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“Trust Without Demands” brings us face to face with a central issue in the Christian life: will we trust God on the basis of His character and His Word alone, or will we make our trust conditional on God meeting our terms?
The central scripture is:
> “You shall not tempt the Lord your God, as you tempted Him in Massah.”
> — Deuteronomy 6:16 (NKJV)
And connected to it is the historical event:
> “Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water, that we may drink.’
> So Moses said to them, ‘Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?’”
> — Exodus 17:2 (NKJV)
This command is later quoted by Jesus Himself:
> “Jesus answered him, ‘It is also written: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’”
> — Matthew 4:7 (NIV)
Notice: Jesus faces Satan, not with emotion, not with argument, but with scripture, precisely this command: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”
The song echoes this command and applies it practically:
trust His word, stand on His promise.
He is faithful, He is true—
don’t demand a sign from Him.”
The issue is simple but searching: Are we trusting, or are we testing?
Many believers confuse the two. They think they are “standing in faith” when in reality they are putting God on trial.
Let us look at what the Word of God says, both historically and spiritually, and then bring it down to our daily walk.
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### The Setting of Deuteronomy 6:16
Deuteronomy is Moses’ final message to Israel, on the plains of Moab, just before they enter the Promised Land. A new generation stands poised to inherit what the previous generation forfeited through unbelief and disobedience.
Moses is reviewing God’s covenant, God’s commandments, and Israel’s history of failure and mercy. He warns them:
> “You shall not tempt the Lord your God as you tempted Him in Massah.”
> — Deuteronomy 6:16 (NKJV)
Moses deliberately points them back almost 40 years—to Massah, a turning point in their unbelief.
### What Happened at Massah? (Exodus 17:2–7)
Israel had just come out of Egypt with mighty signs and wonders—plagues, the Red Sea parted, Pharaoh’s army destroyed. In Exodus 15 and 16, God had already provided miraculously:
Yet when they reach Rephidim and find no water, the people react not with prayer but with accusation:
> “Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, ‘Give us water, that we may drink.’
> So Moses said to them, ‘Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the Lord?’”
> — Exodus 17:2 (NKJV)
Verse 7 explains the spiritual issue:
> “So he called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the contention of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, ‘Is the Lord among us or not?’”
> — Exodus 17:7 (NKJV)
So the outward problem was lack of water. But the spiritual sin was deeper: “Is the Lord among us or not?”
That is testing God.
#### Key elements of Massah:
1. Visible need: No water—real, pressing discomfort.
2. Grumbling and contention: Not humble petition, but complaint.
3. Demand for proof: God must demonstrate His presence on their terms.
4. Questioning God’s faithfulness: “Is the Lord among us or not?”
In Deuteronomy 6, Moses says, in effect:
“Do not repeat this pattern. Do not relate to God this way. You are not to require God to prove Himself again and again before you will trust and obey.”
### Jesus and the Temptation in the Wilderness
When Satan tempts Jesus (Matthew 4:1–11; Luke 4:1–13), one of the temptations is precisely this issue of testing God.
Satan takes Jesus to the pinnacle of the temple and quotes Scripture:
> “If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down. For it is written:
>
> ‘He will command His angels concerning You,
> and they will lift You up in their hands,
> so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”
> — Matthew 4:6 (NIV)
Notice: Satan even uses the Bible. But he uses it to provoke a test of God.
Jesus refuses:
> “Jesus answered him, ‘It is also written:
> “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’”
> — Matthew 4:7 (NIV)
The Son of God Himself will not force a demonstration of the Father’s faithfulness. He will not jump, then demand God catch Him. That is not faith. That is presumption. That is testing God.
The song begins with this victorious answer of Jesus. It sets the pattern for us: genuine trust does not demand a sign; it rests in what God has already said.
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### 1. “Test / Tempt” (Hebrew: נָסָה – *nāsāh*)
In Deuteronomy 6:16:
> “You shall not tempt the Lord your God…”
The Hebrew word is נָסָה (*nāsāh*). It means:
Now, there is a right way and a wrong way this word is used in Scripture.
(e.g., Deuteronomy 8:2).
What does it mean to “test” God in this negative sense?
It means:
At Massah, they said: “Is the Lord among us or not?” That is *nāsāh*—putting God to the test.
### 2. “Test” in the New Testament (Greek: πειράζω – *peirazō*)
In Matthew 4:7 (Jesus’ quotation):
> “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.”
