Our God IS Faithful (Galatians 3:16-22)

This past week there were two events that occurred that if you didn’t believe in a sovereign God — a God that is in complete and absolute control — could shake your faith … or at least question it.

The first was the assassination of Charlie Kirk — a 31 year old husband, father and son and outspoken Christian.

And for that … people hated him … which shouldn’t have surprised us.

As Jesus told his disciples: ““If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.””

Aside from all the political rhetoric — on both sides — as Christians we must look at this event from God’s point of view … and with it … a Biblical point of view.

I’m thankful for the Scriptures … I believe it is it’s own best interpreter … as God speaks to us through His Word.

Why God let it happen … I won’t even guess. But we read in Romans 11:33:

““Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!””

We also know — even though many might say it — that he didn’t die before his time … from an earthly point of view … it’s normal think this way.

The beautiful pro-life Psalm 139:16 says: ““Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.””

No one dies before their time!

And so … as Psalm 116:15 says: ““Precious in the sight of the Lord Is the death of His saints.””

As sad as it is from our earthly point of view — and we can rightly mourn …

… what we can say is that the work that God had given him was over … and he was welcomed with “well done, thou good and faithful servant” … and he has inherited the kingdom prepared for him since the foundation of the earth.

This truth is real to me … as I remember my daughter … who is now in the presence of her God and Savior … and it would be selfish of me to take her away from that!

This past week also was the 24^th Anniversary of 9/11.  Where were you that fateful day?

We did see a lot of remembrances and stories of those who passed … and those who survived.

A couple of weeks prior to 9/11 I had prompted the executive chef for Windows on the World … on the top floor of the World Trade Center.

That morning … he had gone down to the loading dock to check of a shipment of glasses when the plane hit. He survived … all his staff was killed.

No one dies before their time!

It’s interesting to talk to the younger generation who only have a passing reference to the events of that day. Sort of like talking to your grandparents about the Great Depression and World War II,

9/11 was a day that we weren’t prepared for … and many asked … where was God on that day?

He was in the same place then as He was since the dawn of Creation!

And for his Divine purpose … He allowed the events of that day to happen.

Ecclesiastes 9:2 says: ““All things come alike to all: One event happens to the righteous and the wicked; To the good, the clean, and the unclean; To him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As is the good, so is the sinner; He who takes an oath as he who fears an oath.””

Now … since that time … there has been a lot of uncertainty in the world. 

What’s next? Will something like this happen again? We don’t know. 

What I will say is that there is nothing new.

Ecclesiastes 1:9 says: ““That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun.”” (REPEAT)

I guess the only thing that has changed is the 24/7 news cycle … and the fact that we see events happening around the world in real time … we don’t have to wait for days or weeks to find out what is happening.

And so … we can honestly say … that the only thing that is consistent is change.

With all that’s happening … wars … the economy … political unrest … public safety … the list is endless … WE … as Christians … have to be thankful.

… because … as Christians … we have the distinct privilege of viewing things from a Biblical point of view.

WHY?  Because we DO believe in a Sovereign God who is in absolute and complete control with all that is happening. 

NOTHING surprises HIM!  NOTHING happens outside of HIS divine WILL and PURPOSE!

To me … it is very comforting to know this.

We may not understand all that is happening … We may ask “why” … we may be saddened … we may shed tears … but we know that OUR God is the same … yesterday … today … and forever. 

And knowing that … we can trust in God … and we can rest in the perfect will of God … knowing … as Paul says in Romans 8:

““And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.””

Isaiah tells us: ““Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,’””

The faithfulness of God and the fact that we can trust Him to do what He says He will do … and that all things that happen are according to His Divine will … is seen in our Epistle lesson from Galatians 3.

In Galatians 3, the Apostle Paul tells us the relationship between the law and the promise of a Savior … and with it … the Gospel of Jesus Christ … that he came … he lived … he died … and he rose from the dead for the sins of those who believe in him as Savior and Lord.

We know that immediately after the fall of man in Genesis 3 … God promised a Savior … we read in 3:16:

““And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.””

As we know … and as we compare Scripture with Scripture … this is a picture of the suffering of Christ on the Cross.

This prophecy … written by Moses under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit … occurred about 4000 years before Christ.

Now …  according to Biblical Scholars … about 2000 years AFTER the fall … and that first promise of a Messiah … we have the call of Abraham and God’s Covenant with him … in Genesis 12:

““Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

In Galatians 3 we see the promise to Abraham reiterated:

““Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.””

You can look at the genealogies in Matthew 1 or Luke 3 … and see that Christ is in the line of Abraham.

So then … as we read in Galatians 3 … 430 years after the covenant God made to Abraham … the law was given to Moses.

And then … almost 2000 years after the Law was given to Moses … Christ came … as the fulfillment of the law and all the prophecies.

We can ask the question then … how was Abraham saved if the law didn’t exist until 430 years later?

The answer to this important question is in Genesis 15:6 where we read:

““ And he (Abraham) believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.””

Abraham had faith … he believed in the promises of God.

This is confirmed with what we read earlier in Galatians 3:6: ““just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.””

God had promised an heir would come from him and he would be the father of many nations.

Abraham and Sarah tried to help God along the way … with Hagar and Ishmael … but Ishmael was not to be the heir.

And so … when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 years old … she gave birth to Isaac … and he was heir to the promise.

Abraham’s faith was confirmed in Genesis 22, where God says to Abraham:

““Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.””

We know the story … Abraham did exactly as God had instructed … and was ready to sacrifice Isaac … when God provided a lamb for the sacrifice,

This is a picture of God providing His only Son as a Sacrifice for the sins of those who believe in him.

But … getting back to Abraham … we read about his faith in Hebrews 11:

““By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.””

The life of Abraham is just one example of the faithfulness of God to His promises.

You can read about the life of Abraham starting in Genesis 12 to read all that he went through … but the bottom line was that God made a promise to him … and while he didn’t see the complete fulfillment of that promise … he still believed God … and as we read ““and it was accounted to him for righteousness.””

We then have to ask … why the law?  If Abraham was considered righteous because he believed … why did God give the law to Moses and the children of Israel.

Our passage tells us — ““What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.””

And then … just beyond our passage … we read in Galatians 3:24: ““Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.””

Or as we read in Romans 3: ““Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.””

It is by the law that we have knowledge of sin … AND it tells us that we need a Savior … it tells us that we need Jesus …

And it is this Jesus … the Messiah … that was promised by God immediately after sin entered the world … and promised and prophesied throughout the Old Testament … that was fulfilled in time … with the coming of Jesus almost 2000 years ago.

God is faithful … God keeps His promises …

Promises … such as ““For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.””

““For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”” or

““Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”” or

““For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”” or

““Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.””

And then my favorite:

““Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.””

With all the uncertainty in this world … in our lives … in our society … let us take God at His Word.  He is faithful.

And for us as Christians … let us rest in the faithfulness of God … and remember all the promises of Scripture … including those precious words: ““For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.””