Promises

TEXT:

‘God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?’ (Numbers 23:19 NLT).

Promises. Easy to make, but much harder to keep. Everyone has been let down by empty promises at some time in their life. The Bible says, ‘When you make a promise to God, don’t delay in following through, for God takes no pleasure in fools. Keep all the promises you make to him. It is better to say nothing than to make a promise and not keep it’ (Ecclesiastes 5:4-5 NLT). Don’t make promises you have no intention of keeping.

It’s wonderful that God is not a promise-breaker but a promise-keeper as our text indicates. Solomon prayed, ‘You have kept your promise to your servant David, my father. You made that promise with your own mouth, and with your own hands you have fulfilled it today. And now, O Lord, God of Israel, carry out the additional promise you made to your servant David, my father. For you said to him, “If your descendants guard their behaviour and faithfully follow me as you have done, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel”’ (1 Kings 8:24-25 NLT).

Today’s Teaching focusses on some of the things the Bible says about God’s Promises.

1. All the promises are for all the people – ‘For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God’ (2 Corinthians 1:20 NIV).

The only restriction is to be “in Christ”, i.e. a Christian. However, God has made it possible for everyone to become a Christian by promising, ‘Whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved’ (Romans 10:13).

One purpose for reading the Bible, is to discover the promises. Some of them appear to be too good to be true, but remember, God doesn’t lie. If He has promised, it’s there for our believing and receiving.

God’s promises cover everything to do with life now and that which is to come. There are promises about forgiveness of sin, healing for the body, peace for the troubled soul, prosperity for the poor, battles with temptation and being filled with the Holy Spirit. The Bible has recorded thousands of promises God made, each one He has kept or fully intends to keep.

2. God’s promises are precious promises – ‘In this way he has given us the very great and precious gifts he promised, so that by means of these gifts you may escape from the destructive lust that is in the world, and may come to share the divine nature’ (2 Peter 1:4 GNT).

Peter, once a rugged fisherman, had come to believe that Jesus was the Messiah and his Saviour. He called these promises “precious”! How do you value them? Are they precious to you?

3. Our response to God’s promises

• Cleansing ourselves – ‘Having such great promises as these, dear friends, let us turn away from everything wrong, whether of body or spirit, and purify ourselves, living in the wholesome fear of God, giving ourselves to him alone’ (2 Corinthians 7:1 TLB).

We are not trying to justify ourselves by good works. Only Jesus can do that. What we do need to do is stop worldly thoughts and practices from hindering our walk with God and witness to this world. We’re in this world but we are not of this world. We belong to a different kingdom and are ambassadors for Christ.

Our born-again spirit will prompt us to say and do the right thing, and make us aware when we have said or done the wrong thing. That way we can keep short accounts with both God and people. Just as we use water to keep our bodies clean, so we read the Bible and the truth washes over us. ‘Just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansingher by the washing with water through the word’ (Ephesians 5:25-26 NIV).

• Keep moving forward – ‘Then, knowing what lies ahead for you, you won’t become bored with being a Christian nor become spiritually dull and indifferent, but you will be anxious to follow the example of those who receive all that God has promised them because of their strong faith and patience’ (Hebrews 6:12 TLB).

Because we are a Christian the Bible encourages us to keep going and not get discouraged when God must deal with issues in our life. It’s because He loves us and is acting as a Father. ‘Have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you as his children? He said, My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, and don’t give up when he corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes each one he accepts as his child’ (Hebrews 12:5-6 NLT).

We are about to celebrate Easter. Jesus promised His disciples, “I will rise again”. Jesus couldn’t stay dead because He said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life’ (John 11:25). That’s why the angel asked the women who had come to anoint the body of Jesus, ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead?’ (Luke 24:5).

It was only when the disciples were certain that Jesus was alive again, after He showed them many infallible proofs, that they could become “witnesses of His resurrection”.

The Bible says, ‘For if you tell others with your own mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and believe in your own heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved’ (Romans 10:9 TLB). Now that’s a wonderful way to celebrate Easter!