GOD IS FAITHFUL TO REMAIN FAITHFUL

Unlike all the rest, God is faithful, and He remains faithful (John 8:26). Man is never faithful, even unto himself (one will deny being a thief when he pretty knows he is). Yet it ain't simply a saying that God is faithful. For being faithful is His own character.

What is being faithful, though?

To be faithful by definition is to adhere firmly and devotedly to something. It entails being steadfast in what one may have committed to in both overt and covert situations. Faithfulness is also a sacrifice. If you can't sacrifice, how then can you remain faithful? Faithfulness is for all times!

Scripture describes God as not being man that He should lie, neither is He son of man that He should repent (Numbers 23:19). In the same respect, countless of scripture admonish us to keep our vows which we make;

Numbers 30:2

If a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth. 

Deuteronomy 23:21

“If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin.

Ecclesiastes 5:5

It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.

Deuteronomy 23:23

You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God what you have promised with your mouth.

Matthew 12:36

I tell you, on the Day of Judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,

Ecclesiastes 5:2-6

When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands?
Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. 

Titus 2:7-8

Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.

Proverbs 20:25

It is a snare to say rashly, “It is holy,” and to reflect only after making vows.

Psalm 50:14

Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High,

Psalm 15:4

In whose eyes a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the Lord; who swears to his own hurt and does not change;

Proverbs 20:6

Many a man proclaims his own steadfast love, but a faithful man who can find? 

Psalm 66:13-14

I will come into your house with burnt offerings; I will perform my vows to you, which which my lips uttered and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

1 John 3:21-22

Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

Romans 13:8

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Matthew 6:24

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

Matthew 5:37

Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.

Psalm 37:21

The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives;

2 Chronicles 32:24-25

In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death, and he prayed to the Lord, and he answered him and gave him a sign. But Hezekiah did not make return according to the benefit done to him, for his heart was proud. Therefore wrath came upon him and Judah and Jerusalem.

Deuteronomy 23:21-23

“If you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the Lord your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin. But if you refrain from vowing, you will not be guilty of sin. You shall be careful to do what has passed your lips, for you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God what you have promised with your mouth.

The case of Ahab

Ahab was one of the Kings of ancient Israel and scripture says he was a very wicked man (1Kings 21:25-26). He took Naboth's vineyard by force and had him killed.

It may have not been Ahab personally to kill Naboth, but he gave his wife Jezebel the license to do so so that he could freely claim Naboth's vineyard (1Kings 21). By and in all this, Ahab was already condemned before God (much more so before men). And by any literal measure, he would never be or should have never been forgiven.

So, all human being are pretty more or less the same. The cutting edge is only in admission of human faults. Ahab repented and humbled himself before God and God forgave him (1Kings 21:29). 

God is faithful because He keeps no personal for or against any individual.  God's anger, wrath and fury is righteous and only directed at sin, and not at the sinner. Thus Jesus came to separate the sinner from the sin.

When God promises to forgive sin (to the repentant), it is so that He has already done it. It does not matter the seeming extent of the sin! Thus to say; God keeps no personal (no matter) how one may wish and relish that another should be gravely punished and subsequently condemned (Isaiah 1:18). God alone is the faithful judge, and upon this, the cross is for us all.

We keep falsely believing and saying that; much as I admit to my sin, mine is not much a sin as that of the other person. Yet because God is no human, He forgives whoever of any sin. God is faithful to keep His faithfulness.

For people only seek to judge each other. Only looking to rejoice over how God unleashes His wrath on another. Yet in the eyes of the Omniscient God, no one who is human is inexcusable. All human is sinful and equally needs the forgiveness of God to be set free from sin (Romans 2:1-5).

Yet God's grace is abundant for all who love to live a life to His honor. God will always be faithful to give such people the time and the strength to be transformed, to live to the glory of God.

Consider for example the case of Adam and Eve. Eve ate the fruit first upon being tempted by the devil (Genesis 3:4). By human measure, it appears just perfect to put the blame on Eve for having taken things into her own hands. For she failed to read the malevolence of the tempter.

But if to ask, what could have caused a situation that Eve would be isolated from Adam her husband? Yet when she did succumb and ate of it, the impact found its way to include every human. Despite though that it wasn't so until when she convinced Adam to eat of it, (and being the wife), Adam was easily led to eat.

The devil finds his way in humans by using humans. For do you note that by one falling into sin, it has an impact on every human by way of; if one falls, it implies another can? Why so? Every one is equally human and does appear more or less in the same picture or image.

For all human is of  the same material. Rather to say; if Adam had loved to save (not only himself but Eve and his offspring), the option was never to excuse himself by pointing an accusing finger at Eve, but rather to repent because he had a responsibility over his wife (Genesis 3:12). For the matters of the garden had been entrusted to him not Eve.

