When God is Silent

In 2007, flamboyant Nebraska State Senator Ernie Chambers filed a lawsuit against God.

He wanted a permanent injunction against the Almighty, whom he blamed for various natural disasters and for failing to stop terrorism.

He said he had tried to contact God previously about these matters but received no response.

The suit was dismissed because the court did not know where to serve notice.

Sometimes we may feel angry when God is silent, but we read this in Is. 30:15:

“This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: ‘In returning to Me and resting in Me you shall be saved; in quietness and in trusting confidence shall be your strength.’”

God may be silent at times, so we go to Him in confident faith and rest quietly in Him.

When we do this, Isaiah says that we will be saved (delivered) and find our strength in Him.

What are some things in which we should rest?

First, we are to rest in the certainty of His forgiving and unconditional love.

In such rest and trust, there is no need for anxiety because Christ is in control and has released us from all our sins!

Like all faith, quiet faith is strong because its object is Christ. Second, we are to rest in His perfect peace.

His kind of peace is ours for the taking.

We need to look to the only true Source of peace to experience it.

Jesus Christ is known as the Prince of Peace for a good reason, since He is the true Source of peace.

Christ made it possible for us to have peace with God when we are saved, as well as the peace of God which surpasses all understanding throughout our journey with Him.

When we received Jesus Christ as our Savior, we become one with Him, which means Christ becomes our peace!

In order to experience it in our daily lives, we need to keep our mind fixed on Christ rather than on our circumstances.

This mindset is having a Christ-consciousness, rather than a self-consciousness or a sin- consciousness.

This will make it possible for us to live with His perspective, knowing that He is working in and through us to accomplish His higher purposes in our lives.

This is how we can enjoy His perfect peace in every area of our life.

As we moment-by-moment are abiding in Christ, we will be living in His presence and His supernatural strength to sustain us.

Where do we find our strength?

Do our lives reveal that we put our confidence in our intellect, our “correct opinions,” our job success, our bank accounts or in our own ability to handle life?

God longs for us to experience Christ’s Life so we can live in His strength.

Isaiah 30:18, in the Amplified Bible, says this:

“And therefore the Lord earnestly waits, expecting, looking, and longing to be gracious to you; and therefore He lifts Himself up, that He may have mercy on you and show loving-kindness to you. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed happy, fortunate, to be envied are all those who earnestly wait for Him, who expect and look and long for Him for His victory, His favor, His love, His peace, His joy, and His matchless, unbroken companionship!”

May we live out of all that we already have in Christ!

Blessings!

Pastor Ken Keeler, Director of Church Ministries