Attributes of God - Faithfulness of God (Psalm 89) (Sermon 19)

One of the Political Buzz-words being bandied about reminds us of the Injustice in Society.

• Politicians talk about 'Rip-off Britain', referring to anything & everything. Compared to other countries, we suffer from over-priced cars, over-priced groceries & over-priced house-repairs.

Hardly a week goes by without some new rip-off being revealed;

• You find adverts in newspapers for expensive jewellery or garden furniture at knock-down prices - only to find that the items purchased are no more than worthless fakes.
• In days of high unemployment people are promised work at home if only they will send a couple of hundred pounds or so for access to 'business opportunities' or work that is easily done at home in your spare time - the reality is broken promises or slave-labour wages.

Unfaithfulness is one of the most outstanding shortcomings of people in today's society.

• In the Business World, it used to be said that a man's word is his bond - but that is longer true.

• In the Social World, Marital Unfaithfulness abounds on every hand - indeed, marital faithfulness is the exception rather than the rule in our modern-day society.
• In the Religious World, thousands who have promised to preach the truth,

have no shame about denying or attacking the Word of God.

In absolute contrast to fickle Human Beings, the Lord God is Always Just & Faithful:

We have just been singing a chorus which extols the Greatness of God, saying:

"Ascribe Greatness to our God the Rock, His work is Perfect & all His Ways are Just.

A God of Faithfulness & Without Injustice, Good & Upright is He."

C H Spurgeon says: "Man fails in all points, but God in none. To be Faithful is one of the Eternal

Attributes of God, in which He always places a great part of His Glory; His Truth

1. The Lord God taught Moses & the Whole Nation of Israel that

Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of His Divine Nature:

In our consideration of the Love of God we noted how God Loved Israel Unconditionally:

• Moses tells us that there is no reason whatsoever why God should Love Israel.

• They were not a Mighty Nation; neither were they a numerous people.
• They were the Weakest Nation on earth; they were the fewest of all peoples (Deut 7:7-8).

• Moses describes Israel as: "a Rebellious & Stiff-necked People" (Deut 10:16).

Why did the Lord God Love this weak & stiff-necked & rebellious nation?

• In Deuteronomy 7:7-8 & 10:15, Moses says:

"It was because the Lord Set His Affection on you … because the Lord Loved you."

• God's Love is not given to these people because they themselves are worthy of being loved.
• God Chose to Love them, despite their rebellious & stiff-necked nature.
• God's Love is not dependent upon Israel's love for him; He loved them Unconditionally.

In Deut 7:9, Moses teaches the Israelites the Main Lesson they should learn from their experience of God's Unconditional Love toward them:

"Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the Faithful God; keeping his

covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him & keep his commands."

• Because God kept his Promise by Redeeming Israel from the land of slavery, Egypt, the Israelites learned that Faithfulness is one of the Glorious Perfections of God's Holy Nature.

Notice how Moses uses the word 'Know'- "Know that the Lord your God is God, he is Faithful."

• The meaning is that God's People may have the Absolute Assurance that God is Faithful.

• They can be sure that God is Faithful BECAUSE he Keeps His Covenant of Love.

• Moses is saying: "Because God IS GOD, He cannot be anything else but Faithful."
• Furthermore, because God IS GOD, He possesses the Almighty Power to Keep His Covenant & to Prove His Faithfulness beyond any shadow of doubt.

Moses says that God's Faithfulness would be proved through a thousand generations.

The Psalmist looks back on God's Dealings with his Covenant People and says:

"Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands in the heavens.

Your Faithfulness continues through ALL generations" (Ps 119:90).

• Israel's History proved beyond doubt that God Keeps His Covenant through all generations.
• God wanted His People to learn that Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of His Nature

• They learned that God cannot be God without possessing the Attribute of Faithfulness.

For God to be Unfaithful would be to act in a manner contrary to His Divine Nature:

The Apostle Paul declares this truth to Timothy in one of his 'Trustworthy Sayings':

"Here is a Trustworthy Saying ... If we are faithless, he will remain faithful,

for he cannot disown himself" (2 Timothy 2:13).

• God cannot deny his nature by doing anything which contrary to his Holiness & Faithfulness.

• God will Always remain Faithful, because Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of his Nature.

One writer tells us:

"The Old Testament word for Faithfulness is related to the word for Truth. They both

come from the same root which means 'firmness or stability'. Faithfulness actually grows

out of Truth. What is True must also be Trustworthy."

