Jehovah promises that if I wait on Him, my strength will be renewed. (Is 40:31) This isn’t merely a call to silence and inactivity, if it is that at all; wait relates more to having an expectation that God will be faithful to His Word, to His name, to His character — that He will keep His promises. (Nu 23:19)
When I expect God to be as He has revealed Himself to be, and to do as He has promised, I honor Him and please Him. When I take God at His Word, and live as if He is as He truly is, I’m aligning myself with reality, and this is the place of strength; this is when I’m at my best, living according to my design, as strong as I can be.
But when I alienate myself from the life of God through my ignorance of His Way (Ep 4:18), when I cling to false ways in my unwillingness to fully trust Him, I emulate the world (17), living in anxiety, frustration and fear, which steals my joy – which is my strength. (Ne 8:10)
My motive for distrusting God appears to be a fear of being let down should God fail me, as if it’s better to anticipate being disappointed and brace for a fall than to fall flat on my face. But in living like this I’m calling God a liar (1Jn 5:10), and I’ll eventually be ashamed of every moment I’ve lived apart from Him like this. (1Jn 2:28)
If God isn’t faithful, if He isn’t good, if He can’t be trusted, then nothing else matters anyway; then life has no meaning, I have no purpose, no hope. And how’s that working out for me? I’m saved by hope. (Ro 8:24) There’s nothing else worth having, so what do I have to lose by trusting Him? Nothing: I’ve everything to gain.
I should trust Him, and I should trust Him implicitly. But I must also study Him and seek His face (Ps 28:7) so that I may know Him as He is, so I don’t trust in a false image of Him that I’ve created for myself. My trust in Him is only as helpful as the accuracy of the perception I have of Him; I must seek to know Him as He truly is (Php 3:10), and not merely as I wish for Him to be.
And I should only trust in God (Ps 62:5), not man. (Je 17:5) I should not ultimately expect anyone else to be perfectly faithful on their own, apart from God: only God is good, and He works in all of us according to His pleasure (Php 2:13), so I can safely trust Him to work all things for my good (Ro 8:28), and thank Him for all things (Ep 5:20), regardless of appearances.
God’s after one thing – making me like His Son, along with all others who’ll have Him (Ep 5:26-27), that we should be to the praise of His glory. (Ep 1:11-12) So, this is what I should expect Him to do; this is God’s agenda, and I should joyfully pursue Him in it.
I agree with you. I have found myself refraining from sharing or teaching God’s Word for fear of teaching the wrong thing (Jacob(James)3:1) My brothers do not be many teachers, knowing that we will receive greater judgement. Which leads me to think that although I am saved I will receive a judgement for the wrong things that I have said or taught and a reward for the right doctrines that I have put forth. Or perhaps its when I fail in my walk to walk according to what I have said or taught that I will receive a judgement immediately or at the Great White Throne judgement (Ro 14:12)
Interesting! I think this text is warning those who exalt/vaunt themselves as spiritual authorities, those who speak with authority and encourage others to trust their teaching — these will have more to give account of to God; more will be expected of them, they will be measured by a more strict standard.
However, I don’t think this text should be understood to discourage sharing our beliefs with others, along with our reasoning for having our beliefs, as long as we invite others to challenge our views with their own reasoning and engage in a spirit of mutual edification, engaging in iron sharpening iron. (Ro 14:19, 1Th 5:11, 1Co 14:26)
The nature of our judgement is evidently related to our motives more than our theological accuracy. I think, generally, that wrong doctrine is indicative of wrong motives; they tend to go together. I can’t think of clear scriptures teaching these concepts though; perhaps it would be a good study to do!
As with many things, I believe that humility is key. (So yes very much based on motive) I have found myself more than once in the position of feeling it necessary to bring something scriptural to someone’s attention and interweaving the possible implications throughout. Usually it’s something that is worth waiting on or I’m just driven into deeper study before speaking, but in the times it can’t wait or I feel lead; I try to implore the person I’m speaking with to join me in studying the subject for both our sakes.