Ahhh, the age old question: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?Actually, I have a much more important question. Which comes first, trusting Jesus or acting like Jesus? Maybe the answer seems obvious, but I think we get it backwards much of the time. Our thinking tends to go something like this.
"If I consider myself a Christian, I better live like Jesus lived. After all, John, his closest disciple said, 'Whoever claims to live in him, must walk as Jesus did.' (1 John 2:6). I want be a faithful follower of Jesus so I'm going to start trying my hardest to do what Jesus would do."
And so we start trying to do what Jesus would do. It sounds right and it feels noble. We hold onto WWJD, the oh-so-popular question, "What Would Jesus Do?". The problem is that just trying to do what Jesus would do gets frustrating. We end up evaluating ourselves by our ability, or inability, to do what Jesus would do. We fail too often and feel disappointment. We feel like Peter as the rooster crows for the second time.
Our thinking needs to change. Trusting Jesus must become before trying to do what Jesus would do. Do I really believe that Jesus' ways are the best "good" I can find in this world. Do I trust his wisdom to always be right? Do I trust his love to always want what is best for me? Do I trust his power to guide and lead me even when my circumstances go south? If we don't trust Jesus, we will give up obeying him quickly and we will most likely get mad at him. Our relationship with him will be dry and cold.
This is not to say that we have to have perfect trust before we can begin living like Jesus lived. God will be refining our faith throughout our lives. But trust must stay centered in our hearts and minds. When faced with the temptation to go opposite the way of Jesus, ask yourself some of these questions:
Do I trust my Lord and Savior?
Do I trust his love?
Do I trust his power?
Do I trust his wisdom?
Do I believe in my heart that Jesus is completely trustworthy?
Asking these questions will help us stay grounded and growing in trust. Trusting Jesus will lead us to experience the truth of his words in John 14:12.
"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing."