Note how the Psalmist Ethan proclaims God's Faithfulness in superlative terms:

"The heavens praise your wonders, O Lord, your Faithfulness too, in the assembly of the

holy ones. For who in the skies above can compare with the Lord? Who is like the Lord

among the heavenly beings? In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; he is

more awesome than all who surround him. O Lord God Almighty, who is like you?

You are Mighty, O Lord, and your Faithfulness surrounds you" (Ps 89:5-8).

The Psalmist is saying that the Whole of Creation Bears Witness to God's Faithfulness:

• The Whole of Creation looks down on God's Dealings with His Covenant People &

bears witness to the Almighty God is Faithful in Keeping His Covenant.

The Psalmist also says that 'The Assembly of the Holy Ones' bear witness to God's Faithfulness.

• All the Holy Angels have taken note of what God Promised to do in the Nation of Israel.

Furthermore, God's People are Assured that "Faithfulness Surrounds the Lord God":

• The meaning is that, God cannot break out of that aspect of His Divine Nature.
• It is Impossible for God to do anything that is contrary to His Attribute of Faithfulness.
• Because Faithfulness surrounds him, God cannot be unfaithful in the slightest degree.
• Because Faithfulness surrounds him, God cannot be unjust in any of his dealings with men.
• Because Faithfulness surrounds him, God cannot possibly break a single promise.

The Prophet Jeremiah sums up the mighty nature of the Faithfulness of God, saying:

"Because of the Lord's Great Love we are not consumed, for his Compassions never fail.

They are new every morning; Great is your Faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The Lord is

my portion; therefore I will wait for him" (Lamentations 3:22-24).

C H Spurgeon describes the Faithfulness of God thus:

"Faithfulness is the mercy of God's mercies -

the brightest jewel in the Crown of Goodness."

The pagan soothsayer Balaam was compelled to admit to the pagan king Balak of Moab:

"God is not a man, that he should lie, nor the son of man, that he should change his mind.

Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise & not fulfil? I have received a

command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it" (Numbers 23:19-20).

The Book of Joshua summarises God's Dealings with Israel, saying:

"So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, & they took

possession of it & settled there … Not one of their enemies withstood them; the Lord

handed all their enemies over to them. Not one of all the Lord's Good Promises to the

House of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled" (Joshua 21:43-45).

We are looking at the Faithfulness of God:

1. The Lord God taught Moses that Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of His Nature.
2. The Lord God taught Abraham that He is Faithful to Individuals as well as Nations:

Remember how God had promised to make Abraham the father of a Great Nation (12:1-3).

• The problem was that Abraham's wife, Sarah, was barren.
• Furthermore, she was 90 years old, & was well past child-bearing age.

• Humanly speaking, there was no possible way for Sarah to bear a son in her old age.

• Abraham thought that Hagar's child, Ishmael, was to be the son of promise (ch 16).

Earlier in this Series, we saw how God Revealed Himself to Abraham as the All Powerful God.

The Lord God said to Abraham:

When the Promise was repeated & Sarah laughed, God asked a Fundamental Question:

"Why did Sarah laugh - Is anything too hard for the Lord?

I will return at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son" (18:14).

• By asking the question, "Is anything too hard for the Lord?", God is saying in the

strongest possible way that Absolutely Nothing is too hard for the Almighty God!

However, when God predicts that He will cause a son to be born to a husband & wife who are nearly 100 years old, more than just his Almighty Power is brought into question:

• In Genesis 12:1-2, God had promised to make Abraham the father of a Great Nation.

• In ch 15:4 God promised that 'a son coming from Abraham's own body would be his heir.'

• In ch 16 Abraham wrongly thought that Hagar's son, Ishmael, was to be the son of promise.

• But, then in ch 17:1-2, "When Abraham was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him & said,

'I am God Almighty … I will confirm my covenant between me & you'"

Time & again, God had Made a Promise - Abraham would bear a son through Sarah.

God's Credibility & Faithfulness is at stake as well as his Power!

• The question confronting Abraham was this: Is the Lord God Reliable? Is he Trustworthy?
• Can we expect God to do what he says he will do? - Will God Keep his Promises?

When that Promise was made to Abraham, he literally fell on his face & laughed (17:17)

• Abraham had yet to fully learn that the Lord is the Faithful God who Keeps his Promises!
• Neither had Sarah learned this lesson; she also laughed at the promise of a son (18:12).

