Singing of the Faithfulness of the Lord
I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations ~ Psalms 89:1.
Introduction
In every individual life, family, business and nation are shadowed days when it seems like the sun has finally withdrawn its shining and the clouds have taken over. These may come in diverse forms: a regime of spiritual hostilities, days of great financial anxiety, times of personal health challenges or periods of national political turmoil.
Even sometimes, all that one has lived for may seem washed away like a castle in the sand. Such are unpalatable and difficult times, when the grave appears full, and the living is beginning to envy the dead.
In fact, the grim situations of such moments may assume a very complicated dimension, especially if God refuses to “explain” Himself and we are left alone, as it were, to mourn for what is not missing (Genesis 37:33-34).
The truth is, irrespective of our gifts, ministry, social status, gender or age, we all occasionally face challenges and trials in life. But the good-news is, we also have equal opportunities to overcome, by the grace of God (1 Corinthians 10:13). Moreover, our remembrance of God’s faithfulness can bring incredible changes to any challenges of life.
The God of the Bible is always good, loving and caring, and especially faithful both to His covenant and to His children (Psalm 89:34). The fact that God is inherently and unflinchingly faithful is, indeed, one of the strongest truths in the entire Bible (Psalm 36:5).
God is trustworthy unto the utmost bounds. He honours His words, fulfills His promises and He won’t let down anyone that trusts in Him. Our God is too faithful to fail! These inspirations must be stamped upon our hearts, never to be erased by any ominous finger.
The Israelites experienced God’s power firsthand, every single day for 40 years. They tempted Him, proved Him, and saw His works. He made incredible supernatural provisions for them, with a continuous flow of His power, to sustain them in their wilderness journeys (Exodus 17:5-6; Psalms 78:25-28).
God faithfully provided everything they needed — water, manna, quails, supernatural shield by the cloud, and so on — so much so that one can only imagine that their children who grew up during that time became so accustomed to divine provisions that they considered it normal.
Meanwhile, it’s quite shocking that, in spite of all that God did for them, some Israelites still became hard-hearted, and hence found it difficult to follow the Lord and move with the cloud of His glory (Numbers 10:33-11:3; Hebrews 3:8).
They ate the manna and the quail, and they drank the water, and after a while, they forgot that these were miraculous acts of God. They experienced the riches of God’s goodness, but they eventually became unappreciative of all that God had done for them. They “got used to it”, so to speak.
But then, we all must be careful to note that, as human beings, we sometimes allow our nature to run true to form. We seriously misbehave and take the illimitable God for granted. This is a diabolical danger to avoid by all means, today!
A hardened heart is like an arm that has become stiff. Hard-heartedness describes someone that is stiff-necked to the things of God, or calloused to His supernatural ways. Now, such a disease of the soul is better prevented than cured, and the best preventive medicine for it is to keep in mind the past testimonies of God’s goodness and faithfulness.
Keeping In Mind God’s Faithfulness
Whatever God has done for us in the past is a spiritual mould for what He could do for us in the future. Hence, it is so important that we keep in mind every experience of His goodness and faithfulness.
Once in a while, especially during difficult times, like the Israelites of old, you could be tempted to give in to fear and worry. Your mind may wander around some negative things going on in your life. But, if you’ll calm down and count your many blessings, you’ll realize that God has, indeed, been very faithful (Psalms 36:6-10).
Remember, in God we all have our being (Acts 17:28). He made us and ornamented us with such an unspeakable honour and an enviable dignity (Psalm 8:3-8). And, He continually provides for the integrity of the whole universe, to maintain our dominion in Christ Jesus, but only inasmuch as it is willed by Him (Colossians 1:15-27).
Most remarkably, in the work of redemption, God commissioned Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, to come into this world as our Saviour. For this unparalleled assignment, Christ stooped from riches to poverty, and from incredible glory to the greatest mockery of all times on the Cross.
He even took away our curse when He stooped down from the heavenly throne-room, giving up what was dearest and sweetest of all things to Him — His Father's smile (Mark 15:34). Thereafter, He made available pardon, adoption, liberty, wisdom, healing, deliverance and prosperity for all believers in Christ Jesus today (John 1:12).
Beloved, do well to clear your mind today, and strive to put your finger on the experiences of God’s goodness in your personal life and see how much God has blessed you immensely in His characteristic goodness. He saved you (Ephesians 2:5). He changed you (2 Corinthians 5:17). He healed you (1 Peter 2:24).
Moreover, He delivered you (Colossians 1:13). He supplies your needs (Philippians 4:19). He answers your prayers (1 John 5:14). He has blessed and keeps blessing you (Ephesians 1:3). Yes, God is very good and truly faithful. And, His goodness is neither ephemeral nor seasonal. He is always good to us.
Friends and brethren, today, if we will come to God in our times of need, He will prove to us His lofty faithfulness. Whatever you go through, take refuge in the Lord. Be excited and sing new songs of the Lord’s faithfulness. He alone is essentially good, and possesses all perfections by His nature. His goodness abounds in all things He has made, in every way!
Every promise God ever made is backed up by His ultimate power and unchangeable immortality. Yes, we must let our souls soar heavenward, therefore, remembering that our loving Father-God is the Author of all good things. His glory exceeds all the parameters of human languages (Hebrews 2:14-18).
In everything, as children of God, let’s sing evermore, every time and everywhere of the mercies of the Lord. Surely, sooner than later, we shall partake of His overflowing goodness, in Jesus name. Amen. Happy Sunday!
** Bishop Taiwo Akinola,
Rhema Christian Church,
Otta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
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