Yes, this is the title of one of the all-time great hymns of worship I grew up singing. What you may not know is the song was written by John H. Sammis in 1887. It comes right out of two specific scriptures.
Psalm 84:11-12
For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!Isaiah 50:10
Who is among you that fears the LORD, that obeys the voice of His servant, that walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.
My heart still quickens when I read or hear the words to the first stanza of this song:
When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
The chorus just gets to me:
Trust and Obey! For there’s no other way,
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
How do we do this?
Today, the day after the “mid-terms” it may appear to some that this is just trite and meaningless dribble, when the world at large, and our nation specifically seems in such disarray. You and I may or may not like who won a particular election. You and I may not approve the choice for governor in Colorado, the senate selection from Tennessee, or New York’s 14th district congressional selection… but this is where the trust and obey part comes in.
Remember a couple of days ago I suggested that Paul said to the church in Rome that God puts people in places of governing authorities, and no one is there except that God established it? [Romans 13:1] You might want to take a few moments here to look up Romans 13 and read the whole chapter… it’s only 14 verses, and it might take 3 minutes at the most. Because if there is one passage of scripture that certainly applies to us today it is this one.
We have to trust in the Sovereignty of God. We have to know without hesitation or doubt that God is in control, has plans we don’t know, sees the outcome far beyond what we might hope or think, and has only the best in mind for those who know Him and call Him “Father.”
The only way we can call Him “Father” is through Jesus Christ. We should then pray as Jesus taught us to pray…
Matthew 6:9-10
“Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed by Your name. You kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
It’s a new day. The political lay of the land is different. But God is in control. For those who know and believe this is true, there is only one response must we have.
Trust and Obey.
As I was saying... 