The Genesis narrative doesn't record the specific point in time that both Abraham & Sarah became convinced that God is a Faithful God who Keeps His Promises:

• The Apostle Paul tells us:

• Paul tells us that Abraham did not waver in his belief that God is a Promise Keeping God.
• He was absolutely convinced that God possessed the Attributes of Faithfulness & Power.

The writer to the Hebrews tells us this story from Sarah's Perspective (Heb 11:11):

"Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive, and was delivered of

a child when she was past age, because she judged him Faithful who had Promised."

• Sarah not only believed that God could give her a son, she believed that,

because God is Faithful, he would keep his Promise and she would bear a son to Abraham.

• Sarah's judgement about the Almighty God is perfectly clear;

"she judged him Faithful who had Promised."

• Just like her husband, Abraham: "She was fully persuaded that her Faithful God

would Keep his Promise, and give her a son in old age."

Abraham & Sarah believed that God's Word is Reliable & His Promises are Trustworthy

• The Faith of Abraham & Sarah was firmly based on the Faithfulness of God.
• Faith in the Promises of a Covenant Keeping God is Never Misplaced.

In Genesis 21:1-2 we read the fulfilment of God's Promise:

"Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he

had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the

very time God had promised him."

• The Lord God Kept his Promise & Proved his Faithfulness to Abraham & Sarah.

Note how God does not teach us about his Faithfulness in a Theological Vacuum.

• Rather, he proved his faithfulness through his promise to give this couple a son in old age.
• God is Faithful & Powerful & keeps his promises, even if it takes a miracle.
• God used the Basic Desire of a Childless Couple to Prove his Faithfulness.

God wanted Abraham & Sarah to learn a vital lesson.

• He wanted them to know that he is Faithful in the context of their Everyday Circumstances.

The writer to the Hebrews tells us about numerous Old Testament Saints who had

Faith in the Living God who would send the Promised Messiah:

• The whole of chapter 11 is summed up in verse 39:

"These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them

received what had been promised."

• All these men & women lived in faith & died in faith.

• None of them received what had been promised; but they all lived in Hope &

were Fully Persuaded that God would fulfil his promise to send the Messiah.

All these Old Testament Believers shared the Same Faith as the Apostle Paul, who says:

"For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And so

through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the Glory of God. Now it is God who makes

both us & you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and

put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come" (2 Cor 1:20-22).

• Christ's 'Yes' to all the Divine Promises is appropriated by the Believers 'Amen' of Faith.

• Even before Christ came, the Old Testament Saints said 'Amen' to the Promises of God.

• How much more should we say 'Amen' to the Promises of our Faithful God!

We are looking at the Faithfulness of God:

1. The Lord God taught Moses that Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of His Nature.
2. The Lord God taught Abraham that He is Faithful to Individuals as well as Nations.
3. The Lord God teaches us a number of Applications of His Faithfulness in the N.T.

Firstly: Paul tells us that God's Faithfulness gives us Assurance of Salvation

Time & again in the N. T., we see that God's Faithfulness is mentioned in relation to Salvation.

• Remember how the Corinthian Believers had many shortcomings;
• Their Christian Lives left a lot to be desired.
• Nevertheless, in 1 Cor 1:6-8, Paul gives them a special word of commendation, saying:

"Our testimony about Christ has been confirmed in you. Therefore you do not lack any

spiritual gift as you eagerly await for the Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will keep

you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of the Lord Jesus Christ."

The Apostle Paul makes an important declaration concerning these Corinthian Believers.

• They can possess Assurance of Salvation, because Christ, who has Saved Them, will also Keep Them to the End of the Age, when he will Return & transport them to Heaven.
• The Apostle's Testimony concerning Power of the Gospel to transform the lives of Believers has been Confirmed in Them.

The Apostle Paul tells us the reason why Believers can possess Assurance of Salvation:

"God, who called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is Faithful" (v9)

• Paul says that it is: 'God who has Called you to Salvation in Christ.'
• In Romans 1:16, Paul describes the Gospel as the Power of God unto Salvation.

Paul says: God's Faithfulness is the Guarantee that He has not called us in vain.

• God himself will keep you strong to the end so that you will be blameless on the day of Christ

• Your hope of being blameless does not depend on your own strength or your own ability.
• The Assurance of Salvation of Every Believer is firmly based on the Faithfulness of God.

Because God Promised Eternal Life to all who believe, that is exactly what they will receive.

