Misplaced Faith

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre; And when they found not his body, they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive.”

Luke 24:21–23

When Satan tempted Jesus, one of the things he tried to get the Lord to do was to presume upon God, going beyond what God had actually said and expect Him to work in ways He had not promised. “And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone” (Matthew 4:6). This promise, found in Psalm 91, is not a guarantee that God will rescue us if we jump off buildings, yet that is the way Satan tried to get Jesus to view it.

Many times we struggle because we are expecting God to work in ways which He has not promised. Our society is filled with people proclaiming what they say are God's promises concerning health and wealth and the things of this world—but often what they confidently declare is not actually what God said. Faith that is based on anything other than God’s Word will lead to trouble.

The two disciples Jesus talked to following His resurrection revealed that they had been looking for Jesus to overthrow the Romans and make Israel an independent nation again. But that is not what Jesus had been teaching them. They did believe God, but they believed the wrong goal because they did not understand what He was intending to do in their lives and in the world.

Today’s Growth Principle: 

It is critical that we properly understand the promises of God as the foundation of our faith.