Psalm 89:34 CEB
"I won’t break My Covenant. I won’t renege on what crossed My lips."
CSB Version
"I will not violate My Covenant or change what My lips have said."
[emphasis mine]
The fact that God never changes and is perfectly faithful are two of the most comforting expressions of His character, because they truly emphasize how unlike us humans, He is. I must confess that a trifecta pet peeve of mine is when people don't keep their word or promise, do what they say will do or don't finish what they start [outside of a legitimate extenuating circumstance of course]. I would much rather they not say anything at all, just do it and all would be pleasantly blessed. Right?! While I am long on mercy and giving grace, I am short on tolerating foolishness.
Admittedly, I am most assuredly not perfect, but this is why I make it a point to be mindful of what I say, promise or agree to. As in Matthew 5:37 and James 5:12. I like my "Yes" to be a "Yes" and my "No" to be a "No" [each individual word is a complete sentence by the way]. And on the off chance that I can't fulfill an obligation, I communicate it swiftly. Why? While this is not people pleasing, it is important to me to be trustworthy and not slide into sin by misuse of word, action or deed. Guess who else likes to be trusted? God. In Psalm 89 as often happens, the Psalmist swings from praising and thanking God for His omnipotent sovereignty to questioning God's fulfillment of His Covenant with king David for perpetual protection and Davidic rule. Of course, God needs no defense, but He does offer assurance of His faithfulness by emphasizing that even in discipline of His rebellious children, the Covenant stands and cannot and will not be broken. Summary? God keeps His promises. Period! And if God kept His promises, then, He will surely keep them now and He will most assuredly keep them in the future. His track record is perfect didn't you know? Hadn't you heard?
And that is why this week even more than usual, it was heavily pressing on my spirit to digest and express thankfulness of Who God is and how He has kept His Word with me. He began a good work and will finish it. Masterpieces, God has things for us to do. The One in Whom there is no shadow of turning, deceit or untrustworthiness sends out His Word and it ALWAYS comes back fulfilled, having accomplished what It was sent to do. God is very clear, adamant, succinct and straightforward that He can be counted on, He does not lie, He keeps His promises and that unlike humankind, His Word is bond. God's biggest fulfilled promise is of course His Covenant with us as Christians. As a reminder, a Covenant is a binding agreement between parties that is sealed, in ancient Biblical times, often times with blood. The New Covenant that we enjoy as born-again Believers came through Jesus and His Death, Resurrection and Ascension. This New Covenant perfectly and completely fulfilled all the requirements of its predecessors and added a bigger and better set of promises on top of it; like God's indwelling Holy Spirit, zero animal sacrifices [though Jesus did shed His Blood as The Ultimate Sacrifice], forgiveness of Sin and right standing with God in close intimate fellowship. Honestly, if God did nothing else that would be more than enough.
Will you join me in lifting up thanksgiving to God for all He has done, all He is doing and all He will do? Let's thank Him for sending Jesus to die for us so that we could live and be free through Him. Thank You Jesus for the Blood applied. Thank You Lord that You won't:
Fail
Sleep
Slumber
Lie
Lose
Stumble
Change
Today and every day is a day of thanks to God. We can walk continually, confidently and securely in thankfulness, praise and worship to the One true living God, the great I AM, the Lord of Heaven's Armies, the Alpha and Omega, Jehovah, Yahweh, Ancient of Days, the Name above every Name that WON'T FAIL. EVER!!!
Takeaways for you to remember:
#1. Our unchanging God can't and won't lie or fail.
#2. God is faithful to finish what He started.
#3. Offer a simple "Yes" or "No".
Yours in Christ!
Dr. Quahana
Want to enjoy some of the Scriptures inspiring this entry? [NLT version unless otherwise noted.]
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