Big God with Study Guide: What Happens When We Trust Him by Britt Merrick

Author:Britt Merrick [Merrick, Britt]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Bible. O.T.—Criticism, interpretation, etc., Faith—Biblical teaching, Faith
ISBN: 9780830762606
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2012-06-15T07:00:00+00:00

False Gospel, False Expectations

Failing to realize that it’s all about God’s purposes—and not our own—breeds false expectations. We think it’s about us. And so we set up these false expectations that become very problematic for our emotional security and stability. In his great book about evil and suffering, D. A. Carson said, “Much mental suffering is tied to our false expectations. We may so link our hopes and joys and future to a new job, to a promotion, to certain kinds of success, to prosperity, that when they fail to materialize, we are utterly crushed. But quiet confidence in God alone breeds stability and delight amid ‘all the changing scenes of life.’ ”1

Now this is especially poignant for us. We have been poisoned by a false gospel in this nation, the prosperity gospel, which tells us that it’s all about your health and it’s all about your wealth. That’s a totally egocentric theology and it’s false! It feeds into our fallen selfish nature and our consumerism as Americans. And what’s worse is that we have the audacity as Americans to export this corrupt theology to places like Thailand and Africa where there’s real suffering and a great need for the truth. But it’s endemic within our culture to think we have certain inalienable rights from God and we deserve something. That belief sets up false expectations and is sure to bring disappointment.

We have to ask ourselves in our times of waiting if we are really waiting on God or just some idea that we’ve proposed to God—or, worse, if we are demanding something from God with a sense of entitlement. We have no rights! Our rights were done away with when Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross. When we come to Him, we surrender. We surrender all, not just what we feel like, including our self-righteous promises. We don’t deserve anything. Scripture is very clear about what we deserve: We deserve hell, and it is only by the grace of God that we can avoid it. It’s only because of what Jesus did on the cross, not because of any right of our own.

It’s essential to realize that God’s promises have to do with the person of Jesus Christ and not the person of us. It’s about Him and His glory and His mission. So often, waiting is frustrating because we’re waiting on our own plans or purposes.

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