• Remember how Paul likens the steps of Salvation to an Unbroken Chain (Rom 8:29-30):

Note how all these things are in the 'Past Tense - Predestined, Called, Justified, Glorified!

They are so certain, it is just as though they have already happened.

• Not one of those on whom God has set his Love will fail to arrive in heaven.
• God's Purposes for his Chosen People are absolutely certain to come to pass.

The Apostle Paul teaches this Same Truth to the Philippians (1:5):

"He who began a good work will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

• The Faithfulness of God guarantees the outcome of Christian Experience.
• God BEGAN the work, and he will PERFECT what he began until the 'day of Jesus Christ.'
• Paul is implying that God is Working to a Schedule. He is Under Contract, through his Eternal Covenant of Grace to Complete the Work.
• There is a Clause in the Contract which specifies that Day & Hour which no man knows.
• The Day will Surely Come, and All God's Chosen People will Certainly be Ready for it.

• The One who Began the Work is the God of Faithfulness;

Take note of the Special Title which is Bestowed on the Exalted & Glorified Christ:

• John is commanded to write to the Church of Laodicea, saying:

"These are the words of The Amen, the Faithful & True Witness" (Rev 3:14)

• In John's Vision of the Messiah's Return as Judge, he bears the Same Name:

• The Lord Jesus will be Faithful & True in providing Eternal Salvation.

• But he will also be Faithful & True in keeping his word about the punishment of the wicked.

The Lord God teaches us a number of Applications of His Faithfulness in the N.T.

Firstly: God's Faithfulness gives us Assurance of Salvation

Secondly: God is Faithful in Forgiving the Sins of Believers

The Apostle John declares in his First Epistle:

This teaching about the Confession & Forgiveness of Sin is often applied to unbelievers.

• However, we must remember that these words were Written to Believers.

• John gives this message concerning the Confession of Sin in the Context of an Exhortation to Believers to: 'Walk in the Light as He is in the Light' (1 John 1:5-7).

• John is saying that Believers must live in the Realm of Light, not in the Realm of Darkness.

Believers are given two stern warnings by the Apostle John:

"If we claim to have Fellowship with him yet walk in darkness, we lie & do not live by the

truth … If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves & the truth is not in us" (v6-8)

• John is arguing that, if we habitually live a life dominated by sin, we a living a lie.

• On the other hand, if we claim Absolute Perfection, & say we have no sin, we deny the truth.

• Awareness of Sin & Confession of Sin are essential aspects of true faith.
• Refusal to Confess Sin is a hindrance to our Fellowship with a Holy God.

John leaves us in No Doubt that Confession of Sin is an Essential Aspect of Christian Living.

• It is a basic spiritual principle that Light always reveals the hidden things of Darkness.

• God is Light, and that Light will expose all forms of Darkness.

• John is saying that Believers must remain open to the Work of God's Light which exposes sin
• We must allow the Light of God's Word search our hearts.
• We must come to the Word of God honestly and face up to the implications for our lives.

This Confession of Sin involves the recognition of our Particular Sins:

• The Apostle John isn't telling us to make a General Confession of Sin.
• Rather, he is telling us to confess our particular sins.
• He is telling us to name our sins one by one.
• It means that we must never try to gloss over our sins; we must not attempt to deny them.
• We must not try to dismiss our sins or trivialise them.
• Confession of Sins means facing them, and not trying to justify ourselves by trying to

balance the sins we have committed with the good deeds we have done.

• We must allow God's Word to search us & cause us to feel the wretchedness of sin.

Note how John says that God Forgives our Sins on the basis of His Faithfulness.

• How can we be sure that if we Confess our Sins that God will Forgive us?

Paul tells us that we can be sure that God will Forgive, because God is Faithful.

• God promised the Forgiveness of Sins through the types & shadows of the Old Testament ceremonies of the Levitical Priesthood - These types & shadows provided an assurance of their fulfilment in the Perfect Sacrifice of Jesus, the Lamb of God.
• The Son of God came into the world to: "Save his people from their sin" (Mtt 1:21).
• God sent his Beloved Son to Die on the Cross of Calvary to Save Sinners (1 Tim 1:15).
• God promised that no further Sacrifice for Sin will be needed for all eternity (Heb 10:12).
• God Promised that, in Christ, he has provided the Only Way of Salvation (Acts 4:12).

Six hundred years before the Birth of Christ, God made a Promise to his Covenant People:

"I will forgive their iniquity, & their sin I will remember no more" (Jeremiah 31:34).

