The Bible plainly and repeatedly warns believers not to put their trust in men. In addition to this truth, men are not to trust in themselves. As today's passage shows, sometimes God allows circumstances to come into our lives in order to teach us not to trust in ourselves. If any mere mortal could stake a claim to self-trust, it would have been the apostle Paul. He was “circumcised the eighth day,” “an Hebrew of the Hebrews,” and “a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). In spite of this, Paul knew these attributes were not sufficient to trust for eternal life. In fact, he counted these things but dung, that he may win Christ (Philippians 3:8). If Paul understood that he could not put his trust in himself or his accomplishments, everyone else should realize that his or her ability or merits are not worthy of trust.
Romans 3:4 says, “let God be true, but every man a liar.” Perhaps this truth serves as the foundational reason why God warned believers not to place their trust in man. Though the primary reason, it is not the only reason. In Psalm 146:3 the Lord warns, “Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.” The real needs of mankind cannot be satisfied by man, even the best of men. Those who put their trust in man do so in disobedience to the Lord which results in their own personal harm. Psalm 118:8-9 twice stresses that “It is better to trust in the LORD.” An improper trust in man is, in many ways, a departure from the Lord (Jeremiah 17:5).
Most of us would assume that the Lord laughed at some point during His earthly ministry, yet the scripture never focuses on this point. Rather, the scripture seems to focus on the fact that He was “a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3). We know very little of any laughter, yet we do know that He wept at the tomb of Lazarus (John 11:35). He further lamented over Jerusalem because of their rebellion (Luke 13:34). We also know that He sighed at the healing of the deaf man who had a speech impediment (Mark 7:34). Heaven affords the Lord great rejoicing, yet His earthly ministry was consumed by heartache rather than mirth. This most likely was a result of dealing with the consequences of man’s sin.
