Article April 3, 1989 Issue

Trusting God and man

Constant reports of violence and injustice suggest that we can't trust our fellowman. But the "good news" is there is a deeper, spiritual basis for trust.

Annette Kreutziger-Herr

We all need trust—something to rely upon, something to feel at home with in our hearts, something to count on. And of course we know from experience that spiritual qualities like intelligence, purity, and love are worthy of our trust. Actually nothing is more trustworthy than the source of these good qualities: God, who has unfailing love for His whole creation.

But what about man? Isn't it true that we often find it easy to love spiritual truths but have difficulty finding them in ourselves or in others? Shouldn't God's creation, including man, be worthy of our trust, too? John tells us in one of his epistles, "If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen?"^{I John 4:20.}

In taking a look at our world we may not find much trustworthiness. Many people may answer the "Do you believe in man?" in the negative because they have been hurt by others and have come to mistrust people. Sometimes there seem to be very good reasons for suspicion. Among nations, peace agreements are not always honored; in families, promised assistance is not always given; at work, underhanded attacks are not unknown. Trust, the basis for harmonious coexistence, is often misplaced.

Send a comment to the editors

We'd love to hear from you!

Easily submit your testimonies, articles, and poems online.

Submit

Trusting God and man

We'd love to hear from you!

Sign up for unlimited access