Some people
and some things we tend to trust cannot be trusted. Have you ever had your
heart broken? Have you been let down by others? If so, you are not alone. We
have all been hurt by something or someone we trusted. The question is, what do
we do in response?
Once hurt,
some turn away and never trust again. They live bitter lives because they crave
relationship and need others but don’t dare risk trusting again. Others blindly
turn from one to another and throw their trust in a desperate effort to get their
needs met. Far too often, they are hurt again. We need to trust, but it is hard
to find one worthy of trust.
This is what
Jesus affirms in John 10. He uses several images throughout the chapter to
differentiate himself from all others we might trust. Whether intentionally or
carelessly, other people and things can become thieves and robbers when we put
our lives in their hands. There is only one who can be fully trusted. This is Jesus,
the Good Shepherd, the Door, the Son of God, One with the Father. When we trust
him first, we can be solidly anchored to love others, not from a place of
dependence, but from the abundant life that only comes from him.
