Promises, Promises!

“And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:21)

It’s easy enough to say you can or will do something, but the question is, can you, or will you, actually come through? With you and me, the best intentions do not always guarantee the best of results. As Paul himself admitted, the will to do good may be present, while the ability to actually perform it may prove illusive (Rom.7:18).

God, however, does not suffer from these kinds of limitations. According to Romans 4:21, He never makes promises He can’t keep. They may, at times, be conditional, but the condition has nothing to do with His capability, only our obedience. In this case, it was a promise to Abraham that he would have a son; and it may have been some twenty-five years later before the son was born; but, by George, the promise was kept!

This same God, who has the ability to save and keep us (Heb.7:25) has the ability to make good on every promise He makes to you and me, whether it is a general promise to all in the Body of Christ, or one that He gives to us individually as unique members of that Body. God’s performance abilities can be seen and known both intellectually, in the Word of God, and experientially, in our everyday lives. They are unquestionable.

Furthermore, the God who can keep His promises intends to. As Paul says later on in Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” In the case of you and me, not only has God promised us, He has promised Himself! “For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself” (Heb.6:13)There is a covenant of love between God and us that if for no other reason than to protect His good name, He will not default on. He put them in writing, so you and I could hold Him to His Word. A man is a good as his word. So, saint of God, you can mark it down, big, plain, and bold: When God makes you a promise, He’s good for it! (Num.23:19)