fellowship means common happiness, common thoughts, common trust. The Father's delight is in His Son; and we have fellowship with Him in that. The Son's delight is in the Father, and we have fellowship with Him in that. So our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus, Christ." -J.N.D.
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3:5, 6).
Sermon Outline
- Introduction
- The nature of God's love
- The role of patience in our walk with God
- The source of our trust and rest
- Our circumstances are ordered by God's infinite wisdom, power, and goodness
- Our trust in God leads to rest and acquiescence in His will
Key Quotes
“Could it be possible that God would so love an individual as to give His only Son to die for him and still love him to the extent of following him with the pleadings and drawings of His grace until He has won that soul into His own family and created him anew by the impartation of His own divine nature, and then be careless as to what becomes of the one He has thus given His all to procure?” — Miles J. Stanford
“A life of patience intervenes between the day of illumination and the day of glorification. I am not to count on a path of pleasure-a path of ease-a path of prosperity-on being more distinguished tomorrow than today; but I am to count on a path of patience. And is not there glory in that? Yes, there is companionship with the Lord Jesus Christ.” — Miles J. Stanford
“Let my circumstances be what they may, if I can see them ordered for me unfailingly by One in whom infinite wisdom, power, and goodness combine, and whose love toward me I am assured of, my restlessness is gone, my will subjected to that other will in which I can but acquiesce and delight.” — Miles J. Stanford
Application Points
- We should trust in God's infinite wisdom, power, and goodness, and acquiesce in His will.
- Patience is a necessary part of our growth in Christ and leads to companionship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
- We should seek to know God more deeply through His Word, the Spirit, and the Son.