Why can we trust in God?
- Kristina Trott
- Mar 10
- 3 min read
I’ve been thinking about the words of Jesus to Jairus when He said: “Do not be afraid; only keep on believing [in Me and my power].” (Mk 5:36 Amp).
It was this belief in God being Who He said He was that led Jesus to respond to Satan’s mocking words that if He really was the Son of God He would be able to throw Himself from the highest point in the temple and He would be unharmed. Jesus simply said that it was written that you shall not test the LORD your God. (Matt. 4:6-7).
Jesus was repeating the words of the Law of Moses that said, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested Him at Massah”. (Deut. 6:16 Amp).
Jesus knew who God was and His limitless power and He didn’t need to prove that point to anyone. To try and prove that point would actually show a lack of faith.
We have the record of an incident in Isaiah 7:11-13. Ahaz was king of Judah and he was terrified to hear that Syria and Israel were planning to attack Judah. God sent Isaiah to tell Ahaz not to be afraid and not to even ask Assyria for help because God would not allow it to happen.
Isaiah asked Ahaz to ask of God a miraculous sign, “as deep as Sheol or as high as heaven” (v11) to verify this. Ahaz declined the offer saying he wouldn’t test God.
Isaiah reprimanded Ahaz saying that Ahaz was trying the patience of God and that God would bring the dreaded Assyrians against Judah.
What was the difference in Jesus saying He wouldn’t test God and Ahaz saying he wouldn’t test God?
Firstly, Ahaz was invited by God to test Him.
Secondly, God asked Ahaz to select an independent miraculous sign to verify the words of Isaiah. Satan, on the other hand, had directly challenged the promise asking Jesus to throw Himself from the Temple Mount to prove He wouldn’t come to harm.
Ahaz’s response seemed like it was being respectful, but in reality it was the response of someone who didn’t trust God. For his disregard of God, Ahaz was reproved by Isaiah.
Mercifully, despite man’s unbelief, God still gave a sign:
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Listen carefully, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will call his name Immanuel (God with us)”. (Isa. 7:14 Amp).
This miraculous sign actually did happen about 700 years later. It was such a miraculous sign with world-changing effects that ever since the birth of Jesus, all of God’s promises have been firmly established as faithful and true.
“For as many as are the promises of God, in Christ they are [all answered] “Yes.” So through Him we say our “Amen” to the glory of God”. (2 Cor. 1:20 Amp).
So out of a faithless act on Ahaz’s part, we have been given the full assurance from God that He really will do everything that He has promised. God really is , for example, Yahweh Rapha, the LORD who heals, or Yahweh Yireh, the LORD who provides, or Yahweh Shalom, the LORD is peace and we can unquestioningly believe that truth because a virgin really did conceive a Son who was God with us.
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