The Promises of God

"...But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

The Bible is full of the promises of God to provide for and take care of His people. Some estimates have put the number of promises in the neighborhood of 3,000 or more. Regardless, God's promises are what bring Christians hope and stability in times of trouble. As one Christian author puts it, "From Genesis to Revelation we read of normal people that received the promises of God. These promises are sealed by the highest authority, God's word. In Hebrews 6:13 it says, "For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself."
When God makes a promise to his people, it will come to pass. What is a promise? A promise is a covenant or declaration that one will do exactly what they say or something will happen just as pledged." A promise is only as good as the one who makes it. Unfortunately, when we as humans make promises to each other there is always a risk associated with that promise because we are flawed human beings. There is not a person alive who hasn't had a promise broken or who hasn't broken a promise they have made to someone. How many times have you even made a promise knowing you were going to break it? You only made the promise to put off the consequences of telling somebody "No" when they asked you for something. These personal experiences have conditioned us to superimpose our experiences onto God and His promises. After all, what are some of the promises of God that we are most familiar with from the Bible? There is Jeremiah 29:11 which says, "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Then there is Malachi 3:10 that reads, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it."" Lastly, we have 2 Chronicles 7:14 where God promises that "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." Now, we could go into whether or not these promises were made to Christians or if we can meet the conditions these promises hinged on in order for God to fulfill them. Regardless, they are promises God has made and many Christians claim to find hope and comfort in them. However, if we are honest, many of these same people do not experience the realization of these promises in their life. Despite holding on to these promises, their lives don't seem to resemble what God has promised. They are suffering and struggling through life and are not sure what to believe.

If this is your experience, there is hope for you. God has promised many things in the Bible. However, there are some promises that we often skip over or ignore completely because they are not the kind of promises that we want to cling to or trust God for in our lives. Promises like 1 Peter 4:12-13 that says, "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."  Then there is this reminder from Paul in Philippians 1:29. "For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him." Lastly, there are the words of Jesus Christ who said, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble (John 16:33)." The broken promises we experience often lead to our suffering. If they do not, suffering will find us soon enough from the world we live in. However, rather than look at our sufferings as evidence that God's promises are somehow not for us, let us look at them as proof that they are for us. God promised we would suffer whether because of our faith as a Christian or simply from living in a fallen, sinful world. What did Jesus say about these times? He said for us to have peace in the midst of them because He has overcome the world. "Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God (1 John 5:5)." It is because of your faith in Jesus Christ that you have overcome the world because He has overcome the world through His death and resurrection. Therefore, when you experience suffering do not get down on yourself as if it is a sign of your failure in the eyes of God and that His promises are not for you. Look at it as an opportunity to discover more about your God and who you are in Him because His promises have come true in your life. As was said earlier, a promise is only as good as the one making it. When we rest in the promises of God never lose sight of the God who made those promises. He is the ultimate promise we have had fulfilled through our faith. While it is great to experience the positive promises of God instead of the ones pertaining to suffering, the one constant is our God. He is the one that promised, "If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself (2 Timothy 2:13)." It doesn't matter what promises of God you are experiencing, what matters is that the God who made those promises has given Himself to you through your faith in Jesus Christ. Amen.