14.2 What God Gives: The Promise in His Word

Table of Contents

The Text

Matthew 4:4 (CSB) He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The Chapter

By this faith a Christian believeth to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word for the authority of God himself, and also apprehendeth an excellency therein above all other writings and all things in the world, as it bears forth the glory of God in his attributes, the excellency of Christ in his nature and offices, and the power and fullness of the Holy Spirit in his workings and operations: and so is enabled to cast his soul upon the truth thus believed; and also acteth differently upon that which each particular passage thereof containeth; yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come; but the principal acts of saving faith have immediate relation to Christ, accepting, receiving, and resting upon him alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant of grace.

The Confession

By this faith a Christian believes to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word for the authority of God himself

Acts 24:14 (CSB) But I admit this to you: I worship the God of my ancestors according to the Way, which they call a sect, believing everything that is in accordance with the law and written in the prophets.

I know that some well-meaning people want to doubly make sure that you are not just nodding your head blindly to everything that is being preached and taught from the Bible without thinking much of it.

Listen, the fact that we can actually understand and know that it is true is completely dependent on the Triune God residing and dwelling within us. Not our command of the written language of the translation of the Bible. Not in our education. Not in our reading comprehension. Not the ability to get an A+ on this supposed upcoming pop quiz. None of that but the Spirit of God dwelling in us, giving us the fullness of life in Christ and by then any only then, can we believe and trust the word of God.

1 John 5:1 (CSB) Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father also loves the one born of him.

We were dead in our trespasses and sins. Because of Christ, we are now fully alive. Since we are have been made fully alive, we can now believe and trust the Holy One of God who alone has the words of eternal life.

John 6:68-69 (CSB) Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”

and also apprehends an excellency therein above all other writings and all things in the world

Psalm 27:7–10 (CSB) LORD, hear my voice when I call; be gracious to me and answer me. My heart says this about you: “Seek his face.” LORD, I will seek your face. Do not hide your face from me; do not turn your servant away in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or abandon me, God of my salvation. Even if my father and mother abandon me, the LORD cares for me.

Psalm 119:72 (CSB) Instruction from your lips is better for me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

Psalm 19:7–10 (CSB) The instruction of the LORD is perfect, renewing one’s life; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise. The precepts of the LORD are right, making the heart glad; the command of the LORD is radiant, making the eyes light up. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are reliable and altogether righteous. They are more desirable than gold— than an abundance of pure gold; and sweeter than honey dripping from a honeycomb.

Psalm 69:36 (CSB) The descendants of his servants will inherit it, and those who love his name will live in it.

How important is it to believe the word of God and take it at face value and not to interject our only wisdom and understanding and philosophy into it in order to rationalize it and make it more palatable to our own sensibilities?

In the Portland Monthly interview with Christopher Hitchens, the interviewer, Marilyn Swell, a Unitarian Minister, was asked about his book, God is Not Great and the following exchange took place:

Marilyn Sewell The religion you cite in your book is generally the fundamentalist faith of various kinds. I’m a liberal Christian, and I don’t take the stories from the scripture literally. I don’t believe in the doctrine of atonement (that Jesus died for our sins, for example). Do you make and distinction between fundamentalist faith and liberal religion?

Christopher Hitchens I would say that if you don’t believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ and Messiah, and that he rose again from the dead and by his sacrifice our sins are forgiven, you’re really not in any meaningful sense a Christian.

The Unitarian minister had nothing more to respond to that other than, "Let me go someplace else."1

So this Mr. Hitchens knows the gospel. Big deal. What is a big deal is that Mr. Hitchens could clearly articulate the gospel of Christ more so than most Christian. But calling himself a militant-atheist, he does not believe the gospel.

Just because someone can articulate the gospel, write lectures, preach sermons, and write books about the gospel does not mean that they believe the gospel.

