Notes from Charles Stanley's message, "Resting in the Faithfulness of God":
Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:1-9 NKJV)
God fulfills every promise He makes. You see this in many places in the Bible. He is always there to fulfill His promises. He does not lie nor does He fail.
"Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; (Deuteronomy 7:9 NKJV)
Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness endures to all generations; You established the earth, and it abides. (Psalm 119:89, 90 NKJV)
If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. (2 Timothy 2:13 NKJV)
What is our proof that God is faithful? There are 5 attributes He has that support His faithfulness:
- Omniscience
Psalm 139 For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. (Psalm 139:1-4 NKJV)
If He did not know everything there is to know about our situation He cannot be faithful to it.
- Omnipotence
Then I heard what sounded like the voice of a vast throng, like the roar of many waters and like loud crashes of thunder. They were shouting: "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the All-Powerful, reigns! -Revelation 19:6
He replied, "What is impossible for mere humans is possible for God." -Luke 18:27
- He is always within our reach; Omnipresence
Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me. If I say, "Surely the darkness shall fall on me," Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You. (Psalm 139:7-12 NKJV)
- He is always truthful in every circumstances
in hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the ages began. -Titus 1:2
God cannot lie.
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny himself. -2 Timothy 2:13
We always need to think; is what we are counting on a promise of God or something we conjured up? Truthfulness is God's nature.
- Immutability; God does not change.
"Since, I, the LORD, do not go back on my promises, you, sons of Jacob, have not perished. -Malachi 3:6
He treats us as He as treated people in ages past.
And this is the confidence that we have before him: that whenever we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. -1 John 5:14
This is one powerful promise of God. Let us not make the mistake of taking just one verse of the Bible and calling it the whole Word of God.
If you take away any of those attributes mentioned, what confidence would you have in Him? Fortunately for us, He has proven in His Word and through our lives that He is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, truthful, and immutable.
It is definitely important for us as believers to know these attributes of God as it serves as our confidence. That is the basis upon which we can say that He is faithful.
The character of God cannot change! How can you change perfection? When He says He is faithful, He is faithful! What other hope can we have?
God wants us to be confident. God wants is to be bold in our testimony. The world will question us every now and then and it will be possible that we will be shaken; during those times, ask yourself - are you going to believe based on what you feel or what the Lord says in His Word?
It is God's promises, done according to His faithfulness, that keeps us standing on solid rock even in the strongest storms.
Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22, 23 NKJV)
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV)
I know, LORD, that your regulations are just. You disciplined me because of your faithful devotion to me. -Psalms 119:75
We would do best to count on the Lord and His faithfulness in every situation we have. His truthfulness ensures that He fulfills His promises, and His Word never fails.
Man's unbelief does not change the truth of God.
Let us keep praying that the Lord continues to show more of who He is to us every day.
Sent from my iPhone