Jeremy L. Berg

In this series of posts we’re exploring the different ways the Bible confronts the reader and the appropriate response to each.

#2 – THE BIBLE AS GOD’S BOOK OF PROMISES

The Bible is a treasure trove packed full of the enduring promises of God. When life’s troubles trip us up and get us down, when despair sets in and hope grows dim, the reader of the Bible can find assurance and hope in the many promises of the Bible.

Some promises were made to specific people for a specific time, but most don’t have an expiration date and apply to every person under any circumstances at any time or place. The trustworthiness of God’s promises are made certain by the faithfulness of God to his people in the past.  “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23).

The source of our hope comes from the future secured for us by Christ’s death and resurrection.  Yes, we have an eternal inheritance that awaits us:

“In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

What is the appropriate reader response when reading or hearing of God’s Scriptural promises?  Answer: They should fill us with HOPE and COURAGE. So, let us draw daily from God’s big book of promises. Their number is almost endless. Here’s a few to get you started.

 Christ accepts us : Revelation 3:20; John 6:37

• God gives eternal life : John 5:24; John 10:28
• God forgives us : 1 John 1:7-9; Isaiah 1:18
• God is faithful to us : Joshua 1:9; Isaiah 41:10
• God comforts us : Psalm 23
• Christ is always with us : Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5,6
• God protects us from harm : Psalm 91; Psalm 121
• God gives us courage : Hebrews 13:5,6; Ephesians 6:10-18
• God gives us wisdom : James 1:5
• God gives us the strength to refuse temptation : 1 Corinthians 10:6-13; James 1:12-16
• God answers prayer : John 15:7
• God gives peace of mind : Philippians 4:6,7
• God guides us : Psalm 32:8,9 — — (thanx to Carol Semmelman)
• God relieves us from suffering : 2 Corinthians 12:8-10
• God gives us rest : Matthew 11:28,29