Lesson 245 . Resentment Toward God

Have you ever been resentful toward God? Unanswered prayers. Insurmountable trials. Unsolvable problems. Endless debts. Fears. Unreasonable brothers and sisters. Unforgiven sin in my life. Unbearable children or an angry life companion. Bitter resentment toward my neighbors. All this and much more separates me from God, Who is called Love. And resentment toward Him reigns in my heart because He has allowed so many difficult trials in my life and does not even try to resolve them. I do not want to go to church to worship Him; the desire to pray disappears, and life itself loses all meaning amid this nightmare. How am I to live? What am I to live for? What should I do? And no one in this world is able to help me. I want to distract myself, but the problems grow worse, and there is no comfort in anything.

Unfortunately, such disappointment is very common in this world and even among God’s children, who suffer and do not know a way out. And the saddest thing in all this is that God becomes the guilty One because He is accused of indifference. The qualities of my own soul that oppress me are involuntarily attributed to God. And as for His love toward me, I cannot even imagine it.

Sometimes this whole situation reminds me of an aquarium. I love my fish, know the traits and character of each one, and think about their existence, health, cleanliness, nourishment, and many other things. But when I come very close or lower my finger into the water, they scatter from me in terror, wishing to hide, and wait fearfully for me to leave, swimming out only at feeding time. And their fear of me also affects their attitude toward one another. Yet I love them with all my heart and dream of how wonderful it would be if they came to know me, understood my love for them, and pressed themselves against my finger in the water, wishing to be held in my whole hand. It would be such a joy if they all swam together to the walls of the aquarium when I appeared, followed me wherever I went, and watched to see where I would be, wishing to be closer and rejoicing in my presence. I can only dream of this. They have fry that are very curious at first, but over time they learn from their parents and fellow inhabitants of the aquarium to fear me. And some of these unfortunate creatures die without ever coming to know my love, and their bodies have to be removed from the aquarium to save the others from infection. The other fish watch this in fear, deciding that they will be next. How I wish that at least one fish would appear among them that could tell the others the whole truth about me and, by its own personal example, reveal to them the beauty of my love and character. And if I myself became a fish like them, then I would probably be able to convey even better to these fearful creatures who I truly am and how much I love them all. And I would move all who believed in me into my pool, where I myself would swim with them and gladden them with my personal presence, rejoicing in their faithfulness and love for me.

God’s greatest desire is to reveal to humanity His true character, His love, and His plan for my personal Salvation.

How He longs for every person to see His true love for them, to discover in God the very best and most faithful Friend, and to believe in Jesus as his personal Savior.

He is the One Who has cared for me from my birth and carries me in His arms even to old age, watching over me and loving me at all times. Isaiah 46:3–4.

How many assurances of His love God has spoken from the pages of the Bible! How He cries out to this world that He loves man, desires to save him from the power of sin, and will free him from every care that destroys happiness.

How ashamed I sometimes feel before God for my former vain life, for my rebellion against Him, and for my fear.

In essence, all my disappointments in life, all my fears, and my aversion to my Creator come from the enemy of the human soul, who is occupied from morning to evening with separating me from God, discouraging me, worsening my problems, and ultimately destroying me in my miserable condition. And the enemy of my soul has this task: to impose upon me a false conception of God and distort His true character by attributing to the Creator the qualities that belong to satan and the fallen demons. And woe to me if I believe these whisperings.

God is great, and He is awe-inspiring in His majesty. The whole universe trembles before the Creator—some out of love and deep reverence, and others out of fear and ignorance in their knowledge of Him.

But the most interesting thing is that my sin separates me from God, creates a false image of Him in my mind, and brings me into fear of the Creator, while God desires to save me from this very miserable condition of my soul: to forgive me, cleanse me, remove from me the heavy burden of cares, debts, resentments, and disappointments, and teach me to believe in Him, cast all my cares upon Him, receive strength from Him, and find in Him the Source of joy, love, and inspiration. And many succeed in this. But I run away from Him into myself and into my problems, and I perish in this condition of soul.

If I see or feel that something in my life is wrong, or that someone close to me is not entirely kind toward me, then I can bring this to my Heavenly Friend—Jesus—and receive forgiveness, comfort, and deliverance. Happiness is the fruit of my right relationship with God.

In essence, every problem and situation in my life is neutral in itself, but my reaction or attitude toward it creates either an unsolvable problem or another task that I will solve with God’s help. Life is very short and passes very quickly, and I need to learn the most important things that will make it beautiful during this brief period and prepare me to enter Eternity: love, friendship, happiness, joy, kindness, contentment with much or little, and a right relationship with my dear Savior Jesus. In this lies my reward in this world. This is the true wealth of my soul, carefully preserved in my heart, with an inexhaustible reserve in the heavenly treasuries.

I have decided for myself that it would be very wrong and foolish to be resentful toward God because of some temporary earthly difficulties of mine and to accuse Him of indifference when He has done and continues to do so much for me and for my Salvation in the past, present, and future. He gives assurance of Salvation and fills the heart with the anticipation of the delight of Eternal Life—not only here and now, but in Eternity itself, when the history of sin will be ended, everyone will receive what he has chosen, and everyone will meet the One in Whom he believed and Whom he loved, never to be separated again. I await this meeting. And I wait not in disappointment because someone treats me wrongly or because something is amiss in my life, but in the assurance that my life is hid with Christ and that with Him I will overcome everything and resolve everything in the best way.

And even if the car in my garage is gone and my business brings me no income, this will not be a reason to be resentful toward God. It is foolish to be resentful toward the One Who cares for me so tenderly and gives so much love and revelation. Resentment is the spirit of pride, and love does not vaunt itself. Considering myself better than God by being resentful toward Him is not a very promising pursuit.

Homework 245

In the light of our lesson, please read Luke 11:45; Psalms 103:1–6; 146:5–9; Matthew 20:12–16; Romans 8:3–4; Philippians 2:6–8; 1 Timothy 3:16; John 1:18; 17:3; 1 John 5:20; Isaiah 46:3–4; Revelation 12:12; Jeremiah 33:6–9; Matthew 11:28–30; Hebrews 12:14; and Revelation 22:17, 20.
What did you understand from this lesson?
Do you harbor resentment or discontent toward God?
Have you ever experienced God not answering your prayers in the way you asked? What feelings did such treatment from God awaken in you?
How does God relate to those who are resentful toward Him or blame Him for all their troubles?
What should I do if nothing happens in answer to my prayers?
May I express my complaints and displeasure with God aloud, shaking my fists toward Heaven while speaking with Him in personal prayer? Have you ever done this?
Is God ever guilty before people?
How many times did Jesus apologize for His mistakes or impolite expressions?
Does God love those who sulk at Him?