God is Faithful

Posted on by korgrocker

“Now you have every spiritual gift you need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from all blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
1 Corinthians 1:7-9 NLT
“God is faithful; you were called by him into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
1 Corinthians 1:9 CSB

In his build up to “God is faithful” Paul sets out how much God has done for the believers in Corinth. As one commentary puts it “Christ does all the work, and we receive all the benefits”. A very lopsided relationship, I think we must agree, but it is true that God in His Grace has done so much for us. In fact, when we consider God’s faithfulness we come to see more clearly what it means because none of the sins of mankind will keep God from being faithful, through His grace, to any person who has come to Him by faith in Jesus. God put into action His plan for the salvation of mankind. It was many years in the making because it started before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), and with a cross and the crucifixion of His own Son, the plan was finally implemented. God was faithful all the way through and His faithfulness continues today. 

As we read through the Bible, we see example after example of how God’s faithfulness has lasted even though there were many seemingly insurmountable obstacles in the way. Abrahan and Sarah had a son in their old age, in response to God’s promise in Genesis 15:4-6, “Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!” And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith“. Sadly, Abraham and Sarah tried to make things happen with a Plan B, resulting in Ishmael, but God was still faithful, as we read in Genesis 17:19, “But God replied, “No—Sarah, your wife, will give birth to a son for you. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my covenant with him and his descendants as an everlasting covenant”. The story continued and we read in Genesis 21:1-3, “The Lord kept his word and did for Sarah exactly what he had promised. She became pregnant, and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would. And Abraham named their son Isaac”. A miracle birth to an old couple and an example of God’s faithfulness. 

To the Corinthian church, and referring to the things He was doing for them, Paul wrote, “God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says”. Day after day, God’s faithfulness is present in our daily lives. After the Flood, God said, “Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth“. And we are still living in the light of this promise. In Genesis 8:21 we read, “And the Lord was pleased with the aroma of the sacrifice and said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of the human race, even though everything they think or imagine is bent toward evil from childhood. I will never again destroy all living things“. Today we are living assured of this promise, and all those who are afraid of being destroyed in a nuclear holocaust would do well to stand on this promise of God because He is faithful. The next verse in Genesis 8 gives us another promise from God, “As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night“. The climate doomsayers would say otherwise, but God has promised that the world will continue in the form we know, and we, His people of faith, believe that.

In the New Testament we read some more promises about God’s faithfulness. In Genesis 24:14, we read what Jesus said about the events preceding the End of the Age, “And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come”. Good progress is being made at reaching the world with the Gospel, but there is still many people yet to be reached. Another promise of God we know well, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life“. Paul picked up this theme in Romans 10:9, “if you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved“. God has promised that we will be saved and we will spend eternity with Him.

But the one thing about God’s promises is that they need faith to believe them. In the same way that God is faithful, so must we be. Paul was convinced about God’s faithfulness and he wrote, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). We believe God’s promises because He is faithful, in spite of our doubts and lack of faith. Paul wrote, “If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is” (2 Timothy 2:13). And that sums it up really. God is not only faithful, He is faithful because that is who He is. Isn’t that tremendous?

Dear Father God, we thank You for Your faithfulness, so gracious and loving. Through Your faithfulness, Your promises will come to pass, as we are eternally grateful. Amen.

The Christian Life

Posted on by korgrocker

“God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection.”
Psalm 18:30 NLT

At first reading of our verse today, perhaps a new Christian would think that the Christian life before him will be an easy one, without the hassles and struggles the people of the world are facing into. After all, when we read about God’s way being perfect and God providing a shield to protect us, what could go wrong? Add into the mix a Bible full of God’s promises, which will all become true, so David wrote, then becoming a Christian must open a door into a utopian world never before experienced. But after a few weeks into the journey, reality starts to dawn, that being a Christian in the true New Testament sense introduces a way of life that not only includes the difficulties previously encountered, but also includes the discipline of following the Lord. So why do we seasoned pilgrims do it, plodding along the roads, sometimes as though through treacle, that lead to a life beyond the grave?