In the time of Isaiah, God promised Israel:

"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;

though they be red like crimson, they shall be like wool" (Isaiah 1:18).

The Lord God made a promise through the Psalmist David (Ps 103:12):

"As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

God is Faithful - he has Promised that if we Confess our Sins, he will Freely Forgive us.

• Therefore, says John, have no doubts about the Forgiveness of your Sin.

• God's Faithfulness assures us that he will keep his promise to forgive our sins.
• He has promised that he will not call us to account for our sin,

because he has Forgiven us in Christ & clothed us with the Righteousness of Christ.

• You may think that your sins are so vile & wretched that God will never forgive you.

• The Apostle John says, "Confess your sins & take the God of Faithfulness at His Word."

The Lord God teaches us a number of Applications of His Faithfulness in the N.T.

Firstly: God's Faithfulness gives us Assurance of Salvation

Secondly: God is Faithful in Forgiving the Sins of Believers

Thirdly: God is Faithful in Sustaining us through Times of Suffering & Trial

The time we are most tempted to doubt God's Faithfulness is when we go through Suffering.

• At such times, we begin to think that God has forgotten us.

In the days of the Prophet Isaiah, the people of Jerusalem were beginning to think that way.

• The Israelites thought the Lord God had abandoned them & left them suffer in Babylon.

"Zion said: 'The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me" (Isaiah 49:14).

Immediately, the Word of the Living God resounds with great encouragement:

"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast? … Though she may forget, I will not forget

you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands" (Isaiah 49:15-16).

Take note of the basis on which the Lord God Promises the Restoration of Israel:

"This is what the Lord says - the Redeemer & Holy One of Israel … Kings will see you &

arise, princes will see & bow down, because of the Lord, who is Faithful, the Holy One

of Israel, who has chosen you" (Isaiah 49:7).

• The Faithfulness of God assures his people that he will Keep his Promise of Restoration.
• He had allowed his people to suffer, but he would never abandon them or forget them.

The Faithfulness of God assures his people that he will Remain True to his Character:

• The Holy One who has called Israel to be His Chosen People, cannot invalidate his choice.
• The Redeemer, is compelled by His Faithfulness to Redeem & Restore them.
• The Kings of the Nations who have risen up against Israel, will one day be compelled to show their respect & reverence for the Lord God, Jehovah.
• The Princes of the Nations will witness the Faithfulness of God to Israel, & will feel compelled to bow the knee to this Awesome & Powerful God.
• The Faithfulness of God will be declared among the Nations, because of

this demonstration of His faithfulness to His Chosen People, Israel!

The Apostle Peter gives the Same Message to Persecuted Christians (1 Peter 4:12-13 & 19):

"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though some

strange thing were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of

Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed … So then, those who

suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their Faithful Creator."

Richard Strauss comments on verse 19, saying:

"As the Creator, God has the Power to carry out His Perfect Plan for our lives & to

accomplish His Perfect Purposes through our Suffering. And as the Faithful Creator, He

can be counted on to do it. Therefore we can consciously entrust ourselves to His Care

with Complete Confidence, believing that he will do what is best. When we can do that,

we will have Peace in the Midst of Adversity."

The Faithfulness of God assures us we can Entrust ourselves to him in Times of Trial:

• Our God is the Creator God who has the Power to Do All Things!

Therefore, he Knows & Wills what is best for his chosen people.

Peter says: "You should not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering."

Peter says: "Those who suffer should commit themselves to their Faithful Creator."

• Suffering is a challenge that compels us to rely upon the Faithfulness of God.

You can put your life into God's Hands with the Assurance that he will Remain Faithful.

• Because God is Faithful, He will never let you down!

You can Depend on him in Every Situation, because he will never go back on His Word.

• He is entirely & absolutely Trustworthy.

William Cowper, the Hymnwriter, says:

"God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform;

He plants His footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for His Grace'

Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast, Unfolding every hour;

The bud may have a bitter taste, But sweet will be the flower."

We have been looking at the Faithfulness of God:

1. The Lord God taught Moses & the Whole Nation of Israel that

Faithfulness is an Essential Aspect of His Divine Nature.

2. The Lord God taught Abraham that He is Faithful to Individuals as well as Nations.
3. The Lord God teaches us a number of Applications of His Faithfulness in the N.T.

God's Faithfulness gives us Assurance of Salvation

God is Faithful in Forgiving the Sins of Believers

God is Faithful in Sustaining us through Times of Suffering & Trial