Reflections: Trust

I’ve been watching some of the original Dr Who episodes with William Hartnell. It’s sort of geeky, I suppose, but they were quite something for an old black and white series.

I recently finished the episode on the Sensorites. They were a race of beings who had made contact with earthlings that came to the planet. They trusted the humans, but the humans discovered a wealth of minerals on the planet. The Sensorites could detect the images in the human minds and realized they could not be trusted. Two of the humans tried to flee the planet, and the ship exploded. It was assumed all humans died on the ship.

It was into this atmosphere of mistrust towards humans that the Doctor and his companions enter. However, what isn’t known at first is that some Sensorites mistrust the humans so much that they would do anything, even disobey their superiors, in order to kill the humans. The Sensorites are a caste society, run by “elders”. The first elder states he trusts the second elder to the utmost. Susan, one of the Doctor’s companions, asks why. “I have chosen him,” was the answer. “I chose him because I trust him.”

Susan asks if all Sensorites trust one another, to which the first elder answers in the affirmative. “But trust must be earned,” she tells him. This is a foreign concept to him.

One of the Sensorites, the city administrator, actually turns against the second elder and kills him. He then plots to kill the first elder as well.

³Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help. (Psalm 146:3, King James Version)

Trust. Confidence. Faith.

Adam and Eve did not trust God. “Ye shall not surely die,” said the serpent. They put their faith in the wrong party.

How do you know who to put your trust in? Well, they have to earn it, don’t they?

We may not think about it this way, but why should we trust God? Some people will probably answer this with, “Because He is God.”

That sounds easy enough, but does God always expect instant faith, instant obedience, instant conversion or instant perfection? No, because one of God’s attributes is patience – lots of patience.

Think about it. How many times did God say something and then back it up with something else? How about with a Rainbow? A fleece or two? A turning back of the sundial? A virgin birth? In the vernacular, He put His money where His mouth is.

Or, another way to put it is that we know we can trust Him because He has shown himself to be trustworthy.

¹⁰And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. (Psalm 9:10, King James Version)

If God, Who is all powerful, all knowing and all in control, backs up His words with His deeds, should we be taking notes? Rather than a despot who says, “Do as I say, not as I do,” He leads by example.

Do we show ourselves to be trustworthy? Is our word as good as it gets?

It used to be that a man’s word was his honor. In this politically correct, litigious and tense society, that idea seems to have been lost. I don’t think it is a change for the better.

Should we trust everybody? Should we trust people just because they go to church?

¹⁴But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (Hebrews 5:14, King James Version)

³⁰Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. (Matthew 13:30, King James Version)

¹⁶Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. (Matthew 10:16, King James Version)

Trust has to be earned. So, go forth and be trustworthy.