So, by pointing an accusing finger, you are not helping things, but rather creating space for the condemnation of all. Adam and Eve were both judged in equal measures. That is by accusing others, you are equally accusing and condemning your person. By one person not knowing to do the right thing, (or knowing the right thing but refuse to do it), stands to lead all to condemnation.

The way to go

Be fast to see the wrong in yourself than in any other. If one of us had been or is perfect as we each falsely intend to perceive we are, it would have never taken God to sacrifice His only begotten Son in Jesus Christ.

Additionally, the world would have been the best place ever. For if it (the world) were as perfect, where from would evil have come? Evil comes because one has chosen to serve evil. By that, every one is a sinner in any way one may choose to perceive it.

For every one (in equal measures) needs God's mercy. The only option is to turn to God and intercede for every bit . That is; if one beheads another, imagine yourself in that act rather than to begin imagining how much God would punish such a person. With that, you will surely be inviting the Holy Spirit to energize you to intercede.

If we admit we are all sinners, we make it easier for God to reach out to us with a hand of grace and mercy. For the meaningful change in this world is to come from Evangelism and Intercession, not from determining and mentioning who is wrong and who is not.

The one sure way we keep defeating the devil is through repentance. And because the devil is aware how much damage we cause to his schemes (to destroy man), he makes it look so hard (if not impossible) to repent by igniting the devilish self defeating and destructive pride (which he plants in us) so that by not recognizing your sin, you position yourself right in the devil’s target.

For if you humble and repent, you may never need to cast out and command away demons. For by this seeming simple act, the devil is surely defeated.

When we repent, it is so that the devil loses ground to design his accusations. Repentance makes it that; the devil has nothing then to accuse you of before God. To keep successfully overcoming and defeating the devil, keep repenting and repent. It is repentance which brings to birth God's grace to forgive.

What happens when one repents

The example of David and Uriah

Scripture tells us David was a man with a heart after the heart of God (1Samuel 13:14). But despite having the heart after the heart of God, David was not to escape the human instinct and on many occasions, he never acted like one with a heart after God's own heart.

David lusted over Uriah's wife and slept with her (2Samuel 11:2-4). The woman conceived (2Samuel 11:5). David wanted to do away with the evidence that he had slept with her by trying to convince Uriah to go in to his wife upon return from battle. But Uriah refused (2Samuel 11:8-9, 11:11, 11:13).

When David realized he had failed to convince Uriah to go in to his wife, he knew that there was no other way to escape his sin. He assumed sheer impunity by way of the position he occupied.

Rather than to repent of the former, David chose to commit another sin so he could hide the former. Upon that, he plotted to have Uriah killed and Uriah was indeed killed on the orders of king David (2Samuel 11:15-25).

The Prophet Nathan meets with King David.

Upon having done such, God sent the Prophet Nathan to king David. Nathan used a proverbial narration to David of the story of a rich man who grabbed another man's one sheep despite possessing countless of sheep so he could feed his guests (2Samuel 12:1-4).

Having had the story, David reacted swiftly by passing judgment on such a person (2Samuel 12:5-6). He had no idea that he was passing judgment upon himself and only being harsh to his own soul.

In that, by being swift to point an accusing finger at another, you are judging and condemning yourself in same measures.  

We may never know every bit of our sin. So, don't be quick to judge because neither do you understand all about yourself. In this then, if you choose to judge, be assured that you have equally done the same to yourself.

Had David seen himself in such a person, he would have never been swift to pass judgment. He would have rather, been quick to repent just as he did afterwards.

The sense to realize we are all sinners is gravely lacking in all of us. Yet the sense to see the wrong in others and thereby swiftly judge them is insurmountable in us. If you accept you are the sinner and not one else, you will have helped yourself much more than you do to anybody else.

Yet being the faithful God, despite having commended David for having a heart after His (God's) own heart, when David sinned, he was equally held inexcusable. What do you learn here? What would you do? Where would you stand if it involved someone dear to you?

When Jesus was revealing how God loves it that we get to know some of the many mysteries of His Kingdom, He loved to assure His listeners that He had not come to accuse and judge the world of its sin. For if that was His mission, it would have never even required that He comes to earth to interact with us and to teach us how God loves us to live.

For the world already stands condemned (Romans 3:23). Yet because of the faithfulness of God, (now) one is not condemned on account of having sinned, but on account of choosing to remain in and in the shadow of sin. There is a way to be forgiven of all sin and that way is in Jesus (John 3:19).

God has given us His faithful promise, He forgives us when we repent. He will never look back to remember a dot of a sin for whoever has come to Christ. 

It should be noted that it does not matter the seeming extent of sin. Sin is sin and it is all borne of the devil. If say it is about color, the color of the seed of sin is the same, say if it is black, all it is. Thus to say; for a person who beheads another person needs equally the same amount of grace to be set free. Why so? Whatever sin leads to condemnation and eventually to eternal death.