James 2:19 (CSB) You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder.

as it bears forth the glory of God in his attributes, the excellency of Christ in his nature and offices, and the power and fullness of the Holy Spirit in his workings and operations: and so is enabled to cast his soul upon the truth consequently believed

2 Timothy 1:12 (CSB) and that is why I suffer these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to guard what has been entrusted to me until that day.

This is the difference between the non-believer and the believer. Both are depraved and wicked in the eyes of God. Both are dead in their trespasses and sins. Both are enemies of God. Both are under the wrath of God. Both are in need of a Savior. Both are in need of the gospel.

Only one believes. One one has seen the wretchedness of their soul and have thrown themselves at the mercy of God.

But what you might not realize is that actual insight of are own heart and the grace to run to Christ is because God dwells in us.

It is not a one time thing. For we are the children of God. How many times do children run back to their parents? The amount is countless. We are no less than so. We will go to him the first time. We will go to him a million times more.

But unlike our earthly parents, God never tires of you coming back to him. He isn't waiting for you to figure it out and stop messing up. He knows you are going to sin again and again. He knows you are--you are not good enough. That is why he sent his Son to live and die so you will die and live unto him.

1 John 3:1 (CSB) See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it didn’t know him.

Romans 5:8 (CSB) But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

and also acts differently upon that which each particular passage thereof contains; yielding obedience to the commands

John 15:14 (CSB) You are my friends if you do what I command you.

We are to obey God. There is no doubt. For you to actually obey God, God must make you fully alive and then dwell in you. For:

Ezekiel 36:26–27 (CSB) I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances.

But as sons of Adam who made from dust, we are broken in loving God with all of heart and soul as we are commanded to. And we fallen short in loving him and loving others well. When we do, we are half hearted at best.

We are called to obedience to God but we cannot obey him perfectly.

trembling at the threatenings

Isaiah 66:2 (CSB) My hand made all these things, and so they all came into being. This is the LORD’s declaration. I will look favorably on this kind of person: one who is humble, submissive in spirit, and trembles at my word.

We know God and we fear God because he alone is so worthy and we are so little. He is so majestic and we are worms, not people. Who is he that he should even look upon us? Who are we that we should even be in his presence?

Ephesians 2:1-3 (CSB) And you were dead in your trespasses and sins in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also.

Titus 3:3 (CSB) For we too were once foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved by various passions and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, detesting one another.

Romans 3:23 (CSB) For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come

Hebrews 11:13 (CSB) These all died in faith, although they had not received the things that were promised. But they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth.

Romans 3:21-26 (CSB) But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been revealed, attested by the Law and the Prophets. The righteousness of God is through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe, since there is no distinction. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God presented him as an atoning sacrifice in his blood, received through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his restraint God passed over the sins previously committed. God presented him to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be righteous and declare righteous the one who has faith in Jesus.

And here is the good news:

Ephesians 2:4-10 (CSB) But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.

And here is the good news:

Titus 3:4-7 (CSB) But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. He poured out his Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life.

And here is the good news:

Romans 5:6 (CSB) For while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly.

but the principle acts of saving faith have immediate relation to Christ, accepting, receiving, and resting upon him alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant of grace.

John 1:12 (CSB) But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name,

Acts 16:31 (CSB) They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

Galatians 2:20 (CSB) I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Acts 15:11 (CSB) On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same way they are.”

And here is the good news:

Romans 6:23 (CSB) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

And here is the good news:

John 3:16 (CSB) For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

And here is the good news:

2 Corinthians 5:21 (CSB) He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

And here is the good news:

Matthew 11:28-30 (CSB) “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Everything that we are--completely, none of us, by us, from us--rests in the person and work of Christ alone. We had nothing to do with our salvation except the sin that crucified our Savior on the cross some two thousand years ago.

Christ did it all. And the word of God testifies that Christ did it all of us.

Matthew 1:21 (CSB) She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Salvation is of the Lord for he alone is mighty to save. Amen