Because God Has, I Will.

“But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me.” – Psalm 13:5 NLT

What more does God have to do for you to begin to trust Him? What is it going to take for you to really believe that He knows what is going on in your life and will provide for and protect you, regardless of what you see happening around you? That is the reoccurring theme of so many of the Psalms of David. It is clear that David was a man who had his own fair share of trials and troubles. While he may have been a king and enjoyed great wealth and wielded tremendous power, he was not immune to problems. He faced a variety of difficult circumstances in his lifetime, including the constant threat of enemies, both within and without his kingdom. At one point, his own father-in-law, Saul, was on a crusade to have David killed. Later on in his life, David would watch as his own son, Absalom, led a rebellion against him and took over his kingdom. The Philistines never forgave him for his killing of Goliath. And there were times when David felt all alone and alienated from God. He was human and was prone to look at his circumstances and question whether God was aware of what was happening to him. In the midst of his suffering and struggles, he would ask the same question we all ask of God: “How long?” When is this going to stop, God? When will You step in and do something about this situation in my life? Why the delay? What are You doing? Why are You waiting?

Four times in the first two verses of Psalm 13, David repeats that question, “How long?” He pleads with God to answer him, to give him some glimmer of hope in the midst of the darkness. He wants to see God do something so his enemies won’t gloat over his situation and mock his God. But then David says the one thing we all need to be able to say: “But I trust in your unfailing love” (Psalm 13:5 NLT). Actually, the tense of the verb he uses speaks of a past event, a completed action. David is saying, “But I have trusted in your unfailing love.” David has continually lived his life by placing his confidence in the kindness and mercy of God. That’s why he is able to say, “I will rejoice in your salvation.” Because David had trusted in God in the past, he knew he could trust in God for the future. He knew that there was a day coming when God was going to bring salvation. He didn’t know how or when, but he knew it was coming. He would rejoice one day. He would sing for joy one day. Why? Because God had been good to him in the past. The best way to translate verse 6 is “I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me.” The basis for David’s future joy was God’s past provision. He knew that God would come through for him, because God had come through for him. David’s God was a faithful, consistent and unchanging God. His God always delivered, always came through, never abandoned, never gave up, never walked out on him, and never disappointed.

From David’s perspective, only a fool would reach the conclusion that there is no God (Psalm 14:1). Only a fool would decide that God was not there or did not care. David had seen the hand of God in the past and he knew he would see the hand of God in the future. Because God had, David knew he would sing, rejoice, and praise God some day – in spite of all that was going on at the moment.

Father, You have never failed to be faithful to me. So let me trust in Your past deliverance and there find hope for my future restoration. You are always faithful, always loving, and always powerful. Because You have, I can trust that you will. Your character is consistent and constant, never changing. Amen

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org