May your unfailing love come to me, O LORD, your salvation according to your promise; then I will answer the one who taunts me, for I trust in your word. Do not snatch the word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws. I will always obey your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them. I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees. Psalm 119:41-48
There’s old saying that I am sure we have all heard at one point or another; that ‘a man’s word is his bond.’ The idea is, that when someone has given you their word, their word is as good as a guarantee that they will do what they have agreed to do.
Sadly, when it comes to people, these words often don’t ring true. Every time we have a state or federal election, we weigh up new candidates by what they have said they will do once they are in office. Sometimes politicians fulfil the promises they have made, sometimes ‘their word’ is ‘their bond’, but other times sadly, it isn’t.
I am sure that we can all remember times in our lives when people have promised us one thing or another, only to find out later that what they have promised, they cannot fulfill. Sadly, because we live in a fallen world, we know and have experienced the reality that people won’t always keep their word. Sometimes people will let us down, and sometimes – because we too have fallen short of God’s glory – sometimes we will let others down.
But the good news is that God’s word, and His promises never fail.
In the verses above, the Psalmist connects three very important characteristics of God: God’s unfailing love, His commitment to His promises, and the faithfulness of His word. It is one thing to say that you are going to commit to something, and it is another thing to fulfil every promise you make. Every new year people make commitments or promises to exercise more, to drink less coffee, or do any number of other things. However by the end of January, I’m sure the reality is that many of those promises have gone unfulfilled.
The Psalmist’s hope of salvation is grounded in the promises found in God’s word. The Psalmist is free from shame, and speaks of God’s law and His statutes with such affection, because he knows that God’s word is His bond. The Psalmist had faith in what God would do, because He had experienced God’s faithful to His promises.
However, on this side of the cross, we no longer have to hope in what God will do, because God has fulfilled His promise. Many years after the Psalmist wrote these words, God fulfilled His promise of salvation by sending His One and Only Son. God has taken away the shame of those who trust in Him and set us free; and He has done this through the Living Word, His One and Only Son.
In this world not everyone’s ‘word is their bond’, but God’s word and His promises can always be trusted. Jesus, the promised Messiah, lived the perfectly sinless life that we were unable to live, and fulfilled all of God’s law. He died the death that we deserved to die, taking our sin and shame upon Himself at the cross. And after three days He was raised to life again, establishing the hope of eternal life for all who trust in Him. God’s word and His promises never fail, because His Word is His bond.
In Christ, Anthony
Comments
Post a Comment