Another Musick-al Note: # 45
Peter declares that God’s promises are exceedingly great and precious (2 Peter 1:4). They exceed the imagination and defy explanations. Yet they are given to man by the One who can bring such to reality. His promises give us hope, strength and courage to follow His bidding. Hope keeps our focus on heaven, strength enables us to endure the trials of life and courage gives us stamina to fight the battle for truth. His promises cause us to know that we can overcome and that we can be His children and be acceptable to Him.
God’s promises are many and varied, part having to do with this world and part having to do with the spiritual world. Some are unconditional, which He will keep no matter what man does. Part of God’s promises are conditional, which He will keep if man responds to His bidding, some are joyous to anticipate and others are to be feared. Observe an example of each of the above. God has promised in Genesis 8:22 that we will have seed time and harvest. In Matthew 6:33 a condition is placed on the promise of having the things needed for this world. Forgiveness of sins is conditional and having to do with the spiritual man. Man must obey God to receive eternal life (1 John 2:25) and God has promised eternal destruction for the disobedient. (Romans 1:18, 32, 2 Thessalonians 1:5-9, Matthew 25:46). In the beginning, He spoke and everything came into being. The heavens and the earth and all therein belong to the Lord for He created it all. He urged obedience and declared punishment on the disobedient. He cast out of heaven angels who disobeyed, brought the flood upon the ungodly of Noah’s day, destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, raised up rulers, judges and priests, turned His people into slavery, sent His own Son to die on the cross and raised Him from the dead. God is able to do as He has spoken. He has promised life and peace to the obedient. God now instructs man to obey His son and promises to receive all who come to Him through Christ (Hebrews 1:1-2, John 6:37). How strange that some will not believe God! He has proven time and again that He is able to accomplish as He has spoken but man (frail and puny man) twists the Word of the Almighty to suit his own purposes. By changing God’s commands for the commands of men, corrupts the pure Word of truth by taking away and adding to that Word which frustrates the Will of God and annuls God’s His great promises. Shall such be held guiltless? By no means! (Matthew 7:21-23). God will be the judge and will bring every promise to reality. If we are in His Son, we do well, if not, how tragic! Gordon Musick
Musick-al Notes 