A REASON TO BELIEVE AND HOLD FAST
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering;
(for he is faithful that promised). Hebrews 10:23
Waiting does not come easy to many of us. As is so often the case, the longer the wait, the weaker the faith. Some give up faith altogether. Others get mouthier with God. Some even turn their back on Him.
But, brethren, we are persuaded of better things concerning you! The Lord wants to encourage you to continue to believe and trust Him. He has a word for His people and that word is, God is still faithful! What are you believing for, beloved? What trial of faith are you faced with? And how long has it been since you prayed and the answer still hasn’t come? God’s word to you today is, Hold fast! Because God is still faithful!
THE MEANING OF GOD’S FAITHFULNESS
What does God’s faithfulness mean? GOD’S FAITHFULNESS MEANS HE WILL DO EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID HE WOULD DO. This is what God promised and this is what God will do: What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them (Mark 11:24). God’s faithfulness, dear friends, means you’re going to get what you’ve asked and believed God for.
WHAT GOD’S FAITHFULNESS ENTAILS FOR US
1. God’s faithfulness is our guarantee that He will do for us whatever we’re believing and asking Him to do according to His Word. We’re constantly looking for guarantees and assurances. We want to make sure that the thing we’re planning to buy will work, or that the person we hired to do a job will do it right.
We all want proof that God’s going to do what He said He would do. Fortunately for us, we have the proof! The proof is our faith. Hebrews 11:1 reminds us that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Evidence is proof. That’s what the word means. Our faith is the evidence or proof that we have the things that are not seen. We may not see the healing right now. We may not see our loved one saved just yet. We may not have the much-needed money at the moment. But the faith that we have in our heart is the proof that we have the things that we’ve desired of God that are not seen just now.
Of course, if we don’t have faith in our heart, if we don’t believe God’s going to answer our prayer, then we won’t have the evidence or proof. Instead, our heart will be filled with doubts, questions, and arguments.
But when we believe, our hearts are at rest and at peace because we believe, we know, that God will do what we asked Him to do. Our faith is the proof that we have what we don’t yet see.
2. God’s faithfulness gives us reason to endure our trials. His faithfulness is the basis for our endurance. We endure the trials because we know He’ll be faithful to deliver us and grant us our petition. We don’t suffer or endure or wait in vain! At the trial’s end we’ll receive the things we’ve desired of God.
How do we know that? How can we be sure of that? Because that’s what God said would happen! He said, Ye shall have them (Mark 11:24). We may not know the exact time this trial will come to an end. We may not know when exactly the answer will come. But WE CAN KNOW HOW THE TRIAL WILL END. God’s faithfulness means this trial will end and we’ll get what He promised us we could have.
GOD’S FAITHFULNESS IS ROOTED IN HIS NATURE
It is God’s nature to be faithful. He’s faithful because that’s what He is by nature. Birds fly because it’s built into their very nature to fly. Fishes swim because it’s part of their nature to swim. In much the same way, God is faithful because it’s His nature to be faithful.
II Timothy 2:13 tells us, If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself. The word deny means ‘to disclaim, disown, renounce, or contradict’.
God cannot renounce or contradict what He is by nature. Birds can’t cease to be birds. Fishes can’t cease to be fishes. And God can’t cease to be faithful: He abideth faithful (II Timothy 2:13). God cannot be anything other than faithful. His nature compels Him to be faithful. He cannot quit being faithful. He cannot stop from being faithful. It is utterly impossible for God to be unfaithful–at any time, in any circumstance or trial. He cannot deny Himself!
God’s faithfulness is tied in with His other attributes.
- Why Can God Be Faithful? Because God is True. He cannot lie. If He promised it, He won’t break His promise. God cannot and will not renege on His Word! Numbers 23:19 assures us that God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Hebrews 6:18 tells us that it is impossible for God to lie. Do you know what ‘impossible’ means? It means no chance, no possibility, no way. Impossible means it can’t happen, it’s incapable of coming to pass, it can’t be done. What is impossible is inconceivable, impractical, unimaginable, unthinkable, unattainable, unachievable, unfeasible–it’s beyond possibility of realization or accomplishment. In other words, brethren, God cannot lie. He can never be unfaithful. He cannot deny Himself! Why? Because it’s impossible for Him to do so!
- How Can God Be Faithful? God can be faithful because He is omnipotent. He is powerful enough to do whatever He wants to do. He is powerful enough to do whatever you need Him to do in your life! There is none more powerful that God! Nothing and no one can prevent Him from doing what He wants to do.
Isaiah 14:27 reads, For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?
Elsewhere, in Jeremiah 32:27 we read, Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me? The prophet himself answers the question in verse 17 of the same chapter: Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee. Hallelujah!
Have you settled it, my friends? Nothing is too hard for the Lord to do for you! With God, all things are possible. Nothing is impossible for Him to do {except lie} because He has all the power to do whatever you need Him to do in your life.
God’s faithfulness lies in Himself, in His nature, in His very being. Do you know what this means? It means God’s faithfulness isn’t dependent on your symptoms; it isn’t conditioned on, or regulated by, the circumstances you’re faced with. God’s faithfulness, beloved, does not cease with the severity of the trial, nor is it diminished and threatened by the longevity of the trial. It isn’t harder for God to be faithful just because the trial is harder or longer or seemingly hopeless, incurable, or impossible.
God’s faithfulness lies in Himself. His nature causes Him to be faithful. And there’s nothing–except a change in His nature–that can cause God to be unfaithful. Since God’s nature hasn’t changed, since His nature can’t be changed–then there’s nothing on this earth, including your trial and the devil, that can change God or prevent Him from being faithful TO YOU!
What cannot be changed cannot be changed. The symptoms, the pains, the time element, the reports of men, or the lies and works of the devil, CANNOT CHANGE God’s nature of ALWAYS being faithful. Therefore, brethren, no matter what kind of trial it is; no matter how bad it’s looking, how painful it’s feeling, how long it’s taking, or how close the deadline is coming–whatever you’re believing God for, hold fast and continue to believe because God is still faithful! He has not changed!
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