Taking a Look at Scripture

 

“Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you.” - Psalm 37:3-5 NLT

            Let’s first look that the definition for the word “trust”.  Trust is the “firm belief in the integrity, ability, or character of a person or thing; confidence or reliance in that person or thing.” In this particular case the “person”happens to be Almighty God. Here we see advice to those whose hearts are towards God.  

We are seeing another “if-then” clause, even though the word “if” isn’t being used here. For all intents and purposes you could really slide it in the beginning of the verse so it reads – “IF you trust the Lord and do good, THEN you will live safely in the land and prosper.”

Prosperity isn’t always referring to financial gain. In God’s realm prosperity is tied directly to spiritual growth and maturity; growing in the things of the Lord. Money is temporal; here today and gone tomorrow. The accumulation of monetary wealth, while not intrinsically wrong, is NOT what is important in God’s kingdom. 

A lot of people misinterpret the next sentence. Delight in the Lord & he will give you whatever your heart desires. Our heart has the potential to deceive us. I believe it is implied that our heart’s desires should be linked to our intimate relationship with the Lord. In other words, I wouldn’t expect to receive a brand new Maserati or other sports car because you know the Lord and have a heartfelt desire to own one. It’s not going to happen. I mean you can MAKE it happen by going deep in debt by buying one, but the consequences of that decision could crush you in the long run financially. No, I believe it’s safe to say that God is hoping you’ve matured enough as a follower of Christ that your heart’s desire should have something to do with drawing closer to him in some way. Aside from spiritually growth and maturity, it seems to me that the Lord isn’t terribly interested in some of the crazy things we feel we have to have. Just sayin’...

Whatever you do in this life, commit it to God. Your schoolwork, your job performance, your responsibilities as a husband or wife, father or mother. These things are vital to your existence in this life as you serve Christ. Again the word “trust” comes into play. As you strive to commit every aspect of your life to the Lord, trust him and he WILL help you. It’s a promise.

As a matter of fact it’s 1 of 3 promises God makes to us in these verses. 

            We trust in a lot of crazy things in this life. Trust in God. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In His Name & for His Glory,

RL Keller

Bread of Life Ministries

Dictionary used is the American Heritage Dictionary.

Note: Psalm 37 is a Psalm of David.