You should or shouldn't therefore wonder why and where Cain learnt the art to kill faster than he learnt the art to do anything else, yet the law was yet to be given. But in Jesus, we have a way to escape that condemnation and can avoid eternal spiritual death (John 3:16-18).

There is therefore no one single particular person in the human flesh who holds the slightest of any powers to point an accusing finger, for the accuser is the devil (Revelations 12:10).  If Jesus has not done so, who else should? (Romans 8:33-34). For to accuse identifies with the devil. Would you love to assume the role of the devil?

The devil is the accuser

Yet apart from (with all honor) surely forgiving our sin as promised, God is indeed faithful in all aspects and in every sense of the meaning of it. He has given us much more than we should have deserved. For if Lucifer and a third of the rebellious angels were thrown out with no single hope to ever be forgiven, who are we that God is mindful of? (Psalms 8), (2Peter 2).

God has surely lived up to His promise of redeeming us (Isaiah 52:3). Every single promise that God has given every single person at any single moment has come to pass. One can only disappoint themselves. For countless of promises made by God are seen fulfilled in the due time among which I can point out the following few;

The promise of another land when Abram left his ancestral land.

God asked Abram to leave his ancestral land to another land where He would lead Him (Genesis 12:1). Abram responded as God had asked. God indeed led Abram to that land and He did indeed promise to give it to him and his offspring (Genesis 17:8). This promise was indeed fulfilled with Joshua when the Israelites finally occupied Canaan as their land of settlement (Joshua 21:43). To date, it is still standing as so.

The promised land of Canaan

The promise of the coming of Jesus and the cross

For the fact that we all had been counted sinners and thereby condemned to eternal spiritual death by way of being the offspring of Adam who rebelled against God, there was no hope left. For the verdict had been passed by God Himself. If God passes the judgment, who else can reverse it?

Yet God knew that with that, man would be eternally lost to the devil. Thus God out of His abundance, provided a way through His Son Jesus Christ that whoever comes to Jesus is forgiven and set free from sin.

Scripture is clear about the wages of sin. The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 6:23).  

God made a promise for the coming of the Christ right when man fell (Genesis 3:15). This prophecy is fulfilled in (Matthew 1:20). Many more prophecies about the promise of the coming of the Christ are made in the Old Testament and are seen duly fulfilled in the New Testament among which are the following;

• Scripture says the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). This very prophecy is duly seen and witnessed fulfilled in the New Testament (Matthew 2:1), (Luke 2:4-6). 

• Scripture goes on to tell that the Messiah would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). This very prophecy is duly seen witnessed in the New Testament (Matthew 1:22-23), (Luke 1:26-31). 

Yet apart from simply having prophecy fulfilled, Jesus did not simply have to show up, but He measured up to all the requirements which would be involved to set the world free of sin. The cost was that high, but God had made a promise. And because He had promised, He had to fulfill His promise whatever the cost.  For in Jesus alone is all the judgment and the forgiveness.

For it involved to offer His only begotten Son in Jesus Christ to be brutally dealt with and eventually to be crucified on the cross (John 3:16). Yet all this never swayed God in His promise.

Have you kept all your commitments whatever the cost? Yet God keeps His commitments whatever the cost. Surely, God is so amazing! For at the cross, sin is surely forgiven and is made to count no more.

Promise of the cross

The promise of another covenant in place of the old one.

God made a covenant with Israelites via Moses (Exodus 40:12). However, God chose to make another covenant. For this was because the old covenant had been for the Israelites as a model people (Exodus 19:3-6).

Besides, it had been a covenant practically complicated to live by and with. Yet this is not to say the new one of Jesus makes it any easier to live by and with, but if you are to consider it in practical terms, the old covenant of Moses makes it quite complex. For the Old Covenant required to struggle to please God.

Yet it is imperative to note that the covenant of Jesus is even more of a challenge to fulfill. But it is not by power to do the things of God (Zechariah 4:6). The new Covenant of Jesus is engraved in grace, while the old Covenant of Moses is engraved in the law. For when God gave us the New Covenant, He (God) equally followed it up with the power and the means to us so we do not only follow and live by it, but to live it.

For that, God promised to make another covenant (Jeremiah 31:31), (Hebrews 10:16). Now we have a new covenant (Luke 22:19-20). For merely (merely not in a sense to underrate but to express how possible Jesus made it for us) confessing the name of Jesus, you are counted to have made a covenant with God. It is made as practically simple and possible as that. 

Yet with the complex and complicated practicalities involved in the Old Testament, many people would have never been justified because many would have never afforded the cost involved to keep right with God. 

Oh, who else can ever be like the God Israel???!!! The God who keeps His promise at whatever cost that is!!! Countless of promises can be identified through out the Bible, and none of them can be mirrored in any less vitality. The God of Israel is surely an amazing God.