1 Thessalonians
5:23-25
23 Now may
the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul
and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ. 24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass. 25
Brethren, pray for us. NASU
Job
5:17-27
17
"Behold, how happy is the man whom God reproves, So do not despise the
discipline of the Almighty. 18 "For He inflicts pain, and gives relief; He
wounds, and His hands also heal. 19 " From six troubles He will deliver
you, Even in seven evil will not touch you. . . 27 "Behold this; we have
investigated it, and so it is. Hear it, and know for yourself." NASU
Faithful--God
is faithful to finish what he starts.
Faithful--God
is faithful to stand with us in our hour of desperation.
Faithful--God
will not fail, he will not give up.
Faithful--if
God has called us, he will complete that calling in us. He finishes what he
starts (see Isaiah 66:9).
Think of
Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Gideon, Samson, Deborah,
Barak, David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, Habakkuk, Jonah, Amos, Hosea,
Jesus, the apostles, James, John, Peter, and Paul.
Think of
poor young Timothy--his spiritual "father" Paul just died--he had his
head removed by the Romans for preaching Messiah. And there sits Timothy. He
arrived at the prison, the final home of Paul, but Timothy arrived just a bit
too late. "Come before winter" Paul requested. Timothy hurried to
Rome with parchments and supplies, only he arrived too late. Paul was dead.
We might
be tempted to ask Timothy--"Is God really faithful? Does God finish what
he starts?"
Tear
stained eyes look up at us. A smile shows on a face that was just a moment ago
contorted with grief.
"Is
God faithful?" Timothy responds incredulously. He looks at us like we had
three heads. "Of course God is faithful!" the disciple of Paul
exclaims.
But, we
might ask, you just lost your friend, your spiritual father. He is dead, gone,
his life ingloriously snuffed out by the mad man Nero. Where is God's
faithfulness in all of that?
Remember,
dear reader, that God's constant faithfulness is not a guarantee against harm
or even hard times. Paul knew that, and he knew the risks. But Paul was
confident that God would empower him for the task at hand. He even wrote to
dear Timothy--"If we are faithless, God is faithful" (2 Timothy
2:13).
Why is God
faithful? Paul tells us it is because God cannot deny himself! God is always
true to his own character.
Paul also
reminded his disciple that hard times would come since "those who desire
to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 Timothy 3:2). In the
midst of the storm, God is unable to deny his own essential nature of covenant
love, of covenant fidelity, of faithfulness of humble service.
If God
suddenly became unfaithful, the universe would literally fly apart at the
seams, the world would cease spinning, the moon would crash into the ocean,
life would cease, the sun would be snuffed out, the universe would cease its
almost infinite growth. God can no more be unfaithful than a human can sprout
wings or develop gills. God IS faithful because he is God! God does not change!
So,
friend, what trial of darkness are we experiencing? Is it one of our own
making, the result of mistakes and missteps in life? Is it an accident, simply
the ebb and flow of life? Is it the result of righteousness?
I'll tell
you a secret--it doesn't matter where it originated--God is faithful still!
Romans 8:28ff is still in effect.
Have we
blown it? Hundreds of times no doubt! We need to make things right and
remember--God works all things together for good. God is conforming his people to the image of his dear Son! He is faithful!
Have you
been treated badly for some good thing you've done? Be glad and remember that
all things work together for good. Your present circumstances do not hinder
God's faithfulness. God does not falter because your situation is so BIG. God is not intimidated by your situation or circumstance.
GOD IS
FAITHFUL!
For God to
be unfaithful, he would have to deny himself. And that, dear friend, will never
happen.
Thank you,
God, for your steady commitment to us. Thank you for being constant and
unmoving in your love for us. Thank you for your kindness that leads us to
repent and for your faithfulness that calls us to faith. Thank you for the life
and example of Jesus. Teach us to live as he lived. Thanks for listening to us!
Thank you,
dear reader, for reading!
