Growing up in small town Texas was very different. Things moved slow, exposure to the world was very limited and how you acted in a community of 350 people defined who you were. I’ve always been interested in the logic of why big cities have more crime and why people treat each other so different than small rural towns. I think it relates back to this concept. If you don’t know your neighbor, what responsibility do you have to them and what value does your word hold anyway? I was raised on the mantra of a man is only as good as his word. You needed to pick your words carefully and wisely because what you said was a bond to those you spoke them to.
I remember my dad trading for things and making deals around town and at the end of the deal was nothing more than a handshake and a look in the eyes. An agreement...you do what you say, I’ll do what I say and everything about this deal will go great. What a novel, simple honorable concept. Yet, it’s just not the world we live in today. Governments tell their people one thing and then do just the opposite. Company leaders promise employees the moon and then pull the rug out when the cost-saving opportunity arises. Especially in love and romance, things are said that will never be done, fracturing and breaking hearts in the process. You see, in our sin nature we are greatly hindered to be able to truly value our words and actions towards others. When our flesh runs rampant, the truth goes strangely silent.
So, beyond just our words, what about when our words make promises? We might tell someone we’ll do something, but a promise is an entirely different deal. I mean when you look someone in the eyes and make a promise to them it is the ultimate test of your word. You’re making a vow to them. A solemn pledge. A deep commitment from your heart. But really, how good is a promise from a sin stained human heart?
We’ve all been there, promises that were made to our faces, and then broken. The hurt that ensues can only be at the hands of sin. We’ve also all been on the flipside, making a promise to someone to only learn of ourselves later that we were incapable or unwilling to deliver on that promise. And in this later process we learn something alarming about oursleves, our inherited sin nature runs deep as even in our best intentions, we can fall short and unintentionally betray and hurt others.
All of this may sound a little dim and hopeless, but it makes me wonder, if people are truly void of the absolute truth and basically incapable of a promise that endures perfectly, where does the truth of an everlasting promise reside? If not one of over 7.8 billion humans on this planet are capable of a promise that is perfect, where can we find this fabled beast of a perfect promise? The answer lies in perfect truth. And you only need to look for perfect truth to find the perfect promise. And it is no accident that Jesus Christ describes Himself as the Truth.
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the Truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
But Jesus is so much more, He could have described Himself accurately as a host of other things, so why focus on the Truth? I consider the truth to be like North on a compass. The compass’ magnet can be operating perfectly normal, but if the face is not labeled correctly with a true North, the compass will be useless. You see, the truth can exist, but without Jesus, the truth has no applicational directional bearing in our lives. Without Jesus the perfection of His truth cannot guide us. And it is within this perfect truth that only God possesses, that a perfect promise can exist.
Today in Joshua 21 we see yet another verse of proof of the unbridled power of a promise from God. We finish out the allotment of the Promised land by seeing the priestly tribe, the Levites, get their land and after that the process is complete. All 12 tribes as well as the Levites now have the land that God has promised them. And in the closing of this age old journey to settle the Israelites in the Promised Land, we find this amazing comment from Almighty God.
“Thus the Lord gave to Israel all the land that he swore to give to their fathers. And they took possession of it, and they settled there. And the Lord gave them rest on every side just as he had sworn to their fathers. Not one of all their enemies had withstood them, for the Lord had given all their enemies into their hands. Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.” Joshua 21:43-45
Not one word failed.
A solid I-beam of steel is strong, the bridges and buildings of the world rest solely upon their tremendous strength. Carbon fiber is one of the strongest and lightest materials known today, race cars, airplanes and the space shuttle utilize it for it’s unparalleled strength. Diamonds are the hardest substance on earth, able to scratch almost all other materials on this earth. But folks, if you really want to analyze the strongest single article in existence in this universe, it is simple…the promises of God.
When you have a promise that is constructed of absolute and perfect truth, you have before you the strongest single object that has or ever will exist. And since Jesus clearly claims that He is the truth, a promise from Him is truly a thing to behold. As you encounter a promise from God, you should sit, take a deep breath and try to fully realize what you are encountering. A perfect, unbreakable, unshakable, vow from your creator directly to you.
And among the many perfect promises of God we find this one:
“If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.” Romans 10:9-10
Today have you claimed the single biggest promise of God? Have you claimed the promise of Salvation through Jesus Christ? You see, your sins against God are destined to separate you from Him as you enter eternity. This same perfect God that issues perfect promises cannot be in the presence of the evil of even one single sin. This situation presents a problem for us humans. How do we get to God? Well, out of His abundant grace and mercy, God saw this problem and He sent a solution, His only Son Jesus Christ. A perfect lamb to be the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. Jesus died on a Cross for your sins and then rose three days later as He triumphed over the death penalty of those very sins. And God made it so easy for us to attain this Salvation. All you have to do is believe. Believe in your heart what Jesus did for you on the Cross and folks, in an unbreakable, all powerful promise from God, you will be saved.
If you want to look at perfection today, look at the promises of God. If you want to look at forever today, look at the promises of God. If you want to embrace a vow that will never let you down, disappoint you or break your heart, look to the promises of God. Within a promise of God is what all humans desperately yearn for…perfect truth. And to find that perfect truth you must only find Jesus Christ.
Praise God for His promises.
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