Our work is to believe–not just for salvation, but for every breath, every thought, and every deed. Complete dependence!

12 Do you see a person wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

This verse is what happened to Adam and Eve. The devil deceived them into believing that they knew better than God. Satan talked Eve into not trusting God. She either didn’t trust Him out of arrogance or out of fear. Either way, she didn’t trust Him enough to believe that He had her best interests at heart (see Genesis 3:1-6). Adam’s sin was that he watched the whole exchange and did nothing. His responsibility as the head of his wife was to protect her from Satan–and from herself. Instead, he participated in her arrogance/fear.

King David saw in himself this same danger, which was to be arrogant and fearful. We see both in the account of him bringing the ark from Kiriath Jearim to Jerusalem. He used a new cart; when it stumbled, Uzzah reached out to steady it and was killed instantly. The next two verses tell the tale:

⁸ Then David was angry [his arrogance] because the Lord’s wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah [“outbreak against Uzzah”]. ⁹ David was afraid [his fear] of the Lord that day and said, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” 2 Samuel 6:8-9

How did David counter this danger within himself? We read about it in Psalm 86:11, which says,

Teach me Your way, O Lord, and I will walk in Your truth [that I may rely on Your faithfulness],
give me an undivided heart [make me single-minded] that I may fear Your name [and nothing else].

God’s way is the way of faith. Jesus said, “The work of God is this: to believe in [trust] the one He has sent” John 6:29. We must ask for the want-to to want to and believe that He will be faithful to complete what He started in us upon salvation (Philippians 2:13 and 1:6). We act out of our level of faith (trust) in Him.

Acts of faith must be done in the truth of God’s Word and in the prompting of the Holy Spirit. In order to have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16), we must know the words of Christ. Revelation is revealed through His Word. Example: Water purifiers filter water through several filters, each one removing certain pollutants. The Word of God works the same way,

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her ²⁶ to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, ²⁷ and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. Ephesians 5:25-27

Let’s bathe daily in God’s Word and allow the Spirit to wash us and run us through the filters of Scriptures. Until we take our Bible study seriously, we will not be able to grow as our heavenly Father desires us to grow.

Abba, may You give my readers and me a burning desire to know You more and better through Your Word. You thought enough of us to write down the things that are important–even vital–for us to know. May we take them very seriously as we go through today, then tomorrow, and then the day after that, etc. Amen.