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Promise and Fulfillment: Believing the Promises of God

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Promise and Fulfillment: Believing the Promises of God Leaven Volume 6 Issue 3 Poverty and Possessions Article 4 1-1-1998 Promise and Fulfillment: Believing the Promises of God Victor Knowles Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Knowles, Victor (1998) "Promise and Fulfillment: Believing the Promises of God," Leaven: Vol. 6 : Iss. 3 , Article 4. Available at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/leaven/vol6/iss3/4 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Religion at Pepperdine Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Leaven by an authorized editor of Pepperdine Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. Knowles: Promise and Fulfillment: Believing the Promises of God Poverty and POssessiOns 113 Believing the Promises of God By VICTOR KNOWLES TheN he said, "Everything I told you while I was with I grew up believing in the promises of God. I remem- you coMes to this: All the things writteN about me in the ber the songs we sang in church, songs that included Law Of MOses, in the PrOphets, and in the Psalms have to phrases like these: Be not disMayed what' er betide, God be fulfilled." (Luke 24:44 The Message) will take care of you. HOw firm afOundatiON ... is Laid for your faith in His exceLLent word!StaNding ON the prom- The word promise appears more than 100 times in ises I caNNOtfall. Sweet are the prOmises; Kind is the word. sacred scripture. One thousand promises are listed in What There shall be shOwers of blessing; this is the ProMise of the Bible Says abOut Praise and PrOmise. I Thousands more Love. Every promise in the BOOK is Mine; every chapter, are listed in Samuel Clarke's two-hundred-year-old clas- every verse, every line. I have since learned, of course, sic, PreciOus BibLe Promises. Some have suggested that that every promise in the Book is NOt mine (some were there may be as many as 30,000 promises contained in exclusively for Israel, for example). But enough are mine Scripture. that I can never even realize them all in my short lifetime, Herbert Lockyer, in his volume ALL the PrOmises Of so I still sing these songs with great enthusiasm, grateful- the Bible,' tells the story of Everett R. Storms, a school- ness, and praise. teacher in Canada, who made a detailed study of prom- I was blessed to be raised in a godly home. My father ises. According to Time,' Storms, of Kitchener, Ontario, was a minister of the gospel (earlier this year marked his Canada, reckoned the figure of 30,000 to be too high (since sixtieth year of ministry), and my mother was a wonder- it is roughly the number of verses making up the Bible- ful Christian woman. Every evening we had a time offam- 31,]73). During his twenty-seventh reading of the Bible, ily devotions. This included not only Bible readings and a task which took him a year and a half, Storms came up prayer but also the study of works like Donald G. Hunt's with a grand total of 8,810 promises (7,487 of them being The Unfolded PLan Of God. For example, I learned how promises made by God to humankind). faithful God had been in fulfilling his promises to While we probably cannot determine the exact num- Abraham-promises involving land, a great nation, and ber of promises contained in Scripture, we can agree with Messiah himself(Gen 12:1-3). Because of that panoramic what King Solomon said during his temple dedication study, where God proved himself over and over again to prayer concerning the validity of the promises of God: be true to his word, I have never doubted the promises of "Praise be to the Lord .... Not one word has failed of all God. the good promises he gave through his servant Moses" (1 The promises of God are unfailing (Josh 23:14; I Kgs Kgs 8:56 NIV). 8:56). Joshua and Solomon agree that NOt ONe word of Published by Pepperdine Digital Commons, 1998 1 Leaven, Vol. 6 [1998], Iss. 3, Art. 4 114 Leaven, Summer, 1998 assured of answers to prayer (1 John 5: 14)-ifwe pray in The genius of the gospel accordance with his will. A truly grand promise is that of is that everyone can the kingdom (Jas 2:5). God has promised his glorious king- dom to the poor of this world who are rich in faith. And share in the promise- what is a kingdom without a crown? The crown of life is in Christ. promised to the believer who loves God and endures tri- als (Jas 1:12; Rev 2:10). Another promise to the believer is that of new heavens and a new earth (2 Pet 3: 13). It will be nothing like we have ever seen or dreamed of here, God's promises ever failed to come true. The promises because only righteousness will dwell in this new "Prom- are upheld by God's oath (Heb 6: 12-19). It is impossible ised Land." Finally, at least for this brief synopsis, God for God to lie. The promises originally belonged to Israel promises the believer a home in heaven (John 14:1-3). (Rom 9:4). These would include the promises of land (Acts We have Christ's own word on it: "If that weren't so, would 7:5), Davidic kingship (2 Chron 6:10-16), Messiah (Acts I have told you that I'm on my way to get a room ready 13:23), and a new heart (Jer 31 :33). The promises of God for you?" (John 14:2 The Message). were alwaysfulfilled ON schedule (Gal 4:4). God's timing is always perfect! It is crucial to note that the promises are Promise and Fulfillment in Scripture centered in Christ (2 Cor 1:20). Jesus Christ is the theme The Hebrew language has no word that corresponds of the law, the prophets, the Psalms-indeed, all of Scrip- to promise. In the Old Testament scriptures we find words ture! The promises were also confinned by Christ (Rom like word, speak, and say that are used instead. In other 15:8). "Written of me" is his own interpretation and ap- words, God's word itself is the same as a promise. plication. God's wonderful promises are obtained through Friedreich Wilhelm Krummacher said,"God's promises patience (Heb 6:12,15). Abraham had to wait many long are, virtually, obligations that he imposes upon himself." years before realizing the fulfillment. The promises are In the New Covenant scriptures, promise (epangelia) also Kept byfaith (Rom 4:20, 21). Abraham "against hope is used in the sense of God's design to visit his people believed in hope," absolutely refusing to stagger at the redemptively in the person of his son Jesus Christ. W. E. promise of God. Finally, God's promises are described as Vine says that a promise is "a gift graciously bestowed, exceeding great and precious (2 Pet 1:4). Dwight L. not a pledge secured by negotiation." Moody said, "Let a man feed for a month on the promises God's promise of Messiah is first seen in the prOto- of God, and he will not talk about how poor he is." We evangelium, given to Eve (Gen 3: 15), and is repeated to should be so wise as to start putting a portion of the prom- Abram (Gen 12:2,3), David (2 Sam 7:12,13,28), and the ises on our platters! prophets (lsa 2:2-5; 4:2; 55:5). Alfred Edersheim counted With promise comes privilege. H. L. Wilmington lists 75 Messianic prophecies in the Pentateuch, 243 in the 40 promises to the believer." For example, the believer is Prophets, and 138 in the Writings. James E. Smith stream- promised forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:39): "For the prom- lines 73 "Messianic foregleams," beginning with Gen 3:15 ise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar and ending with Mal 4:5, in his book What the Bible Says off, as many as the Lord our God will call."? The Prayer about the Promised Messiah:" Book (1662) of the Church of England says,"Restore thou When we come to the New Testament writings, all them that are penitent; according to thy promises declared the promises are fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth."For no unto mankind in Christ Jesus our Lord." The believer is matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' also promised the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49). Jesus called in Christ" (2 Cor 1:20 NIV). The genius of the gospel is him "the Promise of My Father." The forgiveness of sins that everyone can share in the promise-in Christ. "This and the Holy Spirit are linked in Acts 2:38. God takes mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs away our unholy sins and fills us with the Holy Spirit. together with Israel, members together of one body, and Etemallife is promised to believers in Christ (John 3: 15, sharers together in the prOMise in Christ Jesus" (Eph 3:6 16) "before time began" by a God who cannot lie (Tit NIV). 1:2). Jesus Christ promised believers an abundant life Perhaps only a man like Luke could appreciate the (John 10:10).
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