Well, for a start, we have to consider our future. We responded to the message of forgiveness of sins, to a God who loves us and cares about us, and who wants us to join Him in Heaven where we will live forever. We continue in our journey to try and become more like Jesus, cleaning up our lives, our thoughts, our actions, our relationships, in the process we call sanctification. To be honest, it can be hard work at times. It’s great when all is well, and we experience wonderful times of prayer and worship, our spirits flying high into Heavenly places, seemingly touching the very fringes of Heaven itself. But there are then other times when we find valleys of darkness and turmoil, when the Heavens seem like brass, and we cannot even pray effectively, let alone find the means to worship, times when we even find that opening the pages of our Bibles becomes a chore.

But none of this devalues the words of David, written so long ago. God’s way is indeed perfect. We cannot dispute that, and the wonderful thing is that He helps us understand and follow His way. One of His promises is written there in Deuteronomy 31:8, “Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you”. That verse was written to encourage the Israelites, but its timeless message hangs in the air over us even today. What a wonderful thought that our Lord Himself is there just before us, showing us the way, helping us over the obstacles our enemy, the devil, has placed in our paths, and nothing will happen that will cause Him to abandon us, whatever the circumstances. 

And we read that God Himself is our shield, protecting us from the fiery darts of the evil one. Ephesians 6:16, “In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil“. Our faith in God will protect us. It is often good to look back over our lives and see those times when disaster could have struck us down, was it not for God’s shield protecting us. Strange circumstances that inexplicably emerged to keep us safe. I remember times that could have gone horribly wrong was it not for God’s protection, times that even now, many years later, drive me to my knees in deep prayers of gratitude. 

So today, we pilgrims continue our Christian lives, embracing the One who made it all possible. We will not deviate to left or right, but instead will set our faces towards the Light that is before us. Those of us in our twilight years can perhaps see a faint glow on the horizon, likened to the dawn of a new day. That’s where we are heading, folks, and nothing will stop us because “God’s way is perfect”, His “promises prove true”, and “He is a shield for all who look to him for protection”. 

Father God, thank You for all You have done for us. One day we will find out the total story of Your goodness and love, and will fall at Your feet in worship. Amen.

Divine Promises

Posted on by korgrocker

“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”
2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV

In the previous verse in 2 Peter 1, Peter wrote about how God’s power can help us live a Godly life. He now moves on to considering God’s promises. We read what Peter wrote about God’s divine power, accessed through our knowledge of Him, and leading to His divine promises. 2 Peter 1:4 includes an awe-inspiring revelation – that we are “partakers of the divine nature.” This is a staggering concept that calls us to recognize our profound connection with God. It suggests that as believers, we are not merely recipients of God’s blessings; we are invited to share in who He is. This divine participation transforms the identity and purpose of us pilgrims, calling us to live in a way that is reflective of our life to come In Heaven. And we note that this is not a future event – it is available to us in the here and now.

But there is a significant benefit coming from God’s power and promises – to “escape the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.” In a world marked by decay and moral decline, God’s promises offer a way of escape. This escape is not an evasion but a transformative journey. It implies a departure from the corrosive influences of the world and an entry into the transformative power of God’s promises.

So what are these “precious and very great promises”? If we read the end of the previous verse, we see that they are connected with God’s “glory and excellence”. God has made promises to His people in His Word because He is glorious and because He is excellent. Peter was writing to those early Christians in Asia Minor, but his words apply just as much today, to us pilgrims. We can’t just gloss over these promises, though. We have to understand that they are of considerable value, coming as they do from God’s divine nature. And to find out what they are we have to read the Bible. God’s promises are all contained within this precious Book, and we will have to read it. And as we do, we will find out more and more about our wonderful heavenly Father. We will find too that the Bible is full of surprises, that will transform the way we think and behave. 

Let’s just pluck from the Bible some promises; each of these will give us a glimpse of what life with God is like now and what it will be like in the future. 
Psalm 23:6, “Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever“.
Isaiah 1:18, ““Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool“.
Ezekiel 36:26, “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart“. ‭‭
Matthew 11:28-30, “Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light“.

These are just four God-promises and there are many more. But they are not just warm, fuzzy words on a page in a dusty tome. Applying these in our lives will lead to the abundant life that Jesus spoke about. “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). But we have to take these Scriptures on board and chew them over in our minds and spirits. And apply them to every aspect of our lives. There is no other way.

Dear Heavenly Father. Your ways are the only ways to find the abundant life You have promised to us. We thank You for each and every Word that is contained in Your Book. Amen.