The One True God is Faithful
Day Sixteen
by Gini Crawford, MSW
www.BecauseOfGod.com
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Perfect faithfulness
God will always remain faithful. This means what He says, He does. He keeps His promises and is absolutely trustworthy. God died to keep His promise of eternal life. God's Word shows His faithfulness through promises spoken and kept. In actuality, because of Who God is, He can only be faithful.
God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. / If we are faithless, He (God) remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself. / For the word of the Lord is upright, and all His work is done in faithfulness. 1 Corinthians 1:9; 2 Timothy 2:13; Psalm 33:4 NASB®
The importance of faithfulness.
God knows how important it is to our psychological health to be able to trust, to have people around us who are faithful. This makes sense because we were created to trust, and to trust God (Psalm 22:9-10; Proverbs 3:5-6). How do you feel, when someone promises to do something but doesn't do it? If people are untrustworthy, it causes stress and uncertainty in our lives. When people keep their promises, life has a security and certainty to it, and is much easier to handle. God always keeps His promises; He is faithful so you can trust in Him.
...Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Numbers 23:19b NASB®
Our ultimate trust should be in God
We have all trusted in people that ended up being unfaithful to us, one way or another. In reality, putting our ultimate trust in people who are imperfect isn't the best idea. All of us are capable of letting each other down. I know I am.
It's God Who is always faithful, that's where our ultimate trust and hope should be. Jeremiah 17:5-8 paints a true to life picture of how beneficial trusting in God is, compared to trusting in people. Trust God and thrive, or trust in people, and struggle. You have a choice.
Thus says the LORD, "Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the LORD. For he will be like a bush in the desert, and will not see when prosperity comes, but will live in stony wastes in the wilderness, a land of salt without inhabitant. Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, that extends its roots by a stream and will not fear when the heat comes; but its leaves will be green, and it will not be anxious in a year of drought, nor cease to yield fruit." Jeremiah 17:5-8NASB®
I live in the desert so I can easily envision Jeremiah 17:5-8. In our yard the trees have lavish green leaves and seasonal blooming (that give us all allergies) because they get plenty of water. However, the trees in the surrounding desert wilderness struggle.
Trustworthiness of salvation
We can depend on the trustworthy statement that Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins. Remember, He died to keep that promise.
It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. 1 Timothy 1:15 NASB®
Are you glad you can trust in God to forgive your sins? (Acts 10:43).
Are you faithful
I just heard a story about a heroic dog that fits with faithfulness: It was night. A family’s house was in flames. The family dog saved the whole family from dying by going to each room and barking to wake them. Sadly the dog died saving his family. (What a strong example of God’s faithfulness seen in His creation.) I think I can safely say, this dog understood faithfulness better than some people do.
How to be faithful? A faithful person is one who does what she says she will do. She keeps her promises. She is intensely loyal, sincerely honest and not hypocritical. She is someone people can trust. As Christians we are faithful to God by doing what He wants us to do, in other words, by following His Word. If you are not a faithful and trustworthy person, you need to be. Ask the Holy Spirit to keep you faithful. (Galatians 5:22-23).
Life Application
Faithfulness in action
Daniel chapter three is about a golden image and three godly men who refused to bow down to it. Since these three men wouldn't worship the image, King Nebuchadnezzar had them thrown into a fiery furnace. They were saved from this fiery death by our faithful God, Who was in the furnace with them. Read Daniel 3:4-7, 11-30.
Describe God from this passage.
To be honest, I don't know if I could have trusted God like Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego did (Daniel 3:28). But that's how trust in God works; you wholly trust in Him, empowering you to do the humanly impossible. Could you have trusted in God’s faithfulness like Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego did?
Whether you feel God is with you or not, He is; because He is faithful. He will never forsake you. (Isaiah 49:14-16). Remember, when you are going through a trial, the One True God is walking with you, no matter how difficult it gets. Have you felt God's faithful presence through a trial?
How do you feel about God's faithfulness? Does it give you strength in a trial? Does it make you feel secure in Him? Does it give you hope for the future? Does it give you confidence in His Word and in your prayers?
Understanding God's faithfulness gives me the confidence I need to teach God's Word, and yes, publish this book. It makes me know He is with me, even if I don't feel He is. When I pray, I can trust He will always answer; whether I like His response or not, I know His answer is what I need.
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