The Greek verb is πειράζω (*peirazō*), which has two main nuances:
1. To test or try (neutral or positive when God tests)
2. To tempt (in the sense of enticing to sin, often negative)
Applied to God, *peirazō* means to:
This is precisely what Satan was pressing Jesus to do: “If You are the Son of God, prove it by forcing the Father’s hand.”
Jesus responds: That is not trust; that is *testing*.
### How This Deepens the Lyrics
The song says:
> “Do not test the Lord your God—
> trust His word, stand on His promise.
> He is faithful, He is true—
> don’t demand a sign from Him.”
Understanding *nāsāh* and *peirazō* clarifies the contrast:
Testing relates to God as if He were on trial.
Faith relates to God as the One whose Word already settles the matter.
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### A. “Jesus answered him, ‘It is also written…’”
> “Jesus answered him,
> ‘It is also written:
> Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
Here we see the pattern for spiritual warfare:
1. Jesus faces Satan.
2. Satan uses Scripture out of context.
3. Jesus answers with “It is also written.”
This shows us:
Satan quoted Psalm 91, promising angelic protection. That psalm is true. But Satan twisted it into a license to do something God never asked.
Jesus refused to step outside the Father’s will to force a miracle. The Father had already declared: “This is My beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17). Jesus did not need to make the Father prove it.
Applied to us:
We do not need God to keep proving He loves us. The cross is the proof.
We do not need a fresh sign to believe His Word. The resurrection is the sign.
Faith in Scripture is enough. Demanding extra signs is entering the realm of *peirazō*—testing God.
---
### B. “Do not test the Lord your God—trust His word, stand on His promise.”
Here the contrast is direct: testing vs. trusting.
#### Testing God looks like:
This is essentially what Israel did in the wilderness:
> “They tested God in their heart
> By asking for the food of their fancy.”
> — Psalm 78:18 (NKJV)
They were not merely asking; they were dictating.
#### Trusting God looks like:
Abraham is the opposite of Israel at Massah:
> “He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief,
> but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,
> and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.”
> — Romans 4:20–21 (NKJV)
Abraham does not demand conditions. He trusts the Promiser.
The song uses the phrase: “Stand on His promise.” That is biblical language:
> “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.”
> — 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NKJV)
When we stand on God’s promises, we do not demand that He meet our deadlines or our methods. We rest in His faithfulness.
---
### C. “He is faithful, He is true—don’t demand a sign from Him.”
The basis of faith is not our feelings but God’s character.
> “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”
> — Hebrews 10:23 (NKJV)
When we know He is faithful and true, we no longer need to “test” Him.
Now, Scripture does record signs from God. There is a right place for God-given signs. But notice:
Jesus rebuked the generation that demanded proofs:
> “A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign,
> and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”
> — Matthew 16:4 (NKJV)
Their problem was not that they wanted to understand. Their problem was that they refused to believe the revelation already given unless God fulfilled their additional requirements.
When the song says, “don’t demand a sign from Him,” it is addressing the same heart attitude:
“I will only believe if God performs on my terms.”
Faith says: “God, Your Word is enough.”
Unbelief says: “Show me more.”
---
### D. “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test, as you tested Him at Massah.”
This line pulls Deuteronomy 6:16 and Exodus 17 together. God is saying:
“Remember that episode. Do not repeat it.”
At Massah, they combined:
Hebrews 3 and 4 pick this up as a warning to Christians:
> “Today, if you will hear His voice,
> Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
> In the day of trial in the wilderness,
> Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me,
> And saw My works forty years.”
> — Hebrews 3:7–9 (NKJV)
Notice: They “tested” God after they had seen His works. Many believers think, “If God showed me miracles, I would never doubt.” Israel is the proof that is not true.
The problem was not lack of evidence. The problem was a hardened heart.
Testing God, then, is not an intellectual problem. It is a heart problem.
The song says:
> “Remember how your fathers grumbled—
> trust Him fully without doubt.”
Grumbling is not a small sin. In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul lists Israel’s sins in the wilderness and warns us:
> “Nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.”
> — 1 Corinthians 10:10 (NKJV)
Grumbling is the language of unbelief. It is often the first step toward testing God.
“Trust Him fully without doubt” echoes James 1:6–7:
> “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
> For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything
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