Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you.
If what you heard from the beginning remains in you,
then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.
And this is the promise that he made us: eternal life. (1 Jn 2:24-25)
Promises, we learn very early in life, are easy to make, easy to break, but difficult to keep. Promises are often made in haste. They are made to get ourselves out of trouble. They are made to make someone else feel better. They are made to make ourselves look good. But, they are often made with the full knowledge that we are not going to fulfill them.
Thankfully, God’s promises are nowhere near our promises.
When we were cast out of the Garden of Eden, God promised that He would send someone to redeem us. God delivered.
When the prophets spoke to the people about God, they always talked about how God had promised to send them a savior. God delivered.
When Jesus was born, that was a great delivery of God’s promise.
As Jesus grew in age and grace and wisdom, He promised that God loved His people enough to heal them and forgive their sins. Jesus delivered.
Jesus promised to free us from the bondage of sin and death. He delivered on that promise with His death on the cross and His resurrection to new life.
He promised to remain with us forever. He delivers on that promise every day.
We, for our part, need to put our trust in Him and to do all that we can to be more like Him each day.
FAITH ACTION: The next time we make a promise to someone; let us make a firm intent to deliver on our promise as God has always done and always will do for us.